Building a Religion

"We are building a religion, we are buliding it bigger, we are widening the corridors and adding more lanes..."

--Cake, "Building a Religion" from the album "Comfort Eagle"


In my previous posts, I have repeatedly railed against the evils of organized religion, specifically Christianity. While I despise all organized religions equally, it should not be inferred that I despise all followers of these religions. I have met people who are able to leave room in their belief systems for alternate explanations, and this is all I would ever ask of someone. If someone wants to believe in Jesus, Allah, Vishnu, or Krishna, then more power to them, as long as they aren't hurting anyone else, or trying to force feed it to me. Of course, if they have children, or are in positions of power, and are feeding questionable information to those around them, then in my opinion, they are hurting people. Teaching a child to believe in God or Jesus, for example, isn't bad--only when you use fear tactics to keep them from questioning it.

It is mind boggling to me to consider the sheer numbers of people, who live seemingly totally normal lives, and yet prescribe to what I consider to be totally ridiculous belief systems. They will use technology that would not exist without science, and then turn around and claim that science is useless, and that only what they have faith in is real. I believe that you can have faith, without it blocking out the rest of reality. Some people can compartmentalize their beliefs, so they can have it both ways--believing in a 'God' without eliminating their ability to question. Realization that organized religions are self-propagating entities, and questioning the 'truth' contained within them, is detrimental to their continued existence. Regardless of their claims to exist in the best interests of mankind, it is obvious that they have a massive amount of power, large amounts of wealth, and are not afraid to exercise influence or control over those around them.

The hypocrisy of some people is almost unbelievable, as they take their views on something like having an abortion, which almost noone would ever 'want' to have, and force them on everyone. Their claims to 'moral' superiority are brought seriously into question when they support bombing abortion clinics, advocate killing abortion doctors, and especially forcing a woman who is raped or a girl who is molested to give birth to that child. Over the last decade or so, the religious right in America has been able to insert these 'moral' issues into political debate, attempting to take the high ground, although there are repeated cases of the biggest champions of the cause being guilty of moral quandaries.

Personally, if asked what I believe, I leave room for the possibility of a 'God', or a 'creator'. I can even understand where the 'Intelligent Design' argument originates. Anyone who sees the complexity and extents of the universe would be foolish not to at least consider the possibility. Anyone who has seen their own child brought into the world, and watched them grow cannot deny that it is nothing short of miraculous. However, it does 'God' a disservice to try to put him (or her, or it) into a box, and impose limitations (even if you still claim to believe that he is all-powerful). From what I see, religions, and their followers, take some of the best and worst attributes of humanity and attempt to imprint them upon their concept of God. They will use circular reasoning to 'prove' that there is evidence to back up their claims, quoting out of their own literature (often inaccurately). To me, a belief (or lack of belief) in God is a very personal thing, which I try to respect, unless confronted directly with what I consider to be false, misleading, or blatantly incorrect information. Arguing with someone who bases their beliefs on faith, as I have said before, is a losing battle since they usually do not leave room for the possibility that they might be wrong.

Despite how hard it is to admit to being wrong, I try to leave room for considering it. I have definitely been wrong about some things in the past, might very well be wrong about some things right now, and will doubtless be wrong about some things in the future. It is a constant source of amazement as to how many things that were obviously wrong were impossible to see when they were right in front of me. Sometimes all it takes is to listen to other points of view, or to perform research--even after you believe you have found the correct answer. Questioning what you believe to be true can sometimes be disheartening, sometimes reinforcing, but it can almost always lead to a better understanding of it. If only more people would consider the validity of their beliefs, especially based on their previous errors, it would lead to a much more enlightened world.

Next Time: The Global Economy