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Question: Religion in modern society!?
I always felt that religion was created to explain the unexplainable!.
By all means, many things will probably always remain inexplicable too!. However at the same time!.!.!.do you believe religion can sometimes act to stall potential curiousity!?
That is!.!.!.people prefer not to delve into philosophical thought - and prefer the coverage and guidance religion and say, the Bible, provide!?
By all means don't get me wrong - I'm not saying it's wrong to do so if you are religious - nor am I criticising religion!.
Just questioning its place in modern, scientific society!.!.!.
Do you prefer to believe or wonder!?
Ask questions or take solace in faith!?
Perhaps a balance of both!?Www@QuestionHome@Com
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
Yes I do feel at lots of levels religion is there to hold us back!.
I had a question once and tried church men each of them said something on the lines of 'dont' bother your pretty little head'
Yes I prefer to tussle with not knowing and live my process - I like wondering I don't take solace in certainty at all!.
I don't disrespect any one who needs certainty but I find it a dismal stuck place and there is a certain dynamic between the two - Fundamentalists want company in their stuckness and total agreement in the certainty of god(s)
I am - no scientist but love to hear of new theories and debates going on!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Until the 1600s (the Renaissance in Europe), all answers about the universe were sought in the Bible!. Science and rational logic did not exist, and those who tried were burned for being heretics!.
Is religion a barrier to progress!? Absolutely!. History proves it!. The Renaissance allowed for freedom of thought and ideas of Humanism, which allowed for the Scientific Revolution to take place, which allow the Industrial revolution to happen!. Thus, our world was born!.
Science and rational thought have gained such a foothold now that religion is no longer a barrier--it only stops hardcore fundementalists from accepting the reality of the world!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
I prefer faith to anything this life has to offer! I rely on this faith to carry me and protect me throughout my life, and without a doubt it certainly will! And!.!.!. yes religion was manmade!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
I agree!.
If there is a god, it was never explained right, and religion got it wrong!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
no faith fo rme, science is the way
but that's partly geneticWww@QuestionHome@Com
I'd say a balance!.
I will never stop wondering about some things!. Others, due to my religion, I will never stop believing!.
I'm Christian, and I believe that God wants us to advance intellectually, and learn about the world we live in as much as we can!. As God is a god, and gods are omnipotent beings, than it would make sense that omnipotent beings are at the very pinnacle of evolutionary potential, and would not shun science in the slightest!. Which is why I don't understand it when people say science is the enemy of faith!. The more I learn about the world, how it started, etc, the more my faith makes sense to me!.
To me, the Bible is a book about God and Love!. It's there to tell us we are loved and that we should love; that's what I place my faith in!. It wasn't written to explain why red shift occurs and what that means in relation to the beginning of the universe!. It was written for moral direction!.
So for me, no, my religion does not stall my curiosity in the slightest!. If anything, it affirms it!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
As a category of examination, "religion" is likely too broad a generalization!.
When defining "religion," the issue of circularization also obtains!. I!.e!., one's perception conditions one's definition, which determines one's conclusion!.
An alternative to focusing on the "sociology of religion" might well be "spirituality," this defined as an "I-Thou" relationship!.
Thus, e!.g!. a practicing Catholic or Methodist might find a stairway to heaven during Mass or Service!. These religious people tend then to be placed into various categories, as you suggest: (stereo)typically putting critical thought about Kantian questions such as "Is God!?", "Am I immortal!?", etc!., and letting "specialization of labor" provide insight, etc!., during pastoral work!.
Yet, to categorize even such religious so facilely, as "marching morons," is perhaps to denigrate their individuality and depth!.
Secondly, philosophy overall has not done much to elucidate even physical reality--many competing theories, etc!.
"Modern science" actually is tending in biophysics, etc!. to support the notions of soul, intention, gnosis:
http://www!.tiller!.org
http://www!.tcm!.phy!.cam!.ac!.uk/~bdj10
http://www!.sheldrake!.org
http://www!.noetic!.org
http://www!.heartmath!.org
http://noosphere!.princeton!.edu
http://www!.quantumbrain!.org
http://www!.divinecosmos!.com as examples!.
Hence, it may be a case of nuance and balance, rather than over-categorizing "religion" as "old" and "science" as "new," etc!. This is termed the "black and white fallacy!."
"Extraordinary Knowing," Dr!. Elizabeth Mayer,
"The Path of the Higher Self," Mark Prophet,
"The Great Divorce," C!. S!. Lewis, and
"Nihilism," Father Seraphim Rose, are interesting!.Www@QuestionHome@Com