Is religion needed in todays society?

November 10, 2006, 3:48 PM

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Do we really need religion in today's society? It seems much more people are thinking for themselves nowadays and don't necessarily need/want a God/religion to follow.

I'm not sure what else to put right now, but I'm sure I'll have something to say once others have posted

November 10, 2006, 3:59 PM

I think that religion cause some of are problems in today but if you want to believe then believe cause we have no control over people.

November 10, 2006, 4:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xehanort Nobody

I think that religion cause some of are problems in today but if you want to believe then believe cause we have no control over people.

I didn't mean to imply that we wont ALLOW religion in society, I just mean for us to ask ourselves if it's necessary anymore.

November 10, 2006, 5:06 PM

Belief in afterlife/reincarnation is quite necessary for people who find life on Earth tragic or tedious. Belief that our deeds will affect our place in this afterlife is necessary to control those who just do not care about being moral. Religion can also motivate work or learning on the pretext of doing a deity's will.

But nowadays, life is happy for most people, and they are willing to accept it is the only one. As you say, most have been socialised into morality, and care about others' rights. And the general person will learn for the sake of learning alone, work for the pride and enjoyment of it, if not for some wages that, at the very least, can offer easy enough survival.

I suspect the answer to the question is 'no'.

November 10, 2006, 5:10 PM

The differences of the world were mainly cause by problems between people of different religions. In fact, is not the fault of religion, we humans are the ones to be blame for manipulating religion for our own personal benefice. The deaths, the suffering, the pain, all of this was created by the humans' own selfish desire.

November 10, 2006, 6:21 PM

It is true that the people who would kill in the name of religion are ethically weak enough as it is.

November 20, 2006, 6:27 PM

Religion was used for years to explain the unexplainable. Lighting striking a tree and causing fire scared people hundreds of years ago so they claimed that something greater or higher caused it. They had no real concept of science or deducing evidence so they made up what they thought happened to make themselves more comfortable with their environment. However, now that people are becoming more and more aware of cause and effect the need to use god to explain these things have decreased. Eventually the need for any sort of religion will fade as more things become explainable which will render all the made-up stuff null and void.

November 21, 2006, 2:27 PM

It could also be that we become comfortable enough to accept the fact that we do not know everything, and that it is better to admit ignorance, or not knowing how certain things happen, than to make up something about it, because it could be untrue. If we can reach this level of acceptance without the need to know everything and anything we can, even if that includes pretending to know everything and anything, then we do not need religion.

As for whether or not we need religion morally, that's really up to the individual person. But morals vary from religion to religion, and it is so subjective that there is no "right" or "wrong" moral necessarily; just one that fits society and what you believe, even if mutually. People often make the mistake of believing that morality cannot exist without religion, but good people who are assumed of having morals can be without religion.