Religion 3.0

"Religion is the opium of the people." -Karl Marx, German philosopher and economist. 

The Holocaust, Charlie Hebdo, ISIS, the Crusades, the Inquisition, practically every Middle Eastern conflict, and countless more, all have at least one common thread- religion.

Disenfranchisement, discrimination, racism, sexism, and homophobia all have a common thread- religion.

If you think about it, religion is at the heart of many conflicts and issues that we've dealt with since the dawn of civilized people. 

In all of the great cultures that have come before us, our Christian society has looked back and discounted their religions referring to them as myths. At it's core, myth is simply a way for a man to make sense and find his place in the universe.

All religions are myths. Even our modern day Christian culture is based on mythology. 

They're stories told to make sense of our world and our place in the universe and to give us structure. 

It is an illusion that people use to find comfort and safety in their place and their purpose in life. 

All religions are myths including: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Mormonism, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc...etc... 

These are not factual histories though there may be historical facts in them. 

They are works of fiction, or myths, all the same. 

Religions are businesses that are run to make money. They make money by keeping people disempowered and afraid. Instead of unifying, they keep people separate by pronouncing that they hold the real truths. If you do not believe their way, you are wrong, and there begins all matter of chaos. 

Religion is the pill we take to get through the day because we don't want to question or think for ourselves. But there are side effects; we give up analytical thinking, the opportunity to be accountable for our own actions, and the possibility that we are inherently good as opposed to inherently flawed. 

And the reason I say we give up analytical thinking for religion is because why else would a perfectly reasonable human being say that the earth is 6,000 years old? And nonetheless defend that proposition to the death with myth from his bible as though it were fact although hard provable science tells us otherwise.

I would love to think that we can be empathetic human beings that would rather not kill people. And not because we think it's some sort of "ticket" to the heavens but just simply because it's the right thing to do. 

Why are women and gays and people of any sort of color treating so unfairly if religion is all about loving thy neighbor as yourself?

Qur'an (4:11) "The male shall have the equal of the portion of two females."

Qur'an (2:228) "and the men are a degree above them [women]"

The truth is that male religious leaders have had - and continue to have - an option to interpret holy teachings to exalt or subjugate women. 

I find it ironic how women are now welcomed into all different levels of professions and positions of authority, but are seen as inferior and are deprived of the equal right to serve god in positions of religious leadership. And this trickles down to minorities. 

Like c'mon, black people weren't allowed to be members of the LDS church until 1978, which isn't that long ago in the scheme of things.

I find it so tremendously difficult figuring out why women, black people or gay people would want to be a part of any church simply because of the unified belief that these organic occurrences are sinful and wrong.

The contradictions and commandments to love and accept everyone unless they believe in a different religion or they were born loving the same sex or are a different color. Churches and religions preach love but their actions are all about separation and hierarchy. Separation being the individual is not capable of communing with god without an intercessor (priest, pastor, bishop, etc..) that the individual needs to have it explained to them because they are not capable on their own of this enlightened understanding. It's a great way to make money and ensure job security. And the person being preached to agrees to this because now they don't have to think for themselves and take responsibility for their actions. We are sheeple just following. 

This is based on fear of someone or something different and not love and accepting someone of their own terms. Because of this fear, we try to change or assimilate the outsider to accept our norms. And if they don't, then they are bad. People's feelings then get hurt and then everybody wants to fight everybody because everybody believe that they have the "right" way and all of the answers for everyone else. We tithe and donate to keep these money making, yet not for profit institutions running. The Catholic church is the richest corporation on the planet. 

Yet again, this is all based on myth and no fact, no data to support any of the stories. And everyone is ready to be insulted and persecuted to the extent that they're living to fight and die for a lie. 

Ask most people if Jesus was an historic figure or a myth, they will tell you an historic figure. And there's not one shred of evidence that Jesus ever walked this earth. 

Also, saying "that's not true, it's in the Bible," does not count as a counterargument because the Bible is not fact. 

It infuriates and saddens me that people turn to these institutions for answers instead of turning to themselves for the answers. Instead of questioning the inconsistencies and teachings and stories, they just trust that if they do what they're told, everything will be okay. 

So this justifies aberrant behavior such as discrimination, sexism, homophobia, and genocide as the Lord's work.

I like to keep my options open.  I don't have answers. I don't purport to know the truth. I believe it's okay to just say, I don't know. 

I believe I know the difference between right or wrong, not based on the fear of god but on an intuitive understanding and empathy for the human race that is born in me. Give me science and data and my own experience of the world, not proselytizing and judgment.





OR

My toilet bowl is my spiritual advisor. It keeps me low to the ground and humble and grounds me everyday. And constantly reminds me that I'm full of shit.