I won’t argue that religion hasn’t been usurped throughout history in the name of control. I can mostly only speak with any confidence on Christianity. The Bible regardless how holy and true we are told it is has no doubt been tainted by men throughout history.
There’s still plenty of good in religion despite that. And I don’t think it’s wrong to believe there’s more than what we see. What life looks like after death is a mystery. Science points to your body shuts down. Fact. But we can’t say with any certainty that’s it.
From my experience a healthy church encourages my skepticism. It’ll encourage asking tough questions. It helps me to explore what I believe. The reward when doing that exploration seems to vary from one to another. Myself I became more resilient to the day to day troubles around me that were too big. Me yelling in the void of social media doesn’t change much about issues like global warming or people in need. I can reduce my consumption I can repair instead of replace. I can volunteer my time to help kids who’s parents can’t take care of them. The universe as a whole will be a little better for it
Not all need religion, I accept that, some people have all they need to get by and will cruise from now to the grave. But to some of us it is a major force for happiness and healthiness.
There are many things that provide comfort for people. Drug/Alcohol use, literature etc. Fandoms are just… weird, and religion is the oldest and most mature category of fandoms.
The Bible “has been tainted by men” because it’s a construct and story written by men, it’s always been that.
We don’t worship George Lucas today, but maybe in a thousand years we’ll worship Geo Luca and the virgin birth of Anak SkyBoots.
If you think I’m being reductive or insulting, it’s not meant to be. I grew up taking communion, and agonizing over every masturbation. The story isn’t the problem, it’s the rules to be part of the Fandom.
Not insulted at all. Grew up in Church of Christ and I can tell you that church did not match me. There’s a lot to what didn’t match me but let’s go with the overall close mindedness of it was a problem for a curious mind.
As soon as I was old enough not to go, I didn’t. Atheism for the next two decades until I found something was missing. Explored other churches and found a non-denominational that matches my views as well as doesn’t judge me as a heretic for questioning.
I think it’s unfortunate many of us grow up going to a specific brand of church. What worked for our parents in their situation may not line up either with our personality or the world we live in today.
I won’t argue that religion hasn’t been usurped throughout history in the name of control. I can mostly only speak with any confidence on Christianity. The Bible regardless how holy and true we are told it is has no doubt been tainted by men throughout history.
There’s still plenty of good in religion despite that. And I don’t think it’s wrong to believe there’s more than what we see. What life looks like after death is a mystery. Science points to your body shuts down. Fact. But we can’t say with any certainty that’s it.
From my experience a healthy church encourages my skepticism. It’ll encourage asking tough questions. It helps me to explore what I believe. The reward when doing that exploration seems to vary from one to another. Myself I became more resilient to the day to day troubles around me that were too big. Me yelling in the void of social media doesn’t change much about issues like global warming or people in need. I can reduce my consumption I can repair instead of replace. I can volunteer my time to help kids who’s parents can’t take care of them. The universe as a whole will be a little better for it
Not all need religion, I accept that, some people have all they need to get by and will cruise from now to the grave. But to some of us it is a major force for happiness and healthiness.
There are many things that provide comfort for people. Drug/Alcohol use, literature etc. Fandoms are just… weird, and religion is the oldest and most mature category of fandoms.
The Bible “has been tainted by men” because it’s a construct and story written by men, it’s always been that.
We don’t worship George Lucas today, but maybe in a thousand years we’ll worship Geo Luca and the virgin birth of Anak SkyBoots.
If you think I’m being reductive or insulting, it’s not meant to be. I grew up taking communion, and agonizing over every masturbation. The story isn’t the problem, it’s the rules to be part of the Fandom.
Not insulted at all. Grew up in Church of Christ and I can tell you that church did not match me. There’s a lot to what didn’t match me but let’s go with the overall close mindedness of it was a problem for a curious mind.
As soon as I was old enough not to go, I didn’t. Atheism for the next two decades until I found something was missing. Explored other churches and found a non-denominational that matches my views as well as doesn’t judge me as a heretic for questioning.
I think it’s unfortunate many of us grow up going to a specific brand of church. What worked for our parents in their situation may not line up either with our personality or the world we live in today.