I have a problem with religion. I was thinking the other day about why makes me a Humanist. Why is it that I reject supernaturalism and (a Christian) god in favor of a belief in Humanity?
I am prejudiced against religion, I admit, but I think that I have some good reasons. I was raised Catholic and they in particular are bad with this; my problem is god is infallible, divine. He has unlimited power that mankind can borrow from. He hands out favors only to those he deems worthy. On the other hand, mankind is flawed, all of the evil in the world is on man's shoulders, and we’re responsible for original sin, death, and evil. Man is responsible for industry, pollution, ugly cities, and god gets credit for nature, sunsets, and rainbows. In our contemporary lives men and women go to Alcoholics Anonymous and they are told that it is their weakness that they have to overcome, and the only way to do that is to borrow strength from god.
So I dislike religion because it does a couple of things to people:
-It lessens their self-esteem, relegating humanity to a half-hearted potential
-It uses guilt to diminish people
-It places blame on the individual
-It takes power from the hands of the individual, and puts it in god's control
-It teaches that people are accountable to higher authority instead of themselves.
So these are some of the reasons that I have turned against religion and went towards humanism, which is a progressive life stance that teaches that human beings are to blame for our misery, yes, but we also have the strength within us to correct our past mistakes. Humanists say that humanity has the intelligence to govern itself with common decency, rules that are reflected in the teachings of Jesus Christ like living your life to the best of your ability without harming others (treat others how you would like to be treated).
So if faced with to ways of life that have similar aims, to organize existence and human life, which would you prefer: One that preaches submission, or one that teaches self-reliance?
Think for yourself and question authority...also, let me know what you people think about this.
-ZERO MASS
I am prejudiced against religion, I admit, but I think that I have some good reasons. I was raised Catholic and they in particular are bad with this; my problem is god is infallible, divine. He has unlimited power that mankind can borrow from. He hands out favors only to those he deems worthy. On the other hand, mankind is flawed, all of the evil in the world is on man's shoulders, and we’re responsible for original sin, death, and evil. Man is responsible for industry, pollution, ugly cities, and god gets credit for nature, sunsets, and rainbows. In our contemporary lives men and women go to Alcoholics Anonymous and they are told that it is their weakness that they have to overcome, and the only way to do that is to borrow strength from god.
So I dislike religion because it does a couple of things to people:
-It lessens their self-esteem, relegating humanity to a half-hearted potential
-It uses guilt to diminish people
-It places blame on the individual
-It takes power from the hands of the individual, and puts it in god's control
-It teaches that people are accountable to higher authority instead of themselves.
So these are some of the reasons that I have turned against religion and went towards humanism, which is a progressive life stance that teaches that human beings are to blame for our misery, yes, but we also have the strength within us to correct our past mistakes. Humanists say that humanity has the intelligence to govern itself with common decency, rules that are reflected in the teachings of Jesus Christ like living your life to the best of your ability without harming others (treat others how you would like to be treated).
So if faced with to ways of life that have similar aims, to organize existence and human life, which would you prefer: One that preaches submission, or one that teaches self-reliance?
Think for yourself and question authority...also, let me know what you people think about this.
-ZERO MASS
