What is Religion?
Saturday, June 28th, 2008I confess, my first thought is that religion has been the cause of nearly as many wars as territorial battles. For some reason, all too often people seem to think that if you don’t agree with them, you’re evil spawn of the devil.
But that doesn’t answer the question: What is Religion?
Per dictionary.com, “1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.”
Basically, it boils down to “how did we get here and what should we do now that we’re here?” The first part of that is an interesting question that can’t really be answered, and it’s not really the part that is a big problem. The second part, on the other hand, is where people go off the deep end. In this context, “what should we do” is about morals: what’s “right” and what’s “wrong”. People tend to have strong feelings about such things, with the result that they have the attitude of “act this way or you’re evil spawn of the devil and you must die!” Fortunately, the last part is rare, but the rest isn’t, and all too often has a real impact on regular people just trying to live their lives in peace.
Part of that impact comes from the fact that people like to use religion as an excuse to avoid critical thinking. They go “well, it’s written here” or “I was told this by <religious leader>”, so that must be the way it is, whether what they’re told is contradictory or not (e.g. Leviticus). A corollary is that, once choosing to believe something, then “that is the One True Way”. This is another way of saying “I won’t even consider the idea that there are other ways of thinking”, and is the first step down the violent road all too many supposedly “peace loving” religions have taken (and I’m not talking just war here: the Inquisition and the Salem Witch Trials are just a couple of the more well known religious persecutions that have taken place).
The fact is, you choose your morals, whether you are religious or not. You may be lazy and just accept the ones you grew up with, really avoiding any thinking, or you may actively choose a set, either by choosing a religious sect to follow, or just by deciding what you think is right and wrong (which, admittedly, to do properly is a lot more work!). Though, in point of fact, many end up doing the latter even when they choose to follow a religion, picking and choosing the parts they like and those they don’t. In this way, religion is simply a shortcut, a menu you start with: I’ll take “thou shalt not kill”, but no, I think I like fornicating thank you very much (at least that’s what a lot of people seem to start with!).
Just remember: when you choose a religion, you are making a statement about yourself for others to fit you into a box with. People who don’t know you can’t know that you have discarded the less charitable aspects of the religion (assuming you have!). Likewise, realize that religion is, in the end, very personal, and everyone trims it to fit their real beliefs. Wait until you get to know someone and who they really are before jumping to conclusions. The world will be a far better place for everyone…
