purpose of religion

[Thunder Bow]

Originally Posted by Native spirit

For me religion is in most part about control just like Thunder Bow has said.what he says is correct there is good and bad in every one.you follow yours and everyone else follow their own.doesnt say that what i believe will suit you and vice versa.

Namaste

This post clearly shows my view on this topic.

[Unseelie Queen]

I don't think such a broad thing has any one purpose? I definitely disagree with those who say that religion, itself--and in any form!-- is solely a tool to divide and control, because religion is has been an important part of countless peaceful communities all over the world. That aspect is just not typically televised in grim documentaries, is all. Or when it is--in the media or whatever-- those religious/spiritual communities are often implied as being unevolved or primitive by the snooty narrator. Which irritates me. (Greed-driven political leaders who use religion to control are another matter entirely) It can be a tool or catalyst, like everything else in existence. (And I say this as someone who almost definitely has had a past life in which I was killed by religious folk for my peculiar and blasphemous ways.)

To me, religion can be a useful framework to work within, in terms of spiritual development and connecting to the divine. There is nothing wrong with wanting a pre-established, organized framework with rules and rituals, so long as it inspires love and positive growth.

[Astro]

Originally Posted by RajputMaster24

Hello friends. Is the purpose of religion to develop character in individuals? For example, in the Bible it teaches to be Holy and grow in holiness and also in the Tao Te Ching we have the three treasures which teach us to develop virtues. And also in African religion, it teaches us to develop our character.

Religions seem to want to explain how and why the universe was created, & how we should behave, if we feel that we believe what's said. So a religion is a system of beliefs & practices concerning our relationship with the universe, God, fellow beings, ourselves, etc.

[Timothy]

Originally Posted by Baile

Yes, I see that too. Which is why I do not accept quiet submission. New-Age submission belief can be as dysfunctional as your average enabler-abuser relationship.

Abuse of power can be related to site maintenance, as a metaphor; (1) If we charge the moderators $1/day for the privilege of wielding the ban stick then we appeal to the sadistic side of their ego which easily results in a pyramid of abuse down the line. (2) If we leave the maintenance to altruistic providers then there's no guarantee the site will be up next month, but since there are no guarantees in life, that is still the better course.(3) If we leave site administration open to discussion, people will demand that the burden be shared and that a tax be levied, and surplus funds go towards upgrades rather than as profit for the organizers.

The ego of moderators isn't addressed in (2)&(3) but remains as an undeniable opportunity for abuse, in the metaphor.

[Timothy]

So religions depend on a Christ; A Son of Man who will bear the responsibilities and whose behavior under pressure will atone for the sins of those gone before him. The pyramid of abuse will angle for self-preservation.

[Chopper45]

Religion teaches lots of virtues beyond character; it is meant to cleanse the soul.

[Within Silence]

We cannot blame words, institutions or organizations, not even religion or others for causing us to say and do what we chose to say and do, as to allow this would reveal that one is not in control of itself. That would be like saying the gun killed that person, yet the gun pulled not its own trigger, nor did it think of doing it.

Thus humanity cannot place blame (responsibility) upon religion for doing this or that fearful, ignorant thing, but rather humanity has itself to blame for the creation of religion which it has created out of its fear and ignorance, which is why religion is full of both fear and ignorance.

Simply, the attempt to place blame reveals who truly holds it, holds the responsibility, otherwise how could one try to place that which it didn't own?

The power of religion is the result of the submission of its followers, for with out this it would fade into the nothingness it originated from.

I am not saying religion is a good or bad thing, but rather its the words and actions of humanity which we actually deem as good and bad not the religion itself, regardless of the religion one labels them self with/as. Hence, to kill whether one calls themself Christian, Buddhist, Taoist, agnostic or atheist means nothing;, one killed that's it. To lie is to lie regardless of ones faith or lack their of it. To harm is to harm, to help is to help and so on, the point being that labels, titles, religions or names/words do not cause one to do what they do, but rather their identification with the title, label or name does and or its tenants/dogmas/creeds etc. In other words, one is HOLY responsible unto itself, and no one can pay your sins for you. If another could pay for your sins then would this not make null and void the statement; "you reap what you sow?" How can one reap what it sows if someone else is reaping what you sowed?

Perhaps it would be more wise to drop every religion and remember that before any religion was created, and after they've all run their course, we are always human beings, perhaps spiritual beings wearing meat suits for a time, but while we're playing upon this earth we are human beings first and foremost.

As I see it, the heights of what the original meaning of the word religion was pointing to is reflected in one being as nothing, no thing, not this/not that or "neti neti" in sanskrit. It seems to tie in directly to the worlds oldest know" religion; animism. Animism holds that all life IS spirit, not that all life HAS spirit, and between these two words IS vs. Has is an extremely big difference.

My Dad use to tell me that the Bible was written by man, for man, to control man.

I think religious books are just the history of people trying to find the divine.

[Floatsy]

Originally Posted by knightofalbion

Alas, Orthodox religion tends to veer towards control and division ...

Not only Orthodox religion surely!?

[Floatsy]

Originally Posted by WabiSabi

I believe that religion was originally an institution brought about by the wise in order to teach/guide the ignorant towards realizing the connection they have with their true self.

On that note, things change. Many religions fell to corruption and their teachings were pruned, standardized, and oft utilized by those in power to control populations. Despite such corruption, the original wisdom still resounds throughout the teachings of these religions.

+1 as they say...

And there are still genuine aspirants and even Masters within some, finding them is the job, but the more (genuinely) developed oneself is, the easier that task. YMMV.