Any positive benefits to religion/spirituality....

Hepheastus420

Hepheastus420

Well-Known Member
.. that are unique to religion?

Some people find comfort in religion, that could be taken as a positive, but is it unique? No. You can gain a sense of comfort in plenty of other things.

Does it give you a path in life? You can follow the same rules, you don't have to believe in afterlife..

So far, I haven't seen any benefits that are unique to religion... Can anybody name one?
 
no clue

no clue

Well-Known Member
Yeah. Can you get comfortable about your own death with other things? To me, if you have religion, you can maybe not worry about the endless not-life that we must face. Religion also seems to excuse some behaviors; God forgives you my son..
 
prosperian

prosperian

Well-Known Member
Hepheastus420 said:
.. that are unique to religion?

Some people find comfort in religion, that could be taken as a positive, but is it unique? No. You can gain a sense of comfort in plenty of other things.

Does it give you a path in life? You can follow the same rules, you don't have to believe in afterlife..

So far, I haven't seen any benefits that are unique to religion... Can anybody name one?
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None that I can think of... Religion is man's interpretation. Men have agendas.
 
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SeeRockCity

Active Member
those that truly seek their Creator tend to have more faith, confidence and consistent decision making...(no matter what religion IMO)

although....most people just use religion for show, $$, or any number of other reasons...
 
Zaehet Strife

Zaehet Strife

Well-Known Member
You can do things you normally wouldn't do, knowing you can just "ask for forgiveness" in your own mind and pretend to be forgiven, instead of confronting the person you wronged and asking them for forgiveness.
 
Hepheastus420

Hepheastus420

Well-Known Member
no clue said:
Yeah. Can you get comfortable about your own death with other things?
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Yes, yes I can. I'm comfortable with my death since I know my time has come and gone and it's time for another creature to experience life. No religion required

no clue said:
To me, if you have religion, you can maybe not worry about the endless not-life that we must face. Religion also seems to excuse some behaviors; God forgives you my son..
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Why fear the endles "not-life"? You won't feel anything, no need to worry..

And I'm WAY more comfortable with no afterlife than believing I'm gonna burn in hell..


This isn't unique to religion since we can accept and be comfortable with death without having to rely on beliefs of a happy afterlife.
 
no clue

no clue

Well-Known Member
Positive benefits.Hmm.Maybe some charity for the impoverished or the mentally ill? I think many food pantries are run by churches. Depends on what you consider benefits I guess
 
Heisenberg

Heisenberg

Well-Known Member
Spirituality can provide a unique type of inspiration, but I suppose that depends on how you define spirituality. If you define it as efforts and achievements one makes to overcome the feeling of being separate from the universe, then you could say my spirituality inspires me to progress in a way no other stimuli in my life does. I believe we are made of star stuff. That consciousness is a way for the universe to experience itself. The part of me that feels separate, anchored inside of my body, is an illusion. Not to say it doesn't exist, but it exists different from what it seems. Without the illusion of self the experience of life would have less meaning. So while I rejoice that I am one with the universe, I am thankful that I can experience life separate from it. The idea that the forces of the universe have converged in such a way as to offer it a chance to look at itself is amazing to me, and whether or not it was intentional, I feel I have an obligation to take advantage of the situation. So from this spiritual perspective I gain a purpose, which is to learn, experience and celebrate knowledge of the universe, of which I am.
 
tyler.durden

tyler.durden

Well-Known Member
Hepheastus420 said:
Yes, yes I can. I'm comfortable with my death since I know my time has come and gone and it's time for another creature to experience life. No religion required


Why fear the endles "not-life"? You won't feel anything, no need to worry..

And I'm WAY more comfortable with no afterlife than believing I'm gonna burn in hell..


This isn't unique to religion since we can accept and be comfortable with death without having to rely on beliefs of a happy afterlife.
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"I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it." - Mark Twain
 
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silasraven

Well-Known Member
religion no but spirituality yes. security, love, passion,life, retribution, equality, gaining everything in life.
 
Granny weed

Granny weed

Well-Known Member
I get huge comfort at the thought of the afterlife in that I believe that the people I have lost in my life I will meet again, without this comfort my death would be a scary thought and I would live my life in fear of my death, as now I don't fear death at all but welcome the thought of being re united with my loved ones.
 
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legaleyes13

Well-Known Member
That's a strange question. Are the source of feelings ever unique? But I will say that I believe religion and spirituality are 2 different things. Spirituality > Religion IMO
 
Chief Walkin Eagle

Chief Walkin Eagle

Well-Known Member
Heisenberg said:
Spirituality can provide a unique type of inspiration, but I suppose that depends on how you define spirituality. If you define it as efforts and achievements one makes to overcome the feeling of being separate from the universe, then you could say my spirituality inspires me to progress in a way no other stimuli in my life does. I believe we are made of star stuff. That consciousness is a way for the universe to experience itself. The part of me that feels separate, anchored inside of my body, is an illusion. Not to say it doesn't exist, but it exists different from what it seems. Without the illusion of self the experience of life would have less meaning. So while I rejoice that I am one with the universe, I am thankful that I can experience life separate from it. The idea that the forces of the universe have converged in such a way as to offer it a chance to look at itself is amazing to me, and whether or not it was intentional, I feel I have an obligation to take advantage of the situation. So from this spiritual perspective I gain a purpose, which is to learn, experience and celebrate knowledge of the universe, of which I am.
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O.O ... Im surprised to see this coming from you, good stuff... I know what I've said in the past may contradict what Im saying now but this is what I've always'd believed. God is Love. Nothing more, nothing less. Even if there was no such thing as a creator or all that jazz, God would still be love because I view love, in all forms, as the most powerful force in the universe. Souls dont have to exist for you to be spiritual. you dont even have to believe in them. I'd be living the same way if atheism was known to be the truth, minus all of the hocus pocus shit of course lol.
 
Padawanbater2

Padawanbater2

Well-Known Member
Granny weed said:
I get huge comfort at the thought of the afterlife in that I believe that the people I have lost in my life I will meet again, without this comfort my death would be a scary thought and I would live my life in fear of my death, as now I don't fear death at all but welcome the thought of being re united with my loved ones.
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I'm incapable of experiencing this.

The simple thought or hope of something like this happening isn't enough to quell those ancient residual thoughts of it. I need more than that.

To you I ask, how can you be at ease, content... satisfied not knowing, and only believing?
 
Heisenberg

Heisenberg

Well-Known Member
Chief Walkin Eagle said:
O.O ... Im surprised to see this coming from you, good stuff... I know what I've said in the past may contradict what Im saying now but this is what I've always'd believed. God is Love. Nothing more, nothing less. Even if there was no such thing as a creator or all that jazz, God would still be love because I view love, in all forms, as the most powerful force in the universe. Souls dont have to exist for you to be spiritual. you dont even have to believe in them. I'd be living the same way if atheism was known to be the truth, minus all of the hocus pocus shit of course lol.
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To me a soul is unique sophistication. The synergistic emergence of complicated chemistry co-existing with consciousness. The self is the personal narrative formed by the event of life. We borrow order from the universe and for a short time are given the chance to experience the universe, and I suppose a great argument could be made that love is the pinnacle of experience. If experience is valued by it's intensity, then I can think of no more intense feeling than that of love/sex/orgasm as well as the anguish felt when love is lost. But I would say experience is only part of the privilege and must be accompanied by knowledge and comprehension if the purpose is to be honored.

So I believe that chemistry and consciousness produce a self which can learn and experience and by doing so forms a narrative, or collectively, a soul, all of which are derived from the order granted to us from the universe via life.

So atheism is not the rejection of spirituality. It is simply a label for someone who says they do not find spirituality in religion, or from faith in a deity.
 
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o.mr.greenjeans

Member
:arrow::arrow:Religion is just the vehicle that we use to in someway put order to our existence. We put a human characteristic to the diety that fuels our religious vehicle because we truly do not know what the diety, if any actually looks like. Yes, religion can create as sense of spirituality, but it still only our way to communicate god from within and also a way to deal with the "insecurity" of not being able to look into the next realm. Is religion or an organized religion just a crutch so that there is no need to press our own thoughts and beliefs because too far it is so much easier to follow than blaze our own trail into the unknown. Using the god with the little "g" means god from a generic concept to God with a big "G" in the "I believe in God!" My life saver. Religion can be formal or informal, but it is still our human and humane way to deal with our world. There is security in believing that there is a way out of here "safely." Onward & upward. Hopefully, I and we don't take ourselves so seriously and that we believe we have all the answers.
 
Old Mate Gorks

Old Mate Gorks

Active Member
Religion is spirituality plus dogma. I see the 'religious dogma' as a filter for genuine spirituality in the same way that the ego acts as a filter for the unconscious.

Possible benefits, being a Rastafarian.
 
Zaehet Strife

Zaehet Strife

Well-Known Member
Heisenberg said:
Spirituality can provide a unique type of inspiration, but I suppose that depends on how you define spirituality. If you define it as efforts and achievements one makes to overcome the feeling of being separate from the universe, then you could say my spirituality inspires me to progress in a way no other stimuli in my life does. I believe we are made of star stuff. That consciousness is a way for the universe to experience itself. The part of me that feels separate, anchored inside of my body, is an illusion. Not to say it doesn't exist, but it exists different from what it seems. Without the illusion of self the experience of life would have less meaning. So while I rejoice that I am one with the universe, I am thankful that I can experience life separate from it. The idea that the forces of the universe have converged in such a way as to offer it a chance to look at itself is amazing to me, and whether or not it was intentional, I feel I have an obligation to take advantage of the situation. So from this spiritual perspective I gain a purpose, which is to learn, experience and celebrate knowledge of the universe, of which I am.
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Woah, that was epic.
 
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