Religion is a part of life. Religion serves as a moral compass to many people, it solves our fears of the unknown by telling us what happens after death. Unlucky, it also attributes a lot of other things to the deity that mankind has since figured out.
Organized religion as a whole is a great way to influence the actions of great numbers of people in similar ways. People have been trying to convince other people of their opinions for a very long time, and I would shake the hand of the person that first thought up the farce of making dissenting views morally wrong. The major problem with religion today is that it takes that idea to extremes by designating anyone with a different religion as a “sinner”.
The key is tolerance. Until we stop all the petty disputes about whose god is better than whose, the world simply cannot exist peacefully. I love the “Coexist” bumper stickers because they state simply in no uncertain terms that people have different ideas and that’s OK. If you need a special book and a religious leader to tell you right from wrong, that’s OK. I don’t even care which one you pick.
As soon as you start telling me what I should and should not believe in, you have overstepped your bounds. I respect your right to try and convince me that your faith is the best one, but don’t tell me I’m going to hell or am in any other way damned because I don’t go to whatever organized religious meeting you’re selling. As a matter of fact, getting over our petty differences in opinion would go along way toward making friends. Oh, and don’t forget that I reserve the right to try and convince you that you’re religion is silly. I also hold you responsible for telling me when I’ve taken my argument too far.
Maybe there should be laws against religious exclusivity. Religious exclusivity of course referring to teach people that any one religion is better than any other. Actually, at the rudimentary level, the reason religions teach exclusivity is to make sure that everybody is on the same page, following the same morals and so on. I think that by now all religions have enough in common in the way of morals that we can do away with the differences in doctrine and work together for the sake of mankind.
Alright, so we’ve got a solution, but how do we put it into action? Teaching tolerance is an uphill battle, I’m sure. If we want the human race to have it’s ducks in a row ten years from now, we’ve got a lot of work to do. Television ads are probably in order. Billboard campaigns. Any sort of publicity. The best way to deal with our demons is to drag them out in the open and have a good look at them. If we expose the ugly side of religious exclusivity for what it really is, maybe people will start to get the message that we should stop fighting amongst ourselves and strive for our goals together.
I think people should strive to be good to themselves and their neighbors. Don’t do to others what you don’t want done to you. The world is full of people doing harm or exploiting others, but those same people get upset when it’s done to them. Some people actually need a book to show them what’s right or wrong. The only way we can make the world a better place is to be good examples for our children.
Organized religion as a whole is a great way to influence the actions of great numbers of people in similar ways. People have been trying to convince other people of their opinions for a very long time, and I would shake the hand of the person that first thought up the farce of making dissenting views morally wrong. The major problem with religion today is that it takes that idea to extremes by designating anyone with a different religion as a “sinner”.
The key is tolerance. Until we stop all the petty disputes about whose god is better than whose, the world simply cannot exist peacefully. I love the “Coexist” bumper stickers because they state simply in no uncertain terms that people have different ideas and that’s OK. If you need a special book and a religious leader to tell you right from wrong, that’s OK. I don’t even care which one you pick.
As soon as you start telling me what I should and should not believe in, you have overstepped your bounds. I respect your right to try and convince me that your faith is the best one, but don’t tell me I’m going to hell or am in any other way damned because I don’t go to whatever organized religious meeting you’re selling. As a matter of fact, getting over our petty differences in opinion would go along way toward making friends. Oh, and don’t forget that I reserve the right to try and convince you that you’re religion is silly. I also hold you responsible for telling me when I’ve taken my argument too far.
Maybe there should be laws against religious exclusivity. Religious exclusivity of course referring to teach people that any one religion is better than any other. Actually, at the rudimentary level, the reason religions teach exclusivity is to make sure that everybody is on the same page, following the same morals and so on. I think that by now all religions have enough in common in the way of morals that we can do away with the differences in doctrine and work together for the sake of mankind.
Alright, so we’ve got a solution, but how do we put it into action? Teaching tolerance is an uphill battle, I’m sure. If we want the human race to have it’s ducks in a row ten years from now, we’ve got a lot of work to do. Television ads are probably in order. Billboard campaigns. Any sort of publicity. The best way to deal with our demons is to drag them out in the open and have a good look at them. If we expose the ugly side of religious exclusivity for what it really is, maybe people will start to get the message that we should stop fighting amongst ourselves and strive for our goals together.
I think people should strive to be good to themselves and their neighbors. Don’t do to others what you don’t want done to you. The world is full of people doing harm or exploiting others, but those same people get upset when it’s done to them. Some people actually need a book to show them what’s right or wrong. The only way we can make the world a better place is to be good examples for our children.
没有评论:
发表评论