To wonder how anyone can believe in a religion?

That's not how I feel. I love life. Never want it to end. My only sorrow is that people i love have died, and will die. If I thought there was an everlasting life where I'd see them again it would be a huge comfort.

Religion is as much about community, friendship and routine as faith. If you haven’t ever been part of one you won’t understand.

Because humans are driven to seek meaning. Even if they have to invent stories to do so.

Religion is also a very powerful control weapon

That isn't strictly true, as Christ's words themselves are wider than what he taught (if that makes sense!) I don't know any Christians that only follow the New Testament.

@Gahr

I'm a polytheist pagan and occultist, so I don't believe in Heaven and Hell, but I do believe there is so-called 'spirit world' (possibly many) where we continue to live after we depart from this one.

I do think that it will largely be a kinder world than the one we're currently in, which is probably why many like the concept. I also like the idea of reconnecting with those I have lost before. I already seek to connect with my lost loved ones through developing my own psychic abilities and by (occasionally) seeing mediums, but actually being in their presence again would be different.

When it comes to psychic research, there has been well over a century of it done by some reputable investigators and there are some studies (such as experiments with mediums) that suggest some sort of life after death is a possibility. I'm thinking of work done by the Windbridge Institute researcher, for example. There's also IONS (Institute of Noetic Sciences) and The Society for Psychical Research, which I think was founded in the 19th century...

um, why not?

unlike Islam which holds that the Koran is divine revelation, it’s quite clear in Christianity that the bible is not divine revelation, the Old Testament is a mix of history/poetry/etc and the New Testament is four accounts of the life of Jesus plus some letters.

in addition it is made very clear that Jesus is introducing a new covenant so that the rules etc of the Old Testament do not apply to Christians.

The clues in the name. The only teachings you need to follow to be a Christian are those of Christ. Everything that came before, anything written by men who never met him such as St Paul can indeed be taken or left.

We'll have to disagree then. Strength of numbers doesn't make it fact. And that's a fact 👍

The only religion I can see as having any appeal is Buddhism. I am not buddhist but I did briefly flirt with it in my twenties. I also prefer Judaism to the other Abrahamic religions because it doesn't emphasise the afterlife as much as the other two do. All this talk of the afterlife is terribly depressing and is a way of deferring the here and now. Also, if you are only being a good person for some possible reward of what value is your goodness really. It's just a way to control the gullible. It's about the only thing I agree with Marx about.

How much “rudimentary research and critical thinking” did you apply to answering your own question @Staringintothevoid616? Not a lot by the looks of it. @Gallowayan has it right, six out of ten, poor effort.

Another perspective here on a very interesting topic. I was brought up Catholic, the usual born into it scenario. I'm mid 30's for context. By 14, I just stopped going to mass, no interest ect. I don't believe in it. Two years ago my dh and I had a terrible tragedy. Our beautiful twins died the week they were born. Totally unexpected. Our second twin literally took their last breaths in our arms after three days in the NICU. It was devastating.

Although it hasn't brought me back to religion or anything, I want to desperately believe that I will see my gorgeous twins again and hold them again. That part of the unknown is hard. It's likely and logically irrational but it keeps the despair at bay sometimes. I can see how others would return.

They shouldn't follow the teachings of Christ only. That is cherry picking.

Why? Life is a lot simpler without having spurious beliefs. I can't understand why anyone would want a life after death. This life is taxing enough without any more of it.

Many Christians follow the teachings of Christ only. There's isn't anything he said that would be off putting to a feminist or a gay person.

Religion is a load of crap, designed by men to control women, designed by men and women to force control and fear into and onto everyone else.

It's 2-faced - ''Do not commit adultery - while vicars, nuns, etc. are doing exactly the same thing because 'my god told me to do it''. I signed an online petition about a twisted, evil priest in the USA who tortured and murdered cats, and his excuse? But, Jesus told me to do it''

I hate religion and the religious nuts. NOT those who quietly and respectfully go about their religion, but the bible bashers, the 2-facers. The ''do not sin'' idiots who are sinners themselves.

I talk to the universe, which I do believe in, not pray to gods that I don't believe in!

My son is a Buddhist.

I believe there is some dispute about whether it is a religion.

there are rules. It is also made clear that there are some circumstances where you should break the rules, and that the point of following Buddhism is to try to reach enlightenment and/or to help others do so.

the more understanding you have the less you need the rules.

my understanding is that the teachings of the Buddha are set in the Hindu context and so assume multiple gods however that isn’t the point of Buddhism.

I especially don't understand how feminists and gays can be Christian. I don't like any religion, but at least with Catholicism, Orthodox Judaism and Islam, we don't have any of all the happy clappy let's all be friends together everyone's equal claptrap. No, according to the book that you follow no we're not, so what are you doing here exactly!? It's why I don't like women vicars.

I wish I did.

Some people like the structure that it brings to their lives.

The guidance it offers and the routine it brings. It brings comfort to them in difficult times and guidance to them when they have problems. A sense of society, community and social support as well, as well as a marking of progress through their lives.

It can provide answers to difficult questions if they want it to. And also explain everything difficult that happens that people find hard to rationalise, justify or understand.

To some it brings comfort that there is something beyond life.

Modern religion is something I think that is very personal and brings different things to different people and there are many different sub branches of each religion that interpret it in different ways.

A lot of religious critics ask the question how can you believe this or that aspect of a religion and the answer is simple, a lot of religious people don't. You can believe that the teachings of religion as a method or framework of morals to live your life, without for example thinking superbeings created the earth in some weird way.

Religions are a lot more open to interpretation and question than they were in the past and peoples reasons for following them are generally more than just tradition, but this does vary from religion to religion and country to country.

@ColdAsAWitches

Believing in all the gods does not equate to believing that all the stories about them are true.

I pointed out in another post that polytheist pagans do not believe that the texts about the gods are all complete true and without error. Greek polytheist pagans believe Zeus exists, but they do not believe he created the world. Norse pagans do not believe that Odin literally created the world.

Pagan polytheists like myself believe all gods and goddesses exists because of the experiences that have been reported with them (by ourselves and by others.)