I just gotta ask...

"...God is an ever-receding pocket of scientific ignorance..."
--Neil DeGrasse Tyson
(I :heart: him.)

 

Human being has "slavery" in nature. They created God so they can have something to worship.

 

Weird moment? As long as you didn't dress the part and parade around the streets at night....

 

And as long as you don't run into the Hulk.

That didn't go well for Loki.

 

According to Supernatural, Loki is actually the archangel Gabriel. Whom Lucifer killed.

 

Damn! You watch that fly on the wall documentary? I swear those cameras are more trouble than they are worth but no Sammy thought it was a good idea, educate the masses and all that.

Only thing they got right was the title music.

As for Loki/Gabriel well the dude was a pain in the ass but he grew on you.

 

just don't use the term ignorant, you might offend someone.

 

Religion promotes the idea that humanity/life is somehow inherently a problem that needs to be solved.

While humanity does have it's problems, I don't think that they are inherent and I believe more practical and tangent solutions can be thought of than the ones promoted by various religions.

 

I can't say that is true of either Buddhism or Taoism. Loosely speaking both deal with the issue of accepting reality as it is, letting go of our expectations of how life should be and being content in the moment.

:hat:

 

Is that also not the same as science? Try to see way to improve our lot and solve problems we have and the world has? In fact at its core the intent is essentially identical - improve.

Now if you took issue with the METHOD of said improvement you would have a stronger point ("magic" vs "science" as a grossly over simple example)

 

No I don't believe it is the same as science because science doesn't opperate from a premise that people are somehow inherently bad, impure, lost ect... moreover scientific views are subject to change based on evidence, whereas religious views are much less likely to change regardless of how negative their impact are.

I'm not talking about about science vs magic, but the general attitude/beliefs that various religions have towards the general population. I believe it to be a rather negative view and at times down right insulting. People don't need to saved, we're not pure or impure spiritually, and I don't think any is really that much more enlightened than the next. To suggest otherwise is frankly arrogant.

Moreover as for Buddhism and taoism being about accepting reality and dealing with your expectations of life, I would say that those are what they would see as inherent problems with humanity/life. I've met many people who are were not religous yet able to deal with problems that they faced and I've met people who were very religious but barely able to cope with things that happened in their own life.

I also don't like the apathy that a lot of religious people show towards real world problems right outside their doorstep. While religions can show people a way to cope with problems people face, they do little to solve the actual problem. A more more scientific approach would try to attack the problem at it's root.

 

Nor do all - in fact most - religions claim this.

 

I respectfully disagree.

 

Buddhism at it's core does not believe people are bad or good. Buddhism is about how to relieve suffering, in particular your own suffering.

Now there is a lot of cultural baggage that has been added to Buddhism so your mileage may vary depending on which school of thought you choose to follow. I happen to be a secular Buddhist with some Zen and Pure Land thrown in.

 

As I said before Buddhism can teach you a way to deal with suffering, but what does it do to solve the issue that is causing the suffering in the first place? For example if someone is suffering from a terminal illnesses Buddhism can help you cope with it, however I feel it comes up far to short in terms of curing the disease that is actually causing the suffering. I believe that the same can also be said of societal issues that cause personal suffering.

 

Do you have sourcing for this belief of yours? I can think of only one major family of religions that adhere to a concept of "broken" or "flawed" human existence, and even that is subject to interpretation.

Certainly it is not at the core of my beliefs/religious system - i seek to maximise my potential (to keep it simple) and the belief system I follow advocates that.

With the best will in the world I don;t think you have looked at this too deeply

 

In case number one you go to a doctor and get treatment. Because of your Buddhism you follow the doctors instructions, pay attention to the rest of your health, have a good attitude and increase your chances of getting better. You will then either get better or die.

Not sure what you mean with societal issues, care to give an example?

 

I see where Whitepanda is coming from, I grew up Catholic. Because of original sin, I was always made to feel that I was born "guilty", and unless I was a good little catholic...I'm gonna burn. I hate that viewpoint as an adult, and refuse to burden my kids with it.