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Dale Westlund

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I propose that religeon is the major factor holding back the advancement of the human race.

One of my favorite quotes, and I have to admit I don't know who said it but it was a post that my son put up on his facebook one day.. "Morality is doing what is right regardless of what you are told.. Religeon is doing what you are told regardless of what is right.." That pretty much says it all in a nut shell. I grew up in a very religeous household where we were taught to obey whatever the bible told us.. Then I grew up and grew a brain of my own. What do you think?

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  • Maria Cangemi

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    Apr 12 2012: Hi,

    I totally disagree with this statement.

    Of course, it depends on point of view and on the type of religious education that everyone receive, but I do not think that Religion is just a way to avoid to use our brains.

    I will speak about Catholicism., as this is the Religion I know better.
    There is no teaching in the Catholicism which says to obey for the sake of obbedience.
    Hence, in the Gospel you can read that when Jesus was asked what was the most important commandment to follow he replied: "Love God with all your heart, strenght and mind, and Love your neithbor as yourself".

    This is similar also to the Torah (the Jewish Law):

    Rabbi Hillel (c.110 BCE-10 CE)said: “What is hateful to thyself do not do to another. That is the whole Law, the rest is Commentary.”Hillel recognized brotherly love as the fundamental principle of Jewish moral law.
    Rabbi Akiva (50-135 C.E.) also recognised as the chief and greatest principle of Judaism the command, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself".

    Saint Augustine, one of Father of the Catholic Church, said: Love, and do what you want.

    These are only a few examples, but the fundamental principle of the Catholic Church is the Love to God and to other human beings. And a Catholic is free. free to judge, free to make mistake, there is no constriction because the only reason to follow the 10 commandaments and the other rules it is your Love to God.

    And a great deal of philosophers and scientists in the Western World were Catholics, or Anglicans, or Luterans.

    Kopenico was Catholic, Newton was Anglican. Would you say that their works hold back the humanity development?
    Mendel, father of Genetic, was a monk.
    Jérome Lejeune, discovered the extra chromosome that causes Down syndrome, catholic
    Louis Pasteur, Catholic ( no need of presentation!)
    Compton, Arthur Holly, Nobel Prize for Phisycs, Cristian Baptist
    Charles Darwin, Anglican
    Karl Heisenberg, Luteran
    Enrico Fermi, Catholic.
    Leonardo Da Vinci (Catholic)
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      Dale Westlund

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      Apr 12 2012: Hi Maria.. You have (in a way) illistrated my poiint exactly.. Religeon is so ingrained in socioties all around the world, that even brilliant minds, still to this day, believe in the "heaven or hell" concept. And believe that you must obey a higher power or be eternally damned..?! Here in the USA stem cell research has been stalled due to religeous belief and other countries are moving ahead with this research. I believe that when children are indoctrinated or (brainwashed if you will) with religeous beliefs, it causes them to not look for other explainations for the reason why we are here, what is our purpose, etc.. Because after all in the christian religeon, if you don't believe in God or fallow his word, you will damned to eternal suffering... How convenient. I believe it locks up the minds of otherwize very intelligent human beings all around the world.

      Thank you everyone for your comments and opinions..
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        Mary M. 100+

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        Apr 12 2012: Dale, hell is not a teaching found in all the christian faiths. My faith teaches that the wages sin pays is death. Hell is seen as the common grave of mankind, based on scriptures.

        The majority of christian denominations teach a fiery hell, but not all...................

        I wonder sometimes how effective the teaching of hell has been...........people seem to do as they please, so down deep inside I really doubt very many people believe in hell.

        I'll say this, even religious leaders, who have gotten away with, and continue to get away with all sorts of immoral acts must truly doubt that hell exists, or they would act differently.

        Just my opinion.....and, here is a conversation a young man started a few weeks back on the corruption of some pastors in Africa.

        You might enjoy reading through the comments and voicing your own opinions.

        http://www.ted.com/conversations/10294/extraordinary_wealth_of_pastor.html

        Anyways, great topic of conversation.
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          Dale Westlund

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          Apr 12 2012: Thank you Mary.. But it does stand to reason like the saying goes.. "Aint none of us gettin' out of this world alive.. : )

      • Maria Cangemi

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        Apr 12 2012: Hi Dale,

        Thank you for your reply.

        I do not know other Christian religions, so I do not know what they teach about hell and heaven, but I do know the catholic one, and I can tell that there is no-one who can say if someone is eternally damned or not, neither the pope, as no-one can know the inscrutable God's mercy.
        Hell, however, is only the eternal absence of God, and it is up to every man decide whether or not choose God during their life.

        Also, I am failing to understand why the only fact to have a religion can prevent human progress. The scientist can, as the great names quoted above show, arrive to great discovery whether or not they believe in God.

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