Religion Perspective
When I was a child, I was a devout Catholic. I went to church every week and prayed before I went to bed. It wasn't until I was a teenager when I started to question the faith. I started reading more and more about religion, and why I pray and go to church every Sunday, Christianity in particular. I soon realized that it was fabricated by man, but with good intentions. One major problem I had is that it stifles the intellectual mind and has a particular definite way of looking at things.
Historically, religion has caused more bad than good. For example, the longest struggle of religious war I have ever studied, the crusades was a fanatical war. The crusades was not just aimed to retake the holy land from the Muslims, but to spread the word of god. Thousands of men, women, and children murdered all in the name of Jesus Christ. This conflict still resonates to this day in the Middle East. Some Muslims interpret their holy book (The Qur'an) and they believe that the non-followers of the Islam religion should swiftly die unless they convert. In the Spanish Inquisition, many non-Christians were tortured so they can be forced to convert, most didn't convert and they preferred death. I think this brutality should have not been forgotten as long as the religions who perpetrated the violent incidents are still in power.
Science and religion has always been rivals because science explains that there is no supernatural beings or worlds and religion states there is. There is no correlation between modern science and ancient stories written long ago. Many of the greatest scientific minds were heavily suppressed. In 1632, Galileo Galilee wrote a book called Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, in which ...
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...st it make them calm in bad situations. Unfortunate and people under bad situations have much more faith because they do not have much that they can do or get support from.
I do not have the answers to religion, but neither does anyone else. I can tolerate other peoples beliefs but once it becomes a problem in society, I am against it. I do believe that there is a spiritual being out there but is not influencing on human life or natural disasters. I have yet to understand this world and its strange occurrences. Even though I am against the notion of religion, I want to be proved wrong. I wanna wake up one day to see actual proof of a religion and not just an image of their idol on a piece of toast, but the idol itself. I want to see an actual miracle. Until then, I will stay away from praying and churches, and spend my time in colleges and learning about this world.
“The lack of conflict between science and religion arises from a lack of overlap between their respective domains of professional expertise—science in the empirical constitution of the universe, and religion in the search for proper ethical values and the spiritual meaning of our lives. The attainment of wisdom in a full life requires extensive attention to both domains—for a great book tells us that the truth can make us free and that we will live in optimal harmony with our fellows when we learn to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly.”
Throughout the course of history, man has looked to religion for answers. Curiosity as to how we got here and why we are have driven people to seek out answers to these somewhat unanswerable questions. Over the past few thousand years, several varying religions have been established, some more prominent than others. Many of them share a similar story of a divine creator who has always been and will always be. In the case of Christianity, whether true or not, it has proven to be beneficial to society as a whole. The Bible set the standard for the moral compass that humans live their lives by to this day. The key fundamental problem with religion, although not the fault of religion, is that man has often used it as a gateway to power and prominence. In the case of the 18th century Gallican church, the French were abusing their religious powers, thus creating vast inequality throughout France, which eventually led to a rebellion against the church, and the eventual destruction of the church within France.
Science and Religion dialogue has been a bitter-sweet topic for many people over the years. The controversy is not only common between one sole community, but affects a variety. The beliefs held about these topics has the potential to personally effect an individual, whether it be positively or negatively. In the United States, we draw only a fine line between religion and science, often failing to realize that the two benefit each other in copious ways but are not meant to interpreted in the same way. Due to this perspective, people seem to be influenced to pick one or the other, when in reality we should treat both science and religion with the same respect and recognize that they are completely separate from one another, along with having individual purposes. John F. Haught, a distinguished research professor at Georgetown University, published a book titled, “Science & Religion: From Conflict to Conversation”. In it he evaluates each side, persuading the reader that the truth is that both realms may benefit from each other despite the differences emphasized. John F. Haught introduces his audience with four approaches on Science and Religion. Haught’s third approach, contact, is of major significance to aid in the response of: “Does Science Rule out a Personal God?”
Though there are many religions that are still practiced in the world, it is important to see what role they play in culture and thinking. When religion is taken in healthy amounts with a strong mind, religion can be a blessing and a gift to people everywhere. It can provide hope to people who need it the most, while inspiring others to take action and make positive changes. However, overdosing on religion can cause equal amounts of pain and anger.
For many people, religion is a very touchy subject. For most, it is a personal decision; people choose a faith that aligns with their beliefs, ideas, and faiths. Although people would like to think that religion is a personal decision, and they can adapt it to how they feel and what they believe, in practice, that is not the case. Religion represents a commitment to a set of principles that are not moldable, adaptable, or flexible. Religion, although it may be a personal belief, is extremely defined, with little to no room for flexibility.
Others even maintain that we use religion as an excuse or as an answer to why we create so much violence. My own view on this topic is that taking away religion would make the world a more peaceful place. that the wars and violence are simply done by human nature to kill. and we just use religion as an excuse or a reason to cover up the truth. The authors Greg Austin, Todd Kranock and Thom Oommen of God & War: Religious War Audit agree that religion does not affect the peace in the world.
This topic is quite personal for me at this point in my life. I have always lived as if everything could be explained. I tortured myself with the whole idea of “heaven”. I was scared that not believing would sentence me to eternal death, but my logical side just couldn’t fathom the idea. My religious side was in a “fight to the death” war with my logical side. However, my internal war is now over. The battle is done. And, yes one side did come out waving the proverbial white flag.
...wever, in the best interest of advancing education and an enlightened society, science must be pursued outside of the realm of faith and religion. There are obvious faith-based and untestable aspects of religion, but to interfere and cross over into everyday affairs of knowledge should not occur in the informational age. This overbearing aspect of the Church’s influence was put in check with the scientific era, and the Scientific Revolution in a sense established the facet of logic in society, which allows us to not only live more efficiently, but intelligently as well. It should not take away from the faith aspect of religion, but serve to enhance it.
For centuries, the battle has been raging between science and religion over the question of how man came into being. The two opposing forces have clashed countless times in history, with such violent conflicts as to result in bloodshed and death. Probably the most controversial issue debated by the two sides is the creation of everything in the universe, from stars and planets to plants and people. Christians use the Bible, specifically the book of Genesis, to support their belief of creation, while scientists support their ideas with observational data and mathematical calculations. Although the Bible provides a credible explanation for the origin of Earth and its life forms, the scientific perspective of creation presents a thorough explanation of the beginnings of the Earth and man with more information and evidence.
While some people may believe that science and religion differ drastically, science and religion both require reason and faith respectively. Religion uses reason as a way of learning and growing in one’s faith. Science, on the other hand, uses reason to provide facts and explain different hypotheses. Both, though, use reason for evidence as a way of gaining more knowledge about the subject. Although science tends to favor more “natural” views of the world, religion and science fundamentally need reason and faith to obtain more knowledge about their various subjects. In looking at science and religion, the similarities and differences in faith and reason can be seen.
Yes, some aspects surrounding religion have played a role in some of the previous historical warfare’s and the most recent flare of modern day terrorism. But think about it. Is it religion itself that causes these conflicts or is it certain people’s interpretations of it that lead to these violent outcomes? Though many would prefer to solely blame religion, other non-religious factors have further influenced these as well. As humans we always have to find an answer as to why these events take place and religion seems to be a fallback in providing us with this solution.
...Other fact is that, even though sociology and science have keep questioning about the existence of supernatural power, practice of one’s religion is still deeply rooted in the society. This proved that sociology and science does not influenced one’s faith. Moreover, sociology has a neutral role in religion because sociologists view religion as part of culture that need to be preserve the way it is not eliminated or changed. Therefore, it doesn’t try to undermine or strengthen one’s faith. In addition, scientists have also come to believe that supernatural power somehow exists in the society because they have invented equipment that is used to explain the supernatural phenomena. This means that science have been trying to adapt and accept that religion is an important study in science. Therefore, science and sociology have neutral role in influencing people’s faith.
So many of our principals and morals are based off of our religions that I’m not sure if people would be able to live without a religion. Going back to the idea I keep bringing up, people want an answer to those big questions and I am just not quite sure if people are just able to sit back and not give any thought to it. If there were no religions I believe the world would be sort of similar to today. It might be more violent and hostile with more differing views as there would be another thing that a person could not connect with others. There would be many disagreements, as every person believes their own thing. Religion just seems to be such an important part in lives today and factors into so many decisions that I just couldn’t see the world without
I grew up in a Catholic family and went to Catholic grade school and high school and I don't regret it. It was an interesting experience and surely formed a great part of my character. But looking back, I see that the system of organized religion is rigged and the deck is stacked more in favor of the church than it is in favor of the faithful. Consider for a moment the Christian need to convert and save people, two more activities that could be done away with if we didn't have religion. Converting more followers keeps the organized religion afloat and promising salvation is the hook that gets people's attention. No one knows what happens after death. But some religions offer a promise of heaven or hell and, like children, we willing believe in this fantastic fairy tale.
The relationship between science and religion has been debated for many years. With strong personal opinions and beliefs, it is not surprising that no progress has been made in this argument. In my opinion, I feel as though religion and science have to be related in some way. There is no possible way people can separate two things that attempt to prove the same facts. My belief is that a metaphorical bridge has to be formed to connect the two. Personally, I feel as though science can be a compliment to religion, and that the scientific discoveries can and should be used to prove that God exists, not disprove it. If science did this, then the relationship between science and religion could be a friendly one. If that happened, people could stop debating and fighting over the two, allowing priests and scientists to talk and work together peacefully.