Religion as mental slavery

That is true at times, it does seem like slavery...All that is the true purpose of this religion is to OBEY the god..

Interesting article.

so, i might have some dumb questions...

if there is no god, what exactly is so wrong about religion? if religion is a lie, what is wrong with lying in a world where there is no god?

and if there is no god, then why should i live in such a way that i would fall under the 'golden rule' when 95% of the time putting myself above others is more appealing?

for that matter, what would be wrong with murdering those who got in the way of my own endeavors?

maybe these are dumb questions, but aside from God, where do we ground morality?

This is the most misleading and useless pathetic document or article to make people more fragile about what they believe. Bob Marley was a fully supporter of the Rastafarian Movement which is fully Religious and respectful to others and their Religions.

Feh...

Those are perfectly valid questions. Of course with these questions comes the 'how do we define right and wrong'. If our purpose is to secure and continue our species, and if it's written in our code, then of course we would act in our own desire, and do things for ourselves. No matter what one believes, we are selfish and seek power over anything we can get that power from.

Our nation has a lot of things wrong, and yes there is a line where religion gets a little ridiculous. Thing is, I firmly believe there is an energy higher than us. Of course it's not a bearded old guy sitting on a cloud, but that energy surrounds us all, and influences our connections with each other. Man made religion, but that energy is far from man-made.

I know this reply doesn't answer your questions, because questions like that need to be answered by yourself. And the extreme religion, the 'slave' religion, just shows our real purposes more (power, selfishness). The most obvious form of hypocrisy. Who says we have to have a religion to have a relationship with God???

Despite this article acknowledging the brainwashing of religion, it still seems to follow the judeo-christian ideology that we need to procreate as much as possible.

We can barely take care of ourselves and the planet as it is so we do not need to be procreating more. The emphasis should not be on making sex a sin NOR should it be on telling children that sex is not wrong but that they should have babies. The emphasis should be on protecting oneself either way and dare I say, adopting a child rather than bringing a new one into the world.

The problem is that when people use religious beliefs to operate in the world of reality the results can be catastrophic. If religious beliefs become incorporated in social behavior they destroy societies.....Read Jared Diamond: Collapse:How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. Residents of Easter Island chopped down their forests to make the big stone heads to "make god happy"...... (obviously he was thrilled)

Good point poosta7.

I think “operating in reality” is the key point here.

Many people say, “What’s the harm in believing in the supernatural?”

Well the harm becomes apparent in the degree with which you believe – and the degree those supernatural beliefs compromise your ability to act rationally.

If you believe in the POSSIBILITY of a higher supernatural power but still act rationally…..then there is no problem. You are entertaining a very, very mild supernatural belief (A magical sky god may exist) but that belief is so weak (so to speak) that it hold little to no sway over your actions.

But belief in the supernatural (and that is, essentially, all a religion is) is a slippery slope. One irrational belief can easily lead to another and another until you have a host of deeply irrational beliefs that compromise your ability to act rationally (such as thinking it’s “okay” to shoot abortion doctors with high powered rifles or to strap dynamite around your waist and blow yourself up in a crowded market because you think there are 72 virgins waiting for you in Paradise)

If you have an atheist and a believer in a burning house, the atheist will try to escape in a logical act of self-preservation. The believer may not! They have no wish to die, but their belief in the supernatural is so strong that they believe they can remain in a burning building and suffer no damage! Irrational ideas about the supernatural cause irrational acts, such as remaining in a burning building a dying.

The atheist would escape the burning building, but the believer would not and the only difference between the two is their beliefs about the supernatural.

Now the 2nd argument is, “Well so what? Let each person believe what they want. What’s the harm?”

Assume the believer in the burning building had 2 babies in there with her….and one of her supernatural beliefs was that God would hurt the babies if she failed this “test of faith” and tried to take them out of the building.

So we can see how the belief in the supernatural (again, essentially what Christianity boils down to) can create a slippery slope of irrationality that is NOT limited to just individuals and can encompass other people.

There may be atheists in the crowded market place, but THEY have to pay for the religious insanity of the suicide bomber.

The kids in the example are so young that they have no religious ideas whatsoever, but THEY ultimately end up paying the price for the irrational supernatural beliefs of their mother.

Delia, I completely agree with you that many individuals follow their respective religion all too blindly, and that this does lead to a form of mental slavery. However, there is some middle ground between being a mental slave and denouncing God.

I'm curious, what about human history leads one to believe that our sole purpose is to procreate? I would argue that, based on the history of human practice, our purpose is for joy. To enjoy life, creation, experience, people, and most of all God. See, you have "religion" all wrong. The Christian idea of religion is not to follow a set of rules so as to be counted "holy". No, in fact, by being a Christian, one declares that holiness is unattainable outside of God, and to merely follow rules or religious law is not the path to God nor salvation, nor joy. But, instead, we draw close to God to share in His joy of His creation, experiencing joy through fellowship with Him and people.
Do not demean the human experience to mere procreation. We are not animals, as Darwin would have us believe. We are creatures of a much more noble nature, humans created by God to enjoy God. To say that procreation is our sole purpose is to construct a prison of the human soul, to a much greater degree than you ascribe religion. First, cast off the idea that religion is a rule set defined by some authoritative god-head waiting to strike down those who screw up. Then see life for what it can be when experienced WITH the one who created all things good in life, Jesus. That is our purpose. "I have come so that you may have life, and have it abundantly." - Jesus, John 10:10

religion is bullshit, sorry, but thats the truth. its put here to scare people, to make them feel inferior and to enslave them to a false god. if you wanna worship something worship the "Sun"! why do you think people look up to the sky? do people really believe there is an invisible "white" man who hovers in or above the clouds "watching" or "stalking" us? no, it was the Sun that was worshipped in the old days. go do your research. religion goes after children at a very early age where they also believe in santa, the easter bunny and the tooth fairy. and they brainwash them and scare them with religion.
nuff said.
rip to Bob Marley- a true revolutionary

I believe in "Jack" and his magical bean stalk. This is the story my mom read to me at night so this what I believe.

Religion... I think people need it... I see why people pray to God ( something bigger then humans )
but
Why do people pray to other people??
Who is this man with long blond hair with blue eyes...
anyways...

I dont see a problem with people that use religion to get thru though time and to have something to look forward to.. look we are all different but all the same, some of us like this some of us like that, so just like none religious people dont want religious people to tell them about God and all what comes with religion, am sure religious people wouldnt want none religious people to say things like there is no god and thats its all bullshit.

We humans just need to leave each other alone and mind out own businesses. Believe what you want but stop pushing your beliefe on others.

but there are those that use religion to go to wars, use it to have sex with young boys and girls, blow 'em selves up to go to heaven, think that God gave them right to clense people from their land (Christians did it to Jews in Europe, now Jews are doing it to Muslims and Christians in Palestine) so on and so on... Those people are fucked up and I hope their God gives them the proper punishment

Believe what you preech!!
follow your ten comandmands, dont ignore them but expect others to follow

first, the "golden rule" is a biblical principle. and if We are to basically ensure the survival of the DNA code, wouldn't that imply purpose? Which animal logically thinks, "hey, I am going to keep my DNA code on earth for as long as I can!"? We are different from animals, they do what they do on pure instint, we use logic and reason. That is how we are designed. Which implies a that there is a designer. You know, creation =creator. But yes, we should take care for each other and our enviroment, that is would be part of our nurturing nature.( haha, get it nurturing nature, i know lil' bit corny)

ive always viewed it as mental bondage. in the past i noted that bondage in sex and religion were paralell. both stemmed from an innate need or want to be bound by restraint- one is just mental anf the other is physical, both are manifestations of the same desire.

You are a slave to someone at all times. to think that you are free to think what you want is a joke.

You listen to Bob here and you're a slavery to his way of thinking. The idea that he's the "emancipator" for thought is also a good joke.

He's not Jesus and he's surely not perfect. Nor have I ever thought of him as profound.

how odd that you support christian values while at the same time calling them "religious warmongers"