What good has religion done for the world ?

Hating gays
Kill gays
Starting and creating wars
Treating women as second class citizens
Dangerous to democracy
Stoning
Allowing underage girls to marry
Women must be covered head to toe
Killing non-believers
Scaremongering
Slavery and racism-the KKK were religious
Restriction
Anti freedom
No freedom of thought
Allows you to take sex slaves during wars
Ban music
No compulsion in religion? But if you leave then you deserve the death penalty.

Tell me the positives of Religion? People turn to religion for a sense of community and purpose in this short life.

I believe there's a God but for me religion is man made.

(edited 7 years ago)

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

Sarahsez

What are the benefits of religion???

Reply 2

nexttimeigetvpn

not sure how this is 'news' but ok

Reply 3

twidge

there are some benefits i guess altho there are many cons, such as extremists. however religion does teach many people rights and wrongs from an early age and it gives many people hope for the future after they die. also the first place i can think of with no religion is north korea, which might show you how the world could be without religion. religion should be personal beliefs and opinions , i belief that people should keep their religion to themselves and others that follow it and not judge others that dont belief or cause harm to others in anyway emotionally or physically.

Reply 4

JamesN88

Paganism was fine, religion was never a major problem until the Abrahamic religions came along.

Reply 5

twidge

Original post by JamesN88

Paganism was fine, religion was never a major problem until the Abrahamic religions came along.

exactly , but they had ancient sacrificial rituals i think so thats a bit of a con haha :smile:

Reply 6

sleepysnooze

exactly - nothing - and I'm shocked that such a blatant snail-oil scam has prospered so well (in the case of abrahamic religions in particular)

Reply 7

Atlas Thugged

It probably lead to the existence and development of civilisation, it provided centralised structures and government which allowed later developments such as the scientific method and division of labour to be achieved. I also believe that it harnessed the power of cooperative or intellectual men over men who were willing to use force to achieve their aims. This is not to say that Christian Europe did not use force, it clearly did, but at a micro level it transitioned power away from men who would become warlords and take women as sex slaves and placed it in the hands of men who were intelligent and good at mastering languages.

Reply 8

Claire461

Original post by twidge

You don't need religion to teach a child right from wrong. It is possible to be a good person without the 'crutch' of religion.
In centuries past, religion featured in the lives of the population, mainly because of fear and because if you were poor and hungry and the Church provided for the poor before the introduction of the Poor Law.
We aren't so gullible any more and don't hang on every word that ministers of religion come out with.

Reply 9

twidge

every religion has its cons. Muslim and Christian and many other religions are loosely based on the behaviour of people, rights and wrongs and how they will affect you in the afterlife which ever afterlife that may be whether you reincarnate as a fly of end up in heaven or hell. it is generally when religion becomes extreme that their is war and bloodshed and i believe that if people weren't extreme, and did not try push their beliefs on others then their would be much less however even if all religion was abolished then there would probably still be war, bloodshed and rape because many people wouldn't have reason to behave as society does know if the world was not built on top of religion then many people views of rights and wrongs could be very different which could cause chaos. :smile:

Reply 10

JamesN88

If I stood in a town square claiming to have been sent by God handing out books containing my "divinely inspired" text then I'd be laughed at and branded a nutcase, how some ancient desert ramblings are still revered and not laughed at by all intelligent people I'll never know.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 11

champ_mc99

It has maybe inspired people to find out about the world.

This is a quote by Isaac Newton, arguably the most influential scientist in history, after discovering gravity:

"This most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent Being. [...] This Being governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as Lord over all; and on account of his dominion he is wont to be called "Lord God" παντοκρατωρ [pantokratōr], or "Universal Ruler". [...] The Supreme God is a Being eternal, infinite, [and] absolutely perfect."

Reply 12

twidge

Original post by JamesN88

i would definitely laugh at you, but humans have evolved with religion so many people attitudes even for atheist have grown from the right and wrongs from religions. However may be with more technologies and understanding of science religion has become a much less important part of society in wealthier countries :smile:

Reply 13

Legendstatusxoxo

http://www.firstpost.com/politics/how-sikh-langars-are-helping-feed-the-homeless-in-britain-2114617.html

Reply 14

1010marina

In the past it was a way of controlling the population before we had systems like the police and prison. Now it provides comfort to people afraid of death. But the books were written by people in vastly different situations and civilisations and now the texts needn't be read literally - for example, there is no need to treat women as inferiors now that we're less likely to die in childbirth. We can have fewer children and a career and don't always need to depend on husbands. But people don't understand that the situation HAS changed. So currently religion contributes violence, mass bigotry, terrorism, and lends legitimacy to rapists, murderers and abusers. After all, if it's in the name of your deity and you'll get to do the frick frack in heaven forever, why shouldn't you do it?

As a young child I was told children grow out of their imaginary friends. I stopped playing with my imaginary friend Amber and shortly after God and Jesus too. My life didn't change radically because I'm a nice person. Do unto others but not because Moses said so, just be a nice person.

:smile:

Reply 15

username2324315

Religion was good back when people needed an explanation to the things around them such as why we are on earth and why humans are here, but then science came along.. :wink:

Reply 16

twidge

Original post by 1010marina

i totally understand that but imagery friends help you just as much as a child as religion and it is because of the religion you believed in as a child that help you become that person if you hadn't had religion as a child who would you be today? just as if the world had never had religion what would it be today? :smile:

Reply 17

M451

Original post by 1010marina

But the books were written by people in vastly different situations and civilisations and now the texts needn't be read literally - for example, there is no need to treat women as inferiors now that we're less likely to die in childbirth. We can have fewer children and a career and don't always need to depend on husbands. But people don't understand that the situation HAS changed. So currently religion contributes violence, mass bigotry, terrorism, and lends legitimacy to rapists, murderers and abusers. After all, if it's in the name of your deity and you'll get to do the frick frack in heaven forever, why shouldn't you do it.

I think I agree with what's been said here.

The thread title asks what good religion has done. In the past ,very far back in the past, I'm sure it's done plenty good. I can't be bothered doing my research to find quotes right now but I'm pretty sure Islam first gave women rights to inheritance and property. At the time, it was a good thing and many say it made sense as men had to provide for family and do hard physical work, but women could do what they want with their money. Today, it's rather backward as jobs aren't all physically demanding, both men and women work and provide and we all need equal pay and inheritance. You could say it did good when this rule was first introduced as women had none of these rights in the past, but today there's no good in following it.

I don't see it doing much good in the world now but in the past, there has been a little good done.

Reply 18

Claire461

Story.Because of my background, we as a family don't 'do' religion. One of the grandchildren started a new school, not a faith school but the Head was a devout Catholic and insisted that the children say 'Grace' before lunch and the wording was 'thank you for the birds so sweet etc and thank you for the food we eat etc. Also included was a rule that if a child didn't put their hands together to say the prayer they would go without lunch. So grand daughter comes home crying and said she had no lunch because she didn't put her hands together. She had no idea what it all meant as she was only six. She didn't know the prayer either..
Son went ballistic and went into the school to confront headmaster. ''What's this about telling my child that she has to thank God for the food she eats? I'll have you know I work my ****ing arse off to provide for for my children and you're telling her it's some bloke in a frock and a beard sitting on a cloud that provides her lunch?''
My point is that children are being taught things and they have no comprehension of what they mean.