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Could religion ever die?

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  • 09-12-2007 11:22pm
    #1
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭


    Being an atheist and a skeptic, I am constantly frustrated by the wall of unbreakable belief that I am faced with in day to day life. I often end up wondering if there will ever be a day when the religious are in the minority and atheism and critical thinking prevail. Although I would like to think that it could happen some day in the distant future, I really dont think that it ever really could. Any opinions???

    Will religion die out??? 15 votes

    Yes, hopefully
    0% 0 votes
    No, unfortunatly
    100% 15 votes


«134

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    #2
    kippy
    Registered Users Posts: 18,524 ✭✭✭✭kippy


    Nope, Thats never gonna happen.
    Theres far too many "good" things that can be gotten from religions and so many people that benefit from that goodness.
    Plus the worse off your situation the more need there is for something/someone to believe in. Theres a lot of people in this world in very bad situations on a daily basis.


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    #3
    drdre
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,245 ✭✭✭drdre


    No never will happen


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    #4
    pH
    Registered Users Posts: 4,188 ✭✭✭pH


    TheThing! wrote: »
    Being an atheist and a skeptic, I am constantly frustrated by the wall of unbreakable belief that I am faced with in day to day life. I often end up wondering if there will ever be a day when the religious are in the minority and atheism and critical thinking prevail. Although I would like to think that it could happen some day in the distant future, I really dont think that it ever really could. Any opinions???

    Many individual religions/cults/belief systems have pretty much died, normally with the civilization that spawned them.

    Never happen? It is already happening!

    There are a number of countries in Europe with atheists in the majority, with church attendance in single digit percentages of the population and the numbers still declining.


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    #5
    5uspect
    Moderators, Arts Moderators Posts: 10,518 Mod ✭✭✭✭5uspect


    I think people, in general, will always believe in something. They will always see agency in the events that shape their lives. Apparetly its hardwired into us to some degree.

    Ultimately we evolved to survive, even if our brains need to lie to us to do so.


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    #6
    Fanny Cradock
    Registered Users Posts: 10,245 ✭✭✭✭Fanny Cradock


    pH wrote: »
    Many individual religions/cults/belief systems have pretty much died, normally with the civilization that spawned them.

    There are a number of countries in Europe with atheists in the majority, with church attendance in single digit percentages of the population and the numbers still declining.

    True. However that is balanced to a degree by the rise in Christianity in other countries.


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    #7
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    pH wrote: »
    Many individual religions/cults/belief systems have pretty much died, normally with the civilization that spawned them.

    Never happen? It is already happening!

    There are a number of countries in Europe with atheists in the majority, with church attendance in single digit percentages of the population and the numbers still declining.

    But could those figures ever appear on a global scale?


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    #8
    simu
    Closed Accounts Posts: 10,730 ✭✭✭✭simu


    TheThing! wrote: »
    Being an atheist and a skeptic, I am constantly frustrated by the wall of unbreakable belief that I am faced with in day to day life. I often end up wondering if there will ever be a day when the religious are in the minority and atheism and critical thinking prevail. Although I would like to think that it could happen some day in the distant future, I really dont think that it ever really could. Any opinions???


    Perhaps such a world is possible (although not with our current set-up) but religion/superstition could easily make a come back if the atheistic civilisation were to decline or be ended abruptly by some disaster.


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    #9
    Fanny Cradock
    Registered Users Posts: 10,245 ✭✭✭✭Fanny Cradock


    simu wrote: »
    Perhaps such a world is possible (although not with our current set-up) but religion/superstition could easily make a come back if the atheistic civilisation were to decline or be ended abruptly by some disaster.

    A curious statement.

    Could you explain where this atheistic civilisation is located?

    I would argue that there is a rise in the number of people identifying with the 'spiritual' throughout Europe. This is of course to the detriment of various religious institutions. Though from a Christian perspective I would again argue that this isn't a bad thing in the long run as there is a corresponding resurgence in 'grass roots' belief.


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    #10
    simu
    Closed Accounts Posts: 10,730 ✭✭✭✭simu


    Eh, that would be the hypothetical atheistic civilisation.


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    #11
    Fanny Cradock
    Registered Users Posts: 10,245 ✭✭✭✭Fanny Cradock


    Double post


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    #12
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    Fanny Cradock wrote: »
    A curious statement.

    Could you explain where this atheistic civilisation is located?

    I would argue that there is a rise in the number of people identifying with the 'spiritual' throughout Europe. This is of course to the detriment of various religious institutions. Though from a Christian perspective I would again argue that this isn't a bad thing in the long run as there is a corresponding resurgence in 'grass roots' belief.

    The annoyance factor of people going around stating that they are spiritual rather than simply religious would probably be quite high too. In fact I would probably have to crack open the nunchucks


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    #13
    Fanny Cradock
    Registered Users Posts: 10,245 ✭✭✭✭Fanny Cradock


    TheThing! wrote: »
    The annoyance factor of people going around stating that they are spiritual rather than simply religious would probably be quite high too. In fact I would probably have to crack open the nunchucks

    Humm... critical thinking indeed!


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    #14
    SubjectSean
    Registered Users Posts: 458 ✭✭SubjectSean


    TheThing! wrote: »
    Being an atheist and a skeptic, I am constantly frustrated by the wall of unbreakable belief that I am faced with in day to day life. I often end up wondering if there will ever be a day when the religious are in the minority and atheism and critical thinking prevail. Although I would like to think that it could happen some day in the distant future, I really dont think that it ever really could. Any opinions???

    I don't think religion will ever dissapear, the belief in God goes hand in hand with consciousness


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    #15
    condra
    Registered Users Posts: 3,849 ✭✭✭condra


    Humm... critical thinking indeed!

    Dude, he was joking.


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    #16
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    SubjectSean wrote: »
    I don't think religion will ever dissapear, the belief in God goes hand in hand with consciousness

    Could you expand on that?


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    #17
    Fanny Cradock
    Registered Users Posts: 10,245 ✭✭✭✭Fanny Cradock


    womoma wrote: »
    Dude, he was joking.

    So was I, Dude!


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    #18
    SubjectSean
    Registered Users Posts: 458 ✭✭SubjectSean


    TheThing! wrote: »
    Could you expand on that?

    Ya the belief in God is the inevitable product of having minds like ours. It arises naturally like laughter or music.


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    #19
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    SubjectSean wrote: »
    Ya the belief in God is the inevitable product of having minds like ours. It arises naturally like laughter or music.

    Yeah I have heard something like that before, but surely if people can see the reality of the situation like all those atheist out there then this alone doesn't doom us to a world of religion


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    #20
    Dades
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 25,558 Mod ✭✭✭✭Dades


    Religion holds all the cards. An afterlife, see all your loved ones again, someone watching over you, a sense of community, answers to where we came from....

    As long as people want these, we'll have religion.


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    #21
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    Dades wrote: »
    Religion holds all the cards. An afterlife, see all your loved ones again, someone watching over you, a sense of community, answers to where we came from....

    As long as people want these, we'll have religion.

    I see what you are saying but it could be argued that atheism holds all the card because it is actually correct


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    #22
    kippy
    Registered Users Posts: 18,524 ✭✭✭✭kippy


    TheThing! wrote: »
    I see what you are saying but it could be argued that atheism holds all the card because it is actually correct
    Thats a pretty sweeping/groundbreaking statement.....
    What's correct about it?
    Not saying that there's anything wrong with it but wondering why it is more correct than anything else on this small little speck of dust.
    Kippy


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    #23
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    kippy wrote: »
    Thats a pretty sweeping/groundbreaking statement.....
    What's correct about it?
    Not saying that there's anything wrong with it but wondering why it is more correct than anything else on this small little speck of dust.
    Kippy

    It is not a groundbreaking statement, atheists have been saying it forever. It is correct to not believe in something which has as much evidence backing it up as what I am about to write:

    The universe was created by an enormous chocolate doughnut drizzled with monkey cum

    Religion and god and all that jazz was literally made up like the preceding statement, and therefore not believing in it is the correct path


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    #24
    kippy
    Registered Users Posts: 18,524 ✭✭✭✭kippy


    TheThing! wrote: »
    It is not a groundbreaking statement, atheists have been saying it forever. It is correct to not believe in something which has as much evidence backing it up as what I am about to write:

    The universe was created by an enormous chocolate doughnut drizzled with monkey cum

    Religion and god and all that jazz was literally made up like the preceding statement, and therefore not believing in it is the correct path
    That of course is taken from an Atheists standpoint.
    That however, does not make it (atheism) correct - from my standpoint.


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    #25
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    kippy wrote: »
    That of course is taken from an Atheists standpoint.
    That however, does not make it (atheism) correct - from my standpoint.

    You believing otherwise, or a billion christians believing otherwise, doesn't invalidate the fact that there is not evidence for god or any of the claims of all the various religions that subcribe to these views. I may think that 8 and 8 is not 16, and I may go to a building each sunday and pray to the big 8 and 8 is 19 god, but it doesn't change the facts


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    #26
    Scofflaw
    Registered Users Posts: 23,283 ✭✭✭✭Scofflaw


    As long as each ego seems to itself the only important little pool of light in a great dark universe, we will have religion. What monstrous lies will we not tell ourselves, when most of us would rather see the stars dim and fade, than that this one little light should go out?


    cordially,
    Scofflaw


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    #27
    TheThing!
    Closed Accounts Posts: 287 ✭✭TheThing!


    Scofflaw wrote: »
    As long as each ego seems to itself the only important little pool of light in a great dark universe, we will have religion. What monstrous lies will we not tell ourselves, when most of us would rather see the stars dim and fade, than that this one little light should go out?


    cordially,
    Scofflaw

    Believing that your existence has importance and being an atheist are not incompatable, if thats what you're saying


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    #28
    pH
    Registered Users Posts: 4,188 ✭✭✭pH


    TheThing! wrote: »
    Believing that your existence has importance and being an atheist are not incompatable, if thats what you're saying

    Only a select few understand what Scofflaw is saying! think of him as a highly educated uncle who's come to Christmas dinner and has had a little too much too drink - you're sure what he's saying is terribly clever if only you could fathom it ... wait isn't that Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on TV?


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    #29
    SubjectSean
    Registered Users Posts: 458 ✭✭SubjectSean


    TheThing! wrote: »
    Yeah I have heard something like that before, but surely if people can see the reality of the situation like all those atheist out there then this alone doesn't doom us to a world of religion

    I do not believe that Athiests do see the reality of the situation. I think they belittle the phenomenon of sentient consciousness and are so set against the many stupidities of organised religion that they fail to see that the First Cause has to exist. Most of the progress made by humanity would not have happened without our belief in God.


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    #30
    Sir Digby Chicken Caesar
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 23,556 ✭✭✭✭Sir Digby Chicken Caesar


    most of the progress made by humanity would not have happened without the wheel


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    #31
    daveyjoe
    Registered Users Posts: 1,462 ✭✭✭daveyjoe


    Yes, and the religious will be in the minority one day. However, It would be quite optimistic to suggest that it will happen in any of our lifetimes.


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