10 Reasons You Should Never Have a Religion

[SecularMotion]

While consciously pursuing your spiritual development is commendable, joining an established religion such as Christianity, Islam, or Hinduism is one of the worst ways to go about it. In this article I’ll share 10 reasons why you must eventually abandon the baggage of organized religion if you wish to pursue conscious living in earnest.

Since Christianity is currently the world’s most popular religion, I’ll slant this article towards Christianity’s ubiquitous failings. However, you’ll find that most of these points apply equally well to other major religions (yes, even Buddhism).

http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2008/05/10-reasons-you-should-never-have-a-religion/

[ChairmanAgnostic]

1. some good points, but I LOVED the title

[laconicsax]

2. K&R

[sweettater]

3. Good reading

some excellent points.

[aquart]

4. Good god. People aren't in religions for geeky "conscious living."

They are there for community, emotional support, and the promise they won't really die.

[frogmarch]

5. K&R

Worthwhile article.

[struggle4progress]

6. Ah! The continuing power of bigotry in American life!

"... If you have the awareness level of a snail, and your thinking is mired in shame and guilt .. then subscribing to a religion can help you ... If you devote serious time to the practice of religion, it’s safe to say you practice toilet-bowl time management ... When you join a religion, your fellow mind-slaves will help to keep you in line ... When you subscribe to an established religion, you have only two options. You can become an idiot, or you can become a hypocrite ..."

[okasha]

7. Oh, my.

That one has it bad. His mommy needs to take away his Dickie Dawkins for a few weeks.

[laconicsax]

8. What is it you're always saying about the importance of context?

Interesting how you decide to sentences from a much longer piece, remove all context, and string them together. I guess you don't have anything substantive to say about the linked article and felt that it was more appropriate to merely sneer.

[okasha]

10. The "context" does not differ from the quote--it's all the same flavor.

I gave the linked article all the "substantive" comment it deserved--which was, indeed, a sneer.

[laconicsax]

11. Umm...I was replying to s4p.

Is there something you'd like to tell us?

[okasha]

12. If you want to have a private conversation, take it to PM.

n/t

[laconicsax]

14. Why would I do that?

s4p posted a comment, I replied to him, you answered for him.

I was hoping for an acknowledgment of this and maybe an explanation for why you felt it necessary and appropriate to answer specific questions directed toward someone else, but I see that isn't likely. I wish I could say I'm surprised.

[trotsky]

17. "you have only two options. You can become an idiot, or you can become a hypocrite"

Have you given all your possessions away, s4p? Do you give money away when asked, and never expect it to be repaid?

I know you're not an idiot. But...

[struggle4progress]

19. "I don't live up to the standards I wish for" may not be synonymous with "hypocrite"

I suppose, from an objective point of view, I should consider myself something of an idiot and hypocrite -- but it seems to me I was so, even when I had little religious sympathy -- and I suspect, in that regard, I don't differ much from the rest of humanity, religious and irreligious alike

[laconicsax]

20. What's stopping you?

I'm not aware of any laws which prohibit giving away all your possessions and living a life of poverty as Jesus taught.

[struggle4progress]

22. There's no law requiring any of us to be jerks, or self-centered jackasses, either.

So being a jerk, or a self-centered jackass, is apparently something lots of folk do, for reasons that have nothing whatsoever to do with legal obligations

[laconicsax]

23. I'll ask again. Maybe you can be civil this time.

What's stopping you?

[Mnemosyne]

9. My daughter needed to hear these points so badly at this moment. Thank you very much, SecularMotion.

:hug:

[rug]

13. This Steve Pavlina?

http://stevepavlinalies.wordpress.com/2011/04/02/steve-pavlina-is-looking-to-exploit-slaves/

Paraliminal Steve Pavilina?

http://www.stevepavlina.com/products.htm

You can do better than post three year old blogs of a scamster.

Woo.

[SecularMotion]

15. Any comments on the 10 reasons?

Other than attacks on the blogger and his blog.

[rug]

16. Oh, is his blog due respect?

It's shit.

However, to answer your question, having read this post, no, I have no comment.

"If you have the awareness level of a snail, and your thinking is mired in shame and guilt (with perhaps a twist of drug abuse or suicidal thinking), then subscribing to a religion can help you climb to a higher level of awareness. Your mindset, however, still remains incredibly dysfunctional; you’ve merely swapped one form of erroneous thinking for another."

It doesn't warrant one.

[okasha]

18. What a nasty little creature.

n/t

[Thats my opinion]

21. bigotry and irrationality are heart of fundamentalism

whether they come from the religious or the non-religious.

[backscatter712]

24. I approve!

:evilgrin::thumbsup:

[Ninjaneer]

25. Kick. Great reading. n/t

[cleanhippie]

26. Kick

[rug]

27. Kick! Because we all need paraliminals!

[dmallind]

28. Haven't read the article. Neither want nor need to

Anybody who starts that woo-woo about "personal journeys" isn't worth it after the 300th or so serving of similar glurge. But it is worth pointing out that Hitler liked dogs and MLK was an adulterer.

I'm perfectly willing to commend the first action and condemn the second regardless of the source.