Introspection Part 1

Time to dig into why I think the way I do. Most of the reason can be attributed to my formative years with a little self initiated study as I'm sure is true of most. None, or very few of my opinions are completely static. I'm not naive or arrogant enough to think I know all angles of many issues well enough to form a completely resolute opinion on it.

So let's start with the easiest one that just popped into my head.

Religion.

The facts:

Religion is the single largest cause of human death in the course of human history. Attempts to force one faith's 'religion' on others have spawned some of the most heinous human on human acts imaginable. To what end? Land grabs, political power, keeping the masses in line and/or ignorant, and the other usual human perversions caused by delusions of piety or self righteousness. It has also been the single largest source of the retardation of human evolution. The world isn't flat. The earth is not the center of the Universe and women are as equal to men as they choose to be. The people who wrote the various bibles or scriptures way back when (which are indeed good stories) just didn't know any better at the time. The people enforcing whatever beliefs that had been given to them by these books did so blindly, which is unforgivable.

The formative experience:

To this day I'll never forget the single defining act that sealed my opinion on organized religion forever. A good friend of mine growing up is the son of a baptist minister. Now, I'm not picking on baptists, this just happens to be about them as I had no exposure to other religions at the time. Further investigation on my part found similarities in other faiths and denominations, so in essence I'm speaking about all organized religion anyway. So, I'm over at his house one day after school. I was 13 or 14 at the time. Everyone at this house was quite sullen and quiet which was unusual. His father was on the phone speaking in hushed tones and apparently had been doing so all day. After some more hushed conversations and poorly veiled fretting, there was an announcement. The church was to be closed and my friend and his family were to be moved to another city to lead another one. Now that's pretty big news to a kid. That's a life impact, not just a casual event.

Me being the outsider asked the typical questions: Why was it being closed? Did they have to move? Who made that decision? The answers. Very simply put: It wasn't making enough money. Yes, they had to move. God made the decision.

I actually laughed at first, thinking it was a joke. God made the decision to shut down a church with hundreds of members because it wasn't bringing in enough money and there was nothing anyone could do about it? We're talking about a group of people that met in a large conference room at a local recreation center a couple times a week. The revenue from the church was paying my friend's dad's salary, the cost of the room, and the costs of their literature with the surplus being sent back to wherever it was God had decided apparently. I moved from laughter to outrage. The only other friend I had seen move away did so because his Dad was transferred by his company, and he had a choice and chose to move. 1 +1 being 2 turned religion into business, with the 'businessmen' hiding their money grubbing behind 'God's will'. What a racket.

The study:

I decided then to keep my eye out for other similar 'activities' while continuing my education in the public school system and being exposed to the crusades, the inquisition, witch burnings, and the myriad of other glorified power grabs in God's name by corrupt humans. I learned about revisionist history, entire movements of specific censorship spanning decades, persecution of the scientific, and the rest of man's attempts to obliterate anything other than exactly what the particular man in power at the time believed to be what everyone else should believe.

Recent affirmation:

Most recently I was listening to a friend lamenting his wife's decision to begin working for the church they belong to. Again, slipping into my outsider frame of mind I asked: Why? The answer, again very simply put: Because worship is now secondary. She works each service, rather than attends them. She attempted to work some, and attend others only to be expected to work any she attended regardless of her intent. A conversation with whoever the higher ups are in the church resulted in a none too subtle threat to blackball his family if he questioned God's will in this matter. I'm nothing if not a creature of habit - so again, I was outraged. I believe my exact words were 'Are you fucking kidding me?' The response - What else can I do?

Current conclusion:

Why join any organized religion? Personal beliefs are just that, personal. Is it the desire for validation and the need to be part of a flock that drives it? Join a social club, an ethnic club, a book club, a volunteer organization. How is any one person's relationship with their God anyone else's business? I personally view organized religion as unnecessary and leading to a constant source of conflict. Interpretation is at the very core of the human condition and to surrender it to anyone else is a crime, unless you're a sheep. Once you've decided on a path to follow, whether it be snake charming or Catholicism I say to you: Congratulations! Keep it to yourself.

This type of thinking or sheep mentality isn't specific to religion. How many glasses of water should you drink a day for optimal health? 8 right? Wrong. There is no scientific support that 1 glass or 8 glasses make a difference. You get most of the fluid your body needs through the food you eat. Independent thought and research should be encouraged at all times. How will we ever grow without it? How many 'studies' have been proven wrong and how were they proven wrong? Other independent studies. How much damage was caused while the original study was accepted as gospel? Cigarettes are good for you right? Continually study, accept very little as truth and take responsibility for your own actions and thought.