I hate to say it, but I think that when you die it is really nothing. If an animal gets hit by a car in the road, where do you think that animal goes? I don't believe in the afterlife. Do you have any memories from before you were born? It will be the same after die. Your brain will shut down and you will cease to exist. I don't know why people can't accept this. I am actually ok with this. I don't want to live on forever. That would be boring. Also, I feel that people that believe they will go to heaven, spend too much time focusing on that and they don't actually enjoy what they have. Our time on Earth is limited. It is a waste to spend half of it believeing in some lame story. And I am tired of hearing that if I don't conform, that I will be punished. Why can't I make my own decision?
Oh please. Obama is the one president who isn't sweared in by the Bible, and you call him a long christian background? He's a hypocrite. 1) Matthew 6:20 I enjoy the things I have here. 2) Obvious. 3) Lol. Maybe a waste to you, because you've never read the entire book ( I assume by your knowledge of it). Its not lame. That's entirely your opinion, and I bet you couldn't tell me 10 Bible verses off the top of your head. 4) You just answered yourself. "If I don't conform, that I will be punished." Isn't that your decision to make?
Muslim It's "sworn" in, and you need to stop spouting paranoid lies. If you don't know about something, don't try and debate it. And just hearing maybe your dad, or a preacher, or a friend say that Obama was not sworn in on the bible and that he is a secret Muslim is not enough to make it true. You are just doing your part in spreading lies that fuel fear, racism, and prejudice. Obama was sworn in on the same bible that President Abraham Lincoln was sworn in on. Source CNN Because the justice mis-spoke a couple of lines during the inauguration they decide to do another small impromptu swearing in later on that day in the oval office. He did not place his hand on a bible the second time. To say that he is a hypocrite and the only president not to be sworn in on a bible and accuse him of not even being Christian because of it is misleading, uninformed, and just plain unfair to the man. Answer this next question directly: Do you think Obama is a Muslim?
Please explain the difference: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rViD2_3QZ9k http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hde4s-xBhqE Says the person who didn't know slavery was in the bible...
"Billions"... Wait did you say "billions". Over Exaggerating! I am very religious and religion adds order in the world itself, without religion thousands if not millions more will die. Anyone would murder, anyone would sin, rape, destroy, torture, and suffer no consequences. Religion saves lives. It makes people think about a possible eternal and ever-lasting punishment for killing another human. Religion has saved people in my opinion, sure their was the holocaust, but it had nothing to do with religion and it is nice to think that those Jews who died have a peaceful after life. I believe that Religion will be removed off the planet in the future, but I will force my children to become faithful, and I will force their children to become faithful.
Wait? What about law? Would that not stop people from killing and raping. Don't we have a judicial system.
Suicide would be the easy way out... The Culprit would not have to worry about going to hell and suffering.
Uh no. Religion doesn't add order. Humans add order. Morality didn't come from religion. It came from people. As to punishment, I believe inexhistance is punishment enough. To know that after you die, you don't think, don't feel, don't see. Nothing.
I meant the 2nd swear in. Barack Obama sworn in again, but without a Bible - Times Online Would you please stop making random claims? I don't spout things I hear, unless they're blatantly true. You take me for an idiot that does no research. I also hope you're joking. Me believing in the Christian faith, which believes that all should do good and follow a correct example, spreads lies? I think Obama is muslim. Big woop. Now you will go off about "well all Christians think he is some muslim and all Christians are dumb republicans who vote for McCain!" Oh please. I've mentioned to others how slavery in the Bible works, because they had a common misconception about slavery in the Bible. Now you tell me I didn't know slavery was in the Bible? Go waste your time somewhere else.
If I knew that I would not go to hell after I die, I would go and kill all who have done me harm, then commit suicide to avoid the punishment of human laws, so what if I seize to exist, so do the people I've killed. That was an Example by the way. Humans add order, but so does religion. Religion adds a larger risk for doing certain sins. It also makes killing feel obsolete, I would not kill someone if I knew I would suffer for eternity and they would enjoy their eternity in Heaven.
Religion is not the major contributor to morals. To prove this, I am going to call upon millions of Atheists, including myself. I don't believe in god, does that mean I will go outside and murder people? I didn't think so. Morals are created by society, they aren't inherent when you are born. I believe the morals debate (and Nitrous) proved that morals are taught by the society (environment). How so? I've seen that video, and if a slip of a word is all the proof that you have, that is not proof at all. I've slipped my words up many times when I try and talk about one thing and think about another thing. And I'm sure you have too.
I'll nudge. 1) So if humans created morality, morality must be subjective, and if even you state morality is objective, then its a big LOOPHOLE 2) Oh its plenty of proof. Police investigations run off of even the tiniest of evidence. Plus, Obama didn't even correct himself until the guy told him. Look, I don't want to be a conspiracy theorist, but I can tell you he's not a Christian.
EDIT: Screw my explanation. I'm just saying the justice repeats his line differently after Obama pauses. Well, I think in the far future there will still be religion. Like many others have said, people will still need that comfort of knowing there is an afterlife and such. However, I think that since we will probably have a greater understanding of everything, our beliefs will be toned down accordingly. If anything, the good parts of religion like community and helping others will always remain.
Look at this way... First there were polytheists Ex. Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, etc. etc. For quite some time now there has been monotheists Ex. Christians, Jews, Muslims, etc. etc. Logic dictates that the only thing to come after that would be atheists, which are already starting to break some ground. So to answer the topic question...No, religion will not last forever.
In early Ancient Greek, the adjective atheos (ἄθεος, from the privative ἀ- + θεός "god") meant "godless". The word began to indicate more-intentional, active godlessness in the 5th century BCE, acquiring definitions of "severing relations with the gods" or "denying the gods, ungodly" instead of the earlier meaning of ἀσεβής (asebēs) or "impious". Atheists did not just come around more recently.
a) MORALITY =/= RELIGION. Religion is simply morality with sprinkles on top. Even if we somehow got rid of organized religion, that doesn't necessitate that morality couldn't still exist. It still would exist. And people wouldn't all turn to killing, rape, and torture, as you say so confidently. Why can't people recognize RIGHT and WRONG without religion? They can and do. Are all atheists murderers and rapists? b) You're going to FORCE your children to become faithful? AND their children? ENCOURAGE INDEPENDENT THOUGHT. It sounds like you were forced into religion. And you sound really scared. You really think the world will go to hell without religion. That's because you've been force-fed scare-mongering. Don't do this or you'll go to hell. Don't do that or you'll go to hell. Want to know something? I WOULDN'T WANT TO BE IN ANY HEAVEN THAT IS ACTUALLY RUN BY A GOD THAT CONDEMNS PEOPLE TO ETERNAL DAMNATION. Do you realize how LONG eternity is? (Obviously you don't.) So God gives you free will and if you don't worship him alone he LETS you spend an eternity in hell. It's not like he couldn't stop you from going there if he wanted (IF HE EXISTED). I WOULD SAVE ALL SINNERS FROM ETERNAL DAMNATION. There's no way that anybody can do enough bad on this earth in one lifetime to warrant ETERNAL pain and suffering. And any truly loving God understands this. But religion (in the West) doesn't teach you about a God like this. They say, "it's up to the person, who has free will (don't even get me started on free will), and if they lead a sinful life, they are condemning themselves." Well you know what? GOD has the power to save them from eternal damnation.* And according to you and Western religion, he doesn't save them. You think there really is a hell and that if you don't worship God you'll be sent there. Boy, that sure is some God YOU got there. Seems like a nice fellow. ENOUGH SCARE-MONGERING. *If God exists, that's a necessary power he'd have. Well those people obviously don't know about the 'repentant loophole'. It goes like this: "I'm sorry."
If you dont know, these are images from the spanish inquisition. ^The Crusades Salem Witch Trials. I see your point in saying that religion has saved people. What I'm going to get at is that while I think religion was founded on good ideas and principles, it was destroyed by extremists, and organized religion. In my opinion, regardless of whether I believe it true or not, I think religion won't just die out because of lack of belief, I think it NEEDS to die out, for the safety of humankind. EDIT: Oh and I don't get how you (radiant) can say that if you weren't religious, youd go on a killing spree. As far as I know, Atheists/Agnostics make up for the least amount of people in prison. Religious people, Christians specifically, make up the majority. And I know I would never go and kill anyone. Just because theres no eternal punishment waiting. I think the fact I have a brain tells me I know the fact I took someones life, and the guilt that comes with that, is enough of a fear to drive me away from committing murder, as well as basic moral sense.