One of the main functions of organized religion has always been as a means of social education, of passing the rules of civilization from generation to generation.
Christianity and Judaism do the best job, in my opinion. Both emphasize that life is sacred, and both emphasize treating each other well. Both emphasize charity and hard work. Both severely punish assault, murder, and theft.
What do you think happens when religion is de-emphasized by society?
This. And this. Oh, and this, and this.
Not everybody needs an organized religion to teach them how to act. Some have parents that are capable of doing that. However, the rules set down in Judaism and Christianity in particular for interpersonal interactions are as good a substitute (as well as a good support for parents trying to teach their kids how to act) as there is.
Government is sure not doing the job. All they're teaching is the entitlement mentality.
55 minutes ago
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteRat, I read your original comment, and I've been considering how to respond to it. I don't mind that you have an opinion that differs from mine. I find honest dissent refreshing, and the comment you left didn't strike me as disrespectful so much as skeptical.
DeleteMy opinion is this: most people are not "good" people. They're miserable wretches that must be controlled by fear of punishment. The government in its infinite wisdom has removed fear of punishment for crimes committed--claiming, oddly enough, that the criminal is really the victim. It has also, in its infinite wisdom, encouraged people to have faith in it instead of in any kind of benevolent (or malevolent, in the case of Islam) God who will punish wrong doing after death. Removal of any fear of any kind of real punishment, as well as the rise of entitlement spending encouraging the "I deserve it because I'm here and breathing" mentality. The three create a triad of converging reasons why self-centered and self-motivated assault (you did something I didn't like/refused me something I wanted/have something I wanted, so I'm going to hit/cut you, and/or take what you have) that's becoming more and more common.
Organized religion used to give a common set of social rules that families tended to follow, whether they believed or not. That has now failed. Government has stepped in, and it's doing a piss-poor job doing things from the top down what society used to agree on without much speech or thought, from the bottom up, in church.
This comment has been removed by the author.
Delete