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The problem with religious tolerance...

psychoblast

psychoblast

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Oct 11, 2000
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Humanity is at a perilous cross-roads. We are foregoing the conscious decision-making about who we should be as a species, how we should live, how we should utilize the Earth's resources. We are foregoing this and, instead, letting "market forces" take over. Yes, market forces are the cumulative effect of people's consumer-related decisions, so you could argue it is the product of conscious decision-making, but it is NOT the product of people sitting down thinking, "I'm now going to decide the future of humanity" every time they go to the market. So we make what we feel are trivial decisions, and as a result we make them without proper gravamen, and so the cumulative effect is very immature and selfish.

I think one main reason we as a species are abdicating a greater role in consciously charting a future course for humanity is rooted in religion. Basically, what do different religions teach us is the destiny of Mankind? Christians essentially teach that our destiny is just to sit around and wait for Jesus' second coming to wrap up and conclude the history of humanity. If you embrace that as the destiny of mankind, where is the incentive to chart a course for humanity that will lead us to higher and better evolution over the coming millenia? There is none.

So, basically, there is a REAL WORLD DETRIMENT to tolerating Christianity, or other religions that create in individuals a sense of pointlessness with respect to charting out a positive, future course for humanity. It infects our politics and our social ethics at every level. It makes us fundamentally short-sighted.

Christianity is not the only thing to blame, but it is one of the big items that impedes humanity's progress and healthy evolution. When people who have greater awareness, like secular humanists, suggest that "to each his own" as to their religions belief, I just shake my head because for all that they have intelligently rejected Christianity or other dogmatic and myth-based religions, they still are failing to take a stand against a phenomenon that causes great calamity and detriment in the world.

it's like that saying, for evil to prevail all that needs to happen is for the good people to do nothing. Those who are not actively trying to get people to abandon destructive beliefs are part of the problem, by tolerating destruction and small-mindedness.

I'm not abdicating violence or anything, but we can damn well be a lot more vocal in our opposition to Christianity, more proactive in trying to change peopel's minds, in trying to educate young people. It's like, they have their missionaries and churches and try like hell to convert people and if we (people who have a more enlightened view on spirituality) do not do likewise, then how can we expect to carry the day before the short-sighted people in charge cause irreversible cataclysm?

~psychoblast~
 
christian belief is not that we are just sitting here awaiting jesus to come back. it, like many other religions, instruct their followers in ways to protect their community and society in general. you know, all that forgiveness jazz.

rethink your premise.

i grant that with the widespread misuse of religion in america i totally understand how a movement towards intolerance can pick up speed.
 
But how do u respond to the prophecies that are real? You say evolution is real, undoubtedly, but what about that? It's true too.
 
L2R said:
christian belief is not that we are just sitting here awaiting jesus to come back. it, like many other religions, instruct their followers in ways to protect their community and society in general. you know, all that forgiveness jazz.

rethink your premise.

i grant that with the widespread misuse of religion in america i totally understand how a movement towards intolerance can pick up speed.
Click to expand...

You make a good point.

I have always said there is a big differnce between Christianity and Christians. I dont have to many problems with the bible or with christianity from my perspective. Its Christians who seem cast all those stones that they themselves preach they should not throw.

Religion is too often used as an excuse for an individuals own personal prejudices.
 
^amen, sister.

i'd go so far as to say that there are actually very few true christians in the states. the whole church evolved out of the practice of imitating and being inspired by the lives of saints, who in turn were originaly only getting sainthood by the very fact that they died for their beliefs, which was just like jesus. how many self named christians in the states actually practice being christ-like?
 
Ahhh. Are you one of those militant atheists? Did you know you are just fighting dogma with dogma?

You are confusing the difference between Christianity as a doctrine and Christianity as a spiritual belief.

To defend Christianity, I will try and show you the difference to perhaps make you less revolutionary.

Christianity as a doctrine is the way it is used by political to gain political power for years, like you said. Yes, when it is used as a political tool it can cause some devastation. This also encompasses the social expectations that religion sets.

Christianity as a spiritual belief is a much more personal matter. It in some respects is SUPER concentrated on the individual. This can be said to be the existential part of religion.

Most people fall somewhere in the middle of the spectrum of these two opposites.
 
Many Christian's do not have any interest or concern about eschatology at all. Also many Christian's are allies of environmentalists. I have met Christian's who accept that global warming, peak oil, and other forces are real and who think its our responsibility as stewards to re-orient the economy towards sustainability and fairness.

I have met two atheists that think global warming is a crock of shit designed to bait the world into massive redistribution of wealth. I don't believe evangelizing for secularizing society or promoting atheism is an important component in getting people aware of our "perilous crossroads".

There are other social situations where I'd fight to keep things secular or get things more secular, like opposing campaigns to inject religious propositions into public school curricula or opposing laws that prohibit activities on Sundays. Even though the laws usually don't say its about Sunday being the Christian sabbath or "churchday" I think that is very much what it is about. I think the dominant religion in most parts of the world tends to over impose itself on non-believers and minority faiths-and those things are good to keep in check.

Anyways regarding the "perilous crossroads" described by psychoblast I think many more Christians can be engaged as allies. Attacking people's religion to maybe get some people more aware of our situation doesn't seem fruitful. People who stick their heads in the sands through eschatology will stick there heads in the sands by other means. I stick my head in the sand sometimes because I often don't detect all that much more that I can do at the moment that will be productive.
 
i hate religion, i hate christianity and catholicism and every jesus religion the most. i was forcibly raised catholic until i was 11 and refused to go anymore. at which point in time my family started hating me. christians who complain about intolerance are fucking RIDICULOUS, you're the goddamn MAJORITY, and there is no actual problem of atheists trying to CONTROL YOUR LAWS OR YOUR BODIES so shut up.

...=]
 
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