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Old 11-01-2007, 07:21 AM
 
5,004 posts, read 15,357,036 times
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Perhaps we are wired to God. And if so, then there is no way that religion will ever go away. It may evolve, but the belief in God will remain, even if that belief in what God actually is, evolves along with it.

Evolution and Religion - Darwin’s God - Robin Marantz Henig - New York Times

Quote:
whatever you call it, there seems an inherent human drive to believe in something transcendent, unfathomable and otherworldly, something beyond the reach or understanding of science.

…His research interests include cognitive science and evolutionary biology, and sometimes he presents students with a wooden box that he pretends is an African relic. “If you have negative sentiments toward religion,” he tells them, “the box will destroy whatever you put inside it.” Many of his students say they doubt the existence of God, but in this demonstration they act as if they believe in something. Put your pencil into the magic box, he tells them, and the nonbelievers do so blithely. Put in your driver’s license, he says, and most do, but only after significant hesitation. And when he tells them to put in their hands, few will.
If they don’t believe in God, what exactly are they afraid of?
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Old 11-01-2007, 07:34 AM
 
Location: Journey's End
10,203 posts, read 27,127,849 times
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I see religion as separate from a higher power (God). If one says we are hard-wired that would possibly be a wire I can personally relate to.

Where did we come from?

Why are we here?

Two of many human questions that appear unresolvable.

Believing in a higher power (God) can and often does resolve this conundrum but religion on the other hand--a codified text, a house of worship, a religious leader--are for me more questionable as enduring. Too many, often have interpreted the unknown in an attempt to find the life source, but also too many, too often establish doctrine for less laudable purposes.
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Old 11-01-2007, 08:12 AM
 
2,970 posts, read 2,260,792 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jessaka View Post
Perhaps we are wired to God. And if so, then there is no way that religion will ever go away. It may evolve, but the belief in God will remain, even if that belief in what God actually is, evolves along with it.

Evolution and Religion - Darwin’s God - Robin Marantz Henig - New York Times
Well put. We are hard-wired to seek out God since he did create us. Some refuse to acknowledge this and try to deny hiim. Why is it easier for some to believe we came from nothing than from a Creator? Puzzling. . . A big bang?
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Old 11-01-2007, 09:39 AM
 
7,784 posts, read 14,891,928 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ontheroad View Post
I see religion as separate from a higher power (God). If one says we are hard-wired that would possibly be a wire I can personally relate to.

Where did we come from?

Why are we here?

Two of many human questions that appear unresolvable.

Believing in a higher power (God) can and often does resolve this conundrum but religion on the other hand--a codified text, a house of worship, a religious leader--are for me more questionable as enduring. Too many, often have interpreted the unknown in an attempt to find the life source, but also too many, too often establish doctrine for less laudable purposes.
Excellent post. Absolutely excellent.

Hard concept to put into words, but God and 'religion' are really a lot like oil and water.
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Old 11-01-2007, 10:10 AM
 
3,086 posts, read 6,274,360 times
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Originally Posted by sophix View Post
Religion will eventually become obsolete
.............
I tell ya, unless something changes, this country is headed for disaster.
James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

You are right, sophix.. it does look like religion (stated above) in many places appears to be obsolete... and our nations are headed for disaster, unless something changes. However, we are not promised a change in this world, only that it will get worse. So all we can do is maintain our personal relationship with God, love our fellow man, and try to touch people's lives in a positive way! Thank you for bringing this up....
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Old 11-01-2007, 10:26 AM
 
2,957 posts, read 7,386,627 times
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After humans (and many other species) go extinct it is likely that the Earth will not. Perhaps the day will come when the Earth is repopulated with other beings with a similar intelligence level to ours. Those beings would probably make up a lot of new religions which would then change and evolve like they have in all of our recorded human history.
So, unless the new beings have different intelligence levels than we do, I think that religion will never be obsolete. If they are very different from us, maybe they will not use religions.
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Old 11-01-2007, 11:10 AM
 
Location: Blankity-blank!
11,446 posts, read 16,193,000 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cg81 View Post
James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

You are right, sophix.. it does look like religion (stated above) in many places appears to be obsolete... and our nations are headed for disaster, unless something changes. However, we are not promised a change in this world, only that it will get worse. So all we can do is maintain our personal relationship with God, love our fellow man, and try to touch people's lives in a positive way! Thank you for bringing this up....
This is religious resignation and apathy. Let everything go down the drain without a second thought. We can't change anything, so why try? Nothing is worth the effort. Lets all stick our heads in the sand and shut out the world. Why even bother to get out of bed every day?
Religion removes all incentive.
Love our fellow man? Where do you see this happening?
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Old 11-01-2007, 11:13 AM
 
3,086 posts, read 6,274,360 times
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Originally Posted by Visvaldis View Post
This is religious resignation and apathy. Let everything go down the drain without a second thought. We can't change anything, so why try? Nothing is worth the effort. Lets all stick our heads in the sand and shut out the world. Why even bother to get out of bed every day?
Religion removes all incentive.
Love our fellow man? Where do you see this happening?
I'm not sure where you're coming from or where you misunderstood my post.. but I agree with your thoughts.
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Old 11-01-2007, 11:19 AM
 
Location: Brentwood, TN
8,002 posts, read 18,610,853 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sophix View Post
I hate to blow it for most of you, but religion is a man-made creation that will very soon be exposed for what it is - a counterintuitive, destructive, manipulative organization that has been feeding off of people's vulnerability and weakness for years.

It's fake, people!

WHAT????? Oh my goodness!!! Are you serious, I didn't know. What's going on....it's fake??? Oh my goodness!! Thanks so much for clearing that up for me Sophix, I've been fooled.

Please don't tell me Santa is fake too?
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Old 11-01-2007, 11:35 AM
 
Location: Blankity-blank!
11,446 posts, read 16,193,000 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by spunky1 View Post
Well put. We are hard-wired to seek out God since he did create us. Some refuse to acknowledge this and try to deny hiim. Why is it easier for some to believe we came from nothing than from a Creator? Puzzling. . . A big bang?
People who think and question things require proof.
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