chicken_little
30-06-2007, 10:21 PM
I think it's pretty clear that a lot of people here believe that religion is nothing more than a tool created by men to be used by certain people in positions of power to wield control over others. I'd like to start a discussion about how that control is implemented and what the goal of the control is. I know that it's probably impossible to avoid the personal bickering that goes on between people of faith and other folks, but let's try to keep that to a minimum. This is not a debate of Christianity versus everything else, but rather religion in general. Paganism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Witchcraft, New Age, Environmentalism (if you consider that a religion), and so on.
After doing some thinking I can definitely see how religion can assert control over people. A great example of this is in ancient Egypt when the pharaohs were able to govern the people with a great deal of religious leverage. It must have been pretty powerful, considering the impressive feats that the Egyptians accomplished. The same goes for many of the ancient South/Central American civilizations that used religion as a tool of fear and motivation.
But in modern times how is religion used to control the masses? When I look at the people who live in the region where I live, which is one of the most concentrated populations of Christians in the United States, I can't see any troubling signs of control being forced on anyone. The big one that comes to mind is that many people feel obligated to tithe 10% of their income to the church because that's what the Bible instructs them to do, and most likely that's what the leaders of their churches encourage as well. But beyond that I don't see, nor do I personally feel, any significant control forced upon anyone. Sure, there may be things that I have done in my life as a result of my religious beliefs. And some of those things may be seen by a non-Christian as a result of control on my life. Before I got married I adhered quite strictly to abstinence. It wasn't because the church I went to made me feel shamed into doing it though. I wanted to do it. I didn't want to be promiscuous, possibly catch some nasty STDs, or end up getting some woman pregnant. I also don't drink, but not because the church said, "THOU SHALT NOT DRINK OR YOU WILL BE STRUCK DOWN AND SPEND ETERNITY IN A FIERY INFERNO MUWAHAHAHA!" I don't drink because I think that intoxication without moderation results in poor judgment which in turn results in unnecessary problems later on.
I suppose there could be one other thing, but I don't necessarily feel that it's a product of control. That thing would be the way people vote for government representatives. Usually people vote for the candidates that best match up with the religious beliefs that they hold. My wife's family falls into this category, but not so much as a result of religious control. Rather it's because they obsess over the Republican party, preferring to scoff at any other candidates while voting blindly for the Republicans. It's troubling! Luckily my wife isn't like that. :)
Looking forward, however, the control produced by religion could be scary. I can definitely see a One World Religion (OWR) formed, and followers of that religion would be required by the state to do certain things. Perhaps it'll be the "donation" of X percent of income, or involuntarily putting the first born child into religious school, or requiring every citizen to travel to some "holy" location to worship the leader of the OWR. Who knows! But if everyone is forced to fall into line and become members of the OWR, that's when the control would be most powerful. Most likely all religious freedoms would cease to exist, though the leaders of the OWR would try to convince people otherwise.
I'm sure there is something that I don't see because of my own beliefs and perspective. So I'd love to hear other thoughts on this topic.
After doing some thinking I can definitely see how religion can assert control over people. A great example of this is in ancient Egypt when the pharaohs were able to govern the people with a great deal of religious leverage. It must have been pretty powerful, considering the impressive feats that the Egyptians accomplished. The same goes for many of the ancient South/Central American civilizations that used religion as a tool of fear and motivation.
But in modern times how is religion used to control the masses? When I look at the people who live in the region where I live, which is one of the most concentrated populations of Christians in the United States, I can't see any troubling signs of control being forced on anyone. The big one that comes to mind is that many people feel obligated to tithe 10% of their income to the church because that's what the Bible instructs them to do, and most likely that's what the leaders of their churches encourage as well. But beyond that I don't see, nor do I personally feel, any significant control forced upon anyone. Sure, there may be things that I have done in my life as a result of my religious beliefs. And some of those things may be seen by a non-Christian as a result of control on my life. Before I got married I adhered quite strictly to abstinence. It wasn't because the church I went to made me feel shamed into doing it though. I wanted to do it. I didn't want to be promiscuous, possibly catch some nasty STDs, or end up getting some woman pregnant. I also don't drink, but not because the church said, "THOU SHALT NOT DRINK OR YOU WILL BE STRUCK DOWN AND SPEND ETERNITY IN A FIERY INFERNO MUWAHAHAHA!" I don't drink because I think that intoxication without moderation results in poor judgment which in turn results in unnecessary problems later on.
I suppose there could be one other thing, but I don't necessarily feel that it's a product of control. That thing would be the way people vote for government representatives. Usually people vote for the candidates that best match up with the religious beliefs that they hold. My wife's family falls into this category, but not so much as a result of religious control. Rather it's because they obsess over the Republican party, preferring to scoff at any other candidates while voting blindly for the Republicans. It's troubling! Luckily my wife isn't like that. :)
Looking forward, however, the control produced by religion could be scary. I can definitely see a One World Religion (OWR) formed, and followers of that religion would be required by the state to do certain things. Perhaps it'll be the "donation" of X percent of income, or involuntarily putting the first born child into religious school, or requiring every citizen to travel to some "holy" location to worship the leader of the OWR. Who knows! But if everyone is forced to fall into line and become members of the OWR, that's when the control would be most powerful. Most likely all religious freedoms would cease to exist, though the leaders of the OWR would try to convince people otherwise.
I'm sure there is something that I don't see because of my own beliefs and perspective. So I'd love to hear other thoughts on this topic.