Religion to be extinct

[TheAnimus]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12811197

So apparently the world is becoming less religious, it is a logical step to assume as more and more people become educated how silly most of the religions are, heck just learning about how devout and pias some followers are is a way to remind people that they can't all be true. Basic logic is now sufficent for us not to need creator god concepts, indeed few people find it helpful to be told "oh god created that, and he was just there, always" any more than the concept of entropy.

Relgions can't really gain traction without a bunch of people believing it to legitimise it, and if they are decreasing then it only stands to reason that sooner or later they will become null.

But myself I don't think it will be extinct, some people are always nut jobs, those who campain against day time running lights (which I find really useful as a cyclist, dark cars + grey + rain on my eyes, makes it a lot easier to spot em).

Do hexites think it will be eradicated completely? Or will there always be some small loyal group?

[kalniel]

There aren't many religions that rely on being 'we can't explain it, therefore God must have happened', yet at the same time the question of 'why' rather than 'how' is as unanswered by science as ever (and it doesn't seek to answer it) so I'm not sure that a change in basic logic is going to have any effect. A change in living conditions might, in that people perhaps don't as frequently question 'why' if they're living perfectly well-off lives, or maybe we're just too busy to think about that sort of thing.

What do you think about the non-creator God religions?

[IronWarrior]

Religion serves some people for whatever reason they need it to serve.

If you can't explain something, make up a religion to explain it.

I believe Spiritualism is more favourable then religion, I do believe there are things that are hard to explain and may appear to us as God like, but I just believe it's just an other form of life with powers we don't understand or have, like how present day man might appear to a cave man.

I believe showing respect is best then getting on your knee's and worship.

[Biscuit]

i agree with you're opinion towards religion however i don't think it will ever completely disappear. Its hard to really say why exactly i think it will always stay, aside from the fact it has been part of human culture since long before recorded history, hell a lot of the earliest recorded data is religion based!

The interesting thing i always find about religion is when you boil down to the core and the surrounding storys, the principles and general ideas are often very similar. I always think, did they come from the same story just changed slightly over time in isolated locations? Im no expert so obviously there are flaws to my point but.... you know what i mean?

[Lucio]

There are some definite downsides to the erosion of religious groups, for example, very little has stepped in to offer social cohesion.

I also think that your assumption as to the *why's* of reduction in relgious beliefs and behaviour isn't correct. If I were to venture an assumption, it would be that belonging to a relgion has made the transition between "a must" to "if you want". No longer are you criticised for choosing not to believe, in much the same way as very little is actually publically condemned. Short of urinating on war memorials, or being a paedophille, little raises a public outcry from the majority.

[MadduckUK]

Small Gods tbh

[aidanjt]

The big problem is that while the numbers of the religious ranks are dwindling, the ones which remain are becoming increasingly fervent in their sky fairy worship as their beliefs are questioned and their 'mainstream opinion' support crutch is snapped in half.

[MadduckUK]

The big problem is that while the numbers of the religious ranks are dwindling, the ones which remain are becoming increasingly fervent in their sky fairy worship as their beliefs are questioned and their 'mainstream opinion' support crutch is snapped in half.

The internet has polarized the whole thing, i don't know how discussions about religion really went before that, as it was all one way traffic in school assembly - if i could have twattered a quick "does anyone else think this is a bit far fetched?" then rather than sitting there listening we would have realized we were not the only one in the room who felt a bit suspicious.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Even if religion varnished tomorrow people would still be killing each other. It is greed,power,fear and stereotypes which are behind most of the problems today - religion is only one of many fronts through which mankind's weaknesses are portrayed.

[MadduckUK]

Even if religion varnished tomorrow people would still be killing each other. It is greed,power,fear and stereotypes which are behind most of the problems today - religion is only one of many fronts through which mankind's weaknesses are portrayed.

that is not a valid reason for its being, surely we should be trying to knock them all on the head

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

that is not a valid reason for its being, surely we should be trying to knock them all on the head

What about people like Pol Pot and Stalin - they caused tens of millions of deaths and it was not religiously motivated. Then OTH you get religious people who have done good deeds just because they are good people.

Instead of people focusing on the symptoms it is better to focus on why people end up during horrible things in the world. Like I said even with no religion mankind will find other excuses to destroy itself.

[Andeh13]

I hope it doesn't, there is room for religion in the modern world. Despite being an engineer & grown up with the sciences I still believe in God and am totally unashamed to say so. Religion is what you make of it, I don't believe in the literal translation of the bible etc, and class myself as a modern Christian but with a bit of common sense it makes sense.

I see the bible as a book of Chinese whispers, i am sure a man like Jesus existed and I am sure he was a very talented man in what he could do, but as the story of him was told & spread people added their own bits to it. End result is what we see in the Bible today.

Of course I believe in Evolution, but with the all those coincidences in creating life who says there wasn't a bit of a nudge here & there to ensure everything stayed on track. Ball rolls down a hill, its going to get to the bottom one way or another but you can nudge it based on where you want it to land!

[MadduckUK]

Then OTH you get religious people who have done good deeds just because they are good people.

you should do good deeds because you want to, not because you think you need to. These sounds like people trying to work a system.

Instead of people focusing on the symptoms it is better to focus on why people end up during horrible things in the world. Like I said even with no religion mankind will find other excuses to destroy itself.

because singular people can hold too much power, you may say they become gods.

[TeePee]

I think a large part of the decline of religion, at least in the US isn't the rise of rationalism at all.

The really christian people in this country go to church on Saturday and Sunday. They have Bible study on Monday and Wednesday nights and Sunday school at the weekend. Religion isn't just a belief but a lifestyle and most importantly a social group.

A big part of the decline of religion? Facebook.

People are going out less, and socializing through online methods, from e-mail to skype to twitter. Since the major draw of religion for a lot of people is the social aspect, it's easy to start cutting back in order to spend more time online. The young people get less exposure to the church by being dragged along by their parents less, and are more likely to find alternate information.

[format]

As long there is poverty and strife, there will be religion, sadly.

[aidanjt]

as long there is religion, there will be poverty and strife, sadly.

ftfy.