The Good and Bad of Religion

Religion is constructed on faith and belief of an individual even though it is the individual choice to follow it or not. It has stirred a lot of debates for years; those who are trying to prove that God exists throughout history and follow to modern day. While, those who are atheist are trying to prove their point of God does not exist. There are still more and more theories and debate over the subject of religious view. It is a matter of theism versus atheism; new and old philosophers have joined the debate and all with different sides to another philosopher’s theory or view on the matter. In this paper, I will attempt to illustrate the reasons given by Louis Pojman of why religion is good or bad, as well as evaluating Bertrand Russell argument about religion. This can define the meaning of life and the creation of life as we know it. It can change views or switch sides for there is always another explanation to exactly what religion is all about and having a superior ruler that created all.

societies usually desire the perfect reflection of them .As time passes and life changes so do religions ,however the bases of the religion remain. Each religion has different dominations, each to fit certain societies . some of the reasons why one may be religious could include social and psychological aspects. Religion could help cope with stress, give hope and peace of mind .It could give a sense of community , along with a support group , It also gives a worldview , purpose , and a system of ethics . Because religion fulfills human needs it has not extinct

Christopher Hitchens the author of God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything uses his own personal experiences with religions and gives us an insight as to why he feels that religion is flawed. Throughout his book he uses arguments that is justified by modern science and social issues that uses religion as an excuse to execute unreasonable actions. His arguments are from the consumption of certain meats to the war against nations just for defending the righteousness of each religion. Hitchens thoughts of human religion is back up by evidence collected by modern science and studies that religion is arbitrary in their beliefs and it teaches people to be self centered and conceited. Hitchens explains how all religion has no true evidence of its actual existence but rather their followers must follow blindly through “faith”, which is induced from stories written by other humans. With science and reason in the modern age, Hitchens feels that the need for a strong belief in religion is no longer needed for individuals to live a quality and moral life.

influence the way society is structured. Religious views can affect the way communities interact with each other, it affects a community socially as well as a government.

There has been a continuous debate within recent generations over whether religion really has a place in modern society. With the rise in population and cultural diversity, there are more religions than one can count anymore. Past that, atheism and secularism have been on a steady rise. Religion is a social construct created by humans to function as a society and give life a sense of purpose. A few consistent arguments in this debate are that religion gives us a moral code to stand by, gives us a purpose and a way of life, and something to look forward to in the afterlife.

Answer Lately, religion has gotten a considerable measure of negative press from the media. Religious radicalism has been the reason for some fear based oppressor assaults, from the bombings to the 9/11 assaults in America. Some would contend that if religion didn't exist, a ton of issues we confront in current times would not in any case exist. In any case, religion is likewise an apparatus for good. It empowers numerous things that the vast majority would consider ethically

The first pro of having religions is that religions create a sense of hope instilled in its specific followers. These religions also have created answers to questions that are still being asked, although they are not rooted in science, they are still answers to complicated questions.

As a member of society, an individual cares about the opinions of others and thus tries to conform to community moral and rules in order to avoid punishments. This illustrates how religion is also functional in providing moral values through concepts such as heaven and hell, karma, commandments, and so on. Religion also serves a purpose by transmitting knowledge and by providing answers to unknown or unanswerable questions such as the meaning of death and life. Lastly, religion is simply good for mental health. As Durkheim states, the believer “who has communicated with his god is not merely a man who sees new truths of which the unbeliever is ignorant; he is a man who is stronger.”2

It has dictated decisions in World Wars, played a hand in the Middle East, and decided American presidential elections. Most importantly, it has been the foundation and guidance to the majority, in many cultures, for thousands of years; it is the core of society and develops within society. People tend to view religion on an individual level, due to how most beliefs are personal, however religion is more than that, as it shares beliefs and behaviors that benefit everyone’s needs in a specific culture. According to an article found on psychologytoday.com, human beings have a fundamental need to participate in society, or develop close relationships. With the need for group ability, the majority of society creates doctrines to instill a sense of social unity and obligation. These doctrines, or religion, give the group an identity and sense of value, thus the customs and traditions created become sacred in reality and out of it develops a deity, or superhuman-controlling power. In truth, it is the society that is God and determines the expectations and behaviors.

Lotus: Said ‘padma’ in Hindi. The symbol of transcendence and purity because of how it grows vibrant out of the mud

I think the purpose of religions is to give people a standard to strive for. I believe that most religions express to their followers the importance of being a good or kind person. The ultimate goal to me it seems is to get as close to this ideal as possible. As for the functions of religions, I think a main one is that it provides a level of comfort for people. When times get rough, a person's faith is something they can fall back on. They find comfort in believing that whatever higher power they worship will take care of them during their hardships. Furthermore, when a person’s life takes an unexpected turn, they rationalize it as being part of “God’s plan” for them, which I think makes it easier for them to cope with and accept their situation.

Religion is held sacred to everyone in the world. Every possible identification someone could label themselves is, in a way, a religion. Throughout history, it can be seen that it has affected many decisions. Religion has been the cause of wars, massacres, murders, expansion of land, and more. Every religion has some sort of rules that it goes by, even if those rules are that there are no rules, and they each have some sort of head (god or gods or none). For Catholics, Pope Francis is the oracle for God. Hence, Catholics look to Pope Francis for guidance in many areas of their lives. The Pope is seen making many speeches on many occasions. For each speech, he has a certain agenda. He seems to speak for major events or sectors in the world. Pope Francis adds his input of what God believes in to be right and just. However, do the Pope’s words have actual meaning, or is he just trying to make Catholic followers feel better? In many of his speeches, it can be seen that he doesn’t provide a true answer to many things other than to love one another and to wait for a better life in the afterlife. Even if he does give some input that could be seen as valid information for politics or economy, should Catholics trust his word to make their decisions when he is not an expert in anything but Catholicism? Pope Francis is an example to Karl Marx’s theory of religion. “It is the opium of the people” (insert citation for Criticism of Hegel’s Philosophy).

Religion has been a powerful force in human history. Mankind has longed and searched for the answers to its purpose, the reason for being and the possibility of life after physical death. They reasoned that an afterlife would be a place of accounting and reckoning for the life they lived on earth. Religious belief systems seemed to give the answers as to how to prepare for the afterlife. Religion became the means of giving answers to those basic yet deep-seated questions of both life and death. Religion provided a format of rules and laws for conduct and treatment toward others based on the desires and wishes of a god or gods that people envisioned, imagined or invented. Religious belief systems have been a powerful force for good and bad...good in the sense that it provided a measure of individual behavior and order in society for the wellbeing of the whole, but bad in the sense that men of ambition who craved power and control over others would often use religion as a tool of manipulation and fear. A casual glance of history tells us that complete civilizations have been built, grown and maintained around elaborate religious systems, ancient Egypt being a prime example.

Especially in today’s society, religion can be seen as a negative or a positive for the public.

It’s the twenty first century. Scientists have found evidence of water on Mars, they have successfully cloned human embryos, and everyday, they are getting closer to finding a cure for cancer. Still, in a world of groundbreaking facts and evidences, where the newest discovery leaves older ones out of commission, we fool ourselves into blindly putting faith on a series of chronicles conceived during the primitive age. Religion probably started out as a result of mankind trying to explain the physical world, but then became a tool to control and oppress, a reason for bloodshed and hate. While religion may have been of great help in