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Is religion based on fear? (not what you think)

You rarely hear religious people complaining about useful technologies. It's always the useless pseudo science portrayed as science for mysterious purposes, such as man coming from monkeys and Climate Change.

Fundamentalists always seem to want to label any scientific discovery that contradicts their religious beliefs (as with evolution) or their right-wring political beliefs (as with Climate Change) as pseudo-science. Sorry, but pseudo-science is stuff like so-called "Scientific-Creationism" or "scientific racism" which fail to follow the scientific method.And by the way, no one ever said man came from monkeys. What science says is that humans and apes (not monkeys) share a common ancestor.
 

Kemosloby

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Fundamentalists always seem to want to label any scientific discovery that contradicts their religious beliefs (as with evolution) or their right-wring political beliefs (as with Climate Change) as pseudo-science. Sorry, but pseudo-science is stuff like so-called "Scientific-Creationism" or "scientific racism" which fail to follow the scientific method.And by the way, no one ever said man came from monkeys. What science says is that humans and apes (not monkeys) share a common ancestor.

They have no proof of that. It's a crazy theory masked in the unknown, nobody can say it didn't happen any more than a person can say God did not create man as man. We weren't there and nobody uploaded the video to youtube.
 
Also,
Can you give an example of non-useful technology?

Uh, how about an Atomic Weapon? Technology and science are simply tools. It is our values which tell us what to do with them, and religion if it is to serve any purpose at all, must inform our values. There is a Baha'i document which I think best expresses the ideal relationship between science and religion:

"Religion is religion, as science is science. The one discerns and articulates the values unfolding progressively through Divine revelation; the other is the instrumentality through which the human mind explores and is able to exert its influence ever more precisely over the phenomenal world. The one defines goals that serve the evolutionary process; the other assists in their attainment. Together, they constitute the dual knowledge system impelling the advance of civilization."

It seems to me that where we have problems is when one tries to the job of the other. When religion contradicts the findings of science it becomes superstition. Without the guidance of religion, science and technology can end up being used for destructive purposes.

And by the way, we don't descend from chimps either. We share a common ancestor.
 
They have no proof of that. It's a crazy theory masked in the unknown, nobody can say it didn't happen any more than a person can say God did not create man as man. We weren't there and nobody uploaded the video to youtube.

Sure we do. The evidence is called fossils and now we can add DNA to the evidence.
 

Kemosloby

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Sure we do. The evidence is called fossils and now we can add DNA to the evidence.

Interpretation. Fossils are remnanats of the flood of Noah's day. How does DNA prove anything? You have DNA of a man, DNA of a monkey and What DNA of the fish we're both supposed to have came from?
 
Everything about humans has its root in what humans fear.
Religion and technology are both expressions of the human desire to not be afraid.
Both fail.

It is indeed possible to transcend fear, but the price is too high for all but a few.
It involves, above all, discarding one's own identity.
 

Tumah

Veteran Member
My question is not if religion is based on "fear of god".
But if it is related to "fear" of technology and scientific advancements.

I've come across many religious people, that will argue that technology will corrupt humans.
The more "strict" the person was, usually the more emphasis this argue takes.
That's actually exactly what I thought, since that's usually what atheists are asking...
 

SomeRandom

Still learning to be wise
Staff member
Premium Member
I haven't really encountered any religious person against technological advancement.
 

Valjean

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Chimpanzees ;)
No -- common ancestor with chimps &al.
Interpretation. Fossils are remnanats of the flood of Noah's day. How does DNA prove anything? You have DNA of a man, DNA of a monkey and What DNA of the fish we're both supposed to have came from?
Fossils were clearly not deposited by flooding. There never was a world flood, and If you don't understand how DNA maps evolution you clearly aren't familiar enough with this subject to hold a valid opinion.

I think there is a great deal of fear connected to religiosity, and among fundamentalist Christians it strikes me that the fear is largely of insignificance. The idea that we are an accidental product of natural processes, and that the Universe doesn't value us or care weather we live or die, is greatly upsetting to insecure egos.
 

Evie

Active Member
My question is not if religion is based on "fear of god".
But if it is related to "fear" of technology and scientific advancements.

I've come across many religious people, that will argue that technology will corrupt humans.
The more "strict" the person was, usually the more emphasis this argue takes.
I think in many cases fear could be a reason. Fear of 'hell'. Fear of the unknown. But even should religious beliefs turn out to not be what they are 'believed' to be, there would be far more immoral and criminal behaviour in the world without religious beliefs. But then there are the religious wars, and the atrocities fanatical religious believers perpetrate upon unbelievers of their particular beliefs. So are religious beliefs a benefit to humanity or not? Regardless, the system of religious beliefs does exist, and has done so for century after century. All things considered, maybe the whole religious belief system is there for a reason other than the obvious.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
My question is not if religion is based on "fear of god".
But if it is related to "fear" of technology and scientific advancements.

I've come across many religious people, that will argue that technology will corrupt humans.
The more "strict" the person was, usually the more emphasis this argue takes.

Yes, I think that most religion is based in fear, fear of death and the unknown. Religion gives people hope that they won't actually die and the belief that they have answers to unanswerable questions. The reason so many people fear technology and scientific advancements is because the more explanations that science finds for the natural world, the less need there is for a God to explain everything. They fear scientific advancements because it forces them to question the validity of the God(s) they believe in.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
You rarely hear religious people complaining about useful technologies. It's always the useless pseudo science portrayed as science for mysterious purposes, such as man coming from monkeys and Climate Change.

Funny how the exact same scientific method that enables us to have useful technologies is the exact same scientific method used to validate evolution. Apparently its a valid method when you find the results useful, but a pseudo method when you don't.
 

Kemosloby

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Funny how the exact same scientific method that enables us to have useful technologies is the exact same scientific method used to validate evolution. Apparently its a valid method when you find the results useful, but a pseudo method when you don't.

Useful technology is the validation that the science was correct. Evolution theory produces nothing useful.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
Useful technology is the validation that the science was correct. Evolution theory produces nothing useful.

Not according to Wikipedia: Modern medical research and practice have focused on the molecular and physiological mechanisms underlying health and disease, while evolutionary medicine focuses on the question of why evolution has shaped these mechanisms in ways that may leave us susceptible to disease. The evolutionary approach has driven important advances in our understanding of cancer,[1] autoimmune disease,[2] and anatomy.[3]

But even if our understanding of evolution hadn't produced anything useful, the validity of a scientific discovery has absolutely NOTHING to do with how useful it may or may not be. All that matters is that the scientific method used to verify useful discoveries is the EXACT SAME method used to verify discoveries that you may think have no use. Science isn't like religion. You don't get to pick and choose which parts you believe in. It's the scientific method that determines the validity of any scientific claim.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
I think in many cases fear could be a reason. Fear of 'hell'. Fear of the unknown. But even should religious beliefs turn out to not be what they are 'believed' to be, there would be far more immoral and criminal behaviour in the world without religious beliefs. But then there are the religious wars, and the atrocities fanatical religious believers perpetrate upon unbelievers of their particular beliefs. So are religious beliefs a benefit to humanity or not? Regardless, the system of religious beliefs does exist, and has done so for century after century. All things considered, maybe the whole religious belief system is there for a reason other than the obvious.

I think that religious belief played a significant role in the evolution of the species. Societies that had strong religious influences had significant advantages. People of a single religious mindset tend to have similar views and people with similar views tend to be more productive in a communal society. A society that can convince its people that God wants the people in another society to die will be far more effective at waging war.

However, as beneficial as religion may have been in the past to the development of human societies, I think that it has long outlived its usefulness and has become more of a detriment to society than a benefit.
 

Kemosloby

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Not according to Wikipedia: Modern medical research and practice have focused on the molecular and physiological mechanisms underlying health and disease, while evolutionary medicine focuses on the question of why evolution has shaped these mechanisms in ways that may leave us susceptible to disease. The evolutionary approach has driven important advances in our understanding of cancer,[1] autoimmune disease,[2] and anatomy.[3]

But even if our understanding of evolution hadn't produced anything useful, the validity of a scientific discovery has absolutely NOTHING to do with how useful it may or may not be. All that matters is that the scientific method used to verify useful discoveries is the EXACT SAME method used to verify discoveries that you may think have no use. Science isn't like religion. You don't get to pick and choose which parts you believe in. It's the scientific method that determines the validity of any scientific claim.

Been through this on other threads. They broaden the meaning of Evolution to mean most any sort of change in breeding. Not the same as saying Man evolved from a fish over millions of years as saying a pug came from a wolf through selective breeding, or that a virus mutates into a different breed of virus.
 

Grandliseur

Well-Known Member
If I understand your question correctly, I can only answer for myself. I am extremely religious, though no longer part of any denomination. I am also, though somewhat old, extremely into technology, machinery, Sci-fi, etc. Physics and math used to be my pursuits.

From my background, I can only say that my religious stance only supports extreme interest in technology and the solution of humanity's problems using technology and science to assist ourselves, and I would love it if governments could think of ways to avoid using our science for weaponry and killing each other, and instead used it for the betterment of humanity's condition and our interaction with earth.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
Been through this on other threads. They broaden the meaning of Evolution to mean most any sort of change in breeding. Not the same as saying Man evolved from a fish over millions of years as saying a pug came from a wolf through selective breeding, or that a virus mutates into a different breed of virus.

Nice how you completely ignored what I said about how the usefulness of a scientific discovery has NOTHING to with with how valid it is. Scientific validity is determined by the scientific method. The exact same scientific method that enabled science to conclude that the Earth orbits the sun is the exact same scientific method that prompted the scientific community to elevate Darwin's hypothesis into a full fledged scientific theory. You can pretend that evolutionary theory hasn't produced any benefits all you want, but that doesn't change the reality that the ToE uses the exact same scientific method as every other science.
 
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