Would the world really be a better place?
Taking the long way home today I read numerous articles covering the horrible events in Paris and Beirut today; unfortunately most individuals aren’t discussing Beirut. Screening through the comments, on various publications, there was a common theme, which I thought long and hard about. What if we rid the world of religion? To a non-believer this is a very easy decision; however, not so much to the majority that is currently associated with a religious faith.
We have to think logically on this topic. In order to stop/debunk most, if not all religions, there would have to be a cataclysmic event. Simply using the same old tired approach by many outspoken Atheists to religious individuals, or anyone willing to listen, that no proof is proof that God doesn’t exist won’t cut it. Growing up I figured an extraterrestrial encounter similar to the alien invasion in the movie Independence Day would be very convincing to most individuals; however, this is getting away from a non-dystopia world where no religion exists. As many cathedrals in Western Europe are turning into museums, and many younger individuals are admitting they don’t believe or simply don’t know, we aren’t far off from religion in many nations dying off as the older generations pass on.
Assuming this day was tomorrow, would the end of religion remove horrible acts from extremists?
In my honest opinion there would be minor changes, but the world would be very much the same. Televangelists would have to actually develop real skills and make a living doing honest work, various Hare Krishna groups could start bands or start attending karaoke bars, Catholics would still be drinking wine and eating fish on Fridays, and the planet continues its orbit around the sun. Instead of money being allocated to tithes, more money can be allocated to small businesses and/or increase overall savings & investments. Sounds pretty sweet doesn’t it?
Guess what doesn’t change?
As long as there are individuals that desire power and are willing to do anything to attain it, there will always be corruption and means to manipulate the masses. With or without religion we have individuals currently divided by borders, political ideologies, sports teams; heck individuals fight over the most inane topics. Without religion we open the door to new avenues for individuals to go bonkers over.
While many are shouting from their windows that religion is to blame, seldom do we ever discuss the rationale from the leaders/champions who encourage these violent acts. If we collectively dig deeper than the surface we could discover the grim reality of how much the average person gets jerked around and is told whatever bullshit to encourage them that everything is fine. For some, having faith may be their only way to maintain their sanity, whether it is logical or not. As long as we continue to focus on our differences with our neighbour, we will never have peace.
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