Scapegoats
For so long I myself have said that the idea of god and religion is just a way for people to come to terms with things they do not understand. That people believe in that, not because they selflessly subdue themselves to a greater power, but because there's something in it for them. What's in it for them? The answer is the same to Dawkins' question in page 193: "What is it about the idea of god that gives it its stability and penetrance in the cultural environment?" The answer to both my question and his are answered on that same page: "It provides a superficially plausible answer to sep and troubling questions about existence." It made me very happy to read that, and see that I haven't been wrong all along.
Another argument I've had for a long time about god and religion, and the reason I choose not to see god as other people do, or express my spirituality differently than other people, is that people like having god to blame him. Generally, when something bad happens, people tend to blame something, and most of the time they're right: "I couldn't make it because of the weather" "I couldn't make it cause my dad never picked me up" "We broke up cause she messed up" "I failed the class cause I didn't sleep well." But the focus isn't that people sometimes do point the finger at the right thing, the focus is that they like doing it, especially when something bad happens to them. How many times have you heard people around you say "Oh God, why?" or "Oh God, why me?" That's people trying to point the finger to god and requesting an explanation to why something bad happened to them. It does feel good, being able to not blame yourself for something you screwed up at. For example if you had an amazing business opportunity, and you lost it, it's easier to go and say "Oh God, why? Why did you take it from me?" rather than accepting that you messed up somewhere in the way and THAT'S why you lost you business opportunity. But that's just escaping. And to me, that's what many people have god for, an escape.
For so long I myself have said that the idea of god and religion is just a way for people to come to terms with things they do not understand. That people believe in that, not because they selflessly subdue themselves to a greater power, but because there's something in it for them. What's in it for them? The answer is the same to Dawkins' question in page 193: "What is it about the idea of god that gives it its stability and penetrance in the cultural environment?" The answer to both my question and his are answered on that same page: "It provides a superficially plausible answer to sep and troubling questions about existence." It made me very happy to read that, and see that I haven't been wrong all along. 
Another argument I've had for a long time about god and religion, and the reason I choose not to see god as other people do, or express my spirituality differently than other people, is that people like having god to blame him. Generally, when something bad happens, people tend to blame something, and most of the time they're right: "I couldn't make it because of the weather" "I couldn't make it cause my dad never picked me up" "We broke up cause she messed up" "I failed the class cause I didn't sleep well." But the focus isn't that people sometimes do point the finger at the right thing, the focus is that they like doing it, especially when something bad happens to them. How many times have you heard people around you say "Oh God, why?" or "Oh God, why me?" That's people trying to point the finger to god and requesting an explanation to why something bad happened to them. It does feel good, being able to not blame yourself for something you screwed up at. For example if you had an amazing business opportunity, and you lost it, it's easier to go and say "Oh God, why? Why did you take it from me?" rather than accepting that you messed up somewhere in the way and THAT'S why you lost you business opportunity. But that's just escaping. And to me, that's what many people have god for, an escape. 
God should be capitalized if it is the Judeo-Christian God.
ReplyDelete