Keep Good Religion, Ban Bad Religion

[noir_draconid]

That was the sentence I heard a vicar say whilst listening to the local radio station on the morning of Sunday 26th...of course, this prompted me to call in with my question, 'how do you define a bad religion?' Unfortunately, it didn't get put through as there wasn't much time left. Seriously though, what does define a bad religion; in all honesty

Comments

Very provoking question

[theidolhands]

And a very interesting response. Well said.

I see a trend to fear religion lately, shun it altoghether, as if that will be a kind of cure and yet modern society (generally without any) would dictate otherwise, in spite of the wars of thousands of years elsewhere.

Perhaps, one might say that cults would define a bad religion? But that is a whole other bag of worms.

Re: Very provoking question

[noir_draconid]

(nods) Although, I could say, that all religions and cults are the same thing; all have followers and various rites and rituals. It's the same thing under a different guise.

[striga]

It seems to me that every religion in the world has some practitioners who use their beliefs to find inspiration for living a meaningful and charitable life, and other practitioners who use it as an excuse to harm or even kill anyone who disagrees. Good people will find reasons to do good things, and bad people will find reasons to do bad things, and religion only gives both groups a chance to about their work in a more organized fashion. Without religion, they'd probably just be individual sociopaths limited to destroying one life at a time

[unbelonging_to]

With your first paragraph I largely agree. There can be a thousand wonderful people of a faith, and the stereotypes are built on the fanatics and chauvanists

[pack1ife]

Well, like you said, it was a radio show and he had to keep it short. Narrow his words down to catchy soundbites. And it sounds like it was effective.

But, IDK, what about Scientology?

[pack1ife]

Religion can have a few different meanings too.

It can refer to an organization, or a practice.

Course to narrow it down to "good" and "bad" is a bit short-sighted, keeping in mind it was a radio address. Where words like "healthy", socially, economically, and spiritually and "destructive", or exploitive, might be more appropriate. To say "good" and "bad" is to imply that people are going to always want what is best for them. It is a sad, but true fact of human nature, that, no, they aren't. Which arguably could be the reason these "bad religions" continue. You can't put a 'ban' on human nature, or any aspect of it. But narrowing it down to practices, you might be able to deter it in some degrees.

[i_am_pellucid]

Tezcatlipoca worship is bad religion.