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OftenBen  ·  3769 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Religion's use.

    Certainly now, at the point we are at we no longer need a fake man in the sky in order for us to act ethically or morally.

I wish more people believed that. I would say that there are plenty of people (Sticking to the example of Christianity because I'm most well versed in it's lore) who only act morally because of the threat of what happens if they don't. Abrahamic religions in general are very If/Then based, with the 'Then' being enternal suffering, a pretty strong motivator. That's what scares me the most about some of the most devout, they only act like civilized people out of fear of damnation, what happens if they lose their faith? Do they shoot up a school? Bomb indiscriminately? Abuse their spouse or children? That's not a human, that's an upright ape who only behaves because of the big stick held over his/her head. We put dangerous animals in a cage, is the threat of eternal damnation the cage for the upright apes? Is fear the only thing that keeps that darker nature at bay?