by Scott Birch

Created on: October 26, 2008   Last Updated: October 27, 2008

There are many elements that distinguish a religious human from a freethinking one (for lack of a better term), but the variance that stands tall above the other factors is that one group is concerned with emotional consolation and the other is only interested in the truth.

Granted, every ideology has defined what that "truth" is and their sympathizers follow suit to those theories. They cannot all be correct since, at their core, they contradict one another in key ways. The challenge is weeding out the bad theories from the good, which is much less complicated than it is often made out to be. Since we live in the age of technology and are now able to test these formerly unchallenged beliefs against the ropes of scientific evidence, it is safe to say with reasonable confidence that the truth has become apparent.

The truth is that the "truths" that we as a species have taken for granted for so long are now being systematically debunked and becoming obsolete regardless of whether we choose to acknowledge them or not. Following suit to the flat Earth theory and the perception that we exist in a geocentric universe, religious belief has joined the ranks of our first and worst attempts at biology, astronomy and philosophy. There is simply no reason to believe it anymore, and every reason in the world to continue fanning the unquenchable flames of human curiosity.

It's a foolish to say that religion isn't valuable to millions of devout people. It gets them through their darkest days, and in most cases it has played an important role in their lives since the day they were old enough to understand the words of their elders. This is not to say that consolation is a negative thing, but when emotion takes president over reality and evidence it becomes an unnecessary crutch. Karl Marx stated it correctly when he explained:

"Criticism has plucked the imaginary flowers from the chain not so that man will wear the chain without any fantasy or consolation but so that he will shake off the chain and cull the living flower."

The living flower deserves the attention and devotion that is too often stolen by Bronze-Age mythology. By casting off the belief in these tales, we allow ourselves to enjoy and be awed by the beautifully simplistic reality of nature and life.

It is difficult to analyze the positive aspects of religion without hitting your nose on the harsh reality that it is causing more trouble than it's worth.

I have recently attended a few church services, partially because

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>