"Every religion is somewhat similar but yours is better than the others." - What do you think of this assertion?
First of all, do you agree with this? Why or why not?
Should all religions be considered to have equal value?
If not “all” religions.. Would you consider your religion to be better in value than any other religion?
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65 Answers
Disagree. Because I think you can just stop the sentence before the but.
I do not believe my religion is better than anyone elses
Disagree. Religion isn’t a competition. It is a praise of what you see as the true deity.
People should be able to believe in their religion of choice, and they should have the freedom to say why they chose that religion, and they should be able to respectfully disagree with the parts and doctrine of other religions. However, to say one is more worthy than another leads to suicide bombing and other extreme acts.
Bottom line: People should have the freedom to choose and debate in the realm of religion, but that does not give them the right to force their religion on others. I’m going to stick to what I believe, but I’m not going to buy a Winchester and march over to my atheist neighbor’s house with a “believe or die!” sign. I’m not going to state that my religious conclusions are superior to his.
But maybe blowing people up is a part of someone’s religion.
Many religions include animal sacrifices, some still have human sacrifices. Some subjugate women..
Are you saying your religion is better than theirs because doesn’t have such attributes?
What if you don’t belong to any religion? It doesn’t matter.
@filmfann Religions shouldn’t be a competition, but if there wasn’t a competitive aspect, there would be no missionaries.
@ninjacolin No. ”...and they should be able to respectfully disagree with the parts and doctrine of other religions.” One can disagree with something without demeaning it. For example, purple is my favorite color. I find it more attractive than green, so I choose it. That doesn’t mean I disdain green, or ban the color from my presence.
Religion is jus some peoples way of assertin’ a civilised culture…
Atheism is the only True religion. I worship the great lord (null set).
Mine is better for me than is anyone else’s.
Theirs is better for them than mine is.
@Spinel
I agree and it is sad that everyone can truly accept this.
No one religion is better .
@Spinel and @philosopher, I never said anything about disdain. I’m suggesting quality comparisons. (similar to choosing green over purple because it’s St. Patrick’s day.)
@Tink1113 everyone has a belief system of some sort.
Alright, I’ll go out on a limb here.. I think it’s all very politically correct to suggest that no religion/belief system is better than others. But I don’t think it’s technically true in anyone’s mind. I think it’s exactly as @Dr_Lawrence suggests.
Personally, I believe I’ve done a lot of searching. I believe I’ve come to something that I consider to be the “right” set of beliefs. There are many opinions out there, but quite frankly, I don’t find any of them as good as mine. One of my beliefs is that I should continue searching, comparing, and looking for truth wherever I can find it.
Certainly, many beliefs that I hold dear I would wish on others. If only for my own survival sake. Things like not murdering, not stealing.. and the like. I find these and many other conclusions that I have to be “quality” beliefs. Which, all together, produce a quality religion or belief system for my individual self.
Often people say “I respect your beliefs”.. but aren’t some beliefs worth “disrespect?”
@ninjacolin Most people have the good sense not to tap an armored man on his shoulder and say “my belief in this area is superior to yours.”
Finding truth in matters like this is a long and difficult process. There is always some new truth around the corner, it seems. To elevate one belief above another today could make one a hypocrite tomorrow. I never know if what I believe now is completely solid, so I hesitate to say this belief is better than this one.
@ninjacolin Totally agree. I generally think belief in the Jewish zombie man is pretty wild, but he had a lot of good things to say re: tolerance, acceptance, patience, and love. Ironically, many of his most enthusiastic followers believe there is only one right way to live, and that it’s the business of the followers to shame and harass those who stray from the path.
Weird.
Anything that is inexplicable is deserving of skepticism.
@Spinel I think you’re on to something absolutely crucial here, which is another one of the reasons that patience, love, acceptance and tolerance are so important: nobody is perfect, and we’re all in a constant state of learning. So what you believe and how you react to certain situations may and should be different from one year (or three) to the next. If you’re not changing, if your understanding of yourself and the world isn’t developing and progressing, then as far as being alive goes You’re Doing It Wrong.
WHICH! Is a great reason to be patient, loving, accepting, and tolerant. Humble. I think humility, recognizing that you may not be right, or that your opinion may change later, is one of the greatest signs of insight and personal development in a human being.
Plus, you know, if you’re self-righteous and mean and didactic, people aren’t likely to listen to you anyway… Except for the most tragically desperate for One Right Way to live.
Those people make great followers, but lousy friends and neighbors.
(Plus, it makes being alive generally more fun. Instead of getting angry or frustrated at all the people running around the planet Doing It Wrong, you get to see people doing what they do best – constructing a self and testing the boundaries, benefits, and costs of that self. Which is fun, fun, fun.)
@Spinel said: “I never know if what I believe now is completely solid, so I hesitate to say this belief is better than this one.”
Right. ”So far, I think my beliefs are the best!” ;)
Nah. Seems like I’m always learning new things and gaining new perspectives. I think it is a mistake to solidify one point of view and worse to think it’s superior to others.
“Better” is a very vague term…. I don’t think you can compare religions very well – they are all very similar and none of them are more-right than any other. When they all attempt to prove something yet none of them can completely verify the truth, there is no way to differentiate them.
If it were truly “impossible” to differentiate them, then everyone would belong to all religions. clearly, something differentiates them so that people end up in one and not another.
I think it is great steaming pile of horse excrement
If you are going to be a joiner and belong to anything…don’t you think you would join the best there is??? I do!
A basic flaw I see in the context of the question is that the person answering is assumed to think there is only one best for everyone. Seems to me the basic answer would be that people choose the religious alignment that suits them best.
I don’t have a religion, i refuse to have to abide by rules written in some book or something. I set my own rules and morals
I do not think one religion is better than another. I think being “good” is what is important, no matter how you arrive there. Easy for me to think this; I am not religious, but I am Jewish, and the Jews generally are taught to respect other relgions. Here is a link describing Jewish attudes on this, read the first two sections if interested http://www.jewfaq.org/gentiles.htm
Im sick an tried of people saying that the worlds gone a bit mad but by the word of seal “we never suvive unless we get a little crazy”
@JLeslie Thank you for supplying that link! We Jews do respect other Religions and avoid trying to get others to convert to our faith. If only other faiths could be satisfied to let us be and not feel compelled to convert us to theirs.
I think the problem you are faced with @Dr_Lawrence and @JLeslie is that it happens to be a belief of other religions that conversion, literally the act of spreading what is considered to be worthwhile information regarding morality, is a positive thing for all concerned parties.
@dutchbrossis said: “I don’t have a religion, i refuse to have to abide by rules written in some book or something. I set my own rules and morals”
then you create your own moral guide book in your head. how is that different from someone who has decided for themselves to use a material guidebook for the exact same purpose?
@ninjacolin My, there is quite an impressive brain in that head of yours! :)
I don’t think my brand of Christianity is any better than the other flavors. I’m just more familiar so it’s comfortable. Same Bible, Same Savior, Same G_d. Some flavors are a bit more unfamiliar like using snakes. Still have the same three elements. Maybe a bit strange to me, but not to them.
Religion smells. It all ends up being the same.
Let’s take Wikipedia’s definition:
“A religion is a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a supernatural agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.”
The greater the overlap of the moral code part (which includes the interpretation of holy books) with the
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights
the better the religion (or form of religion).
@ninjacolin My biggest problem with Christianity is that even if I behave exactly as Jesus would want according to the bible, Christians say I cannot get into heaven. I have asked questions on fluther regarding this, because it is so baffeling to me. Christians would rather have a very screwed up Christian identify with their group, than a person who acts according to God, but does not accept Jesus Christ as their savior. It will never make sense to me, it is not logical. Two people have the exact same moral compas, that is what should matter to us, not how we arrived at the morality. The only logic I can find behind is the Christians figured out a way to convince people they need to convert and keep them in the fold with the threat of the afterlife, good way to keep membership up and money coming in.
Jews focus on life on earth, being good to each other, charitable, doing mitvahs, a goal of improving what we can while here. I don’t know if my religion teaches it specifically this way, but how I think of it is if I believed in God I would think of God as the creator of the universe and then we carry on his work, and his work in my mind is valuing life, working together as a society to acheive peace, pursuing science to understand ourselves and nature.
Someone once said to me God created Adam and Eve so we will all understand that if you go back far enough we are from the same two, we are all related, brothers, family.
@ninjacolin I understand that. I mean I don’t let a “pre written” book decide my morals. It is hard for me to see how people would follow some of the rules in the bible if they weren’t that religion. Meaning I don’t let a book tell me what is right and wrong, I decide that for myself
I understand that evangelism is felt to be a universally good thing for all concerned.
If we (Jews) practised it, we would all have been exterminated by members of the majority religion in every country in which we have lived and from every country from which we have been expelled or shipped out by the cattle car load to places of extermination.
When practised by members of the majority religion, it is of course broadly admired and approved.
The three or four difference which separate you are nothing compared to the mass amount of bullshit which unites you. Forgot where I heard that, but ya, flashy.
@dutchbrossis and @HTDC i asked a new question about that line of reasoning. :)
either way, evidently you feel your way is “better” than the pre-written book way.
@JLeslie said: “two people have the exact same moral compass, that is what should matter to us, not how we arrived at the morality”
“should” is a strong word. ;) it begs the question: says who?
with you too, it seems evident that you feel your religion’s ways are “better” than the “competition’s” ways.
@mattbrowne provided a rule of thumb he goes by for differentiating between “quality” religious beliefs and “sub-quality” beliefs.
@Zaku said: “people choose the religious alignment that suits them best_ [but not necessarily the one that suits everyone best.]
pretty cool, Zaku! great criticism. :) I definitely have encountered people who advise others to consult their “religious leader,” without even asking what faith they believe in. these ones do seem to have the sense that any religion is good enough as long as you pick one and dive in deeply enough to find the practical truths hidden behind the dogma and rituals. some people are like this, however, I think most people aren’t so liberal about it. most people are pleasant and tactful and civil, yes, but they go about their religious activities with a confidence that they are doing exactly what is best, within their power, given what they know to be true. this seems too obvious to state, yet somehow it’s important
@Symbeline I want to assume the your comment that immediately followed my most recent one was not directed at me personally or at all people who self-identify as I do.
I did not understand what you meant, but I have always found you to be fair-minded and courteous. Please explain?
Religion is stupid, there, I said it. I am better than all you god believers. Now hang me from a cross or whatever you do.
EDIT:: ~
@Dr_Lawrence, i think she was speaking generally to everyone! unflashy translation: the few differences between us are less important than everything that everything else which make us similar. (also, i believe she was quoting a movie or book or something)
@Tink1113 You are entitled to your opinion about religion. That does not make you better or worse than those who are theists of one sort or another, only somewhat more smug and condescending. You are very young and thus you believe you are much smarter than everyone. You will outgrow the smugness, in time.
@Tink1113 Forgive me, my kids tell me the same thing!
@ninjacolin Quotes that are not so identified can create confusion, like the use of Internet memes.
Despite the claim that religions differ in only a few supposedly trivial ways, history teaches some of us that many millions have been exterminated and their created corpses blown away by the winds over such trivial differences.
There were many historical events that preceded the Holocaust that attempted the same thing. (Crusades, Inquisition, pogroms to name the more well known ones).
What reason is there to believe that there will not be some other such event aimed at the same goal, all over “The three or four difference which separate you”.
@ninjacolin I disagree. I barely do anything associated with my religion. I am an atheist, I don’t follow any of the rituals, except going to passover dinner if invited, or sometimes I light a chanukah candle. It just happens that Judaism allows for all good people to go to heaven, but I learned that in my 30’s. I was raised by atheist parents, never went to temple, and religion was never discussed. I thought my beliefs about understanding of others, and treating everyone equally came from common sense and the fact that my people had recently suffered through a Holocaust, where we had a deep understanding of what it was like to be hated just for being born Jewish. This is why so many Jews travelled to the south to fight for civil rights, we did not care who was being opressed just that people continued to be opressed.
My father also always said that America is a paradise, religious freedom and separation of church and state is never to be taken for granted. So, I look at it also as an American ideal, that we do not judge one religion as more right than another. It was only later, as I said above, that I learned that my religion agreed with this thinking. If Judaism said only Jews go to heaven, I would not change my mind about how I feel. I really don’t care what my religion says, I care about what makes sense.
@Dr_Lawrence It was a quote I once heard which concerns Christianity and its many different branchings. I also specified that I forgot who said it. As for what reason do we have to believe that said differences won’t cause more wars and all…well, religion itself has always been an excuse for war, but never the real reason.
@Symbeline Thank you.
I agree with your latter point.
@ninjacolin – Yes, that’s an insightful observation. You’re seeing contexts that others often aren’t seeing that they are operating inside of.
“You” might think it is better for “you” than the other religions are, otherwise it’s a rather arrogant assertion that I would easily ignore
I feel that all religions have to have there respect, what is so interesting is that people tend to separate themselves because of it which makes no sense when many if really getting into details have so much in common…
If truly curious about religions, one should take a course on world religions and see the aspects of them all, which is a fasinating thing… good for the soul
For me it taught me that being judgemental is a ridiculous thing for people were all created for the difference… its all a big bowl of soup if you think about it…
I feel that no one religion is better than the other, even if I believe certain things that others may believe… no one if perfect and for sure no one is better than the other…
If you place all the information of all religions into one book, it would be such a great read, huh???
I am an Agnostic.
Everyone has the right to believe what they choose.
I have no tolerance for fascism or for those who wish to tell us all what to believe.
I think humans are really more alike than different.
I see life like John Lennon’s song Imagine.
I’m an atheist so I’m really out of the argument. However, if I picked a religion, it wouldn’t be one where I have to bow to god 5 times a day or admit to being a “lamb of god”. I would want a religion where we fought with god and kicked his ass.
@Ron_C
How about a religion that says, we should always examine the documentation before we decide?
Not listen to rhetoric nonsense or lying Politicians.
My girlfriends sister who is a minister. Told her to tell me God helps Scientist. By inspiring them to come up with ideas that lead to cures and better ways to do things.
I do like her attitude.
@philosopher that’s a nice sentiment but I cannot believe or even understand a religion where god is intimately involved in your life. I expect that if there is a “supreme being”, it is not interested in us individually; maybe nit even interested in the human race. After all, there are probably much more interesting things and beings out there than us.
@Ron_C
I hope God exist but I do not know if,God exist.
I decide issues based on available documentation. I distrust all rhetoric. The Democrats are too far to L and the Republicans are too far to the R. Many Americans are unable to be objective and decide based on what is best for America. Religionists people tend to allow religion to distort the facts.
Sadly the Politicians will use religion or any means to divide and separate American’s and all humans for their own benefit.
For the record, my religion is TOTALLY better than everyone elses.
What’s that you say? I don’t have a religion. Ha! Not having a religion is one of the basic tenants of my faith!
BWAHAHAHA!
I do believe there is only one true religion and that its members would be in total agreement with each other (1 Cor.1:10). John 17:3 says to take in “accurate knowledge.” Different teachings can’t all be accurate.
“All the gods are one, the wise call them by many Names”
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