khaoz wrote:
If only there could be a valid study of people who believe in the Abrahamic tradition of god because of personal experience as compared with the percentage of those who believe in the Abrahamic tradition because of social conditioning. What percentage of believers would there be had not they been EXPECTED to believe this tradition by family and society, since as early in life as they can remember? Never given an opportunity to make a clear, uninfluenced decision.
Yes, I do agree that is impossible as truly the spread of much of Abrahamic traditions have been cored around the tribal instinct of human beings, that is unfortunately one of subjugation, repression, and oppression, of basic human nature, for freedom from the way one walks to the way one chooses to exercise their reproductive freedoms. But that is the price of large human populations where control is a necessity for 'law and order', which often is not fair, for all who are concerned.
Religion is often used as a tool of control to moderate a whole herd of human beings in a society, and it serves its purpose not perfect but well enough for societies of old to continue, in law and order.
Societies where social welfare is instituted at the political level, no longer rely so much on religious traditions, which have truly faded away in homogenous societies like Scandinavian countries where with greater immigration, and increasingly heterogeneous culture, the balance is changing in cycle, once again, as we speak.
For the most part religions are used for social cooperation and control, and the world is still such a place politically and economically where religions will be necessary in whole countries and pockets here and there, even in Scandinavian countries, where social welfare brings comfort to the fears of now some ordinary citizens.
I personally see religion still as a necessary tool, on a global basis, for human survival. And that is key, the human survival part, where religion and survival become one and same.
But for much smaller so-called primitive cultures, in the 20 most peaceful societies in the world studied as such in cooperation, sharing, and a belief in a unifying force of nature, is most often the natural way seen of humanity in mother nature true, not as adulterated as much by complex religions and culture working together necessary to control large herds of humans only evolved to interact with about 150 to 200 sets of eyes in REAL LIFE.
My fortune was living and choosing the church environment or the environment of nature on desolate pristine beaches that I wandered and wondered in, for years during my teenage to young adult life, and I a logical oriented person, was not good on what someone else said 'It was'.
I had to find proof for myself, so like the American Indian, living close to nature, I found the proof of GOD in the Interdependent relationship of all that IS that I so easily witnessed in hotel-less beaches, with no cars or other foot prints, just the beautiful balance of nature set free, in ecstasy and life and death challenge the way it simply is.
And then I learned to dance and connect to other human beings non-verbally, that I re-visit greater than ever in my life, now, and what I find is, intellect in the crystalized intelligence sense, complex verbal and cultural way, is highly over-rated, as the greatest under-statement I KNOW NOW, IN WORDS, but truly a necessity to run the huge engines of modern cultures.
What I know non-verbally exceeds anything I can put into words, and always has.
But I am not common even here, as a non-verbal child, who stuttered and stammered in life in verbal speech, whose life behind eyes, mouth, and ears, knew much more than I could ever TELL THEN.
A DISEASE that took away my visual and auditory thinking abilities, is what brings me here, otherwise, I would have never come close to describe IN WORDS, the life of a visually and feeling person and yes, what they (me) SEE(s) of GOD(s). :)