“What makes you think that human beings are sentient and aware? There's no evidence for it. Human beings never think for themselves, they find it too uncomfortable. For the most part, members of our species simply repeat what they are told - and become upset if they are exposed to any different view. The characteristic human trait is not awareness but conformity, and the characteristic result is religious warfare. Other animals fight for territory or food; but, uniquely in the animal kingdom, human beings fight for their "beliefs." The reason is that beliefs guide behavior, which has evolutionary importance among human beings. But at a time when our behavior may well lead us to extinction, I see no reason to assume we have any awareness at all. We are stubborn, self-destructive conformists. Any other view of our species is a self-congratulatory delusion. ~Michael Crichton, The Lost World
I read the above paragraph on the Quote Garden site, and I am also reading a book called, “Under the Banner of Heaven” a story of a violent faith, by Jon Krakauer.
I wonder how many people question where the seeds of their religion were started, who began each of the separate strains of religion, who created the rules and decide what was the perfect concoction that would get you into Heaven, what would anger God, what would make him happy, how you must behave in order to have the correct ticket into heaven upon your death.
From my viewpoint of being an observer of the regulations each church puts upon its members, being your self isn’t enough, you have to design yourself to fit into their boxes of what is right and what is wrong.
Reading account of how Joseph Smith began the Mormon Church is insanity at its best. Just the way in which he dictated the information alone is crazy.
“Joseph would place the magic rock in an upturned hat, bury his face in it with the stack of golden plates sitting nearby, and dictate the lives of scripture that appeared to him out of the blackness.”
This is the how the Book Of Mormon was created and today there are more than eleven million saints that follow this writing.
The golden plates have never been found; yet 11 million people are following what some man created with his head buried in a hat.
It leads you to wonder how the rest of the religions were founded, by whom on what grounds.
I am a skeptic at best that any religion has a sturdier bottom than the Mormons.
A violent faith…, it seems that all faiths are violent to the individual spirit and uniqueness of each of us.
One God and many paths, perhaps if we each formed our own religion it would be a much kinder planet, since most of the fighting is about who is right and whose church goes to Heaven.
Heaven is knowing there isn’t only one right church and one right path, Heaven is knowing God isn’t found in certain religion.
Heaven knowing you don't have to be in a certain religion acting a certain way so that when you die, you will be in heaven. Heaven is being you.
There is a quote that goes something like this. God only accepts originality.
Imagine 11 million people are trying to be like Joseph Smith....
