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Is there any way that religion can be proved to be man made?

dinoid 5 Apr 18
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The religious impulse is deeply embedded in the human psyche and is the source of all human creativity, science, art, etc. Individual religions were concocted by people for various reasons, some more benevolent than others, but those religions could not have been created without innate human religiosity. For evidence look at the widespread proliferation of religion throughout history.

Proofs are not absolute things. Each person has to look at the evidence and form her own opinion.

Anything made by humans is man-made but mankind itself is a product of nature or whatever you want to call it—higher power, etc.

@icolan The reason I call it the religious impulse is because of that inexplicable spark of conscious awareness that fosters a sense of deep awe and wonder in the face of the overwhelming mysteries of reality. From that spark comes thrilling vision, and there arises the utmost motivation to live well, to invent, to create.

If, because of negative associations you dislike the religion word it is perfectly ok with me to call it something else. However, for me, calling it the creative impulse doesn’t tell the whole story.

The religious impulse is deeply embedded in the human psyche and is the source of all human creativity, science, art, etc.................................. That's has no basis in any truth. A religious belief has nothing to do with science, art or creativity. Many an atheist was a great artist, a great inventor, or created new technologies.

@grammy A religious belief is nothing but an opinion and has little or nothing to do with anything. I’m not talking about religious belief. I’m talking about our primal spark of awareness which brought to humanity a sense of reverence and awe for existence. It is religion in its purest form.

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@dinoid - you simply asked the wrong question... It is not up to the non-believers to prove that religion is man made ...it IS up to the believers to prove that it is NOT !

Hello Frosty, you are right of course, but it is something that they will not do, so it is up to us.
Read my answer with 'resserts' level 8

@dinoid - You are not going to convince a believer ...so why bother?

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Well who the hell else do you think "made" it??!!!

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I am always amazed at how people just assume that "religion" refers to only Christianity, Islam or Judism. These 3 religions are barely 3,000 yrs old and humanity has been around millions of years.

RIGHT?!

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Welcome to the asylum. Enjoy your stay.

It's been proved to be man-made, repeatedly.
The believers refuse to accept that.

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The fact that there is, nor ever has been, any evidence, facts or data to support the claim of the existence of any god(s), is proof enough that god(s) is a product of man's imagination.

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Is there any way that religion can be proved not to be man-made?

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Everything in religion tells us it is man made. If you study the catholic church history you'll get there.

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Religions are organizations. Organizations are created by human beings. Not that complicated.

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I think you just did...... just by posing that question and not getting killed instantly by lightning kind of proves that religion is man made. 🙂

There's still time. I'd better say my prayers.

@dinoid I was gonna say... report back dude !!!!!!!

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Even most deists could agree with you that religion is socially constructed by humans. Also, you may want to read Peter Berger’s The Sacred Canopy to help you make your argument.

That looks like an interesting book. I'm not familiar with Bergers work, but I'm going to have to look into it now. Just Googled it briefly. Reminds me somewhat of Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

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What proof is there that it's anything else?

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Yes. Just read the Bible.

There's to many lies

@Gbgood there are too many...

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What other creature on this planet has the imagination, creativity, and need for attention than a human? Our history is filled with imaginative story-tellers as well as greedy power hungry people who lie, cheat, manipulate, and take advantage when the opportunity presents itself. Leaders past and present have taken advantage by creating fear with misinformation and used religion to gain control.
If a deity needs recognition and adulation then it would present itself to all humans, it is inefficient otherwise.

Betty Level 8 Apr 18, 2019

To answer the question, Um... dolphins? Everything you said after that question has nothing to do with dolphins.

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No need for proof! Who invented them then, the penguins, the monkeys?

I doubt the monkeys would have the husband as the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church.

In Islam, a dead man gets 72 virgins. A woman gets her husband back. (And generous as Allah is, if she married more than once, she gets to choose which husband she reunites with! Wow! How she gets along with the 72 virgins in paradise is anyone's guess.)

@greyeyed123 but I heard that all women become virgins again when they get to heaven 😉

@girlwithsmiles Oh gawd....no thanks!

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Simple. Religion did not exist prior to lthe time that evolution produced the modern homo sapien.

I think that that is both unsubstantiated and untrue.

@Metahuman Its substantiation is the grounds that no evidence of religion among any other earthly creatures has ever been found. Try that for starters. Rebut that!

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The faithfools don't accept science, they don't accept reason, they don't accept modern times, they do not accept the reality...... how would they accept the proof the God is man-made?

A woman in the U.S. just saw Jesus standing in the burning spire of Notre Dame on TV. This is in 2019? The faithfools see Jesus in bread toast. They see Mother Mary crying blood. All this defies logic and reason. You cannot convert the stupid. Stupid is by choice. Once they have made it, they cannot be changed. They must die out.

I worry about the type of people we'll be left with if all the religious die out. I don't think the world has a substitute for them in place yet.

@brentan How so? Most of China and Russia have a lot of people and they look beautiful. Remember, initially there were only Adam and Eve and they got to eat the apple.

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read Yuval Harari's "Sapiens"

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To the satisfaction of a fanatic? No.

To the satisfaction of a reasonable, reasoning person? Yes. I think that's how most of us ended up here.

Well said.

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To start with Mary wasn't a virgin.yes she had a child named him Jesus.he never died on the cross.so he never rose from dead.get the big picture.its all not true.

The post questions religion, and your response is about jesus.... look inside yourself and find the big picture. ... why are you here, really?

@frisbee212isn't religion all backed by jesus??

@frisbee212 We are here because our parents joined and our mother gave us birth. Our reason for living is up to each individual person.

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Whether or not there are any gods, and I believe there are not, religion itself is a social construct. If there were gods, they would continue to exist even if no one worshiped them, just as people worship even though there are no gods. Religions have more or less evolved over the millennia to fit the needs of their societies, so without knowing exactly when and where the first religion started, it would be impossible to prove the origin of religion, just as it is impossible to "prove" the nonexistence of gods or other unlikely beings.

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YES. Just look at all the different beliefs and doctrines all coming from just as many scriptures. Either religion is man made or gods (if any) do not want to communicate with us.

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Looking at the replies, i've had many a giggle and some inspiring answers. Thank you all for that.

I am now wondering what kind of feedback I would get if I asked how the design in nature came about?

that i really can not say for sure. what i can say for sure is that god was not, because he does not exist 😛

Justify that there is in fact design in nature. What do you mean how the design in nature came about? It's not design. You're begging the question.

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wrong question. should be "Is there proof of a god-made religion?"

There are no wrong questions

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