Religion

ok so tracy and lu (mostly tracy) said that our first topic to talk about is RELIGION. so if you're a really religious person, i may suggest that you stop reading like, now...not that i'm gonna make fun of any religion whatsoever, but you know, just in case you didn't read my WARNING from the first post......yeaa... remember, this is from our young and foolish minds :)
mkaaay. religion... i think it's kinda strange (NO OFFENCE) and useless? 'cause like, if you pray, how do you know you're really "talking" to someone "above" you? like, sure it's good because praying makes you THINK about the good stuff you should be doing, but basically, you're also saying/praying (however you wanna say it) OUT LOUD. yea ok, so it "reminds" you to do good for the world and etc, but still... you might as well as write it on your hand or something, since its the same thing except without a pen. but like, still... people died FIGHTING about religion in the past (and i think they still do it now maybe? i don't know), like in the crusades we learned about in social studies. like, SERIOUSLY, fighting for your god? that's just slighty useless if you ask me... if God is so wonderful, how come He didn't help fight, since the wars were all about Him and like, you know, other religious stuff... but like, why have the religious wars altogether? if the religion and stuff say to be good and not bring harm and whatnot to other people, WHY THE HECK DID WARS TAKE PLACE? like, HOLY FRIGGIN CUCUMBERS (not saying holy god or anything, 'cause lu had always told me not to use the lord's name in vain or something like that..) so yea, even if they're religious and listen to whatever the priests and stuff told them, why the heck would they just about go against what the god says and kill other people? i don't get that.. and like, WHAT THE HECK?! to easter, since like, that's the day jesus came back to life or something. first of all, what to little chocolate bunnies and eggs have to do with jesus? and second, HOW THE HECK DID HE COME BACK TO LIFE? is he like, the ONLY person...god...whatever.. to be able to do that? if he died for our sins, how come he won't tell us how to i don't know... revive ourselves?i mean like, it'd be so much better. like, what if there WAS a hell, and you hated being there, then you'd wake up from the dead or whatever and do the right/good stuff to make up for your sins and whatnot.. see? a win-win situation. jesus finds out he didn't die for us for nothing, and we get to be alive for a second time. :) and yea.. it's not like, i'm against religion. i'm not a religious person..(heck, i don't even know what my mom does when she sets out stuff for chinese new year, and i've seen her do that stuff for a fricken 14 years..). i'm all good with anyone being religious. i kinda think there's no point in it except to scare small children with stories about people doing bad things and teaching them not to do the same mistakes, but otherwise, yeaaa... no crucifixes or anything for me :D
yea...i think i sound kinda ignorant.. BUT you didn't have to read the whole thing ;) but yea... i'm sorry if any tears, cries of anguish, or gasps of disbelief were dragged out of your religious souls because of how i think.. -Daisan Z.


WELLS! HI IM BACK! haha, it seems we have a lot to say on this topic, but i basically have one, pretty short one, i mean im not against people going to church or a temple or whatever, they can do what they want, but me, i find it pointless to waste like what, 2-3hours of your day going to those things, why go there? i asked some people that and they said to pray, well first of all you can do the same thing at home o_O but why pray? its like "pray to be a good person" uhh, thats kinda my own choice, i can pray to be a good person yet still be evil, or not pray at all and still be a good person, pwned, mine is so short,
-Tracy P.




So. Religion. I don't have much to say about this (yeah, right) as there has been much controversy regarding the topic. Before, in the time without much science, people relied on gods for help, and created some myths to explain natural phenomenons (I sound like my English teacher o__O). We're talking ancient Egypt, ancient Greek and Roman times here. You know, Poseidon, Hades, Zeus and those people? The gods of their time. They were the cause for the weather, the animals, and the humans themselves. (Oh yeah, and the lesser gods too. Dionysus, Persephone, etc.) .They were the center point of the people's lives back then. The gods were basically the reason for everything, and they were also that last hope in the time of despair. People saying that Zeus was only angry when an billion volt atmospheric discharge of electricity approaching 30,000°C comes charging down at you (if you must know, that means lightning). Regardless of who is angry, you're still fried. Still, the people's curiosity is too much, and there is an insufficient amount of technology to figure it out. Simple-minded? Perhaps. But better than sitting like ducks and straining your brains trying to find out why water was falling from the sky.
That was 2000 years ago. This is now.
Certainly, we have plenty of technology today. And yes, we know that the planets don't revolve around the Earth (that was after the Church put Galileo Galilei under house arrest) and that God did not create the universe in seven days (after the Big Bang Theory. Though I kind of find that as strange as the seven-day theory. Come on, the universe goes BOOM and then theres a lot of space o__O). Oh yes, and that humans were not really /made/ (or rather, handcrafted) by God but really evolved from apes (and THAT was after Darwin was accepted into the scientific community). However, the people insist on believing the storys as true, brushing off the science and merely stating that those specific parts of Christian religion are symbolic.
Don't get me wrong. I don't have anything against Christians (except maybe the ones that are going to kill me by the time they finish reading this). It's just that the Christian religion is the one I know best, having read the Genesis of the Bible in a hotel room when I was /dying/ for something to read (hey, it was pretty interesting, and kind of fun to read too). And it was a big part of my Socials Studies curriculum, and the Church had a big part in European history.
Many people died because of religion though. That's a fact. The persecution of Christians under the Romans, the Crusades, the 'Hitler' incident, the Children's Crusade, those poor First Nations who were forced out of their religions (and died afterwards from smallpox), etcetera, etcetera. However, it is the religions that give us our international morales. We know stealing, killing, whacking people with big hammers, yelling and cursing, etc. are bad. How do we know it, and what stops us from doing those things? Laws. And what were the laws adapted from? Those ancient laws 2000 years ago. And what, pray tell, were those laws based upon? Religion. Religion also gives us hope for a life after death, so if you've been good in this life, you will move on to the life after. Yippee, a reason to live AND be good in your community. A win-win situation! Religion also gives us cautionary tales in the myths, telling you to respect your elders, don't jump off a cliff, don't disrespect people, and what-not. They're kind of like those stories we tell children: 'Don't stay out too late, or the bogey-man will eat you!' Crude, but it's similar. 'Don't be bad, or you'll end up in hell!' That sort of thing.
It also gives us someone to look up to: the god(s). We try to worship Him/them, try to please Him/them. And if you're the non-religious type, let me tell you, a lot of great things have come from trying to please the god(s). Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, for example, and the many Greek and Roman temples and statues. Miracles may not happen as you believe, but small things: winning the lottery may be put to fate, or getting an A on your next test. Though I personally believe that you should not sit back and let life play out, because that is plain boring and does not give you the best of life. Try and not put everything on to religion like the ancient Egyptians, who live to die, and try your best to make the best out of life (I know it sounds corny, but yeah). Try your hardest, and though the waters won't part to allow you to walk to the Holy Land, you can use your hard-earned money and buy a plane ticket there. Next thing you know, you have a promotion! Miracles come in many forms.
-looks up- Did I type all that? Haha, and I said I didn't have much to say. The whole point of religion, however, is positive, but not when people go to absurd lengths to achieve immortality. Have some common sense, and don't let your religion blind you until you don't know bad from harmless. I have nothing what-so-ever against religion. It's a great thing, don't get me wrong. Hey, I sometimes pray to God asking for help (it might work, you never know!). But I still believe in choosing my own future and the fact that the future is a thing of many possibilities. However, do not let the above post (article? Essay?) dissuade you from your religion. Just like, don't go around killing people because their religion is not the same as your's.
So yeah, that's my over-stretched opinion on religion. Lecture me about how sinful I am speaking mind to the world if my opinion seriously offends. I'm truely, truely sorry if this hurt any of your feelings out there in cyberspace. I know this is a touchy subject, so I was trying to dissuade Tracy from picking this subject...
And a note to Daisan: I did NOT pick this subject.
~ Lu L.