The purpose of religion

Upchurch

Papa Funkosophy
Upchurch
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So, I've been having a ...oh, let's call it a "discussion" with a guy over in Politics about what religion is and what religion isn't. Let's say it starts somewhere around this post of mine (towards the middle).

The short version is that he says that the whole point behind religion is to not question authority, while I say the whole point of religion is the search for truth. Not necessarily scientific-style truth, but truth nonetheless.

It is entirely possible that I'm full of it and don't know what I'm talking about. So, I thought I'd start a thread asking what you guys would consider the core purpose behind religion.

Thoughts?
 
I think religion was meant as a way to pick up women. Now, I know what you're thinking, but it is quite logical. Let me explain.

It seems the majority of religions are pretty male dominant. You know, God is usually referred to as "he", the stories are mostly from a male perspective, and the females are generally portrayed as submissive or in some degraded manner. Thus, suggesting that it was created by men.

I have also been told that all men care about is "picking up women". (That is nice euphemism for how it is usually phrased.)

Therefore, religion, being a male construction, must have had the sole purpose of "picking up women".

:D
Please note that should you see me say "let me explain" it is usually a good idea to simply ignore anything following that statement.
 
Religion, IMO isn't the search for the truth, but rather a shortcut answer that claims to be the truth, while avoiding the terrifying (for some) concept of a finite and purposeless existence.

Primitive people were comforted by stories of a wise, fatherly protector in the sky who loved us and looked after us while we lived, and brought us to live in a happy place where all of our problems were gone when we faced the terrifying prospect of death.

It is also a mechanism for for claiming authority over and controlling the actions of others.
 
I'd say that it starts with the one, but invariably ends with the other, when the truth you found is ascribed to a deity.

Funny thing though, if you never venture into the politics forum, you get the idea that people on these boards dont really disagree on most things.
Seems not.
 
I'd say that you are both full of it. There is a very simple answer: religion has many different purposes for different people. To claim that it has just a single purpose is bogus, as well as claiming that its purpose is some vague undefinable thing as "not to question authority" or "search for truth".

Religion has many different purposes, among which are:

1: Providing an explanatory framework, a cosmology, which can be used understand the universe. (No longer in fashion)
2: Provide comfort in a scary world. (Grandma isn't really dead, she went to a better place)
3: Scare people in a comfortable world. (If you do not end your decadent lifestyle, you will burn in hell!)
4: Provide and justify a particular morality.
5: Rationalise things that most people will agree are immoral. (God made me do it!)
6: Explain strange personal experiences, such as visions and peculiar coincidences.
7: Conform to societal pressure.
8: Answering nagging philosophical questions.
9 and beyond: ... many other things ...
Infinite: God only knows what else.
 
The classical religions of Greece and Rome seemed to be entirely about carrying out rituals to placate and appease the gods and to receive their blessings for earthly endeavours. They seemed to have a very pragmatic view of religion - the gods were just powerful entities that had to be dealt with in the right way if you or your community were to thrive.
 
I think that, initially, what we would think of as 'religion' was a means of facing the uncertain/unknown with a measure of comfort. However, about the time monotheism really took off, it became an issue of control.

Since then, of course, it's been about everything.

In the end, of course, everything is about sex.
 
Upchurch said:
The short version is that he says that the whole point behind religion is to not question authority, while I say the whole point of religion is the search for truth. Not necessarily scientific-style truth, but truth nonetheless.
Click to expand...
Well, once affiliated to a religion, the search is - I assume - over.
However, your adversary is probably confusing religion with specific brands of politics, that don't give you a choice.
The thing is, once you believe and accept a specific religion to be true, what questions would you have against it's authority?
I'm assuming that if I ever become religious, I will have wholeheartedly embraced the authority of that religion, anyway.
 
Not so much a purpose as a driving force: Religion is fueled by fear.

Fear of the unknown
Fear of not being in control

Couple that with cognitive dissonance, likewise by the truckload, and you get a very powerful cocktail.

The self-proclaimed "The enlightened" (priests, gurus or whatever) then administer more fear to keep the religion on the road by upping the ante with threats. The intimidated fear not going to paradise as much as they fear going to hell. The fear has got them by the balls - and the ones who recognize the bunkum that religion largely is have to live with the fear of social rejection or outright physical violence and painful death at the hands of their peers, intimidated into action by their self-proclaimed "The enlightened" superiors and role models.

Religion is a truly sickening but self-propelling concept.
 
The primary purpose of religion, I believe, is to maintain social order.

Human society depends upon cooperation. We're just individually too weak to survive each on our own. We require cooperation for defense from the wild and the elements and we require cooperation for defense against each other. Few individuals working alone could maintain a farm or build a house. Of course, procreation requires cooperation - not just the sex part but raising children. In essence, a third of us are utterly helpless at any given time and another portion of us must spend almost all our energy caring for the helpless.

Not being a colony of ants or the Borg, human cooperation is tremendously inefficient. Conflict between selfishness and selflessness is common. Conflict even arises over how to best cooperate. Also, a large portion of humans (mostly children) are actually incapable of reason although their cooperation is also necessary to human success.

In such circumstance, cooperation must necessarily mean obedience. Children must be obedient to parents, workers must be obedient to foremen, forement must be obedient to architects, etc.

How does one guarantee obedience without having to negotiate it with each and every individual member of society? Especially when many members (children) would be incapable of understanding the negotiations?

The answer, to my mind, is religion.

That is why, for example, there are farming tips in the bible. It is important information that has to get out to as many people as possible. There is no time to explain why it's a good idea to, say, let one's fields go unplanted 1 year out of every 7. We just have to be sure our children get the information and follow it, even if we die before we can tell them ourselves.

Of course, then you have the political forces which cause entrenched power to protect its position, to force wealth from the populace, etc. But that's not the "purpose" of religion, that's the unintended consequence.
 
Loss Leader said:
The primary purpose of religion, I believe, is to maintain social order.
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I've often wondered something similar.

I very much agree with Earthborn's earlier post about multiple reasons for multiple believers, but I think it addresses only the application of religion.

From a broader, evolutionary perspective, I wonder if religion does/has not conveyed an advantage which can be mostly found in the community aspects of it.
 
Upchurch said:
...snip...

The short version is that he says that the whole point behind religion is to not question authority, while I say the whole point of religion is the search for truth. Not necessarily scientific-style truth, but truth nonetheless.
Click to expand...

I'd say religion has no purpose - it's probably a result of certain behaviours that have been useful in ensuring survival of people. I don't see anywhere in any of the major religions that they are interested in what I'll call "the objective truth about reality", sure we can re-define the word truth to mean all sorts of things but then I'd suggest it loses any value.

Upchurch said:
It is entirely possible that I'm full of it and don't know what I'm talking about. So, I thought I'd start a thread asking what you guys would consider the core purpose behind religion.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

The core purpose? Hmm perhaps I've misunderstood you - what do you mean by "purpose" in this context?
 
Religion is a crutch used to help otherwise intelligent people cope with the uncertainties and fears they have about the universe and their place in it.
 
Upchurch said:
Fair enough. I guess by "purpose" I mean two things: Why does it exist and why do people adhere to it?
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I'd say we'd have to look into our biology then for an answer. (Because religion is widespread & all cultures seem to come up with variants.)
 
Darat said:
I'd say we'd have to look into our biology then for an answer. (Because religion is widespread & all cultures seem to come up with variants.)
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Perhaps. But we would definitely have to look at sociology.

You don't see many ants worshipping.
 
CFLarsen said:
Perhaps. But we would definitely have to look at sociology.

You don't see many ants worshipping.
Click to expand...

Not necessarily - religion could just be the expression of some behaviour that has actually has nothing at all to do with what we see as being the "purpose" of religion. Coincidently I'm just reading Dawkins' views on this (he explains it as "co-opted behaviour") in the God Delusion.
 
Garrette said:
From a broader, evolutionary perspective, I wonder if religion does/has not conveyed an advantage which can be mostly found in the community aspects of it.
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It also allows people to have enough will to exterminate their competitors.
 
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