I’m a little bit worried about the pathological effects the idea of “God” might have on people. An entity that
Question by Origin: I’m a little bit worried about the pathological effects the idea of “God” might have on people. An entity that
will guarantee you will be alright provided you pray to it. When things become difficult, pray to it hard enough, and a guaranteed positive outcome is assured. Reality shall serve you, if you assume faith.
Jonathan, do you consider yourself a child?
Bear, we’ll never know for certain in our lifetimes will we?
Can you help? Leave your own answer in the comments!
8 Responses to I’m a little bit worried about the pathological effects the idea of “God” might have on people. An entity that
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Some people choose not to identify with any set of religion, but still believe in God or Mother Nature..
I see nothing wrong with spiritual development.
After all, when someone dies, although their bodies still physically ‘there,’ their presence is NOT. This is example of why spirtuality exists. For those who don’t believe we all have souls, that’s fine, too.
Everyone’s entitled to their own belief so long as it’s Respectful.
mai.dinh
December 5, 2013 at 2:33 pm
first of all God isn’t an “it”. and secondly, believing in God, and feeling comforted by the fact that he is there watching over you, and praying to him isn’t having some kind of bad effect on people.. if anything it helps them deal with the hardships that happen much more frequently in this world.
tweetybird37406
December 5, 2013 at 2:35 pm
That’s not a God, that’s a genie. God isn’t a genie that gives you everything you want when you ask for it, just as a parent doesn’t give a child everything they want… however both God and good parents will give you what is best for you in the long run, even if it hurts at the time.
jonathan_phillips2003
December 5, 2013 at 3:10 pm
I agree.
Faith based religion is a cop-out for an explain.
And basically all religion is somewhat faith based.
User
December 5, 2013 at 3:56 pm
Since the U.S.A. was based on the concept of God ….. I think the idea of God has impacted you and I greatly in a positive manner.
Bear
December 5, 2013 at 4:32 pm
many pilosophers think of religion as a weakness unto man…think about that…
angela c
December 5, 2013 at 4:56 pm
I suspect you have a source who has led you astray.
There is no guarantee that, if you pray, you will get what you want. Just as there is no guarantee if you write a letter to Santa asking for a bee-bee gun, that you’ll get it for Xmas.
Nor does it help to pray harder (perhaps even breaking a sweat!) and receive “a guaranteed positive outcome.”
For the most part, we are talking here about ideas foisted on unsuspecting children at an early age. Many of these children already have someone they talk to, much in the manner of prayer. Except we call that someone “an imaginary friend.” It takes almost no leap of logic at all to see that, when the child grows older, he/she trades in the imaginary friend for Jesus or God.
And certainly as Freud had it, belief in God was a substitute for the adult’s belief in Daddy…wise, powerful, safe, smart. No wonder he said that the hardest psychological event for a man was when his father dies.
Plenty of people (Bertrand Russell, “Why I Am Not A Christian” among others) have written on the topic you raise: the harmful psychological effects of belief in a deity. As some of your answerers indicate, we are still stuck in the child’s ideas of God. To quote one of them . . . (tweetybird) “First of all God isn’t an “it”. and secondly, believing in God, and feeling comforted by the fact that he is there watching over you, and praying to him…” Clearly, God needs to be a giant human male, not merely a divine power or universal concept. HE must be like us…like someone else who is/was a HE who was god-like…no one else but…Daddy.
It would be interesting if we cuold discuss this whole issue further on a level of philosophical honesty.
— Rev. Dr. Bob, UCC minister, Adlerian psychologist
Dr. Bob
December 5, 2013 at 5:45 pm
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, with their sadistic deity, is guaranteed to drive many people into mental illness.
Harleigh Kyson Jr.
hkyson
December 5, 2013 at 6:10 pm