Why do some people have religous beliefs?

Vompatti wrote: BaldFriede wrote: Vompatti wrote: 1 :  a branch of metaphysics concerned with the nature and relations of being 2 :  a particular theory about the nature of being or the kinds of things that have existence The second definition does not apply either. Or wold you define "religion" as "a theory of the things that have existence"? I certainly would not. I would say that if religion doesn't lead to an ontology that would be impossible without the religion, it's not much of a religion.

It depends a lot on how you define "theory". If you define it in the scientific sense, which I prefer since I am extremely interested in natural sciences, it means " a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world that is acquired through the scientific method and repeatedly tested and confirmed through observation and experiments". But that is exactly what a religion is not.

Vompatti wrote: 1 :  a branch of metaphysics concerned with the nature and relations of being 2 :  a particular theory about the nature of being or the kinds of things that have existence

The second definition does not apply either. Or wold you define "religion" as "a theory of the things that have existence"? I certainly would not.

No, but "ontology" is the science that studies things that exist. And he certainly did not mean he does not believe in that science.

dr wu23 wrote: HackettFan wrote: dr wu23 wrote: After some thought perhaps the better question would be, why do some people not have religious beliefs since the majority on earth probably do. Because cultures spread and cover vast regions. On a simply practical attrition level that's the reason for spread of 'religion' but not why people still believe in that ontology after several millennia.

I think you misphrased your sentence since according to the dictionary "ontology" is "the branch of metaphysics that studies the nature of existence or being as such".

SteveG wrote: A broad question perhaps, but why do some of us believe or have the need to believe in a God, an afterlife, redemption and all that goes along with Judeo-Christian beliefs?

I don't believe in that. I do however have religious beliefs, but they are (almost) completely my own. I say "almost" because I am co-founder of a religion that worships Gaia, the ancient Greek Goddess of the Earth. I founded it with my beloved wife BaldJean. We are both High Priestesses of it.

Our small religious group currently has 27 members, counting us and our two daughters Alice and Dorothy.

There are other religious groups in the world that worship Gaia. We are however completely independent of them.

We even created a new calendar which we call the "Gaian calendar". It has 13 months with 28 days each. Since 13 times 28 equals 364 only there is also a New Year's Day, which does not belong to any month or week and which is followed by leap day, which also does not belong to any month or week. Out year starts with the vernal equinox. That way a year resembles a human life, with spring being childhood and youth (the first 20 years), summer young adulthood (the next 20 years), fall middle-age (the next 20 years) and winter old age (the rest).

This calendar has the advantage that the same date will fall on the same weekday every year. What's more, all months start  with the same weekday as well since our week has seven days as in the Gregorian calendar. Figuring out which weekday a certain date falls on thus becomes extremely easy.

The names of the weekdays and the months are taken from Greek mythology. The weekdays are named after the seven Pleiades, the months after Greek Goddesses.

The solstices and equinoxes, which mark the beginning of the four seasons, are our holy days. We paint ourselves head to toe in the color of the beginning season for these days - green for the grass of spring, red for the flowers of summer, yellowish-brown for the leaves of fall and white for the snow of winter.

As to why people belief in religions, not just the one you mentioned: Because they think there is some meaning in this world; it is not just arbitrary.

SteveG wrote: "...why do some of us believe or have the need to believe in a God, an afterlife, redemption and all that goes along with Judeo-Christian beliefs?"

wilmon91 wrote: Dayvenkirq wrote: Two days, four pages ... when there's already another (recent) thread about faith. What thread is that?

Is faith always bad?

pressed the wrong button..


Edited by wilmon91 - October 27 2015 at 15:05

Dayvenkirq wrote: Two days, four pages ... when there's already another (recent) thread about faith.

What thread is that?