When there is someone telling a huge group of people how to be spiritual it kind of takes the point out of it in my opinion. Everyone is different and should be able to get in touch with their spirituality without strict instruction.

Otherwise you are just a sheep and need to be told what to do in order to feel good about yourself. And i guess that works for some people, i just don't see the point. .

Church congregations are often expected and sometimes required for congregational membership to give money, services and/or favors to their church and it's leaders. Cults operate on the same wavelength. Many bible verses indicate that man is bad, terrible and vile; that man, if allowed to think for him/herself, will screw up, piss off god and be thrown into a laughably improbable lake of fire. Anything claiming to possess the whole, entire truth about life, existence and everything is clearly both lying and idiotic to believe it. The beneficial acts of individual Christians do not validate the distinctly ancient, outmoded practices and magnificently inhumane beliefs and law-structures illustrated in the biblical scripture.

Too many factions, too many problems. Why can't we just believe that there is something bigger than us, not attach a name or a specific book, and try to live our lives like a non-dumbass?. I think more and more people are leaning towards non-religious as their reference. The younger generation certainly is. . And organized religion has been the cause of a lot of horrible things in history AND has supported some very questionable activities.

I was five when my brother first told me I was going to hell because I didn't believe in god. The saying has been repeated to me almost everytime I talk to him, and infact many(The total is about twenty five) have told me this. I'm not saying that organised religion is bad, I'm saying that people need to do as they say, not do the opposite of what they believe in.

"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."

"I believe in a giant, angry skyman that has commanded me to dash the skulls of all your firstborn because you have angered him. This is perfectly legitimate, because I say it is, and this book I have here says so too; what right have you to argue?

My book says it's true, and this book was written by the Giant Angry Skyman himself. You don't think so? Prove that it wasn't!

And until you can, I'm going to go right along, trumpeting my right to judge you, curse you, look down upon you and dash the skulls of your firstborn until your faith in the Giant Angry Skyman is in-line with how I think it should be.

You don't like that? Tough. The Giant Angry Skyman doesn't like -you-, you heretic. Your opinion isn't worth the stolen breath it's uttered with, and on that thought, you should beg on your hands and knees for the Giant Angry Skyman to forgive you, you worthless scum; you're stealing the air he provisioned for his own use.

Maybe, if you're lucky and you do just like I tell you, the Giant Angry Skyman will overlook you in his Angriness.

Why me? Because I have the Book, haven't I? I have it right here, and no, you will not be permitted to profane it by subjecting it to your unenlightened examinations; you will take it on my Skyman-filled word that it is true, or you'll be cast into the sea of acid, where all heretics are cast when the Skyman, in his infinite wisdom, gets around to judging them.

And you don't want that. Why? Because the Giant Angry Skyman will make sure that you never die while you're in the lake of acid; no no. You will know his wrath forever while you sit there, screaming and bubbling, being forever eaten away but never being permitted to expire.

Take my word for it; you don't want that, and I don't want that for you. Wouldn't it just make more -sense- for you to get in the good graces of the almighty Skyman? Do you -want- to boil forever in a lake of acid? Of course you don't; you need the Skyman's forgiveness to avoid that.

Simple, right? And look, right here in His Authoritative Book, it says that if you do just as the book tells you, you won't be cast into the lake of acid. Instead, you'll get to join the Most Holy Skyman in the High In The Sky place for all eternity, where you can sing, dance and do anything you want, including japing and jeering at those stupid heretics that didn't get in good with the Skyman."

...and that, you mouth-breathing knuckle-dragging sub-sentient wastes of space, is exactly what you sound like to those of us who don't believe a word of your rubbish, or that of your alleged 'holy scripture'.

I do not believe in a god nor do i believe in any sort of biblical tales. But i have come to the conclusion that by stooping to the level of criticizing and reasoning with religious thoughts is only to lower your standards for thought. I go to a catholic school and i have come to realize that in my particular situation it is not worthwhile to question certain subjects such as religion. At first i felt that if i did not bring some sort of justice to religious believers i was not completing my duty as a being on this earth. But i then began to realize that by attempting to change or affect any others thoughts, i was only wasting all of my time.

I say, debate this subject when challenged, but do not choose to bring it on yourself because it is a worthless battle with closed minded people.