The Influence of Religion, Essay Example

Religion is a major force in the world as more than 87 percent of the world’s population followed a religion in 2000. More than half of the world population or about 53 percent followed one of the two religions which are Christianity and Islam (Religious Tolerance). Thus, it is not surprise that religion continues to be a major force in both political and social affairs in the world. There are also those who explicitly deny the existence of god/gods and are called atheists and then there are agnostics who do not claim affiliation with any religion and have a neutral stance towards religions and divine beings. Even though religious people claim that religion is mostly a positive force in the world, current events and the ideologies of religious people suggest otherwise.

Religious people claim that religions promote peace and love and teach respect for others yet most of the current political conflicts including those between Pakistan and India, Israel and Palestine, America and Taliban, America and Iran, and Iran and Israel have been influenced by the religious beliefs of the parties involved. One can safely assume that if it were not for the influence of particular religions over their followers, there will be greater peace in the world. Judging from the current conflicts many of whom have been going on for decades, it seems world peace will never become a reality as long as there are religions. Even in the past, Muslims and Christians have an extensive history of military campaigns.

Religions lead to conflict because they psychologically control their followers. Religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism control their followers through greed or fear. It is not surprising that religious people are more willing to sacrifice their lives in the name of religion and as an example, Taliban and Hezbollah always find as many suicide bombers as they way. Japanese kamikaze fighters during WWII also believed they will get a place in heaven with the Emperor (History Learning Site). Islam offers virgins and heaven to martyrs (Warraq, 2002) and this has become the main recruiting tool for Jihadists around the world.

Religions create conflicts because they promote ethnocentric beliefs and sense of righteousness among their followers. Christians believe that Jesus is the son of God and you can only reach the god by believing in Jesus (The Christian Broadcasting Network, 2012). Similarly, Muslims believe that they have the most perfect messenger and book. This is why followers of different religions often get in conflict because they believe they are following the right God and are on the correct path.

Religions also lead to mythological beliefs because they often discourage questioning and portray illogical events as ‘miracles’. The key to finding facts is not blind belief but search for evidence and willingness to question. Most religions claim that a god or gods created the universe and the earth and produced conditions on suitable for life. They tend to underestimate the role of chance and forget that there are billions of stars, planets, and solar systems and thus, it should not be surprising if living conditions developed on earth. We have discovered so many stars and planets and solar systems yet we still have to discover even one planet with signs of life.

Non-religious people such as agnostics often challenge religious people for their false assumptions. For example, many followers of religion claim that if there were no heaven or hell, the human societies will be lawless. Agnostics reply that reward or punishment are not necessary conditions for us to act ethically and even without greed or fear of punishment we are capable of acting ethically and do right things because doing so makes us feel good and fulfilled. When we hear of catastrophic natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis, we feel the pain of the victims because we have a capacity to empathize with fellow human beings. We do not empathize with them or donate because we are only thinking of being compensated in the life hereafter.

Religions also slow down the progress of human civilizations. The opposition of Catholic Church to gay marriage, abortion, and use of condom are some of the examples how religious institutions promote backward thinking and encourage their followers to prevent social progress in the society. Religious institutions are often more concerned with protecting their reputation and power than the interests of the society which is why Vatican was so slow to admit the abuse of children and often tried to protect its pastors despite overwhelming evidence.

Religious beliefs often conflict with science and it is not a surprise that many religions still strongly oppose big bang theory and evolution. Religious ideology loses its influence when education levels rise in a society and if we think about it, religious influence is declining in many countries with a high proportion of educated people and growing stronger in countries with low proportion of educated people. Not surprisingly, Catholic Church is now experiencing growth in Latin American countries and is worried by its declining influence in the U.S. and Europe.

The world will be better off with religions because people will be more logical, less biased, and more forward thinking. The conflicts will also be lower and the status of human rights will improve as well.

References

History Learning Site. (n.d.). Kamikazes and World War Two. Retrieved April 27, 2012, from http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kamikazes_and_world_war_two.htm

Religious Tolerance. (n.d.). Religions of the World. Retrieved April 27, 2012, from http://www.religioustolerance.org/worldrel.htm

The Christian Broadcasting Network. (2012, April 27). Steps to Peace. Retrieved http://www.cbn.com/stepstopeace/

Warraq, I. (2002, January 11). Virgins? What virgins? Retrieved April 27, 2012, from http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2002/jan/12/books.guardianreview5