6 reasons why religion is bad for humanity

[gnostikos]

Religion is an ideology; a set of beliefs usually divinely revealed but not always. You are without a doubt pushing the liberal ideology spurned out of the enlightenment whether you like to admit it or not; it is like a religion. You have invested emotion into it and it has led to some incredible breakthroughs and some huge setbacks like the implosion of the very society it built but that matters not because you're "Human" and you are doing this for "Humanity" when Humanism is also an ideology. So I guess what OP is really trying to say is we should believe in nihilism (nothing at all; no intrinsic value) or his version of Humanism.

[Aldaris]

Religion can, in theory, reinforce positive values in society. It is a shame, that the basis for this reinforcement are claims with no good evidence behind them, but it is preferable to be virtuous for bad reasons than not at all.

[SunCo]

That atheist narrative is kind of worn out by now to be honest. I'm not the sort of person to believe in magic ghosts, but I do think the new atheist sort tends to overcompensate and completely devalue religion altogether. There are different levels of spiritual development, although most people aren't really aware. As long as religious texts are seen as fallible (Or at least interpretation of the text is possible in infinite ways), introspection is highly valued and the aim is to learn rituals/take advantage of hypnotic states using universal archetypal symbols and carefully crafted patterned sounds (Altered state of consciousness through prayers/mantras) to strengthen one's self awareness and ethics, I think we can definitely learn a lot from these traditions. In that sense, spirituality is more akin to literature and art as a phenomenological counterpart to the exoteric and highly useful scientific method. And so, enlightenment/humanistic values are important and we shouldn't disregard them. As far as religions go,the problem is that religions often turn ethnocentric or fundamentalist. I think religion in its purest form is a practical and ethical way to live one's life, and often the ethos of religions comes from the geography and history of a region. (For example, an Indigenous religion having traditions that help ensure survival and cooperation in a community, with a mythology based on the local life and human history)

[Aldaris]

That atheist narrative is kind of worn out by now to be honest. I'm not the sort of person to believe in magic ghosts, but I do think the new atheist sort tends to overcompensate and completely devalue religion altogether. There are different levels of spiritual development, although most people aren't really aware. As long as religious texts are seen as fallible (Or at least interpretation of the text is possible in infinite ways), introspection is highly valued and the aim is to learn rituals/take advantage of hypnotic states using universal archetypal symbols and carefully crafted patterned sounds (Altered state of consciousness through prayers/mantras) to strengthen one's self awareness and ethics, I think we can definitely learn a lot from these traditions. In that sense, spirituality is more akin to literature and art as a phenomenological counterpart to the exoteric and highly useful scientific method. And so, enlightenment/humanistic values are important and we shouldn't disregard them. As far as religions go,the problem is that religions often turn ethnocentric or fundamentalist. I think religion in its purest form is a practical and ethical way to live one's life, and often the ethos of religions comes from the geography and history of a region. (For example, an Indigenous religion having traditions that help ensure survival and cooperation in a community, with a mythology based on the local life and human history)

While religion can in many cases serve as a basis for certain ethics and values, to feel strongly tied to them, any appeal to supernatural, including religion, is not necessary. Afterall it was us in the first place, who created religions based on our moral values in the first place - in theory, there is no need for supernatural myths, the utility religions have for societies is already covered by secular philosophy and ethics. This sounds good on paper, but in reality, it seems to be the case that without religion, many people will become overly pragmatic and won't simply cling to some code of conduct with true conviction, which is the reason I support religious influence, depsite being atheist myself.