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WSJ op-ed: the future of religion is bleak

Atheos said:
Syed said:
why future of religion is bleak?
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The article's conclusion sums up the answer to that question quite nicely:

What is particularly corrosive to religion isn't just the newly available information that can be unearthed by the curious, but the ambient knowledge that is shared by the general populace.
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Information + Knowledge: The kryptonite of religion.
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Syed has been exposed to information and knowledge for many years on these forums. Sadly, it has not worked in his case.
 
atrib said:
Atheos said:
Information + Knowledge: The kryptonite of religion.
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Syed has been exposed to information and knowledge for many years on these forums. Sadly, it has not worked in his case.
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Well, evolution happens to gene pools, not individuals. We can't hope that everyone gets enlightened. But maybe enough will....
 
Ya, if you're going to try and hold a monopoly on truth in an age where every one of your claims can be quickly googled then your claims aren't going to hold up very well. This is probably why more deistic type theologies are gaining in popularity because they allow you to sound all wise and insightful without the downside of needing to actually say anything.
 
Kharakov said:
Syed said:
why future of religion is bleak?
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Because critical thinking skills are on the decline.
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If that is the case, why is religion on the decline throughout the industrialized world, but on the rise in the third world where education is extremely substandard?

Did either of you bother reading the article in question?

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atrib said:
Atheos said:
The article's conclusion sums up the answer to that question quite nicely:

What is particularly corrosive to religion isn't just the newly available information that can be unearthed by the curious, but the ambient knowledge that is shared by the general populace.
Click to expand...

Information + Knowledge: The kryptonite of religion.
Click to expand...

Syed has been exposed to information and knowledge for many years on these forums. Sadly, it has not worked in his case.
Click to expand...

The problem is that we did not threaten to torture him in a lake of fire for all eternity. If we did that, he might be more inclined to believe us.

To Christians and Muslims, things are only true if you threaten to torture them in a lake of fire for all eternity. That's how you know something is true. ;)
 
skepticalbip said:
The good news is that organized religions are on the decline.
The bad news is the rise of new-age woo.
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Ya, but belief in new-age woo can be countered by wearing magnetic bracelets and avoiding gluten, so they're not so much of a problem.
 
Underseer said:
skepticalbip said:
The good news is that organized religions are on the decline.
The bad news is the rise of new-age woo.
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Is it on the rise? I wouldn't even know how to measure that.
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When the survey asks, 'Are you a member of an organized religion?' you count the 'yes' answers, the 'no' answers, and the number of responses that take more than 15 minutes to map out the individuals' chosen beliefs in general and their detailed objections to the last organized religion they belonged to.
Column C is woo agers.
 
skepticalbip said:
The good news is that organized religions are on the decline.
The bad news is the rise of new-age woo.
Click to expand...

Misinformation in general is now a threat to humankind, right up there with climate change and religious zealotry.

Not that I want to defend new age woo, but that group at least tends to lack the us vs. them absolutism that serve as the pulse and fuel of organized religion. Most new agers hold ideologies that are inclusive and non-violent in their core values, which is a great departure from our cultural-identity religions. They also tend to be exposed to a variety of practices that focus on self reflection and meditation (unlike, for example, Christian Amurica, which is riffled with beliefs such as yoga and meditation practices are evil).

In spite of the woo, there are influences there that can serve to mitigate things like war, racism, trashing the planet, etc. This alone is a refreshing opposition to the fear mongering ignorance fostered by traditional religions.
 
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