Posted by madison88 on September 21, 2002, at 23:27:42
In reply to Jesus is admirable/other ruminations, posted by Eddie Sylvano on September 19, 2002, at 15:15:59
good for you. i strive to respect each religion for what it has to offer humanity. while i have personal grudges against Christianity, it was nice of you to point out some of the aspects of it that anyone can relate to. i hope to be able to do the same someday. from what i understand the term "mental illness" to mean, religion, as distorted by a mental illness, can become something that cripples an individual's ability to function. religion is suppose to allow us to live in a world that is uncertain and in which our own mortality is brought to our awareness all to often. It is necessary for any conscious being. it cushions our anxieties and allows us to live in the moment, not fearing the future. so, for religion to do otherwise is maladaptive, and can be considered disordered. i think that anytime religion is maladaptive, there is some underlying disorder present. and since there seem to be biological basis for psychosis and/or the affective disorders, it would make sense to find a biological basis for hyperreligiosity, coinciding with the appropriate mental disorder present.
religion is suppose to fill the part of life that science can't explain, and some of what science does explain. the fact that we can explain why the sun seems to rise and set everyday shouldn't make it any less miraculous. it is simpliest to describe science and religion as existing in separate spheres, although i don't think it is a reality. i think of science and religion as two superimposed spheres. it happens to be easier to see religion on one half of a the spheres, and science on the other half of the spheres. in the middle they seem to overlap. the reality is that they both coexist equally at any point on the spheres.
perception:
(rrrrr r r r r r r rsrs s s s s s ssssss)
reality:
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poster:madison88
thread:920
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/faith/20020715/msgs/934.html