Religion: pros & cons pt1 (Religion)

by dhw, Thursday, October 30, 2014, 15:05 (3675 days ago) @ Balance_Maintained

TONY: As I said before, sometimes it is best to let the bible speak for itself...
Romans 1:18-32-18 For God's wrath+ is being revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who are suppressing the truth+ in an unrighteous way, 
19 because what may be known about God is clearly evident among them, for God made it clear to them.+ 
20 For his invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world's creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made,+ even his eternal power+ and Godship,+ so that they are inexcusable. 
21 For although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God nor did they thank him, but they became empty-headed in their reasonings and their senseless hearts became darkened.+ 
22 Although claiming they were wise, they became foolish 
23 and turned the glory of the incorruptible God into something like the image of corruptible man and birds and four-footed creatures and reptiles.*+
24 Therefore, God, in keeping with the desires of their hearts, gave them up to uncleanness, so that their bodies might be dishonored among them. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for the lie and venerated* and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the Creator, who is praised forever. Amen. 
26 That is why God gave them over to uncontrolled sexual passion,+ for their females changed the natural use of themselves into one contrary to nature;+ 
27 likewise also the males left the natural use of* the female and became violently inflamed in their lust toward one another, males with males,+ working what is obscene and receiving in themselves the full penalty,* which was due for their error.+
28 Just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God,* God gave them over to a disapproved mental state, to do the things not fitting.+ 
29 And they were filled with all unrighteousness,+ wickedness, greed
,*+ and badness, being full of envy,+ murder,+ strife, deceit,+ and malice,+ being whisperers,* 30 backbiters,+ haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, schemers of what is harmful,* disobedient to parents,+ 
31 without understanding,+ false to agreements, having no natural affection, and merciless. 
32 Although these know full well the righteous decree of God—that those practicing such things are deserving of death+—they not only keep on doing them but also approve of those practicing them.-
This is the sort of text which makes people sympathize with Richard Dawkins' antipathy towards religion. God's invisible qualities as manifested in the bible and the world around me are the mixture I have listed in my first post. I accept that my reasonings are empty-headed in so far as they lead me to no conclusions, but I vehemently deny that my heart has become darkened. I do not claim to be wise since I have no answers, but God so far as I know has not turned me into a rapist, a homosexual (this seems to have been an obsession among the law-givers), or a greedy, envious, murderous, deceitful, malicious, backbiting, haughty, untrustworthy, unloving, merciless candidate for the death penalty. You will of course read the text differently, but the implication that godlessness leads to sin is as obnoxious as my saying that religion leads to greed, paedophilia and war because bishops are rich, child abuse is rife in the Church, and different believers continue to wage war on each other. Human weakness is not the fault of godlessness or of religion. It's the way we are - or perhaps the way God made us.