Religion a scam?

Im totally confused... Why is there no real evidence of a god? Is religion just a scam to keep people in order?

I personally think that;

a) god is a name for the person or thing that represents their religion...

B) I do believe in something, but not the hell and brimstone theory...

C) that the entire point or faith or belief is just that, you shouldn't need something to 'make' you believe, you just should..when you have definable proof or evidence, it is no longer faith or belief, it then becomes fact, and totally changes the whole point of it...

D) and there are MANY religions, and so far as I can see, very few keep the world in order, in fact most are attributed to a lot of the problems in this world. peoples lack of understanding or respect for other peoples religion causes massive devides in the world - how can anything that divides be good?

I believe in spiritualism, I believe tat what we do to others, comes back on us in some form or another. I believe that we reap what we sow...we don't have to make another person believe what we believe, we just accept that that's their choice, they won't be punsihed for it...it just gives them different path to mine..

spiritualism is a very passive belief, it doesn't sominate and put fear into people, it just gives people hope that on the 'other side' are the ones we love, and as long as what we do in life means we can look them in the eye, then thats the important thing..

relgion, in my opinion, and in most cases seems judgementaland 'superior'...espcially catholic... I don't understand the hypocracy of it, but I do understand that a person is it entitled to believe what they wish, that is more than can say for most cathlolics who critises those in situations or moral problems...

I have got a bit distracted, but I don't believe a religion should keep people in order for fear of retribution, and I don't believe you need 'proof' I think just finding something that is similar to your moral beliefs is the important thing

There's no REAL evidence because it's based on faith.

most things to do with it are scams
like tv evangelists and thgings on the internet
but religion was created around the same time whwn people first began to appear
because people needed something to look up to, something to answer all there ananswered questions, and something to blame for everything bad that happened.
so religions were created, so all the poeple could follow the same thing
its all based on faith though, theres no real evidence of any religion that has to do with beleiving in a "higher power"
and theres many, many different kinds of religions as well
the beleif I the "god" most people know of today was not the first
...I dont beleive in anything, but its fine for other people too
however, most people that do have no respect for people who dont
there always trying to convice someone

There's some evidence that there are good evolutionary reasons for humans' tendency to believe in irrational things, so I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it all as some plot to manipulate people. Certainly, it wouldn't work if we weren't inclined to believe in such things in the first place.

Just because we evolved to think this way doesn't mean there really is a god or gods, of course, or that we should continue to believe in them now that we know better.

Organised religion, on the other hand, now there I can agree with you.

o cmon waht cudve made great men go through many bars to speak of religion???..
maybe they felt god..seen HIM.. or watevr..
ges some are scams too..but the real thing is it DOES kip evrything in order..
and thats all that matters
dont you think??

andrew97out: People have, historically, believed all sorts of silly things. That the sun went around the earth and the stars were placed in crystal spheres, for example. Just because people have believed something for a long time doesn't make it real.

Besides, for most of history, people have believed (and continue to believe) in a range of gods. How are you supposed to tell which one? And if belief itself is evidence for existence, does that mean they all exist?

snap!snap!! im not sayin it all exist
I mean...I blive christianity is true...its all in the history book...
jesus ..n evrything,,,

there an evidence for example look at the sky and the earth and your self . who created all these things? of course they were created by someone who is more powerful than us , humans ,and every single thing on this earth , which is god,

mh2m: Assuming for a moment you're right (which you're not - just because stuff exists doesn't mean it was created by some all-powerful being), which god (or gods)? Thor? Zeus? Lord Ganesha? Someone else? And why them?

I truly believe that allah is the one and only and there is not other god , ,because
and the Qur'an, we read that Allah is Compassionate and Merciful. He is Kind, Loving, and Wise. He is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Healer. He is the One who Guides, the One who Protects, the One who Forgives

I wasn't asking what you personally believe. I was getting at the point that even if you assert that "there has to be a creator god", nothing says it has to be the one _you_ believe in.

hahaha yes relegion is just a scam made ages ago to create order, but it did quite right the opposite and create wars , brainwash people , and the church and many other people took advantage of relegion twisted it and make millions 2day beleive in science and whats provable and not just faith.

pshh a scam. please. its those who, fear God who decide he isnt real and wont give him a chance. and no. religion is not a scam. religion is faith. just because you cannot see doesnt mean its there.

"its those who, fear God who decide he isnt real and wont give him a chance"

That doesn't even make sense. You can't be afraid of something that doesn't exist.

Is all of religion a scam? Not really, most people want to believe in God, a just universe, and an afterlife. Even if all existing religions could be eliminated people would quickly think up new ones. At its lowest level religion fills a psychological need for mankind. It can make us happier, give us purpose, and allow us to deal with life's difficulties better. It is just very easily subverted for other purposes.

faith-
I have faith, that God is real.
That he created everything, including myself.
That he perfoms miracles,
and when I die- I'll go to heaven.

Actually, religion is not a scam though many unethically people have used the belief of others to hurt them.

There may not be any actual proof of God, but many of the historical events recorded in the bible have been verified by outside resources, such as science or the documentation of other nations.

Did you know that almost every ancient nation historically has a story about a great flood. Most of those also involve a rainbow, and many speak of certain animals being saved. I know that many things seem rediculous and hard to believe in our own time, but there are grains of truth in the stories if you are willing to do the research.

torikeene: References, please. Very little of the bible has any independent historical precedence, so I'd love to see these outside resources. Ditto for "great flood" stories.

I wouldn't really say a "scam". It is a method used to control other people, an incentive to do good things, a coping and comforting mechanism and it is based on faith and tradition.

Ipod_nano
I do not fear god & I choose not to believe in him
ask around
a lot of the people who worship him are the ones who fear him
A lot of people who has turned to biblical religions turn to it out of fear
turn to it because they don't know what they should believe so go to it as a back-up plan, as a just incase plan
so incase it is real they don't burn in hell
those who do not believe in him do not fear him
how could we fear that what we don't believe?
If you fear something it means you obviously believe in it, even if it's subconscious

The biblical religions are supposedly to keep order & to comfprt pl who need something to believe in.

There's no real evidence of gods, for the same reason there's no real evidence of leprechauns.

Is religion just a scam? In the sense that it promotes deception, yes, but not necessarily in the sense that there is malice involved. Most religious laypeople are sincere. They spread their religion, because they believe it's true, not because they are trying to rip you off or trick you. Most clergy are also sincere, although they have an interest that tends to promote their religion even in the face of their own doubts.

It's interesting to read the deconversion stories of pastors. In most cases, they kept preaching long after they lost faith, because it was their livelihood.