Religions are by their nature dogmatic, exclusionary, anti-humanistic, anti-rational, anti-scientific, self-congratulatory, hermetically-sealed, and authoritarian.
No doubt, these are exactly the sorts of things you’re feeling about your religion, if you feel out of sorts and out of step with it. It’s no wonder that you have your doubts and your reservations. You may know many lovely Christians among your Christian community or many lovely Hindus among your Hindu community, but that they are lovely, that their ceremonies and traditions move you, and that you feel a sense of community when you are with them does not alter the fact that you do not share their authoritarian beliefs.
You know deep down that they are fibbing and fooling themselves and others, including and especially their young. No pleasant picnic with your orthodox Christian friends, your orthodox Hindu family, or your orthodox Jewish prayer family can change that reality, that you have drawn back the curtain and have seen religion for what it is: a man-made concoction that doesn’t impress you, that doesn’t honor your actual beliefs, and that doesn’t really serve you.
Indeed, if your religious friends knew what you were thinking, wouldn’t they excoriate you and shun you? Isn’t that exactly what these “loving” people would do?
Authoritarians are characterized by abiding hatred and by a need to punish others. It is clear why they would be drawn to the orthodox or right-wing end of the world’s religions, whose motifs are hatred and not love, control and not freedom, and punishment and not compassion. Philip Perry, in “Is There a Link Between Religiosity and Authoritarianism?”, in reviewing the research literature on the connection between authoritarianism and religiosity, observed:
Religions preach peace, tolerance, love, and understanding. But a growing body of evidence shows that those who tend to be very religious, often bend towards authoritarianism. Fundamentalists seem to have the strongest association with authoritative ideas. This includes traits such as respect for social order, submission to authority and conventionality, and an intolerance for outside groups. According to a 1995 study, in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, those who identify as religious tend to be authoritarian, and authoritarians tend to be religious.
Don’t like ads? Become a supporter and enjoy The Good Men Project ad freeResearch published in 2007 in that same journal found a strong correlation with consistent attendance at religious services and strong feelings of religious affiliation with intolerance, prejudice, authoritarianism, and dogmatism. Fundamentalists with unwavering commitment to religious teachings were found to be the most authoritarian. A 2011 meta-analysis found that fundamentalism correlated positively with authoritarianism, ethnocentrism, militarism, and prejudice.”
Of course, it does. And you know it. If you are looking for a rock-solid non-authoritarian philosophy of life, come take a look at kirism, which is introduced in Lighting the Way. You won’t find anything about hate in it. Which might just make it a philosophy to love.
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