“David_Jay”: “Religion is not always based around a cult of worship, nor do they all
include deities or even an afterlife eschatology. Jainism for example is a
humanist form of religion with no deity. The Jewish Sadducees as well many Jews
today do not believe in an afterlife, and even those who do see no relevance in
living with it as a goal in mind. Buddhism is a religion that seeks to free a
person of all notions of and desires for eternity and has no central deity for
worship.”
That’s a good point. There are certainly a variety of
types and structures of religion. Although, unfortunately, a high-control,
totalitarian bent seems to have been the norm with monolithic organized
religion as a whole, which I believe is a manifestation of the fundamental human
characteristic of securing power and control over others (which some would
categorize as a self-serving “defect of character”).
“David_Jay”: “Religion is not the opposite of atheism.”
True, at least not necessarily. But the most major and significant
distinction with regard to religion is this: Religion and spirituality
are most definitely not necessarily
the same thing. Religion tends to demand everyone’s exclusive devotion to a
leader or group (albeit with some exceptions, as you noted above), whereas
spirituality, as an abstract concept, is something which is always available to
each individual, regardless of whichever ambient religious climate he or she may
find him- or herself geographically. I think of spirituality itself as a
metaphysical state which emerges from within one’s own unique cognitive
processes. It is really a basic personal philosophy of living which promotes serenity
through acceptance of one’s own place in the universe and harmony within one’s
environment. Personal spirituality allows the individual to espouse basic altruistic yet
practical codes of conduct and social interaction which are completely separate
and independent of any organized body acting as a custodian and dictator of
belief, ritual, and conduct. Spirituality is the formation and operation of
one’s own deeply personal psyche of human consciousness which allows a person
to function with some degree of positive and beneficial thought, emotion, and
action within oneself and toward others. In other words, spirituality is simply
that which works toward general harmony, fulfillment, and peace. And to that
end, really no specific organized structure of religion is necessary!
