does religion underpin, or undermine YOUR politics?

[cleveramerican]

I was raised catholic but I've gotten less and less religious as I've grown older.
I do think my catholic upbringing has brought me to the politics I favor.
Sensible pragmatic liberalism is completely in line with everything the nuns taught me when I was young.

Service to yourself and mankind
help the poor ,the sick and the weak. the very old and the very young.

When you dead nobody will remember how right you were.
They will certainly remember how kind you were.


With that being said I think if you demand religious pronouncements from politicians,
You are just begging to be lied to.
Don't tell me how swell religion is, lead by example and we'll know.

This is a thorny(pardon the pun) issue the we ,as a nation, have grappled with for generations.
What are your views of it?

[jody]

1. Yes, but I do not believe in miracles or magic.

MIRACLE -- supernatural-being uses supernatural power to overrule the laws of nature.

MAGIC -- human-being uses supernatural power to overrule the laws of nature.

SCIENCE -- human-being uses natural power to rule the laws of nature.

[cleveramerican]

2. Do those beliefs inform your political views?

or do you view them as completely separate?

[jody]

5. For me, they are inseparable. My political views are about the form of government and its

policies/procedures that are supposed to control how a society works toward common goals that can be achieved more effectively and efficiently through group effort than each individual working individually.

Those common goals and processes are often defined morally but the definition of morality ranges from religious denominations with rigid doctrine to individuals who simply share a few common beliefs about the mystery of the unknown.

IMO the only common thread among the World’s great religions is the Golden Rule and it also figures prominently in the Humanist Manifesto III.

ON EDIT ADD
Humanist Manifesto III
"Working to benefit society maximizes individual happiness. Progressive cultures have worked to free humanity from the brutalities of mere survival and to reduce suffering, improve society, and develop global community. We seek to minimize the inequities of circumstance and ability, and we support a just distribution of nature’s resources and the fruits of human effort so that as many as possible can enjoy a good life."

[Smarmie Doofus]

3. Pretty close to yours, but....

>>Service to yourself and mankind
help the poor ,the sick and the weak. the very old and the very young.

When you dead nobody will remember how right you were.
They will certainly remember how kind you were.>>>


I think these are universal truths that precede and transcend 'the nuns' ( I had 'em too) and organized religion itself.

But , they were right ( the nuns, that is)... at least about this. They just weren't original.

[izzie]

4. I have thought about this a lot over the years.

I have come down to thinking that if you are into thinking that some higher order will take care of every thing your in trouble. Some how you have lost the art of reason if you just turn your mind over to what ever will be will be. It may be easy but you just can not turn your country or your self over to this rule by higher law. I think a lot of people feel the Bible or some such thing does all their thinking so it is fine to let some one like Bush do it all for them. God speaks to him so it is good. It seems many God run groups have used this style to rule and will not be giving it up soon. It seems to be the type of person in the God group that goes over the top and tags their oddness on to Gods work. I have never met people who go so far as to kill people for these mis-paced belief that any thing told them is Gods word and wants but in a mild way I have met them every day. They just sort of give in to putting any work to life and say every thing is Gods will. Get a ruler like a Czar thinking like that and you can see what a mess he can make. I hope You can see what I mean. In my own family we all have tried to move on from out early NE history. Livinh with in 4 miles fron the Church seems a little out of place. Even the Church felt one better think for them self.

[izzie]

8. I guess I am talking free will vs. predestination

I am for free will. I really do not want some one reading from some book that they say are Gods words telling me how to live. I am not sure just who those people are and just how they are looking at the work they say God gave them. We spent 100's of years going to war over that business and it did not do any one much good. It is also giving the world a lot of problems right now. Every one is fighting in the name of God.. Sort of crazy.

[H2O Man]

6. "Spiritual consciousness

is the highest form of politics." -- Hau de no sau nee

[trusty elf]

7. "Don't tell me how swell religion is, lead by example and we'll know."

I agree with that sentiment.

I also happen to agree with Lao Tzu, who said

"Those who know, do not speak. Those who speak, do not know."

So, paradoxically, this means that I don't know what the f*ck I'm talking about ! ! !

"Religion" is a term that is bandied about so often that it is virtually meaningless.

It seems to me that the mark of any truly "religious" person is her or his perception of the underlying unity of all mankind, indeed of all life. Together with this is the recognition that the distinction between the mundane and the divine is an illusion.

We are so conditioned to accept so many false dichothomies that we are robbed of our birthright as truly free human beings.

I could go on and on about this, but..... "nuff said!

Peace

[cuke]

9. My spiritual beliefs INFORM my politics