Why can't we just follow ONE religion or just forget about it?
343782
You just cant ask every one to follow one religion.  Espeicially when most of them feel theirs is right.  They are devout in their faith and they will not budge.  Would you want to change if some one told you to?  If you were a very religious person that is.  \nReligion is part of who we are as a person and a society.  You just cant go and change that.  If you tried that alone could start wars.
1050120
You have a very good point, and I completely agree with you on this topic. If we try and force out beliefs down their throats we are no better than "the Bible thumper's". Religion is a group of people believing in the same thing, and faith is your own personal belief in something. That's how I see it, and I try not to debunk any ones beliefs, but I will admit there are times where I am really tempted to try. Yet it is still wrong to say that some ones religion is right and some one elses is not.\n\nBlessed Be.
183320
You are not wrong. But understand that Christianity is a religion based on fear.  Follow me or burn in hell for all eternity!  Believe or be damned!  It is been my experience that many Christian believers will not even listen to another religion's argument or concepts with anything other that complete disregard.  Brainwashing at birth.  Ask the majority of people why they follow there particular religion, the answer will most likely be that it is the only thing that they have ever known.  I only speak English because it is the only language my parents and peers ever spoke to me.  Most major religions believe in the same basic principles.  Be good and the end result will be good or better for you.  Don't let someone bully you into thinking their way.  Explore all religions and find the one that speaks to you.  There are millions of good people out there who do not believe in Jesus Christ - I find it hard to believe that they will feel the wrath of God because they have not accepted Jesus into their hearts.
431292
Wouldn't it be great if there were smarter questions than this one?\n\nNo, not everyone believes in God. By having one religion will only lead to conflict and suffering. There will always be people with different beliefs and/or non-beliefs. Having one religion for over 6 billion people is crazy. Grow up.
111310
No.......if thr has to b one religion then it should b only humanity. people should not make any difference on the grounds of religion and should live as one.
550911
Because sometimes to ask a question you have to have both sides of the story. Its not much use to you if you only value the opinions of the Christians and dont take into account those of other religions or non-believers. You may not agree with us, many dont but still there are 2 sides to every coin.  \n\nFor me, its becasue I want to understand your opinions and learn about other peoples faiths. Im living in a country which is multi cultural and I dont think it would be very prudent of me to make assumptions on other peoples faith or culture without first learning or understanding it. Im here to give (or at least try to) an answer to a question and an opinion that would not offend but to provoke thought without trying to convince you that your are wrong. Who knows maybe you are right that there is a God or maybe Im right that there isnt, regardless learning is the key.
1084344
well it's all connected with history, and when jesus walked the earth, and when god would talk to prophets to deliver his message to the people. the reason why there are so many religions is because with time people have decided to go their own way and come up with what they think the RIGHT religion should be, but in reality there is only one, and that's CHRISTIANITY.
81636
If you look into the soul of this planet with deep LOVE you will forget about every religion .\nLOVE for all beings will balm your every pore.
1151320
A good point. Religions are supposedly faith-based, but then tack on requirements to keep that particular label. Even an agnostic has to meet the requirement of believing there is no God, so I guess the answer is no religion meets the parameter of not requiring anything to be a part of it.
23406
Beware of collapsing the two-- religion and those who follow religion. For I posit, that even without "religion", we would be divided over something or other. \n\nObserve two toddlers at play for a few hours and watch them fight over one toy. Very quickly you'll see, it is not their religion that has divided them, but their "idea" that they both own this toy. \n\nWe fight not because of religion, but because of our differing ideologies, beliefs, etc. Throw our heated emotions into the mix, and we can really be hostile, violent people.\n\nHence, don't vilify religion but take note of human nature. For that's what religion does, it illuminates our human nature in hopes that we might be empowered to "be our best" in spite of ourselves.
20734
I understand what you are asking.  This is why all religions can't be true.  There has to be one religion that is true, and teaches God's will.  Otherwise, your thought experiment becomes true and sin becomes subject to YOUR belief weather its a sin or not.
738255
Well, I suppose, until people started splitting up into sects and then  here we go again.  Besides, religion is a question of faith and not just something you can throw away even if it is in the name of world peace.  I couldn't.
911678
Basically we are talking of the difference between Religion & Spirituality.\n   \nIn this case, I will assume Religion teaches of one God, a Supreme Being. We are taught that there are given truths & rituals of that religion, one & only one true faith, which must be followed if we wish to avoid certain, negative consequences. Our discipline comes from outside ourselves. They teach us it is dangerous to think for ourselves in many instances. We are judged by that God (& usually by the people of the common faith).  Faithfulness to the faith promises a definite, specific reward.\n  \n  Spirituality has no set truths, no specific set of guidelines, no specific method, no specific outcome for specific behaviors. It is strictly a process, a journey each takes toward personal enlightenment & meaning. Our own efforts determine our spiritual fitness & quality of life. We learn self-discipline through practice. Along this journey we have the choice to either choose a God or something else. The choice is infinite, limited only by our level of enlightenment. \n\n    Religion always left me cold, & for a long time my life had no meaning. Friends convinced me to try a spiritual (not religious)  path. I read & meditated a lot. I came to realize we were given brains for a reason. Eventually I chose a god of my understanding that I choose to call God. I have not tried to define & limit God  For me, mine works without a specific faith. For others, their spiritual life does not require a Supreme Something, & that works for them. Others go back to their places of worship because that is what works for them. To have a truly deep faith, we must make that personal choice. When we truly make that personal choice, we have no need to impose our beliefs on others. Peace.
270090
One thing I take from this is that understanding religion is a difficult.  People fight because another person's religion is different. (Abdul Rahman in Afghanistan to be executed for wrong thinking?) and people fight within their own religion because someone interprets it differently (Catholic and Born Again, Shiite and Sunni.) Why don't we throw the whole thing out and start all over, with rational thought?
752221
The fact that religion, throughout our history, has mainly been used an excuse harm and abuse others. Be it Nazi's against Jews, or Islam against the western world (and vise versa) Catholics/Protestants we could go on forever. The killing, in the name of "God" (whichever your faith) never ends.
608008
It's nice that you have found a way to put religious differences aside and focus on just plain loving everyone. I personally do not believe in a god, and choose not to belong to any religion, but I respect those who do as long as they respect me. Everyone is built differently, everyone thinks differently, we can't judge anyone on the way that they are. \nI think debating is healthy, as long as both sides respect eachother, it can be a learning experience. I wouldn't stop the debates, but I would stop people from putting down other peoples religions because they're different.
1157862
Simple ! \nYou can pretend to be equally obsessed with some other vague religion - and keep-on speaking non-stop about it [even if you are spouting sheer nonsense, the other would never realise it, because he would never have bothered to study about any other religion but his own !] !\nHe will get 'bored' of it [and your 'company' !] in no time at all - and slowly slither out of your orbit !\nCheers !