Was religion invented by man?

[Vivat_Christus]

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

 

[adamhovey1988]

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

Your first problem is that you are quoting Karl Marx. Okay, so here’s the thing, this is not a good argument for an individual religion, but an argument for the existence of God. What is morality? Most folks, regardless of belief, would say murder is wrong. But why exactly is murder wrong? Surely, if there’s no lawgiver, we’d have no law, but murder is universally condemned as being wrong. Maybe not a great argument, but it makes more sense than the Marxist and atheist position. Many other folks are much better at this than I am, but the one thing that convinced me about the existence of God was the Big Bang Theory (not the one with Sheldon), which, by the way, at one point was vehemently opposed by atheists. If there is no God, why should we exist? Does man really have no more meaning than other creatures? I look outside, I see the beauty that’s around me, and whilst I do not doubt the belief in evolution, I highly doubt this all happened by random accident. Look to philosophy other than communism for the answer, and the answer is Christ himself, he was before all this. St. John made that statement, the same man that claimed God became man that, you know, KNEW him. So why should we doubt God’s existence? I went through my agnostic phase, but I always believed (fideist agnostic. I find most arguments against God to be extremely weak, and I think you should too. Prayers, God bless.

 

[Vivat_Christus]

Your first problem is that you are quoting Karl Marx. Okay, so here’s the thing, this is not a good argument for an individual religion, but an argument for the existence of God. What is morality? Most folks, regardless of belief, would say murder is wrong. But why exactly is murder wrong? Surely, if there’s no lawgiver, we’d have no law, but murder is universally condemned as being wrong. Maybe not a great argument, but it makes more sense than the Marxist and atheist position. Many other folks are much better at this than I am, but the one thing that convinced me about the existence of God was the Big Bang Theory (not the one with Sheldon), which, by the way, at one point was vehemently opposed by atheists. If there is no God, why should we exist? Does man really have no more meaning than other creatures? I look outside, I see the beauty that’s around me, and whilst I do not doubt the belief in evolution, I highly doubt this all happened by random accident. Look to philosophy other than communism for the answer, and the answer is Christ himself, he was before all this. St. John made that statement, the same man that claimed God became man that, you know, KNEW him. So why should we doubt God’s existence? I went through my agnostic phase, but I always believed (fideist agnostic. I find most arguments against God to be extremely weak, and I think you should too. Prayers, God bless.

Thanks, Adam, for the response and the prayers. Just for the record I in no way support/believe in Marxism or communism, I just found that particular line of reasoning of his pretty common among atheists.

 

[Charlemagne_III]

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

How would atheists know that religion was invented? Were they on the scene when religion first appeared among the first human beings? On the other hand, put that shoe on the other foot. How do we know atheists deny God out of fear that he exists and that they will be accountable to him?

 

[drac16]

There is an unseen reality. The God of the Universe wanted to glorify Himself, so He made man and taught him the names of all things (i.e. spiritual knowledge that not even the angels know). God could have done nothing to interact with His creation, but He chose to send special, righteous men to lead people into having a relationship with Him, finding full pardon of their sins as well as intimacy in this life and in the next.

Will a Kindergarten teacher expect his/her students to behave well, without needing to correct their behavior or to teach them new stuff? do Kindergarten students teach themselves and correct their own behavior? of course not. Kids need to be taught how to behave and what to learn. It is logical that if there is a God, He would send special instructions on how to establish a connection to Him. I have considered the deist position, but it makes no sense.

 

[mikekle]

I remember wondering about this too, when I saw in a documentary I watched, someone high up the church many years ago made a comment, something about ‘this myth of God has been good for us over the years’. I cant recall who said it or in what context, but I do remember finding out it was not actually referring to the faith itself.

Plus, I just saw on my FB feed, apparently there is some catholic bishop being interviewed by Chris Hanson/ NBC, and him admitting the church made up hell to keep more people under control, he said its about putting fear into people. I can put the link in to anyone who wants to see it, I cant believe he can say this when being interviewed for tv!

BUt really, even if we are all wrong, its still no harm in following the bible and what it says. Its a win-win for everyone no matter what.

 

[MaryHelp777]

Man was invented by God.

 

[LethalMouse]

Why do people who don’t need religion find it?

I don’t mean “find” religion because it sounds good to them, but I mean see the supernatural?

Sure people often complain they didn’t get to, but how many people need to see something for it to be true in a sense?

There is a psychological phenomenon commonly called ASMR. It is experienced by millions of people with a youtube channels dedicated to it that do quite well in those who seek it out.

Science says it is not a thing… not that it affirmatively “is not” but that there is no “proof” that people experience it…

So millions of people seek out something and attest to their enjoyment of it but it may not even be happening? Like as in they are literally not feeling feelings? They just say they are and spend hours watching videos to induce it for NO REASON???

I think even if one does not experience it it would be hard to say no one does… I am not color blind but I believe sone people are althoigh no one can “prove it to me”

Now onto the religious aspect, there are people today who fully grasp science and have no “need” of religion to exolain things. Who exhibit no signs of mental disorder, and meet God, an Angel, Saint whatever… and that is it. No reoccuring things we can point to as mental break etc.

So why? Do millions of people have mini one time psychotic breaks? Or is there something to the existence of God?

 

[LethalMouse]

Oh and in a sense yes some religions were created by man.

God gave the bronze serpant statue. People invented a religion around it apart from God. Does not negate the truth of God

 

[Cheiron]

Thanks, Adam, for the response and the prayers. Just for the record I in no way support/believe in Marxism or communism, I just found that particular line of reasoning of his pretty common among atheists.

Just a side note: Another quote from Marx is this:

The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions.

A few years ago I heard a similar reasoning regularly on the television. Some political commentators thought that if you give radical muslims an education, a job and a house, then they won’t turn to jihadism. The idea was essentially marxist: make them happy and then they don’t need islam to be happy. Voilá: a transformation from muslim to a happy atheist.

Fortunately, that kind of talk has died out a bit, because it’s simply not true. A lot of Western jihadi’s have had lots of opportunities in Europe.

How would atheists know that religion was invented?

Like we evaluate all such historical problems: with evidence. And if there are competing explanations, we have to go for the one that makes most sense. That is the tricky part.

Were they on the scene when religion first appeared among the first human beings?

I think so, yes. Atheism is probably as old as religion. Tim Whitmarsh, professor of Greek Culture at Oxford University, has written a book about atheism in ancient Greece and Rome. It’s called Battling the Gods and appeared last year.

On the other hand, put that shoe on the other foot. How do we know atheists deny God out of fear that he exists and that they will be accountable to him?

Such an atheist is not actually an atheist. How can someone be fearful of a threat he doesn’t believe even exists? Ultimately nobody can look inside someone else’s head. And that goes both ways. I too sometimes ask myself whether clerics in my country really believe the things they say or not. But there is no reason to doubt their sincerity, so I just have to take them at their word.

 

[PraiseChrist]

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

Maybe this article by Trent Horn can provide some help:
catholic.com/blog/trent-horn/the-god-of-the-gaps

 

[ClearWater]

Praying for us to have clarity on this and other issues.

 

[Cheiron]

I realize I didn’t actually answer the question in my post earlier in this topic. So here it goes:

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

There is evidence that the Neanderthals had a form of ritualized burial practice. Not sure if this counts as religion though. Religion probably predates humankind’s ability to write it down.

As for explaining religion: some of our earliest ‘atheistic’ writings are attempts to explain religion in a purely naturalistic way. Prodicus (Greece, c. 465 - c. 395 B.C.) is one such philosopher. But ofcourse he couldn’t know for certain either. Perhaps we’ll never know if the first priest really did have a revelation. All I can say is that it seems unlikely to me.

 

[JapaneseKappa]

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

Well lets think about what the alternatives are. If man didn’t invent religion, then how did religion come to be? The only two possibilities I can think of are:

1. Religion represents a simple fact of the world that humanity discovered.
2. Religion was invented by someone else, then told/sold to humanity.

Of course, this lumps a few things into the “invent” classification. In other words, I would count things like accidental creation (e.g. innocently making a fairy tale that other people misunderstand as literal) into “invent.”

I suspect that most people here would have the gut reaction that their particular religion falls into #1. But #1 needs two things: the religious beliefs need to be true, and there needs to be a process of discovery. But if we look at the language people use to talk about the foundations of Christianity (i.e. biblical history), people do not use words like “discovered truths,” they use the words “revealed truths.” Now, supposing that whoever did the revealing was not human, then religion falls squarely into category #2.

 

[Vivat_Christus]

Maybe this article by Trent Horn can provide some help:
catholic.com/blog/trent-horn/the-god-of-the-gaps

Article was helpful, thanks

 

[Hatikvah]

Merriam-Webster’s second definition for the word “religion” is what I’m referring to:

an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship a god or a group of gods

Religion, in this sense, is made by men. The beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used in that practice are strung together into one “religion” or “faith.” Many Gnostic syncretic cults took deities from Greece, Egypt, and other cultures. Those are their gods. Then they took even rituals like baptism and the Eucharist for their own religion. Those are ceremonies. Then they add rules and beliefs that are fitted for the period.

That’s a religion. However, we do fit that definition as Christians. Yet, our beliefs and practices were expounded by a man – Jesus Christ, Who is also God! He instituted the Eucharist, Baptism, other sacraments to be recognized; He forged our beliefs out of Judaism, which were further developed in Sacred Scripture and Tradition by the apostles, Paul in particular. And our law comes out of Jewish mortality, though with a distinct tinge.

So, yes, religion is made by man; sure, Judaism received its rules from God above and its ceremonies and beliefs were by God. But who made a connection and made the religion into a people with a distinction? Humans did.

Certainly, Christianity was directly instituted by a man – but that man was also God!

 

[Bradski]

“Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people”.

I like it. But he is being deregatory. Describing religion as a panacea.

He does go on to compare it to the flowers interwoven in the chains that bind us. That they are there hiding the problem. Not that we should remove the flowers and wear the chain. But we should remove them to understand that we are chained and therefore remove the chain.

And religion is nothing more than organised belief. All one has to do is ask who organised it.

The incense, the chanting, the songs, the rituals, the vestments, the symbolism, the buildings…all for and by the hand of Man. I mean, have you actually walked around the Vatican? The word ostentatious doesn’t begin to describe it.

 

[fisherman_carl]

Atheism was certainly created by man. To get away from God. I don’t have to defend all religion, only Christianity. All the evidence is on the side of God. All atheism does is to try to explain away this evidence. Just think about all the miracles that God has provided. Just think about your own existence. God has given you life. Seek Him and you will find Him. That is His promise.

youtu.be/25RrUeY_1Jg

 

[o_mlly]

Hi everyone. That’s not exactly the best title to describe my question but there’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been experiencing some doubts the past few weeks. How do we know religion isn’t something that was made up by primitive man to explain the world around him, or for comfort to escape the fear of death as many atheists claim? I guess this is similar to the old Karl Marx line, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” Can anyone help me with this? Prayers would be appreciated as well. Thank you!

Initially, yes. One of the four human virtues, justice, discoverable by reason is the “moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the ‘virtue of religion’” (CCC#1807).

What man owes God is evidenced in he first three commandments of the Decalogue and the first three petitions of the “Lords Prayer.”

All four of the human virtues find their perfection in the three theological virtues – faith, hope and charity. These three virtues are gifts from God not discernible by reason alone.

 

[Charlemagne_III]

Like we evaluate all such historical problems: with evidence. And if there are competing explanations, we have to go for the one that makes most sense. That is the tricky part.

The really tricky part is that anyone can say with any kind of real evidence that religion was created from fear (pure speculation), and that atheism is really true and makes more sense than religion.

Good luck proving that.

And we all know how atheists demand proof, except when it is demanded of them.