Why is "Religion" Hated so Much?

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:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
 
I think it is a weird combination of Evangelicalism and Liberalism.

Liberalism is basically the anti-dogmatic principle that rules our Western Society today. It claims that Truth is relative, (therefore so is Religion) and that everything is OK. You must embrace and celebrate diversity, equality and inclusiveness. Everything is equal, everyone is equal, morality is relative and basically a residue of Medieval intolerance and bigotry, and forced upon mankind by the Church.

Evangelicalism is founded on the emotional experience of accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior. That is enough to guarantee your salvation, and freedom from guilt.

When you combine these two, you have what you described.
 
LittleSoldier said:
:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
Click to expand...
People see the institutions of religion (which they equate with “religion”) as irredeemably corrupt, hypocritical and way too involved in politics. A recent book on this topic is Putnam and Campbell’s (Notre Dame researchers) American Grace. Therefore people look for Jesus outside of churches.
 
LittleSoldier said:
:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
Click to expand...
Could be many reasons. Some people think religion is just for control, others don’t want to feel convicted of their sins.
 
I think the real problem, or part of it, is that people think that they may choose between a relationship with God on their own and a relationship with God through a church.

You can’t.

Leaving aside people in countries where Christianity is suppressed or little known (for which places no doubt God makes special provisions), you need BOTH.

You need a relationship with God through a church so that you don’t get locked in your own head, praying up to a God that you have made up in your own image.

You need a relationship with God outside church because without that, you don’t have a relationship with God at all, you have weekly attendance at a social club.

People who are poorly catechised and/or not particularly good at critical thinking and/or have been treated poorly by the world in general will meet people who think they can just have a relationship with a church and rightly feel that something vital is missing. What they don’t see is that just because the more important part is missing, it doesn’t mean that what is not missing is therefore not important.

–Jen
 
You might as well ask why do people hate.

If someone is hating there is something deep inside them that is hurting. Religion is simply the target to direct that hatred.
 
I agree with the previous posts, especially on why a person might hate a religious institution. I’m sure even our Church leaders hate the institutions at times. Our present pope, in emulating Jesus, spent much time in reaching and helping the poor and needy in person and not just administrating for them.

But the personal hatred that I think you speak of is often a matter of not wanting to deal with ones conscience in an objective fashion. In my years away from confession it was easy to say, “God will forgive me”, and then string along on the slippery slope. When I heard someone reminding me of a sin I was committing, I felt they were “too judgmental”.

When I go to confession, examine my conscience, run it by a good confessor, I have less chance for self-deception. Further when I hear religious leaders cautioning against sin I feel I have a reinforcement for good behavior.

ANOTHER REASON why people hate religion is that they expect religious leaders to be superior, and when their human weakness is discovered the world is more disillusioned. It is easier to forgive a murderer who steals than a priest who errs.

ALSO, the word “religion” in your thread is a broad term: Is it the organized religion of the one true Church (with all human imperfections); the organized “religion” of a sect, based on a “vision” of some leader who is missing a few pieces of truth; some philosophy that requires membership; or some group that is going to war over a religious disagreement. My neighbor, after 9/11, stopped me one day to say how much he hated religion. I said, “all religions?” He said , “Yes, all…they have killed more people in the name of religion.” I said, “What about Hitler, Stalin, Mao Tse Tung, Pol Pot, Ceaucescu, Amin, Truman”…and listed all of the leaders responsible for the greatest massacres. I think we agreed that day that all humans in power are capable of great damage.
 
Because religion places demands upon us, it reminds us that we are not the ruler which is what we want. It’s the sin of the garden all over again.
 
LittleSoldier said:
I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.
Click to expand...

I found 10 hits for “religion” in the NT at Bible Gateway. The one you are likely thinking of is 1 Timothy 5:4. 1 Timothy 2:10 is also a good one. James 1:27 uses the word “religion” in a very positive sense.
 
LittleSoldier said:
:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
Click to expand...
  1. A recent survey stated that people do not hate religion so much as they find it too restrictive. But, due to some recent books and the pagan media, religion, especially Christianity, is presented as bad and not believing is presented as good. For example, on buses in England, there were signs placed on the side which read: “Stop worrying and enjoy life.” Which I take to mean, “There’s no God/gods to judge you so just do whatever.” Sin and judgment? No such thing.
  2. You may have come across the term “Cafeteria Catholic.” In other words, Catholics pick and choose what they want to believe or accept. Some common themes here are “I don’t think I can go without contraception or Natural Family Planning doesn’t work for me.” Or, “I’m not going to force my beliefs on others when I vote.” This can include gay marriage, abortion and other subjects where they either firmly disagree no matter what the Church teaches or they are not fully informed about what the Church teaches. The Church is asking the faithful to not present themselves for communion if they are against certain things the Church teaches as true.
freep.com/article/20130408/NEWS05/304080041/Detroit-area-Catholic-leaders-urge-gay-marriage-supporters-to-skip-Communion

And the Prime Minister of Ireland was told he should resign if he supported abortion law.

irishcatholic.ie/20130530/news/catholic-tds-should-resign-not-support-abortion-vatican-S33909.html
  1. Some people believe religion is behind most, or at least many, wars and other conflicts, so they reject it and actively speak against it. But let’s not forget that there are people out there who pose as regular people online (called “astro turf”) who are actually paid or who are part of a group that wants to spread the “I hate religion and you should to” idea to others. It’s like advertising.
  2. The number of Catholics and the number of men entering seminaries is growing. There are over a billion Catholics out there. Keep that in mind.
  3. Some people have created their own personal Jesus. They are trying to convince others that Jesus loves everybody, which is true, but they are using His name to say, “You know what? This group of people aren’t sinning because God loves them as they are.” Uh, that’s only half right. Jesus came to call sinners to repentance, not to enable them.
  4. Pope Benedict has spoken of a “vague spiritualism” that some have adopted. The principles seem OK without examination. “I’ll just love my version of God, ignore sin and scandal, and not speak up whenever I think the Church is wrong or ‘oppressing’ people.” In other words, “I’ll take what I want from religion, but I will abandon organized religion because telling anyone they are sinning or engaging in public scandal would hurt their feelings.”
  5. There is one ex-Catholic on TV who has made it a point to promote his pagan way of life. Another TV ex-Catholic, who recently passed, stated, “There’s no one - up there.” You see, talk show hosts and comedians are promoting the idea that religion is just a load of manure. Get out and enjoy your pagan/hedonistic self while you can. Life is more “fun” when God/religion are dead to you and bother you to the point where you feel compelled to say bad things about it.
  6. Have hope. No matter how often you see it, remember it’s the devil doing his job.
Here’s an example of the word religion used in the Bible.

biblehub.com/james/1-26.htm

Peace,
Ed
 
This is an important topic for our Church to recognize. These “personal relationship” or “spiritual but not religious” attitudes seem to be on the rise. I am reminded of the analogy that C.S. Lewis put forth in “Mere Christianity”. Lewis compared the differences between a man standing on a beach viewing the Atlantic ocean and a map of the entire ocean. Now granted, the experience on the beach can be sentient and exciting when compared to a piece of paper. But it is a limited glimpse at best, that provides no assistance in a full understanding. The map on the other hand, is the result of hundreds or thousands of experts that have travelled and charted the ocean and offers the opportunity to safely navigate. Our Church is that map that offers us access to some of the greatest minds in human history and a sacramental life that affords us the graces to know God in the fullest sense. To go it alone seems to me, a perilous journey.
 
It’s based on a misunderstanding of what religion is. Religion is seen as an institution. It is seen in term of rules and control. It is seen in terms of wars that have been waged over the centuries.
I don’t remember where I found the following quote, but I think it pretty much summarizes the idea.

“When we practice spirituality or religion, we recognize that life is bigger than us. We surrender the silly idea that we are the mightiest thing ever.”
 
Because of the violent right and left wing groups that seem to materialize from all faiths
 
It consistently leads to conflict
It provides justification for war and oppression
It holds back human kind in terms of scientific and philosophical advancement
It’s repressive
It can be immoral
Belief in it can cause innocent death
It makes people think they’re better than others
It’s used for control
 
LittleSoldier said:
:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
Click to expand...
LS one needs to, in practice, distinguish between true religion and pretend religion.

True religion is coming to the help of widows and orphans and remaining uncontaminated by the world.

The track record on this simple reality is not good even in the Catholic Church even amongst our celibate leaders. We are a Church of sinners, with feet of clay.
That does not mean the Church or religion per se should be overthrown.
The world would probably be even worse without it.
 
I’m surprised no one has yet posted the dictionary definition of religion. I think it’s appropriate so here it is, from Webster’s

First, etymology: ME religioun, fr. L religion-, *religio * reverance, piety, religion, prob. fr. religare to tie back, tie up, tie fast…more at RELY.

Def 1 - the personal commitment to and serving of God or a god with worshipful devotion, conduct in accord with divine commands esp. as found in accepted sacred writings or declared by authoritative teachers, a way of life recongnized as incumbent on true belivers, and typically the relating of oneself to an organized body of belivers.

Def 4 - archaic: scrupulous conformity

There’s quite a bit more, but I think these are important, especially the etymology. The idea of binding ourselves to God or a system of belief can be claustrophobic to some people.

Def 1 emphasizes a personal commitment and a way of life.

Def 4 is possibly what people who don’t like religion think of when they say they don’t like religion. Rather like the common misconceptions of New England Puritans. Nathaniel Hawthorne did them - and Christianity as a whole - no favors in his depictions of Christians as hypocrites.
 
religion is hated so much, as I see it, because many Christians are insufferably holier than thou and want you to know it.
 
LittleSoldier said:
:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
Click to expand...
The “I love God, but hate religion” and similar statements basically translate to- “I love God as long as I’m the one dictating the terms and conditions of the relationship.”
 
LittleSoldier said:
:confused: I have noticed a lot of people saying they have freed themselves from religion and are concentrating on a personal relationship with “their” Lord and Savior. I’ve seen it on Facebook and Youtube. To be honest, I am very confused. “Religion” appears to be something to be maligned, a prison, being stuck with a ton of rules, something from which to be escaped, a heavy burden while the burden of a Christian is light and easy to carry.

It wouldn’t concern me so much if I have not seen how many people, who claim to be Christians, hate religion. I don’t understand this. At all.

I haven’t been successful at finding any passages in Holy Scriptures that even use the word “religion” but I believe there is one and it mentions widows. If someone can name that passage I would appreciate it very much.

I’m wondering if the hatred of religion (or at least what many people think “religion” means) has something to do with the move towards that personal relationship with Jesus and a denial of a relationship with one’s brethren. This, to me, is a denial of Jesus’ second Great Commandment and the parable of the sheep and goats.

I would like to know of others’ thoughts on this issue. I have asked on another forum and was completely ignored.

Just what is “religion” and why is it hated by so many? :confused::confused:
Click to expand...
People object to “organized religion” because “organized religions” have “organized meetings” and “organized expectations” of their members. Folks who prefer to do their own thing don’t like having to toe any line.
 
The problem is that people who claim to hate religion have created a false dichotomy. They limit ‘religion’ to a rules based system then say that it’s incompatible with a ‘personal relationship’.

This is a false dichotomy because the great majority of personal relationships that we are in have rules. Personally I can’t think of any personal relationships that I’ve had that didn’t have rules. Whether the relationships were familial, platonic friendships or romantic relationships they all had rules. The rules were determined by the nature of the relationship.

Certainly we all ought to have a personal relationship with God. But the nature of that relationship is not itself personal. We are not free to define the nature of that relationship. If we were then that would necessarily undermine that relationship because it would that we would be not worshipers of God but self proclaimed peers of God. If a ‘Christian’ says he ‘worships’ God through spending Sunday morning fishing or on the links who would take him seriously? That is because worship is focused not on the self but on God.

Despite our relativistic age God did say something about how He is to be worshiped. He is to be worshiped individually and communally. Typically these are referred to as vertical and horizontal communion. God is present NOT only in Heaven but also in the Church militant. To be more fully in Christ you must necessarily be in communion with the Church. Anything else lessens your personal relationship with Christ.

If you are not part of His Bride what kind of personal relationship can you have? If the Blessed Mother is not also your mother how does that bring you into a closer personal relationship with Christ?
 
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