I chose religion because as I completed the assigned reading
and worksheet in class the following day I feel like there were some strings
left untied as I was walking out the door. Now it’s damn hard not to turn this
into a piece on why I believe in God so I’m going to try to abandon all defensive
criticism.
BUT
I would absolutely love to hear what Marx would’ve said if
he had a shred of faith in any god, haha. I can’t help but wonder was it the
time period he lived in that he saw it used for control and personal profit,
that he had such contempt. Or any other reasons, but that isn’t exactly the
focus I’d like this to address.
Religion itself is powerful (and call me bias because I have
faith in God) but no one can mistake the power of faith. Whether you believe
because you understand it, or scared/suckered into it, it’s the feeling of
security and peace of mind in a hard time, guidance and advice. I think Marx’s
points address a real issue with religion and could prove them (to this day
true as well) because he recognized the person/people behind it all. People
want to know things are going to be alright, they’ll do what they feel they
have to, to be comforted.
Marx quotes; ‘It is the ghostly realization of the human
essence, ghostly because the human essence possesses no true reality.” If you don’t
have any guidelines, what do you believe in? Who do you obey? Who do you
disobey? Who do you praise and who do you blame? People fell obedient to
religion because it gave them a sense of purpose, a purpose not posed by man.
I’d like to end this by saying religion has boundless power,
it’s just the direction it’s given and took that determine the culmination. I
have my side and you have yours. It’d be a fun topic over a beer.
Saw this movie a while ago, it stuck out like a sore thumb
after last class.
I really enjoyed your thoughts on this post! I think you raised some really interesting points. For one, I like that you mentioned how Marx almost viewed religion as a coping mechanism, because I think a lot of people view religion in that context. Not as something even somewhat tangible, but merely a state of mind to help us escape reality. I even catch myself wondering if I actually love God because He is God, or because of what He can do for me (provide comfort, guidance, blessings, etc.) The quote you included from Marx, as well as your thoughts regarding it, remind me a lot of the book Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. He covers topics such as if we believe that God is only an internal manifestation or a means of coping, where does our morality come from? How can we be born with an internal sense of right and wrong, and because of that who do we obey, and why do we obey? I don't know, I'm just thinking off the cuff here. Very thought provoking topic though. I know I'm supposed to think of a question, but I honestly can't think of any. Great ideas overall!
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