| | From Dr. Hurd.com:
Q: What makes belief in God unhealthy, in your opinion? Is it the philosophy of guilt and sacrifice encouraged by all the major religions?
A: Good guess, but actually no. The unhealthiest aspect of belief in God that I see is the prevailing feeling that something or someone is coming to the rescue; that something or someone is going to take care of you, and erase all the pain and responsibility for living from your existence. Most religious people will frame this in a positive way, saying that belief in a Higher Power makes them feel less alone. To which I reply: if you feel too alone, go out and make some friends; or maybe learn to enjoy your own company too. Even pets help. I'm being serious here. Making something up--granted, something that has been popular in the minds of a lot of people for a lot of centuries--is not the way to mental health. People get depressed or anxious, oftentimes, because of the false, unstated view that something or someone should be taking care of them. This is the notion that makes all the other psychological problems I see possible: including neurotic guilt, chronic anger, or a pervasive sense of hopelessness and disappointment. No, I'm not claiming that every single person who believes in God automatically experiences these problems. Not everyone who smokes a pack of cigarettes a day gets lung cancer, either. But it doesn't make smoking healthy, does it?
Oh, and look what's for sale on eBay.
(Edited by Scott Cram
on 11/16, 6:09am)
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