Science is rational. It’s based on observation and measurement of real phenomena. Personal religion is as rational as the person who professes it. Organized religion depends on written or spoken dogma generated by others and therefore not personal. One cannot measure or verify the conclusions or sincerity of others. I call that rationalization. I am a religious person in the same sense that First Peoples have the only valid religions. The first step of organized religion is when one person tells another what to believe–a rationalization.
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Agree.
Disagree. Missionary activity is not a rationalisation, it is merely wanting to help other people. Theology is not a rationalisation , it is an academic exercise. What you might call a rationalisation is Apologetics…. why does a certain group believe what they believe.
Dogma is simply writing down the truth…. as seen by a collective. It arose as a need to defend against falsehoods. Science does the same thing …. it produces textbooks…. some of which become dated as we learn more.
I think the thing that most distinguishes religion is the problems it addresses. Science confines itself to natural, observable , phenomena. Religion addresses other non-observable things like The problem of Evil, the problem of Mortality, the problem of Pain and Suffering. There is a system in organised religion for preserving cumulated human experiences in such areas….. they call it Tradition….it is like a huge experiment spanning centuries….. some things are tried, and if found fruitful and popular, they are preserved in some official way, verbal or written. Your First Peoples religions are like that , and so are large organized religious groups.
The thing about religion that frightens people is mystical experience. It is intensely personal and almost impossible to communicate to others. Like falling in love. There have been attempts to rationalise it, but you cant explain your experience from within yourself… in the same way that you cant see the universe objectively because you are in it.
I think I have said enough. I dont want anything about denominational religion to creep in to the forum. I have to be very careful personally.
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There is such a thing as spiritual guidance.
In cultures like your American Indians ( indigenous Australians are similar) it is obtained from parents and elders. There tends to be only one point of view.
In Western culture many people prefer to get spiritual guidance from organised religions. There is more diversity in modern Western society, and with that comes the possibility of errors. The centuries of debate about heresies are a witness to that.
My personal view is that one’s spiritual outlook is a gift. It may come via a variety of paths, and it may not come at all, but it is not something we choose, it is something we encounter. After we encounter it, our outlook is different.
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Given a choice I prefer wine, spirits are to strong for me, they tend to burn the throat on the way down.
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