[Thor]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

I would like to think that I am doing the same thing from the inside. I still consider myself a theist (I think), and am progressively convinced that the end of the religious question is ultimately not in the end of religion, but in its reformation. For me, a fundamental part of that would potentially occur through a radical reconceptualisation of "religion" that is more in line with its ancient expression as an inextricable component of culture and society. What this means is that everyone could be "religious" regardless about whatever she or he believes or feels about the existence of a "god" (or "gods"). Since religion from the beginning of human civilisation was always behavioural and performative and NOT conceptual, then I think there is room for any number of ritualisations within our culture and social worlds that provide expression to our own humanity and our place in the world and the universe.

As you know I am a fan of this, its needed and necessary but I think the problem will lie in the failings of humans to get past tribalism and the need to see others unlike them as the problem. There is a powerful need and worth to tradition, ceremony and this feeling of community that organized religion brings, but unfortunately up until now the vast majority of religions have failed an any kind of internal enlightenment among its followers which remain in most instances incredibly uninformed about their core beliefs and are easy to sway and influence, which is why organized religion has been such a powerful tool for influence and control.

But I expect that these Asian groups are all very likely what I have classified as "modernised Western" conceptual rationalists. Of course they reject Eastern "religions" because they have defined and compartmentalised them according to artificial precepts of what constitutes "religion" as primarily a system of beliefs.

I think eastern religions are more akin to what we see with people like Deepak Chopra who peddle this new age feel good, undefined spirituality which is filled with metaphors and hyperbole. The problem in the east is that while a rigid biblical type belief is not common, the unskeptical way most of these societies operate is of grave concern to me. No need look further than China which is incredibly superstitious and filled with nonsense beliefs in numbers, animal powders and the like.

In many ways this is a consequence of globalisation. More and more Western modernity and its ideals and goals become more deeply engrained on the rest of the world, and I am not entirely convinced that this is a good thing. The closer we become through the explosion of information and connectivity, the more alike we become to the extent that cultural and social distinctions that ought to be celebrated are threatened with extinction.

So true, globalization is still quite a young thing, I do believe ultimately as we move forward to a more global way of thinking, less about nation states, less about specific religious ideologies this can only be a good thing overall.

The problem has been westernization of the 2nd and 3rd world brings with it the pitfalls of mixing modernity with people's that belong to cultures from 100's of years ago, just look at Africa with its witch problem, the idea that condoms are a conspiracy by the west, the idea that Eboli is a lie from the west and the consequences are dire.

We all evolve as societies at a different pace, this is a major problem, since the only real solution is education, secularism, and democracy. Which is why the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation is exactly what we need more of, because this vast gulf between the 1st world and everyone else is a large bridge to gap and so far in many instances its been a disaster.