Skip to main content

Which religion is right?

This is a question that can never be answered with certainty, at least not while we are alive on Earth. It is generally impossible to prove that any religion is right or wrong. Of course, we can prove that individual religious figures are right or wrong if they make predictions about what will happen in our world, but it is not possible to know whether, for example, Christianity is right and Islam is wrong or...

This is a question that can never be answered with certainty, at least not while we are alive on Earth. It is generally impossible to prove that any religion is right or wrong. Of course, we can prove that individual religious figures are right or wrong if they make predictions about what will happen in our world, but it is not possible to know whether, for example, Christianity is right and Islam is wrong or vice versa.


We cannot know if a religion is right or wrong because we cannot prove or disprove its major beliefs. We cannot prove the existence of God at all, so we certainly cannot prove that God is or is not made up of three separate beings (who are, at the same time, one) as Christians believe. We cannot prove that God exists so we certainly cannot prove that he sent an angel to transmit the Koran to the Prophet Muhammad.


We also cannot appeal to human logic. We know that people generally tend to believe that the religion they are brought up in is the right religion. If all human logic pointed to the truth of a given religion, then surely most people who were exposed to that religion’s ideas would convert to it. But that is not what happens. Instead, people stick with their own religions and reject other religions simply because they have grown up with their own religion and have been trained to believe it is true. Thus, when we try to use logic to discover which religion is right, we will typically fail because our logic is clouded by our own conditioning (and because there is no logical way to prove that one religion is superior to another).


Many people would answer this question by saying “of course, my religion is right.” However, they cannot prove the rightness of their religion because it is impossible to prove that one religion is right and the others are wrong.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,... James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families. Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narr...
Post a Comment
Read more

What gift did Della buy for Jim and why in "The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry?

Della buys Jim a watch fob because his watch is his most prized possession. Della and Jim Young do not have much money. Despite this, Della really wants to buy Jim a good Christmas present. She is even willing to sell her hair to get him a nice gift. This is ironic because we learn Della and Jim both highly prize her hair. Now, there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which... Della buys Jim a watch fob because his watch is his most prized possession. Della and Jim Young do not have much money. Despite this, Della really wants to buy Jim a good Christmas present. She is even willing to sell her hair to get him a nice gift. This is ironic because we learn Della and Jim both highly prize her hair. Now, there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took a mighty pride. One was Jim's gold watch that had been his father's and his grandfather's. The other was Della's hair.  Della is still willing to sell her hair so she can b...
Post a Comment
Read more

Explain and discuss how the definitions of freedom change for the nation, for the freedmen and for southern whites after the Civil War.

After the Civil War, the definition of freedom changed in the nation, as slavery was ended with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in 1865. The practice of slavery was disallowed, but definition of the freedom that would take its place was a subject of controversy, ongoing debate, and even violence in the decades to come.  For freedmen, freedom often meant reconciling with their families, who were broken up by slavery; choosing which church to... After the Civil War, the definition of freedom changed in the nation, as slavery was ended with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in 1865. The practice of slavery was disallowed, but definition of the freedom that would take its place was a subject of controversy, ongoing debate, and even violence in the decades to come.  For freedmen, freedom often meant reconciling with their families, who were broken up by slavery; choosing which church to belong to without being ordered to attend religious services (or not to attend) by their mast...
Post a Comment
Read more