China Ranks Last in Importance of Religion, Research Shows

[xunzi]

Not necessarily so .South Korea and US are the example of it.

Even Europe since Renaissance are booming, although currently Europe more hedonistic.

There are lot of factor for country development : national political will, geopolitical, culture, resource (esp manpower), strategic location, education level, corruption level, etc.

That is a very stupid comparison. The rise to Europe coincided with the decline of religion in Europe. This dated back when Europe was very religious until the Renaissance and the church became marginalized.

 

[beijingwalker]

Proved: Atheists More Intelligent Than Religious People
http://www.medicaldaily.com/proved-atheists-more-intelligent-religious-people-250727

 

[vietnamera]

Yet this article comes from "china christian daily com", seems like they feel bad that China ranks lower than expected.

This is actually a very positive news.

To the editors, maybe not.

 

[Place Of Space]

An amazing list of the books and writings written by our ancestors covering every aspects of human's life, showing the extensiveness and profoundness of the Chinese cultures to the world.

It is a pity that I only heard no more than 30 %, read maybe 10 to 15 of them.

So do I. Some spirits and essences of those works have been integrated into our oral language and daily life, so if somebody is not prefessor of relevant fields, it's impossible for us to read all those books. For example, even some historical professors spend their whole life, they can't read completely all 《二十四史》, they focus on researching certain period and dynasty.

 

[rott]

Religions are a way to make a living. Nuff said.

 

[antonius123]

That is a very stupid comparison. The rise to Europe coincided with the decline of religion in Europe. This dated back when Europe was very religious until the Renaissance and the church became marginalized.

That is not true. It is (roman catholic) church influence that decline, not the religion.

You should read the history correctly.

1. The Reformation was the greatest religious movement for Christ since the early church. It was a revival of Biblical and New Testament theology.
   
   
2. The Reformation officially began in 1517 when Martin Luther challenged the Roman Church on the matter of Indulgences. While Luther had no idea of the impact this would make on the German society and the world, this event changed the course of history. “The Reformation of the sixteenth century is, next to the introduction of Christianity, the greatest event in history. It marks the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of modern times. Starting from religion, it gave, directly or indirectly, a mighty impulse to every forward move-ment, and made Protestantism the chief propelling force in the history of modern civilization” (Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church).

The Cause and Results of the Reformation

 

[+4vsgorillas-Apebane]

i am not a religious person but I do believe that there are aspects of religion that are for the greater good of the human race. Its a great way to civilize people at the grass roots level in indoctrinating into their minds the existence of an all seeing and all knowing god.

In doing so religious people are better at self regulation for fear of divine punishment for their infractions of the divine laws such as killing, stealing, sloth etc. A non believer will commit a crime and only fear secular punishments in which they can evade or hide from altogether.

Asian cultures have Confucian and Taoist beliefs in which a code of conduct is expected from all individuals but concepts of 'face' and honor is often twisted and perverted into ostentation and pretension. I hate to imagine a society that does not possess any belief or code and is grounded on the universal law of nature where the strong trample the weak.

A middle path is needed - one to civilize and regulate the masses yet at the same time refrain from clashing with science and progress.

 

[Dungeness]

i am not a religious person but I do believe that there are aspects of religion that are for the greater good of the human race. Its a great way to civilize people at the grass roots level in indoctrinating into their minds the existence of an all seeing and all knowing god.

In doing so religious people are better at self regulation for fear of divine punishment for their infractions of the divine laws such as killing, stealing, sloth etc. A non believer will commit a crime and only fear secular punishments in which they can evade or hide from altogether.

Asian cultures have Confucian and Taoist beliefs in which a code of conduct is expected from all individuals but concepts of 'face' and honor is often twisted and perverted into ostentation and pretension. I hate to imagine a society that does not possess any belief or code and is grounded on the universal law of nature where the strong trample the weak.

A middle path is needed - one to civilize and regulate the masses yet at the same time refrain from clashing with science and progress.

That is a wishful thinking. All "words of god" are taught, manipulated, and interpreted by human, and crimes can be and have been committed in the name of the "god" in the history countless times, recent case in point, ISIS.

 

[+4vsgorillas-Apebane]

That is a wishful thinking. All "words of god" are taught, manipulated, and interpreted by human, and crimes can be and have been committed in the name of the "god" in the history countless times, recent case in point, ISIS.

This is true but only on the extreme end of the spectrum. The vast majority of religious people are not crazies and deluded with the word of god.

I suspect that even without religion, there will still be violence in the middle east. Its the tribal mindset of the people there who have been battling each other since forever.

 

[Dungeness]

This is true but only on the extreme end of the spectrum. The vast majority of religious people are not crazies and deluded with the word of god.

I suspect that even without religion, there will still be violence in the middle east. Its the tribal mindset of the people there who have been battling each other since forever.

In some countries, prayers are just for washing previous sins, so they have a sense of relief to commit even more sins. Fear of divine punishment only works on those who would not commit those sins in the first place.

 

[Sky lord]

i am not a religious person but I do believe that there are aspects of religion that are for the greater good of the human race. Its a great way to civilize people at the grass roots level in indoctrinating into their minds the existence of an all seeing and all knowing god.

In doing so religious people are better at self regulation for fear of divine punishment for their infractions of the divine laws such as killing, stealing, sloth etc. A non believer will commit a crime and only fear secular punishments in which they can evade or hide from altogether.

Asian cultures have Confucian and Taoist beliefs in which a code of conduct is expected from all individuals but concepts of 'face' and honor is often twisted and perverted into ostentation and pretension. I hate to imagine a society that does not possess any belief or code and is grounded on the universal law of nature where the strong trample the weak.

A middle path is needed - one to civilize and regulate the masses yet at the same time refrain from clashing with science and progress.

You are not a religious person which I suspect is why you have such a charitable view of religious persons.

This "fear of divine punishment" is one of the mysteries of religion that I would like someone to explain to me. The people who should most believe in divine punishment ie the priests, the mullahs and the godmen are always the ones found b@ggering little boys and molesting little girls and stealing from the collection The ones who don't fully understand these concepts ie very young children and the most powerless and timid in society are the only people who seem to be afraid of divine punishment.

This is an anomaly I simply cannot understand. Priests in western societies ie those with a congregation that is better educated and with access to state judicial machinery behaves much better than a priest in a traditional poor society...so the question is - is it divine punishment they are really afraid of or punishment here on earth?

 

[siegecrossbow]

In East Asian cultures, religion tends to become important in the face of personal crisis.

 

[TaiShang]

In doing so religious people are better at self regulation for fear of divine punishment for their infractions of the divine laws such as killing, stealing, sloth etc.

That's true but also a deeply religious person will turn into a blood-thirsty animal/zombie if the same regulation orders them (as they interpret it) to hurt others for purity or salvation.

Consider the sectarian war of Europe like 30-Year Wars and the deep sectarian hellhole the entire Middle East is about to fall (if not already did so) thanks to Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Co.

And certain scholars will say, "it is wrong if you think religion (traditional ones) is all about peace and salvation; no, it is as much about conquer and gaining upper hand as giving alms."

Traditional (especially Middle East-oriented) religions in their original texts assert you may create hell in this world because what really matters is the here-after. Hence, non-secular outlook makes them love and desire the here-after to the degree they hate and despise "here and now."

I read news as to IS suicide bomber selection process. It is voluntary and if there are 8 slots for the position, there will be 50 volunteers and those "lucky" ones will be congratulated while the "losers" will shed tears for the lost opportunity.

Regular members of IS (as well as the likes such as Turkey-supported Ahrar al-Sham, Abdelhamid Brigades etc.) are said to be debating and even in fighting for lots in Eden/Heaven and, you know, the more disintegrated one gets in a suicide mission, the better lots one will receive in Heaven, like a home nearby a pristine river.

Sound like a joke and a terrible jike, but, that's the very surreality. That's how loving and peaceful a religion can get.

In my opinion, religious people, due to their disregard of secular laws and lifestyles, are bound to violence to a greater degree than a secular, self-controlled person with no divine laws running supreme over her/him.

Of course, I separate Middle Eastern religiosity from East Asian spirituality.

We must develop strategies against and stay proactive against Middle Eastern (which includes Islam and Christianity)
religious more than we develop A2AD capability against the US. The former is more lethal.

Asian cultures have Confucian and Taoist beliefs in which a code of conduct is expected from all individuals but concepts of 'face' and honor is often twisted and perverted into ostentation and pretension. I hate to imagine a society that does not possess any belief or code and is grounded on the universal law of nature where the strong trample the weak.

Again, face is still a more liberal code than honor that is widely practiced in the deeply religious societies. "Face" is secular, and bound by this world here, while "honor" is not simply about this world but also related, again, to the here-after. Hence the widespread honor-killings in deeply (especially Islamic) societies, especially with respect to women's (anticipated) conduct/behavior.

This is true but only on the extreme end of the spectrum. The vast majority of religious people are not crazies and deluded with the word of god.

According to a survey I read, 8% of Turkish population "supports ISIS" while 18% says "they could not say ISIS is a terrorist organization even they would not support it." So, perhaps you can give a good 2% of this 18% to make 8% a good 10%.

The question asked to people over voting age. Hence, under Turkey's parliamentary rule of 10% threshold to be represented in the National Assembly, in fact, if IS sets up a party tomorrow, they have a good chance of being represented there.

8-10% of Turkey translates into some 8 million adults. And these people tend to have larger families than secular ones. Can you see the potential here? Can you see how IS and the likes, with their relatively smaller size, are capable of doing? I guess @Lure can provide some feedback here.

What is considered extreme today can be mainstream in a few years. Generations change. And at time, ahistorically, they change for worse. Turkey's government has been in power for almost 14 years and those 10 years old at that time are now in their mid-20s. The trend is reversible perhaps but the window of opportunity is closing down on them. Certain areas of Istanbul, they say, already looks like just another city in Saudi Arabia, with women clad in long dark robes from top of the head to the tip of the toe.

People's perception of "crazies and deluded with the word of god" will change dramatically as they become the new normal. In IS land, if you comply the draconian rules (and luckily not a Shia), they will call you "akhi, akhi." The same long-bearded cute men will slowly decapitate another man with a knife and will go about their lives like nothing really happened.

This level of craziness only religion is capable of leading to. For religion is inherently illogical and unbound by reason.

I would say, never allow religion to run supreme. A healthy dose of spirituality mixed with strong secularism is the way to go. Learn from Turkish experience.

 

[beijingwalker]

Some words to remind which caused billions of deaths and suffering in the last millennium, crusade, jihad. sectarian wars and see the surging widespread anti Muslim sentiment in Europe today, religions very often don't bring peace and prosperity but death and destruction.

 

[Sky lord]

@TaiShang makes an important point. There are two aspects to religiosity 1. The spiritual and 2. The political.

The spiritual is I think more often than not a force for the good. It gives hope and comfort to those who need it. The poor , needy , those in prison , those bereaved - at least they can pray.

The political is a force for evil. It is mostly written down by the powers that be, ie older powerful men and is written to give them undue advantages. It for the most part scr3ws over women, children and the less fortunate. You cannot argue with it because it is divine and anything that doesn't make sense is written off as our humans inability to understand the mysterious ways of God.

The main advantage of monotheism is that it was a potent military force. If all people of one religion are my brothers then it unites us and makes us strong militarily. So monotheism is a kind of proto- nationalism. We don't need it anymore because we now have the concept of the nation state. So now we fight for our nation not our religion ( well most of us). When mono theism was first used militarily it was extraordinarily successful. Pagan Europe was swept by Christianity in 20 years, it took only 17 years for a far more advanced Persia to fall to the monotheistic Arabs - so it had its uses .

@Omega007 - I think you will be interested in this thread.