Recently, Daniel C. Dennett and I have been pondering the future of religion. Will the influence of organized religion grow or will it die off, at long last, as wishful thinkers in the free-thinking communities have hoped for ages? Or, might some other scenarios come to pass. Dr. Dennett's musings have been, of course, more creative, profound, thorough and deservedly attended than mine, so I'll summarize a few of his observations on the topic for your consideration. All of the ideas noted in this summary are taken from his acceptance speech at the annual Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) awards dinner held in Chicago on October 10, 2008.
Dr. Dennett sketched five possibilities:
1. A religious fervor will sweep the planet. When this happens, say goodbye to Enlightenment values, especially if one religion gains sway over all the others. I wonder what would be worse - universal Christianity, or the Caliphate dream come to pass for Islamists? That's like asking what's worse - being shot in the butt or hung by metal hooks - upside down? I'd prefer a few additional, gentler choices (e.g., left alone).
2. The end of religions. Dennett suggested St. Peter’s Square and the Vatican could be transformed into the European Museum of Roman Catholicism. He mentioned Mecca becoming the Magic Kingdom of Allah.
3. Religions transformed as harmless sports teams. The teams would have no dogmas, creeds or claims to know anything - but they would have cheerful songs, colors, symbols and pageantry.
4. Religions as cults - basically bad habits of an underclass, something like the way smoking is viewed today. As Dennett noted, "it will be considered bad form to draw attention to the fact that somebody is religious."
5. Judgment Day appears out of nowhere! The fundamentalist crazies were right - here comes the Rapture. All is lost - we're all toast.
Dennett termed three of the scenarios quite benign. The fifth he called "a nonstarter. We don’t have to worry about that."
The worry related to this preposterous scenario is, in reality, the behavior of those who want to make Armageddon happen.
Naturally, nobody knows what will happen, though change for better or worse is likely. However, it's always wise to encourage everyone "to look under the hood of religion to see what makes it tick, so we can better think about what steps we might take to get the outcome we most want."
What does Dennet want? He favors the study of religion to be taken as seriously as the study of other real and present dangers to the future of the planets inhabitants, such as global warming, the global economy, water and energy problems and all the rest.
Key issues related to the future of religion that Dennett addressed included:
* The very great need to persuade those who study religion and write about it to stop doing so with a "hyper-diplomacy, hyper-reverence, hyper-respect..." We don't do that with any other industry. The deference must end. There should not be a free ride for religions. They should be scrutinized firmly and calmly - and honesly.
* More research is needed. For starters, how about a theory of religion? What is it, how did it arise, how has it evolved, what it is today, what are the parts and how do they work? Such questions have not been objectively answered by dispassionate investigators using modern tools of analyses.
* Introducing into the educational system a 4th “R.” He wants compulsory religion, that is, compulsory education about world religions for children in public and private schools and in home schooling. This will inoculate our children to brainwashing into any one religion and lead children to critical thinking, since it will be clear that all religions can't be true and lead to doubt, skepticism and open inquiry.
* A review of evidence that religion is not so much strong today as it is desperate. The leaders can no longer control education and access to information, as in the past. Cell phones, transistor radios and the Internet have breached the natural barriers. Around the world, people and cultures are being flooded with western ideas, with American ideas, with American technology and all the ideas that come with them. To us, its all harmless but to the control agents of religion, its toxic - the new communication technologies are wreaking havoc. In this fashion, they are starting to overturn ancient cultures.
* "People are not ready to have their religion subjected to careful, calm, objective analysis and scrutiny. But we should change that, one step at a time."
It was a great speech, in which the above and a lot of other ideas were fully developed. The entire talk is available at the FFRF website.
Be well.
I am a smoker and so tired of news and media bashing smokers for their freedom to smoke. The US government allow the tobacco company's to put chemicals into the cigarettes as a matter a fact the tobacco companies are told to do so (Fact). this statement;
4. Religions as cults - basically bad habits of an underclass, something like the way SMOKING is viewed today. As Dennett noted, "it will be considered bad form to draw attention to the fact that somebody is religious."
I find offensive to me and my fellow smokers. should you all wish to hate smokers so much much yet do nothing about the drunks that are the true killers of family and others Shame on you shame on you all for allowing yourself to single out smokers as the cause to problems in health and family when fact; drinkers cause more domestic fights and abuse then smokers, fact; drinkers ignore their children and tend to banish them during social events while they are drinking. wanna look at the real problems of the USA look to your drunken buddies and the problem they pose for others around them. I know for a fact I can smoke a whole pack a cigarettes and get behind the wheel of a car and not kill a family out for a afternoon drive can any of the drinkers say that? Yet a see day in and day out the drunks going to drug stores, local party stores getting their "fix" and driving away only to see them further up the road having injured someone in an auto accident. STOP bashing smokers and look at the real problem you drunks! Yoiu all want to ban smoking from public places then I say Ban drinking also from every state as you are slowing banning us smokers, BE FAIR, BE JUST, and be honest with yourself but then again can you really since 90% of all people are boozers?
Posted by: InsaneJ | 11/04/2009 at 08:00 AM