Here's an impossible experiment I would love to see...

Take a child, and somehow, someway, raise them in an environment that is completely devoid of any religious or spiritual knowledge/education.

Somehow raise a child where they are not inundated with religion in any way, shape or form.

When that person gets to be around 20yrs. or so, show them a bible, and maybe some pictures of the vatican, maybe a shot or two of the pope all decked out in his bling. Then observe their reactions as they then get shown more and more about this concept called 'religion' and the billions of people on earth who belong to them. Wouldn't it be interesting to see into this human mind, unfettered by any man-made fairy tales, and see what they would see? Feel what they would feel?

Would it be disbelief? Betrayal? I would suspect it would be something like an intense feeling of confusion. That person receiving the sudden knowledge of being in the extreme minority of a planet inhabited by people who are, well,...'so easily led', would be interesting to see.

Totally impossible experiment of course...

my roommate and I had ENDLESS discussions of how to run similar experiments. We were both psych majors, and came up with all kinds of questions for studies that would never happen. For example, the construction of language; raise people with absolutely no language input, and see what happened in terms of communication and social norms

that's how religion works.

its image is designed to draw fascination and curiosity. they intend for you to feel awe in its presence. think about every church/mosque/etc. you walk into: giant ornate buildings, spooky images, unique smells, a sense of being physically smaller than you really are. the older the more awe-inspiring they are also. all that on top of the boogey-man tales and "miracles". it's enough to frighten almost anyone who didn't know better.

i think the vast majority of people that would be hypothetically raised devoid of religion, if they were exposed to reliigon, would fall victim to its appeal. very few would be able to see through the bullshit over any given span of time. almost none of which would spot immediately.

if they were never exposed to religion then there are too few things else in this world that are designed to indoctrinate as well as religion, so little that any person wouldn't be able to draw enough experience from it to spot the religious tomfoolery when they see it.

IMO, naturally.

While my daughters were not raised in a vacuum, they never
really attended church (one funeral) and a stint
at VBS with a friend of theirs... until a cousin asked them
specifically to attend her communion at a Catholic church.

They were equal parts horrified and bored. So much
"blood of the lamb" and blood of this and that, that
when the time came for the audience to go up and receive
communion, the younger one turned to me and said,
"Can I just tell them I'm a vegetarian?".

I had to explain to her that she didn't have to go up.

Neither one were interested in a repeat experience.

:)

in terms of immediately seeing bullshit.

i would suspect as much from any DUer that frequents this forum.
in comparison, how many DUers out of all users frequent the AA forum?

i suspect that number would be a close reflection of the rest of the country, in terms of having children raised without religion, who would actually be able to see religion for what it is.

kudos for raising obviously very intelligent and observant kids. i can only hope my three turn out to have the same powers of perception.

:)

I only had her on weekends for the first twelve years, but I was always careful to inculcate a skeptical nature. She says she never really fell for the Sunday School crap, but felt uncomfortable with what she was until I got custody, then she was happy to be an atheist and skeptic.

Mine keep me chuckling....

My kids have religious friends, but they
tend to turn away from racists and republicans.

that's about as much as any sane parent can ask for.
LOL

We were raised atheist and skeptic. We had the occasional exposure to religion (couldn't help it living in the south), but it was pretty much on the same level as greek and norse mythology to us. I personally found it all rather silly the times I did go to various religious ceremonies (I went to a bunch of different ones out of curiosity, baptist, catholic, hindu, muslim, to really wacky hippy ones, I've seen them all!). I was struck by, not how different they all were, but by how similar. They are all full of some guy/girl telling/yelling/chanting "blah blah blabbity myth believe crazy woo woo", stinky smelly burny crap, bored as fuck kids, half asleep people, some crazy ass people WAY too into it being all judgey on me, and uncomfortable seating. Why they haven't figured out that movie theater seating would be a vast improvement for EVERY religious venue I don't know. Maybe comfortable seating is a sin in EVERY religion.

My maternal grandparents were *devout* catholic, went all the damn time and nagged the fuck outta us about it and acted surprised and horrified everytime we told them we were atheists (I was told I was going to hell about 10,000 times by them). My paternal grandparents were lazy presbyterians; gramma was excommunicated from the catholic church in the late 1930s for a very hasty marriage and divorce, so she was very fond of saying "Fuck the catholic church" after a couple of beers and she mostly went for the socializing and because she liked to sing, grampa didn't go but maybe once in a blue moon to make her happy (he was really an atheist).

Barbara Ehrenreich in Bright-sided also notes that the services themselves are remarkably different than what your average Lutheran, Catholic or Episcopalian would think of as a church service. For instance, there's very little talk of sin or repentance. It's more about feeling good about believing and the rewards you'll get just for asking than it is about living a moral, pious life of sacrifice and reward in the afterlife.

outside the three desert religions.

Their reactions are often very enlightening, or should be.

idea of 'God' as such.

I would reach different conclusions (and would consider the results affected by the form of questioning), but just in case anyone is interested:

http://paternallife.wordpress.com/2008/07/28/in-the-beginning-an-interview-with-olivera-petrovic

Exotic costumes, wild adoring groups of fans, how it it any different?

She wins.

I'm sorry but yeeesh. I guess it's true what they say, there's simply no accounting for people's tastes.

Hey, I can't really talk, apparently I am the only person I know who has a major thing for Kristen Stewart, so to each his own...

:blush:

if it works for you, no need to blush. :) I can't tell you the number of times people have had WTF reactions to my "list", so to speak. It just never struck me that Gaga would make anyone...no...must...avoid...bad...pun!!

Anyway, no one should be judged for their attractions. Please pardon my initial WTF. :hug:

No shame in that!

I know when I first heard/saw/was exposed to this "lady gaga", I had a serious WTF moment...


And as Austin Powers so memorably put it:

"That's a man, man"...

Sorry - but I still believe that this person is a transgendered female. Not that there is anything wrong with that...whatever floats her boat.

...when the daughter was about seven. Apparently my niece found it quite hilarious.