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**newwebstar** · 03-19-2012, 05:08 PM

This article was mentioned in another one - "How Western Buddhism has changed in 50 years" and so I thought I'd post it as a separate discussion topic.

Can a religion survive being stripped of its superstitions?

Removing a religion's supernatural core is a revealing exercise, especially when applied to the supposedly 'godless' Buddhism

by
Julian Baggini, guardian.co.uk

A recurring criticism I've face in this series is that I talk about religion but focus almost exclusively on the Judaeo-Christian tradition. In some ways that's fair, but given my concerns are with the broader features of religious belief, not the minutiae of doctrinal differences, I'm pretty confident that all or at least most of my main points apply to the monotheistic religions at least, and many are also relevant to others.

Nonetheless, it is true that several eastern religions look very different indeed, at least superficially. Could it be that those of us with spiritual urges unable to get any satisfaction from the Abrahamic faiths should head east in search of enlightenment?

Many certainly find it appealing, with Buddhism especially tempting. One of the main reasons is that there is a widespread belief that it is more of a philosophy than a religion, and that being without God, it requires us to buy into fewer – perhaps even none – supernatural beliefs than Christianity, Judaism or Islam.

As a matter of historic and sociological fact this appears to be wildly mistaken. This becomes painfully evident if you care to look. Just watch Werner Herzog's documentary Wheel of Time and you'll be disabused of any notion you might have that Buddhism is not up to its neck in superstition.

Continued at the link :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisf...tions-buddhism

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03-19-2012, 05:08 PM	#1
newwebstar Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 491 Senior Member	Can a religion survive being stripped of its superstitions? This article was mentioned in another one - "How Western Buddhism has changed in 50 years" and so I thought I'd post it as a separate discussion topic. Can a religion survive being stripped of its superstitions? Removing a religion's supernatural core is a revealing exercise, especially when applied to the supposedly 'godless' Buddhism by Julian Baggini, guardian.co.uk A recurring criticism I've face in this series is that I talk about religion but focus almost exclusively on the Judaeo-Christian tradition. In some ways that's fair, but given my concerns are with the broader features of religious belief, not the minutiae of doctrinal differences, I'm pretty confident that all or at least most of my main points apply to the monotheistic religions at least, and many are also relevant to others. Nonetheless, it is true that several eastern religions look very different indeed, at least superficially. Could it be that those of us with spiritual urges unable to get any satisfaction from the Abrahamic faiths should head east in search of enlightenment? Many certainly find it appealing, with Buddhism especially tempting. One of the main reasons is that there is a widespread belief that it is more of a philosophy than a religion, and that being without God, it requires us to buy into fewer – perhaps even none – supernatural beliefs than Christianity, Judaism or Islam. As a matter of historic and sociological fact this appears to be wildly mistaken. This becomes painfully evident if you care to look. Just watch Werner Herzog's documentary Wheel of Time and you'll be disabused of any notion you might have that Buddhism is not up to its neck in superstition. Continued at the link : http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisf...tions-buddhism .
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