Religions are not to blame for the crimes we witness today but man himself. Man is responsible for creating many false religions that promise false rewards. Today we have many religions that practice ancient traditions and superstitions. For example, the belief in Demi-Gods, where you have a God for every attribute of life, such as God of fire, God of rain, and God of many other things causes men to deviate from the truth into falsehood. Man has gone so low as to worship statues and will kill if His statue is destroyed. Man is good by nature but evil by actions. Our moral system is what makes us human. Self-control is what separates us from other living things. When we become disbelievers, we lose accountability and self-control. We become selfish people only caring about ourselves. We lose the one thing that matters the most; our purpose as a noble creation.
As humans, we are made weak in flesh, and unless we control our desires and tendencies, there are no limits of what we can and will do for self-gratification. We will often make what is impermissible permissible, and what is permissible impermissible to live by our corruptive nature. It is not just a theory, but corruption is evident today in wealth distribution, power distribution, land distribution, and religious propaganda; all for self-gratification and success. We have lost all sense of responsibility and accountability by the deception of this materialistic world.
The Qur'an makes a mention of men's corruptive nature. As narrated: "Corruption has appeared in the land and the sea on account of what the hands of men have done. (Qur'an Excerpt 30:41). This verse talks about how man has corrupted everywhere. Unguided men, unbelievers seeking undue pleasure in this life without much thought. The Qur'an explains what men's tendencies are in this life and makes it clear that the life to come is what we should to strive for. But no we refuse to listen and obey. "Worldly desires, wives, children, accumulated treasures of gold and silver, horses of noble breed, cattle, and farms are all made to seem attractive to men. All these are the bounties of the worldly life but in the life to come God has the best place for people to dwell. (Qur'an 30:14)."
The desire to be remembered and leave a legacy behind is widely practiced today. Lack of belief in anything other than this life causes man to do anything for his benefit. Ancient traditions are still practiced today because man loves to be admired and respected. We have dynasties today in which a sequence of rulers from the same family continue to hold lofty positions and enjoy the best life with great wealth, while others strive to barely meet ends. We also have monarchies today where a single person is the head of state with total sovereignty. Monarchs usually both hold and achieve their position through the right of hereditary succession. This unjust practice of having noble blood is still practiced today because man still thinks they are better than others because of what family they are born in. Fortunately, the Qur'an rejects this false belief. As stated: "O mankind! We created you from a single [pair] of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other [not that ye may despise]. Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of God is the most righteous of you. And God has full knowledge and is acquainted [with all things]. (Qur'an 49:13)." The Qur'an makes clear that nobody is superior except by righteousness and good actions.
Men is the biggest danger to its existence. Rivalry amongst each other will cause the creation of new and bigger weapons to feed the ego. Everyone wants to be the most powerful and most honored. Our ego is the biggest problem and one that needs to be controlled if we want peace and understanding amongst ourselves. We are a selfish creation and need a moral system to abide by in order for us to be upright. Islam is that source of guidance yet most people chose to live by their desires without caring for any moral implications. Man refuses religion because he does not want to give up his desires that are not allowed in religion. Man also chooses not to follow a particular religion because he has doubts and is unwilling to strive for truth. He has no time for truth because corruption is easier and more enjoyable. Religion makes us accountable whereas our desires make us arrogant and selfish.
Humans will use any means necessary to achieve their ways. Historically, we have aways had terrorists groups that killed children, women and men because they were different. They did not believe what they believed. These unguided men are ignorant in their belief system. They commit genocide and all sorts of crimes to spread their ignorant beliefs. If you don't become like them, you become the enemy. We have had these groups in Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and all other religions. Fortunately I can speak for Islam and confirm that religion is a choice. In the Qur'an it is stated: "There is no compulsion in religion. (Qur'an 2:256)"- meaning, "Do not force anyone to become a Muslim, for Islam (the truth) is plain and clear, and its proofs and evidence are plain and clear. Therefore, there is no need to force anyone to embrace Islam.
So why are religions believed to be bad? There is a lot of good guidance in them. Why do we often see terrorist groups associated with religions. Its easy, "Power." The most effective ways have been to act and recruit in the name of religions. Its the most effective way to recruit more and achieve the biggest results. However no one person can speak for any religion but the scripture themselves. Mans actions define man, whereas religious teachings define the religion. And what do we know about Islam? It is the religion of peace. The world "Islam" itself means peace acquired by submitting to the will of God.
Many religions are man made, and have been created to control the masses by fear and false promises. It is often observed that religions are often named by their founder; an indication of selfishness and self-praise. Mans desire for power and legacy has caused the birth of many false religions which have sent many people astray. Unfortunately, mans innate corruptive tendency has given the rise to many false idols, false ideologies, false practices, and false hope. Human minds have been destroyed from excessive propaganda, deception, corruption, violence and falsehood. Today we are the midst of thousands of years of human corruption and we are able to observe in detail false beliefs and ideologies, and no beliefs.
We live in a world with the mindset of free for all. No rules. No accountability. No morality. The evolution of religion has turned into no religion. Man does not want to live by rules. The desire to corrupt is greater than the desire for good. Believers in the Abrahamic faiths are often mocked and labeled as paranoid human beings who live by a book of fears and false promises. They are often mocked for living a life by rules and no fun. The phrase "We only have one life, why not live it," has become very popular. In fact, it may be more popular than religions in the new generations. This phrase alone is enough to give enough power to one person to do as they please with no accountability, no morality, and no self-standard. This is an example of a lost soul, with a hardened heart who has no purpose in this life; they are just self created to self-indulge excessively.
Man is to be blamed not religions. In fact, not enough religion is the problem we have today. Sure we have extremists in both ends, but a hardened heart knows no boundaries and will continue to spread corruption. They will use whatever means necessary to achieve their goals. What they lack is knowledge and understanding not money and wealth as its believed today. That's why religion is good for the soul. It softens itself from arrogance and pride, and it gives value to our existence. Religion has the answer of life not money.
Humans will use any means necessary to achieve their ways. Historically, we have aways had terrorists groups that killed children, women and men because they were different. They did not believe what they believed. These unguided men are ignorant in their belief system. They commit genocide and all sorts of crimes to spread their ignorant beliefs. If you don't become like them, you become the enemy. We have had these groups in Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and all other religions. Fortunately I can speak for Islam and confirm that religion is a choice. In the Qur'an it is stated: "There is no compulsion in religion. (Qur'an 2:256)"- meaning, "Do not force anyone to become a Muslim, for Islam (the truth) is plain and clear, and its proofs and evidence are plain and clear. Therefore, there is no need to force anyone to embrace Islam.
So why are religions believed to be bad? There is a lot of good guidance in them. Why do we often see terrorist groups associated with religions. Its easy, "Power." The most effective ways have been to act and recruit in the name of religions. Its the most effective way to recruit more and achieve the biggest results. However no one person can speak for any religion but the scripture themselves. Mans actions define man, whereas religious teachings define the religion. And what do we know about Islam? It is the religion of peace. The world "Islam" itself means peace acquired by submitting to the will of God.
Many religions are man made, and have been created to control the masses by fear and false promises. It is often observed that religions are often named by their founder; an indication of selfishness and self-praise. Mans desire for power and legacy has caused the birth of many false religions which have sent many people astray. Unfortunately, mans innate corruptive tendency has given the rise to many false idols, false ideologies, false practices, and false hope. Human minds have been destroyed from excessive propaganda, deception, corruption, violence and falsehood. Today we are the midst of thousands of years of human corruption and we are able to observe in detail false beliefs and ideologies, and no beliefs.
We live in a world with the mindset of free for all. No rules. No accountability. No morality. The evolution of religion has turned into no religion. Man does not want to live by rules. The desire to corrupt is greater than the desire for good. Believers in the Abrahamic faiths are often mocked and labeled as paranoid human beings who live by a book of fears and false promises. They are often mocked for living a life by rules and no fun. The phrase "We only have one life, why not live it," has become very popular. In fact, it may be more popular than religions in the new generations. This phrase alone is enough to give enough power to one person to do as they please with no accountability, no morality, and no self-standard. This is an example of a lost soul, with a hardened heart who has no purpose in this life; they are just self created to self-indulge excessively.
Man is to be blamed not religions. In fact, not enough religion is the problem we have today. Sure we have extremists in both ends, but a hardened heart knows no boundaries and will continue to spread corruption. They will use whatever means necessary to achieve their goals. What they lack is knowledge and understanding not money and wealth as its believed today. That's why religion is good for the soul. It softens itself from arrogance and pride, and it gives value to our existence. Religion has the answer of life not money.
Humans have been created as the greatest of all creatures on Earth, and have been created with free will for the purpose of obeying and serving God. We are created to worship God and enjoy this life for an appointed time. Unfortunately we are disobedient creation and are on Earth as a result of Adam's fall. His mistake of not embracing the guidance of God caused mankind to be kicked out of paradise and live on Earth for an appointed time.
According to Islam, it is believed that when God created Adam (Peace be upon him), His instruction was to be obedient to God and enjoy the bounties of paradise, and not eat from the forbidden tree. It was a test of obedience. Unfortunately, Adam was reckless and was deceived by Satan to eat from the forbidden tree which caused mankind to be kicked out of paradise into Earth for an appointed time. God said: O you get down from the Garden. [Once you are on the earth], a guidance will certainly come to you from Me: whosoever follows My guidance, there will be no fear for them nor shall they grieve. But those who disbelieve and reject Our revelation, they are the inmates of the Fire, in it they shall abide. (Qur'an 2:38-39)”
We learn from the above verses what disobedience does to us. We also learn that without guidance which comes from religious teachings, we will corrupt excessively. We learn that God is a just and will continually forgive us as long as we turn to Him with sincerity and repentance. God has given us the manual of life (Qur'an) and has promised guidance as long as we live on earth. Without guidance, the world we live in today will not be peaceful.
-F.D