The God Delusion: Notions About Religion

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The God Delusion (Introduction)
It is almost impossible to talk about religion without attracting some form of criticism. Various religions enjoy love and hate almost in equal measure. Antony (8) argues that religion has the power to infiltrate people’s lives to dimensions that are puzzling to imagine. Criticizing a religion may invoke varied emotions depending on the person to whom the criticism is presented. A close investigation of the known human history shows faith-based activities played a crucial role in forming the social norms of individuals. Even the greatest empires such Roman one had some aspects of invoking a higher power in some of their activities. This deity is often regarded as supreme, and in most cases, it is believed that this deity brought that particular community into existence. Some religions are widespread, such as Christianity and Islam, while others are domiciled within respective communities or people groups (Simpson and Kimberly, 759). Whatever the case, most religions have a few aspects in common. The first one has been identified above, that is, the concept of a deity or a higher power. The second is the concept of faith. In almost all religions, there is no way to verify the existence of the deity. Instead, the belief in the existence of the deity is based on faith.
Most religions depend on some ancient manuscript. These manuscripts are believed to have been inspired by a higher power. Consequently, whatever the manuscripts suggest should be followed without question. In cases where manuscripts are not in existence, there are practices that have been passed down through many generations. Most interestingly, followers of any particular religion are not encouraged or allowed to ask questions regarding the beliefs and practices (Antony, 9). Rather, they are encouraged to have faith and beliefs. Probably, the reason why religions have persisted for generations is the aspect of being handed down from one generation to the next. When a person has known the religion all their life, it is most likely that they will live by its provisions and then influence their offspring towards the same religion. Historically, various people and people groups have attempted to ask themselves about the validity of faith and beliefs as a basis for subscribing to a particular religion. It would not be far from the truth to claim that it is such individuals that invented science.
One of the individuals who has critiqued the concept of religion is Richard Dawkins. In this work, ‘The God Delusion’, Dawkins attempts to provide an alternative to religion. He argues that the best approach to determine whether a religion is worth following or not is using evidence-based reasoning and logical thinking. If the provisions of a religion are not verifiable scientifically, Dawkins suggests that it is not worth following that particular religion. He offers an alternative, which is atheism. This paper will focus on the major things learned from deep research and reading into the work of Dawkins. The paper will also discuss how the lessons learned have influenced my pre-existing notions on religion and the role it plays in society.
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As noted above, the ...