response to Just Thinking

I would like to further discuss some of the ideas the Oliver brought up in his post "Just Thinking". I think he touched on some topics and general ideas that have been kind of fuzzy in the past few class discussions. First of all, he questions "Is one of [religion's] major functions to create community?". I wouldn't say that creating a community is religion's main purpose. I think it's an incredibley prevalent biproduct of what a religious group offers. People bond over similar interests and beliefs, particularly when it is such a personal decision as religion. I think that religion's main purpose in most cases is to give an individual explaination, reason and comfort. I think a community is built from these common explainations and ideals within a religious faith.

Now, this may be a biased opinion because of my own convictions on religion and the role it plays in my own life, but I don't think that religion is truly that "biggest arch" in one's life. If it were, it would dictate every decision we make, every moment of our lives. I think there are more influencial things in one's life that effect their ways of living to a greater extent, such as personality, social/familial influence or even general, religiously unaffliated morality. One might say that all morality is tied back to a religion, but I don't think this is true. I think there are general morals that are ingrained in our society, religious or not. A good example is the "Golden Rule". This is not a particularly religious motto, but it definitley moral and indicative of how we should live our lives as human beings. I think religion can be the "wrapping" in which these morals are given to us. Certain religions teach these morals in particular ways. But at the same time, I know many people that are not very religious or completley apathetic, who are also morally sound and good human beings. So, I think it is incorrect to say that religion is the most important "arch" in everyone's life. It has the potential to be, but I think there are other aspects of one's life that are more influencial for the general population. It also could be that I took the entire "arch" metaphor the wrong way. :)