Goatboy wrote:ADD: Also, what makes a preacher who hears voices so special, yet someone on the street who hears voices is ignored and cast aside by society? What if the church has it all wrong? Jesus did champion the poor, so if God really is talking to people, wouldn't it be the poor? That would make sense to me. But then again, religion isn't about making sense.
You, again, mix up religion with the church. It's not your fault, western people thinks in churches (especially the catholic church), when it comes to spiritual. Religion is not about making a comfy delusion about a God, "who forgives me whatever I do". Religion is about transcendence, about enlightenment. And transcendence is about knowing the true nature of the universe, to know it's deepest, invisible laws (achieving enlightenment is very much like hacking - it's life-hacking, as I often say).
It's about figuring out, that everyone, and everything is One, we are all part of the same thing, like drops of the ocean. This is called love. Love is the feeling of unity, with everything and everyone. Religion is about knowing, that you have to focus your mind on the present, to live your life, as if it would be your last day, and not let your ego tell you what to do. This is peace. Enlightenment is about knowing, that everyone is a Creator, everyone has the devine spark, and you create your own reality with your mind and thoughts (in the bible, god created Adam akin to itself... this means that humans got the divine spark, not that humans look like god... thinking that would be silly). This is freedom.
So, religion, and having faith in god is about all these, and also much more. Stop referring to religion as some made up delusion by the pope. You disgrace all of the ancient cultures, who figured out these laws of the universe. Also, god is not a person in the sky, you can't make a video of it. God is the Universe, it's the Collective Spirit, it is Nature, and it is You. You can't deny, that the Universe doesn't exist. And you can't make fun of anyone, who believes in himself.
And before you say, that figuring out the laws of the universe is just what phisics is about: you are right. Science and religion is about the same thing. If you know quantum phisics, then you know, that science is heading towards the spiritual. Modern phisics realized many aforementioned laws.
But I don't blame you, that you think this way. Western people doesn't keep the ancient traditions. It would be even harder in america, cuz the ancient americans were massacred. All I say, is that religion is not what it looks like. It is just like hacking, and anyone, who has a hacker spirit, would find much fun in figuring out the laws of the spiritual world.