Benefits Of Christianity

[jack simmons]

I expect to get beat up by many of you with this topic, but it seems to me that there are some aspects of Christianity that are quite beneficial for many people. Without going into a lot of detail about my situation, I am not quite ready to fully renounce Christianity, but recognise that the vast majority of it is garbage based on lies. At best I would now look at the example of Jesus and quite a bit of Christian teaching as being good philosophies for living. I still attend a fairly laid back evangelical church in Australia, and from what I read on this site it is very different to the hardline fundamentalist background that many of you seem to have.

 

So to the positive aspects that I see. Firstly the emphasis on selfless living, loving your neighbour and caring for the least in society. Whilst this is obviously not the exclusive domain of Christians, my experience is that there would be a greater percentage of people that are Christians that strive to do these things than non-Christians. Another aspect that I see positively is morality, particularly for teenagers/young adults. As a parent of teenagers, their involvement in church activities and with peers and leaders that promote strong moral values (avoidance of drugs, alcohol and sexual activity outside marriage etc.) makes it less likely that they will engage in potentially harmful activity at a young age. Of course they may at a later date go down these paths, but I have seen young kids outside church environments get really messed up at a young age by these types of things, so to have mine and other kids in the church not getting involved in these things before they are (hopefully) better equipped to deal with them is a good thing.

 

The last thing is simply hope for a better future. I know many people whose have had really bad things happen to them, and particularly some who live every day with great pain and suffering from illness. They believe that a pain-free existence awaits them after they die (as in a conscious life in heaven) and this hope helpd them cope with their reality. Whilst this is almost certainly a false hope, is it so bad for them to have it?

 

That will do for now - does anyone think there is some validity in these things, or is everything about Christianity wrong?

[Overcame Faith]

Hi, Jack. Sure there may be some kind of good things about Christianity. But read some of the posts on this forum about the fears, the manipulation, the control, the abuse, the homophobia, etc., etc. and in my view, anything and everything good you can say about Christianity goes right down the sink.

[Vigile]

my experience is that there would be a greater percentage of people that are Christians that strive to do these things than non-Christians

 

I see you are in Australia. In the US, it's the xians who fight the hardest against any type of welfare program and who are first to paint a scarlet letter on their neighbors who disagree with them. It's also the xians in America who created a political foothold for George Bush to be elected and who gave him the mandate he needed to go to war in Iraq. Today it's the xians who are the most ardent anti Muslim and who are first to lump them all in the terrorism category.

 

It hasn't been my experience at all that xianity makes people better and oftentimes it makes them much worse.

 

As a parent of teenagers, their involvement in church activities and with peers and leaders that promote strong moral values (avoidance of drugs, alcohol and sexual activity outside marriage etc.) makes it less likely that they will engage in potentially harmful activity at a young age

 

It's an interesting observation and one I have spent some time thinking about before. I grew up in a church environment in a relatively small town. Those of us who were in church had more structure in our lives than those who didn't. Our parents seemed to have more money and we kids got into less trouble.

 

I don't believe it had anything to do with what the church taught however. Rather, it was church in our town that separated class. You can create a strong class structure for your kids outside a church environment and IMO they will be far healthier for it. By class environment, I mean manners, rules of expected behavior, love -- structure. Doing so without the woo woo and threats of what an invisible man who watches them is thinking is not only more honest, but psychologically healthier.

[Guest Valk0010]

 

That will do for now - does anyone think there is some validity in these things, or is everything about Christianity wrong?

The good parts are usually unoriginal.

[Vixentrox]

As Valk said, you can find smiliar good parts in other faiths. It doesn't make Christianity uniquely special. On its whole it is vile religion.

[noob]

I think that good people are good and bad people are bad and that Christianity doesn't have anything to do with it. I do see the potluck suppers as a benefit but thankfully I have a group of friends who love to eat and have picnics so I haven't even missed those! I'm happy being free of the whole abusive mess.

[Moxie]

Christianity is nothing other than modern-day Constantinianism. It's big church business. The morals and values you mention have nothing to do with Christianity. A person can appreciate and follow the teachings of Jesus without being a Christian. I see this in everyday life.

 

You don't have to be a Christian to treat others the way you want to be treated.

[Guest I Love Dog]

 

Firstly the emphasis on selfless living, loving your neighbour and caring for the least in society. Whilst this is obviously not the exclusive domain of Christians, my experience is that there would be a greater percentage of people that are Christians that strive to do these things than non-Christians.

 

 

I'd pull this one part, for a start.

 

I can't agree with what you're trying to say, here. Firstly, if the larger % of a community is Christian, then of course your statement would be true, because of the weight of numbers.

 

What you really mean to say is that YOU believe that non-Christians aren't as loving and caring and giving and selfless as Christians. That is a total load of nonsense, in my long life experience.

 

You insult all of the non-Christians, all those of other faiths, and those of no faith and those who do not believe in gods, who do, indeed, possess all of those qualities. You also fail to mention all of the negative characteristics and non-humanitarian beliefs that many, many Christians possess.

[Sybaris]

 

The last thing is simply hope for a better future. I know many people whose have had really bad things happen to them, and particularly some who live every day with great pain and suffering from illness. They believe that a pain-free existence awaits them after they die (as in a conscious life in heaven) and this hope helpd them cope with their reality. Whilst this is almost certainly a false hope, is it so bad for them to have it?

 

 

Maybe the difference is that there is a cultural notion of an after-life at all. If they had never heard of an after-life would they be any less able to cope?

[Sybaris]

 

 

So to the positive aspects that I see. Firstly the emphasis on selfless living, loving your neighbour and caring for the least in society. Whilst this is obviously not the exclusive domain of Christians, my experience is that there would be a greater percentage of people that are Christians that strive to do these things than non-Christians.

 

That sounds like the oft touted xian notion that xian morals reign supreme. Again, if that were the case then non-xian cultures would be in chaos which is simply not the case.

[BrotherJosh]

I have to disagree with you on your take on christianity being good for teens/young adults...especially in regards to sex. Most christian churches (at least in America) do not teach teens how to have a balanced and safe view towards sex. Birth control and protecting yourself against STD's is not explained other than "don't do it." If you make something taboo the first thing someone wants to do is that. The same goes for alcohol and drugs. A healthy, balanced, reality based view is never explained other than god doesn't want you to do it. Most of my friends who grew up strongly christian or religious went off to college and either got pregnant, got someone pregnant, caught some disease or became raging alcoholics or drug addicts. Now this obviously isn't a general fact or rule but I think this tabooing of a subject makes people naive and when confronted with actual life don't know how to properly handle something. This unnatural view of sex and sexual identity makes many of them stunted or immature in regards to it and leads to much of the homophobia we see today. Same goes for alcohol, drugs or anything else considered sinful.

[oddbird1963]

I expect to get beat up by many of you with this topic, but it seems to me that there are some aspects of Christianity that are quite beneficial for many people. Without going into a lot of detail about my situation, I am not quite ready to fully renounce Christianity, but recognise that the vast majority of it is garbage based on lies. At best I would now look at the example of Jesus and quite a bit of Christian teaching as being good philosophies for living. I still attend a fairly laid back evangelical church in Australia, and from what I read on this site it is very different to the hardline fundamentalist background that many of you seem to have.

 

So to the positive aspects that I see. Firstly the emphasis on selfless living, loving your neighbour and caring for the least in society. Whilst this is obviously not the exclusive domain of Christians, my experience is that there would be a greater percentage of people that are Christians that strive to do these things than non-Christians. Another aspect that I see positively is morality, particularly for teenagers/young adults. As a parent of teenagers, their involvement in church activities and with peers and leaders that promote strong moral values (avoidance of drugs, alcohol and sexual activity outside marriage etc.) makes it less likely that they will engage in potentially harmful activity at a young age. Of course they may at a later date go down these paths, but I have seen young kids outside church environments get really messed up at a young age by these types of things, so to have mine and other kids in the church not getting involved in these things before they are (hopefully) better equipped to deal with them is a good thing.

 

The last thing is simply hope for a better future. I know many people whose have had really bad things happen to them, and particularly some who live every day with great pain and suffering from illness. They believe that a pain-free existence awaits them after they die (as in a conscious life in heaven) and this hope helpd them cope with their reality. Whilst this is almost certainly a false hope, is it so bad for them to have it?

 

That will do for now - does anyone think there is some validity in these things, or is everything about Christianity wrong?

 

It's not so much that everything about Christianity is wrong. One would have to work really hard to find a religion which teaches nothing that is good or useful. The problem with Christianity is that it makes unsubstantiated claims about God, miracles and the nature of the world. There is simply no compelling reason to follow a religion that is based on concepts that cannot be substantiated.

 

Any determination about the relative worth of Christian verses non christian influences in society is fraught with bias. Just how many non-christian cultures did you grow up in? It seems that people would be most likely to favor the culture in which they grew up in as accomplishing the greatest good because so much of your life has been spent trying to be good in a predominantly Christian culture. If you had grown up in Saudi Arabia, your would have an entirely different viewpoint of which influences have the greatest good.

[LivingLife]

Benefits of xianity??

 

NONE

[hereticzero]

Here is a listing of all of the benefits of religion, particularly Christianity:

[R. S. Martin]

It seems that people would be most likely to favor the culture in which they grew up in as accomplishing the greatest good because so much of your life has been spent trying to be good in a predominantly Christian culture. If you had grown up in Saudi Arabia, your would have an entirely different viewpoint of which influences have the greatest good.

 

Excellent reply. Culture is paramount.

 

Jack, if you read my profile you will see that I come from a distinctly different culture from yours but Christian all the same. My people to this day denounce your brand of Christianity as The World, while at the same time preaching how much better Christian love is than worldly love; they brand the love you describe as worldly love because your church is obviously (by their standards) very worldly.

 

They have scripture to back up their beliefs and I can show it to you if you want to see it. Probably you are familiar with it because you probably use it for the same purposes. It seems all the churches use the same verses, they just put the line between the world and the church in different places. By increment, this adds up to a different culture.

 

I've talked (via posts on forums) to Christians about the Christian culture of Western society. This includes Australia, as well as North America and Europe, though at the time I had been talking mostly to American students who were trying to "convert the atheist." Like my people, they had a very distinct notion of what "Christian" meant.

 

Like most people on here, they saw my people as some weird cult in which no one could grow up without losing touch with reality. This, of course, is not true. Most of my people are perfectly healthy and happy, and have no problem whatsoever differentiating between the spiritual and the material. They are very much in touch with reality and they understand their place in this world every bit as well as does the rest of society around them.

 

They are, however, a distinct culture for themselves and they intend to keep it that way. All the same, though they refuse to admit it, they have been strongly influenced by evangelical preaching in the wider society of North America across the centuries since the days of the early pioneers. I think this is why they use the same verses as the mainline evangelicals to support their beliefs about separation from the world.

 

Back to the American students with whom I tried to discuss Christian culture. Because of their distinct beliefs about what constitutes a "true believer" or Christian, they could not see what I meant by a Christian culture. Yet when one looks at an Eastern culture with a general belief in a death-rebirth cycle based on karma, it immediately becomes clear that there is a totally different mindset at work.

 

The Western calendar is based on the birth, life, death, and resurrection of the Christian God, i.e. Jesus. Admittedly, it is merely adjusted from the earlier Greek and Roman gods, and the days of the week have never been converted to Christian saints so far as I know.

 

However, in lands in which the economy and highest national holidays revolve around Christmas and Easter, and where claiming to be a Christian automatically gains you the right to "follow your conscience" in the name of "religious freedom," I think it may rightfully be said that the culture is Christian.

 

It is based on the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as opposed to the under-pinnings of karma. The general belief is that there is one life, then death, and possibly an afterlife that lasts for eternity. This belief (in an eternal existence--not necessarily pleasant or unpleasant--after one life) can be traced back to the Greek and Roman literature written at the same time the NT was being written. Put the general idea of Jesus into it, as opposed to Mohammad or The Prophet, and you have a Christian mentality/culture.

 

Jack, it sounds like you simply grew up in a mainline church in this culture, and had the opportunity to also raise your family in the same tradition. Anyone given the right income bracket (see Vigile's post above) and satisfaction with the status quo can do this.

 

Is there anything good in Christianity? Another way of putting it is: Does religion by default harm people? My answer to the latter is, No. If it did, there would not be so many happy, well-adjusted people in my home community. Or in wider Christian society. I was still a Christian deep in the bosom of my people when I was working through the issue of "the world." I had a serious problem with the idea that all of these people were going to hell simply for having been born outside our specific church--and we were not even encouraging them to join us.

 

Finally, I realized that the infrastructure (didn't know the word but understood the concept) of the wider community, such as police and hospital, etc. could not work if "the world" really were as corrupt as the preachers said it was. Put another way: The police officers and doctors our people turned to for help in time of trouble were individuals who were born and raised--and currently lived--in the so-called "world." That they probably went to some church or other meant nothing to us because even the devil went to church--so we were told.

 

If the entire "world" were hopelessly corrupt as the preachers said, then these police officers and doctors would not be dependable and trustworthy when our lives were in danger; we could not trust them when we were in trouble health wise or other wise. Yet we could and we did. Police, doctors, nurses--they were always there for us--always. Eventually I got work as noon hour supervisor at a junior elementary public school and discovered that even their values were the same as ours: respect authority, be nice to each other, etc.

 

The only difference was in how we dressed, our means of transportation, the language we spoke at home, and a couple other material cultural items. As I moved more thoroughly into mainstream society, I felt the preachers and my parents had lied to me about "the world." Now that I participate in Secular Humanist and Freethinker events--and get to know the atheist/agnostic community--I realize that the very Bible lies about "those that won't retain God in their minds."

 

Humans are by nature fairly decent beings. For God to make a difference he would have to actually exist. You mentioned the much-debated benefit of false hope. I hate being lied to so much that I can't really go there. When and if I discovered that I was being lied to, as I probably would, if I were in a dire situation I would probably die of the betrayal if not of the condition itself. If I personally were to put a label on false hope, it would be something like "evil incarnate."

 

But it might work for some people....I dunno. Like I said, I can't really go there.

[Seeking]

The last thing is simply hope for a better future. I know many people whose have had really bad things happen to them, and particularly some who live every day with great pain and suffering from illness. They believe that a pain-free existence awaits them after they die (as in a conscious life in heaven) and this hope helpd them cope with their reality. Whilst this is almost certainly a false hope, is it so bad for them to have it?

While in some cases - such as terminal illness - this idea might be helpful, in general I actually find it to be a very harmful concept. Many (many!) of the Christians I grew up with viewed this life as something to be merely endured. Attempting to better one's life was simply a sign of "storing up treasures on earth", rather than relying on God and giving thanks in all things. Some even viewed suffering as sent from God; therefore, they felt we shouldn't try to relieve the suffering of those around us (e.g., the poor in India - see Mother Teresa; people in many poor African countries; people of a lower social class in our own cities, etc). Instead, we should point them to the joys that await in the next life, so they won't feel so disgruntled about *this* life. The concept of an afterlife with no pain, no sickness, and streets of gold is used as a sedative to prevent people from trying to change/improve too much in this life.

[Dagan]

Not attacking you Jack. Just end all those good things you listed with "... or ELSE" and you get the full message of Christianity.

[jack simmons]

Thanks for your replies so far and for not being too harsh with them. Having read through many topics on this forum, it would seem that the church environment within which I was brought up in, and continue to be a part of, is far more moderate than most of you have experienced. There is a strong emphasis within it of helping the community, and whilst evangelism is perhaps the end goal of this work it is still more about simply doing the right thing for people. My pastors are aware of my concerns with Christianity, as I had to explain to them why I felt I could no longer be in leadership roles within the church, however they do not hassle me about it. I still feel quite strongly as a parent that the peers and mentors that my children have within the church (as well as my wife and I)help keep them away from negative influences and have them less likely to engage in risky behaviour at a young age. They are not ignorant of sex and drugs and have already seen the harm these things have done to some of their friends.

 

So for now I am OK with continuing to be part of a church community, with my wife still a strong believer (yet quite understanding of my position) and my kids also believers. Of course I recognise their belief is purely because of what they have been born into and brought up in, and over time I think they will see through the same things that I have over the past few years. The only thing I have to endure in staying a part of the church is about one and a half hours of a Sunday evening service, and thanks to having an iphone I can discreetly surf the net through most of that.

[Xerces]

Sounds like my sister, just live by what jesus said blahhhhhhh. Yeah no, see I don't need a dead mythman to provide me a code with how to live. I am good to people because I want to be good to people. Its quite exhilarating to live by your own code and much more fulfilling. Pass me the humanity toss the religion please.

[♦ Fuego ♦]

Overall, I'd say the benefits have been some lovely architecture and some very beautiful music. Then again, the Muslims gave us some of that as well. Actually in both cases, it was people that gave us those things, but perhaps inspired by their beliefs, but it was their own hard work and ingenuity that produced them.

 

My church fed me when I was too poor to feed myself. Some people I knew from church bought me shoes when mine had worn out. Their motivation for doing this was compassion based on their beliefs, and because they knew me. Our only reason for knowing each other was the shared mythology of Jesus. Other than that, we never would have been friends. Then again, I saw people get chewed up by the religion-mill of church and the expectations of people. So church can be helpful, and it can destroy people in a variety of ways.

 

I've wondered what our culture would look like today if the British, Celtic, and Germanic peoples had never adopted Christianity. Would we have a different religion, or have abandoned the ideas?

 

Anyway, I'd say the vast waste of time and money, the centuries of human suffering at the hands of the church, the self-abuse inflicted by believers trying desperately to become born-again yet knowing that they are not, all tend to outweigh the few benefits that society has gleaned from the institution.

[R. S. Martin]

Thanks for your replies so far and for not being too harsh with them. Having read through many topics on this forum, it would seem that the church environment within which I was brought up in, and continue to be a part of, is far more moderate than most of you have experienced. There is a strong emphasis within it of helping the community, and whilst evangelism is perhaps the end goal of this work it is still more about simply doing the right thing for people.

 

While some of us may have left Christianity because of bad experiences, I think for most of us it was theological discrepancies of some sort or another that forced us, for the sake of personal integrity, to deconvert. After all, the religion has built-in defenses for fallible Christians and bad behaviour among brethren. However, your question is: Does Christianity have any benefits available nowhere else, or something to that effect. To that question we cannot honestly answer in the affirmative.

 

While bad treatment may not be the reason many of us deconverted, bad treatment does follow deconversion for a significant number of us. For a recent posting see I Faked Being A Christian and lost some friends. For others, like myself, bad treatment was part and parcel of life while a Christian but NOT the reason for deconversion. However, after deconversion the persecution is so much the worse and there is major baggage to deal with.

 

I mention all this to clarify that just because you are part of a "good" church does not make its religion any more right or wrong, in the general view of people here. Admittedly, I am not up-to-date on the literature, but I am of the impression that scholars are not sure whether or not religion plays a positive role in society, what role it does play, or whether it is necessary for the masses. I personally am not resolved on the matter.

 

For example, my family has been part of a very deeply religious culture for centuries and I cannot with integrity ask them to give up their beliefs because it would mean giving up their very culture and way of life, a deep structural psychological change that I feel must come from within and should not be imposed from the outside. Someone raised the question of how the world would look if European peoples of a thousand years ago had not accepted Christianity. If I know my history, it was imposed on them from the outside by military might with mass baptisms in the rivers and lakes of the countryside. I don't think we should repeat this trauma even on the personal level to reverse the situation.

 

You emphasize that your church helps the community. Helping the community is commendable so long as the Bible is not required reading for recipients of the "help," and church attendance is not an expected expression of appreciation in return. Of course, helping the community is not necessarily a religious thing, in case that is what you're getting at.

 

My pastors are aware of my concerns with Christianity, as I had to explain to them why I felt I could no longer be in leadership roles within the church, however they do not hassle me about it.

 

At this point you only have "concerns." Wait until you reach the conclusion that their god does not exist, and announce it. I did my theology degree at a fairly liberal seminary and was taken completely by surprise at the change in attitude of my profs when I announced my deconversion halfway through my studies. I had thought I would now be free to ask questions about the faith that as a Christian I had not been free to ask. Things worked rather the other way. The change was subtle and it is only in retrospect that I understand what was going on.

 

I still feel quite strongly as a parent that the peers and mentors that my children have within the church (as well as my wife and I)help keep them away from negative influences and have them less likely to engage in risky behaviour at a young age. They are not ignorant of sex and drugs and have already seen the harm these things have done to some of their friends.

 

If you and they are comfortable with the situation, it sounds like a good thing, at least for now. Just be aware that this moral situation is not necessarily unique to Christianity. The part that may be unique to religion is the organized community with regular meetings (church services on a weekly basis).

 

I say "may be." I know there are secular groups endeavoring to organize. Finding them can be a challenge in predominantly Christian countries, because often they don't have the money to set up elaborate buildings with signs out front like churches to advertise their services and times of meeting. Due to their small numbers, they don't exist on every street corner, either. But I would guess most of them have a website if one searches for terms like Freethinker, or Secular Humanist.

 

So for now I am OK with continuing to be part of a church community, with my wife still a strong believer (yet quite understanding of my position) and my kids also believers. Of course I recognise their belief is purely because of what they have been born into and brought up in, and over time I think they will see through the same things that I have over the past few years.

 

Let's hope so. When I was working in the public school (see above post) I was convinced that my people would also be open for the truth about outsiders not being such bad people if presented with it at the right time. It didn't work that way. Others have also had the experience that loved ones did not see the things that were so clear to them. But life must be lived one day at a time, and the road traveled one step at a time. Your family may indeed be one of those who will see things your way when it is explained to them. We have examples of those happy situations on exC, too.

 

The only thing I have to endure in staying a part of the church is about one and a half hours of a Sunday evening service, and thanks to having an iphone I can discreetly surf the net through most of that.

 

Lucky you. You don't have my dad. He would not tolerate that kind of diversion even for kids.

[Seeking]

You emphasize that your church helps the community. Helping the community is commendable so long as the Bible is not required reading for recipients of the "help," and church attendance is not an expected expression of appreciation in return. Of course, helping the community is not necessarily a religious thing, in case that is what you're getting at.

In the church I most recently attended, they were big on helping the community. However, that help always came with a catch. For example, they would gather donations of clothing and take them to the poor areas of town. While the mothers or fathers were going through the clothes, their children were herded into a group to listen to Bible stories. That seemed so underhanded to me, even as a Christian. "Here, you can have this help, but we're going to do our best to entice and indoctrinate your children while you're busy!" Ugh.

[R. S. Martin]

You emphasize that your church helps the community. Helping the community is commendable so long as the Bible is not required reading for recipients of the "help," and church attendance is not an expected expression of appreciation in return. Of course, helping the community is not necessarily a religious thing, in case that is what you're getting at.

In the church I most recently attended, they were big on helping the community. However, that help always came with a catch. For example, they would gather donations of clothing and take them to the poor areas of town. While the mothers or fathers were going through the clothes, their children were herded into a group to listen to Bible stories. That seemed so underhanded to me, even as a Christian. "Here, you can have this help, but we're going to do our best to entice and indoctrinate your children while you're busy!" Ugh.

 

That's what I meant except that I didn't know of that specific form of "bread in one hand and the Bible in the other."

[Jackie]

Hi Jack,

 

I'm also from Australia, and I think we're very lucky in this country that religion does not have as much influence than in other countries such as the US. I think because of this we don't see the detrimental side of christianity so much. But, I can speak from my own experience as a christian, christianity was certainly NOT beneficial for me. I'm happier and healthier now as a result of leaving the religion 3 years ago. To address your points specifically:

 

Firstly the emphasis on selfless living, loving your neighbour and caring for the least in society. Whilst this is obviously not the exclusive domain of Christians, my experience is that there would be a greater percentage of people that are Christians that strive to do these things than non-Christians.

Personally, I'm a more selfless and compassionate person now than I was as a christian, because I believe this is the only life we have, I wanna make my life and the lives of those around me as good as possible. There is also a down-side to christian charity, and that is the evangelical side of things. Probably the best example of this is the catholic church telling people in Africa that they shouldn't be using condoms, even though AIDS is rampant!

 

Another aspect that I see positively is morality, particularly for teenagers/young adults. As a parent of teenagers, their involvement in church activities and with peers and leaders that promote strong moral values (avoidance of drugs, alcohol and sexual activity outside marriage etc.) makes it less likely that they will engage in potentially harmful activity at a young age.

Kids should be educated PROPERLY about these things, instead of within a christian framework. They should not be told "drugs, alcohol and sex are bad because the bible says so and you'll make god unhappy / go to hell"... They should be educated as to WHY drugs are harmful, WHY underage / excessive drinking is not good for you. And sex...well pre-marital sex is fine, but I agree kids shouldn't be doing it before they're old enough, but they need to be educated properly about safe sex (not just abstinence). Also, I think it is harmful to tell kids that thoughts about sex are wrong, or that mastibation is wrong etc... Christianity also promotes homophobia. Many teenages go through hell on earth because they don't feel safe to "come out"...I can only imagine how horrible that would be.

 

The last thing is simply hope for a better future. I know many people whose have had really bad things happen to them, and particularly some who live every day with great pain and suffering from illness. They believe that a pain-free existence awaits them after they die (as in a conscious life in heaven) and this hope helpd them cope with their reality.

With the "hope" that comes with believing in heaven also comes the torment of knowing that most of the world are gonna end up suffering in hell. I personally find it more comforting to know we're all just going back to where we came from, rather than believing some of us are going to heaven, but the majority are gonna burn in hell.

 

Whilst this is almost certainly a false hope, is it so bad for them to have it?

It's bad if it stops them from making the most of this life. Also if people are "hoping" that god will help them out with their problems, it's gonna get frustrating when he doesn't. Much better to take things into your own hands to better your own life as much as you can.

 

I can see where you're coming from, but I don't think the "benefits" you mentioned outweigh the accompaning detriments.

 

Cheers,

Jackie