The best people don’t need religion to be good. That’s called self-discipline. Religions are always a top down construct. Your reward comes from being obedient to some authority figure. The reward is usually false promises that there isn’t any proof you will ever receive them. Just because you have the outward appearance of being religious doesn’t mean you are good. Many religious people are predators and con artists. Some people have a fetish of pretending to be good and prey on the naive in the church. If you become a victim of one of these predators and go to church authorities they will put the church image over you. If they are worried enough they will try and buy your silence.

Amen to all that! Well said.

Lately there is a dumb and weird commercial playing frequently on live TV (I can't remember what stations). Apparently I'm not the only one who thinks it is weird.

https://www.tiktok.com/@maureenhancock/video/7319206323453807914

Anyway, it asks if you are going to heaven or hell, and provides a website so you can "know for sure." I don't recall exactly who is actually behind these annoying advertisements. Good grief. The stupid, it hurts!

That commercial just confuses me. Since only dead people know if heaven is real, no website can decide who will get there. So stupid.

"The best people don't need religion to be good. That's called self-discipline." Perfect statement, Rubicon.

If you have self-esteem and a strong moral center, there is no need to be in a religious organization, other than for the social aspects of it. By a "strong, moral center", I'm referring to being able to obtain a "live and let live" attitude about others (but certainly not if it involves criminal activity, of course), and in general, just being a good citizen.

IMO, most of these organizations, including TSCC are all about greed and guilt.

Someone had said that the best way to get rich is to form a "religious" organization.

I think that most of us on this forum feel the same way as I do: that I don't need an organization telling me how to think, behave, what to wear, and what to eat; I can do that fine, on my own, thank you very much. And now that I left TSCC behind me, my self esteem and confidence has grown. I have to thank the people who are part of this forum; very intelligent and humorous folks.

"The best people don't need religion to be good. That's called self-discipline." Perfect statement, Rubicon

Every species has strict rules they follow, principle among them is cooperate. All species cooperate to survive, at least enough to reproduce and survive. All co-operate with other species, to maintain a balance where they all thrive.
Cooperation is how we survive, thrive, naturally select and evolve.
Humans are just the first to codify those rules we inherited through our DNA, so they could be repackaged as religion, and sold to us as if they were exclusive to religion, when human decency is common and plenty sufficient to ensure our survival.

We are not the only species with ‘morals’ we are just the first species to come up with supernatural myths to associate with those rules, and a lawgiver we called, god.
When the lawgiver is nature,
which we call different names.
God, Allah, Tao, Logos, Lambda

I just saw Steve Benson posted on the Socials a quote by
Hubert Reeves, "Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible God and destroys a visible Nature.
Unaware that this Nature he's destroying is this God he's worshiping.”


I agree with Hubert Reeves