Ideas That Limit Man's Being

I stumbled on this rather old column at Better Humans.com and thought I'd repeat it here because I think it's a topic that really needs to be discussed, especially given the state of current events.

Here is an excerpt:

Imagine that you're a psychiatrist. A new patient comes to see you and says that he regularly talks to an invisible being who never responds, that he reads excerpts from one ancient book and that he believes wholeheartedly that its contents must be accepted implicitly, if not taken literally.

The patient goes on to say that that the world is only 6,000 years old and that dinosaurs never existed. He brazenly rejects modern science's observations and conclusions, and subscribes to the notion that after death he will live in eternal bliss in some alternate dimension. And throughout your meeting, he keeps handing you his book and urging you to join him, lest you end up after death in a far less desirable alternate dimension than him.

Read the Article - Ending Biblical Brainwashing

This argument seems to be aimed directly at Christians but it easily applies to any religion that lends itself to fundamentalism. I've found a lot of beauty and wisdom from many different religions from Christ to Krishna but it seems to me that once you ignore science and the incontrovertible reality of things it takes people to an unhealthy place, mentally.

While it is true that America was founded on Judeo-Christian principles, it should not be forgotten that the Founding Fathers were foremost men of science and reason and truly believed that the only way to know God was through the observation and study of the visible universe.