Transcript A Debate: Is religion good or bad for the psyche?

A Debate: Is religion good or
bad for the psyche?
†
Purpose of Religion:
†
Allows for the unexplained to seem less frightening
and more known
†
Provides an explanation about humans’ creation
and a hope for life after death
Religion is bad.
~Addiction~
† Addiction: general facts about addiction
† Mood alteration: our thoughts and senses
change.
† tolerance: A result of physical addiction.
Requires more doses for same level of affect as
the first time.
† Withdrawal: When our bodies know that the
substance they are addicted to is not present.
Religion is bad
~Addiction~
† Religious addiction: Religion alters our mood and
in result, it can be addictive.
† Religious addiction can be a bad thing
† Examples can be seen in extreme religious cases (ex:
religious suicide- the destruction of the twin towers,
cults-hazing, and extreme self-deprivations-fasting)
† Follows the same steps of general addiction
(Ryan, Dales)
Religion is bad
~Addiction~
† Mood change with drugs
(marijuana)
† Mood is increased by
smoking: everything seems
right and fulfilled.
† Mood is decreased when not
smoking: all that is thought
of is the marijuana and what
is felt when smoking it.
(Ryan, Dale)
† Mood change with religion
(Christianity)
† Mood is increased when
doing “praised” religious
activities (example:
evangelizing, praying,
attending church)
† Mood is decreased when not
performing in acts involving
religious activities
Religion is bad
~addiction~
† Tolerance with drugs
(marijuana)
† The more a person smokes
marijuana, the more
marijuana it takes for them
to feel the high.
† The more it takes to make
the feel the high, the more
dependent they become on
the drug.
† Tolerance with religion
(Christianity)
† The first attendances to
church seem very fulfilling.
The more people do
religious activities, more
involvement is required to
obtain the same “high” they
received in the first few
religious activities.
† The more religious activities
they are attending in order to
get that “high”, the more they
are becoming involved with
the church making them
dependent on the religion.
Religion is bad
~Addiction~
† Withdrawal- involved in
drugs (marijuana)
† The more people gain a
tolerance to marijuana the
more they feel depressed
and left out when they aren’t
around it.
† When away from marijuana
all the user can think of is
marijuana. (example:
marijuana clothing, leaf
symbol stickers, marijuana
“leader” posters- Bob
Marley)
† Withdrawal- involved in
religion (Christianity)
† The more religious people
become the more they
become obsessed with it.
(example: cell phone ringers
that are Christian hems,
shirts and notepads with
Christian sayings, Christian
symbol stickers on the back
of a car, and Christian leader
posters-Jesus)
† It is seen in their every day
life
Religion is bad
~similarities to addiction
† Addictions take over people’s lives and
make them forget about their priorities.
Many drug addicts end up in rehab.
† Religion is bad because it can be an
addiction and completely take over
someone’s life. This could cause extreme
actions such as religious suicide and
religious killings.
Religion is bad
~A health issue~
† Private devotion such as praying and studying the
bible has been shown to be associated with
depression.
† Some religions solely rely on their God to make
them better when they are ill instead of seeking
medical care which could seriously threaten their
health. That is if God decided not to take care of
them.
(Orgar, Wayne pg 1-99)
Religion is bad
~Taking it to the extremes~
† Court case: In Atlanta there was a trial where men
were arrested for beating their children. The said
their support for the way they acted came from the
scriptures. As they were being led away they
shouted “don’t stop beating your children! It is
God’s will.”
† This extreme interpretation of the bible caused
extreme actions and an extreme ending in jail for
the men.
(sick or healthy religion?)
Religion is good
~how it provides benefits~
† Provides us with a sense of protection.
† When religion is being practiced, or faith is obtained through
religion, there is a belief that a greater spirit or being is providing
protection. Therefore, there is no need to fear life or death. It helps
humans to live life to its fullest.
† It provides happiness by allowing the bonds socially to
grow.
† The same religious people connect socially with one another for
they share the same religious beliefs. This provides people with a
sense of belonging and acceptance which is a great
antidepressant.
(James, William)
Religion is good
~how it provides benefits~
† There is supportive evidence showing that
religious people enjoy a better mental and physical
health.
† This is believed to mainly be caused by the social
aspects of religion.
† Example: social gatherings during church services,
religious fairs and carnivals, religious dinners and
studies.
(Posner, Gary)
Religion is good
~How it provides benefits~
† Religion is mainly based on trying to
improve people’s lives.
† Christianity-improves Christian's lives by
offering hope. It also improves others lives by
giving to charity and holding fund raisers for
charity events.
† Judaism- improves people’s lives by trying to
make the world a better place in the present.
They try to fix the world into a better place in
order for everyone’s lives to be more peaceful.
Religion is good
~Enriches children’s behavior~
† When it comes to children, it has been proven that religion
is a healthy practice. The belief that there is something
greater and more powerful than them affects their behavior
for the better. It teaches them self discipline.
† When they have religion they know how to value life and
they know they believe there is a reason behind the things
they do.
† By obeying their parents they are pleasing God.
† By not stealing they are following God’s commandments.
(Chopich, Erika)
Religion is good
~Its affects on families~
† Studies show that religious men who are
frequently practicing their religion have lower
blood pressure and a lower mortality rate.
† Husbands that are active in their religion have
been shown to have lower divorce rates.
† Children who worship with their families are less
likely to be included with alcohol, drugs, and gang
activities.
(Is Christianity Healthy?)
Religion is good
~provides a myth~
† Mythology provides a background, almost a culture, which
people look up to and relate their own personal history to.
† A myth also provides heroes for people to have as idols
and role models.
† Religion is like a myth because it provides a background
(people might say “I’m Christian” “I’m Jewish” “I’m Muslim”)
and a hero for people to look up to (Jesus Christ, God, the
Virgin Mary, Allah…etc)
† Religion is beneficial by providing a myth. This allows
people to feel associated with a certain group. When there
are people who back share the same beliefs, it allows for
great comfort and a decrease in depression.
Bibliography
† Chopich, Erika J. “Do Children Need Religion”:
<www.beliefnet.com/story/129/story_13945_1.html>
† James, William. The Varieties of Religious Experience. Simon &
Schuster Inc., 1997.
† Organ, Wayne. Religion and Health. (1-99). 2000.
† Posner M.D., Gary P. “Has science proven that ‘divine’ health benefits
religion?” <http://www.infidels.org/secular_uibs/feature/1998/prayerusatoday.html > Aug 34, 1998.
† Ryan S., Dale. “When Religion Goes Bad”.
http://www.spiritualabuse.com/dox/gobad2.htm
† Walke, Jennifer. “Bad Religion”.
<http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/humannaure00/FinalArticles/BadReli
gion.html. >
This presentation was done by
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Kaitlyn
Sophia
Khrissy
Heather
 Learning community -psychology