Faith Over Deeds?

How Can Faith Be More Important Than Good Deeds?

A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death. – Albert Einstein

This question gets to the heart of the purpose of religion. What is the real purpose of religion?  Is it to help people to develop into better human beings, or is it to manipulate peoples’ behavior so a select few can control the masses. I can’t believe that simply believing in God could be more important than being good to humanity. I mean, what more could God ask of a person than to be a good human being?  I find it difficult to accept that an omnipotent being would be in need of praise. This is a human trait. We thrive on praise, because it strokes our ego and boosts our self-esteem. I can’t believe that God would be in need of a self-esteem boost.

So, for me, the purpose of religion should be to encourage people to lead better lives, to treat others better, and to do things that make the world better in some way. But that’s not what we see with the world’s religions. Most religions place much more emphasis on worship and developing a personal relationship with God – whatever that means – and much less emphasis on one’s personal development. In other words, leading a good life is less important than worshiping God. What good has worship ever done for the world?  Why is leading a good life not enough for God?  I think it all goes back to competing religions vying for the masses. For a religion, a cult, or a movement to gain strength, it needs, more than anything else, followers. That’s why most religions have always had a strong missionary component. All new people they encountered were potential converts. What audacity!  Converting natural spiritual peoples to an unnatural religion, and telling them that they are lost without God.