Why do 'we' look to religious people for guidance?

[whowhatwhy]

What actual qualifications have 99% of 'religious' representatives achieved? Apart from reading an old book, declaring that they are religiously advanced, living an introverted life spouting the same old cr@p to other people, attempting to indoctrinate them into believing what they do (partly to justify their own existence and beliefs and to perpetuate the myth). Why do Christians / Catholics / Muslims etc. think that Vicars, Priests, Imams and other religious 'Leaders' are people to look up to? To get moral guidance from? They are not especially. Good people are. Especially when a lot of these leaders are usually the most weak-minded of people with a very limited life experience and are highly uneducated...I do not include 'theology' as a legitimate area of study. What really gets to me is the tendency for the media to turn to these kinds of people first, after every major news event, as if their (usually) self-professed proximity to their 'God' empowers them to speak for everyone else. WHY?! I have no objection to anyone's belief in a religion but why does the media and the public think that these people are any more qualified to speak intelligently on a matter of national interest, is beyond me. Maybe because it is always difficult to find a bona fide expert on a subject and a religious leader is always easy to find?!

[cyanide]

I agree totally,its like they are an expert on EVERYTHING,and i often ask myself why.What bugs me is when they attempt to answer the question with some irrelevant claptrap and no-one seems to challenge them.

[rojash]

Who's "we"? I don't know anyone who looks to religious people for guidance. I know some people who read fortune cookies, though.

[mibn2cweus]

There continues to be a great many people who are afraid to examine the real reasons for tragically unsatisfactory events. This fear stems from a refusal to accept that many of us may in some way directly or indirectly be responsible for these unhappy outcomes, not necessarily because of something we have done but alternatively because of an evasion of responsibility or even something as innocent as the inescapable quality we share as human beings, a lack of omniscience. In spite of our incomplete understanding and limited knowledge we must not condemn ourselves for this unavoidable characteristic of our nature.

Those who claim that we must turn to god for the answers in these times of collective grief seem to have forgotten that it was their god who saw fit to see to it that we were not born with the knowledge we need to choose the correct course of action under any and every possible circumstance that may arise.

When we observe the consequences of our lack of omniscience it is our philosophies that we need to examine first and foremost for it is the principles that we follow to guide our decision making processes that leads to the realities we face as a result of our choices. Simply putting the blame on god or religion or anything else other than ourselves will do nothing to resolve the issues we face as a species that like all other species is ultimately responsible for its own survival and success.

We all have a philosophy whether we acknowledge it or have taken the time to examine it. It is the responsibility of each of us to understand and maintain our own personal operating system whether it is one we inherited through our upbringing or one we have developed for ourselves. What we choose to believe determines our outlook and behavior and provides us with the self-esteem or guilt we experience when we see how our own actions have contributed to or undermined the welfare of our fellow human beings.

[luna-tic]

To follow your own heart and mind is all the guidance you ultimately will need for no one else is responsible for your actions, I actually think it is the so-called priests,religious people that have lost their way and need the gatheriing of many around them to feel strong, to thrive off the energy of those who do not follow their path.
You can have faith without being religious. I do not need a church or anyone else to validate my spiritual perception.
As "spiritual perception" I mean the right to believe in whatever you want as long as it doesn't harm or lead others on a path of stupidity.

[whowhatwhy]

mibn2cweus: Thanks for a deeply thoughtful and observational response. I do not blame the belief in religion for anything, after all this is a man made concept. I find it offensive that religious leaders (people, not the deity) seem to feel as if it is their task to supply the moral fabric for society, always having an opinion on what is and isn't acceptable, on many levels. And yet they have no universally recognisable qualification to assume this role or behaviour. I believe moral fibre and the ability to control ones own behaviour is inbuilt into every human. We can quite happily control our own behavioural tendencies and morally self govern ourselves without the interference of a minorities self professed indoctrinated belief system. Agreed, some people refuse to take responsibility for their actions and require a third party to support them, I believe this is a responsibility society should take, and not allowing religion to prey on the needy.

From stem cell research to abortion to paedophilia (even though historically there is a disproportionately higher number of sexual offences recorded within faith groups than that of a modern day society in general), to government policy the world over; the list is endless. Religious groups (very wealthy religious groups, I might add) of the world act more as an anchor around the neck of human advancement , physically, morally & socially than any other hurdle we face today.

And personally, I am sick to death seeing pathetic, religious 'leaders' on the news networks around the world.

[Theland]

There are lots of religions, which are basically Mans' attempts to reconcile himself to God, and they all consist of ceremony and sacrifice in one form or another.

Why?

The obvious answer is that Man is a religious animal, and feels incomplete, unless there is an explanation for his origin, purpose, and destination.

Religion is not a local phenomenon in an otherwise secular world, but is a manifestation of a hunger to know the answers to the ultimate questions.

Which particular religious leader had you in mind when making your introductory comments?

[chakka35]

Er, pardon me Theland, but here is one animal who is certainly not religious and does not feel at all incomplete for that reason.
And what 'ultimate question' has religion ever answered?
It really is impertinent of you to try to include us all in your naive superstitions. Some of us prefer to be rational.