[rodrigo]

Well, I didn't read every post in this thread, but here's a quick thought about getting a religion.

I don't have a religion and I don't like religions as they usually think they are: the final and ultimate truth. They are merely a set of beliefs. Some of those beliefs may rise your consciousness, some of them don't. Besides, I think that the mere act of believing that something (anything at all) is the ultimate truth is consciousness lowering. An ultimate truth makes you lazy to think, since it is all set and you don't have to do anything. Besides, it makes you to stop the exercise of doubting (the good one, not the bad one), that makes us try to find better answers.

That said, on the other hand I don't think that religion is a complete harm to society. We all have our set of beliefs, and I don't think any of us is perfectly correct. Religions serve as pre-defined beliefs set, for those who can't (or won't) yet create their own. See, I'm not saying that some are incapable of doing that. All I'm saying is that the world average counsciouness level is too low for us to expect that everyone should live "by themselves", without any help.

The problem with religion (as well as anything else) begins when we start to get too attached to it. We all strive to define ourselves, our identities. But every now and then (actually I think that happens more often than it should) we start to mistake who we are with what groups (including groups of beliefs) we fit in. That's when the "holy wars" begin - in any field of our lives -, when we start to think that criticizing or doubting the group is to do it to our very own selves.

As a friend of mine always says, religions are like bridges. Bridges are made to help you make the cross, it takes you from a point to another (hopefully the next one). You can like the bridge and be grateful for all the help it gave you. But that doesn't mean you have to live under the bridge and start fighting everyone who simply uses the bridge and then move on.