[Baltar]

Originally Posted by Christian223

Science allways advances as you say, it still has a long way to go, remember that it also updates and changes itself, old beliefs replaced by new ones, new instruments allow to see new things that make old beliefs out-dated, there may not be written rules about science, but there is a un-written rule about it that says "science is the only truth" dont you think?, for me its just another religion where the god is science itself.

Yep, that's what I said -- science is constantly evolving, and as we make new discoveries the old beliefs and laws are replaced by new ones. But in religion, the same texts (some of which were written thousands of years ago) are still being used. Certainly they contain some wisdom but they also contain a lot of outdated information, laws that are incompatible with modern civilization (stoning people do death if they don't share your religion?! ), and beliefs based on a very outdated understanding of the universe. As a result, most people who consider themselves religious follow the rules set in the religious texts very loosely.

Originally Posted by AndyMartin

There's a fundamental problem with your question in that you are asking a question ("Why do people cling to belief systems?") and an assertion ("Religion is an outdated construct.") at once, so you're getting more responses to your assertion than to your question. Furthermore, with this assertion, you attempt to place your belief above scrutiny by excluding it from the question, when in reality dismissing religion is also a belief system that is subject to the same validity claims.

I didn't think about it that way but now that you mention it I think you're right. I mean, in a way I said that the religions are based on outdated material, but it's also not possible to create new modern equivalents today (although I think some people have tried) so they would have to simply dissolve. That's a tough cookie. Well I can certainly understand that religion isn't going anywhere any time soon. The only way things will get better then is if the people of the world raise their awareness levels to a point where they can be spiritual without needing organized religion as it exists today. That pretty much answers my question then.

Originally Posted by fourthdan

Baltar, I think you're a relatively intelligent and free thinking person, but probably need to do a little more research on religion. I follow hinduism, which is probably the oldest religion in the world.

You're right, what I wrote was pretty much about western religions. I should've been more specific about that. I've actually been very intrigued by eastern religions, Buddhism in particular but haven't done much research about them yet. Personally I don't subscribe to any religion and I doubt I ever will become a permanent member of a religion in my lifetime. I've already been an atheist for a while, but now I keep an open mind and maintain the belief that anything is possible. I was inspired by Steve's blog entry about taking the best pieces from every belief system rather than staying rigidly within a single system, and I find this very empowering.