Why is there so much discussion on religion?

2015-06-05T11:09:32-04:00

Especially Christianity? Please don't think I am under cutting the communities spiritual fitness or readiness, I am honestly curious. This is a professional military forum where we can come together with issues, thought, concerns and general interests DoD wide. It seems every time I come here I am bombarded with religion. Again, I am not trying to seem persecutorial, I am glad everyone has something that works for them...I'd like to see this go back to the professional military forum I appreciated it for. I'm sure many of you will not care what I'd like, or what I'd want but in my opinion it feels like it's veering.

I identify as atheist and I'm not here to convert, or to try to convert anyone. I think however having a biblical devotional might be outside of the purposes of this site. I'm not at all being accusational when I ask the next question...administrators, where do you draw the line when topics are clearly not military related at all? It seems there might be better places to debate and discuss religion.

Please receive this question in my sincerest and most humble tone. Thank you community!

Response by SGT Kevin Brown made Jun 5 at 2015 11:19 AM

2015-06-05T11:19:01-04:00

I see a lot of religious discussions as well, however, they usually are under general discussion, unless directly related to a military case. General discussion is just that and I see many non-religious posts in general discussion that have absolutely nothing to do with the military all day long. One thing I learned when I was an Atheist is that you cannot escape religion (I don't mean you have to convert, but rather it will be everywhere you look, because not everyone thinks like you and it is a huge part of many peoples lives). A lot of the discussion posts regarding religion that I see are actually Atheists posting questions about religion (again, you cannot escape it). It is better to either join the discussion or do what some of us do and ignore them. Just my two cents.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 5 at 2015 11:21 AM

2015-06-05T11:21:36-04:00

SGT Kevin Brown's post pretty much covers it. As to WHY there are so many religious posts, well, you know what they say about excuses. Same thing.

Response by SGT Ben Keen made Jun 5 at 2015 11:23 AM

2015-06-05T11:23:38-04:00

Throughout my time with RallyPoint, this question has been asked just as many times as a discussion about religion has popped up.

Personally, I see a few reasons for this. First, people love a debate and we all know nothing gets people going like a debate on religion. Second, some people are really curious to gain insight into how ours think. Lastly, they are trolling.

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Jun 5 at 2015 11:32 AM

2015-06-05T11:32:22-04:00

In a profession that deals in life and death issues, is this really surprising?

Response by SGT Darryl Allen made Jun 5 at 2015 11:34 AM

2015-06-05T11:34:51-04:00

Discussions on religion being focused mainly on Christianity is probably because something like 70% of the US identifies as a Christian, along with the fact that it's the largest religion in the world (2.2 billion people). I'm willing to bet that an even larger percentage of the military identifies as Christian (which is why there are so many Christian chaplains, whereas, the last time I asked, there were like ~60 Jewish chaplains), so it's bound to come up.

As stated already, there are different sub-forums to post in and, "general discussion," is just that: a discussion about whatever people are thinking about (within reason). Do we need to discuss it so much? No. But does religion and it's influence play a large part in our country and military as a whole? I'd say it does, from legislation to military policy, religion creeps into all corners of American life.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 5 at 2015 12:14 PM

2015-06-05T12:14:01-04:00

I was about to ask the same question, worded something like this:

Why do so many use RallyPoint to proselytize and promote their religion and offer blessings with every other post? It's exhausting, divisive and distracting from having any intelligent dialogue. Wasn't that the intent of this forum or did I get that wrong? Majority status does not constitute a valid reason.

Is RallyPoint is a forum exclusively for christian servicemembers? If so, then make that clear in the signup process and on the front page. Maybe incorporate a crucifix in the RallyPoint logo while you're at it and then it can qualify as a tax-exempt business venture in the name of religion.

Response by MSgt Robert Pellam made Jun 5 at 2015 3:47 PM

2015-06-05T15:47:47-04:00

Interesting question. In my opinion there are several reasons religion is brought up.

The first is that this is an outlet. While I was active, religious discussions were very few in the work place. Many people see religion in the workplace as a subject to avoid, because it is controversial. On here you see many people free of that restriction. RP is an outlet for some who have religious opinions and want to share them. A lot often talk out their opinions in hopes that others share or can give them a morale boost to their opinion. It more boils down to the individuals themselves on how they come across.

Another reason is religion is a very controversial subject, draws lots of attention, and People like it when they get lots of feedback and fake internet points. I am not going to point fingers on this one and will leave it at that. (no not you either)

The last is, religion is something everyone has questions about. This goes along with the first answer but more in depth. Faith is just that, faith. We as humans want to know the why of many things out there, but Faith is the one thing that there are no hard facts or evidence about. Its just faith. Religion seems to answer some questions, but sometimes religion promotes more.

I think when it comes down to it that it all falls on the individual trying to figure something out. I have been caught up in a few of these threads myself. While I know most really don't give two cents about my opinion on religion. It does help me work through my own thoughts and theories on the subject.

Hope this helps.

Response by PO3 David Fries made Jun 6 at 2015 3:48 AM

2015-06-06T03:48:36-04:00

The same reasons anything else is discussed, I would imagine. To get opinions, to have open communication, to just chat with fellow service members/vets/retirees, or to stir the pot. I tend to avoid religious discussions even more than political ones because they are even more likely to devolve into petty squabbling and name calling. Heck, I don't even know where I currently stand on religion.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 7 at 2015 11:32 AM

2015-06-07T11:32:44-04:00

SFC Private RallyPoint Member Why? Lots of reasons.

1) In my experience, people want to discuss what they believe, because they subconsciously are not completely convinced that what they believe is the truth or not. If they can convince someone else, then it justifies their belief. Unfortunately such justification has a limited duration, which forces them to repeat the effort. Atheists are just as subject to this a religious people.

2) Some people are trolling, or basically just want to harass someone else. Sometimes this is a reaction to having had someone attempt to convert them. I recently has a thinly veiled argument with an Atheist-evangelist who liked to hide under the idea that he was correcting misconceptions. He did finally admit that, "Anything that cannot be proved is likely irrelevant." So his belief is in what he can prove, but because he can prove so very little, he is reduced to evangelizing his belief to support it.

3) Some people are convinced that they are doing another person a favor by converting them. Whether it's saving from hell, or saving from the "opiate of the masses", they think they are doing good.

I am generally opposed to evangelists of all types. If someone asks you a question, it is appropriate to answer. But it is disrespectful to tell someone that he needs to believe like you do for whatever reason or justification.

As far as being "bombarded with religion", it should be recognized that whatever discussion you are involved in, the "Similar Discussions" column to the right will contain ... that's right ... similar discussions. Use the search engine and put in ISIS, or Budget, or whatever topic interests you, and I'm sure you'll find less discussion about religion.

But also recognize that this is NOT a military site. If it were, it would have a .mil domain. Retirees, like me, also probably wouldn't be invited to be there.