How Organized Religion Impedes Progress (America, myth, churches, bible)

[Pug Life]

Forget about all the other reasons why Religion stands in the way of human progress, this is one that I have come up with: Hours spent in church are wasted hours that could be used in a much more productive manner. Last year Americans spent 6,260,800,000 hours in church (280,000,000 people, 43% weekly church attendance, 1 hour a week), imagine how much could have been accomplished if those people had come together to build something instead of sitting in a building doing absolutely nothing but listening to a man re-read the same passages of the same book over and over again.

By comparison, the Empire State Building took 7,000,000 man hours to build, that means that ~894 of them could have been built if people didn't go to church. How many new skills could have been learned if people spent 52 hours a year on them instead of going to church? A person can be spiritual and religious without spending an hour a week in Church, so why go? Imagine if those 6 billion+ hours were spent researching and developing new clean energy sources, or in growing food for the poor, or in rebuilding run-down schools. How can anyone say that Religion brings progress when it's clearly the opposite?

[SuSuSushi]

Hush your blasphemous mouth! Don't you know that if people stop going to church, they stop giving money to the church?

[b. frank]

I have a feeling that this thread will soon be filled with comments about how sitting in church is better than building the Empire State Building and, in fact, better than learning skills.
However, many of the resident CD Christians seem to hate church more than us heathens do so it could be interesting...

[ShepsMom]

[BrianH]

We should all wear diapers because I know people spend alot of time in the crapper.
They could be building a new empire state building and crapping themselvs for heat instead of sitting down.

[SuSuSushi]

Originally Posted by BrianH

We should all wear diapers because I know people spend alot of time in the crapper.
They could be building a new empire state building and crapping themselvs for heat instead of sitting down.

But...that's where I get to read in peace!

[faithfulFrank]

I find the hour I spend in church each week both enjoyable and beneficial.

I find the coffee quite good, and the friendship and fellowship even better. I enjoy the music and worship, and the teaching is relevant and challenging. We have made many friends there and enjoy getting to know those people.....I have helped them and others, and have gotten help from them also.

Many activities are available, and one can get as involved as they like. If one just wants to visit or "check it out" that is fine. Visitors are told to keep their wallets in their pockets during the offering...they are guests. The offering time is for those whom consider the church their own.

The church is active in the community and helps many people. The hour or so I spend their each Sunday is perhaps the most rewarding hour of my week.

There are many types of churches.....it is unwise to paint them all with the same brush.....

Respectfully, Frank D.

[Pug Life]

Originally Posted by BrianH

We should all wear diapers because I know people spend alot of time in the crapper.
They could be building a new empire state building and crapping themselvs for heat instead of sitting down.

Yeah, but going poo is a necessary bodily function, going to church is a choice that people make for no rational reason other than the fear of god's wrath. If it's about the group, you can just as easily join a charity organization. Americans are obviously not productive 24/7, but when that many people come together as a group every single week, wouldn't it be more beneficial for us all if they actually did something other than praying and listening to Bible stories? I live in a relatively down-trodden area that has high church attendance. If those people all left the church on Sunday and did volunteer work around the community, a lot could get done. There are abandoned lots that could be converted into places for children to play. There are streets covered with trash, there are homeless people sleeping on the sidewalk, there are economic crises facing many families that could possibly all be solved if those people worked for the community for that hour every single week instead of praying for things to happen.

If you have an open wound and it's bleeding profusely, will prayer close that wound? No. You'll die of blood loss before your prayers save you. But if you wrap it in cloth and tend to it, you will not die. How is church any different? I think god would rather see you spending your time helping others than sitting in a building hearing the same stories over and over again.

[LogicIsYourFriend]

I think what impedes progress more is the resistance to science and critical thinking, for the benefit of faith in obviously mythological stories.

[noland123]

This opening OP statement is making my head spin completely around like the girl in the movie 'The Exorcist" that has to be the most ridiculous and ludicrous finding I have read yet on this forum. I guess the other 57% on Sunday are out there serving mankind in a helping way,yea right,, while the remainder are hearing the teachings of the Lord.