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Location: In a little house on the prairie - literally
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A lot of us already knew that the huff and puff many religious adherents make about charity, was, well, just huff and puff, compared to what those who had no religion were involved in. But how to prove that?
This is a fairly definitive, large scale study, that shows that children that are raised by the religious, are more selfish and less giving.
And the more religious, the more selfish.
"Researchers also found an inverse relationship between observance level and generosity — children from more religious homes were found to be more selfish than their less religious counterparts."
Very interesting read, and not the least bit surprising. That dovetails very nicely with so much of the angry smallmindedness we so often see from the most devoutly fundamental posters here. My own experience with religious "generosity" was that most deeply religious people who donated significant time, money, or effort to the needy did it so they could pat themselves on the back about how generous they were. One of the things that made me very cynical about Christianity, and helped turn me away from it forever.
Great article. This seems to make sense: Research indicates that religiousness is directly related to increased intolerance for and punitive attitudes toward interpersonal offenses, including the probability of supporting harsh penalties. The penalties for being non conforming in a religious setting are inconceivable. IMO religion is just another wall people throw up to separate themselves from others.
A lot of us already knew that the huff and puff many religious adherents make about charity, was, well, just huff and puff, compared to what those who had no religion were involved in. But how to prove that?
This is a fairly definitive, large scale study, that shows that children that are raised by the religious, are more selfish and less giving.
And the more religious, the more selfish.
"Researchers also found an inverse relationship between observance level and generosity — children from more religious homes were found to be more selfish than their less religious counterparts."
Care about your kids morality and generosity? Don't raise them in a religious environment.
The chances that will actually happen by the fundamentalists?
About zero.
I can't speak for immature little kids...but as a person that has given away the majority of the money I have made in my life...and before my parents got old and in declining health that required a lot of my time, I spent many hours helping in charitable endeavors...I know it is typical, at least in the U.S., to see charitable work heavily dominated by people who are theologically minded.
If you go to a soup kitchen, coat drive, food pantry, or the like...you will see most, and that would be MOST, that are there helping, have some religious affiliation.
I was always one of the few Atheists or nonreligious. It was such a given...they would always ask me where I worshipped. I would tell them straight up that I was a Atheist. True...they would invariably invite me to join at their services...but never showed any negativity what-so-ever toward me when I'd decline.
I never once saw any self aggrandizing...more like very humble. And if they did pat themselves on the back in private...I'm sure the people being fed, or getting some clothing, or holiday gifts for their kids, or their house fixed, or a ride somewhere...we're more appreciative of the help, than they were about whether the people helping were motivated by ego issues rather than a truly magnanimous attitude.
Post whatever you want. But anyone that has spent a lot of time doing charity work KNOWS...if you eliminated the Religious, you'd lose all but a small percentage of the crews doing the actual DOING.
A lot of us already knew that the huff and puff many religious adherents make about charity, was, well, just huff and puff, compared to what those who had no religion were involved in. But how to prove that?
This is a fairly definitive, large scale study, that shows that children that are raised by the religious, are more selfish and less giving.
And the more religious, the more selfish.
"Researchers also found an inverse relationship between observance level and generosity — children from more religious homes were found to be more selfish than their less religious counterparts."
Care about your kids morality and generosity? Don't raise them in a religious environment.
The chances that will actually happen by the fundamentalists?
About zero.
So you are personally not a qualified specialist in this field, and you have personally not done any research on this subject - you read something on the Internet or in a book and you feel leaning towards it to put your faith into it?
The fundie household is similar to an abusive household.
It's like this. Suppose if you were really bad, your family doesn't give you dessert. Okay, fine, that might convince you not to be bad (I didn't take child psych so I dunno). Now suppose you were told you were "bad" whenever you took food and deprived of dinner. Is it going to encourage you not to take food?
Same deal here, the kids are told they're unworthy and have to put they're lives aside. They are going to push that much harder to get they're needs met, and guess what, it's going to look selfish. See Parenting 101, and see if you don't agree.
I can't speak for immature little kids...but as a person that has given away the majority of the money I have made in my life...and before my parents got old and in declining health that required a lot of my time, I spent many hours helping in charitable endeavors...I know it is typical, at least in the U.S., to see charitable work heavily dominated by people who are theologically minded.
If you go to a soup kitchen, coat drive, food pantry, or the like...you will see most, and that would be MOST, that are there helping, have some religious affiliation.
I was always one of the few Atheists or nonreligious. It was such a given...they would always ask me where I worshipped. I would tell them straight up that I was a Atheist. True...they would invariably invite me to join at their services...but never showed any negativity what-so-ever toward me when I'd decline.
I never once saw any self aggrandizing...more like very humble. And if they did pat themselves on the back in private...I'm sure the people being fed, or getting some clothing, or holiday gifts for their kids, or their house fixed, or a ride somewhere...we're more appreciative of the help, than they were about whether the people helping were motivated by ego issues rather than a truly magnanimous attitude.
Post whatever you want. But anyone that has spent a lot of time doing charity work KNOWS...if you eliminated the Religious, you'd lose all but a small percentage of the crews doing the actual DOING.
That's the difference between the "religious" and the "faithful." We see it a lot in attitudes here.
A lot of us already knew that the huff and puff many religious adherents make about charity, was, well, just huff and puff, compared to what those who had no religion were involved in. But how to prove that?
This is a fairly definitive, large scale study, that shows that children that are raised by the religious, are more selfish and less giving.
And the more religious, the more selfish.
"Researchers also found an inverse relationship between observance level and generosity — children from more religious homes were found to be more selfish than their less religious counterparts."
Care about your kids morality and generosity? Don't raise them in a religious environment.
The chances that will actually happen by the fundamentalists?
About zero.
lol. With my kids, I am down to the point of thinking "just stay out of their way so I don't hold them back from being better than me." of course mine in independent of belief statements that claim mre than we know.
Many religious perspectives, especially those that ground themselves in the unsubstantiable supernatural, "sell" themselves on the promise of being privileged in some intangible way as recompense for abiding by arbitrary rules. It effectively cultivates people who are so self-centered that they manage to pervert the acts of kindness they engage in into being all about themselves, their generosity, their accomplishment of those arbitrary rules, etc., as opposed to such kindness being the natural state of human beings truly caring one for another. That's why their consideration of others is so limited, including isolated tokens and isolated acts instead of a comprehensive consideration of and opposition to the institutional injustice that is the root cause of the needs of those most vulnerable in society to which they offer those tokens and acts. For many of these folks, "God" acts as a broker between them and those in need, rather than God being the love that fosters a human relationship between them and those in need.
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