Reply #91: It all comes down to interpretation of experience

[ihavenobias]

One can consume certain drugs and have out of body, transcendental experiences and believe they are in fact speaking with a higher power. IMO, that tells you something about such experiences in general.

I don't doubt that people feel "something", but what they ultimately attribute these feelings and experiences to is where they get into trouble. And look, when more and more people hear about it, they're more likely to believe or want to believe or interpret their own experiences in that way.

Kind of like if a psychic tells you you'll meet someone wearing red in the next week. Chances are you'll (consciously or not) be searching out for anyone wearing red. And once you find that person, you'll have created your own self fulfilling prophecy.

I believe in treating others as you would like to be treated. And I have to tell you, if I'm being irrational and illogical about something, I WANT someone to tell me so, as opposed to everyone letting me continue to delude myself out of fear of hurting my feelings. But that's just me. If someone harmlessly believes in religion to cope with death and tragedy, that's great (as long as it doesn't prevent them from actually ever getting over the pain and reality of the situation).