Power? Money? Fame? What Good Is Religion?

So I've had a couple conversations about religion recently. Okay, I've had more than a few, but two that I'm thinking about for this post. In one the conversation turned to the primary purpose of religion, and someone suggested that religion primarily deals with how one treats one's neighbor. The other discussion talked about whether we thought it was worthwhile to encourage others to consider our religious perspectives.

(And yes, encourage covers a lot of territory. I find there are some approaches I appreciate, and some that I don't. I appreciate my neighbor with a Honda mentioning how good the customer service is. I don't appreciate my local Honda dealer dragging me off the street and forcing me to endure his sales pitch.)

So is encouraging others to consider our religion important? Well, is religion more like chocolate or nutrition? More like interior decorating or building structure?

Chocolate flavors and interior decorating are matters of preference. Prefer dark chocolate? White? Hershey? Chocolate milk? I might suggest you try a new flavor, but the whole point of chocolate is to be enjoyed, and if you enjoy a flavor I find detestable, it's not a big deal.

Likewise with interior decorating. Decoration is supposed to make me feel comfortable in my surroundings. I might suggest that painting your room black gives a very comforting feeling for those times you are down, but if you prefer impressionist paintings and beige walls, what's the difference?

In contrast, nutrition and building structure aren't matters of opinion. Bad things (TM) happen as a result of the decisions made. Not getting any calcium? Osteoporosis is an issue. Too much fat? High cholesterol? Heart attacks are...well...bad. Your house collapsing from improperly calculated building stresses isn't fun either.

Whether religion is about more than just opinion really asks the question: What does your religion accomplish that other religions don't? And do people care?

If your religion makes people wealthy, then people who want money are probably interested. If your religion gives power, then the power-seekers will be interested. (I'll ignore for the moment whether or not money or power are actually good for people.)

One last thought: What do you get out of others adopting your religion? In general, it is harder to believe those who profit from our decisions. My neighbor mentioning Honda's customer service doesn't profit if I go buy a Honda. My local Honda dealer does. I trust my Honda dealer a lot less, even though he knows much more about Hondas.