Has the Second Coming Already Happened?

The other day, I was reading Mark 13 for the second time as part of my challenge to read the Bible in a year. The chapter primarily focuses on Jesus telling his disciples about the coming future, the purported end of days, the turmoil and destruction and the coming of the Son of Man. Now …

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Where Religion Might be Heading in the West

I'm not usually one who likes to hold strongly onto grand predictions about the future direction of civilisations or the world. It's a lesson I learnt from my supervisor during university who told me never try and predict what will happen in the Middle East with any degree of certainly. He had done so in …

Why are Religions of Value to Humanity? A very brief look at their modern evolutionary history

After watching the series of discussions Sam Harris and Jordan Peterson had about morality and the role of religion in the world, one particular line that was spoken, which gave me inspiration for this post: We haven't evolved much, religions have. This doesn't necessarily mean people haven't changed at all, but the line was to …

In the Middle of Ramadan in the Middle East

As a testament to my ignorance of when religious and cultural events are held, we went to the Middle East during the month of Ramadan. For those who don't know, Ramadan is the month in the Islamic calendar where Muslims will fast from sunrise to sunset every day. Not eating or drinking anything, even water. …

There is No Compulsion in Religion (or Ideology)

A short look into forcing others into beliefs, both secular and religious

Myths and the Tragic Hero Archetype

I have taken a particular interest in mythology as of the past few months, not just the mythologies of long dead cultures like the Ancient Greeks, the Norse and Egyptians, but also our own modern mythologies. Myths aren't just fictional stories, but can understood as fictional narratives that tell us things about ourselves as humans. …

Do Unto Others – A Look at the Golden Rule

Do unto others what you would have them do unto you. Iterations of this maxim are to be found in virtually all of the world's religions and if it is not written explicitly, it is just as often implied through their teachings. It has become known as the Golden Rule and dates back millennia, to at …

Religion and Science Express Different Truths

As the title of this post perhaps implies, I do not think that the teachings of various religions around the world and the findings of science necessarily need to clash. I have written about this topic a few times, and if interested, here a couple of links: The Dogma of Science and Just A Little Bit Exaggerated: …

Detroit: Become Human, A Religious Allegory?

Detroit: Become Human is a recent game on the Playstation 4 console that is essentially about the interweaving stories of three highly-developed androids - Kara, Connor and Markus - and their journeys from being slave robots for humans to fully self-conscious androids. It is set in the year 2039 in a particularly realistic setting which …

The Old Testament is… Strange

Around six months ago, I decided to make an attempt to read the entire Bible in a year, using an app that sets up a guide for you to follow. I'm currently just under halfway through the Old Testament, and have almost completed the first of two reads of the New. One thing I've noticed …