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this post was submitted on 07 Oct 2023
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All religions are tools. Saying "religion is cancer" overlooks all of the good things that people get out of religion, such as a community with shared values that helps each other. If you can have a religion without superstition and dogma, where's the harm? It's not religion that's cancer. It's superstition and dogma.
Sure, but the term religion implies superstition and dogma. It's literally part of the definition. What is religion without that? Community and tax exempt status? The former is just called community (which also implies shared values) and the latter is mostly a scam.
I'm not saying good things can't come from religion, but they don't come because they are religious. Any good they do is done regardless (or often despite) the supernatural beliefs.
Definitions have to comport with reality, not the other way around. Satanism is not a social club. We have holidays, we have rituals, we have ministers who conduct wedding ceremonies. We even have church services.
I want to let you know I'm not the one downvoting you. I disagree, but I'm not downvoting.
Personally, I don't think The Satanic Temple should be considered a religion. I think the term has been watered down, particularly in the US, because our laws are stupid. As long as there is an incentive to be called a religion it should be, but there shouldn't be an incentive. Why should anyone's beliefs be valued more because they're tied to (usually at least) supernatural beliefs?
TST was created as religious satire. That's the reason for the holidays, riguals, and other services. They need to conform to the appearance of a religion to work as a religion for their own purposes. That isn't to say these are bad or wrong. They're just as valid as any other religion. It's just that the belief that it's founded on is humanism, not something supernatural.
TST agrees with you. In fact, this is almost word-for-word what it says in the FAQ under the question "If you don't believe in the supernatural, how is TST a religion?"
What convinced you of this?
No, I agree with that. It's religious satire. That's why I included the parenthesis.