Religion Causes Brain Damage

[Arrowwind]

I will not likely be responding to any comments regarding this video. I'll let everyone else duke it out if they are inclined.

https://youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=9AJU49PpHqo

[Fred Steeves]

Having been largely raised in fundamentalist churches Arrowwind, I plainly recognize what the gentleman in the video is saying is largely right on. He should however, be more observant in his choice of images for the human brain. FWIW, I clearly see a moose head facing outward bottom left, an alien facing outward on top, with slightly open mouth facing right, and a wolf looking creature dead center, facing left. I'm sure there are others.

Just sayin...

[Tony]

Albert Pike will be pleased.

[pugwash84]

very interesting, thank you. It was rather contraversial but I like hearing others points of view too. This guy who make this video was a very brave man because of all the religious people who may take offence by this.
I always welcome anything that tests my beliefs that way I am double sure of what I believe in and if other people have facts and information I try to listen and see their point of views too and that way I can properly be sure of what I believe in and not what I have been conditioned into thinking.
Thank you this was also a very brave post.

[Tarka the Duck]

It's a shame that his title is misleading (and that his "background" music is so loud and emotive ): he is only concerned with the North American Evangelical Church, with its dogma of hell and salvation.

Religion is rather more than the bible belt in the US...it sounds rather like calling it the World Series when only USA and Canada take part.

Why choose such a generic, simplistic and salacious title I wonder ?

[Ahauchata]

On a personal level I don't feel that religion causes brain damage. While on this end I broke out of religion back when I was 11 (raised Catholic) simply because what most religions teach about the concept of the creator to me is simply not true. Yet; I still feel the foundations of religions are based on love, however it was the control of mankind in the roles of religion to me that creates the 'damage' not so much physical but mentally. Anything that is external, to me outside of oneself, one must always use discernment.

[Tony]

Any indoctrination can effect the brain. Football, cricket, tea at 4 o'clock, saying "awesome" to everything.....

[Fred Steeves]

Posted by Tarka the Duck (here)
It's a shame that his title is misleading (and that his "background" music is so loud and emotive ): he is only concerned with evangelical christianity, with its dogma of hell and salvation. Religion is rather more than the bible belt in the US.

Why choose such a generic, simplistic and salacious title I wonder ?

Hey Kathie, the dogma this gentleman is referring to is far more prevelant here in the U.S. than you may think. Central Florida where I live is much more known for Disney World and the beaches, rather than religion. The "Bible Belt" starts a good 8 or so hour's drive to our north.

Yet, my whole time growing up here, across many Christian denominations, the message was/is always the same: " You are a dirty sinner, you are unworthy of the kingdom and glory of god, and either beg your lord and savior Jesus Christ to forgive you of your otherwise unforgiveable sins, or your kind and loving god will make sure that you suffer beyond comprehension, for all eternity.

A beautiful message I'll still watch on Sunday mornings from time to time.

Cheers,
Fred

[Arrowwind]

Well I guess I couldn't help posting but only to clarify that the guy who made this video was rasied in an evangelical church as he clearly states in the video so he does have an agenda based on his experience. I have seen similar tortured faces on young children within the Catholic dicipline. I really dont know what being born again has to do with the instillation of fear and hell's damnation to make a brain impact on a small child. Born again is similar to ones first communian and confirmation designed to save one from eternal damnation from either original sin or acquired sin. My catholic teaching manual had drawings of satin and people burning in hell and I remember being quite afraid until in my heart I ditched the church in second grade.

anyway here is the link to the article that he showed in the film.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%...l.pone.0017006

[Krullenjongen]

Very interesting!
I found the article that is shown in the video, you can view it here:

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%...l.pone.0017006

This is the abstract from the site (emphasis is mine):

"Despite a growing interest in the ways spiritual beliefs and practices are reflected in brain activity, there have been relatively few studies using neuroimaging data to assess potential relationships between religious factors and structural neuroanatomy. This study examined prospective relationships between religious factors and hippocampal volume change using high-resolution MRI data of a sample of 268 older adults. Religious factors assessed included life-changing religious experiences, spiritual practices, and religious group membership. Hippocampal volumes were analyzed using the GRID program, which is based on a manual point-counting method and allows for semi-automated determination of region of interest volumes. Significantly greater hippocampal atrophy was observed for participants reporting a life-changing religious experience. Significantly greater hippocampal atrophy was also observed from baseline to final assessment among born-again Protestants, Catholics, and those with no religious affiliation, compared with Protestants not identifying as born-again. These associations were not explained by psychosocial or demographic factors, or baseline cerebral volume. Hippocampal volume has been linked to clinical outcomes, such as depression, dementia, and Alzheimer's Disease. The findings of this study indicate that hippocampal atrophy in late life may be uniquely influenced by certain types of religious factors."


Let me start with a definition of religion.
"a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects"

I should be pretty scewed up after believing for many, many years but i think most of you will not be off any better.
All you believing christians, muslims, jews and all the other mainstream religions and even you atheists and new age'ers. Then anyone who does religious practices, from vodoo to shamanism or wicca and all sorts of meditations and chanting and many things more.
And anyone who has had an religious life changing experience from our forumfriend Greybeard to David Icke end anyone who had a kundalini or similar experience.
And anyone who is affiliated with some kind of religious group.

I am asking myself what percentage of the world population would fall under these broad catagories, 70%, 80%, 90% ???

[AwakeInADream]

Flexibility of ideas, creativity and curiosity are great for your brain! Use it or lose it!

Religion doesn't have to stunt your brains development, there is always more wisdom to discover in the Bible, and to test in life, many lifetimes worth if you go deep enough.

The moment you stop asking questions, is the moment your brain begins to wither and die.

We are lucky there is so much wonderful stimulation here at Avalon! And some mighty fine minds too!

[Tarka the Duck]

Posted by Fred Steeves (here)

Posted by Tarka the Duck (here)
It's a shame that his title is misleading (and that his "background" music is so loud and emotive ): he is only concerned with evangelical christianity, with its dogma of hell and salvation. Religion is rather more than the bible belt in the US.

Why choose such a generic, simplistic and salacious title I wonder ?

Hey Kathie, the dogma this gentleman is referring to is far more prevelant here in the U.S. than you may think. Central Florida where I live is much more known for Disney World and the beaches, rather than religion. The "Bible Belt" starts a good 8 or so hour's drive to our north.

Yet, my whole time growing up here, across many Christian denominations, the message was/is always the same: " You are a dirty sinner, you are unworthy of the kingdom and glory of god, and either beg your lord and savior Jesus Christ to forgive you of your otherwise unforgiveable sins, or your kind and loving god will make sure that you suffer beyond comprehension, for all eternity.

A beautiful message I'll still watch on Sunday mornings from time to time.

Cheers,
Fred

Hi Fred - sorry, I must not have made myself clear

Across the pond here, we're very much aware of the strangeness of the phenomenon that is the US bible belt...it is a source of humour, bemusement, fear and ridicule!

My point was that this form of Christianity is not synonymous the term "religion", as the narrator of the video seems to think.

Kathie

[Vitalux]

I find this video dangerous.

It is not so much what the video says, but fails to say.
It is packaged propaganda.



What it equates is that religion is a brain disorder and a false belief system.

Notice that the narrator of this video never states that we are spiritual being that is in temporary possession of a physical body.

I have no belief in Christianity however, I believe that we are a spiritual being in this dimension having an experience to experience growth from feelings.

Like all information, the video is good to present here so that we can channel our experience and see it for what it is, more propaganda to confuse the sheep.

[Arrowwind]

Krullen, the study seems to explore born again issues and as in the film is suggested born again issues are generally backed by fear, not love, not enlightement, not open heart, not any of the outer qualites that reflect an opening of the chakra system and a flowering of the crown chakra. It is a shutdown methodology. Where fear and hate are stimulated how can love grow? It can only be a love based in prejudice and fear for realites that have not been proven to exist.

This, in my estimation has been the purpose of conventional religions over the ages, to control people. In the earlier days if you did not believe or did allow yourselves to be controlled you were put to death. Christians killed Christians, Jews killed Jews, Muslims killed muslims for refusal to be indoctrinated,,, and perhaps this was inhancing selective genetics so that only those who could be controlled survived? Just an idea. Currently in the Catholic Church if you do not adhere to and participate in all the sacraments you are not permitted to reproduce... but of course these days that doesnt stop anyone but just look backwards 100 years. Catholic women who reproduced outside of the catholic church were ostricized and subject to life conditions that were hard to survive. Look at the Magdeline Laundries as a more recent example. Bastard or illigetamate children were sometimes put to death or abandoned in the woods or sold into slavery.

The evangelical movement is merely an outshoot of The Catholic movment, as are protestants and most current Christian religions. They all follow a book written by the Catholic church (new testament) in essence that was long ago written to promote a very particular mind control in the courts of the early priests as they hand selected what they deemed worthy and not worthy to their agenda.

All thought forms In my estimation will have an impact on the brain. This is why so much attention is paid to meditation in India amongst the "Indian Saints" and where such saints, some have developed expaned powers through the awakening of the chakra system and developed use of the mind. Yogananda speaks of drinking nectar, a fluid that is emited when the chakra system is fully funtioning... a fluid created in the brain if I understand that right.

We are progamable and the right program will facilitate health and openmindedness and love and the wrong program will create shutdown, even on a physiological level leading to disease. We are willing to accept that this is true for so many diseases so why not for the brain? Program a person into depression, or other negative psychological issues and the brain starts to malfunction. Period. Hence we have all these drugs designed to stimulate hormonal receptor sites and to retain hormones.

[Arrowwind]

Posted by Vitalux (here)
I find this video dangerous.

It is not so much what the video says, but fails to say.
It is packaged propaganda.
:

Regardless, what you see on that video happening to children IS happening to children in a very real way all across the USA. Did you look at their faces? and they call this religion here just as the maker of that video had experienced. I do not see it as pure propaganda. I see it as a person telling his side of the story who was raised evangelical, that is not generally allowed out in public.

[Rocky_Shorz]

Religions are just a gathering of friends with like beliefs, which does the opposite of hurting a person's brain...

believing only what a book says exists is the truth, shuts down further learning, now that will make morons...

in all fairness, News causes brain damage for the same reasons...

Spirituality expands the brain 10 fold, because it keeps your mind searching for growth...

most religious people are spiritual...

[Student_Energy_Healer]

I don't particularly care about the video... I just want to know the title of the background music, especially the first one!

[Vitalux]

Posted by Arrowwind (here)

Posted by Vitalux (here)
I find this video dangerous.

It is not so much what the video says, but fails to say.
It is packaged propaganda.
:

Regardless, what you see on that video happening to children IS happening to children in a very real way all across the USA. Did you look at their faces? and they call this religion here just as the maker of that video had experienced. I do not see it as pure propaganda. I see it as a person telling his side of the story who was raised evangelical, that is not generally allowed out in public.

It is a difficult and slippery slope.
There are many different kinds of religions all taught to follow without questioning.


I know many churches that teach good moral things.
They are not fanatical
They do not attempt to scare the daylights out of its fellowship

The narrator of the above video is clearly not being solely objective.
He is attacking religion by appealing to ones emotional response rather than using both reason and emotion.

[Tony]

Any form of hatred, damages the mind.

[truth4me]

When I was a boy of 9 my grandfather whom I loved dearly told me I was going to hell because I wasn't a Church of Christ member. Now fast forward 43 years and my sister who I still love dearly has made it known to me that I and all of those who aren't Jehovah Witnesses are going to be destroyed at armageddon without any hope of an resurrection. Now if you die a non Jehovah Witness before armageddon you get to take part in the resurrection but at a later date. Once all the faithful witnesses of Jehovah are brought back beginning with those who died right before armageddon being first raised from the dead to the very first faithful witness of Jehovah Abel being the last raised. Now after all the Witnesses get raised they get everything set up on Earth then the other dead are brought back and taught to be a witness. If you don't become a witness after being brought back from the dead then you and the other non witnesses will be destroyed and the only people left on Earth will be the meek Jehovah Witnesses who inherit it according to Jesus's famous words in Matthew 5:5


Now the reason I explained that part of the Jehovah Witness doctrine was to show how that religion causes brain damage to the extent where if you aren't a Jehovah Witness you don't associate with non Jehovah Witness WITH the exception of them coming to your home and bringing their message to you. Slick word game they play with you........