The big, fat R word (and it's longer than 4 letters!)

What is religion? There doesn't seem to be a totally satisfying, short answer to this question. In fact, it is still widely debatable as to what defines "religion" exactly, so many people (including myself) will use it according to correct connotation. What I find disturbing is that many people are also tying all-encompassing definitions to it instead of making distinctions, they don't define what they mean but just use "religion" in place of what they intend to say. So when I have religious discussion with people, that lack of distinction causes conversational chaos because everyone means something else even when they're all repeating the same word. Ideas are bouncing endlessly and pointlessly and no one realises it.

Another thing that I find interesting is why some people look distastefully at religion. Some call it a psychological phenomenon of control over people. What I don't understand is why is it a psychological phenomenon? Phenomenon, according to Dictionary.com, is defined as "any state or process known through the senses rather than by intuition or reasoning (Emphasis mine). Yes, some people go about their religion with "blind faith", so to speak, but there are others who choose to follow a religion based on deliberate decisions, i.e. options chosen with reason. So that makes the statement that "religion" is a "phenomenon" void, because not everyone practices religion with just the senses and not by intuition or reasoning. One definition of religion is "a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith" (emphasis mine).

What are atheists? People who believe that God or gods do not exist. It's a system of beliefs, a process of ideas, which conclude that God does not exist. So atheism is a religion too. It is said that Japan is mostly secular, or not a religious people. I really, really don't get that when one of the definitions of religion is "extremely scrupulous and conscientious". By this, I mean that the Japanese have a steep tradition in Shintoism and Buddhism (and yes, they're very religiously tolerable since they will use any aspect of other religions as long as those aspects are convenient and likable to them). Japanese are conscientious in observing traditions, or observing other things like loyalty to the Emperor, conscientious to public behavior and work ethics. They're rather scrupulous when they make mistakes. Look at the samurai who would practice seppuku (suicide) when they disobeyed or failed in the slightest thing. And, if you ever visited Japan, did you ever notice how clean and precise they are, and how thoughtful and conscientious they are to customers they serve? So are Japanese religious? The answer is yes. The answer is also that majority of the Japanese do not following a single religious organisation. If whoever said that Japanese weren't religious made a distinction, I would probably agree more or disagree less.

Why do we have morals? Morals are ideas of right and wrong. What makes things right or wrong? Their level of positive usefulness? Usefulness that could mean an action which contributes to the progress and/or survival of society? Usefulness that could mean an action which makes you feel good inside? Why do we feel good about doing things? We do, don't we? Isn't that an example of intuition? Isn't logically thinking about the effects of our moral decisions an example of reason? So, following morals, no matter if we are or are not affiliated with a certain religious entity/community/thing, is a principle or set of beliefs or sometimes a cause (e.g. for the good of humanity) and therefore...a religion of sorts?