Posted by Diarmuid on January 31, 2001 at 09:40:07:
In Reply to: Re: Religion and E-types posted by Cory on January 30, 2001 at 19:17:33:
I agree with Cory that stereotypical 4w5s are agnostic, somewhat existentialist and don't tend to slavishly follow organised religion (yes, I KNOW the exceptions exist; sometimes it snows in April, but April is not a typically snowy month).
Why? I reckon it's because Fours like authenticity and hate phoniness. And there's nothing more phoney than a normal human being, with normal weaknesses, trying to be an obedient Christian, Muslim, Hindu or Jew.
And while I don't know much about Buddhism, the Karma-wrecking military exploits of several armies from Buddhist countries suggest they're no experts at behaving well either.
Existentialism has one weakness which prevents it from becoming as popular as any of the big belief systems: it perfectly rhymes with everything scientists tell us. You can't take a vacation from it by choosing to believe only in what can be proven.
A chapel-attending husband contemplating hopping into bed with a woman not his wife has a distinct advantage over the existentialist who believes adultery is unacceptable. All the Christian has to say to himself is "Hey, people can't walk accross water or order seas to divide". Suddenly (albeit temporarily), the conflict in his mind between his libido and the Commandments is over. Libido has trumped morality by playing the physics card. So he can fuck away with a clear head. Later, he will usually decide to go back to believing in that not-physically possible stuff. But not before he gets his rocks off.
The Fourish existentialist has no such easy escape route. If his desires and his moral beliefs clash, causing painful dissonance, his only choices are to not behave according to his desires, or to change his entire philosophy so that his controversial desires become legitimate. The latter is a more tortuous and difficult job than saying "there's no such thing as ghosts".
The popularity of belief/morality systems which are based on impossible events is similar in character to the popularity of alarm clocks with snooze buttons. The purpose of an alarm clock is to emit a persistent noise that is impossible to sleep through. Why do we want snooze buttons? My guess is they offer a little bit of flexibility.
At heart, religions are essentially moral codes. But few are able to make their way through life without breaking these rules of morality on occasion. The fact that the world's major religions are in direct conflict with scientific fact is a useful tool for individuals who find they wish to temporarily "let go" of their strictures.