Criticism of religion is criticism of the ideas, the truthes, or the practices of religion, including its political and social implications. Historical records of criticism of religion goes back to at least 5. century BCE, in ancient Greece, with Diagoras "the Atheist" of Melos.

In ancient Rome, an early known example is Lucretius' De Rerum Natura from the 1st century BCE.

Criticism of religion is complicated by the fact, that there exist multiple definitions and concepts of religion in different cultures and languages within the diverse categories of religions, such as monotheism, polytheism, pantheism, nontheism and diverse specific religions, such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Taoism, Buddhism, and several others.

It is not always clear, to whom the criticisms are aimed at, or to what extent they are applicable to other religions. Every exclusive religion on earth that promotes exclusive truth, claims necessarily denigrates the truth-claims of other religions.

Critics of religion in general often regard religion as outdated, harmful to the individual, harmful to society, an impediment to the progress of science, a source of immoral acts or customs, and a political tool for social control.

== The essence of the so-called religious man ==

In the past there was little real spirituality on our planet, but rather incarnated beings grew up from the natural order of the mental and astral Maya - worlds. According to R. Steiner, this planet is where the Asuras go through the development of the mind. Sri Aurobindo explained in his "Letters on Yoga - I" : "Yes, certain types of Asuras are very religious, very fanatical about their religion, and very strict about the rules of ethical behavior. Others are precise on the contrary, there are also those who, without believing in them, use spiritual ideas to distort their meaning and thus deceive the sadhak.It is what Shakespeare calls the devil who quotes the Bible for his purposes. At present they mostly try to stir up the darkness and weakness of the most physical, mental, vital and material parts in order to prevent the progress or the fulfillment of the sadhana."

== New Religious movements ==

For many adherents of religious groups, religion can have a psychological background such as self-reassurance or the flight into a community or group (like a refuge for lonely pensioners), apart from possibly traditional societal compulsions. The criticism of other religions here is often a form of religious self-expression. Where a religion makes an absolute claim for one's own belief, there is usually no spiritual self-realization. Religion then manifests itself in external dead ceremonies and doctrines.  Often God has here only an alibi function .

In the last century, new Christian movements arose and parallel several indian religious movements with millions of people.

But even modern western evangelistic churches (I don't even speak of Jehovah's Witnesses or similar) and various religious mass movements in the Orient and Asia cannot help over the decline of religiosity. Unfortunately, in these communities there is a complete lack of understanding of the founder's original religion, which is interpreted in its own modern sense. A bad example of such brainwashing  is scientology, which is an expensive and not a helpful organization nor a spiritual religion.

On the basis of the interpretations of these modern successors, a misunderstood religion is practiced, which is only externally religious and frozen in rituals, without elevating the core of the human being or even fasting like the Pharisees and observing the commandments according to their form.

The christian movements are mostly meetings of people, who flee into religion and into religious groups as a safe place in a too modern and intolerant world. Partially, they are only a moral sedative for the uneducated classes and for retired pensioners, who escape to a mighty god as a psychic shield behind religious groupings. God has often only an alibi function.

A further disadvantage of these christian movements is the modern interpretation of the scriptures of their founders. Many movements have their basis in the interpretations of the successors of the founder. Therefore give these religions a separatistic feeling of the rebirth of the specific religion, which is catastrophical for the global understanding of religion, and which indirectly directs global life into an atheistic direction because the contents are very infra-rational. 

Real religions would lead people to the spiritual path, so that people become a "spinner of the wheel", but the majority of human souls is sunk in their bodies and does therefore not want a spiritual developement, not to mention their cultural sight of spirituality.

The personal emphasis of an external specific religion has the temporary advantage of creating or restoring an apparent cultural identity, but at the same time the disadvantage of strengthening separatism and obscuring the view of the essentials behind all religions, which is mostly denied there.

In such mass movements spirituality does not have any nutritional base, since the basic maturity is not present, and therefore there is no desire for an ascension.

Therefore these movements consist mostly of simple people, who do not really change the spiritual climate of our planet and dont develop their souls.

The wordwide degeneration of moral is not only a christian problem but also of Islam and of Hinduism and of asiatic buddhism. People who are high above human nature are unwanted. The modern ideals are too human.

A modern spiritual religion must wisely integrate the scientific progress but not admix that with a psychology of religion.

On the other hand all this is only a theoretical lost chance for spirituality, because the masses are not enough developed for a spiritual religion, and the step would be too big for the majority of mankind,  - despite that their  development is not intended in the divine world plan.

== Links to Islam - a religion of God or an incomplete presumption? ==

Is Islam Peaceful? The christian Church also had its Crusades and the Inquisition, both of which can hardly be deduced from the New Testament, but rather witnessed decay. The problem is also that today's Koran has been completely revised by three caliphs Kalif Abd al-Malik ( * 646; † 4. Oktober 705 in Damaskus) , Hajjaj bin Yusuf ( * 661; † 14. Juni 714 )  and Kalif al-Walid (* 706; † 17. April 744) (which is little known) and rather contains since then more a medieval social order than a path to Allah.

The Sharia is therefore is not a codified, unchangeable legal system, but rather a set of rules that is constantly changing. Sharia can therefore only be understood if one looks at the “doctrine of sources of law and legal finding” (uṣūl al-fiqh) instead of individual regulations in terms of content. 

== Literature ==

1. Mizanul_Haqq : The Balance Of Truth 1986 (PDF...)
2. Guillaume, Alfred: The Life of Muhammad, Oxford: Oxford Universitiy Press, 1998
3. Nöldeke, Theodor:The History of the Quran, Leiden: Brill, 2013

4. Translation of Sahih Bukhari : M. Muhsin Khan, 2013

5. Shariahprogram: Translation of Sahih Muslim (2013)

== Weblinks ==

• Wiki about Criticism of religion
• Wiki about Criticism of Christianity
• Wiki about ethics in religion
• Islam : The 'religion of peace...