I think having a moral basis is good. But I can’t say you need religion. I had to work through this stuff myself when I was young because I wasn’t getting any real guidance on this stuff. I didn’t really consult any holy books. I just thought about what kind of person I wanted to be.
I think it was mainly feeling bad about the reactions people had to me because I would misbehave and act out. So it started with trying to figure out how to avoid that. Then, as time went on and I encountered new things, I’d sit in my room and have to think them through. I’m almost jealous of people who had their parents or religion just tell them how to be. It was a shortcut I didn’t have.
But, I tried to become more religious in my 20s because I felt like it was exhausting having to figure all this stuff out. Why not just take one of the ready made templates provided by religion? I found that I questioned things too much to ever buy into it fully. That seems to be the key. At your core, you have to have unquestioning belief in the religion’s core. I can’t do that.
Oh for sure. But it’s easier said than done. Most people don’t have the interest in doing so. They just follow what they’re told to do blindly.
It’s why Trump is so popular. He has all the answers, as he tells followers. That’s comforting to a lot of people. I think that’s partially why some people put him in religious imagery or contexts. He really is a god to the MAGAs.
But to carry forth a religious analogy, he’s a golden calf. All the religious people who support him fully are going against the teachings of the Bible.