Thoughts?
------All personal thoughts below-------
Personally, I think he has good intentions but he's too willing to claim religion is what provides good things, or to believe that atheists are automatically absent of anything spiritual or unknowing.
For a few examples:
1. Religion and Practices
Granted, the majority of cultural practices have roots in Religion. But what exactly do they give/provide? A sense of belonging and community, which is something you could get anywhere people gather for a common interest such as say Conventions.
If you like something like Choir? Then go out and sing with a singing club, or sing for Christmas. Christmas never was a Christian holiday anyways to begin with.
2. Religion and Education through Repetition
He's right in that Repetition does help Education, there is no arguing that. However, Religion rather than get this right abuses it. It does not simply repeat a lesson to help you remember, it repeats it to the point you must address as outright fact. And during this it never allows questioning, this effectively turns off one brain. The day you are taught to stop asking questions is they day you basically have stopped learning to think, but simply to obey.
There are better ways to repeat it, asking questions to the class and see if they remember the answer, in-class study sessions in a sense. You could relate similar topics where the previous info pops up again, it relates so you're more likely to recall and remember it. You do not need to simply repeat the same fact over and over again like Religion does in order to teach effectively.
P.S Exceptional cases like Autism Therapy not withstanding, but that mostly falls under practice. Repeat the action (or lack of action ex: stimming) enough times. If anyone ever tried therapy by just preaching the same sentence to a child multiple times they'd get no where. Plus therapy comes with physical rewards as reinforcement, religion has none of that.
3. Religion and Spirituality/Something bigger than us
Ok, during my time as a Christian (16-17 years) I never once had a spiritual moment. Nothing that ever reached out to me and made me go "Wow, this is amazing". Blind obedience? Yes, because I was raised to treat it as fact, but nothing that astonished me or influenced my life in a positive way.
But I get those kinds of "Wow" moments constantly when I do something such as watch Carl Sagan's or Neil Tysons Cosmos series. In fact that show is undoubtedly the most spiritual thing I've had in my life.
And anyone whose seen that show knows fully well what I mean, especially when it comes to something bigger than yourself. Living in a world where our own Galaxy alone has more suns than people? Each Galaxy supporting their own planets. And then the Universe as we know it contains more Galaxies than people even? That REALLY get's in perspective how small we are.
But at the same time, when we go back and look at evolution and how we evolved we also realize how special, unique and skilled we are. And our great potential for good or evil. We're not simply taught something like "we're sin and nothing compared to this divine being" removing any self-confidence a person has.
We get the sense of something far bigger than ourselves, but we do so still feeling well and happy with ourselves, rather than depressed and hateful of ourselves.
4. Religion allows you to go "I don't know"
*Facepalm*
Ok... That is what exactly is done by Religion. It claims to know everything, repeats it as fact and hates any questioning. Science is very humble in admitting we don't know things, and seeks to do studies and research to find the answer rather than sit back pretending to know all the answers.
Now, due to the method of science we sure have learned a lot. But there is infinitely more than we don't know. But just because we don't know something doesn't mean we automatically fill in the blank with God, it mean's we admit to not knowing it and then set out to find the answer.
5. Categorize Art
The art wanders away from Religion a bit. But the general idea still seems to be that categorizing art into sections or themes gives us more meaning. I disagree, I think it becomes more effective in persuading of certain idea's. But it does not allow us to look at it and think, to truly explore, ask questions and reflect if we are to already know the answer. And as a result spark engagement and discussion.
I mean for a very recent example in Media let's look at the movie Frozen. Some people see it as a movie about being yourself, others see it as coming out of the closest (LGBT specific or otherwise), some see it as woman empowerment. And a lot of intelligent and thought provoking discussion has come out of that. Where if the say the movie simply went "Oh no, the message we meant was ______" then all that discussion would just die.
6. Travel & Pilgrimages
This I think just really depends on the individuals kind of travel. But having barely traveled myself my input here is limited. But basically you got those who book a hotel, relax for a week and go home. Those who look at some landmarks, get some expensive souviners and go home.
But then you got those who fully embrace themselves, take in all the culture, do as the Romans do, takes long walks along preserved areas of nature, absorb the design, artwork and music of the country in question. I think this is the kind of travel he refers too, but this is not religion specific.
It's just simply something more outgoing and active people tend to do, cause others are just more comfortable in luxury, simply seeing a few attractions or just not doing much. Now, I think you're missing out on a lot of your vacation if you do that, but this is not a case of needing Religion or religious practices to enhance your trip. It's simply having the energy and initiative to go "I want to go see ______ and do _______ today!" and doing it.
7. Sermons VS Lecture's
The idea being more talks should be given on how to live your life than giving information. The issue is that everyone has different idea's on how to live, how to do things. If you simply have more Sermons you'll get even more pointless arguments over differences rather than constructive debates. Also, if you're simply told how to live rather than being taught information then you're going to learn not to think as much. You'll fine one charismatic and charming person, they'll say some words on how to live. You get washed up and invested into it, and now are just listening to them with little question. But if you were given the information, we can reason it out for yourself, think about it. This expands your mind, opens you to multiple paths, allows you absorb even more info, and perhaps even find a flaw/hole in what you're being taught and actually improve it in the long run.
8. Learning Morality
Now to clarify he was not saying "You need Religion to be moral".
What he was saying was that if you go a school and ask someone how to live or be moral they really don't have an answer for you. School's are not equipped for those things, but Religion is. One of it's main purposes is to teach morality to people.
Now that clarification is out of the way, it still goes back to the main flaw of you needed Religion to be moral. If you needed to believe in a God and be scared of hell to decide that raping, theft and murder are not good things to do... Then you're morality is terrifying. I would not want to be near anyone whose only reason for not murdering or raping someone is their Religion. Granted, schools should have some focus on teaching children in means other than academic. If school is honestly meant to prepare them for life, it should prepare them in all aspects, not just morality. But this change in the school system is not by any means 'borrowing from religion'.
Let's be honest, most atheists (or even religious people who don't believe in _______ god) posses basic human morality. The other religions having it prove that _______ God is not needed to be moral. The atheists prove that Religion is not needed to be moral.
