Because I am not a Christian I find it hard to believe that everything that the Bible teaches is real. At school all I ever want to be is a scientist of somekind, so my views are in favour of those of science. There is no God in my life. If he really exists then why is there deaths and war??

If death didn't exist then the earth would we overpopulated quickly. Wars are because of greed and selfishness. I recently gave up Christianity and am now atheist, so in my opinion, yes. Christianity is a waste of time. I would find it fairly funny if it turned out the Bible originally had a Fiction label on it. Which is a possibility.

Wow I thought that no one would agree with me. Thanks.

nothing is a waste of time when you truly enjoy it. still, christianity (and any other religion) isnt a hobby. you can be christian without thinking about it every second of your life. the fact your a theist doesnt make you obsessed with your religion.

but... if your like endless and changed your point of view on life (and DID make the religion a BIG part of your daily life) then yes... its a huge waste of time. which is why my only suggestion to people is... start focusing on whats happening now and dont make such beliefs a big part of your life

I wish I'd said that... that is what I was thinking at the time. One of my friends is an extremist Christian and prays to God three times a day!! I'm glad she didn't see what i posted!

Well, seeing what religion lets people do, i.e. Cathedrals, towering Mosques, Shrines, Temples, Monasteries, perhaps religion is a provider of jobs.

~Three Sixes? Should I be scared? HAHA

Why is it many people's belief that science and  cannot coe-exist in the same mind. I beleive in both religion and science, and that they are extreamly similar.

I personally think that religion is a good guide to moralls and ethics, and that it can help you realize different things, for example, that there are other people besides yourself, and you should care for them. That is just an example, there are other benifits as well. Its a good way to live. It can also help you cope with things like death of family members.

These are not my reasons of why I am religios, just reasons I have found through liveing with my religion.

~Krill11

Why is it many people's belief that science and  cannot coe-exist in the same mind. I beleive in both religion and science, and that they are extreamly similar.

I've always liked the phrase "Religion begins where science ends". Dunno where it comes from, but it's pretty accurate. That doesn't mean that one individual cannot study sciences and be a believer in the same time; many researchers are religious. But the more we learn about our world, the less we need the religious explanations.

I personally think that religion is a good guide to moralls and ethics, and that it can help you realize different things, for example, that there are other people besides yourself, and you should care for them. That is just an example, there are other benifits as well. Its a good way to live. It can also help you cope with things like death of family members.

I don't see how these are exclusive to religions? Non-religious persons also possess morals and all that; they just don't make rules and commandments based on them.

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Now on topic... depends what you consider a waste of time. What would you spend your time on instead of religions? Would it really be better?  I personally don't think we need religions, but some people get their inspiration from it and are happy with it; what's wrong with that?

Food for thought:
as Fosca would say (a character from the book 'All Men Are Mortal'): mortals are born to die, they're just killing time until their death releases them from life. In this aspect, there is no time to waste, there is only time to pass.

Coming from a Protestant family, I have been taught that Christianity is above all about love, mercy and kindness to other people. Am I a religious person? No, not at all. I never pray and only go to church once a year, if even that. Do I think that we should put our trust in science? Absolutely yes. But it has taught me the value of kindness, being generous and helping those in need - things that this otherwise pitiless,'every man for himself' modern society would've never taught me.

While I think that there are people who are always ready to exploit Christianity (and other religions, while we're at it), and use it as an excuse to justify their own intolerance and bigotry, Christianity in itself is not useless or a waste of time. It helps so many people, teaches good morals and gives hope, meaning and consolation to people's lives. Without the church's help and charity, there would be a lot more suffering. There is already enough of that going around.

Like everything else in this world, religion can be used to do both good and evil. When people live their lives based on the good teachings and help others, without descending into zealotry, then I believe that Christianity is worthwhile. If people only stick to the rules and use them to sow hate and prejudice, then religion is not worth it. What is the point of having an ideology that preaches about good things when it only causes the opposite effect?

I don't see how these are exclusive to religions? Non-religious persons also possess morals and all that; they just don't make rules and commandments based on them.

The main difference I've found is that only a nonreligious person can truly do a selfless act of kindness for someone and expect absolutely nothing in return. All the Christian folk, whether or not they realize it at the time, do it for brownie points with God in order to obtain a self-centered reward later on.

Because I am not a Christian I find it hard to believe that everything that the Bible teaches is real.

Especially considering much of it can be traced back to earlier mythologies, yeah.

If death didn't exist then the earth would we overpopulated quickly. Wars are because of greed and selfishness.

Since we are dealing with Christianity specifically a traits often given to that God are that of a creator god and an omnipotent one. Such a god could easily and effortlessly create a world where overpopulation could never become an issue and war was nonexistent.

Well, seeing what religion lets people do, i.e. Cathedrals, towering Mosques, Shrines, Temples, Monasteries, perhaps religion is a provider of jobs.

All that time effort and money I think could be spent elsewhere in more productive and taxable ways.

Why is it many people's belief that science and  cannot coe-exist in the same mind. I beleive in both religion and science, and that they are extreamly similar.

One is capable of holding mutually exclusive beliefs.

I personally think that religion is a good guide to moralls and ethics, and that it can help you realize different things, for example, that there are other people besides yourself, and you should care for them.

The Bible provide an entire spectrum of both morally and ethically reprehensible points just as it provides good moral and ethical points. As a result it no longer becomes a good guide for anything, since it covers everything. As a result the person isn't getting their morals and ethics from such a place, but are simply imprinting their own preexisting morals and ethics onto it. Though having such a thing as a proponent can allow for an individual to justify the positions they hold, even if they are morally reprehensible ones.

I've always liked the phrase "Religion begins where science ends". Dunno where it comes from, but it's pretty accurate. That doesn't mean that one individual cannot study sciences and be a believer in the same time; many researchers are religious. But the more we learn about our world, the less we need the religious explanations.

Which in the end is nothing more than a god of the gaps fallacy.

Coming from a Protestant family, I have been taught that Christianity is above all about love, mercy and kindness to other people.

I would recommend sitting down and reading through the Bible for your self.

As for the question of is Christianity a waste of time. Sure it is. But I have to also temper that response with what thebluerabbit said "nothing is a waste of time when you truly enjoy it. still, christianity (and any other religion) isnt a hobby. you can be christian without thinking about it every second of your life. the fact your a theist doesnt make you obsessed with your religion."