�PAGE � �PAGE �1� Sisodiya
Nikisha Sisodiya
Jane Rose
AP Language and Composition
April 15, 2012
Is There a True Religion?
All anyone ever wants in life is happiness; we seek fulfillment and the narcotic feeling of joy. In pursuit of this everlasting satisfaction, people have turned to religion for thousands of different years. From ancient tribal religions, to pantheism, to modern day versions of Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism, humans have invested their faith into different beliefs. It might seem obvious that there can only be one true - or at least fully true - religion, since on a number of very important matters the teachings of the religions are not only different but also mutually incompatible. However, objectively speaking, all religions are a guide for moral and pious life and they are "true" in their own teachings. Since all religions respect basic goods, provide faith, instill knowledge, and cannot be applied universally, there is no single or "right" belief system.
All religions carry truth by culminating a set of beliefs, respecting basic goods and honoring subsequent ethics. Religions started out to present reasons behind unpredictable phenomenons such as life, weather, and human sentiments. As these beliefs grew, people began to observe different patterns in human behavior. Eventually these observances became a guide for how to live life; each system sought to protect certain aspects of the world deemed intrinsically 'good" or pleasurable to human beings. These roots of religion are known as basic goods. According to Tim Chappell, "A basic good⦠is 'an intrinsic good, i.e. [one] that is considered good for its own sake and not merely as something sought under some such description"(Chappell 30). Some may argue that there can only be one truth or that some religious cults such as Satanists and Nazism are obviously not...