MENCERMATI PERAN AGAMA DAN KEPERCAYAAN MASA KINI: ANTARA “MENGATASI MASALAH” (PROBLEM SOLVING) ATAU “SUMBER MASALAH”(SOURCE OF PROBLEM)

Abstract

The main focus of this article is criticizing the role of today’s belief and religion in the context of human  relationship.  Belief and  religion  sociologically  were  people’s  creations  to perform  the influence of such a supernatural power and domination over human’s life. Over centuries,  religious beliefs and  people’s convictions have inspired  and illuminated  many people of any civilizations to pursue  or  gain  some values,  ideas  and  truth  through  their  special  way of living by creating  laws, rules, scriptures  and any traditions  specified to them. At the same time, world’s history have clearly noted the two paradoxal  sides of belief and  religion.  In one side, belief and  religion  offer values, ideas, laws and norms to order  human’s life to have a good religious life. But in the other side, they showed  a  long  story  of cruelties,  wars,  bloodshed  and  any  radical   movements on  behalf  of any religions or religious sects. This writing is meant to describe more obviously these “two opposite faces” of belief and religion and gave an offer to readers  to make a self reflection and then take a proper and objective way of thinking by regarding  to some tragic events like WTC tragedy in US seventeen years ago (2001) or to any other like event that happened surround  us recently. Conclusively, we might see that for men or women, religion and belief could stand in any way as a “problem solving” or “problem sourcing”. They were hoped and  suggested  to offer or create  peacefullness,  charity  and well being conditions, but in any way they become also a source or ignition of wars, cruelties and social revolution that seemed to have no end until now.