LaVeyan Satanism is the most reasonable religion

Thanks to Pro for his argument!BOP seems to be on him, so all I have to do here is refute his contentions...R1) RetributionPro's argument here is essentially that because theists believe in the concept of forgiveness (i.e. that there is a way to avoid punishment for sins in the afterlife), theists are more likely to commit immoral acts and be "harmful to society". However, there is a hidden assumption in Pro's argument here: that the only reason a theist would abstain for committing immoral acts in the first place is a fear of that afterlife punishment. However, this is patently false. Religious beliefs are not the primary consideration in moral decision-making; for the most part, humans automatically avoid being "harmful to society" by following their own ethical intuitions (i.e. murder is immoral, helping people in need is good, etc). A theist is not restraining himself from going on a murdering rampage because he is scared of going to hell for it; he naturally avoids such things because he intuitively grasps the concept that murder is wrong. Thus, the knowledge that he can avoid going to hell for murder if he repents afterwards really doesn't play a large role in stopping him from going on a mudering rampage, because hell is not what was deterring him in the first place!Of course, I could also go into the idea that forgiveness is *much* harder to earn than Pro is making it out to be, but I believe that the above logic alone refutes Pro's argument here.R2) Obeying RulesPro talks about how some religious doctrines are harmful to the individual and to society, including the condemnation of abortion, pre-marital sex, and masturbation. First of all, not all of these rules have been proven to be harmful by Pro. Take his examples of PMS and masturbation; he has not supported the notion that abstinence from them is bad at all, instead offering a few bare assertions that they lead to "sexual deprivation", "violence", and "failed marriages". Secondly, all religions have moderate sects that are almost completely devoid of "unneeded rules", as Pro calls them, concentrating solely on the positive aspects of religion.Additionally, Pro states that one of Satanism's doctrines is to indulge in personal, natural desires on a regular basis; however, this has some consequences of its own. Ignoring morality and trying to "satisfy your desires" can result in participating in dangerous activities such as drug abuse and irresponsible sex. Satanism's emphasis on fulfilling desires could have *even more* of a negative effect on the individual and on society than Pro perceives religious doctrines to have.R3) Useless StruggleThis contention suffers the same problems as Pro's C2... Not all unneeded rules are necessarily unreasonable, and not all religious sects are centered around unneeded rules. Pro claims that "Satanism encourages its followers to embrace their true nature and act how they want. Satanists don't have to control their thoughts, actions or feelings." However, this is not necessarily a good thing; most main stream religions, with their rules and concept of forgiveness, encourage continual personal improvement and spiritual development. What Satanism seems to encourage instead is personal stagnation, and Pro has not shown why that is more reasonable than the gradual moving away from sin that theistic religions support.R4) Not Taking ActionSame problems as Pro's C2 and C3. "Hope" and "prayer" have well-known positive results, even assuming the non-existence of a personal god, such as the placebo effect. And not all religious sects encourage blind faith and inaction in times of crisis... many more moderate theists believe in acting on your own, following the phrase "self-help is the best help", while at the same time having faith in God for his assistance and support. If what Pro was saying was true, death from choosing faith healing over medical help would occur far more often.Satanists are no more reasonable than (most) theists in this respect, just like in Pro's past two contentions.R5) Improve Your LifeI have inadvertently addressed this contention in my R2 and R3.Satanism's focus on "accepting yourself for who you are" and "fulfilling your desires" can lead to self-destructive behaviors and personal stagnation, making it much less reasonable than most other main-stream religions.R6) SciencePro states that "The Satanist views regarding human nature and behavior as well as the efficiency of the satanic rituals are supported by biology and psychology". I believe that I have pointed out the flaws in following Satanist doctrines multiple times now >.>And with that, I hand the debate back over to my opponent.Good luck!