LaVeyan Satanism is the most reasonable religion

1. "A theist is not restraining himself from going on a murdering rampage because he is scared of going to hell " I never claimed that all religious people are murderers. Not all Christians are likely to be murderers, but murderers are more likely to be Christians than Satanists. My point was that people who are inclined to murder or steal are more likely to do so if they are religious, because as long as they think they are saved, they are more likely to just do whatever they want. As long as people believe there is an afterlife and believe that their eternal existence is safe, they have no reason not to kill, assuming they have criminal tendencies. 2. "instead offering a few bare assertions that they lead to "sexual deprivation", "violence", and "failed marriages". " Sexual deprivation means lack of sex. As long as religions don't allow their followers to have sex before marriage, they will be sex deprived until they get married. Since most people will get married after they are 18, religious people will suffer from sex deprivation for at least 4 years. sexual deprivation leads to violent behavior which is harmful to the individual and society. "When men experience sexual deprivation, physical aggression is the most common symptom" Even religious person need sex and since their religion doesn't allow them to have sex before marriage, it is possible that some people will get married just in order to have sex. I'm not saying this is always the case, but it is likely this will happen. Also, Con didn't address my point regarding abortion, which is a very serious problem. Religion doesn't allow contraception or abortion. At the same time, religions preach about the futility of material possessions. It would be beneficial for society if poor families wouldn't have to raise more than one kid, yet this is often the case. "dangerous activities such as drug abuse and irresponsible sex" First, I want to say that irresponsible sex isn't a dangerous activity. It could be considered immoral, but it isn't harmful to anyone. In addition, Satanism prevents irresponsible sex through The Satanic Rituals. Regarding drug abuse, one of the central doctrines of Satanism is "Indulgence, not compulsion". The Church of Satan doesn't outlaw drug use, since "You make your own personal choice as to what you do as an individual". However, the Church of Satan doesn't encourage drug use, and considers such acts un-Satanic "Self-destructive, suicidal hedonism"via whatever means"is ultimately un-Satanic as it threatens the very thing a Satanist holds most dear: his own life." 3. " encourage continual personal improvement and spiritual development" Satanists are free to change themselves, but not forced to. This is a very important distinction, because religions will usually force people to improve, as they fear hell or karma. Religion tell people what is right and what is wrong. Satanists are free to chose how to change. They decide what is right and what is wrong and if they want to, they will improve. Other religions will tell you exactly how the improve, which is not more reasonable than being able to decide this for yourself. Also, I want to mention that personal improvement isn't only influenced by religion. There are many religious people that refuse to improve. Regarding spiritual development, this is different in every religion. For a Christian, spiritual development means connecting with Jesus, while for a Buddhist it means meditating and seeing the world differently. It is wrong to say that Satanism doesn't require any spiritual development. A Satanist must accept that he is just an animal, "sometimes better, more often worse, than those who walk on all fours". He also has to accept that he is controlled by his carnal desires. This is not very easy to accept and does require exercise and spiritual development. 4. " "Hope" and "prayer" have well-known positive results" My point was that religious people choose to pray instead of doing something. In times of crisis most people will indeed do something about their conditions, but usually the crisis can be avoided by taking action earlier. Sometimes, religious people might not take action because they think they deserve what happened to them. All religions preach some form of universal justice and if religious people broke some holy law, they might accept their "punishment" and choose not to interfere with God's plan. 5. " lead to self-destructive behaviors and personal stagnation" As I have shown, self-destructive behavior is regarded as un-Satanic by the Church of Satan, and personal stagnation isn't determined solely by religion. 6. "I have pointed out the flaws in following Satanist doctrines multiple times now" This doesn't mean anything. Even if the Satanist doctrines are flawed, it doesn't change the fact that science greatly supports Satanism. Source: The Satanic Bible http://www.churchofsatan.com... http://polymedclinics.blogspot.ro...