Originally Posted by nonsqtr";p=&quot

Man is the only known species with a religious inclinatioin.

Originally Posted by Gaar";p=&quot

We are basically the only "species" to be Sentient also...

Perhaps there is a correlation there you don't understand?

Regards,
Gaar

Originally Posted by ForceoftheTruth";p=&quot

There is strong evidence that hippopotamuses and elephants have religious inclinations. Elephants clearly mourn their dead and a group of hippopotamuses was caught on video doing what could only have been mourning for a dead cow. I'm not making this up. Both elephants and hippopotamuses are considered highly intelligent. There is some possibility that chimpanzees are inclined towards nature worship, but the evidence, last I heard, was inconclusive. By the way Gaar, all animals are "sentient":

Main Entry: sen·tient
Pronunciation: 'sen(t)-sh(E-)&nt, 'sen-tE-&nt
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin sentient-, sentiens, present participle of sentire to perceive, feel
1 : responsive to or conscious of sense impressions <sentient beings>

http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/sentient

Yes, humans are probably the most intelligent animals, though we need to study whales further to be certain of this, but all animals are by definition sentient.

Originally Posted by ForceoftheTruth";p=&quot

First, I support church/state separation. I oppose school prayer and would approve of the Ten Commandments on public buildings only with other documents of historical importance for a proper context. I have no problem with block grants to religious charities, but the money must be going to charity rather than proselytizing. The same would be true of an actively atheist charity (if such a group exists). Government money shouldn't go to encouraging or discouraging religion in general nor any particular religious or non-religious belief system. I do support school vouchers to both religious and secular schools to prevent poorer parents from being forced to give their children a non-religious education, but that viewpoint goes against my grain on church/state issues. I support gay marriage, oppose blasphemy laws and think that public education about carnal matters should simply teach the biological facts without a pro-abstinence or pro-contraception agenda. I've even ignored my initial instincts and decided that pornography should not be censored unless children are likely to see it.
Having stated that, I am a Christian. As for whether Christianity and other religions are myth or reality, there is no rational way of knowing. Experience is unreliable, moreover. A religious experience could be genuine or it could be a hallucination. All affirmations or denials concerning anything religious or supernatural are inherently unverifiable. In other words, all of the following statements are equally "likely" to be true:

1. There is one God.

2. There are 100 gods.

3. There is no god.

4. There is an afterlife.

5. There is no afterlife.

6. All cosmic forces are contained within a giant Brussels sprout.

In other words, all statements about religion, whether supportive of it or opposed to it, are rationally meaningless. Therefore, I readily concede that I am a Christian based solely on non-rational faith. Accordingly, I certainly have no right nor any desire to enforce the beliefs that come from my "leap of faith" onto others.