Start your own Religion - real and joke versions

RealReasons to create your own real religion.1)You cant find a single religion that works for you.2)You and a group of people you know all agree on spiritual issues but you cant find a single religion that works for you.3)You recieved a message from a divine being.4)You think the religion you're already a part of it corrupted or wrong and you have a way to fix it.5)You think you figured out something no one else has.
Things you'll need (to do) for your Religion.1)A world Philosophy2)A structure of Core Beliefs3)A structure of Rim Beliefs4)A view on Divinity5)A Code of Conduct6)A system of Organization7)Continuity8)A system of Training your priests or members9)A Goal for Followers10)A view on Afterlife11)A view on the Human condition12)A name13)Do research of established religions.14)Make it feel like you've always been a part of it.15)Be completely honest about your beliefs, avoid justifications.
1)A world philosophy. How does your religion view the world and/or life? Is it bad, good, a learning experience, etc. What are the problems? what are the Solutions? What is your religion's role or the role of humanity in the world?
2)You will need a structure of core beliefs that dont change. If there are no core beliefs then your "religion" is really just a group of eclectics with the same title.
3)You will need a structure of rim beliefs. There are beliefs that are completely individualized. If your religion has no rim beliefs then there will be no growth or branching, all you will have is sheep following what you told them to do. Rim beliefs allow members of the religion to alter their personal beliefs without changing the religion they follow because they still have the same core beliefs as the religion.
4)You will of course need a view on Divinity. Does it exist? Is it singular or divided? Several systems are...Animism -belief systems that attribute souls to animals, plants, and other non human entities in addition to humans.Deism -supreme god, takes no roll in universal events.Duotheism -two gods, complementary and equalDitheism -two gods, oppose each other and are equalHenotheism -devotion to one god with belief in existence of other gods.Monism -belief that everything can be taken down to one thing. ranging from the mind is not real to the physical is not real.Monolatry -recognize existence of many gods, worship only one.Monotheism -only one god. may have multiple facets of being. Christian -father, son, holy ghost.Pandeism -god precedes the universe and is the universes creator but currently the universe is god but it will one day return to being only god and no universe.Panentheism -god is the universe, plus extends beyond the universe. all nature is a part of god but god is not solely nature.Pantheism -all gods are one god; god is nature, Polytheism -worship of multiple godsTranstheism -an Absolute exists in trancendence over the gods.Fideism -faith unaffected by reason, reason and rationality dont matter. only faith and revelations matter.Fetishism -belief that an object has powersNaturalism - everything labeled 'supernatural' really isnt supernatural.Pluralism - the universe is made up of several substances. -ex: greek -earth, water, fire, air.Dualism -philosophy that some mental phenomena are non physical and related directly to the soul.Shamanism -spirits effect the world, relationships can be formed, animals can bear omens, spirits can be good or bad.Theism - deities exist, immanent yet trancendant; they are omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresentNontheism -reject possibility of deities, atheism and agnostism are nontheistic. Not the same as irreligion.Immanence - divine being acts within the universeTrancendence - divine being is beyond the physicalMisotheism -hatred of godsPolydeism -multiple gods, none of which are interested in the universe anymore.Humanism -religion should not effect human affairs
5)You will need a recommended Code of Conduct. What are things that people shouldnt do? What is wrong? What is right? What actions will eventually lead to your being a better person?
6)You will need a system of organization for your members. Whose a priest? Who does what in services and rituals? Whose incharge? How do people get different tasks?Several systems are...Hierarchical - different people are in charge or above other people; whether by education or power.Council - all members of a defined grouping of religious members have a say in a council to decide what the entire group does.Autonomous - there is no organized connection between groupings of religious members.Electoral - leaders are elected by the group.Rotary - members take turns with the different positions in the group.Chronological - Members get positions based on who has been a part of the group the longest.Degree -members with higher educations and training get more responsibility.
You will also need to distinguish who is a member of the Priesthood and who is not.There seem to be only three systems...Everyone is Laity (no one is a priest).Everyone is part of the priesthood (no laity).Or a mixture of both.
7)You will need a method of ensuring continuity. How does one person learn about the path? How do they teach it to someone that wants to learn?
8)You will of course need a method of training priests or informing members.
9)Obviously you will need a religious goal for Members of the religion. If there is no goal what is the point of being a member of the religion?
10)You will need a view on what happens after this life.Systems seem to be...Reincarnation.Perminent Afterlife Location (heaven and hell).Temporary Afterlife Location.Oneness with the Universe.Deification.And 'nothing'.
11)Your religion may need a view on the condition of Humanity.Several systems are...Humanity is Innately Flawed.Humanity is flawed by action.Humanity is fine.Humanity can grow.Humanity is flawed but theres no problem with that.Humanity is small and insignificant.
12)And you will of course need a name that hasnt already been taken. A name should be based on something important to your religion, be it your name, something profound, a tenant, a deity, or something symbolic. Technically you may need two names, one for the religion itself and one for the members of the religion.Several suffixes for religions and groupings are...ism -act, practive, doctrineary -group ofation -concept ofcity -practiceSeveral suffixes for the members or a group or religion are...ad -groupan -membershipent -ian - pertaining toier -ist -personite -member of a groupling -smaller or cuter version of the noun, shares a quality or identity eg as a followeror, er -personster -personacea -belonging toary, ory, ery - relating to, qualityid ,ide -belonging toine -having the characteristic of
13)If you're going to make a real religion you need to be completely honest about your personal beliefs. You also need to avoid making justifications for your flaws.
14)To help in the construction of your religion do research of established religions and organizations.
15)Remember the main goal of every religion is personal relationship with the divine and personal betterment. If you construct it right it should feel like you're just giving yourself a name for something you've been all along.
----------------------------------------------------FakeReasons to make a Fake religion.1)you're bored2)you're broke3)you're a meglomaniac
Things you'll need (to do)1)Find a good name. beware acronyms.2)Blame some entity for everything bad.3)Completely remove peoples need to think for themselves.4)Find something that will make people flock to you.5)Make your authority absolute.6)Make something in the afterlife terrible.7)Forgiveness only handed out by your group.8)Keep it easy to remember.9)Organize it.10)Only you know whats wrong.11)Make up something stupid as a gimmick.12)Only your group gets a good afterlife.13)Dont take it too seriously.14)Make up some commandments.15)Make up a list of good entities.16)Make a few myths.17)Be skimpy on what your actual beliefs are.18)Tell everyone you're persecuted.19)Create a logical fallacy to protect the religion.20)overlay the beliefs with real religions.21)keep it ambiguous22)Always refer to your god(s) with special names like "The Great God" or such.23)Write a bible in a fake language and make up meanings for symbols and 'words'24)make a few rules and beliefs that contradict so followers can pick and chose25)make them feel guilty26)make a bunch of fake rituals27)pretend its really really old.

1)Find a good name, something not previously used and something that sounds cool. No one will want to join you if you call yourselves the "Shitters" and if you call yourselves something thats already taken you're just gonna get your asses kicked. Also beware acronyms, they can make your name look dumb.
2)Make up some entity and blame it for everything bad. This way people get to avoid responsibility for their actions, which every fluffy and idiot wants.
3)Completely remove followers need to think for themselves. Again fluffies and idiots dont like to think, so help them out by taking away the need to do so.
4)Find a gimmick that will make people come join your group.
5)Make your authority absolute. No one but you knows what the religion is really about and anyone that says something different from you is a heretic.
6)Make something in the afterlife terrible. This gives people a reason to do what you want them to. To "save" them from the terrible afterlife.
7)Make sure that everyone knows that everyone is bad and the only way to be forgiven for being bad is by asking you or your Deit(y/ies) to forgive them.
8)Keep things easy to remember. Remember these people dont want to think, struggling to remember something is thinking.
9)Organize it with your goal in mind. Want money? you're in charge or the coffers. Want power? You're at the top of the food chain. Want it to spread like wild fire? Everyone is completely autonomous.
10)Only you or your group knows what is wrong with the world, therefore only you can fix it.
11)Make up something stupid as a gimmick, people love stupid gimicks.
12)Make sure everyone knows only your group gets a good afterlife, this gives everyone else a reason to join your group.
13)Dont take it too seriously, remember you're pulling this out of your ass. If you truly start thinking a giant purple polka dot skinned octopus alien is in the sky telling you what to do you'll be locked up.
14)Make up some commandments. Give the people rules to follow. Make sure shit you like to do is allowed.
15)Make up a list of "good" entities for people to like and pray to and such. The Angel Archy for example.
16)Make up a few myths to flesh things out. Like the time the Great God Bobby Tim fought the three headed lion demon.
17)Be skimpy on what you actually believe. If no one knows what the religion is actually about you have more idiots to pick from.
18)Tell everyone your group that you just invented 5 minutes ago is being persecuted and has been persecuted since ancient times.
19)Create a logical fallacy to protect the religion. Ex: doubts are the Great God's Enemy's way of trying to lead you from the true path.
20)Overlay the beliefs with real religions. If people see similarities with religions they know about they might think you're not pulling it out of your ass.
21)Make it ambiguous. Make two gods that are enemies, dont tell people which one is bad and which one is good. They'll make shit up and fight over it on their own. 22)Always refer to your god(s) with special names and titles like "The Great God" or "The Terrible One". People hear it enough they'll start to think its true.
23)Write a fake bible in a fake language and make up meanings for symbols and words.
24)Make a few rules and beliefs that contradict one an other so people can pick and chose which ones they believe in.
25)Make them feel guilty for doing shit they do every day. Then they'll pray and ask forgiveness or come to you and ask you to forgive them. Triple points if you make them feel guilty for a bodily function like breathing or crapping.
26)Make a bunch of fake rituals for them to act silly in. Double points if you make the rituals illegal and convince others that its proof of your being persecuted.
27)Pretend that its really really old. Double points if you can find something to 'prove' it. Of course you dont need to show anyone else the supposed proof just make them believe it.

Ajay