Nice thread so far, ill add my input. It is sad that people view books written by man as the word of god. Nobody has mentioned the eastern religions yet in this thread yet though, some of them are not so bad. Especially Buddhism, for those that do not know, it is a very philosophical and open-minded religion that aims at reducing human suffering. Contrary to following a rigid doctrine to appease a deity such as in western religion. The biggest stain on religion and our understanding of god in my opinion is the 3 crazy desert religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam (and all extreme sects that are based off these including JW). All 3 of which are monotheistic religions with rigid rules, that have clashed with each other and caused many wars throughout history. What I like about eastern religions is they are generally more open-minded, and they seem to have a better understanding of human nature, and therefore they don't have as rigid restrictions against sex.

I don't believe in god, but I still consider myself spiritual. One misconception people often have is that you can't be spiritual if you are not religious or at least agnostic. I disagree with that. To me being spiritual is being aware that your actions and lifestyle effect far more than just yourself. They affect your family, your friends, your neighbourhood and so on and so forth. To me being spiritual also means you have compassion and empathy for other living beings. To me being spiritual is having a love and curiosity of nature. Therefore I believe even an Atheist can be more spiritual than any religious person.

Ill end my post with a quote from the Buddha himself

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.”