Life – a user's manual Part II - Boksidan

Religions create some obvious differences that affect the daily lives, but it is striking how similar the
practice of religion really is, between religions, for those who really follow the rules (see table 8).
Table 8. Rules for practicing each religion.
Buddhism Hinduism Islam Catolisism Protestantism Orthodoxism
Service
time
Chapel
Prayer
Fasting
Food
restrictions
Few special
worship days.
Specific
buildings called
temples. In
addition, some
altar with
Buddha figures
in the home.
Several times a
day at the
"needs".
Only monks are
fasting.
No meat, poultry,
fish or seafood.
No fixed day of the
week, however,
many different dates
during the year.
Specific buildings
called temples, but in
many Hindu homes,
there is also a small
altar with statues and
stuff.
Several times a day
at the "needs".
One fasts before
sacred ceremonies.
No meat, poultry,
fish or seafood.
Fridays.
The mosque is the place
where you prostrate in
prayer. Which can be
anywhere or in special
buildings (mosques).
Five times/day at fixed
times.
Fasting during the ninth
month of the Muslim
calendar. Then the
orthodox Muslim abstain
from food, drink, sex and
smoking from dawn to
dusk.
Not pig. Slaughter
animals are to be killed
by cutting the carotid
arteries.
Pilgrimage No. No. Yes, to Mecca at least
once in life.
Sundays.
Special buildings called churches
In privacy for example before meals and at bed time.
40 days until Easter day
except Sundays.
In Protestantism
is not fasting.
40 days until
Easter day
except
Sundays.
According to the books of Moses: no pig or animal that has
many legs, not fish without scales, no carnivorous beasts and
birds, shellfish and insects.
Yes, to places associated
with different saints.
No.
Yes, to holy
places.
Aid to
poor
A portion of the
road to the
ultimate goal
(Nirvana) is good
deeds.
Some of the way to
the ultimate goal
(Nirvana) is good
deeds.
Almsgiving is a religious
duty.
The church takes in taxes that partially goes to the needy, and
almsgiving to the needy.
drugs Not alcohol. Not alcohol. Not alcohol. Gladly alcohol except in some protestant churches.
It is reasonable to believe that differences in religion also affects economic factors, the general
honesty/corruption and possibly the presence of gluttony (which presumably shows in the average BMI).
However, there is no clear "winner religion" regarding the listed factors (table 9 + 10), except possibly that
the Protestant countries often have the "best" or the next "best" values.
Table 9.
Religion
Dominant religion vs. miscellaneous data: corruption, BMI for men and alcohol. Catholic Church = red,
Orthodox churches= light blue, Protestant churches = green, unspecified Christian = yellow, Islam = gray,
Buddhism= dark blue, Hinduism = pink.
Good
toilets
(%)
Starvation
(%)
Coruption
1=
much
Public
spenditure
on health
care (% of
GDP)
Mobiles
/ 100
inh.
Cars&
busses/
1 000
inh.
Alcohoolcons.
/
adult
(liter
alc/year)
Average
sugar
consumpt
(g
sugar/pers.
& day
Aver- GDP per
age inh.
BMI
for men
Export
(% of
GDP)
Catholic 79 12 4 5 96 250 9 101 26 10 876 44 2
Orthodox 91 5 4 4 119 239 13 95 26 7 713 45 3
Protestant 86 10 6 6 99 393 7 110 27 16 409 42 2
Unspec Christian 56 18 4 4 81 192 7 77 25 5 619 40 3
Islam 59 15 3 2 79 126 3 57 24 4 128 40 5
Bhudism 74 20 4 2 80 86 4 47 22 6 668 41 5
Hinduism 51 14 4 2 61 78 3 65 22 4 455 32 2
Political
rights
(1=
"total")
169