SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE:

Bill Maher’s main point in the documentary “Religulous” seems to be that there is no logical basis for the beliefs of most religions.

There is no way to know for sure that there really is a God, or that such a god would be anything like any of those described in the various religions.

People who claim that they “know” there is a God and that God is the one described in the Christian Bible or the holy books of the other religions, simply because they were told it is so, or would like to believe it is so, are naturally the ones who take the greatest offense when confronted with doubt, and will not even discuss it.

Science and common sense say that we should doubt anything for which there is no true evidence, but it is difficult to have a logical discussion with those who prefer belief to evidence.

Maher goes into amusing detail about some of the outlandish things that Scientologists are supposed to believe, which the rest of us would agree are completely ridiculous.

But he makes the point that most other religions have similar things that they are supposed to believe, but we tend to accept them simply because such thoughts are part of our heritage and because we are familiar with them.

It is an entertaining movie and not particularly confrontational.

The point is made that practically all of Jesus’ supposed miracles were simply duplications of claims about other, earlier, leaders or local heroes.

Such claims were commonly made in that age about people whom others wished to honor.

And that, of course, would indicate that the Christian Bible is basically a collection of made-up or borrowed stories.

The Koran and other religious books are equally questionable.

JERRY PARKS is a member of the Humanist Assn. of Orange County.