Greta wrote:
This is science. Someone says "x is true". Someone else says "y" is true. Other are confused, so they test it. The test and the stored knowledge of the result is the first glimmer of science. There lies your "great beast". Fact checking. Not being a sucker who believes anyone's big claims just because they use strong persuasive techniques.
No. Analysis of facts is one thing and an objective human perspective is another. If facts are ever analysed within the domain of an objective human perspective they can become more objectively meaningful.
What is the benefit of this religious "life hack" that you claim to have that secularists lack? It's hard to say from forum chat, but as far as I can tell you are a rather negative thinker and seemingly not especially happy.
"Man - a being in search of meaning." - Plato
The secularist believes the source of human meaning is the earth and society upon it. The religious person believes the source of meaning is from a level of reality far above that of the world. The secularist strives to become more attached to the world while the religious person seeks to sacrifice attachment for the sake of opening to “meaning.”
This is that secularists see when theists try to convince them that they have something special that secularists lack. They see people who believe bizarre, unfounded things, who are eager to fight, who hold irrational hatreds regarding sex and gender, and generally coming across as miserable, angry people clinging to a psychological life raft and trying to convince others that their raft is an ocean liner to hide their vulnerability. (As if there is anything wrong with being vulnerable).
You refer to secular theists who for some reason have ruined the religious experience for themselves and turned it into earthly conflicts. The Great Beast smiles its approval. Apparently you are yet to meet authentic religious people in real life.
The authentic religious experience allows a person to build upon personal experience by admitting we lack the quality of conscious attention which would enable us to impartially see and hear
Matthew 13: 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
Secularists will argue over what what was seen and heard while the authentically religious person knows how selectively anything was seen and heard leading to an endless battle of opinions. The esoteric paths will in their own way help in a person’s ability to consciously see and listen when the student is ready.
If you want to convince others that your way will be good for them, then you yourself need to exude the kind of goodwill, balance, realism, understanding and even-handedness that others would wish to emulate - to demonstrate the benefits. As the cliché goes, "Be the change that you wish to make". Personally, I'm not trying to change anything, mostly just watching the show.
I don’t want to convince anyone of anything. This is a philosophy site which theoretically should respect the search for meaning. If it prefers to ridicule it what is there to exude? In real life I’m Mr. Wonderful in the afternoons with my nursing home and assisted living shows. I allow residents to forget about life for a while and partake in music and humor. When I play at a piano bar in the evening, humor and good vibes are part of it. My inner or esoteric activities take place at other times.
Simone Weil — 'Art is the symbol of the two noblest human efforts: to construct and to refrain from destruction.'
There also is a quality of expression dedicated to the destruction of human value and or the search for meaning. There are those who feel justified through aimless destruction simply because they lack human understanding. In reality they have niether seen or heard anything due to bad experiences in their lives. I try to be human as opposed to a fighting automaton. It offers more satisfaction for me and those around me in our mutual respect for the search to experience objective meaning.