Imagine i would be willing to create a new religion...
what are the dos and donts ?

I'll start with the most obvious ones, feel free to complete the list.

- The creator(s)/ruler(s) must be humanoid = super-humans.
(no one will want to worship a god that is said to look like a shrimp)

- Humans are made in the image of the big honcho(s) (as stated above) and are therefore the most intelligent beings just after the big honcho(s).
(the thought that humans could be somewhere at the bottom of the universal food chain should be repressed by all means or they will jump into the arms of your competitors)

- Imagine an appealing after-death (decay doesn't sell). If possible more appealing than the competitors ... be creative.


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Great question!

The after death "reward" could be that if you do X,Y,Z you become a god and are given a planet of your own... where you can basically "design" your own world and can choose to inhabit it.

My basic complaint with Christianity's Heaven is that it's pre-defined, and it sounds more like a hell to me. I don't really care for jewels and gold, and most certainly not all that awful choir singing.

what could be more appealing then 70 beautiful, big chested virgins after death ?
Islam rules , I'm going to blow-up myself now ! cya !

Well, here is how to not start a religion.

To start lots of this and this and video games in the afterlife. I also like the idea posted previously about the big chested virgins =D.

You need to make it so that the super human being (a.k.a. God) can bail a foolish mortal out if said mortal talks to them (a.k.a. praying).

Then you need to create a lengthy book of dos and don'ts for followers to, well, follow. Said book can contain obscenity and atrocity, but that's ok as long as readers "read in-between the lines" and "ignore some of it because it is wrong". Also create a backstory as to how the religion came into be. How about saying that some guy (we'll call him Bob) ten thousand years ago, was delivered into a promised land by [insert god here]. Then dear Bob was gifted with a beautiful wife and children. One child was later sacrificed (or almost sacrificed) by Bob to [insert god here] but [insert god here] "saved" the child by cancelling the orders at the last minute.

Once the backstory is complete bury the book in your backyard for (at least) a year and then later "claim you found it miraculously". Then claim that [insert god here] has been communicating with you telepathically since the time of the book's discovery.

Enjoy =]

L.Ron Hubbard really had this new religion formula sorted.
He made statements to the effect of;

For a new religion you need to aim for a target audience and capture a niche demographic. Hubbard added space aliens and big volcanoes probably to appeal to sci fi fans and tropical Island villagers.

Lets aim for Jazz musicians and ice cream salesmen. A religion with it's god as a giant Sax playing Mr Whippy.

Buddhism is a religion and it has non of your characteristics

I think religion should provide people with values and ways of internal growth. It should assist people to deal with difficulties and change.

humanoid???

what about the fling spaghetti monster???

You should keep things just a bit vague. People will scare themselves silly if you don't really tell them what "hell" is like, and they'll fill in their own version of "paradise." Also, make the rules more like guidelines. That makes it appeal to the widest possible audience. Oh, and you need somebody to hate -- people love to hate. Encouraging your followers to proselytize can't hurt.

once saw an add in the paper

"Create your own theology! Join the Unitatian church"

invite the BBC to watch your religon and then get the guy from panorama to shout at you?

you also need to sue school boards for not teaching your religion as an alternative to evolution...
and because court buildings do not have monuments of your prophets...
and because your religion's prayer is not said before the start of a congressional session

Well you'll need a prophet... and as in all religions he gotta have problems (eg: Buddhism-Buddah{Denial}, Confusiousism-Confusious{Book worm} Christianity-Jesus{alcoholic} need I go on). It'll have to be something thats not done yet... Since Micheal Jackson is out played, Id say Whitney Houston would make a good prophet

There are totemistic religions out there. Jaguars, sharks, monkeys - they all deserve to be honored as gods.

Also , to gt takers, you should get some rewards for the chicks! 21 Well cut, cute, sweet boys, who know just what you want, mater of fact, just one would be heaven. And yes a god could be an animal! But it has to be an animal that people think is 'cool'.

imho, id worship a wolf, lion, or buxom (or not so buxom) babe over an uber-old dude anyday. wolves and lions just cause they're so flippin' cool, and a babe, i mean, who wouldn't?

Golden rule : The religion should not admit ugly girls and handsome guys ( except me of course :P )

define 'ugly'

I've thought about how profitable it would be to start a cult, and if I could find a few loyal and trustworthy partners in the endeavor, it would be pretty easy. But, it goes too much against my conscience. One side of me says "the member deserve it if they allow themselves to be duped and they're getting something in return anyway for their money" but the othe side maintains that it just isn't right to be deceptive. I've turned into such a softy in my old age.

The only difference between a cult and a religion is the number of lobbyists they can hire.