Simple Ponderings on Religion and Philosophy

Some of these are not my quotes...just my thoughts......

What is the difference between a philosophy and a religion?

-Religions are based on the existence of a deity or deities. There can be philosophies associated with religion, but a religion is not a precondition to the existence of associated with religion, but a religion is not a precondition to the existence of philosophy. Many people classify Confucianism and some branches of Buddhism as philosophies, not religious as the existence of a deity is not an essential part of the beliefs.
-Philosophy is the pursuit of wisdom, a search for a general understanding of values and reality. Religion is a commitment of devotion to religious faith or observance, a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices
-One is a way of understanding why and the other is a way of controlling why.
-Religion is stable, while philosophy changing. Religion there is only one answer and it is right, no matter what the facts say or anything else for that matter.

Both Philosophy and Religion are based on 5 common assumptions about the universe.
-1)The universe has reason, meaning it is not futile to attempt to understand it
-2)The universe is contingent, meaning the current state of anything has been affected by other things.
-3)The mind that of the universe, can understand the universe.
-4)There is truth.
-5)There is predictability to the universe, meaning we can understand

Although there are some exceptions that utilize some conflicts of reasons to justify themselves, it can be said that these assumptions which have yet to be proven by any system are required to begin to answer questions we have about the universe, and have also thus far proven to be effective. The difference between philosophy utilizes experimentation to understand and to explain, not the what, but the why. Religion seeks not to explain the why, but the how. Meaning, religion provides a why, but that why is merely a step to the how,usually a god. Philosophy begins at the bottom, religion at the top.

Just as there is no sharp boundary line between philosophy and science, the same is with philosophy and religious doctrine. They can blur into each other in some cases. However, the crucial difference is that philosophers seek rationally-defensible knowledge, hard though this is to obtain. This means that they will not blindly accept claims that are made in so-called holy books, or transmitted within the traditions of a religious institution such as the Catholic Church, or granted by an alleged divine revolution. Even philosophers who accept some or all, of these as reliable sources for certain (alleged) truths will want to find some sort of rational argument as to why they should be accepted. When we talk about "a" philosophy, as opposed to just "philosophy", we usually mean some kind of comprehensive worldviews that claims to be supported by reason. By contrast, a religion will include a worldview that is typically supported by faith and authority, more than by reason, and will usually explain the world, and how it works, by invoking some kind of supernatural entity or principle.