On page 12, the text states that philosophy begins when people began to try to "understand their world by the use of their reason, without appealing to religion" (12). In other words, the philosophers sought things like meaning, value, and a sense of right and wrong without appealing to God. Do you believe that's possible, or does one need religion to live a good and meaningful life? Defend your view.

I do not believe one needs religion to live a good and meaningful life, nor do they need to appeal to God to seek meaning, value or a sense of right and wrong. I do believe that appealing to religion can make for a guiding path towards a meaningful life, but is not the only way. Whether one follows a path guided by a particular religion or follows a path set by themselves toward a righteous and moral life, these two paths are very similar.
Living a good and meaningful life requires one to be virtuous and ethical. Many religions are based around their members living by these standards and attempts to show them how to live by such standards. There are certainly many who live virtuous, ethical lives while not appealing to religion as well. Moreover, just having religion in one’s life does not guarantee one will live a good and meaningful life. It comes down to the individual. It is the individual’s choice to follow the guide of their religion toward a good life. Therefore, I believe anyone who is attempting to live a meaningful life by way of religion is still following their own personal set of morals. Thus, it is not necessary to follow religion, as long as one’s own morals lead them towards a righteous life. Furthermore, there are many religious beings who do not live meaningful lives, not because their religion leads them astray, but because they chose to not live by the morals set by their religion. This strengthens my theory that the outcome of one’s life results