I think you are over-generalizing and somewhat harshly. (I subscribe to no religion, personally, though I come from generations of church goers). Those following their religion's essential spiritual beliefs can create so much good. However, using religion like an ugly team sport, whether needing to coerce and indoctrinate others, or defi…
I think you are over-generalizing and somewhat harshly. (I subscribe to no religion, personally, though I come from generations of church goers). Those following their religion's essential spiritual beliefs can create so much good. However, using religion like an ugly team sport, whether needing to coerce and indoctrinate others, or define "non-believers" as enemies or somehow "less than", is evil exploit.
Thank you for helping clarify my observation. I see there are groups of people with a “golden rule” ethic that makes sense and that do a lot of good. To those, I celebrate, tied to religion or not. But Christianity/Catholicism hasn’t fully owned the damage done, and being done in its name. Examples in history are the “Indian schools”, the Magdalene laundries, the Crusades and the mass appropriation of land and wealth. To me, a church teaches one to submit and relinquish one’s own ability to create a civil morality. Sure, I tend to respond in general tone because I am not writing a paper here, just asking questions, sharing opinions and observations.
All that horrific and hateful behavior is not something Jesus would condone (or so I interpret). It's when religion and alleged loyalty to goodness has perverted to a cult of "evil" that all the worst of humanity unfolds.
I think you are over-generalizing and somewhat harshly. (I subscribe to no religion, personally, though I come from generations of church goers). Those following their religion's essential spiritual beliefs can create so much good. However, using religion like an ugly team sport, whether needing to coerce and indoctrinate others, or define "non-believers" as enemies or somehow "less than", is evil exploit.
Thank you for helping clarify my observation. I see there are groups of people with a “golden rule” ethic that makes sense and that do a lot of good. To those, I celebrate, tied to religion or not. But Christianity/Catholicism hasn’t fully owned the damage done, and being done in its name. Examples in history are the “Indian schools”, the Magdalene laundries, the Crusades and the mass appropriation of land and wealth. To me, a church teaches one to submit and relinquish one’s own ability to create a civil morality. Sure, I tend to respond in general tone because I am not writing a paper here, just asking questions, sharing opinions and observations.
All that horrific and hateful behavior is not something Jesus would condone (or so I interpret). It's when religion and alleged loyalty to goodness has perverted to a cult of "evil" that all the worst of humanity unfolds.