Religion Poisons Everything...

The below sample set (from a single source, in a limited time period) is aside from the graft and embezzlement (April, 2018) on the part of many of the mega church leaders. Examples also do not mention any of the clergy child abuse and pedophilia scandals involving numerous denominations of Christianity in the west. The Sweet Jesus Ice Cream ad seems to have brought out some of the whiniest of the U.S. Christians a while back (April, 2018). I haven't looked to see how the ice cream chain is doing. It's within the airport facility in Baltimore. I need to try it the next time I fly. The blog piece and comments cracked me up though. In a country with a secular constitution, how can the predominant religion that has forced its symbols, beliefs, and iconography into our schools, our courts, and our government complain about being mocked? The U.S. is not supposed to have a tyranny of the majority. The U.K. is predominantly Anglican Christian, and still has the head of that church as the nominal head of State -- how is this a good thing? You've heard of the Irish "troubles" (discrimination against Catholics), right? It boggles my mind! 

Islam adherents don't want their children to learn of LGBTQ, in the U.K. (March, 2019)

Methodist sects can't agree with each other about the status of LGBTQ UMC in the U.S. (March, 2019)

Teacher fired from public money supported religious school because she was no longer married, British Columbia, Canada. (March, 2019)

State house swearing in of first Muslim female representative practically hijacked by Christian representative. Pennsylvania, U.S. (March, 2019)

Priests air-bombed a city with holy water instead of just praying like they have been annually, to help prevent "fornication and alcohol consumption". Russia, (Sep, 2019)

Christian owned B&B cannot discriminate against gay couple, (March, 2019) U.S. supreme court declines to hear appeal less than a year after Supreme Court decision that Christian baker can refuse to make cake for gay couple  U.S. (June, 2018) 

And if you can follow the story and comments of who did what when to who, you may have a tiny bit of understanding of the decades (centuries?) old war(s) among Jews, Gentiles, Christians, Muslims in the middle east. (May, 2018)

We don't even need to remind you of the centuries long wars in Europe and the middle east, from the crusades through the dark ages, right? Christians vs Muslims, Muslims vs Christians, Muslims vs Jews, Christians vs Hindus; lately Hindus vs Buddhists, Buddhists vs Muslim (Rohingya) and Hindu (in Myanmar, since 2015 or so); even various African tribes among each other and among themselves (allegations of witchcraft), folklore, superstition, and shaman 'medicine' requiring albino body parts to cure some condition or bring luck or give protection from evil spirits, or have sex with a virgin to cure AIDS for instance... it goes on and on.

We can overcome the chains of ignorance and indoctrination. All we need is a lot more education, more critical thinking skills, more rationality; a lot less superstition and a lot less willingness to settle for supernatural explanations. Education is the key. The emancipation of women is another key. A society that subjugates a large part of its population is literally diminishing its own chances for advancement. 


A more in-depth discussion on this theme is on my main blog. When I first started writing this piece, I had forgotten that I'd already done a piece using this same title there. You must be logged in on that site to access that content. The title I used is from the late Christopher Hitchens' book God is Not Great -- How Religion Poisons Everything. I'm gonna need to find that extra copy of it I have around here somewhere. Someone gifted me a paperback of Lee Strobel's The Case For Christ just a couple days ago. Pretty funny really. I'll re-read Strobel's book, but I don't expect any improvements from my first reading 20-some odd years ago. I want to gift my thoughtful gift-giver with the Hitchens book. Maybe she'll get something out of it (but I'm not optimistic there either). 

The video below is only a few minutes. Please take the time to watch. We need many more informed, scientifically literate people than we have. We must elect informed representatives who will put the good of all of us, our countries, above their personal beliefs and lust for power. This is not only an American problem. America is just the one I'm most familiar with.