Friday 29th of March 2024

the "value" of religion .....

the "value" of religion .....

'Pope Benedict just visited Brazil and his comments have caused uproar when he said, “the Church had not imposed itself on the indigenous peoples of the Americas. They had welcomed the arrival of European priests at the time of the conquest as they were "silently longing" for Christianity.” Satere Mawe, chief coordinator of the Amazon Indian group Coiab responded, “It’s arrogant and disrespectful to consider our cultural heritage secondary to theirs."

No one, religious or otherwise has room to guffaw. It is typical of every religious figure head to act and say something similar. I have encountered a very similar dialogue where a sense of superiority is conveyed by Hindu, Muslim and clergy of other faiths. It is their business to defend their ‘exclusive’ faith. In reality, no one owns any faith. Faiths are alternative ways of seeking the illusory peace of mind and relief from the misery. Zarthustra, Buddha, Mahavira, Krishna, Moses, Jesus, Mohammad, Nanak, Baha’u’llah, Joseph Smith or Confucius did not intend to create their own brand of people. Their message was for the whole of mankind and their mission was not to create one group versus the other.’

Pope, Brazil & Arrogance

the malignancy of our fundamentalism .....

‘It is bad enough to hear the Bush Administration, the neocons, the Randians, most Republicans in Congress, the right-wing talk show hosts, and some assorted libertarians still defend the war in Iraq, but it is even worse when Christians do the same.

Never at any time in history have so many conservative, evangelical Christians held such unholy opinions.

The adoration that many of these Christians have toward President Bush is unholy. The association of many of these Christians with the Republican Party is unholy. The alliance between evangelical Christianity and the military is unholy. The idolatry that many of these Christians manifest toward the state is unholy. But what continues to amaze me the most is the unholy desire on the part of many of these Christians to legitimize killing in war.’

The Unholy Desire Of Christians To Legitimize Killing In War