I said that religious people are stupid. I didnt say that people with religions are stupid. Theres a big difference there. Religious people are those who use faith more than reason in their daily lives. People with religions are just those who identify as belonging to a particular religion. Are most Buddhists and Hindus religious? I dont think so. If you want me to generalize, theyre the ones who tend to see their religion as more of a mere depiction/collection of fables, nothing to be taken too seriously or literally. Its a guide, a reference, nothing more. It certainly doesnt eclipse their lives. Ideally, thats how religion should be practiced: its merely one of many sources of guidance in life. Your thought process/reason could also be another source of guidance. Self-help books, movies, life experiences, advice from friends and family, even your God-given instincts are also good sources of guidance. Theres nothing special about religion that it should be the main and only source of guidance. Give it some consideration, but that should be the full extent of how you utilize it. Its better to be ignorant in matters of faith than to fall into the indoctrination trap and lose all sense of logic and reality. Religion belongs under the category of self-help books. Thats it. Dont over-glorify it. If you see religion that way, you wont even need to choose a religion to profess. Just read the different holy texts impartially, with an open mind. Pick out the good bits from each holy text, discard the obsolete, unreasonable, or illogical bits. Use each religious text to your advantage, but never be tied down to one. Thats how you remain receptive to change, knowledge, and learning. But I digress... What about Christians, are they religious? Id say 50/50. A lot of them, in fact, nowadays just claim to be raised Christian/Catholic/Lutheran/whatever. That doesnt really say anything really, but you can sense that theyre slightly ashamed and apprehensive to say outright that they believe in the Bible. Those Christians are definitely not religious, but of course there are tons of brainwashed/indoctrinated Christians too. Id know; I live in one of the most Christian nations of the world. The Muslims seem to be the most religious bunch of them all. The hardcore ones follow the Quran and Hadiths to the letter, including references to violence, and, worst of all, they use religious principles in law and government. Religion should be personal, yet they use it to control people. How can you expect people not to speak up against the religion, especially people who dont believe in that religion yet are subject to the tenets of the religion? This brings me to a crucial question: has any moderate Muslim out there called for the separation of mosque and state? If you say, BLAME THE PEOPLE WHO USE RELIGION FOR THEIR OWN ENDS, NOT THE RELIGION, have you yourself ever condemned the act of allowing religion to seep into government? Have you ever voiced out against the whole concept of manipulation of religion to create laws and public policies? Have you ever unequivocally called for the abolition and total rejection of religious authorities, Sharia Law, or Hudud Law? Have you ever in your decades of existence renounced the politicization of Islam? Answer: you have not -- not a goddamned single one of you. Because you sincerely believe that Islam is so good and universal that it needs to be applied in government and politics. Its the only way that Allah wills it. You actually support Islam being manipulated for political ends, yet you dont even have the guts to admit it. At least the extremists are upfront about it. You moderates? Silence...
Posted on: Tue, 13 Jan 2015 02:02:41 +0000