Theos-Talk Archives (July 1996 Message tl00594)

Chuck wrote to Alan:
>But it is people who make up a religion.  It does not come full blown from
>the void, but rather is a manifestation of the ideas of a bunch of people and
>all religions have in their basic nature something that makes people behave
>very badly towards each other, the idea that there is only one truth and they
>are the ones who have it.
>Now it is true that not everyone who ascribes to religion will have that bit
>of nastiness in them, but because it is in an inherint part of the religious
>process, it is going to show up somewhere and usually get somebody, or lots
>of somebodies, killed.

Chuck,

Sounds like a case of the mass affecting individuals, and individuals making
up the mass.

I think that territoriality deeply ingrained in the psyche, plus sheer
inability to comprehend a different mindset have a lot to do with the evil
wrought by organized religion. Then there's the tendency to violence which
sure isn't limited to religion.

Murray
Member TI and the TS in NZ