Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Religion as an Excuse for Violence

Click here to find an interesting story. What I find most interesting is that even unbelievers were more inclined towards violence when faced with a story in which God sanctions the violence - perhaps the average unbeliever is either not so secure in their unbelief as they let on or maybe, deep down inside, they really believe after all.
This story doesn't tell us much that is new. Israel tended to justify itself alot in the face of its own injustice and violence by hearkening back to its election by God and status as holder of the Temple. The moral of the story is that religion is one of the most powerful forces in individual and corporate life and, as fallen beings, we tend to use that powerful force for our own selfish ends. Religion really is one of the most dangerous things there is, as well as one of the most wonderful.

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