Its true enough, Nat. But, isn't the problem really a perversion of faith, rather than faith itself? Per my albeit-limited knowledge of various religions, isn't it true that the laws and teachings of most major religions are rather benign: Love one another, charity and service to others -- especially the young, the old, the sick and poor . . self-sacrifice for the greater good, honesty, fidelity, and so on.
Yes, there have been individuals and groups that have committed horrible acts, supposedly in the name of God. But AREN'T THESE FOLKS THE PERVERSION, and not the masses of faithful? Do the Jim Jones', David Koresh's, the ayatollahs and other nut cases define their respective religions? Or, as I suspect, are these folks conveniently (for them) using faith as justification for evil acts intent on preserving their power and status? A charismatic religious leader CAN whip a crowd into a frenzy and prompt them to do evil "in God's name", but charismatic leaders have persuaded people to do evil without appeals to religious beliefs. Overall, I think religious faith is a very positive influence on people's lives.
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