(ThyBlackMan.com) Many people who profess to be “of faith” are involved in religion for the wrong reasons. They’re not about love; they’re about hating everybody who don’t think exactly like they do. They use religion to justify their bigotry, as a “God-approved” reason to hate everybody who’s not on “their team,” or who is different from themselves.
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In fact, religion FUELS every other form of bigotry there is. If you look at ANY form of bigotry, you’ll find religion at its root. As we saw in Paris, France, ORGANIZED religion is the most prolific instigator of hatred in the world. Think about the irony of a military Chaplain – “Dear Lord, please help us to kill more of them than they do us. Amen.”
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Would God bestow such malevolent force of hatred upon man. I don’t think so. When God created human beings, we weren’t created to require either a “User’s Guide,” soothsayers, or other “anointed” men to tell us how to conduct our lives. We were given individual intellect and a conscience to help us navigate our way through life. As I’ve pointed out many times before, when my neighbor is at work and his beautiful young wife comes out in the yard and flash her beautiful smile in my direction, I don’t need a book or a preacher to tell me what’s appropriate conduct and what’s not. The minute my mind goes astray, I can hear God’s voice – “Now, Eric, you know what you’re thinking is not right, so just wave, go in the house, and take a cold shower.” And in response, I do so.
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And if you look at nature, even a dog will look over his shoulder before he steals a chicken wing off a table. So even he has a sense of right and wrong. In addition, Whales and other aquatic animals have an innate sense of when to migrate to other waters and where to go to spawn. And migratory birds don’t need a calendar and compass to know when to fly South, and in which direction it lies. It was built into their DNA, and the same is true of man.
Wrath, Greed, Sloth, Pride, Lust, Envy, and Gluttony.
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That’s where organized religion comes in. It reflects man’s attempt to control the minds of other men in order to more efficiently pursue his baser needs. They promote wrath among their fellow men through the use of creed, to promote their greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony. And while I don’t intend to become blatantly political here, I’d be remiss by not pointing out that every one of those “deadly sins” are uniquely characterized by the Religious Right and the GOP.
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If Americans truly believe in the Bible, they should demonstrate that fact by reading and adhering to ALL of the Bible, and not just those parts that they find convenient. Because it seems to me that just about every church in America has missed the part below:
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. When you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward . . .”
Matthew 6:1-34
