ThirstyFish

I noticed this sign while walking to pickup some food on South Street. This "sign of hate" offends many people of various faiths and denominations. History is littered with stories of conflict between faiths burning each other's places of worship or each other's holy books or even each other's records. It is sad that these shameful acts continue to this day.

In the recent years, attributing the evils of the world to religion, is becoming increasingly more common. This absurdly simplified idea uses examples of various religious conflicts from history to conclude that, by eradicating religious belief, the problems of humankind will also be eradicated. However, most of the evil that humanity brings upon itself arises out of fear, arrogance, greed and ignorance - not religion and faith itself.

In most cases, hate symbols are drawn or posted by handfuls of uninformed kids trying to look cool to their peers. In the United States, where sensitivities against certain hate symbols run high, stories of discovered hate symbols regularly appear in local or national news. On the other hand, sadly, hate crimes, crimes against race, religion, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and disability, continue to be a reality.

The Internet has become the platform of choice for hatemongers. "Exposing ..." sites both spew and invoke hatred while hiding behind the pretense of rational or informed criticism. Other sites go further and outright promote violence and hatred.

But hatemongering has a softer, a more obscure side. Even mainstream religions, while openly promoting tolerance, often advance a message to their followers that their beliefs are superior, while the beliefs of others are inferior. This creates a paradox. If all religions were the same, or if salvation could be attained through many paths, then religions would not be able to hold on to their congregations. We are invariably programmed to believe in the superiority of our beliefs!

In reality, no religion can sincerely claim to have a monopoly on good, just as no religion can assert that, their followers or their beliefs have never caused evil. But when critical thinking is stripped from faith, and when, in the mind of some simpleton who doesn't understand the true essence of religion, faith is reduced to a superiority-inferiority duality, evil always ensues. After all, the simpleton has a tendency to blindly believe in his or her moral superiority...

Update: Someone suggested that the very definition of faith precludes critical thinking. Does it? Do the faithful go to the doctor? More on this later.

Song of the Day: Fear of the Dark - Iron Maiden (1992)