Is moderation the antidote to religious hatred?
960182
Of course.  The hope for peace is in each of us, and the means to make it manifest lie within us as well.\n\n\nAs we respect the holy places of others, so will our own holy sites be respected.\n\nAs we honor the presence of Spirit in the religious practices of others, so will the Spirit in our own practices be honored.\n\n\nGiven that many of us cannot see people from another country as fully human, it is perhaps irrational to hope that we can look at others whose religious practices are foreign, and see not sinners but fellow pilgrims...but that is what I strive to do.\n\nRecently I had noticed something within myself that I didn't want - I saw myself beginning to judge all Christians by the  most intolerant, rigid, hate-preaching among those who call themselves "Christian".  I asked the Lord and Lady to help me...to make me aware of my own prejudices, to shine a light on any hidden forms of bigotry or hatred that I may be harboring.\n\nAnd I found myself cleansed and renewed.  And I rededicated myself to speaking peace and acceptance.\n\nI recommend something similar to anyone of any religion or spiritual practice who seeks to re-energize their own spritual life.\n\n\nA heart full of thankfulness, a soul full of love...these leave no room for pettiness, envy, spite, or hatred.  \n\nThe man who says "There is no right way to live" is a fool.  But there is another kind of fool, a more dangerous kind, that says to himself and proclaims to all the world "There is no right way but mine".\n\nBright Blessings to all.
602193
Yes. It's a free place, isn't it? People start wars over religion. It's better to be friendly.
65096
All religions resort to hatred and violence. It just happens that Islam is the one doing it now. Christianity used to be the evil one, killing people who didn't "believe" for political reasons, invading the "holy land" for power grabs. Even today, Christianity still uses hatred for its unifying effect, labelling gays as evil, vile sinners - any religion gets stronger when it devises a common enemy. Religion is simply a way to control people, so violence and hatred go hand in hand with this - if you want to strengthen your hold on people, give them a common enemy - then they'll do anything you ask. Works for Islam, works for Christianity.
1175130
Yes, far less war and conflict. If we want peace, we need to set our differences aside, and religion is included. Just look at the major cause of conflict over human history (crusades, etc). Religion is the true evil.
817698
Although religion is good in many ways, it has also created a lot of wars. Music can cross boarders that religion can't.
950802
you want prejudice try religion
340647
nowadays, I don't think that religion is something acceptable by anyone.\nIt is not even a cosmetic, it is just a tranquilizer for the symptoms while they remain.
1158159
The fact is, the world today, and especially our nation, is so dependent on political correctness and fear of stepping on someone else's religious toes, that no one really dares to step on his remarks for fear of being attacked on all sides by rabid Islamic-Freedom lobbyists, shady gang-bangers/sure terrorists, and their local church. It's become too much a game of who can say the most pleasing thing, and too little a matter of actually solving problems.
667875
Yes, it is.  My religion does not preach this, and it's one of the reasons that I chose to believe what I do.  Actions have consequences.  People should be made to deal with them, even if it's just a guilty conscience.
1143199
Hate and insults about other faiths\n\ncondemning anyone not believing in yr faith to hell\n\nAggressive publicity and maligning other faiths and terrorising them into conversion
973057
I actually have done multiple re-evals - especially because it was apparent that I had hurt other people who were devout to their religious beliefs which differed from what I believe.  And I have had to apologize for my approach a number of times.\n\nI think there are times, too, though, where it's impossible to avoid offending others.  It's in those times when I've had to trust God and speak with fear and trembling, leaning heavily on the compassion with which He dealt with me to speak to a particular person in the first place.
198067
Religion (or lack thereof) is just one of the tried & true methods we've adopted to distinguish one group of people from another. Operating from a premise of "they're different from us":  What usually happens is that an adverserial dynamic is established.  Rather than a cause for celebration, the dynamic generally breeds Fear, contempt, and anger.  It's no different from any of the other (too) often accepted & nurtured forms of bigotry; Racism, Classism, Sexism, etc.\n\nYou'll likely find, in your own life with yourself, that you're unhappy & angry when you deny yourself to Your-self. (There's a lot of selfs in a row)  \n\nSimilarly, when one person denies another her/his autonomy or individualism... a predictable reaction of the person denied is some mix of Anger & Unhappiness. Actually, as I think about it, the anger & unhappiness is usually coming from both sides of the fence at the same time, as each continue to deny the validity of the other's self-determined-ness.\n\nSo, non religious people experience anger & hostility when engaging religious.  Religious people experience anger & hostility when engaging non-religious.  In fact, any group which operates from a premise which sets itself apart from another will more often than not encounter some manifestation of Fear (Anger, hostility, "better than thou art-ness") when engaging the other.  That's why there's so much tention & hostility between relgions, as well. \n\nIt's so predictable that governements train their soldiers to "attempt to connect with your captives" when teaching them to survive being captured during war.  The observation, simply stated, is that it's less likely people will torture you when they realize you are the same as they are.  And the training, when successfully employed, works...\n\nWhere religion is concerned; you'll likely encounter less hostility when speaking with people who, though of differing belief systems, accept some form of the premise that we are all One...  even if each is following a different path to enlightenment/God/whathaveyou.  It's more than just "tolerance"... it's true "acceptance".   When we accept others as they are, and they, in turn, accept us... there's no-thing to fight about.
203576
Sure just in moderation.  Just to go abit off subject if nichill18 studied her Bible she would know that animals do not have souls.  If they did they wouldn't be so tasty.  :  )
612671
Nope.\n\nBut man using religion as an excuse sure is.
112702
quit atheism or quit religion? be more specific
1032239
Depending on where you live, religion might be a choice or enforced. I agree to a point with what you are saying but, if people were to simply filter out and use ONLY the morality, spirituality and common sense religion CAN teach one, then I say teach away. Unfortunately the belief in the intangable is rampant even in this modern day and age.
754104
That's an excellent question. I won't be a hypocrite about it, though. I've been guilty of it myself from time to time, but there are some repeat offenders here. It seems that the Politics and the Religion & Spirituality sections draw more of this sort of behavior than any of the others. I guess it's because they are both such personal topics and it's easy to hit a nerve when you discuss them.