This thread is an excellent example of why religion is so ignorant, foolish, bigoted and just plain human dividing superstitious nonsense. All religions do is create artificial divides between humans, and we have enough real ones without stupid superstitious one creating more hatred, bigotry and warfare.
While I agree that religious people can be ignorant, foolish, bigoted, human dividing and warmongering, I'd like to point out that it is just as ignorant and bigoted to claim that this is all religions do. The world is also full of religious people who are loving, tolerant, educated, pacifist ... Here are just two I just mentioned in another thread: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cprj3ysELTg"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cprj3ysELTg[/ame]
That has less to do with faith and more to do with human nature. Neither Judaism, Islam or Christianity preches for people to hate others of different faiths. People hate regardless of religion. Blaming religion for the hate in this world is like blaming religion for the love in the world. Faith is just a persons belief. What they do with depends on the person, not the faith.
Without religion then we have communism, fascism, Nazism, Autocrats, dictators, tyrants, socialist, pacifist, monarchist and democrats all fighting each other.
We have all those now, plus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, etc fighting and killing one another, lets eliminate the religion and reduce the fighting and killing by a LOT.
Any religion which teaches it is good and godly to commit genocide DOES preach that it is OK to hate those of other beliefs, faiths and religions. The tale of Jericho is accepted as a tale of a wonderful god, by Hebrews and Christians--get real.
Actually, Stalin and Mao tried that it didn't worked, killings and oppression contnue in fact it got worst.
Violence and hatred has been on this Earth far longer than religion, so blaming it on religion is useless. Wild animals have fight for land too. Are you saying they are religious also? No. Fighting for land among other things is part of nature, not religion.
Humans fight for everything, women, land, wealth, food, power, religion, ideology and plain sadistic pleasure.
