In Reply to: Re: Statistically: Faith is good for us... posted by Emancipated on August 09, 2006 at 15:55:31:
I wasn't looking for a quarrel, didn't intend one. Perhaps I simply didn't explain myself fully. I am agreeing with you that so-called "good" religious people do evil things. But by applying the same standard to non-believers, non-Christians, I am not speaking from a religious bias.
I have seen non-believers act just as hypocritically as so-called Christians, yet in other ways, that person would be considered a moral, decent person. I extended that example to explain the horrible purges of communist Russia.
My point is this: whenever anyone, religious or not, is overly dedicated to a cause they can do 'bad' things thinking that the bad things are either 'good' (or excusable) because they serve the greater good. Bigoted Christian persecutors of the past & present are guilty of this. Zealous, intolerant Russians of the past & Chinese authorities of the present are guilty of the same, right across the board. And this includes 'good, moral' citizens who, out of loyalty to the state, report the innocent to oppressive authorities.
I'm not discussing labels here, religious or not. I'm discussing the fact that otherwise moral citizens, good fathers & mothers, honest in business, faithful spouses can in their service for a state, a religion or whatever, be capable of doing great evil, then going on & continuing to be otherwise moral.