Religious zealotry over the centuries has been directly responsible for countless deaths, imprisonments, needless suffering, torturings, and the oppression of people on grounds of sex, race, colour, sexuality or belief.
A few obvious examples :
- The Crusades.
- The Inquisition.
- Witch trials in Europe and America.
- The Divine right of Kings (valid until killed by another Divinely-appointed King).
- Missionaries destroying/converting smaller, "heathen" religions and cultures.
- The demonization of other religions, e.g. Christianity demonizing Pagans ("They're devil-worshippers!"), the Romans demonizing Christians ("They're atheists and cannibals!").
- Persecution of Heretics - e.g. Galileo for daring to suggest that the Earth orbits the Sun.
- Children dying because their parents refused them medical treatment on religious grounds; relying instead on faith-healers and prayer.
- Slavery, supposedly supported by scripture ("Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, just as you would obey Christ.", St.Paul, Ephesians 6:5)
- Holy wars - followers of different faiths (or even the same faith) killing each other in the name of their (benevolent, loving and merciful) gods.
- The destruction of great works of art considered to be pornographic/blasphemous, and the persecution of the artists.
- Censorship (often destructive) of speech, art, books, music, films, poetry, songs and, if possible, thought.
- Persecution/punishment of blasphemers (Salman Rushdie still has a death sentence on him), and blasphemy laws in general.
- The requirement of theism in order to stand for public office or to testify in court.
- Serial killers believing they are doing the work of Satan (or sometimes Jesus).
- Often-fatal exorcisms by priests believing they are destroying the work of Satan.
- People suffering dreadful injury or death in the belief that their faith has made them invulnerable (e.g. people climbing into lion enclosures at zoos, with a Bible as protection).
- Whole societies divided by minor differences in belief or doctrine, often resulting in violence.
- Mass suicides of cult-members following a charismatic leader who believes the world is about to End (most recently, the Heaven's Gate and Solar Temple cults - there will be more as we approach the year 2000).
- The attempted genocide of followers of a particular faith (e.g. the Jewish Holocaust, "ethnic cleansing" in former Yugoslavia).
- Blood sacrifices to appease the Gods, or to ensure a good harvest. (The Aztecs made daily human sacrifices to ensure that the Sun would rise. Or did they? )
- The practice of "female circumcision" (more accurately termed genital mutilation).
- The discouragement of rational, critical thought (resulting in young-earth creationists, for example).
- Uncontrolled population growth caused (or at least helped) by churches prohibiting birth-control and abortion. (You can also add : unwanted pregnancies, ill-fated forced marriages, and pregnant teenagers condemned to a life in mental institutions to avoid embarrassing their families.)
- The spread of sexually transmitted diseases (e.g. AIDS) due to churches prohibiting the use of condoms.
- Believers whipping, impaling, poisoning or crucifying themselves during religious festivals as a demonstration of their faith and piety.
- Suicide bombers taught to believe that martyrs go straight to Paradise.
- The indoctrination of children into the religion of their parents, giving them an arbitrary, life-long belief that is almost entirely dependent on their place of birth.
- Women treated as second-class citizens or even slaves (article : Islam's Shame).
- Pentecostal snake-handlers (Augusta Chronicle news article)
- Persecution of homosexuals (Genocide of gay and lesbian youth)
- Abuse of power, authority and trust by religious leaders (for financial gain or sexual abuse of followers and even children).
- Minor religions ("cults") stockpiling weapons to defend themselves from the Armies Of Satan (i.e. the police and the government).
