I agree with some of the thoughts posted here. I think that in an ideal sense, religion can be a good thing. Many people find it necessary to believe in something bigger and better than themselves.

However, many religions are not founded on principles of acceptance or leniency. One of the basic rules of many religions is "if you are not with us, then you are against us, and that means you are going to hell." This doesn't seem to me like the ideas we should be teaching our children. Parents, teachers, politicians, and almost everybody else in a position of authority has told us that we should be accepting of all people. In religion, it is the opposite.

Marx believed that religion is the opium of the masses because he saw it as a crutch. People did not need to have their own ideals, because they could just as easily subscribe to the ideals of the church. It is easier to have doctrine preached at you than to form your own thoughts. I agree with him in some ways. People do tend to think only what they have been taught, rather than going out and learning for themselves.

Religion can be good. It has saved people I know from dying of drug and alcohol addiction, and other people from going down the wrong paths. On the other hand, the interpretations of religion have also been the cause of hate, oppression, and war. In my opinion, religion would be best if it were more open and accepting, rather than closed off to all those with other opinions.

Britt