When Religion Becomes Evil
The first chapter of Charles Kimball’s most recent book, When Religion Becomes Evil, asks “is religion the problem?” One might wonder what exactly this problem is. Through this article Kimball explains the case for and against religion, with respect to its effects on an individual. For example, some people believe that religion causes people to act in an evil and destructive way. This belief was undoubtedly reinforced by the September 11 terrorist attacks, committed by people of a religion that seems to glorify suicide bombers. However, other people maintain that religion is necessary and should help solve the problem, not cause it. This question brings up the inherent difficulty in defining religion. Religion is a “complex” and “multidimensional” concept, one with which our “current associations ... are changing.” Often, in order to define religion, one must study . . .
If you define your world solely by what you can see, smell, touch, taste, and hear, I believe that you are missing out on a big part of life. ” I think that, with religion, just like everything else, one should think carefully about something before accepting the literal translation as true. ” It is true that religion has been a major cause of war in both ancient and recent history, but the people are at fault as well, since they stubbornly refuse to consider another point of view. This part of the article interested me because I have a few friends who are open atheists. ” He goes on to state that “the more one knows, the less sharply one can draw lines and define the different religions as separate and discrete. Although I can’t say for sure to what extent religion is to blame, I enjoyed reading this article because it caused me to consider the dangers of religion–a topic that had never before occurred to me. For example, it’s apparent that the world wasn’t made in just seven days. ” So, is religion the problem? Kimball doesn’t take a side on this issue, but rather states that both sides are right–“in part. As Kimball says, however, “religion that requires adherents to disconnect their brain is often a big part of the problem. ” I suppose that I agree with Kimball when he says that religion is only partially to blame. Viewed in such narrow terms as it often is, it seems that religion is powerful motivation for acts of violence. I agree with Huston Smith when he says that there are ways of getting at the truth other than pure scientific observation and experimentation. They often ask questions relating to the literal interpretation of the Bible.
Common topics in this essay:
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Acceptance Essays
