Is christianity really that bad? Or was?

[Zatarack]

Of course, utility has no bearing on the truth value of something, unless the truth value is based upon utility.

[Rhodmhire]

^Superb.

Thank you, you're too kind.

[Ravea]

OK. So according to family guy (Yes I know. But they're normally spot on with that kind of stuff.) So Christianity caused the dark ages and stopped the advance of technology right in its tracks right? Tell me your thoughts/rants/insults/mehs/explanations because I don't know much on this subject. So, start ranting NSG!

Fanatic Christians are bad today.

Most Christians were bad in the past, mainly because of a severe lack of education.

[Dyakovo]

I thought it was the Muslims that were the major technological power in the dark ages.

They were, but there wasn't a complete lack of advancement in christian europe. Advancement in certain areas of knowledge were hampered by the church, but not all.

[Dyakovo]

OK. So according to family guy (Yes I know. But they're normally spot on with that kind of stuff.) So Christianity caused the dark ages and stopped the advance of technology right in its tracks right? Tell me your thoughts/rants/insults/mehs/explanations because I don't know much on this subject. So, start ranting NSG!

Your basing your history/knowledge on what you saw on Family Guy?

This is what is wrong with a lot of people and not just Family guy but other popular tv shows and movies.

QFT

Cheers man, don't think anyone has actually done that to me before.

I certainly haven't...
I don't agree with you too terribly often, but when you're right you're right...

[Dashret]

OK. So according to family guy (Yes I know. But they're normally spot on with that kind of stuff.) So Christianity caused the dark ages and stopped the advance of technology right in its tracks right? Tell me your thoughts/rants/insults/mehs/explanations because I don't know much on this subject. So, start ranting NSG!

Fanatic Christians are bad today.

Most Christians were bad in the past, mainly because of a severe lack of education.

Most Christians in the past were medieval peasants who just wanted to be left alone with a nice dose of Heaven once they died. The same applies to Muslims. And Hindus. And Buddhists. And Zoroastrians. Most practitioners of 'mainstream' religions are average people who just want to be left alone to live their lives.

Contrary to popular belief, medieval Christian peasants generally did not spend the majority of their time burning witches and persecuting heretics. Burning witches was a waste of good wood and time spent persecuting heretics was better spent taking care of crops so as not to starve to death.

Fanatics of any religion are generally bad. At any time period. Just imagine how much people would complain about Christians if we had ancient Greek Dionysus cult members going around having orgies in our back yards and tearing goats apart on the street.

[Zatarack]

OK. So according to family guy (Yes I know. But they're normally spot on with that kind of stuff.) So Christianity caused the dark ages and stopped the advance of technology right in its tracks right? Tell me your thoughts/rants/insults/mehs/explanations because I don't know much on this subject. So, start ranting NSG!

Fanatic Christians are bad today.

Most Christians were bad in the past, mainly because of a severe lack of education.

Most Christians in the past were medieval peasants who just wanted to be left alone with a nice dose of Heaven once they died. The same applies to Muslims. And Hindus. And Buddhists. And Zoroastrians. Most practitioners of 'mainstream' religions are average people who just want to be left alone to live their lives.

Contrary to popular belief, medieval Christian peasants generally did not spend the majority of their time burning witches and persecuting heretics. Burning witches was a waste of good wood and time spent persecuting heretics was better spent taking care of crops so as not to starve to death.

Fanatics of any religion are generally bad. At any time period. Just imagine how much people would complain about Christians if we had ancient Greek Dionysus cult members going around having orgies in our back yards and tearing goats apart on the street.

I thought the witch burnings were more for amusement than anything else. Heard they burned a lot less witches than they convicted.

[New Manth]

As I said:

1. Not the only factor, but since we are talking religion I'm focusing on primarily on religious factors.
2. I am also referring specifically to cultural, not economic and military decline. These things do not necessarily go hand in hand.

1. So back up your argument about religious factors, then. That's what I asked.
2. What specific evidence is it that has lead you to believe that Byzantine culture was in decline due to Christianity, then, irrespective of any economic or military reasons?

[Beingthebest]

I still assert that Organized Religion is a joke and a money/control scheme. But i do not judge others for being religious. I think it is an awesome thing for people to believe in especially if it helps them in any way. The only thing i don't agree with is most of the bullshit they try to tell you. According to the bible you can't eat shellfish and people lived for 900 years..... So yeah sorry if im a dissenter but i don't believe everything i see on T.V. either. Now im not saying people are dumb for believing in it, or anything like that so try not to take offense to this post.Its just if there was one true god or one right religion i think we would all be in the same church.... And scientology.... LMAO don't even get me started.

Conditioned to self-interest with emotions locked away if that's what you call normal then i'd rather be insane.-- Operation Ivy.

[Cubic kms]

I still assert that Organized Religion is a joke and a money/control scheme. But i do not judge others for being religious. I think it is an awesome thing for people to believe in especially if it helps them in any way. The only thing i don't agree with is most of the bullshit they try to tell you. According to the bible you can't eat shellfish and people lived for 900 years..... So yeah sorry if im a dissenter but i don't believe everything i see on T.V. either. Now im not saying people are dumb for believing in it, or anything like that so try not to take offense to this post.Its just if there was one true god or one right religion i think we would all be in the same church.... And scientology.... LMAO don't even get me started.

Conditioned to self-interest with emotions locked away if that's what you call normal then i'd rather be insane.-- Operation Ivy.

Religion is just what you believe. If you want to pay for it, its your choice. Like normal TV vs Cable TV

Personally, i'd pick free stuff over paying for stuff anyday

[Threlizdun]

Being a Wiccan, I certainly must say that it at least was bad before. I mean hundreds of thousands of people were killed either because they were pagans, thought to be pagans, or accused of witchcraft. That itself was just the burning times. There was also several of the crusades against Islam, slaughtering Native Americans and/or forcing them to accept Christianity, Hindus were under quite harsh prejudice during the British control over India, Christinaity was one of the ways that Hitler admitted to have used several times as an excuse/motivation for the Nazis (even though he himself didn't identify himself as a member of any religion), it was and often still is used in some areas as an excuse for racism, homophobia, sexism, slavery, violence, and war. Even now, one of the reasons several people support involement in the Middle East is to convert or in some cases destroy the Muslim faith and populace. However, we must understand that there are extremists in every religion, so this isn't something that only Christians do. We also must understand that one of the primary reasons there have been so many incidents is due to the fact that the religion is so large. With over two billion followers it is pretty hard not to have some lunatics or power hungry people about. Of course though, there is also the topic of how it has been used to justify certain actions many, or most of us in the more civilized parts of the modern world would find horrific now. Turth be told, almost every, if not every religion ever created has used their faith as justification for specific actions. It simply is a good idea for those that want to manipulate others. I mean, what do you think is one of the reasons Christianity and Islam are so popular? The reward of a heaven to those that remain true in faithful is one major aspect, but even greater than that is the belief of eternal torment in hell for nonbelievers or sinners. Hinduism is quite a large religion, but the belief in karma, that will only effect your current or next life (according to your beliefs), is nowhere near as strong as eternal bliss or punnishment. My religion, Wicca, for example, lacks even the karma atribute for some. As only Gardenarians follow firm rules (and even they aren't that strict), the open air atribute to it just lets people feel as if they don't need to follow it. In fact that is actually one of the main things. You really don't need to, as it is believed in most cases that everyone goes to the same temporary afterlife (the Summerland being the most popular concept) and then is reincarnated. However, this freedom is actually starting to make it popular again, as it had only 8,000 followers in the U.S. in 1991, and had 136,000 in 2001. It actually went from one of the smallest religions in the world, to the fastest growing religion in the U.S., and one of the fastesrt in the world (Islam is still higher in a worldwide percentage). Ba'hai, Jainism, Shikhism, and severla other once tiny faiths are now, showing similar paterns.

[Farnhamia]

Being a Wiccan, I certainly must say that it at least was bad before. I mean hundreds of thousands of people were killed either because they were pagans, thought to be pagans, or accused of witchcraft. That itself was just the burning times. There was also several of the crusades against Islam, slaughtering Native Americans and/or forcing them to accept Christianity, Hindus were under quite harsh prejudice during the British control over India, Christinaity was one of the ways that Hitler admitted to have used several times as an excuse/motivation for the Nazis (even though he himself didn't identify himself as a member of any religion), it was and often still is used in some areas as an excuse for racism, homophobia, sexism, slavery, violence, and war. Even now, one of the reasons several people support involement in the Middle East is to convert or in some cases destroy the Muslim faith and populace. However, we must understand that there are extremists in every religion, so this isn't something that only Christians do. We also must understand that one of the primary reasons there have been so many incidents is due to the fact that the religion is so large. With over two billion followers it is pretty hard not to have some lunatics or power hungry people about. Of course though, there is also the topic of how it has been used to justify certain actions many, or most of us in the more civilized parts of the modern world would find horrific now. Turth be told, almost every, if not every religion ever created has used their faith as justification for specific actions. It simply is a good idea for those that want to manipulate others. I mean, what do you think is one of the reasons Christianity and Islam are so popular? The reward of a heaven to those that remain true in faithful is one major aspect, but even greater than that is the belief of eternal torment in hell for nonbelievers or sinners. Hinduism is quite a large religion, but the belief in karma, that will only effect your current or next life (according to your beliefs), is nowhere near as strong as eternal bliss or punnishment. My religion, Wicca, for example, lacks even the karma atribute for some. As only Gardenarians follow firm rules (and even they aren't that strict), the open air atribute to it just lets people feel as if they don't need to follow it. In fact that is actually one of the main things. You really don't need to, as it is believed in most cases that everyone goes to the same temporary afterlife (the Summerland being the most popular concept) and then is reincarnated. However, this freedom is actually starting to make it popular again, as it had only 8,000 followers in the U.S. in 1991, and had 136,000 in 2001. It actually went from one of the smallest religions in the world, to the fastest growing religion in the U.S., and one of the fastesrt in the world (Islam is still higher in a worldwide percentage). Ba'hai, Jainism, Shikhism, and severla other once tiny faiths are now, showing similar paterns.

Great, more Believers getting in the way of human progress. As George Carlin said, "Spirituality: the last refuge of a failed human. Just another way of distracting yourself from who you really are."

[Rhodmhire]

Most Christians were bad in the past, mainly because of a severe lack of education.

Just about everyone in the past had a severe lack of education.

Especially prior to the time after the Middle Ages, and still somewhat prominent even up until the Industrial Revolution.

Hell, even today some people believe it to be so.

[Pope Joan]

Christianity lost when it got co opted by Constantine.

At that point it just took over the support-the-hegemony work that had formerly been done by the old religion, the one with its vestal virgins and scrying of entrails.

But there has still been some good accomplished, along with what we hear about the Crusades, Inquisition and Galileo.

The Church supported the arts.

It initiated and still supports many hospitals, orphanages, schools and colleges.

Most of the nonprofits created in the US until the 20th century had their original in the churches; notable exceptions include Ben Franklin's work with fire departments and other associations.

[Beingthebest]

[/quote]

Religion is just what you believe. If you want to pay for it, its your choice. Like normal TV vs Cable TV

Personally, i'd pick free stuff over paying for stuff anyday[/quote]
Well said bro