100 Treatises

Religious Oppression is Alive as Ever

Atrocities committed in the name of religion continue to plague the world. Despite many believers’ claims to the contrary, the fact that travesties of justice and violations of human dignity occur day in and day out on this planet, indicates that the religions of this world—established or otherwise—are still fostering psychotic behavior, as much as they ever have.

We can start our little survey of religious pathologies in the ever-popular Saudi Arabia, where a Lebanese man was recently sentenced to beheading for the crime of witchcraft. Although there is doubt as to whether the execution was actually carried out, that’s not really the point, is it?

Or we can take a look at Dubai, that hedonistic theocracy where you can have fun, just not too much fun, and if you do have too much fun you’re screwed. A British Muslim woman recently filed a complaint with the police that she was raped. The Dubai police, however, were more interested in her love life, and threw her in jail for having “illegal sex” with her fiancee. Because in Dubai, the fun is for non-Muslims only.

In Malaysia, where a similarly unequal legal system applies the strictures of Shariah to Muslims, but civil law to everyone else, Muslims are routinely caned for such outrageous offenses as (shock!) having a beer.

Holier-than-thou Christian Americans shouldn’t be too quick to look down their noses at the backward Islamic communities, though: they should first ask if beating people for wearing something you don’t like is acceptable to their conscience, as it apparently is to those in charge of an Alabama prom, or the fact that such corporal punishment is legal in 20 states.

Alternatively, we can consult the largest Christian denomination on earth regarding its ongoing child rape scandal. Indeed, the Catholic Church has shown itself to be perhaps the world’s greatest institutional force for the abuse of children.

Finally, let’s not forget Uganda, which appears to be one of the worst places on earth, where lawmakers are willing to make homosexual behavior punishable by death, but are unwilling to protect children from being tortured and slaughtered like sacrificial goats.

There’s plenty more where these stories came from. I wish I were exaggerating. Whether caning, paddling or stoning, the psychosis of religion is alive and well on every continent.

No doubt many peaceful religious people would say “that’s not my god,” or “that’s not what my religion teaches; these people are twisting the scriptures.” Indeed. And how, pray tell, does one know this? How is one interpretation of those “scriptures” any more or less legitimate than any other? What is the basic standard of knowledge in any of these backward blind faiths? And if there is such a standard, why didn’t the aforementioned heathens get the memo?

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