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Religions offer a team to belong to, with a subtext of uniting against the alternate teams.  In the United States, as well as in Iran, religiosity is being used as a baseball bat, kneecapping any person not on the team.  Praying out loud on street corners has become an obnoxious norm, an insistence that the personal belief of a club can dictate to the entire population.

There are times when we must sit quietly while someone prays for a group.  Usually the content of the prayer involves control of the listeners, telling them how they are supposed to believe and act - in other words, no an attempt at communication to a god, but group dominance.

Historically, those wielding the baseball bat of Christianity have caused death worldwide - how can they rationalize the commandment not to kill, or Christ's specific message to turn the other cheek?  The answer to this is that few church members are interested in actual doctrine, but only in social acceptance and in some cases, survival.

posted 2 years, 7 months ago
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