If they did that they would not be Christians, since by definition a Christian follows the teachings of Christ: "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."... and they all turn home.

Sorry to cut out the top part as it was a good post, but I wanted to focus on this last paragraph. I agree that belief is best left to the individual for the most part, I also believe people help each other understand things as we're doing together right now. The one thing I would say here is that the dangers of organization or unified thought is that it transcends religion, and my example of Nazist germany is the hallmark of it. The whole country was in awe of this one leader and his great vision for Germany, so much so that they were blinded to the massive killings that this glorious vision involved. To even suggest that catholicism caused this is totally ignorant of what actually happened. If anything, Hitler created the adoration of himself, which Christianity in any form would consider idolatry.

My point is it's unfair to limit this issue to religion, it applies to ideology as a whole. The best solution to this is as you said critical thinking, thinking for oneself, and refusing to accept the most popular notion only because it's popular. Sadly with Facebook and all this thumbs up nonesense that direction is going more the way of the shits. Then again, forums like this are a good place to generate new thoughts and challenges to established ideas, which is a great thing.

Problem with this is that history has also been on the side of Christianity. I can name Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa and numerous others who served for justice in the name of Christianity. Ghandi was harmonious with Christianity, just not with Christians.

On the other spectrum, history shows us Nazist germany, Red Russia and other societies based on Atheist ideologies and teachings such as evolution, eugenics, low value of human life and such. In that way history also supports Christianity.

In some fewer cases history supports the other end (such as the crusades), but even those are not nearly as devastating as those I mentioned above which involved mass murders in staggering numbers.

The future looks grim, and it's mostly due to the increased ideology that human life is not worth more than we used to value it. Christianity teaches that human life is of high value, I can't say the same about most other ideologies.

Back on topic, religions I don't understand are mostly cults, Atheism when its proponents believe they are intellectually superior, and even some forms of Christianity, which mostly involves legalism, I have a difficult time with. Any form of brainwash, repression of inquisitiveness and curiosity, dogma, repression of legitimate and innocent expression, any of those I'm strongly opposed to.

Also, you do realized they murdered gypsies with a very similar sentiment. Blame religion again?

Not at all sapphi. Atheists I was talking about behave absolutely no different than, lets say Westbro Baptist Church members, its just that instead of hating on gays, they hate on Christians and only on Christians. The only difference is that WBC memebrs arent as lazy and conter productive as their atheist counter parts, and as such tend to be a bit more active and vocal. They bear the same hatred for Christians as WBC members do for gays. They are also incredibly quick to judge others who dont share their beleifs (just like you don on everyone and everything), same thing WBC membrs do, and they are also extremly self-righteous such as you (and yet dont beleive in any moral or unviersal laws at the same time) however since WBC membrs actually believe in some universal morals and and laws, I cant blame them as much as I do people like you, altho they are no better at all

This conversation/argument is funny as hell.

But you do realize that the one common factor, though there are ancient traces of religion there which were (I repeat) superceded by sentiments of superiority, is the sentiment of racial superiority. That is an evolutionary notion. Why did they murder the sick which were aryan? You're holding on to blaming religion, but your sense of priorities in this matter is not tuned properly. The more dominant factor is the sense of race superiority, which more truthfully is based in racism and misled evolutionary ideologies, much less religion.