Martin Luther, with characteristic bluntness...
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Martin Luther, with characteristic bluntness, once observed, "There is no more sin in a man's sex life than in his religious life." He only stated what we should long have known, and should not soon forget: religion can be lyrical and lovely and humane; it can also become quite wicked and damaging to the human spirit.
Too many are easily tempted into dividing humans into two groups, the religious and the irreligious, and then supposing that being religious confers a certain superior quality upon them. Look at what religion has done, and what some suppose God has endorsed: the inquisition, the crusades, the ritual sacrifice of humans, ugly superstitions, barricades built against every advance of science. On the other hand, it was religious groups who built the first hospitals, the great universities, and homes for the dispossessed. And it has been religion that has preserved culture, given meaning to life, comforted the suffering, offered courage for living and dignity in dying.
The question in Malachi's day was no different from our own: how then can I distinguish good religion from bad?
Too many are easily tempted into dividing humans into two groups, the religious and the irreligious, and then supposing that being religious confers a certain superior quality upon them. Look at what religion has done, and what some suppose God has endorsed: the inquisition, the crusades, the ritual sacrifice of humans, ugly superstitions, barricades built against every advance of science. On the other hand, it was religious groups who built the first hospitals, the great universities, and homes for the dispossessed. And it has been religion that has preserved culture, given meaning to life, comforted the suffering, offered courage for living and dignity in dying.
The question in Malachi's day was no different from our own: how then can I distinguish good religion from bad?
