The Negative Effects Of Religion's Effect On Society

Religion has existed ever since the dawn of time. Most ancient civilizations believed in one or greater beings that watched over and controlled all of their lives. Even today, religion plays a significant role in a majority of people’s lives. They go to the local church, mosque, synagogue, or another place of worship and bow their heads in admiration to the higher power. But how has religion affected society? Has it brought world peace and ended all wars? Or has it, in fact, brought hate and evil warfare? The Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, and the Thirty Years War are all examples of religion’s negative effect on society throughout history. More contemporary examples such as the Lebanese Civil War and attacks by Muslim extremists show that

When a child is born, it doesn’t think, “My lord and savior is Jesus Christ.” Every single child is born an atheist. Not until they grow up and understand what their parents are telling them do they become a Christian, a Muslim, or whatever belief their parents make them follow. In a statement about the indoctrination of children, Michael Stone stated that “labeling children as religious is a form of brainwashing. Each one of us must make up our own minds about the matter” (Stone). Most children will believe whatever their parents tell them to believe. Stone is asserting that parents drive religion into the minds of children before they can think for themselves. Children should be allowed to learn about all religions and choose to follow or doubt whichever religion they

Evolution is a broadly accepted theory throughout the science community. It is a theory, just as the Copernican model was a theory at one point. Some religious institutions believe that evolution should not be taught in science class and that the creationist ideas from the Bible should be taught. For example, in Arkansas, an act was passed that “mandated that ‘creation science’ be given equal time in public schools with evolution” (McLean) Although McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education struck down this law, it still does not detract from the fact that the law was even considered. That is like saying we will teach Aristotle’s form of chemistry and physics, along with more modern and accepted scientific ideas. The issue lies not only with the school system but with a child’s parents as well. In some cases, children are given optional exemption from evolution studies. They will be given express permission by their parents so they don’t have to go into the class that day. The idea that evolution, a theory backed by mountains of scientific evidence, shouldn’t be taught in schools is unacceptable. If that is acceptable, students should be able to say, “I don’t agree with what Ralph Waldo Emerson was saying, so I should be able to go read Dr. Seuss and give you a presentation on that.” Some creationist scientists try to create their own theories with no evidence to collaborate them. For