Quote:
Originally posted by Kyo
- Tolerance is something which cannot exist in any true religion, as most of their doctrine is black and white. Either you are a follower or you are not, a believer or an infidel, a friend or an enemy. There is no 'halfway' or 'gray area' - by it's very nature religion simply does not allow such compromises to exist.
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Tolerance can't exist if you define religion as something that can't be tolerant. I know many christians who are exceedingly tolerant of other religions. I have also met many athiests who are extremely intolerant of people who don't share their beliefs. The same goes for futbol afficionados across the globe.
I don't think that intolerance is a reflection of formal religion, rather i think it is a reflection of the people in power in that religion, or of the followers of that religion(who, especially in christianity, tend to have a very tenuous grasp of what their religion is actually about. Jesus was anti-greed and pro helping the sick and the poor- how 21st century christian america is that?)
tecoyah- certainly you're not claiming that pagan religions-as practiced throught the millenia-lack the capacity for bigotry and oppression.