Why is it?

Question

Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.

Answer 1

Because in their own mind the religious conviction proves the rightness of it even if it evil and they can't see that it's evil....

Answer 2

Because the need for religion to advice as to what "God" would have us do, is so stubbornly indoctrinated into our thinking and actions.
It is always convenient to say : I am doing this for the sake of "righteousness!"
And yet what is Righteousness, when all religion, for the exception of one or very very few, believe there is only ONE True God?
Well, if there is one true God then why is everyone declaring Him one religion's cause - and not another's?
God has no involvement for "brother" killing "brother"
That is a human choice. Because he's not evolved sufficiently to arrive at a more humanistic approach to co-exist!
To hide or covertly commit killing or any other evil deed against one's own species, would embarrass the heck out of any One True God. That is, - (and if I can give my opinion without receiving a covert stoning from hiders out there who through their petty thinking try to convict, censor, or and blacklist through silence - a sign of cowardice, by the way!) - If there IS a God!
But then look at this in a more secular, Darwinian approach . . Mankind evolves very slowly, yet he multiplies prolifically . . Therefore, wars, whether religious or of any other kind, or purpose, may just be, mankind's unconscious, subconscious method of reducing the exploding population.
Could be as practically simple as that!
May sound ruthless, but then, we are MERELY in the primary stage of the Learning Process.
I truly doubt, by the way we persist to ignorantly continue - if we'll ever move into a secondary stage!
Oh well...
Ignorant does as ignorant IS!

Answer 3

What about 'Women'? They never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction either!! Have you not seen some of them on this site?>!!

Answer 4

For the same reason they never do anything so completely Holy and Wonderful as when they do it from a religious conviction. When God is in it, its something wonderful,when He's not it turns out as you have spoken here.

Answer 5

~~~linda ,,,,, Because to their Mindset, they are doing the Will of Their God, consequently nothing could be a greater achievement to The Devotee than this admiration,,, plus the chance to Score more Points for heavenly rewards.

Answer 6

I think its because they are afraid God will get them for not doing what they think he wants them to in regards to people other than themselves. For example, Christians felt threatenned by Muslims ruling parts of medieval palestine and jumped to the conlclusion that God needed them to go and physically remove Muslims from there; hence the crusades and all the murder and violence thereof. Those Christian brothers of mine forgot that, God, being all powerful and loving, just and merciful, doesn't need any one to fight for him, especially not by killing some one else.
The only times in the Bible that God actually orders any one to wage war are those times God orders the followers of Moses to destroy the culture of demon worship and human sacrifice practiced by the people who lived in ancient Palestine.
God has never ordered such a thing since and never will, I believe. I also believe he did it then only because the followers of Moses were sinners just as much as the people he ordered them to kill and so he may have wanted them to shed some of their own blood as well (people on both sides die in wars) as if to teach them the lesson: 'war is hell, don't go looking for one; instead, from now on ask me and trust me for a better way to solve conficts.'
Therefore, I think any one who says they are defending God's interests by killing someone is in fact doing just the opposite. What would have happenned, I wonder, if the ancient Isrealites had responded to God's call to war by falling on their knees and begging God to give them Palestine as a homeland other than by having them kill some of the worst sinners on the planet at the time? They could have aske and trusted him to give it to them by first changing their own selfish unbelieving hearts while doing the same to the Cananites so that they would all become true followers of the true God and share ancient Palestine in peace. If they had done that, I think God would have recinded his war order and done just what they had asked.
In short, any religious conviction that leads to violence has its root cause in human selfishness, insecurities, true faithlessness in God and ignorance of him and stupidity.

Answer 7

It gives them an excuse.

Religion is an excuse to do what you would already do with more conviction and passion.

Those who would help others anyway, with religion, help others with passion and conviction.

Those who hate and want to hurt others anyway, with religion, hurt and hate others with passion and conviction.

It gives you a feeling of self-righteousness. Something you couldnt have without religion or something else telling you that your point of view is the only right one.

Answer 8

THIS is the quote we should remember Blaise Pascal for, not the stupid wager.

Answer 9

Men do do evil..

Answer 10

Wish I knew