Religion is meant to teach tollerance and acceptance of difference yet it is so devisive WHY?

Question

It's a simple question no need to get personal - unless you obviously follow one of those religions who teach you to be intollerant.

Answer 1

You are absolutely right religion is suppose to teach tolerance but some people get so caught up with being righteous and holy that they mistreat ppl around that they believe is doing something wrong. so in the midst of trying to be holy and good they really arent doing anything good

Answer 2

Every religion is based on the assumption that they are the correct or chose ones and that everyone else is wrong. Whenever you have an ideology that you are correct and others are wrong you are already far from intollerant and accepting of others. Religion is biased in its application. It is only hypocritical to say we must be tolerant of others because they know not what they are talking about and we must pray for them and hope they dont go to hell and hopefully one day they will see things our way. Like it or not that is religion in a nutshell. You may want to be tolerant of others and you may convince yourself that you are but it is not true if you believe in religion, it can;t be because your religion would not be correct then. Im not ditzing you just telling you the way I see it, I am tollerant, I do not think I am right or wrong, I truly do not know, but what I do know is that no religion makes sense to me at this point in my life because I value eadh and every human more than I do believing in something that puts one human above another.

Answer 3

Strangely, God's chose an imperfect being (us) to carry the gospel here on earth. I don't understand the reasoning myself, but I'm confident that God knew what He was doing.

A non-believer would say that people are basically good, but that's really not the case. People are basically evil....doing good is a learned behavior. Children are a perfect example. Left to themselves, a child will steal, lie, scream, hit, etc. They have to be taught that these are not acceptable behaviors. Look at the things that adults are capable of...rape, murder, assault, pedophilia, theft, adultery, etc. We read about it in the newspaper every day.

The divisions within the body of believers is not a problem with God or the word of God. It's a problem with the people who practice it. What a wonderful place the earth would be if we all followed God's teaching....love thy neighbor, do not kill, do not steal, do not covet. Very sound advice, if we would only follow it.

Even among believers, you see some of the most basic and dispicable traits of mankind....greed, envy, lust, wrath. To the non-believer, this looks like hipocracy, and perhaps it is. But remember that we are all just people....believers and non-believers. We all have the same capacity for sin. Do not judge God by His people....we are nothing more than sinners saved by grace.

Answer 4

Well, my opinion of Religion is different from your concept. I do not think many historians or Biblical Scholars would agree that religion, mainly those from the First Testament (Muslim, Christian, Judaism), was created for the sole purpose of teaching tolerance etc. Religion was designed out of need to give a uniform moral compass that restricts people to certain behaviors. It gives its followers structure and purpose. The fruits of some religions is tolerance but only because that tolerance promotes piece for its own followers. Even God himself in the Bible laid waste to civilizations and punished non believers, like the Egypt for not freeing the Jews. Tolerance is only a byproducts of most religion. It is not a causality of tolerance.

Answer 5

Religion is a set of man made rules! Spirituality is from God! If you accept Jesus into your heart, the spirit lives in you and through you, there for you will take on the characteristics of Jesus instead of man...you will have tolerance, understanding, patience, love and acceptance...a true believer who has a personal relationship with Jesus can not do wrong with out feeling convicted inside...and does not want to any way.

Answer 6

That is a misconception. Religion, especially Christianity, teaches loyalty to Christ and intolerance in our lives of any thing opposed to His teachings, which are believed to be Absolute Truth. Other religions teach the same.
The ideal of tolerance began with the creation of the United States of America. It was never taught in other governments, religions, or societies until we came along and said, "Hey, why can't everyone just get along?".

Answer 7

Which religion are you speaking of? This is not what is found in the Bible, neither Judaism nor Christianity are to tolerate evil and sin, but rather separate ourselves from evilness and those who do it. Jesus Christ came, offering people a way to rid themselves of sin, and extends assistance to change to do what is good and right and pleasing to God, and helpful to mankind.

You must be speaking of one of the other religions out there - there are many religions.

Answer 8

Because every religion wants to be right. It's their way or the highway. It's called a Superiority Complex. That's why it's best to just love one another and have a conscious relationship with God. Doing this will allow your spirit to remain humble, no matter what religion you choose.

Answer 9

Because all religions were formed by man. And we are so far from perfect it is sick. You have to understand the difference between religion and spirituality. To have faith and belief in God is to be spiritual. Religion is the ritual you practice to express your spirituality. You don't have to have a religion to be spiritual. And many practice religion without a moment of spirituality.

Answer 10

I don't agree with the premise of your question. In my experience with religion it does not teach tolerance and acceptance of differences, instead it threatens hell to people who are different or disagree.