March 25 good news: 84 percent of the world population has faith........

[beam me up scottie]

156. Not quite but we're getting there.

Let’s face it, to say there would be more or less violence historically with or without religion is mere conjecture on either side.

I don't speculate on whether or not there would be more or less violence because it's irrelevant. The fact remains that millions suffered and died because of bigoted religious beliefs and many are still being oppressed and slaughtered today. I only care about preventing it. Imo educating people about religion's role in thousands of years of oppression, slavery, genocide and war is important and denying it is irresponsible.

You have pointed out that there are archaic commands in the Bible that you believe have caused followers to oppress, murder and torture people; I believe people’s motives are complex and often religion is misused to justify actions more deeply caused by bigotry, economic struggles, territorial disputes and the like.

Just because you think religion is misused doesn't mean it isn't the motivating factor behind religious intolerance and violence. It's arrogant to assume believers are too stupid to know their own minds. And it's ridiculous to claim that intolerant and violent believers interpret their religion incorrectly when anyone can see their holy texts and leaders instruct them to oppress and murder others.

When a Christian fundamentalist supports discrimination against lgbt people and claims he was motivated by his religion who am I to say he's mistaken when his holy book clearly instructs Christians to persecute gay people? Who am I to say he's mistaken when his religious leaders cite the bible every day as the source for these beliefs? Should I believe apologists or my own eyes?

When a Muslim extremist kills an unbeliever and claims it was because he was motivated by his religion who am I to say he's mistaken when he can easily point to a passage in his holy book that supports this action? Who am I to say he's mistaken when his religious leaders cite the Koran every day as the source for these beliefs? Should I believe apologists or my own eyes?

When an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man refuses to sit next to a woman on an airplane because his religion teaches that we're unclean who am I to say he's mistaken when he can point to a passage in his holy book that forbids contact with menstruating women? Who am I to say he's mistaken when his religious leaders cite the Talmud every day as the source for these beliefs? Should I believe apologists or my own eyes?

You cannot divorce the actions of religious people from their religious beliefs. It doesn't work that way. Holy texts are considered to be the word of God and religious leaders base their teachings on them so it's incomprehensible to me how anyone can claim they have little to no effect on behaviour.

I believe religion can play an important role to still provide ethics and morals; you seem to believe that religious ethics are dominated by the fundamentalists, to which I don’t agree –there’s no real way quantify and to know who is right. For every violent act, I could point to a shelter or meal provided by a religious institution.

Another straw man, I never claimed that religious ethics are dominated by fundamentalists.

Good deeds don't cancel out bad ones. You cannot have it both ways - if religion is powerful enough to motivate people to do good then it's powerful enough to motivate people to do evil. You cannot claim that only good deeds are attributable to religion, it doesn't work that way. It's either responsible for both or neither.

Finally, I don't care what atheists think and I would prefer it if they felt the same way about how we think and not talk about our "babble" so I don't have to point out their "arrogance." But I have learned through my spirituality that we just need to live and let live.

It's wonderful that you believe in live and let live - most liberals theists agree with that philosophy - but since other religious people are constantly trying to restrict the rights of others and worse it's obvious that many don't follow that rule.

Live and let live isn't just a religious concept and neither is the golden rule. Religion didn't invent morality, it co-opted it.

If religious people want to celebrate the good news that's fine with me, but I refuse to look the other way when I see the bad. We each focus on what we consider more important and in the end liberal believers and atheists agree more than they disagree.

Peace.