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Friday, 01 May, 2009
Torture And Religion
(with comments)
For some reason, this doesn't surprise me at all: Survey: Support for terror suspect torture differs among faithful.
The more often Americans go to church, the more likely they are to support the torture of suspected terrorists, according to a new survey.
More than half of people who attend services at least once a week -- 54 percent -- said the use of torture against suspected terrorists is "often" or "sometimes" justified. Only 42 percent of people who "seldom or never" go to services agreed, according to the analysis released Wednesday by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
White evangelical Protestants were the religious group most likely to say torture is often or sometimes justified -- more than six in 10 supported it. People unaffiliated with any religious organization were least likely to back it. Only four in 10 of them did.
The concept of Hell is pretty much based on the threat of torture.
- By Shel-tone. Comment posted 01-May-2009 @07:16am:Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!
Seriously, doesn't Christianity have a long history with torture and S&M? It all started with the crucifixion of Jesus... - By -T.. Comment posted 01-May-2009 @07:18am:Typical hypocristianity....
"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." - By . Comment posted 01-May-2009 @07:32am:Who would Jesus torture?
- By Dave (TDC). Comment posted 01-May-2009 @08:29am:I expect they can't understand why "The ends justifies the means" is never true.
This is the problem of a imposed morality instead of using ones brain to think about the reality of morality. - By . Comment posted 01-May-2009 @09:22am:I wonder if it's because American Christians incorrectly equate "terrorist" with "muslim/islam" and therefore feel no affinity with them? Easier to abuse people not like you.
- By . Comment posted 01-May-2009 @09:53am:How about a link to the actual data?
http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1210/torture-opinion-religious-differences
I don't think the actual data justifies the tone of the story.
Torture "never" justified:
23%: Weekly religious services (3% refused to answer)
25%: Monthly religious services (2% refused to answer)
26%: No religious services (5% refused to answer)
It all comes down to the definition of "often", "sometimes", "rarely" and "never" - By Dave Lartigue. Comment posted 01-May-2009 @10:12am:When did loving Jesus become equated with loving anything the GOP does? I get the abortion and stem-sell thing, but why does "Christianity" include trickle-down economics, profit-driven health care, pointless wars, torturing enemies, and unregulated markets?
- By Susan. Comment posted 01-May-2009 @10:18am:It makes sense to me that people who think "the others" with different beliefs will burn for all eternity should maybe start their punishment early.
- By Bisbonian. Comment posted 01-May-2009 @02:36pm:I have nothing to add.
- By . Comment posted 02-May-2009 @12:21am:isn't religion nothing but torture of the simple minded?