Why Religion Doesn’t Make You a Good Person

Last Updated: February 29, 2012 - Published February 29, 2012 / 1 Comment

All right, some of you probably came here looking for a fight. You’re going to be disappointed: I’m not here to cause trouble. All I’m hoping to accomplish in this article is to do a little of my own preaching about why religion doesn’t make you a good person. Again, relax; I’m not trying to get you riled up. But if you do, hmm, take some mint.

Jesus with a gun

Religion can be an amazing thing. There is nothing that compares to the power of belief. When you get someone who truly believes in something, that person will go to any lengths to do what they feel is indicated by that belief system. I don’t really need to give examples; we all know about the suicide bombers who believe they are going to Heaven to be given some uncanny amount of virgins if they complete their assigned religious task on Earth! You know about which religion I’m talking about right?

jihad animals

Similar fervor can be seen in the Christian religions, especially now that birth control pills have been such a hot topic in the news lately. In fact, I’d rather face one brute with a dull sword than a group of scrawny, loud zealots armed with informational packets. It is a common misconception, however, that religion makes you a good person.

I have known far too many people who have known God in one way or another, who have then done things so un-godly that it would make you vomit just on principle. Knowing God doesn’t mean you have the common sense or good upbringing to be a functional member of society and treat others as they should be treated. This is no more obvious than with people who look down on others because they are not religious!

Happy God

Nothing gets me going more than one of my friends saying something like, “Well, if you knew Him and accepted Him, you’d know what I was talking about. Until that happens, you’ll never know true happiness.” Bullcrap. The only person in charge of my happiness is me. If I’m not happy, it’s not because God doesn’t smile at me or throw blessings my way. Someone who isn’t happy isn’t happy because they don’t know how to do for themselves.

Believe it or not, happiness is a choice.

And the kicker is that I do believe in God, I just don’t stalk around belittling others like some of my acquaintances. Do they really think that God would want them gliding around on high-horses and speaking in condescending tones? He’d probably go all Old Testament on them.

And don’t even get me started on the serial killers who go to church and then afterward everyone is like, “Oh, he was the nicest guy. He came to all the picnics. You would have never thought he killed people and ate them.” Really? Were there really no other signs? How about we focus more on helping our fellow man rather than trying to define people’s “goodness” based on their belief system.

If I’m trapped in a storm drain, I don’t care if the person who pulls me out is Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, Atheist or Catholic. The bottom line is that someone came to my aid and that’s what makes them a good person.

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