humanity would have been better off without religion

Thanks again to Pro for his last round. By the terms of the debate declared in R1, my opponent accepted the BOP that 'humanity would have been better off without religion.' Therefore if Pro fails to provide unaminous justification for religion being more harmful than non-harmful, then I win. Rebuttal: Pro made the claim that intentions do not matter but I disagree. Interpretations can be different for each individual but isn't everything in life up to interpretation including religion?[1] The truth is religion has been far more beneficial to humanity than harmful.[4] Therefore humanity itself screams out that religion has been greatly needed by the sheer overwhelming number of followers and believers. Religion gives people a purpose and hope. A well-defined purpose is fundamental to success in any organization or person.[5] The intent or purpose within a cause should always be taken seriously when making a judgement on it. The intent of religion is not harmful or controlling but teaches freedom and love. If we take away religion we would be violating people's religious rights.[8] Any discrimination of religion is against the current laws. Everyone should have access to the religious rights they are accustomed too. They should be treated with equal respect, regardless of their religion. Religion is a very personal choice and each religion has their own belief system.[10] When we look at religion we can not take one group to define all religion because of the many different religions out there. I disagree with any religion that has intent to cause harm and seeks control over its followers and outsiders. There are many types of religions like these religions but they remain in the minority. Most majority religions seek peace and moral goals. Four of the top five religions of all-time preach peace and the fifth is Islam who one can argue also teaches peace. My opponent only gave us a handful of incidents to go by to determine if religion is harmful or not.[9] 1.Taiping Rebellion: My opponent respectfully admits that political upheaval was the major cause of China's rebellion and that religion played a smaller role. My opponent failed to catch the point I was trying to make which was that if a person has a religion and is not doing what that religion commands then that person is not acting from a religious bases and but their own. 2.The Inquisition: Pro stated that he can deny that no good value came from the Inquisition. I think we all wish to hear the reasons why he denies this, what good came from the Inquisition? My opponent offers us scripture from Luke about a parable from Jesus called, 'Parable of the Talents.' My opponent has made a error in assuming that this was actually a ordering of people to die but was instead a story from Jesus to teach the people a lesson.[2] This story also involved Jesus talking about casting judgement on those who refuse Him in the afterlife. My opponent then falsely claims that the Bible suggest to Christian believers to kill other people. The Gospels never claim no such thing and we should remember that Christians are compelled to follow the New Testament and not the Old. [3] The entire commandment of the New Testament is to love thy neighbor as thyself. I will not interpret the Koran and stand firm that any religion that suggest killing and oppression for its followers should be abolished. 3.The Crusades: People went on Crusades for many different reasons and the Crusades were not solely in the Holy Land. They sought new lives, no taxes, looting, to kill non-christians, to be forgiven of sins, by punishment, to be treated better, land, more importance and to destroy Islam.[6] The most important cause and effect of the Crusades was economic. 4.The Holocaust: My opponent makes the mistake of thinking Jews are only a religious group and not also a ethnic group. If religion did not exist there would still be Jews, there are Jews who are atheist. He also is attempting to blame the Jews for Hitler's actions and it kinda sounds like he has Hitler's views. My opponent is suggesting to get rid of religion because Hitler wanted to kill one religious party or group. He then blames religion itself because people want to oppose it and strip the rights of people to believe in their religion. A1) False Assessment My opponent is content in suggesting that religion is not about peace but hasn't given us any real statistics to go by. It is fair to recognize that, at the very least, religion has two very different aspects. One clearly divides humans; the other might be able to unite them. It is also fair, of course, to say that most religions teach some sort of love and peace.[7] There is only one world-wide universal religion, the religion of Love, based on the fundamental truth. A2) Religious Fanaticism Fanaticism is not restricted to the religious but it is also in politics and corporate business as well. These kind of fanatic authorities will always exist and have always existed in every group and society. The individual who chooses to partake in fanatic behavior is not defining the religion or institution in which he proclaims. Instead the person is acting on selfishness or deceit for either fortune or fame. A3) Positives of Religion In what religion suggest that the follower should drive air-planes into buildings? What religion has actually drove air-planes into buildings? My opponent admits that there are positives inside religion but insist there is more harm than good. He did not give us any facts to support such claims nor did he address all of my positive claims for religion from last round. Most physicians in the United States believe that religion and spirituality have a positive effect on patients’ health. Disease has lead to far more deaths than religious propaganda.[4] Despite the claims of many theorists, religion has continued to play a vital role in the lives of individuals worldwide. Offering counseling services, providing food and shelter for the poor, helping people in what ever capacity they can. It doesn't matter the religion, faith, or belief, there are benefits of religion that are a benefit to the human race as a whole.[10] Religion provides you with friendships which is a vital element in ones life. As said before, religion has been shown to improve a person's mental and physical health. Religion teaches one to have the skills to help others with consoling for what reason that arises. Religion gives a person the strength to carry one thru struggles and obstacles in their life. No matter what religion you believe the underlying point is that faith is for the betterment of humanity. Conclusion: The conclusion is that religion has given far more greater good to humanity than it has took away. My opponent has yet to convince us that humanity would have been better off without religion. Let's remember that my opponent took the BOP and made the initial claim and he must fulfill his BOP. I turn it back over to Pro! Sources: [1] http://www.str.org... [2] http://www.religioustolerance.org... [3] http://www.jstor.org... [4] http://www.nytimes.com... [5] http://www.techrepublic.com... [6] http://history-world.org... [7] http://www.ruhanisatsangusa.org... [8] http://www.ohrc.on.ca... [9] http://en.wikipedia.org... [10] http://www.articleclick.com...