Christianity has been used more for evil than good

First of all I will apologize to my opponent. I had originally planned for a debate that would be historically accurate and draw conclusions from concrete evidence, rather than argue less tangible points. Since I did not state this in my first argument I will change my tactics to better fit the debate I’m sure he expected. He has asked me to respond quickly, but the parameters for the debate were set before he acceptedmy challenge so I feel he should not have objections toward the time I take or the length of my arguments. At this time I should point out that I do not fully trust statistics that come from a Christian Website. His source, churchleaders.com, indicates that 84% of Americans prayed last week. I find this hard to believe as a Gallup poll shows, only about 76% of Americans are even Christian.[1] Also, he says that individuals interpret Christianity differently and therefore it cannot be used for evil. This is a very contradicting statement. The fact that Christianity can be interpreted differently allows it to beinterpreted in evil ways. I think Susan B. Anthony said it best. “I distrust those who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.”[2] The truth is that after the fall of Rome in 410 BCE all of Europe was thrown into one of the largest land and power grabs in the history of mankind. Many land barons were richer andmore powerful than the kings of their countries, but they were as likely to fight against their neighbors as along side them. With all European countries having accepted the Christian religion before the fall of Rome, money flowed into the Vatican. This made the Vatican vastly more powerful thanall ofEurope and the power attracted wicked men as much as it attracted good Christians. Many popes gained their power by killing predecessors and killing or bribing other church officials. One Pope, Stephen VII, even had a former Pope’s body exhumed, held a trial for the remains and after having been found guilty, he had 3 fingers cut off.[3] In fact, during that time there were seven popes within a single decade. While I have found much worse details in this and many other stories, I have decided to site a Christian source to protect the integrity of my argument. All these evil popes needed in order to gain even more power was an excuse to send European armies to war in order to spread Christianity, which would drastically raise the amount of contributions to the Church. This is where the teachings of the Bible came in. Mainly, the teachings that say to kill non-believers. Anyone arrogant enough to reject the verdict of the judge or of the priest who represents the LORD your God must be put to death. Such evil must be purged from Israel. (Deuteronomy 17:12) You should not let a sorceress live. (Exodus 22:17) Whoever sacrifices to any god, except the Lord alone, shall be doomed. (Exodus 22:19) They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul; and everyone who would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, was to be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman. (2 Chronicles 15:12-13) Suppose you hear in one of the towns the LORD your God is giving you that some worthless rabble among you have led their fellow citizens astray by encouraging them to worship foreign gods. In such cases, you must examine the facts carefully. If you find it is true and can prove that such a detestable act has occurred among you, you must attack that town and completely destroy all its inhabitants, as well as all the livestock. Then you must pile all the plunder in the middle of the street and burn it. Put the entire town to the torch as a burnt offering to the LORD your God. That town must remain a ruin forever; it may never be rebuilt. Keep none of the plunder that has been set apart for destruction. Then the LORD will turn from his fierce anger and be merciful to you. He will have compassion on you and make you a great nation, just as he solemnly promised your ancestors. "The LORD your God will be merciful only if you obey him and keep all the commands I am giving you today, doing what is pleasing to him." (Deuteronomy 13:13-19)If your own full brother, or your son or daughter, or your beloved wife, or you intimate friend, entices you secretly to serve other gods, whom you and your fathers have not known, gods of any other nations, near at hand or far away, from one end of the earth to the other: do not yield to him or listen to him, nor look with pity upon him, to spare or shield him, but kill him. Your hand shall be the first raised to slay him; the rest of the people shall join in with you. You shall stone him to death, because he sought to lead you astray from the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. And all Israel, hearing of this, shall fear and never do such evil as this in your midst. (Deuteronomy 13:7-12) Suppose a man or woman among you, in one of your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, has done evil in the sight of the LORD your God and has violated the covenant by serving other gods or by worshiping the sun, the moon, or any of the forces of heaven, which I have strictly forbidden. When you hear about it, investigate the matter thoroughly. If it is true that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, then that man or woman must be taken to the gates of the town and stoned to death. (Deuteronomy 17:2-5) In all honesty, the Bible is fraught with contradictions, but the fact is that there were evil, horrible men in power inside the Vatican. These men used these passages, along with others to wage 7 crusades as well as give rise to the insurrection. Millions died at the end of a sword or on a stakeover the course ofhundredsof yearsto spread the word of God or to purge the soul of blasphemers and witches.Imagine the seas filled with the blood of men who died because of these Bible verses, which were hijacked by some of the most wicked men to walk the Earth. The men who carried out these orders were not much better:“Raymond of Toulouse we shall learn to admire ...He was one of the most self-restrained and chivalric of the early crusaders; yet he put out the eyes and cut off the noses of his captives, and sent them thus mutilated to their homes, as a warning to their neighbors not to molest the march of the "soldiers of the cross".[4]Of course the crusades, witch killings, the Spanish inquisition, the Salem witch trials and all the 50 plus torture devices used by the church in these times were not the only ones that were born of a good orator who got his hands on the Bible. Adolf Hitler himself was a very devout Christian. He was raised Catholicbefore transferring to the Deutsche Christen (German Christian) Church. Hitler often quoted the Bible or spoke about doing the Lord’s work. In one speech he says, “I am convinced that I am acting as the agent of our Creator. By fighting off the Jews I am doing the Lord’s work.” It’s common knowledge how much he hated the Jewish people, but how else than through the Bible and Christianity could he have gained the will of the people to begin exterminating the Jews? Even if it were possible, the truth still is that Hitler decided to use Christianity to accomplish his own rapacious objectives. Although there are verses about peace, the simple truth is that Christianity is based on a contradictory book that can be used for good or evil at any time and throughout history it has been used for far more evil than good. This is not opinion, but historically accurate fact.1. http://www.gallup.com...2. http://www.brainyquote.com...3. http://www.newadvent.org...4. Ludlow, James (2011-06-02). The Crusades (Locations 250-253). Kindle Edition