There Is Nothing More Evil Than the Belief in Evil

Listening to the cacophony of the Republican nomination race, and now the presidential hopefuls, I cannot help but think that religious people really have it easy. They have only one enemy: evil. Whatever argument you bring against their intransigent, intolerant beliefs, they can always argue that you are the devil.

But it’s hard to beat religiousness when it comes to simplification. A Catholic priest is now seriously suggesting that suspected Aurora Shooter James Holmes was possessed by a demon. The continued presence of such childishness in the media is highly corrosive and hinders serious debate. Sometimes, American public discourse reminds me of the infighting medieval factions were famous for. Arguments based on superstition, religious nonsense, and intentional misdirection of a highly gullible audience.

For the pious, the devil comes in many disguises: higher taxes, abortion, Palestinians and gays are some of his favorite incarnations. Now even mass murderers can be keenly explained away by satanic possession. The rhetoric of the religious right is very fundamentalist and often truly medieval. If you would translate it into Farsi and change a few proper nouns, you could be forgiven for thinking you are listening to the Ayatollah.
Read the rest here