Reply #19: In answer to your question:

[DeSwiss]

You should not respect religion. It deserves none. NONE.

Religions are large cults that are constructed from the fanciful fairy tales of priests, charlatans and con men. They have been used by kings and political leaders, and the rich (the nobles) to keep the ignorant peasants (us) fighting among ourselves so that no one will bother to take the time to wonder exactly why it is that they are fighting at all. And thus rendering us much more malleable and controllable.

And it has always been so. Right from the start.

Religious adherents almost always know nothing -- NOTHING -- about their religions. Except for the illogical, inconsistent, contradictory, and often outrageous fairy tales that they've have rattled off to them since childhood. And they've been told what to believe by those who have a direct and vested interest in their believing these LIES. They know even less about the historical context (also known as FACTS), from which their religions sprang. Although not exclusively a requirement, ignorance is in-general a prerequisite for successful religious infestation. Which is why it is generally the case that the higher a persons IQ, the less likely they are to be religious.

- One should never "give" respect because for respect to have any value at all, it must always be earned.

"Religion is based, I think, primarily and mainly upon fear. It is partly the terror of the unknown and partly, as I have said, the wish to feel that you have a kind of elder brother who will stand by you in all your troubles and disputes. Fear is the basis of the whole thing -- fear of the mysterious, fear of defeat, fear of death. Fear is the parent of cruelty, and therefore it is no wonder if cruelty and religion have gone hand in hand." - Bertrand Russell, Why I Am Not A Christian