15th August 2011
“Theological censorship justifies itself as the quest for the truth and poses as truth's champion. In fact it is the enemy of the discovery of truth because discussion is forestalled. The contemporary secular world understands this and wisely enshrines freedom of speech and debate as a central value. The Church no less than any other enterprise is at least the poorer and at worst prone to error when it rejects this value.”
Eric Hodgens
August 15th, 2011 at 11:56
Yet christian apologists will often claim that all the freedoms and liberties we enjoy in the west are the direct result of judeo christian values. This is a blatant lie. Many of our freedoms are a direct result of our struggle to free our governments from the oppressive grip of religion. A value like free speech and freedom of thought is anathema to religion and religion has always tried to suppress those freedoms best it can. It is secularism which gives you freedom; religion brings only oppression.
August 15th, 2011 at 12:06
I agree with Rambler – as an example, the xian church had in index of banned books that it didn’t want anyone to read. If I’m not mistaken, it even resisted for as long as it could the translation into everyday language of its own “holy” book, the bible. Then there are examples such as the treatment of Galileo.
In states where religion still maintains its grip, priests and politicians – if they are not the same people (I shudder at the concept!) – cuddle up and collude to maintain their grip and to suppress any rational ideas creeping into governance.
August 15th, 2011 at 13:06
According to Michael Parenti, the christians, who claimed to have saved the books of antiquity – actually were responsible for the destruction of nearly all of the Roman and Greek literature. We’ll never read those, because they had centuries of domination in which to destroy all secular though.
There is an audio version of it here. Unfortunately, it is not read by Parenti Himself, but it’s compelling history.
http://www.tucradio.org/RealHistorySIX.mp3
August 15th, 2011 at 13:08
Moderator – you might find some great Atheist QOTD in Parenti’s work.
August 15th, 2011 at 13:24
Church to sinners: We’re keeping you ignorant and filthy for your own good. Now hand over your tenth child.
August 15th, 2011 at 14:30
electrabotanical – have you seen the file “Agora”? It dramatises the point you are making, by relating the story of Hypatia and the library of Alexandria.
August 15th, 2011 at 16:40
Ahhhh……Orchestrated accusations..
Nothing is true..
August 15th, 2011 at 17:23
You are not mistaken
Solly, not accusations;History.
August 15th, 2011 at 17:24
Oops! There was supposed to be a link in that las post.
August 15th, 2011 at 18:16
Churches resist free inquiry not because they want to but because they must. You can’t have just ANYONE interpreting ‘holy’ scripture, although it’s never clear why God should have wanted his words to be filtered through such easily corrupted tools. Yep, priests are tools. Heh.
August 15th, 2011 at 19:56
post at 16:40 = spurious gibberish
Oh YES ! priests ARE tools !!
August 15th, 2011 at 20:01
there’s are regular contributor to this
site who sounds almost exactly like
Lewis Carroll’s poem “jabberwocky ”
……….ALL THE TIME !!!!!
Hmmm……..who could that be ?????
August 15th, 2011 at 22:43
Yes, I detect burbling as well.