Quote Originally Posted by Mojavpa
Yes thats true, but we should really look at how many atheists vs. people of religion who do good in the world, like devoting their lives to helping the poor, etc.. When people think of civil rights and peace activists who had the most impact on the world in the 20th century, people like Martin Luther King(VERY religious) and Gandhi(also believed in a higher power) or Mother Theresa come to mind. Of course, many religious people in power werent very nice people. But the ultimate question is whether an atheist or a person of God is more likely to do good in the world. Sure, a nun might think gays will go to hell, and be pro-life, but if she spends her entire life in Africa making sure kids have clean drinking water, does it really matter?
I kind of have to crack up when somebody admits to admiring religous "do-gooders".

If your nuns in Africa, or the organization(s) they represent, deny the people in third world countries the right to have birth control, then they are contributing to the problems of poverty - and all of the diseases that could be prevented with condoms and safe sex. Condemning condoms is not "good" - it's stupid. Africa has, I believe, the highest Aids outbreak in the world. The Church could care less, and tells them to use abstinence.

Mother Theresa's homes for the dying were just that - she believed that people's afterlife was more important than life here on earth. She, however, flew around in jets and was wined and dined by rogues, dictators, and various scoundrels. She turned down a building that was offered to her, to be used as a hospital in NYC, because it had ELEVATORS - she did not believe in them!

The churches opposed most all of the scientific and medical discoveries in the world. It was the men of knowledge, not the superstitious idiocy of anti-human priests that made our life spans go from 20 something in biblical times to what it is today. Next time you need medical care, whom are you going to go to - a doctor or a priest?

Itâ??s the heretics, infidels and other freethinkers that make the world better â?? not the religious. All real progress in the world is outside of religion, not because of it.

Just my opinion.