Does Forcing Religion Bear the Right Fruit?
Arguably the mass forced conversion of many is not a bad thing. I’m sure some could point to the forced conversion of people who, say, used to perform human sacrifice. But let’s look at people in daily life, at the case examples around us. Many atheists became hostile to religion because they saw too many fundamentalists beating up other people with the Bible. They saw intolerance, hatred, and bigotry among those who most loudly proclaimed the love of God. What example do we set if we try to force a religion upon someone who doesn’t want it? I’m not talking about open dialogue, gentle persuasion, or “winning souls by example.” I’m talking rules and regulations that insist people worship a certain way. How would you react if someone tried to impose a different religion on you? And what about truth-seekers? The entire Protestant Church owes its existence to the efforts of people who wanted to purify the then-Church of its corruption. Surely, also, many people who died in the Spanish Inqu
