DON'T BE PART OF THE PROBLEM BY LETTING RELIGION EXCUSE ITSELF FOR THE VIOLENT ACTIONS OF ITS MEMBERS

A religion that says the pen is mightier than the sword and then hands you a Bible that has a God of violence must not be allowed to weasel out of the blame when some act on it.  One person responding by hating others in accordance with the commands is one too many.  Religion always says, "Is only one, two...".  It does not really care and that is in itself a breeding ground for religious killing fields.

When a religion or any group that claims to be a religion or supporter of peace condemns violence, could it be that its condemnations have no effect on its violent members because they detect an air of insincerity in the condemnations? Sinn Fein and the Catholic Church should be able to tell us all about that! There is enough to wage war about without religion making its input. Religion opposes this principle by merely existing. Thus its hands are stained with blood.

Religion makes its adherents more accepting of war in the sense that they embrace something that claims that it is sufficient to start a war over. Religion claims to matter more than education or food or the health service or anything else. Christ said man does not live by bread alone but by the word of God. Suppose a religion say Catholicism in some not so obvious way programs people to make them likely to persecute people of other faiths. If Catholics wage war over religion, those Catholics who disapprove will not start opposing Catholicism as such and so they become part of the problem.
 
People hurt each other and crave war. If a religion is human in origin, it can do that too. A human religion will invoke a series of differing human responses - and the responses will vary in how good or helpful they are. Saying things such as that any religion is a religion of goodness and peace is just stupid. And it is terrible when it is said despite some of the members of religion waging war in its name or becoming religious terrorists.

Those who say religious terrorism is not religious need to stop the lazy thinking. The Bible/Koran does preach violence. Believers in God hold he makes evil and lets it happen for good reasons thus opening the door to Bible and Muslim prophets like Moses who believed God was giving them the right to say have witches stoned to death. The Bible/Koran preaches violence and that alone is dangerous for human nature being what it is will be only too keen to be inspired by it.

If violence is preached by a divine revelation to a religion then the religion is to blame for any violence that happens in its name even if it never in the slightest sanctions it.  Those who excuse it are as bad and perhaps at times worse.