What prompts men to use religion as a means to abuse women and children?

Men and women have the ability to do both good and evil. The reason why people abuse power and treat others as servants and property is because it usually is the easier thing to do Most people with that much power starts to change their moral compass slowly. They make a bad decision, go a little too far and nothing happens. There is no one willing to object and punish them so the next time they slip up it goes a little further. It turns into a downward slope that usually only ends when everything goes to hell.

It is a rare occurrence that someone with absolute power can keep their moral center the entire time, that reason being that man is fallible. Everyone would like to believe they could not abuse that power but given enough time and lack of repercussions most will fall.

Hopefully one day people will realize that the only reason someone gains power over them and controls their life is because they let it happen. It is alright to look up to someone but you also need to have the ability to look down on them if they deserve it.

reply to post by Excitable_Boy



Man created religion, therefore if religion is inherently corrupt, so is man.

What a remarkably positive outlook you have.

@ Angrylightbulb;

Indeed, i often find it difficult to understand stupidity.

[edit on 11-4-2008 by Anti-Tyrant]

Originally posted by AWingAndASigh
I've been reading one of the more horrifying stories about the raid on the polygamist compound in Texas.

What is it, exactly, that drives men to do this?

Don't you mean what drives sin?

I have several question for you, why believe anything the media or the govt say after having been shown proof they lie to you thousands of times?

Plus if these people were really doing this stuff what difference does it make that they were in a religion don't you think that all people do stuff like this even the people who are telling you how bad it is, I mean worse crap goes on every weekend in DC who is raiding them?

I can have ten women at once as long as I don't marry them everting is cool.

You have people who try to do right and marry all of their women and somehow they are criminals?





[edit on 11-4-2008 by newday]

Let's rephrase the question;

What prompts any individual at all to use anything as a means to abuse any living being on this planet?

It's not just for sex, either. People use religion for all sorts of manipulative reasons, from money to acts of terrorism.

I think the reason they use religion is because it is already there and it is something that is believed by so many people. Some of its vague aspects allow room for a lot of incorrect interpretation, or manipulation, to suit ones needs.

But the fact that some people use religion to serve their own personal agenda should not reflect poorly on religion itself- at least in most cases. Just because there are bad Christians, bad Jews and bad Muslims out there, does not mean that all religions and all those who take part in them are bad. There will always be liars and scum out there in all aspects of life, but it's important to never let them shake your beliefs.

And let me close by saying that some of you on here really need to learn how to speak to others regarding religion. I think it's really ignorant to come on here and declare the beliefs of millions, and in some cases billions, of people as pure fiction. Some of you talk as though you have all the answers in life and you know for a fact that there is no God, or there was no Jesus, Mohammad, whatever. A person's faith in God is no different than a person's faith that there is no God. Both are entitled to their beliefs, and both should be respected. There is no excuse for either side to belittle the other. There are so many ignorant posters on here, especially with regards to religion and politics, that it's disgusting. All of you want peace, love and happiness in the world, yet you can't even manage to discuss an issue without mocking someones beliefs.

Everyone is entitled to their views and everyone is entitled to their opinions. But just because they are yours does not mean they are right. Unless you have some secret, iron-clad, 100% proof that there is or isn't a God, then don't be so quick to declare religion to be pure fantasy or the souls of non-believers to be eternally damned. And I'm trying to be fair here to both sides, despite the fact that the religion-bashing on here far outweighs the few religious zealots that post negatively about atheism/atheists and whatnot.

Please do not confuse these heretics with true christians. I wish it was a waco texas outcome instead. Maybe I'm kidding a little bit.

Man invented God. God did not invent man. Religion has always been used as a means of mass control.

Why do some people do bad things behind the cloak of religion? Because they can.

Originally posted by Myrdyn

Why do some people do bad things behind the cloak of religion? Because they can.

Exactly, but it is the ones who do bad things right out in the open that we should be doing something about like Bush and Cheney.

According to Tanner, the average age of menarche dropped from about 17 to 12.8 during the period 1830-1962. The rate of decline was 4 months per decade.

www.mum.org...

and now

The median age at menarche for all US girls is 12.43 years

pediatrics.aappublications.org...

wiki menarche

Menarche (IPA: /məˈnɑrki/) is the first menstrual period, or first menstrual bleeding in the females of human beings. From both social and medical perspectives it is often considered the central event of female puberty, as it signals the possibility of fertility.

I think this issue is many more shades of grey than some wish to think.

Sri Oracle

[edit on 11-4-2008 by Sri Oracle]

I don't think that this represents males in general anymore than it represents women who do horrible things. But I think the rare male who does do this sort of thing because they can. They do it because there are women and or other people in general that are vulnerable, gullible, looking for leadership or who believe they are to be led by men. If you are taught something all your life chances are you tend to believe it.

Maybe they use religion as an excuse to dominate or maybe they truly believe be that they are to be that way. All I can do is teach my own sons to be different. Eventually if more and more are taught that it is wrong to behave in that way then it can be worked out of society. At least that is my thinking.

This problem is not unique to religious cults. They are just getting all the media attention. Unfortunately this is prevalent in all areas of our society. Lurking pedophiles weasel or buy their way into the lives of children. I’m sorry but I must get on my soapbox here. There is one area that is often overlooked, the home. Just look at some of the numbers!

Even within the walls of their own homes, children are at risk for sexual abuse
· 30-40% of victims are abused by a family member. (2, 44, 76)
· Another 50% are abused by someone outside of the family whom they know and trust.
· Approximately 40% are abused by older or larger children whom they know. (1, 44)
· Therefore, only 10% are abused by strangers.
The statistics are shocking
· 1 in 4 girls is sexually abused before the age of 18.
· 1 in 6 boys is sexually abused before the age of 18.
· 1 in 5 children are solicited sexually while on the internet. (30, 87)
· Nearly 70% of all reported sexual assaults (including assaults on adults) occur to children ages 17 and under. (76)
· An estimated 39 million survivors of childhood sexual abuse exist in America today. (1)
www.darkness2light.org...

Please take time to visit this site read the statistics for yourself see how this does in fact affect all areas of society. Don’t forget these numbers only reflect reported cases.

10% by strangers! Most people are so fearful of the quintessential stranger/danger guy they forget to take a closer look at family and friends. Remember these people are experts at hiding in plain site, blending in, seeking out and getting what they want. Pedophiles are everywhere there are children even in our homes.

Be assured violence breeds violence, dysfunction and self-destructive behavior. The statistics show violent abuse of children does impact their behavior as adults. If we can’t cure the perpetrator and our society refuses to confine them indefinitely or put them to death, we must deny access to children by this large majority of pedophile friends and family members. Maybe we could stop the cycle of violence, dysfunction and abuse if we took away one element, the victim. Closely monitor all who interact with the children in your lives.

reply to post by Morningglory


Well, let's compare the differences in how animals raise their young & how humans raise their young;

Oftentimes, the mother of a young (i'll go with lions here, for fun) will leave the pride for a certain amount of time in order to give birth and raise her young - in order to protect her offspring from other lionesses in the pride who would be interested in killing off the offspring of their nearest rivals.

Indeed, the most dangerous animals in nature are the ones protecting their young.

But that doesn't really compare to sexual abuse.

What i've done is gone and hunted down a psychological profile, of someone who appears to be an individual with cult-leader responsibilities (oxymoron, but hear me out).

I do not know whether or not the profiling is true in relevance to the individual in question, i'm just using the information available to adapt my reasoning to; psychological profile of a cult leader.

If you'll scan through most of the chaff, you'll get to the part i'm focusing on - the "Need for Stimulation".

A victim (we can debate that if you like) recounts her experiences with the cult leader in question,

[External Source]
Saturday morning at nine we had our weekly Zone Leaders meeting. I could tell from ###’s face that he was furious. After prayer and songs we anxiously waited to hear from ###. He was furious. His eyes squinted, he scowled. “Would you believe that some of you failed to say good-night to me last night?!” A tirade followed, then silence. Little by little most people in the room confessed their sin to ### and repented.

Naturally, any regular person would look @ that and wonder "Wtf, i wouldn't put up with that!", but what i'm highlighting here is the leader's nessecity to attack people around him in order to garner a response from his followers.

How far reaching could this so-called 'need for stimulation' go to?

Unknown, but i would be willing to place a bet that if he did not receive this stimulation, it would be bad for the people around him.

Understanding the way in which people operate in a cultist environment is a good way of understanding why people abuse one another - the 'i want' mentality is the priority.

You may wonder why i'm talking about cults when infact we're talking about specific cases of abuse, and i'd reply by saying that most cults are simply extreme cases of circles of abuse, under the guise of so-called 'moral blackmail'.

Ya'll can scan through that link if you like, but i did remove the name of the cult leader for a reason - not everyone likes it when this kind of info. is shoved in their face.

Why do people abuse one another?

Because they want to.

You don't need to look any further than that.

[edit on 12-4-2008 by Anti-Tyrant]

[edit on 12-4-2008 by Anti-Tyrant]

reply to post by AWingAndASigh


Don't confuse religion with Mormonism... First of all if you have read into the Illuminati or have seen any videos on the Illuminati you should already know the Mormon faith is super bunk and corrupt... The story, your reference, only seems to happen in one branch of the Mormon faith... I'm a non-denominational Christian and believe you can study the word under any rock... That a church or organized council is not needed... Most of the churches today are corrupt... Most of the bibles are corrupt or manipulated as well.. You can not hold all Christians responsible for one corrupt section of a section of a religion... Even though Mormon's say they are Christian they do not represent the entire Christian religion... The people involved with these things are either evil in nature, hiding behind the Mormon religion, in other words, they are witches, masons and/or illuminatist's... They are deceived or are deceiving the followers and themselves if they believe what they do is part of the true religion of God...

God is not like this Mormon sect... He is not Mormon in any way and isn't like a lot of the other churches either... Not many churches will be approved of in the end and considering we are most likely in the end times, wait and see, that would mean most of the religions are corrupt in one form or another today, right now...

Here is a good video... On how Satan is attacking us and the church... His plan and a lot of other very interesting information that makes a lot of sense... Explains why certain churches and religions are corrupt etc...

Google Video Link

I've also posted this video in one of my threads... You will find some good conversation and other videos in the thread...

Satan's Assault On The Church - ATS Post, by me


[edit on 12-4-2008 by ElectricUncleSam]

Originally posted by AWingAndASigh
What drives this? What deep and fundamental flaw in men encourages them to use religion as a means of abuse?

Potential impunity!

Getting away with doing wrong to another soul is the driving force behind all acts that take away rather than give. From the relatively benign white lie to the most heinous violence...if the culprit points the finger at GOD, who is going to get in trouble? It's the ultimate defense plea.

But in the end, who has to answer to who? I know that doesn't alleviate anyone's suffering in the material plane; however it does assure both accountability and justice. What happens in the flesh HURTS for a certain amount of time - but what happens in the spirit ENDURES and eventually cures both the abuser as well as the abused.

This is what I believe - that all things work for the healing of our soul even if it doesn't seem that way when our soul is hidden in our bodies. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger and since the soul does not die....the ultimate result will be positive.

For the time being, we can cry with those who are in pain and pray for those who cause that pain. LOVE is the only way to deal with any part of life!

♥