| The religions of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, | | | | other senseless things on the population. The |
| Greece and Rome had all Gods of war, and the | | | | other religions are not far behind. Several |
| ones in the American continent prior to the | | | | countries with Hindu, Buddhist and Christian |
| arrival of Europeans as well as those in | | | | cultures also deploy the full weight of the |
| Africa had a similar structure. Not only were | | | | state to enforce ludicrous laws that have |
| there Gods of war, but there was also a | | | | their origin in religion. |
| system that brutally punished those who | | | | |
| disobeyed the wishes of the priests. | | | | It is in the nature of religions to repress. |
| | | | Since they claim to possess the absolute |
| The monotheistic ones that appeared later, | | | | truth, it is inevitable that they demand |
| largely stopped worshiping the warring Gods, | | | | total compliance and do not accept |
| but the priests continued to threaten those | | | | dissension. |
| who disagreed with them with punishments of | | | | |
| all sorts. The punishments were of two kinds. | | | | If what religions claim would be true, it |
| Those received in this life and those | | | | would make sense to abide strictly by what |
| delivered in the next. | | | | they demand. The problem is that they lack |
| | | | all scientific credibility and only science |
| On the one hand, there was the constant | | | | gives credibility to a belief. |
| threat that poverty, disease, and accident | | | | |
| would fall over those who did not comply with | | | | History shows that religions have utilized |
| the commands of the clerics. Since poverty, | | | | one of the most repressive systems that |
| epidemics and war were a constant throughout | | | | humanity has ever seen. Most interesting is |
| the bulk of history, and since people were | | | | that they are the ones that have kept it |
| always committing sins, it seemed as if the | | | | alive for the longest. Repressive political |
| threats of the Church would frequently | | | | systems such as slavery and feudalism made |
| transform into a lash that came directly from | | | | their apparition after the birth of religion |
| the whip of God. The fear that those threats | | | | and although they existed for a long time, |
| instilled on the ignorant masses was huge and | | | | they eventually expired. Religions however, |
| people trembled every time they were | | | | kept on going. |
| professed. | | | | |
| | | | The reason they have subsisted for so long is |
| Another form of psycho-terror that religions | | | | because throughout the bulk of history |
| have repeatedly used and which was to a | | | | ignorance was prevalent. For millennia, the |
| certain extent more potent than the previous | | | | immense majority of the world population was |
| one was the threat of eternal damnation. The | | | | illiterate and when people are ignorant they |
| men of faith assured that the sufferings in | | | | easily fall prey to lies. The one thing that |
| Hell were exponentially more painful than | | | | people fear the most is death and since the |
| those on Earth and since the ones on Earth | | | | men of faith worked the subject of death so |
| were monstrously horrible, the fear they | | | | well, their impact was huge. |
| instilled was overwhelming. | | | | |
| | | | However, levels of illiteracy have fallen |
| However, such a psychological tool was not | | | | massively in the last two centuries and life |
| the only instrument of control that the | | | | expectancy has grown exponentially. For |
| monotheistic creeds used. They also had | | | | millennia the creeds of the world have held |
| armies and police forces, which enforced in a | | | | sway over the minds of billions, but |
| violent way the commands of the clerics. | | | | fortunately for humanity, their reign of |
| | | | terror is finally coming to an end. Their |
| To this day, most Muslim countries continue | | | | power has rapidly declined in the past two |
| to deploy a police apparatus which will go as | | | | centuries and the evidence suggests that |
| far as to enforce with prison and even death | | | | before the twenty-first century is over, they |
| a very strict code of dressing and a million | | | | will have ceased to exist. |