I really couldn't think of an adaquate title for this

[Arios V]

Reading Rick's thread on th young girl who died after her parents refused to take her to the hospital and just prayed that she'd get better reminded me of another story involving overly religious people. Although, this one has more to do with religious insanity than faith healing, but it still reminded me.

I can't remember the exact date of this story. I believe it was at around September-October 2007.

Anyway, the story goes that Federal Marshals were called in to evict a very reclusive family living in a town home in SE Washington DC after they had refused to pay utilities and neighbors reported a funny smell coming from the building. When the Marshals burst into the house to evict the family they discovered the bodies of 4 girls, ages 5-17 and a woman who was later identified as the mother of the four girls. Here's the big thing about it, the girls had been dead for at least 2-3 months and each of them had died by either being smothered or drowned. The mother was immediately taken into custody on four counts of murder. At her preliminary trail to determine if she could be eligible for bail she said the reason she committed the crime was because her daughters had become "possessed by demons" and that she was doing the Lord's work.

The article did not say her faith but it goes to show you a glimpse at some of the sick and twisted religious people in the world.  

[CaprinaePsi]

I'm not sure what others might get from incidents like this, but to me, it just proves further that religion is not only unnecessary, but harmful. Imagine how it was thousands of years ago, when there was no scientific method and everyone believed in possessions, demons, and the "power of prayer." Honestly, everything positive that religion gives can easily be replaced by a different source. Need a question answered? Ask a professional. Need help with emotional problems or something life changing? Talk to a therapist. Need a community? As silly as it might seem to say, but there's on word for this: INTERNET.

Really, is there anything religion gives that can't be given by someone else?  

[Sanguvixen]

I would wonder if there was not some mental problems involved.

You would be surprised what mental issues can make a person do whether they are religious or not. My mother's first husband was not a really religious person. He did have mental issues though, that his family tried to hide.

They hid from my mother that he had once been in the asylum. One day his mental illness resurged completely, and he killed my mother's first born son chopping him into bits with a steak knife, shoving the body into a bag and then put the still living younger second born son into the bag. His defense for murdering his first born was a claim that he was making a sacrifice to the "Gods".

That said...religion did not make him do that. His mental illness did. So before you blame religion, you first have to check out if a person has a legitimate mental issue....if not, than religion is the next culprit.

 

[Rick Dawkins]

mental illness + religion = scares the crap out of me.

religion + normal people = still scares the crap out of me.

I heard the story of that mom killing her kids and it sickens me. She needed help and she didn't get it. I can't blame her religion for that. However, I can blame people who are completely sane and still willfully ignorant. The problem is that religion teaches people to be gleeful and joyous at the fact that they know nothing and that they shouldn't consider knowledge to be a virtue.

For example: God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac and he almost did it! "Don't question me, kill your kid with lots of fire, I like fire." Abraham had his son tied up in a bundle on top of wood and was just about to light it when God sent an angel to say "whoa whoa whoa, God was just testing you, you don't actually have to kill your son." How lovely. If God is real he's a p***k...and I wouldn't worship him even then.  

[Arios V]

Sanguvixen

I would wonder if there was not some mental problems involved.

You would be surprised what mental issues can make a person do whether they are religious or not. My mother's first husband was not a really religious person. He did have mental issues though, that his family tried to hide.

They hid from my mother that he had once been in the asylum. One day his mental illness resurged completely, and he killed my mother's first born son chopping him into bits with a steak knife, shoving the body into a bag and then put the still living younger second born son into the bag. His defense for murdering his first born was a claim that he was making a sacrifice to the "Gods".

That said...religion did not make him do that. His mental illness did. So before you blame religion, you first have to check out if a person has a legitimate mental issue....if not, than religion is the next culprit.

You are right, I'm not sure if this really was religion, and might have been a severe case of mental instability, but I cannot find the article or anything more about this so I can't verify.

For now, I think I'll revoke my statement about it being a religious zeal problem and go with mental instability until I find the article or a follow-up. I apologize.  

[Tenth Speed Writer]

Religion is the perfect justification for mental instability.

It's not even rare for it to be the cause.