Hi Yuyutsu,

The Ku Klux Klan is a religion in every aspect of the meaning of the word. The Klan draws strongly on the ethics and philosophy of White Anglo Saxon American Evangelical Protestantism. The membership see itself as justified in action by the principles of their interpretation of Christianity. Other Christians may not agree with Klan members interpretation, in fact many other Christians find it reprehensible, but never the less they are just as Christian as any other.

Dear Paul,

«but never the less they [KKK] are just as Christian as any other.»

I haven't done that research, but if what you say is correct, then it would imply that being a Christian does not require any moral/spiritual qualities, thus Christianity itself would only be some social movement, not a religion.

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Dear Foxy,

«Robes, fiery crosses, and... were/are employed to convey their gospel" of white supremacy.»

Suppose I were to wear a bishop's robe with a big cross, that would not make me a Christian - or would it?

«Protestant Christianity,
and white supremacy became inextricably linked in these
material objects»

While you may not know how to unlink these two:

"When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory;
And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats;
And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left."
[Matthew 25:31-33]

«While the caste system originated in Hindu Scriptures,
it crystalized during British colonial rule»

And the two aren't the same.

The Hindu scriptures, when addressing castes, simply observe the factual social reality, just like the chemist observes the structure of atoms: no atoms are better than others, but some prefer to share their electrons, some prefer to grab electrons from other atoms and some prefer to remain by themselves.

Similarly, different people are by nature suitable for different types of activities. Ignoring this fact, at one's peril, activates the Peter Principle, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle

The modern-era theory of castes is a distortion, an exploitation of science for selfish motives by forcibly and foolishly assigning people their caste based on ancestry alone.

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Dear David F.,

«To regard all religions as true is to assume a contradiction can be true.»

The doctor tells one patient to eat more oranges and another patient to refrain from oranges. By following the doctor's advice, both get healthier.

This reminds me of the bloke who was on a vegan diet
and told his colleague during lunch in the cafeteria
at work -
not to order a meat sandwich. His colleague said -
"But I like meat." The man said- "No. It's bad for you.
Don't eat it!" The colleague said - "I will eat it.
I like meat." And so the argument went. Until finally
the colleague in frustration asked "How long have you been
on your vegan diet?"

His friend replied - "Two days!"

The dumber you are the more you think you know.

Science tells us about the world around us.

Religion tells us about the world that isn't around us.

For people who want to deny the world around us religion is the answer.

For people who want to know about the world around us science is the answer.

For some ignorance is bliss.

Dear Yuyutsu,

You wrote: "The doctor tells one patient to eat more oranges and another patient to refrain from oranges. By following the doctor's advice, both get healthier."

The above is not a contradiction. The two patients are different people with different needs. A competent doctor advises each patient what is best for that patient. It might serve you well to read the following.

see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy_of_logic

Missionary religion in general does not consider what is best for the individual or group. Christian missionaries with the power of the state and military have forced their religion on native peoples who generally have a religion of their own which may be better for them than Christianity.

Dear David F.,

«The above is not a contradiction. The two patients are different people with different needs.»

And this is exactly the case with religion.

The end result is health, the combination of medicines can be quite different.

Hinduism offers 100's if not 1000's of options for different people, but does not discard the potential benefits of other religions as well which may suit other people better.

«Missionary religion in general does not consider what is best for the individual or group.»

Fair enough. Your original remarks, to which I responded, referred to religion in general, not to Missionary religion (if at all Missionary activities can be considered religious, but I think that this is not the kind of topic you like getting into).

Here is another excerpt from Swami Vivekananda's address at the 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions:

"Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descen­dant, fanaticism, have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with vio­lence, drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilization and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far more advanced than it is now. But their time is come; and I fervently hope that the bell that tolled this morning in honor of this convention may be the death-knell of all fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or with the pen, and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wending their way to the same goal."
http://www.artic.edu/swami-vivekananda-and-his-1893-speech