Whatever Religion You Choose Study the Handbook

When I think about the negative aspects of religion I think about the movie that was just released starring Denzel Washington, The Book of Eli. In The Book of Eli, Washington's character works to deliver a book (The Holy Bible) to a certain destination. Along the way, he is hunted by another character who desparately desires to own the book in order to control the people in a post apocalyptic world. The people could easily be controlled because of the lack of knowledge in the subject matter.

The Queen AntoinetteI think about the same things when I read the daily news and see that a one year child has died from hunger because he was refused a meal because he did not say "Amen" during a mealtime prayer. The child's mother, Ria Ramkissoon, was apparently a part of a cult named 1 Mind Ministries in which Queen Antoinette lead when she had little Javon Thompson deprived of meals until finally his heart stopped beating. Ramkissoon, along with the rest of the cult members were told by Antoinette to pray for the child to be resurrected, and that Ramkissoon was to nurture the child back to life. So Ramkissoon, the child's mother nurtured the lifeless body for weeks until the entire group placed the body in a suitcase, relocated, and placed the suitcase containing the child's body in a shed for a year. Ramkissoon began talking to outside people about Javon's death. The Queen found out and checked the mother into a psychiatric hospital until she eventually lead the police to the child's body. 

Witnesses said Antoinette claimed to speak to God and ran a tightly controlled household. Among the rules: Group members dressed in only white, blue and khaki. They left the house only in pairs, they destroyed identification documents and cut off contact with relatives. And they were encouraged to smoke marijuana, which Antoinette called "God's weed."

This sad story just goes to show people practicing religion should make sure that they read and study the teaching for themselves. Please do not blindly follow someone just because the words that are coming from their mouths sounds good at the time. We have to read the words for ourselves. This is why most legitimate religious leaders encourage their followers to study the passages in order to seek understanding. This is why there are reference books and commentaries that go along with the passages that help us to understand the teaching better. The people in that household were so mind-wiped that no one, no one, thought to feed the baby so that he could live. Only ignorant people can fall for religious leaders that will make other commit obscene acts in the name of their deity. I am sure that someone would have questioned the Queen's moral fibers if they had studied the Holy Bible and determined that non of the babble the the Queen spouting was Biblical.