The Greatest Sins of Christianity

I have written a number of posts which take Herbert Armstrong and his followers to task for their criticisms of - and departures from - traditional Christian orthodoxy. Nevertheless, there is plenty of room for legitimate criticism of the history of Christianity. Indeed, in my humble opinion, the Christian Church has been responsible for some horrendous sins down through the centuries since its founding in the First Century.

Just as the Romans were responsible for persecuting early Christians, Christians were also responsible for persecuting pagans and/or folks who adhered to what the community regarded as heretical beliefs. Historically, pagan temples were destroyed, pagan priests were put to death, and witches and heretics were tortured and executed.

Unfortunately, Christians also inaugurated the Crusades to forcibly take possession of the Holy Land and cast out the Muslims who controlled that region. Along the same lines, Christians inaugurated a number of religious wars down through the centuries in Europe.

Christians encouraged and actively participated in the persecution of European Jews. Over the centuries, Jews were expelled, oppressed, restricted, slain, and forced to "convert" to Christianity.

The Christian Church was also responsible for the mistreatment/persecution of Native Americans in the New World and sanctioned and justified the enslavement of their African brethren. Moreover, once again, Christians sought to destroy Native/African culture and force Natives/Africans to convert to Christianity. Christians also condoned and facilitated the theft of Native lands.

The Christian Church adopted Satan's lies about human sexuality and was directly responsible for a great deal of mental anguish and sexual frustration down through the centuries. Moreover, the perpetuation of a shame-based view of the human body and its functions related to sexual behaviors often encouraged aberrant behaviors and mental illness. Likewise, the Christian Church must also bear a great deal of responsibility for the alienation and persecution of LGBTQ people down through the centuries.

Christians also encouraged and perpetuated paternalism and misogynistic attitudes towards females. These attitudes led to a great deal of domestic abuse, mental anguish and lost potential down through the centuries. Hence, instead of loving and nurturing women and children, Christian fathers and priests/pastors were often responsible for condoning and perpetuating their mistreatment and exploitation.

Unfortunately, Christianity has often stood in the way of scientific exploration and advancement. Too often, Christians have ridiculed and resisted the efforts of the scientific community to advance our knowledge of the world/universe and improve the human condition. Indeed, the Church has often censored, discouraged, and/or actively suppressed the dissemination of information which contradicted or threatened their views or power.

Finally, the Christian Church also made significant contributions to the destruction of our natural environment. Their emphasis on man's dominion over the earth and its creatures at the expense of their God-given responsibility to beautify and protect the earth caused untold damage to the planet down through the centuries.

In my opinion, these are the greatest sins of the Christian community - the most egregious departures from God's will and original intention. Moreover, they are all clear violations of the commandments to love God with our whole hearts and to love each other as ourselves. What do you think?