religion a tool of oppression?

  • Thread starter Thread starter PattyPryor
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
P

PattyPryor

Guest
Karl Marx made the Statement “that religion is a tool of Oppression” How would you refute this statement if you could?
 
So is Marxism. Oh, wait, Marx wasn’t a Marxist. Nevermind.

Anything that people cling to, especially as a group or culture, can be used to oppress. My question is, has religion ever helped anyone? Have churches made lives better or only been used for oppression?
 
ralphinal said:
So is Marxism. Oh, wait, Marx wasn’t a Marxist. Nevermind.
Anything that people cling to, especially as a group or culture, can be used to oppress. My question is, has religion ever helped anyone? Have churches made lives better or only been used for oppression?
Click to expand...
Hi

I appreciate your response.

Thanks
 
I’ve never heard of him having said that, specifically, but I would say, “Karl Marx’s theories are certainly a motive of oppression, and killed 115 million people, give or take 6 million or so.”
 
If religion is a tool of oppression, then why does every oppressive dictatorship make destroying the Catholic Church its first priority? :hmmm:

Paul
 
PaulDupre said:
If religion is a tool of oppression, then why does every oppressive dictatorship make destroying the Catholic Church its first priority? :hmmm:

Paul
Click to expand...
Perhaps those who sincerely ponder that question need to take a good look at the Catechism of the Catholic Church. :cool:
 
PaulDupre said:
If religion is a tool of oppression, then why does every oppressive dictatorship make destroying the Catholic Church its first priority? :hmmm:

Paul
Click to expand...
I think that the answer of the non-Christian would be that one form of oppression is getting rid of another. The truth is that oppression hates freedom, and through the faith we are made free.
 
Hastrman said:
I’ve never heard of him having said that, specifically, but I would say, “Karl Marx’s theories are certainly a motive of oppression, and killed 115 million people, give or take 6 million or so.”
Click to expand...
Exactly what I was thinking. I’d tell Marx his work would be the biggest cause of oppression the world had ever seen, more than all others in its time together.
 
PaulDupre said:
If religion is a tool of oppression, then why does every oppressive dictatorship make destroying the Catholic Church its first priority? :hmmm:

Paul
Click to expand...
Actually, with respect, not every oppressive dictatorship tries to destroy the Catholic Church. Certainly many would agree that Franco in Spain was oppressive (at least by the standards of Western Democracy), but he was actually a defender of the Church.

The situation regarding religion and oppression is complicated because different people view different things as oppression. For example, while I imagine many of us would agree that abortion is evil and should be outlawed, a certain segment of the population would view that as oppression.

Ultimately, oppression is anything that prevents me from doing what I want to do. I am sure Satan views God’s law as oppressive.

–
Bill
 
mchale said:
Actually, with respect, not every oppressive dictatorship tries to destroy the Catholic Church. Certainly many would agree that Franco in Spain was oppressive (at least by the standards of Western Democracy), but he was actually a defender of the Church.

The situation regarding religion and oppression is complicated because different people view different things as oppression. For example, while I imagine many of us would agree that abortion is evil and should be outlawed, a certain segment of the population would view that as oppression.

Ultimately, oppression is anything that prevents me from doing what I want to do. I am sure Satan views God’s law as oppressive.

–
Bill
Click to expand...
Good points all. :tiphat:

That being said, there are exceptions to every generalization.

Paul
 
Oh this if for a class y’all so it is really good y’all give me feedback. The question can be in interview form like we can ask others this question. you all make very good points 🙂
 
The Catholic Church does more practical good for people, in terms of aid and charity, than all the other organisations out there put together.

How dare we oppress all those poor people by feeding, clothing, doctoring, nursing and educating them! :rolleyes:
 
LilyM said:
The Catholic Church does more practical good for people, in terms of aid and charity, than all the other organisations out there put together.

How dare we oppress all those poor people by feeding, clothing, doctoring, nursing and educating them! :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
If I may play marxist advocate here. They might say that you do all of that but still hold them hostage to a carrot on a stick: the whole heaven thing if you do exactly what you tell them to do. The Church also owns land and wealth that could be redistributed amongst the poor.

I do not buy into any of that, but that is what might be said.
 
ralphinal said:
If I may play marxist advocate here. They might say that you do all of that but still hold them hostage to a carrot on a stick: the whole heaven thing if you do exactly what you tell them to do. The Church also owns land and wealth that could be redistributed amongst the poor.

I do not buy into any of that, but that is what might be said.
Click to expand...
To the first point the non-devil’s advocate would say ‘that’s why numbers of Catholics/Christians are in serious decline in spite of probably increased amount of services provided by Christian churches’.

To the second point, ‘sure, you can sell all that property, which might, if you’re lucky, provide one square meal to every needy person in the world. After that one meal, they’re back precisely where they started from and the Church has lost most of its means of helping anyone.’
 
PattyPryor said:
Karl Marx made the Statement “that religion is a tool of Oppression” How would you refute this statement if you could?
Click to expand...
I don’t see how worshiping God and recieving Life everlasting is in anyway linked with oppression. Preventing people from coming to religion is oppression plane and simple.
 
Claudius said:
I don’t see how worshiping God and recieving Life everlasting is in anyway linked with oppression. Preventing people from coming to religion is oppression plane and simple.
Click to expand...
Not that I disagree with you, but those who reject God’s love, see submitting to his will not as liberation, but as opression. By rejecting God’s love, they see only what God doesn’t want us to do, not what he wants us to.

–
Bill
 
Hastrman said:
I’ve never heard of him having said that, specifically, but I would say, “Karl Marx’s theories are certainly a motive of oppression, and killed 115 million people, give or take 6 million or so.”
Click to expand...
Hi

So, the Atheists having no checks and balances could become very cruel. I think for this reason, they should become Theists, if they like.

Thanks
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top