I am a theoretical physicist and currently Director of UCITE (University Center for Innovation in Teaching and Education) at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. I am the author of three books: God vs. Darwin: The War Between Evolution and Creationism in the Classroom (2009), The Achievement Gap in US education: Canaries in the Mine (2005), and Quest for Truth: Scientific Progress and Religious Beliefs (2000). Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog are my personal ones and are not those of UCITE or Case Western Reserve University. If you wish, you can send me an email by clicking here.
Someone has had the fortitude to go through the Bible and tabulate all the people killed by this particular god. The problem is that while sometimes the numbers are given precisely, on other occasions the figures have to be estimated.
The result? 2,476,636 if you count up the actual numbers and, if you include those killings for which no precise numbers are provided, an estimated 25 million.
(via Jerry Coyne.)
Comments
One thing that is not always considered is the positive impact of religion and the billions of people around the world who have led religious pious lives and died after living a good life. We only tend to know about the killings and deaths as they are sensational. I am not overtly religious but I think that murderers will always use religious ideologies to justify their actions as it suits them. But religion has made many lives peaceful and happy throughout human history regardless of the specific faith.
@Nathan
Are you suggesting those people would not have lived peaceful and full lives had they not been religious?
Nathan,
You're probably a troll, but just in case you aren't...this post isn't about the murders carried out by humans in the name of their respective god(s). It is about counting up the number of people actually killed by the Judeo-Christian god itself as documented in the Bible. That someone could live a good life while worshiping an entity on par with Stalin is beyond me. Just imagine what that already-good person could have done with his or her life without the time wasted worshiping an evil fabrication.
I agree with you on that as I am not overtly religious and have an open mind. But in societies without strong rule of law and values religion served as a law giving entity. I also think that people should do good without the need for a God but the fact is that people did need this to keep them in line throughout the ages. There were just as many murders before Jesus as there were after as psycopaths will always claim God told them etc. Just my opinion of course.