Least and most religious nations

[thir]

Any religious instructions, outside of religious schools themselves are invariably Christian, and illegal.

In all states?

Yes, generally by denying the science for as long as they can, then, when forced to accept it, giving gods credit for it anyway.

Yep! :-)

Precisely. Too much knowledge is, in the view of religion, a bad thing! When people learn that their Church is not following the very book which it claims to be based upon, people will be upset.

Or, to put it another way, as I see it: when people discover that the church is simply a power structure with little to do with the person who founded it, they leave it.

I believe you will find that the golden age you speak of began dying out after Muhammad and the advent of Islam, not gaining strength from it. Indeed, the case might be made that Islam is responsible for the decline of the Arab world, rather than its savior.

Actually, Mohammad founded Islam in the 4th century, and the "Golden age" of Islam with science and math, which we btw owe a lot to, was from mid 7th cemtury to mid 13th century.

Our children will only continue to learn science as long as we can keep the religions out of the schools. See Texas for how well that's working. Or look at some of the anti-science crap coming from the newly elected Congress.

I heard a bit about that, and it seems - no offence meant - quite Medieval to me!

Personally, I think it's wrong to teach children religious dogma, since at their age such teaching is tantamount to brainwashing.

Me too.

[Thorne]

In all states?

Technically it's illegal to teach religion in any public schools (separation of church and state) but as far as I know there's no real way to enforce this except by filing a lawsuit against the school (or school district) in question. There have been teachers who have stepped outside of their curriculum and taught religious instruction, even if only for brief periods. Invariably these are Christian teachers, at least the ones we hear about.

Or, to put it another way, as I see it: when people discover that the church is simply a power structure with little to do with the person who founded it, they leave it.

Yes, they do. But when people actually read the Bible (or Quran, or almost any religious text) and see the contradictions and downright insanity written there they tend to become somewhat miffed at being misled.

Actually, Mohammad founded Islam in the 4th century, and the "Golden age" of Islam with science and math, which we btw owe a lot to, was from mid 7th cemtury to mid 13th century.

Yes, you're right. Sorry, I was thinking more about the Arab culture in general, not Islam specifically.

I heard a bit about that, and it seems - no offence meant - quite Medieval to me!

Exactly! These people want to take us back into the dark ages, to the good old days of feudalism and the Inquisition. Anyone who doesn't believe just as they do is automatically guilty.