What Religion Do You Hate the Most?

Sociologists  Robert Putnam and David Campbell published a book in 2010, American Grace. In that book they did a poll to see which religion Americans hated the most. These are the results for the top three; ready for this? 1)Buddhists, 2)Muslims, 3)Mormons.

With all the public hype and the need to blame entire populations for the misdeeds of a few of their members I unfortunately get number 2, wrong as it is. But one and three; you’ve got to be kidding.

Buddhists! Why on earth do American’s hate Buddhists? In just boggles my mind. The average American I would guess does not know squat about Buddhism. Ever hear of a Buddhist war, a Buddhist terrorist, a Buddhist bully? Siddhartha Gautama who later became known as Buddha, was a rich kid in India who just wanted to find a better more fulfilling life. He wanted to find a way for people to escape suffering and pain. He lived in the 5^th Century BCE. He left the good life to seek a path and story goes while he sat under a Bodhi tree meditating he became enlightened. He then taught that path of enlightenment to others, a middle way, as he expressed it. He was 35. The middle way was between self-indulgence and self-mortification. For the life of me I can’t find much wrong with that. But there his followers sit the most hated group in America.

I also don’t get the hatred of Mormons. Again, my guess is the average American doesn’t know squat, or maybe a little squat about Mormonism. Mike Huckabee once suggested that Mormons believe that Jesus and Satan are brothers. He should know better. My guess is that most Americans also don’t think Mormons are Christians; they are. Like most religious belief systems Mormonism of the Joseph Smith days (the founder of Mormonism) and the Mormonism of today is much different as the theology of most religious belief systems change and evolve over time.

I remember when I was in campus ministry presiding with a Roman Catholic Priest at a marriage between a Mormon and a Roman Catholic. No big deal.

Hating anyone should go against anyone’s religion. It is just stupid and the folk who promote that hate mongering bring judgment upon themselves.

Or, as Forest Gump said, “Stupid is and stupid does.”