Religious Violence

When we think about religion, we think about the charity, peacekeeping, and preaching. We might think about the variety of beliefs each religion encompasses, including Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Unfortunately we are also reminded that charity and peacekeeping are not always valued by religions. When we read about events in history books and watch the news at night, we see the problems religious fanaticism can cause. Though the violence may be not be faithful to the core beliefs and values of the religions involved, it is still there nonetheless. Examples of religious violence can be found throughout history, and it ranges on the scale of small events to all-out war.
The first instances date back thousands of years to the persecutions of Jews and Christians for not adhering to the religion of the Roman Empire. Thousands were persecuted and executed over the course of several hundred years. The fall of the Roman Empire and the rise of the Christian Church brought a new persecution, against a fairly new religion though, Islam. Muslims who had migrated into Europe, specifically the Iberian Peninsula, faced harsh treatment and violence for hundred of years. Christians were told to burn and destroy Muslim villages and buildings. This eventually culminated in the expulsion of Muslims from the region.
Hostility toward Muslims did not end there, though. One of the most famous examples of religious violence started during the 11th century and spanned nearly three hundred years. The Crusades were a series of invasions by the Christians to conquer Jerusalem which was controlled by the Muslims. Christians felt it was rightfully theirs, so they led a series of invasions to retake the city and once again force the Muslims out. The Christian Crusades were ultimately unsuccessful and many soldiers were imprisoned and executed by the victorious Muslims.
The next act of violence caused by religion was the infamous Inquisition. It was a 12th century event started by the Roman Catholic Church, whose goal was to fight heresy. They did this by finding and arresting anyone suspected of blasphemy or opposition to the Church. The victim was then tortured until he either died or admitted he had committed heresy. The Inquisition could target anyone, including women and children. This even included pregnant women, whose children were stolen after birth. The mother would often die during childbirth. Imprisonment and torture could last for years. Unfortunately thousands of people were often wrongly accused 
and innocent.
Not as well known but just as deadly were small religious wars and acts of persecution following the Reformation. The numerous splits in Christianity created heated tensions throughout Europe. Germany especially was torn by war between the new Protestants and the Catholics. Places like England and Switzerland used strict religious laws to enforce their respective churches. For example, Switzerland, which was Calvinist, used "morality police" to persecute and "correct" those who did not act according to the Calvinist rules. This period was also plagued by strong corruption in the Catholic Church. Several popes were fighting for the papacy, nepotism was rampant, and greed went uncontrolled (unfortunately greed and hypocrisy is something we still see in the Church today.) All told the Reformation caused the death and persecution of millions... all over minor discrepancies such as the Eucharist and the afterlife.
 Persecution continued for the next several hundred years and is still evident in modern times, including the last hundred years or so. The Holocaust, which caused the extermination of 11 million people, stemmed from Adolf Hitler’s warped religious beliefs, the main one being that God had created the Aryan race superior to others, and that the Jews were the cause of the world’s problems.
Even more examples can be found continuing to this day. The Middle East has seemed to be in continuous conflict since the 1950’s. The Jewish state of Israel and the Palestinian states have been at war for years. Meanwhile, radical Islamic movements have been growing. America has felt this violence in the form of 9/11, when a group of radical Muslims led by Osama bin-Laden attacked several American buildings. This radicalism has been felt across the globe from various terrorist attacks. 
Another issue that is unfortunately virtually ignored is the constant turmoil in Africa. Civil wars and violence envelop many of the developing nations, and has for decades. These clashes stem from differing ethnicity and local religious views, and cause the deaths of millions every year. So called "mercy killings" are also an unfortunate side effect of Islam.
Religions not only are the cause of violence and war, but also the force behind social injustices such as racism and bigotry, specifically against women,homosexuals, and the non religious. This is evident in America today, where the Conservatives are constantly trying to implement their own religious beliefs into the government through legislation. One can also see this overseas where the hatred and degradation of women and gays is much more violent, specifically in the Muslim culture, but also Africa, and even Russia. Putin is now using the state Church to enforce hateful laws and ethics, specifically against gays.
Religion, which should send a message of peace and unity, has been the catalyst of violence, persecution, and wars throughout history. One may say that peace and unity are at its core, and that said violence and bigotry goes against the religion, but this is wrong. One has to wonder why the most hateful in a religious group are called the fundamentalists. These groups adhere to the strict interpretation of their respective religions- to the fundamentals. One only has to read the Bible or Koran to see this.

I'd also like to debunk several horribly inaccurate beliefs regarding atheism throughout history. Many strongly religious people would counter this essay by pointing to the tens of millions of people killed by atheist leaders and dictators, such as Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, and Mao Zedong. First of all, Hitler was not and never was an atheist. He is quoted several times saying that he believed in a "Supreme Power" called God which had Christian values. This God wanted a world where the Aryan was the dominant race.

Secondly, Stalin, Pol Pot, and Mao did not kill for atheism. Atheism has no doctrine at all, and therefore nothing to kill for. These horrible people killed for political power, even killing fellow party members (including atheists).

I'd also like to point out that though religion has been quite the cancer to humanity it has done some good things. Though it ultimately caused the dark ages, it did play a part in the revitalization of science (specifically the Muslims) as well as the growth of universities. I highly recommend the book Galileo Goes to Jail: And Other Myths About Science and Religion. [This essay is not however, a summarization of the book. The bulk of research done for this essay was done prior to reading it.]