Religion, Science and Common Sense 1

I really can't believe some people are still gullible to the extent that they would drink petrol polluted water because their pastor says it is blessed water or pray right beside a corpse that died of ebola because their religion demands they pray beside their deceased loved ones.

It is fine if pastors or Islamic clerics decide to organize prayers for the followers of their religion. And it is also fine if such religious leaders use everyday items like soap, water and snacks as prayer items because most people need physical things to hold unto. It is more like our indigenous beliefs which provide us with "lesser gods" which are used as points of contact to the Almighty God.

But consider this scenario:

"In some areas in Lagos, there are lots of pipe line leakages which result in extreme water pollution. Nobody needs to tell the people to buy drinking water, it is common sense. But a pastor in the same area decides to dig a well and called it 'The sweet water'. So every sunday, the ushers would fill small bottles with the polluted water and the pastor would bless and give to the people ro drink. Of course, they pay for the sweet water. The same people whose common sense told not to drink polluted water now drink it all because their pastor calls it sweet water."

Now here are the list of things that can happen to you when you ingest polluted water:

1. Cancer: Long-term exposure to benzene, the most toxic component of fuel oil, is known to cause leukemia.

2. Reproductive Issues.

3. Organ Damage: ingestion of petrol polluted water can cause problems with the Liver, Kidney and the Nervous System.

The people whose common sense told not to drink polluted water might lack western education and not know about the above listed effects, but common sense makes it all simple for them. But for the educated folks, science adds more credibility to common sense.

Some months ago, when the Ebola virus disease was at its peak in Nigeria, I went through an article online relating to how human corpse are disposed. I was really fascinated about some of the methods. I personally favour cremation and other non-traditional means because it prevents epidemics related to improper burial and land wastage. That is common sense spiced with some science.

So, I sent the link to a friend of mine who is a muslim and asked for his opinion. His first remark was: "My religion is against these wordly means of burial." Then I asked him, "What if you died of Ebola? Will you still go for the traditional burial knowing fully well the health implications it can pose to others?" All he kept hammering on was the fact that Allah will never make him a victim of Ebola. So he shied away from the real issue on hand and went all defensive, hiding behind the false wall of his religion. So I decided to let him be.

But I still can't comprehend how an educated person would put all logical and scientific facts aside just to satisfy his blind religious obligations, even if it means harming others. And that is the state of our peoples' mind. They would defy all common sense and scientific evidence just to satisfy some religious laws that were postulated ages ago. Even the supreme most modern religion centres around gives we humans the brain and the ability to decide what is wrong or right. These God given ability is not meant to be manipulated by some religious freaks. It is meant to guide us right.

One piece of advice: "If your religion demands that you ingest cyanide or arsenic for some spiritual reasons, just don't kill others!"