SSM Plebiscite

[PaulP]

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People are told by their religions to treat others as they would have others treat them and then a bunch of other things to help guide people to act the right way based on free will. Ultimately people are never blind sheep.  They like to make up their own mind, and wont simply "do as they are told"........
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This is a huge topic which is well beyond a footy forum, but at a bare minimum, you need to distinguish between the rank and file and the hierarchy in most religions, because IMO, the gap is huge. What you say about basic respect for others is indeed representative of the rank and file (who "generally" try to do good), not just contemporaneously, but also throughout history, where you had mendicant orders like the Dominicans which were established specifically to go out into the world and help others and generally do good. The church hierarchy is another matter entirely.