“The greatest gift revelatory religions have to offer is the promise of heaven. Were they to practice the brotherhood that they preach this would be offered to all, irrespective of belief. The fact that it isn’t underlines the essentially coercive nature of the appeal of religion: join our group or we deny you the possibility of eternal life!
The shame that this deal is offered to children too young to reason through its premises is another piece of evidence of the essential bad faith of the arguments for revelatory religion. ” - Lee Smolin
“Perhaps, there’s only one hell and if there is justice all good friends can meet there. I rely on that. After all, the devil is a nice guy.
When you think of how few people have killed and destroyed in the name of the devil; and how many have done so in the name of God; it makes you think.” - Janet Asimov