I know… I know, don’t throw your tomatoes yet, hear me out on my controversial take first. I’m talking about a Religion Class, (name is pending) dedicated to teaching religions around the world, big and small, ancient and new.

With our modern world not being encouraged to believe in a higher power, talking about the people around the world who do and learning about that religion’s history can tell you a lot about that person or their culture. For example, if you find out someone is a Buddhist, you might assume they will attempt to better themselves to become a better person to get a better reincarnation.

You may not even realize it but you may be blatantly racist to someone because of their religion. If you see someone with a religious symbol, your brain will automatically piece them together. If you see someone who has a cross on and you are Christian, you may automatically treat them better without realizing. But if you see someone who is of a religion with a violent past, such as Islam, you may without even realizing it back away or treat them with prejudice due to your brain connecting the patterns. This proposed class can teach you what those religions believe in and show you how their culture has evolved and developed, to show you that they are human just like anyone else.

The class would talk about the positive and negative. For example, how Christianity has brought a lot of people together… but also that the way they did that is by slaughtering civilians who didn’t believe in God. Or how Christianity’s religious leaders (the Pope’s throughout history) have been good and bad. For example Pope John XXIII who emphasized Christian unity and world peace. Or on the bad side like Pope John XII who murdered several people, and had affairs with married women.

The class wouldn’t only be about Christianity’s pros and cons those are only examples to talk about how even the world’s most followed religion is not only made up of good people. The class could conduct deep dives into all types of religions, how they started, ended, or alternatively are still taught in our modern chaotic world.