Religious Gaslighting: Submit To Authority Over Critical Thinking

What you will find below is from an excellent counter-apologetic website. This excerpt focuses on why I say, "Religion is a brain poison":

Gaslighting

"Why does Yahweh destroy wisdom and cleverness (1 Corinthians 1:19), and tell wise men to become fools (1 Corinthians 3:18), and suppress all disobedient thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5), and discourage trusting one's own understanding (Proverbs 3:5, Isaiah 55:8-9), and conceal knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:9) but there is nothing written in the Bible in praise of human intelligence, the most distinguishing characteristic of the human species? Do you think the foolishness of Yahweh is wiser than man’s wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:25)? Do you think it is wrong to ask Yahweh for explanations (Romans 9:20)?

Did the originators of the Bible stories have anything to gain if their listeners just followed them without thinking critically? How could Yahweh create a scientific marvel like the universe and create us in its image but discourage scientific inquiry?

Do you agree with Jesus that people who believe something without proof are blessed (John 20:29)? Are Flat-Earthers blessed for believing that the Earth is flat? When is it best to accept something without good evidence and when is it best to require good evidence before accepting something? What is evil and adulterous, as Jesus claimed, about people asking for evidence (Matthew 12:39)? According to the Bible, every one of the Eleven and Paul believed only after perceiving something extraordinary. What is wrong with the rest of us insisting on seeing clear evidence before believing? If the Jews of Jesus's day were there, and if they knew their Scriptures, and if they believed in Yahweh, and if they believed in miracles, but they didn’t believe Yahweh raised Jesus from the dead then why should we believe it? Do you believe that Yahweh will reveal itself to anyone who sincerely asks?

Does it seem reasonable to you that we can only enter Heaven if we have the faith of a child, a person who can be fooled into believing that Santa Claus is real, that you can dig a hole to China and that the nice man in the van really has candy as he claims (Matthew 18:3)? Why does the Church use sheep/shepherd metaphors? Why is it a slur to refer to someone as a sheep if we should aspire to being sheep?

With access only to the comprehension powers of our own minds, how is it possible to lean on the understanding of anyone else (Proverbs 3:5-6)? If something does not make sense to you, what difference does it make to you if it makes sense to someone else? How is it possible for someone to know that someone else understands something?

Do you agree with 58% of Republicans that colleges and universities have a negative impact on the US? Do you agree with 72% of Democrats that colleges and universities have a positive impact on the US? Do you agree with Jehovah's Witness leader Gerrit Losch, that going to university is like shooting yourself in the head?"

https://www.stopindoctrination.org#gaslighting

Gaslighting 101

"This video answers the question: What is gaslighting and what is the origin of the term? Gaslighting is a term that refers to an individual trying to convince another individual that they've lost touch with reality or has mental health symptoms. Usually, its conceptualized as a husband gaslighting a wife, but it doesn't have to be. It can be romantic partners and friends as well. It's a type of manipulation and it's usually thought of as cognitive, emotional, or psychological. The origin of the term actually is quite curious. There are a lot of different videos out there on YouTube and a lot of different articles have been written about the origin, but there's a lot of mistakes that have been made in regard to where this term came from. Several of the origin stories for this term are based on a 1944 movie titled Gaslight and some are based on a 1938 play with the same name, but the way that gaslighting is described doesn't really line up too well with the play or the movie.

"Gaslighting is a deliberate manipulation usually between two people and usually in a fairly close relationship. Its conceptualized as long-term, gradual, and it can have the individual who's the victim of gaslighting having trouble determining what's true from what's false, questioning reality, questioning morality (right from wrong), and questioning sanity. This is done through lying dismissing one's perception or belief as invalid, isolation, and preventing access to information that we contradict what the gaslighter wants the individual to believe.
"The goal of the manipulation strategy is to shake confidence, lower self-esteem, and make an individual dependent on another individual.
"There is a relationship between gaslighting and narcissism. Almost all the time when we see the term gaslighting, we see some reference to narcissism, pathological narcissism, grandiose or vulnerable narcissism, or narcissistic personality disorder. Manipulation is a key component of narcissism and specifically exploiting individuals interpersonally, but you could also make an argument it has a fairly close relationship to psychopathy. Psychopathy also has a manipulation component, although often times it's considered less personal than what we would see with narcissism. It's important to note here that anybody can engage in the activity of gaslighting. Somebody doesn't have to be psychopathic, sociopathic, they don't have to have an antisocial personality disorder, or narcissistic personality disorder, or even be narcissistic.
"It's just this term gaslighting has become associated with narcissism, it's not that it has to be committed by an individual who is narcissistic. Another important point here about gaslighting is it's not something you really find in the scientific literature. The term gaslighting really isn't a scientific term, it's more of a colloquial term."

What is Gaslighting and where did the term originate?

What is Gaslighting and how to deal with it.

Christianity Uses Gaslighting And Other Psychological Tools

"This essay was written by Dr. Dale O'Neal, who received a 'Preacher of the Year' award from Talbot School of Theology when he studied there. The winner two years earlier was John MacArthur Jr., and the winner the previous year was Josh McDowell. As an ex-christian and psychologist, he explains how Christian zealots are made. This is very insightful! Christian apologists should read this essay to see what has happened to them. I can only hope it will be shared and read widely!"

The Making and Unmaking of a Zealot, By Dr. Dale O’Neal