The Fallacies of Religious Clerics by N. Fakhr - HTML preview

Presenting Religious Texts and Teachings as the Highest Form of Thought

Religious clerics try to present the stories, teachings, and sayings of the great figures of their religion as the highest form of thought and as profound truths.

They may give the impression that there is little or nothing of comparable value anywhere else in the world—in the teachings of other religions or in the words of other scholars and thinkers. And if anything valuable does exist elsewhere, it is presented as limited or superficial.

In this way, their religion appears extraordinarily profound and elevated in the eyes of their audience. At the same time, the clerics themselves appear more impressive because they are seen as experts in the teachings and knowledge of that religion.

This method is more effective on people who have had less exposure to other cultures and traditions.

Children and teenagers naturally belong to this group, and for that reason they are especially likely to be influenced by this method.