Christianity

[anvi]

My answer reflects, of course, my own chosen perspective on things.  But, as would be my answer regarding other religions, I'd say that whether I think Christianity is good or bad depends on what it happens to lead people to do.  if a person's Christianity faith inspires them, for the most part, to make the lives of those around them better and appreciate the incredible world in which they've been given life, then I think it's positive.  If a person's Christian faith compels them, for the most part, to condemn others who don't believe or act as they do, then I think it's negative.  

To me, the potential value or damage a religion can do derives from what lessons people draw from it.  The Bhagavad Gita was the most important religious text for both Mohandas Gandhi and Nathuram Godse.  Gandhi found in it justification for winning the internal battle between courage and fear so that he could risk his life and freedom for the dignity and freedom of others--well, with some exceptions....  Godse found in the Gita a justification to put three bullets in Gandhi's chest.  Is "Hinduism" in the abstract good or bad, positive or negative?  Or does the answer to that question depend on what it motivates practitioners and believers to do?  I put the same test to Christianity or any other tradition.

Because religious traditions tend to get to the heart of what human beings care about the most, they can and do bring out the best and worst in us.