In the previous post I mentioned that I spoke with some teenage boys who had a twisted Robin Hood mentality. As they were poor they believed that it was fair for them to rob from people who were richer than them. They felt that the people they were mugging had an abundance of money and wouldn't miss the money they were robbing. They were ignoring the emotional trauma that they were putting their victims through and were blind to the fact that what they were doing was wrong. People growing up in impoverished communities are often surrounded by influential individuals who convince them that criminal behaviour is acceptable. Take Nazi Germany for example, people were brainwashed into thinking that what Hitler was doing was right. In the same way, there are mini Hitlers in impoverished communities around the world who indoctrinate their followers into a life of crime.
The people who say that they don't need God to be good normally do not come from poverty stricken environments. It's easy to say that you wouldn't steal if you've always had food to eat. People who follow the teachings of Karl Marx are often critical of religion because they believe that capitalist societies use religion to keep poor people in a state of poverty. They argue that religion is like a drug that makes poor people happy with their condition preventing them from doing anything to change their situation. Although I can see their points, I respectfully disagree. Most religions do not make people ignore their poverty, instead they help people to find joy in things other than material possessions.
People growing up in impoverished communities are less likely to be caught up by the negative aspects of their environment if they have something else to live for. Believing that they were created for a purpose provides them with a sense of direction.
