Why is religion involved in politics?

[Ciel_Rouge]

Please dont misunderstand I agree that it is, that is why I stated it should be separated. I just want to identify the starting point.

Hi freedomfigther. How about no starting point at all? I mean both are about control over people. When we think for a sec: what is religion? what does it do? The one thing that comes to mind is that it's simply about controlling our behaviour and attitudes - first and foremost our sexual behaviour and then things like social interactions etc. So is there so much of a difference between those two at all? They both have a hierarchy of people who manipulate other people or force them to do things or forbid certain behaviours.

I would say religion is politics in disguise or they simply double each other. That's why they are intertwined and sometimes religious leaders double as politicial leaders (some muslim states) or political leaders become head of church (England). It all seems wrong and unnatural if you regard religion for what it pretends to be but suddenly becomes simple and obvious when you take it for what it really is ;-)

And finally two nice examples from my country. Firstly, separating the church and the state is exactly what some politicians in Poland are trying to do right now. In the Polish parliament there is a cross on the wall apart from the national emblem. The politicians from a party called the Palikot Movement recently wanted to take it down but others opposed.

Another example comes from before World War II. In pre-war Poland there were a lot of adherents to the orthodox church in the eastern part of the country, mainly Ukrainians. But to Polish people in the center and in the west the orthodox church was the symbol of Russia and its opression. So they decided to tear a lot of orthodox churches (the buildings) down. This later resulted in the Ukrainians turning against Poles and committing organized war attrocities on civilian population as means of revenge. There you have it - politics and religions, "love and marriage, It's an institute you can't disparage. Ask the local gentry and they will say it's elementary"