(Find the german version: here)
Short answer: Yes. And No.
For the (very) long answer please continue reading.
I didn’t want to write this article, but because of the recent terrorist attack in Paris I think I have to. There is a lot of sh*t happening out there. Fundamentalists use religion to implement their own world view (which of course includes the forceful removal of other-thinking people), atheists often joke about religions and do present religious views often as stupid, discussions about reversing the dividing of church and state are happening (e.g. in the US), people refusing to follow the law in giving gay marriage licenses because of religion, discussions about women, abortion, celibate and “family values”, “good” and “bad”, big contradictions about what’s written in “holy” texts and what people who say to follow them really do etc. Power misuse, child abuse, control, patriarchism, oppression, suppression, superstition, creationism, whatever you like, everything “bad” is somehow present in religions.
So on the first look, there are not really much positive things in there. Even on the second look it’s still very bad. So let’s get a bit deeper and get behind some of the mechanisms in religions. Maybe then we will be able to differentiate a bit better instead of throwing all into the same pot, cook it up and then feed this poisonous mish-mash into people just to be able to feel better than these pitiable misdirected creatures we are discussing with.