r/PoursTea • u/Timbucktwo1230 Therapy For All 🩷 • Jun 21 '26
Sipping Tea Javier Bardem
Context of the Quote
The quote originates from an archived interview featured on platforms like IMDb. In the full discussion, he was speaking candidly about his vulnerability to intense media attention in Hollywood, his perspectives on belief systems, and his personal philosophies.
The complete segment of his statement reads:
In an interview, Javier Bardem expressed his feelings on his public perception in Spain versus America, the vulnerability caused by media attention, and his views on religious manipulation. He stated, "I do respect people's faith, but I don't respect their manipulation of that faith to create fear and control".
Bardem's Views on Religion
Atheism:
Despite a traditional Catholic upbringing, Bardem has long identified as an atheist.
Institutional Critique:
He often distinguishes between personal spirituality and organized religion, criticizing the latter when used to create fear or exert control.
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u/Apart_Ad1537 Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
Faith is like any other ideology, it should be judged by what it results in. Lots of people try to take scripture from centuries ago, take it out of context, and say “look how bad this religion is, their holy book says to do *this*”
But if the people who practice that religion don’t follow that rule and it’s not really a thing, is that valid criticism? I mean I guess it’s fair to ask “if this religion once promoted this behavior, why should we assume its other teachings are any better or more valid than the ones we all agree are terrible”
I guess I’m just saying there is a big difference between a religion that practices barbaric and awful things TODAY and one that did hundreds of years ago. A religion should be judged on the merits of its conduct TODAY.