My evangelical cousin is at death's door.

[TeamProg]

11. Sorry to hear that she is gravely ill, however:

Religion is the oldest, most profitable marketing scam on the planet - just ask Jim and Tammy-Fay Bakker, Pat Roberston, Joel Osteen, Benny Hinn, Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, Kenneth Copeland, Joel Osteen, Harold Camping, Jerry Falwell, Gene Scott .. the list is long.

What they do is, sell a product: salvation, which costs absolutely nothing to make, and sell it to those looking for answers that science can't entirely explain while the organization grows by assimilating many cultures and traditions to spread, like a virus, through time and through as many cultures as it can.

Martin Luther formed a new church because the Pope was corruptly selling slices of Heaven known as "indulgences". The Pope was on the take from both poor and wealthy supporters - no surprise there. It's called 'Merchandising!"