Musaazi NAMITI | SUNDAY THOUGHT
In February 2018, a young woman named Susan Magara was kidnapped and murdered by a group of men and a woman. Before they killed her, they had cut two of her fingers, sent them to her parents in an envelope and demanded a ransom, warning that she would be killed if their demand was not met. Islam, they claimed, allowed what they were doing.
Ms Magara’s parents raised the ransom—an eye-popping sum totalling shs700m—and sent it to the kidnappers. They took the money and murdered her anyway.
When Ms Magara was in captivity pleading for her life, God was aware of the danger she was facing. In fact, since believers say that God is all-knowing and knows everything in advance, he knew that in February 2018, Mr Magara would be kidnapped and murdered.
Religious people believe God does protect people. But they contradict themselves by arguing that God gave people free will and that how they use it is none of his business. He created people and if they choose to do evil using their free will, the argument goes, that is none of his business.
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This kind of reasoning raises troubling questions. If an all-knowing God created evil men and a woman and knew they would one day kidnap an innocent woman and murder her, even after getting a ransom, why would such a God be called loving? How can you convince anyone God protects people?
Ms Magara was an innocent woman. She worked as a cashier in her father’s dairy business. Her kidnappers wanted money and knew that the best way to get it was to kidnap her and demand a ransom.
An innocent woman lost her life to people God gave free will. God is not supposed to do anything if that free will is abused. But he loves people and cares about them. That’s rich!
The nine killers were sentenced last week, and two got the death sentence. The judge jailed the rest for life. The defendants arrived in court clad in outfits suggesting they are deeply religious people, yet they had committed one of the most heinous crimes in Uganda’s history.
And that, dear readers, is one of religion’s greatest downsides. People can do the most grotesque things imaginable in the name of religion.
Religion may not be a force of evil—but it cost Ms Magara her life. And she is not alone.
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🔴 Sunday Thought cuts through the noise of prayer, piety and superstition to ask the questions most people avoid. It discusses God, faith and religion—not to preach, but to probe, challenge and sometimes unsettle. Whether you believe, doubt or have stopped looking altogether, Sunday Thought will make you think, question and maybe even rethink everything you thought you knew about the divine—and about life itself.