Only ... God did not do that.
I'd just like to point out that we do agree on a lot, however I think a bit differently about what God's role in our everyday lives. If God hadn't wanted me to come to Him at the exact time that I did, then I wouldn't have. Granted I my own struggles, but if He hadn't shown me the way out I wouldn't have known where to start.
do not infer from that achievement that the teachings of that faith...would help other people
Again confusing of faith and religion. I'm not basing my ideals on any doctrine that didn't come directly from God. Literally look at the Bible and see. Also, I'm not the only one. There are many, many people who have similar testimonies that faith set them free.
interpretations from bigoted fundamentalists
Yeah gotta agree there. Fundamentalism is a whole 'nother ball game. Besides, when I said "religious nuts" I was talking about the same people. Potato, po-tah-to.
Some examples that are generally ignored by the bigots in daily live:
You shall not wear a garment made of two kinds of material.
No eating of shrimp, crab, lobster, pork, rabbit and other things like blood. No mixing of milk products and meat products - no cheeseburgers!
Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard
No work, travel, cooking, or business on the Sabbath
A lot of these are taken from the Old Testament. The garment one is symbolic of being double-minded, blood is sacred but God told Peter to take and eat anyway, hair cutting was a sectarian thing back then (I think it falls under traditions that are unique form culture to culture), and the Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath.
plenty of naughty stuff in the Bible that is "approved"
Every sin can be forgiven (besides lying directly to God like He doesn't know your mind before you do). That doesn't mean that God approves of sin in any form.
Yet is alcohol forbidden in the Bible? No. It is not. Let that sink in.
In some cases it's even fine to get drunk. Something about letting a suffering man drink to ease his pain.