You argue that religion is slavery and only the unreligious can be free, but having denied freewill altogether, you also deny the possibility of freedom for the unreligious.

You also claim that the concept of freewill was invented to empower religious elites. While it is clear that some have abused religion for their own gain, that does not mean that all religion is lies invented for the benefit of elites or that this self-promotion is uniquely restricted to religious leaders.

You also claim that freewill was invented to justify punishment. As you have denied freewill, do you deny that criminals should be punished?

"The very same myth which underlies islam is also core to xianity, judaism, (and historically, zoroastrianism)." – anti_supernaturalist

Following the context, the "myth" you refer to would seem to be freewill. Your argument seems to assume that Islam is false (a conclusion with which I agree, but which you have not supported) and that therefore, any supporting views within Islam must be false, and therefore they are false in other religions, such as those mentioned, which must therefore be false as well. This argument is a fallacy of division. That which is true of the whole (Islam) is not necessarily true of all of it's parts (the premise of freewill).

You also mention a vigilant secular culture as the only hope of keeping human values alive. What do you consider to be human values? Why ought they to be universally valued by human beings?

There is no "free will". There is no unfree will. There is no "will" whatsoever. "Free will" belongs to a false model of human action.

The opposite of freedom is slavery. The slave is unfree. The slave has been deprived of personhood. The true believer is unfree . . . is a slave . . . is a political non-entity, a willing dupe or a conditioned pawn of theocrats.

Free Will is a bogus idea needed to make the vile concept of sin work. It belongs to the spurious two-world doctrine, a theologians' construct designed to keep a hierarchy of religious thugs in power. The true believer must submit to thugs.

There is no God-Ruler spewing Laws, scientific or moral, which nature must follow or humans ought to obey. There are lying self-aggrandizing persons who relish power and find in religion or religious ideology a means to exercise a death wish.

The state-religious government of Iran is a paternalist, androcentric theocracy based squarely on the middle eastern myth of submission and obedience to authority. It requires "sin" as a "willful violation" of some god's laws. The hierarchy must be able to punish (!) without second thought the "evil"-doer.

Whether the alleged Holy City is Qom, Mecca, Jerusalem, Rome, Salt Lake City . . . or the Bible Belt, free will must be believed in to keep the gods' top dogs in power. The very same myth which underlies islam is also core to xianity, judaism, (and historically, zoroastrianism).

Today we are still forced to suffer from the altogether bogus claims and political clout of the big-3 monster-theisms. Only a knowledgeable and vigilant secular culture can keep human values alive.

the anti_supernaturalist

Can the saved sin in heaven? If they can, then there is evil in heaven. If not, then god does not value freewill as much as you think.