Their religious beliefs were fundamental inspirations to the lives and activism of Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela. Same goes for Jimmy Carter, Rosalynn Carter, Oscar Romero, Coretta Scott King, William Barber, Helen Prejean, Martin Sheen, Simone Campbell, Daniel Berrigan, Phillip Berrigan, Dorothy Day, and Jim Wallis. I will also add climate scientist Katherine Hayhoe, who, among other things, coined the phrase “global weirding.”
Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and Trump are among those who were not religious.
No religion or ideology has a monopoly on grace or cruelty. Arrogance, lack of empathy, and self-righteousness tend to be key factors of the latter.
From constitutional originalism to religious doctrinal literalism to logical positivism, the Tao has some good advice: words may be used, but none are absolute. There are plenty of questions that science and rationality cannot and probably never will answer.