The goat in the basket.
The scapegoat was an ancient custom, where the animal was placed in a basket and everyone spit in it. The basket was sealed and cast into a river, where it carried away the tribe's bad luck. It sounds cruel and barbaric to modern ears because it IS cruel and barbaric. But one of the great religions of the world is based on that concept.
I could never understand why Jesus had to die for my sins. They are mine, not his. Actually, they aren't even my sins, I supposedly inherited them originally from Adam and Eve, whether I wanted to or not.
Besides, I don't believe in sin. I do believe in evil, though.