On Independence Day, Lady Liberty was born again.As the congregation of the World Overcomers Outreach Ministries Church looked on and its pastor, Apostle Alton R. Williams, presided, a brown shroud much like a burqa was pulled away to reveal a giant statue of the Lady, but with the Ten Commandments under one arm and "Jehovah" inscribed on her crown.
And in place of a torch, she held aloft a large gold cross, as if to ward off the pawnshops, the car dealerships and the discount furniture outlets at the busy corner of Kirby Parkway and Winchester that is her home. A single tear graced her cheek.
There are a lot of people in this country who would love to see this sitting in New York harbor instead of our current statue.
For these people the seperation of church and state is a myth and this country is a Christian nation and all who want to live here should embrace the religion of the land.
Oh they will make noise about respecting the religions of others but don't be fooled, what they want is to make sure their religion is not infringed on by the courts or the congress but they have no problem regulating other religions if they get too uppity.
But if our country is truly to be great it must treat ALL people equally. No matter what the color of their skin or the nature of their religion we must embrace them, and defend their rights as vigorously as we would our own. It is our countries identity to be a land of freedom, but as many of us are aware that may not always be the case.
Now since I do not adhere to any particular faith I simply see them as all the same. I do not put one above the other. In my mind I encompass what it truly means to be an American. I have no agenda for change. As long as each religion teaches its followers the moral and ethical values it wants them to embrace within a framework that keeps it from invading the rights of their neighbors then I support their right to do so. It is only when one religion or another decides that it deserves preferential treatment that I have a problem with them.
If you worship a statue. Great!
If you want your statue to stand at the entrance to our local courthouse as if it is the providor of justice then we are going to have a disagreement. I would never go into your temple and make you change your decor. Do not come out into my world and impose your beliefs on me our my children. If you can follow that guideline then we are good.
Remember, I only believe in one less religion then you do.
There seems to be something evil happening with this evangelistic christian movement in America and to a lesser extent here in Canada. Those who want to weave their beliefs into the fabric of our governments are zealous in their pursuit. They will abide no discussion and insist that they follow the only one and true religion. You simply cannot reason with them.
ReplyDeleteDoes that have a ring of familiarity?
These are trying times we are living in.
Canadian Observer
It really is getting rather annoying. It drives me absolutely insane when the lawmakers in the U.S. try to pass a law because it's "stated in the Bible." Many of our conservatives have forgotten about the whole separation of Church and state thing. However, if someone suggests passing a law because it's what is in the Koran, or it's what Buddah says...lightening will strike down on the U.S. and the infidels who dare speak such evil. This is what our conservatives are fighting for.
ReplyDeleteTo play devil's advocate though, I get really angry around Christmas time when the city of Boston's Christmas tree needs to be called a "holiday tree" and when we can't put up a manger set, but a menorrah (sp?) is allowed to be set up. It's either one extreme or the other. There's never an all encompassing situation. How dare we include EVERYONE?!?!?!?!?!
Hey Thoughtprocess, let me agree with you on the Christmas tree point. I have absolutely no problem with Christmas trees, Christmas cards, or Christmas holiday displays. In my opinion Christmas is much like Halloween in the fact that it is part of our national consiousness, and we can enjoy them without necesarily even understanding their origins.
ReplyDeleteIt is when the Fundies start wanting everybody to emphasize the Christian importance of Christmas that you find people having to take a position on the holiday. I love Christmas! It is a blast for my family. It does not infringe on my atheist beliefs to enjoy a holiday with a religious connotation one little bit.
Besides remember, before it was a Christmas holiday, it was a pagan holiday.
Gryphen,
ReplyDeleteI understand what you mean, however I do disagree to a certain point. I'll explain what I mean. Christmas IS a religious holiday. Theoretically, there is nothing secular about it (like Easter). Over hundreds of years, a secular side to the holiday has grown. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that you do celebrate it and I am in absolutely no position to tell anyone how they should observe Christmas. One of my ex's (an atheist) and I LOVED Christmas and celebrated it together. We celebrated in our own ways and for our own reasons. That's what I can't stand about the funamentalists. The way I see it is I express my point -- you may disagree which is cool -- then we agree to disagree and we go on from there. See, that's the liberal (humane) way. If we were conservatives on the other hand...oh hell, if I were George Bush...I'd either try to pass an amendment or I'd just bomb ya! I don't get it. In no way should anyone tell anyone else how to celebrate.
As far as the pagan thing goes, yeah I know about that, lol. I have another ex who was a pagan (I've dated myriads of people, lol) and ALWAYS teased me about how "we (meaning I) stole a whole shitload of traditions from them." Of course, I always teased back with, "Well, obviously you guys did something wrong because we stepped in and did it right." It was kind of our own way of making fun of the fundies who try to impose their beliefs on others.
I do want to ask one question though...if it were Hannukah that we were talking about, would you say that it makes sense to celebrate it, only leave the whole Jewish thing out, or Ramadan, but leave the Muslim part out?
At any rate, I do agree that people need to keep their beliefs out of others' business. Sure, one should be able to express their beliefs without getting jumped on, but if the person you are speaking with doesn't believe the same thing, then it should be respected as such. Who cares what others do as long as no one is getting hurt. That's how I look at it, and that's how I try to approach life.
I absolutely would celebrate Hannukah if it were as widely advertised as Christmas. If the stores were decorated with Hannukah decorations and everybody I met wished me a "Happy Hannukah" I would be happy to wish them the same back.
ReplyDeleteI am not Jewish but if my community were largely Jewish and they wanted to include me in their celebrations I would be willing to play along. I would take the state released "day before Hannukah" off and not think that I was betraying my beliefs by not working on a day that was set aside for a religion that I did not beleive in. I would just celebrate having a day off.
You see I am very flexible in that I do not place any religious belief above any other. So I interact with people as individuals and don't judge them on the fact that they embrace an ancient religion based on fear and ignorance.
It is part of their culture. I understand that.
Now if they tried to force me to participate....well then there might be a problem. You can invite me, but don't try to force me.
Is that clearer thoughtprocess6?