Now, before you get all Jesus freak on me, I'm not hating on religion. In fact, I firmly believe that everyone should have the right to worship whatever God or Gods they see fit. The problem I have is when people use religion as a means to control others, or breed hate. Now, I'm not religious. I wouldn't necessarily say I don't believe in God, but he's on the same list as Santa and the Tooth Fairy. I have yet to see proof of his existence. BUT... I was raised in the church, and I've read the Bible. I recall a lot of "Don't judge" and "Love thy neighbor" in there, but I cannot remember even a single passage that says "Don't sell flowers and cakes to gays" or anything even remotely similar.
The Bible is mostly allegory. Which means it's open to interpretation. Those interpretations can easily be swayed, based on one's personal feelings and beliefs. It was also written a bajillion years ago, and much of what we're interpreting has little or no relevance in our current modern society and culture. Is that to say that the Bible can't offer us some moral guidance? No. Of course it can. But at the end of the day, we must remember that the Bible is merely a book, written by humans, NOT GOD. Humans who are inherently flawed and often biased. (If you don't think that's true, Google Bible passages about women. Most of those would make your inner feminist run screaming for the hills.) It's also been translated time and again, and in those translations it's been reinterpreted by the translator. So if we're being completely honest, the odds that we're even reading the same words that the prophets heard from the Heavens are slim at best. The Bible is the original telephone game. Likely misheard, and miscommunicated over and over before it reached us.
So if the Bible can't always be trusted, what can we do to ensure we're making sound moral judgments? It's quite simple really. We use our brains. You don't need the Bible or a priest to tell you that murder is bad, right? You see, we have this little thing inside our brains that helps us make good decisions. It's called a conscience. It's what reminds us to be compassionate and empathetic. It guides us toward choices that make us feel good.
Does hate make you feel good? (If you answered yes to that, I'm afraid your problems are bigger than the Bible can solve.)
Here's the thing about religion. It's a mighty powerful tool, and in the wrong hands, it can do much more damage than good. If you've studied any history, you know that powerful people have been using religion as a means to control others for as long as it has existed. Either through guilt, fear, or misguided morals, man has often used the guise of religion to his (or her) own advantage. It has occurred countless times throughout history, and still happens quite often today.
So if the Bible can't always be trusted, what can we do to ensure we're making sound moral judgments? It's quite simple really. We use our brains. You don't need the Bible or a priest to tell you that murder is bad, right? You see, we have this little thing inside our brains that helps us make good decisions. It's called a conscience. It's what reminds us to be compassionate and empathetic. It guides us toward choices that make us feel good.
Does hate make you feel good? (If you answered yes to that, I'm afraid your problems are bigger than the Bible can solve.)
Here's the thing about religion. It's a mighty powerful tool, and in the wrong hands, it can do much more damage than good. If you've studied any history, you know that powerful people have been using religion as a means to control others for as long as it has existed. Either through guilt, fear, or misguided morals, man has often used the guise of religion to his (or her) own advantage. It has occurred countless times throughout history, and still happens quite often today.
That's what's happening in Indiana, and what could potentially happen in many other states as well, if we don't do something about it.
Allowing businesses to act in a discriminatory fashion, and use religion as a scapegoat is nothing short of legal bigotry.
The definition of a bigot is someone who is intolerant of any differing creed, belief, or opinion. To go so far as to deny service to someone because of their religion or sexual orientation is pretty damn intolerant, wouldn't you say? So why not just be honest, and stop using religion as an excuse? I'll tell you why, because the Bigot Freedom Act wouldn't draw in nearly as much support. But throw "Religious" in there, and suddenly, you're not a bigot, you're doing "God's work". I call bullshit. If you want to deny gay people service, then at the very least you should be as out and proud with your bigotry as they are with their love. Don't be a closet bigot, and hide your prejudice and ignorance behind the Bible. Don't do all Christians a disservice by claiming you're one of them. Because you're not.
Allowing a law like this to pass is a disgrace. It takes us back to a time when your skin color decided where you could sit, and who you could love. Back then, people used religion as an excuse as well. But now we call those people racists.
Not everyone has to like everyone else. And not everyone has to agree with everything that everyone else does. You're entitled to your opinions and your beliefs. But that doesn't mean that your beliefs should outweigh those of someone else. Our differences and diversities are what make us special. If everyone always thought the same way, we would never have made the incredible discoveries and great strides we've made so far. Cultures are constantly changing, and with each new change will come a lack of understanding. But a fear and hatred of the unknown has never ended in anything positive for the human race.
cough* Native Americans, Holocaust, witch trials, slavery, segregation, etc. *cough*
Do we really want to repeat those mistakes? We are creating our own history right now. How do we want future generations to remember us?
The definition of a bigot is someone who is intolerant of any differing creed, belief, or opinion. To go so far as to deny service to someone because of their religion or sexual orientation is pretty damn intolerant, wouldn't you say? So why not just be honest, and stop using religion as an excuse? I'll tell you why, because the Bigot Freedom Act wouldn't draw in nearly as much support. But throw "Religious" in there, and suddenly, you're not a bigot, you're doing "God's work". I call bullshit. If you want to deny gay people service, then at the very least you should be as out and proud with your bigotry as they are with their love. Don't be a closet bigot, and hide your prejudice and ignorance behind the Bible. Don't do all Christians a disservice by claiming you're one of them. Because you're not.
Allowing a law like this to pass is a disgrace. It takes us back to a time when your skin color decided where you could sit, and who you could love. Back then, people used religion as an excuse as well. But now we call those people racists.
Not everyone has to like everyone else. And not everyone has to agree with everything that everyone else does. You're entitled to your opinions and your beliefs. But that doesn't mean that your beliefs should outweigh those of someone else. Our differences and diversities are what make us special. If everyone always thought the same way, we would never have made the incredible discoveries and great strides we've made so far. Cultures are constantly changing, and with each new change will come a lack of understanding. But a fear and hatred of the unknown has never ended in anything positive for the human race.
cough* Native Americans, Holocaust, witch trials, slavery, segregation, etc. *cough*
Do we really want to repeat those mistakes? We are creating our own history right now. How do we want future generations to remember us?
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