Christianophobia?

[Smoke]

In her column today, Jane Smiley summed up what American Christians feel persecuted about:

When Christians talk about secular Americans being "tolerant" of Christian beliefs, they are misusing the word. What conservative Christians want is not toleration, but social control. ...

The Christians quite often are not only saying, "Do as I do", but also "My right is to make you live by my beliefs, and if you resist me, then you are 'intolerant'."



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[evearael]

Though the heart of the problem comes from what right do we make laws... Why is it illegal to murder someone, why is it wrong? Many Christians I talk to feel the primary reason is because God says it is wrong to murder, thus it is, and should be, illegal. Extend that thinking to other aspects of the faith and that's where we are today with the issues of GBLT rights and whatnot.

I've known a handful of gems from many faiths... Episcopalian, Catholic, LDS, Orthodox Jew, Wiccan, Atheist... They lead good lives and are passionate about their faith (or lack of it). Unfortunately, the media has no interest in giving air time weighted by the actual proportions of views within a faith. There are 2.1 billion Christians in the world. I know not all of them are psychos blowing up abortion clinics. There are 1.3 billion Muslims in the world... not all of them fly planes into buildings. There are 14 million Jews in the world... not all of them "shoot scared little girls" (...from one of The Truth's posts, I believe...) It is the horrific and shocking news that sells, so as long as we buy into the sensationalist media, we will continue to see the demonization of Christianity, Judaism, Islam and all other faiths.

 

[Ðanisty]

You must spread some Karma around before giving it to MidnightBlue again....

I think the problem most Christians have is that they can't recognize that they don't have a copyright on morality. Morality can and does come from other places. People don't have to have any religion whatsoever to have morals.

 

[Quiddity]

In her column today, Jane Smiley summed up what American Christians feel persecuted about:

When Christians talk about secular Americans being "tolerant" of Christian beliefs, they are misusing the word. What conservative Christians want is not toleration, but social control. ...



The Christians quite often are not only saying, "Do as I do", but also "My right is to make you live by my beliefs, and if you resist me, then you are 'intolerant'."​

​

Those who accept "less" will always have the luxury to call others intolerant. Either that or a big fat "I don't care".

 

[Smoke]

Those who accept "less" will always have the luxury to call others intolerant.

Refusing to accept the differences among people, not only in your family or your church, but in the general society, is the definition of intolerance. That's why those who accept "less" are called intolerant: because that's what they are.

 

[SoliDeoGloria]

http://www.persecution.com/news/index.cfmhttp://www.persecution.com/news/index.cfm?action=search

Sincerely,
SoliDeoGloria

 

[jamaesi]

I hardly call not being told "Merry Christmas" oppression.

 

[Quiddity]

Refusing to accept the differences among people,

What kind of differences do you speak of here?

 

[Smoke]

What kind of differences do you speak of here?

Ethnicity, skin color, sex, height, weight, sexual orientation, religion, things of that nature. All people should have equal rights without regard to those things, including the right to follow their own religion or none without reference to the religious conventions of other people.

 

[Dayv]

As a few have said (and MidnightBlue's little snippet so well stated), christians are crying not because of true persecution or intolerance, but because others are finally pushing back a little and trying to level the field. NetDoc mentioned not allowing bible groups on campus, but (as may have been mentioned) if a grove a druids or a group of wiccan wanted to do the same, every christian in the neighborhood would be in an uproar. And Victor, you make it sound like being tollerant of others' beliefs is foolhardy. I personally make a point out of being entirely accepting so long as no one is getting hurt, being destructive, or preaching hatred. Perhaps i read more into your short posts than was there, but your aloofness reminds me all too well of my Catholic parents (who have no respect for my druidic beliefs).
I understand that christians are persecuted and killed, and I feel for them (although in a similar fashion as hoomer), but who isn't? Every group has been persecuted (christians pretty well wiped the druids off the earth), but christians are the least of which.

 

[Quiddity]

Ethnicity, skin color, sex, height, weight, sexual orientation, religion, things of that nature. All people should have equal rights without regard to those things, including the right to follow their own religion or none without reference to the religious conventions of other people.

Ah ok. I agree. I just couldn't help seeing everybody as intolerant to some extent. I'm sure you and I are quite intolerable of pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc. Then again I could be wrong about you.

 

[Smoke]

Ah ok. I agree. I just couldn't help seeing everybody as intolerant to some extent. I'm sure you and I are quite intolerable of pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc. Then again I could be wrong about you.

I don't know that you could say I'm absolutely intolerant of killing and stealing. I do pay my taxes, helping the Bush regime to do its dirty work. But I try to oppose all forms of violence or violation of the rights of others, such as you enumerate.

 

[jamaesi]

Ah ok. I agree. I just couldn't help seeing everybody as intolerant to some extent. I'm sure you and I are quite intolerable of pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc. Then again I could be wrong about you.

What religions are tolerant of and encourage pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc?

 

[Ibrahim Al-Amin]

Ah ok. I agree. I just couldn't help seeing everybody as intolerant to some extent. I'm sure you and I are quite intolerable of pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc. Then again I could be wrong about you.

Now, for a while you actually had credibility. Was it necessary to add the last little jab?

 

[Quiddity]

What religions are tolerant of and encourage pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc?

None that I know of. Why?

 

[Quiddity]

Now, for a while you actually had credibility. Was it necessary to add the last little jab?

Come again? What "little jab"?

 

[Ibrahim Al-Amin]

Ah ok. I agree. I just couldn't help seeing everybody as intolerant to some extent. I'm sure you and I are quite intolerable of pedophilia, killing, stealing, etc. Then again I could be wrong about you.

That one.

 

[Quiddity]

That one.

How is that a jab? The fact that I considered him to be a moral person is not a jab. I put the last statement to allow him to correct me if necessary. I think you should re-read it with context next time.

 

[Ibrahim Al-Amin]

How is that a jab? The fact that I considered him to be a moral person is not a jab. I put the last statement to allow him to correct me if necessary. I think you should re-read it with context next time.

No offense, it just seemed an unnecessary comment. Forget about it.