Religious Freedom

by Yerusalyim 17 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Sirona

  I don't agree with this at all! France are infriging on the rights of people to practice their religion. Sometimes it is an integral part of faith to wear certain clothes or jewellery. This is asking for traditions of thousands of years to be cast aside. What are they thinking with trying to make everyone look the same? IMO, this will instill in the french children that you have to be the norm - you cannot have personal expression.

  The religious garb is often an important part of a whole culture. Variety is beautiful and I think that they are stifling their children into becoming little drones.

  Incidentally as Wiccan I can see this lack of tolerance even in this country - children are asked to remove pentacles. Even when wearing mine in public I get people staring at my necklace and giving me nasty looks. France are promoting this behaviour by suggesting that wearing religious items is wrong and preventing education about other faiths (e.g. children learn by mixing with people of other faiths and asking them why they wear xyz and accepting it, but France are clearly taking an anti-religion stand which eliminates this education and tolerance)

  Sirona
• 

  FlyingHighNow

  It's a shame that fundamentalist religions like jws and fundamentlist islamics act so much like gangs that the gov't requires such broad measures. Paduan

  You might not have meant this to be humorous but it is kind of.

  Sirona, you made me think of this dream:

  ---

  Imagine Imagine there's no heaven, It's easy if you try, No hell below us, Above us only sky, Imagine all the people living for today... Imagine there's no countries, It isnt hard to do, Nothing to kill or die for, No religion too, Imagine all the people living life in peace... Imagine no possesions, I wonder if you can, No need for greed or hunger, A brotherhood of man, Imagine all the people Sharing all the world... You may say Im a dreamer, but Im not the only one, I hope some day you'll join us, And the world will live as one.

  ---

  Writen by: John Lennon © Bag productions inc.

  Heather
• 

  Yerusalyim

  I've said it time and again...if you want to see what a place with no religion looks like...look no farther than back a few years to the USSR, or to Vietnam now...or China....etc etc etc. Religion isn't the problem...humans are the problem. People can and will use any excuse to hate...religion, race, political ideology, nationality, etc...it's PEOPLE that are the problem...not religion.
• 

  freelife

  I don't know what the real problem is it's France. If you stand up to them they will surrender.LOL

  This is so stupid who do these bums think they are? It kinda sounds like nazi Germany to me.
• 

  Faraon

  I have mixed thoughts on the subject:

  I agree that the state should neither be for, or against a particular religion. France seems to be doing this since the law covers all religions, and not only one.

  On the other hand, I think that this law discriminates against the children. They should enjoy the same religious rights as adults. If adults are allowed to wear these symbols in public, the children should be able to do so in school unless this is creating probrems, like gang symbols do here in the US.

  I believe in retaliatory justice. Many years ago supermarkets could not sell meat unless there was a butcher present. Many businesses started posting signs that they would not serve to butchers for the same reason. eg.: We will not sell a suit to butchers unless there is a tailor on the premises. Brazil is fingerprinting only all US citizens. While this may seem discriminating, it is a signal that those laws should not be tolerated in their own country.

  People from theocratic countries that forbid other religions should not be allowed to practice or teach the official religion of that country.

  I think that the solution to it would be to include mandatory comparative courses on the beliefs and practices of different religions, and the effect they had on people.

  But these are only my thoughts.
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  Yerusalyim

  Faraon,

  Interesting thoughts, though not entirely true. Sure, in any OFFICIALLY Muslim coutnry you can not teach your religion to muslims, however, Israel, while giving missionaries a hard time, don't have a law against converting to another religion.

  This law will go into effect at the beginning of the next school year...there were large protests this weekend against it. WHile this is directed against Christians, Jews, and Muslims, it seems to either effect or discriminate against Muslims a bit more.

  7% of the French population is Muslim...that's a large number of angry people (and also explains Frances position on Iraq a bit more).

  Bad law, bad timing, infringes religious liberties.
• 

  Faraon

  Yeru,

  Interesting thoughts, though not entirely true. Sure, in any OFFICIALLY Muslim coutnry you can not teach your religion to muslims, however, Israel, while giving missionaries a hard time, don't have a law against converting to another religion.

  It seems to me that we agree. I said:

  People from theocratic countries that forbid other religions...

  That means that you will not be allowed to preach and/or practice your religion in my country if I am not allowed to preach my religion in your country. You, however, will be allowed to preach and/or practice your religion in my country if I am allowed to do so in yours.

  In other words:

  We will fight intolerance with intolerance.

  You will get the same religious rights in this country that you give us in yours. No more. No less
• 

  czarofmischief

  Hm...

  France has no backbone to stand up to armed Iraqis, but when it comes to cracking down on its schoolchildren - woof, Chirac's right on top of that, Rose!

  CZAR