Freedom Of Religion Should Also Mean Freedom FROM Religion

Your faith isn't a license to hate me because I don't share it

Religion is like a pair of shoes; find one that fits for you, but don't make me wear your shoes.

• George Carlin

Without Thomas Jefferson and his Declaration of Independence, there would have been no American revolution that announced universal principles of liberty. Without his participation by the side of the unforgettable Marquis de Lafayette, there would have been no French proclamation of The Rights of Man. Without his brilliant negotiation of the Louisiana treaty, there would be no United States of America. Without Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, there would have been no Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom, and no basis for the most precious clause of our most prized element of our imperishable Bill of Rights - the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

• Christopher Hitchens

Lest you wonder what I’m up to here, I’m not about to launch into a theological diatribe. I’ve long considered myself good without God, and I feel myself under no pressure or responsibility to justify my beliefs. So if you believe, good on you, but that’s your thing. It has nothing to do with me, and I won’t judge you if you extend me the same courtesy.

No, my concern is with the number of Christians who feel no need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 because they have faith that the Lord will protect them. As they do with so many other health-related issues, they rely on prayer instead of doctors and Western medicine.

I’m sorry…did I miss the part of the Bible where it says that believing in God vaccinates one against arrogance and willful ignorance? When did faith become the enemy of science? Could it not be possible that your Lord provided Mankind with science as a way for us to puzzle our way out of some pretty fucking awful predicaments?

As you’re praying for a miracle that would end this pandemic, have you stopped to consider that the miracle might already be here? Have you cogitated upon the possibility that the vaccines available to us MIGHT be the miracle you’re praying for?

Nope, I’m not takin’ no vaccine! Instead, I’m praying for a DIFFERENT miracle….

Hmm…I wasn’t aware that Christians could dictate which miracles they would and/or wouldn’t accept.

If a believer demands that I, as a nonbeliever, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect, but for my submission.

• Flemming Rose

I don’t believe in God, but I admire people who honestly and sincerely live their faith. No, I’m not talking about the people who loudly and publicly kneel in prayer so that everyone knows how “Christian” they are. Nor am I referring to those who eschew the things of this world as “ungodly.”

No, the folks I find worthy of admiration are those who actually endeavor to LIVE their faith. They take that faith seriously, and they value Christ’s teachings about basic things like love, tolerance, understanding, kindness, and compassion. I’m offended by those who judge others by their standards and find them to be “less than” and “unworthy” of the Kingdom of Heaven…as if they’re arbiters of such things.

Judge not lest you be judged…or did you skip over that part because it was inconvenient?

I know people on both ends of that spectrum, and I can find them in my own family. While I respect their right to believe as they will, I have a problem with their belief that they can judge others and find them wanting. Their faith and their belief system are exactly that- theirs. Outside of themselves, to quote a friend, “it ain’t worth shit, so why are you judging others by your rules?”

It is precisely that requirement of shared worship that has been the principal source of suffering for individual man and the human race since the beginning of history. In their efforts to impose universal worship, men have unsheathed their swords and killed one another. They have invented gods and challenged each other: "Discard your gods and worship mine or I will destroy both your gods and you!

• Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

Part of the reason I reject organized religion is that it’s been used so often to justify oppression, ignorance, and all manner of inhumanity and stupidity. I grew up believing that religious faith should add to one’s existence, not be used to justify detracting from the existence of others. Religious faith shouldn’t be a set of “CAN’T DOs”: can’t dance, can’t listen to music, can’t drink alcohol, etc., etc., ad infinitum, ad nauseam.

Unless you’re talking about your own life, of course…because that’s where your moral authority ends.

Religious faith should add to your life and make it a better, richer, kinder, and more compassionate experience. It should help bring people together, not separate one from another. Yet, despite this, religion is the single largest cause of death over the course of human history.

The Religion then of every man must be left to the conviction and conscience of every man; and it is the right of every man to exercise it as these may dictate. This right is in its nature an unalienable right. It is unalienable, because the opinions of men, depending only on the evidence contemplated by their own minds cannot follow the dictates of other men: It is unalienable also, because what is here a right towards men, is a duty towards the Creator. It is the duty of every man to render to the Creator such homage and such only as he believes to be acceptable to him.

• James Madison, A Memorial And Remonstrance, On The Religious Rights Of Man: Written In 1784-85

But what do I know? I’m just one person who grew up to reject organized religion. All I ask is that you undertake the teachings of your faith with an open mind and an open heart. Use your religion to be a better person. If your faith allows you to be a narrow-minded, judgmental, holier-than-thou, insufferable asshole who thinks you have the key to Heaven in your wallet, you’re doing it wrong.

Oh, and get the damn shot, will ya? Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ won’t protect you from COVID-19 or the Delta variant. If you’re truly a disciple of the Prince of Peace, you understand and accept your responsibility to look out for the well-being of the wider community.

Someone truly grounded in the teachings of Christianity knows that their faith requires them to do what they can to make the world a better place. In this case, all it takes is getting two shots…and following CDC guidelines.

It’s not terribly difficult to be a good Christian…and a good person. Or to help save a few lives along the way.