Tag Archives: religious freedom

Bible Reading in Public Schools

I grew up a long time ago in Nashville, Tennessee. In my public schools in those days, a teacher often began the day with a reading from the Bible.

It was about as exciting as watching paint dry. I associated it with tasks like learning the multiplication tables.

Where Christ’s teachings did become alive was in many of my church child and youth groups. Teachers there loved both God and youth and believed in us. Some of them got creative with flannel board presentations or games. We shared in Sunday night gatherings, along with food, always a popular draw. (Food also appeared to be a popular draw with some of Jesus’ teachings. He appeared to enjoy feasts and celebrations.)

I think one practice to make Christianity disappear or at least lose its importance in society is to make its teachings compulsory–in the public schools and elsewhere.

Never associate it with fun or games or freedom to ask questions or to share hurts and vulnerabilities in voluntary gatherings. Don’t let it grow the way it did in early Christianity, from person to person, from what was not compulsory but from what was lived.

Make it appear as though the United States of America is a nation of one particular religion, instead of a nation of fallible human beings, where no religion is favored above another, where all are free to seek the truth as they wish. Where the founders understood the awful cost of religious wars in the old world.

Make sure people of other faiths feel that their faith is discriminated against—like the way I used to feel in other countries where another faith was favored. If we can discriminate, so can other nations.

 

Religious Freedom, Ours and Theirs

 

The U.S. State Department recently released the annual Religious Freedom reports. The reports measure the freedom to worship or not, according to one’s conscience, in nations around the globe.

Sudden conflict and shifts in population movements bring us into greater interaction with those whose beliefs differ from our own. We may feel threatened, even angered, by the realization that our beliefs are not as widespread as we thought.

How do we remain firm in our own beliefs while allowing others to believe differently? Allowing religious freedom does not mean that we must live an amalgamated religion, with the unique particulars of our personal faith stripped out. Such a system is like an “established” religion, eliciting lukewarm response.

The early Christians in the Roman Empire lived in a pluralistic world much like our own, yet remained firm in their faith, even in persecution. They followed a Christ who refused to use political means to bring in his kingdom, even if it meant crucifixion. Without political power, they lived their faith and attracted others. Their very powerlessness to force their religion on others was a blessing. Indeed, when they later gained power, the faith of many lost meaning, becoming merely a superficial part of their culture.

The best way to destroy the heart of a religion is to force it on others. When we act as God, we usurp his power. If he is God, he is more than capable of working through the lives we live and our nonviolent witness. We do not need to take up the sword for him or use laws and prisons as cudgels. A person sure in his or her beliefs lives by faith, not by worldly power.