School and Religion

[. offline]

I've come back just to post this one comment.
Honestly, I don't know how to tell people who get it wrong that they are incompetent idiots.
When the pilgrims came to this land we now call America, they came for several reasons. One was the fact that conditions in Europe were worsening by the day, due to factors such as the Little Ice Age, overcrowding, corrupt governmental systems, and the like. But the main reason was so that they could practice their religion freely as they please. Most of the pilgrims were either Catholic or a form of Protestantism.
When the founding fathers wrote the Constitution, they wrote it so that all men could be equal. This meant freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, and all the other things that go with these rights. Now, most of the population of our country have come to ignore that fact. Freedom of religion does NOT mean that one can force his religion upon others.
Now, it seems like the religion topic has become a case of anti-racism. People attack Christianity for no reason whatsoever, and somehow think that their religion is better, just because they have 10,000 gods or they worship the little old lady who lives in the cardboard box in your mom's basement. Perhaps the best example of something that does a lot to make me mad is the Wal-Mart Scenario. In this case, the employees were forced to take down the "Merry Christmas" sign because it was "demeaning to other religions and blah blah blah". Guess what? That action was demeaning to the majority of the population, who are some form of Christianity. By doing that, they have just earned themselves a spot on the "Top Ten Most Retarded Corporate Crackheads of all Time" list.

As far as I'm concerned, Atheism doesn't exist. It's not a religion. Religion is the exact opposite of Atheism.

So all of you who think you know everything, why don't you actually look stuff up before you open your mouth.

And as far as the displaying of religious symbols... They can do whatever the hell they want! So shut up already. No one's shoving Jesus down your throat.

Enough of that. Back to my previously scheduled not being here-ness.

except that Atheism does exist, weather it's a religon or not.

Sure they can do whatever they want, just not on public land is all I'm saying. Walmart is a private owned company and can do with it what they please. Schools however are different case because they're goverment. Goverment and religion do not mix very well.

[Malkmusian offline]

Even moms force religion on kids. Look at the movie "Driving Lessons", for example.

That mom is a butthead.

[Chosen_one offline]

I don't have a religion, but I really don't believe that schools and other public institutions should put up huge religious symbols unless they have one for every religion. Because putting up a huge cross on a school sort of implies that Christianity is "better" than other religions, which it's not.

[Kamekai offline]

or that the majority of the school just happens to endorse that religion? But I don't mean a huge cross, but you know. I really don't care if they do or not, but I wanted to see everyone else's views and stuff.

[Lyoko Wario offline]

Freedom of religion means that the individual is free to follow any religion of their choosing or to reject religion altogether. It does not mean that a public institution is free to promote any given religion or lack thereof simply because those in charge of it consider it fitting. Religious institutions such as churches can hardly avoid a mention of religion, of course, but establishments that claim to welcome people of every faith equally are showing a vast degree of hypocrisy by exhibiting religious symbols in clear view of everyone. I personally would not make a big deal out of it, (though it would indeed bother me) but it's hardly a wonder that people become upset.

[zex marquise offline]

I agree with Planet Cool. Religious symbols are alright on private land like religion-based schools or places of worship. In public land they could easily upset someone of a different faith.

[Chosen_one offline]

Yeah, I have had much experience with that kind of stuff.

We must remember that America prides itself on being a country of multiple ethnicities. There is no one "American civilization," "American ethnicity," or "American race," but some people are forgetting that. Honestly, the white people in my school don't know how to refer to themselves. Most of them refer to themselves as "American" and others as "African-American" or "Asian," and some just don't even know, like my friend Purpleblob, who referred to them as "you know, those people that aren't black, or Asian, or hispanic, or anything." I don't mean any offense, but Americans are forgetting that they don't originate from America, but from Europe, Asia, Africa, or wherever they're from. It's not right to make one religion or culture seem "normal" by emphasizing it, because in America, there is no such thing as a "normal" culture.