Religious Intolerance

What a world we live in where people aren't really free to believe or speak as we wish. I'm not talking about yelling "fire" in the middle of a movie theater. But, I am talking about ignorance in the very Constitution most people stand behind.

A recent article I wrote about Christmas was literally attacked, which I love the attention. But, I found the attacks to be so extreme that I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. There were quite a few Christians who made it a point to bring the worst out in themselves because they literally hated my opinion that much.

In my article there was no denouncement of the Christian faith nor of Christmas. I didn't say I didn't want to celebrate Christmas. I didn't say that I didn't want to wish others a Merry Christmas. I didn't say that Christmas wasn't worth celebrating. And I didn't say that we shouldn't display Christmas greetings in public places.

But, I did make firm statements that Christians have a tendency to think that their belief system and traditions are the only ones that matter. There are other holidays in that time of year and some of those holidays were around before Christmas or Christianity ever was. In fact, Jesus Christ himself was a Jew. Jewish holidays have been celebrated long before Jesus Christ was even born. Other religions existed as well.

But for voicing my opinion, I was told to leave the country. I was told that my hatred toward Christianity was duly noted. Some of the more sharp attacks were aimed at twisting the logic and actually accusing me of being narrow minded. The absurdity of those responses was hysterical.

First of all, my open mindedness is what prompted me to write the article in the first place. After all, I am a Christian and what I see in the Christian community is often very hypocritical. I write about Christians who judge and we were never told to judge. I write about Christians who don't have enough faith in God because they try to tell others how to live, and condemn them to hell, claiming God hates them for what they do.

But, the best response by far was when I was told to leave the country. How pathetic is that? It demonstrates the ignorance of those particular opponents who believe Christmas is only celebrated in America and that Christians only exist in America. Not only that, but they would have people leave the country rather than allow them to enjoy their freedom and practice free speech.

The rules of engagement fall apart when we forget the rules of engagement. I have a right to my opinion. Argue the merits of the discussion. But, it seems that those people who don't have the facility to respect the rules of engagement will result to a lower level of humanity that includes false accusations, misquotations and character assassination.

In different arenas, the lower level of humanity can escalate to violence. People can literally be killed over their opinion, and sometimes in the aftermath there are people who are killed because they are simply in the wrong place at the wrong time when someone else is targeted because of their opinion. The sobering truth of this was witnessed recently in Tucson, Arizona when Jared Loughner appears to have targeted Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killed six people in the process, including federal Judge John Roll and nine year old Christina Green while Giffords herself is lying in a hospital hopefully capable of recovering.

The only information I have at this point to put together some kind of motive is that Loughner actually met Giffords a few years ago and when given the chance, asked her "What is government if words have no meaning?" The answer Giffords gave appears to be unknown at this point. In fact, in a conversation with a good friend of his, Bryce Tierney, Loughner said he didn't get an answer. This supposed brush off festered in Loughner's mind until purchasing ammunition from Walmart on the eighth of January and attending "Congress on Your Corner" hosted by Giffords at a Safeway store.

That's the reality. That's the eye-opening truth. Ninety-five percent of the people who live in this world are capable of getting along peacefully and accepting adversity with at least some level of grace. But, the other five percent who can't are the ones who slip between the cracks, go unnoticed, then one day make a drastic leap right out of character.

I'm not sure if there's a solution. We will always have a handful of people on the extreme edge of existence. You never know what is going to trigger their radical resolve. But, it seems to be happening more commonly these days.

To return to the religious aspect of the issue is how extreme some zealots will go when their religious beliefs are challenged. There are Christians who hold up signs that say "God Hates You." They attend funerals of dignitaries and soldiers. They attend weddings of gays and lesbians. They thank God for such things as the Swine Flu and September 11. Not all Christians, but there are those few who live in America and enjoy the rights and privileges the Constitution extends to them. But, those same rights and privileges they would like to deny others.

Religious intolerance is often highly disrespectful and displays non Christian-like behavior. There are plenty of examples where Jesus Christ himself demonstrated tolerance and used the rules of engagement to either convert, or to at least convince. He dined with sinners. He talked to non-believers. He defended a prostitute by saying the infamous, "He who is without sin, cast the first stone." Yet there are Christian zealots who miss the very meaning of those lessons they shove down everyone else's throat.