Against my better judgment ... [View all]

[NanceGreggs]

Last edited Fri Jan 16, 2015, 09:57 PM - Edit history (1)

... I will post an OP.

Any discussion between us as individuals as to how we perceive religion is beside the point.

What I don't understand is anyone's need to ridicule others' religions. It serves no purpose. It accomplishes nothing. It changes nothing. The only end result possible (or probable) is that it offends, and can be extremely hurtful to those who feel deeply about their faith.

Do you know of any Christian who has stopped believing in their salvation through Christ because someone made fun of their beliefs?

Do you know of any Muslim who has abandoned their faith because someone labeled it "myth" or "superstition"?

Do you know of any Jew who stopped believing in their religion because someone made fun of their kippah, or their "weird" dietary laws?

Do you know of any atheist who suddenly decided to believe in god because they'd been ridiculed for not believing in god?

When it comes to religion - or the choice to not have one at all - no one's mind is changed by ridicule. No one is "enlightened" by being mocked. No one is dissuaded away from personally-held beliefs as the result of being laughed at, or told they are clinging to superstition.

And even if one could be persuaded to abandon their faith due to being ridiculed, what purpose does that serve? Are there bragging rights attached to saying, "Hey, I talked a Catholic into leaving their Church today"? Are there points awarded? Prizes to be won? An awards ceremony at the end of the year?

Having read the many posts on DU the last week on the topic, I see a lot of "well, I have the right to mock other people's faith" - and that's true. But what is the purpose behind it? What is gained? What is the goal? What does anyone who mocks others' beliefs think they are accomplishing? What do such people hope to achieve when it is so obvious that they can achieve nothing - other than offending and/or hurting the feelings of those whose beliefs they mock?

I can't help but wonder what void exists in someone's life that they think will be filled by ridiculing others, when the only possible outcome of doing so is some self-serving (and totally idiotic) sense that they are accomplishing something of merit.

My personal feelings on religion are the same as they are on other issues: If you don't condone same-sex relationships, don't enter into one. If you think abortion is murder, don't have one. If you think religion is nonsense, don't practice one.

I see little difference between those who think they can convert non-believers into believers and those who think they can convert believers into non-believers by use of the same tactics - ridicule, mockery, scorn, derision, and what amounts to a declaration that "what I believe or don't believe is the only way to go - all others are subject to ridicule."

I have seen the posts by those who say "if your God is offended by ..." How incredibly simple-minded do you have to be to think that the God that anyone worships is capable of being "offended"? It is not the deity a religious person thinks is being offended - it is their brothers-and-sisters in-the-faith that are being offended. It would seem that anyone of any intelligence would understand the difference. But apparently not.

The narrow-mindedness displayed on DU on this topic has been, sad to say, not surprising in the least. It is amusing - if nothing else - to see the same posters who decry the belittlement of gays/lesbians based on their sexuality, the derision of people based on their race or ethnicity, or the mockery of people based on their poor financial circumstances, stand up and cheer the idea that people of religious faith are fair game in a mud-slinging contest that accomplishes nothing of value.

There is nothing liberal, progressive, or Democratic in espousing the idea that those who adhere to any religion are "fair game" to be mocked, ridiculed, or derided for their beliefs. And there is nothing intelligent, thoughtful, or productive behind the idea that "I have a right to ridicule, therefore I will do so, just because I can."



Edited to add …

This OP was not about satire, lampooning religious practices, tolerating the Westboro Church idiots, being “required” to respect any religion, ignoring the hypocrisy of those who claim to be Christians and then act contrary to Christ’s teachings, “accepting” religious ideals that one finds abhorrent, allowing any religion to interfere with anyone’s rights as a citizen, tolerating the encroachment of religion into our government, not pushing back against those who shove their religion in our face, etc.

The OP is specifically about DU and the discussions that have taken place here, especially over the past few weeks. The incivility demonstrated by some towards those of faith has been appalling and [I[deliberately hurtful. That’s what I meant by saying it serves no purpose, and accomplishes nothing. No one is going to abandon their religious beliefs because someone on a message board called them “an idiot who believes in fairy tales”. So why say it – unless the only purpose is to be demeaning?

I may believe that wearing a burqa is a ridiculous adherence to an archaic interpretation of Islam. But it would never cross my mind to point at a woman wearing one and laugh, or tell her she’s an idiot who is clinging to superstition.

There is – or, IMHO, should be – a difference between how we view religious beliefs as a whole, and how we treat the individuals who hold those beliefs. Religions and their deities do not have feelings – the people who practice those religions do.

Being mindful of those feelings shouldn’t be too much to ask of anyone. But apparently, for some, it is.