The fear of God (Ottawa Citizen, 03/18/06)

[icymist]

The fear of God: The religious right is afraid to speak and the left is afraid to listen.
Why conservative faith in the public square is both less -- and more -- scary than we thought.

Jenny Jackson, The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Saturday, March 18, 2006
Faith groups, left-leaning or right, may believe themselves to be better human beings, but that is not necessarily true. "It's wrong to see religious communities as more ethical. That suggests that, by nature, (humans) are depraved, and that is not so."

"It is also worth remembering that the first people to argue for secular politics were faith groups who wanted to be sure they were not engulfed by larger faith groups," Mr. Robins added.

Wicca practitioners would be wary about a more Christian Parliament today, even if every other voter clamoured for it -- particularly if the electorate clamoured for it.

More