Religious Freedom USA?

Lately, we've heard a lot about that troublesome Mosque, the Cordoba Center, in New York City.

Local authorities found that the project, slated for construction near, but not exactly on, the site of the former World Trade Center, was permissible under zoning laws.

Many of the supporters of the project noted that the Imams in New York City have assisted in the very difficult work of mending broken fences, broken walkways, and broken paths to dialogue between Christians, Jews, the non-religious and the Muslims.  Add to the mix the fact that this is the month of Ramadan.  It is that holy month in the Islamic religious calendar, and as such, has only drawn more attention to the fact that Muslims live and worship in America.  And, some want to set up a community center and mosque in New York City.

The outcry against the mosque has been disheartening.

Based upon the terrorism of the few, the most minuscule portion of Muslims in terror activity, the entire population of Muslims have been labeled terrorists.  Or violent.  Or irrational.  Or, and this is a personal un-favorite, Un-American.  That last one goes for US citizens and not, without distinction.

Now, this may not make sense to those spouting hatred at an entire population for the acts they had nothing to do with, did not participate, would not participate in, and share no ideology with, those 'terrorists.'  But, ever willing to crawl out on a limb, I am crawling here.

If we don't value religious freedom for Muslims, or any religious creed we do not share, or know little about, then we don't value religious freedom for anyone.  That includes the Christians.

The Cordoba Center can be built wherever local authorities find that it can be built based on zoning laws.

Whether it is in good taste is another matter, and not one that I am touching with a ten foot pole. 

But, please don't protest Islam as Islam.  The Imams of New York didn't fly the planes in September, nine years ago.  None of them gave the terrorists the papers which allowed those terrorists into this country without much question. 

Some of the protests have even stated that our 'Christian' society is being dragged down into the depths of depravity, lo these past decades since Hugh Hefner brought Playboy into the mainstream press, and the Supreme Court still maintains that it cannot define porn, except to say they know it when they see it.  And so, our movies, television and other entertainment goes further and further into that territory where the conscience can be, and will be shocked.

Seeing these protests, and hearing the fearful cries that the Muslims want to turn this into a Sharia law driven theocracy, I have to laugh.  The Pew Center has conducted surveys of religious thought and distribution of various faiths in the US population, and Christians are still the clear majority.  You can view the results here.

If this country becomes ruled by Sharia law, then our lawmakers are really more out of touch than I would think possible.

In other words, we don't have anything to fear from the Cordoba Center in New York.  Is building this center a good idea?  That is a question that won't be answered for a long time, and after much debate.  But, if we don't recognize that Islam as a religion has as much freedom to be part of the US religious landscape, then we shall surely lose all religious faith.

Someone ought to ask the protesters that want Islam run out of the US, for good, one question.  What will you do if the government of this nation decides that no religious faith gets any tax, assembly or other benefits?  What will happen then? 

Where will your mega-churches and blow-dried ministers be then?  Where will your leaders, who have blamed everything from tornadoes to hurricanes wiping out major cities on the sins of film makers, parades by certain groups or whatever attack on marriage is the debauchery du jour?

Freedom of religion means freedom for all religions.  No one is forcing anyone in the US to participate in any faith.  Americans are free to worship in any way they see fit, or not to worship at all.  Personal faith cannot be imposed on anyone, and only the individual can make that decision.

That is, unless we go back to state sponsored religion.  And then, there will be no individual faith, no choice, no rights.  Do we want to start on the path to exclude one religion based on the illegal and reprehensible acts that that religion has already decried? 

It could be analogized to government condemning Catholicism due to the criminal actions of the Mafia.  There was not overt connection, the Catholic Church decried the criminality of the Mob, and the analogy holds.

Do we want to mark the twenty-first century with a new form of Crusade or Inquisition?