The religious extremism that was on display in Florida during the Terri Schiavo media circus was astounding. Most Americans never agreed with keeping Terri on a feeding tube for as long as her body could go on, but that didn't stop the zealots. America in general will suffer if the zealots are able to continue like this.

Robyn E. Blumner writes:

Those people in the middle, who think it is inappropriate to challenge the religious certainty of others, have allowed our country to be hijacked by irrational forces. In poll after poll, a large majority of Americans say they would not want to be kept alive as Terri Schiavo has been. But the elected branches of government are beholden to a vocal fringe of religious extremists, such as Douglas Scott, president of Life Decisions International - an organization devoted to destroying Planned Parenthood - who has declared that end-of-life directives are irrelevant. "Regardless of who thinks Terri would be better off dead, even if this included Terri herself, no one is permitted to take an action or inaction that will kill someone," Scott said in a statement.

By following the lead of fundamentalists, our nation has turned off course. It is time for religious moderates to start challenging the dangerous views of some of their brethren.

It would be nice if religious moderates would do more to challenge the zealots, but what options do they realistically have? They can't challenge the religious basis of the zealots' views without calling into question their own religious views — the two are too close and too similar to neatly separate. The liberals' and moderates' religious views are also readily attacked from the extremists' perspective.

Religious moderates and liberals are in a tough bind, but it's one that is created by their own religious commitments and, as such, is not readily dispensed with.

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