| Persecution of Christians | |
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There is a common theme heard in
the propaganda coming from the Religious Right that Christians in America are "persecuted."
The source of this persecution is supposed to be atheists, communists, secular humanists,
and other "godless" types who control the dominant culture. The reason
for this persecution, so they say, is that Christians challenge the assumptions and
morality which the godless humanists are forcing on the country.
On the face of it, such claims are absolutely ridiculous; yet they are believed by millions. What is ironic is that these claims are, in a small way, very true. There are Christians out there who are being persecuted - sometimes violently - because of the challenges they raise to the dominant culture around them.
However, the dominant culture being challenged is not one created by secularism, but instead by conservative Christians as they thoroughly control smaller communities and local governments. It is these people who are actually engaging in the persecution of other Christians - Christians who belong to smaller, less popular sects and who refuse to allow their own religious freedom to be curtailed by the conservatives.
This turn of affairs is both disturbing and sickening. Christians, who claim to be practicing a religion of "love" which provides a superior basis for morality, are engaging in or actively supporting the harassment and persecution of other Christians. They claim that organizations like the ACLU are controlled by communists and push an anti-Christian agenda, but it is these organizations which provide legal and emotional aid to the persecuted Christians.
That this happens is beyond question - similar situations repeat themselves all over the country. The point of this article is to tell, even if briefly, the stories of a few of those who have endured the attacks of their Christian neighbors. Their suffering deserves to be given a human face instead of just abstract acknowledgment.
As I have said many times: when religion becomes an established tool of the government for promoting some sort of social orthodoxy, it is actually religious minorities who tend suffer first, not atheists. This is why legal challenges against breaches in the wall of separation between church and state often come from religious believers and Christians. But if Christians can become the target of such persecution, how much worse will it be for atheists in the end?
Hopefully, a few Christians will also read this and learn about how more than a few of their brethren have suffered at the hands of politically active Christians - the same ones who themselves have complained about enduring "persecution." Who is being persecuted more: those who are being prevented from using the schools to promote their religion, or those who are physically assaulted and have their homes burned down? Let's take a look at a representative case...
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