Religion in the common usage is three fold. It relies on (1) a doctrinal message (scripture) that can only be delivered from external human sources and commonly understood, (2) an internal understanding and confirmation (belief), and (3) an authoritative referent (God).
For us to allow freedom to have religion we must recognize that it is impossible to insulate our citizenry from religion. To do so would be to deny the first of the above requisites. Requiring people to keep their religion to themselves, is then, to deny freedom of religion.
The premise of religion is that the moral obligations of religion are authorized by God, captured in scripture, delivered by persons, and realize-able by adherents to the religion. In that sense they are not merely suggestions but directives to be obeyed by the faithful. So, how is a directive different from a dictate?
Our existence is bound by experiences that are circumstantial. The application of sound moral principle is entirely dependent on any given circumstance. The moral circumstance involves the heart of a person and their conduct related to a particular circumstance. It is impossible to determine A Priori, conduct related to a particular moral principle with regards to all possible circumstance. In this vein we are all tested moment to moment and venture by venture.
It is possible to dictate moral principle with the absolute assurance that it is sound. Conduct, however, is an entirely different matter.
”"The spread of evil is the symptom of a vacuum. Whenever evil wins, it is only by default: by the moral failure of those who evade the fact that there can be no compromise on basic principles."
--Ayn Rand (Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, 1966) |
