Friday, December 05, 2008

Lets all attack Christmas?

Another one from CNN,

Atheists put anti-God sign near Nativity scene

It's beginning to look a lot like -- a war over Christmas. The Freedom from Religion Foundation has a placard up in the Legislative Building in Olympia, Washington. 1 of 2 Alongside a Nativity scene at the Legislative Building in Olympia, Washington, a sign put up by an atheist organization celebrates the winter solstice. But it's the rest of the sign that has some residents and Christian organizations calling atheists Scrooges for attacking the celebration of Jesus Christ's birth. "Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds," the sign says in part.

Now certainly the people who put the sign there have every right in the world to do so. After all they did choose a public Nativity scene to put up their protest signs. But for me here it's question of taste and hypocrisy. First of all, it's the holiday season, the one time of the year when we're all supposed to try harder to get along and be happier. If you're an atheist why not find your own way's to celebrate the season rather than try raining on Christian's parades? Heck, Santa has basically gone from being a Saint (Nicholas, yes he's a real saint) in the Roman Catholic world to being a very secular creation. Just put Santa up in your yard with 8 tiny rain deer and be a little merrier.

Then comes the hypocrisy, no doubt like many these atheists are turned off by some sects of Christianity going out and evangelizing the faith telling people they're going to go to hell if they don't believe exactly what they believe.  To be honest I can understand annoyance with that, and I do see it as unfortunate that not all branches of the faith are able to live in peace with those who do not share their views. So what are these protesters doing? Evangelizing atheism telling anyone of any faith that they're a bunch of idiots. Well then, that's a big improvement over what they claim to be so upset about.

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

IMO, some people just like to be shit-stirrers.

However, what this does is highlights the problems of allowing religions to put up displays in government buildings, because if you allow one to do it, you pretty much have to allow all of them. Megyn Kelly and Bill O'Reilly really went at it over this last night on his show. Yes I know you don't watch O'Reilly. ;-)

IMO overtly religious displays (such as a Nativity scene) really don't have a place in government bldgs.

If I can find an email address for the Freedom From Religion Foundation, I'm going to send them an email basically telling them that IMO what they did was tasteless and hypocritical, and that just because they had the right to do it doesn't mean they SHOULD have, in my atheist/agnostic opinion.

12:07 PM  
Blogger Carlo said...

There's nothing wrong with religious displays at goverment buildings. Seperation of church and state doesn't nessesarly mean you can't have religious displays at government buildings and lands, it means that the government can't discriminate.

That's why there is nothing legally wrong with what was done. My main problems with the protest signs are as outline in the blog, taste and hypocrisy.

12:37 PM  

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