How Not to Win the Hearts of Religious Folk
Posted on Jun 29, 2013 by Trevor in Politics, Religion
“If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.”
That’s the lead in the Miami Herald for its coverage of a new atheist monument in Starke, Florida. The atheists, having failed to win a court battle about the display of a religious monument on government property, settled with placing a monument of their own on the same property.
Now, I totally understand why the atheists are upset with the wrongheaded decisions involved with placing and retaining the Ten Commandments monument. I share their concern about the public sponsorship of one religion over another, as should any American.
However, this monument of theirs seems too much about settling scores and not enough about furthering the freedom of (non)religion and the cause of open discourse. Their monument doesn’t just include secular wisdom but also includes what seems to be a “Worst of the Bible” list as well. I’m sure there’s a time and a place to show Bible believers how inconsistently they apply scripture, but to do it on your own monument just seems petty. Furthermore, it will give fundamentalist Christians another reason to play their beloved persecution card.
But I want to add my voice to the many other Americans that are sick of this childish, counterproductive “war” between religions in our country. I think the ideal move for the atheists to take would’ve been staying on the high ground. If government shouldn’t privilege one religion over another (non)religion, let’s fight for that principle. It might mean temporary setbacks such as the court decision that let the Ten Commandments monument stay, but turf fights like this probably hurt the cause even more.
What atheists ultimately want is the freedom to be non-religious, which means having their tax dollars spent fairly and the laws of the land engineered such that they don’t privilege religion. That’s a noble and worthy cause, but it will probably be best carried out by winning the hearts and the minds of the religious minority.
