As I sat pondering the question of the importance of religious freedom, I jotted down what I considered the benefits of allowing individuals to practice their faith. The list of benefits encompassed so much more than the right to worship. With more scrutiny of these listed benefits, I recognized a common theme–stability. Therefore, when posed the question “What is the importance of religious freedom?” my answer is “Stability–stability of individuals, families, and communities, and it goes to reason that if there is stability at these levels, then society as a whole will benefit.” To internalize my perspective and to gain more knowledge, I took two paths. First, I retrieved the St. Thomas Aquinas (STA) bulletin from April 10th and …show more content…
Specifically, the article Why Religion Matters Even More written by Patrick F. Fagan identified many studies that showed a positive correlation between religious practices and social stability. The author noted the positive impact religious practice has on family life, e.g., marriages are happier, better parent-child relationships, and less domestic violence, divorce, and out-of-wedlock births. He connected students’ attendance at religious services to significant gains in education, especially low-income students. He stated how religious practice encourages good work habits and high aspirations. Fagan pointed out that religious practice is associated with improved overall health which leads to more productivity. Additionally, he noted that communities with high levels of religious practices maintain a high level of charitable giving and experience less violent crimes. All of these benefits allow society as a whole to …show more content…
I question why more of this data does not resonate with our government and the public. Instead of embracing the value of religious freedom as our country’s founders did, the current government attacks it. On the same piece of scratch paper, I listed the recent attacks to my Catholic faith–contraceptive mandates, same-sex marriage laws, regulation forcing acceptance of gender identity as a protected class, laws restricting assistance to undocumented immigrants, and various universities’ denials to grant Christian student organizations status because these clubs require their leaders to be Christians.
The laws and regulations stated above create a conflict between our Catholic conscience and obeying a law. Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. articulately expressed this conflict in his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail . He boldly said, “The goal of America is freedom.” As a Christian pastor, he argued that to call America to the full measure of that freedom was the specific contribution Christians are obliged to make. He rooted his legal and constitutional arguments about justice in the long Christian
Dr. Martin Luther King addressed many topics in “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. He answered all the issues that were aimed at him in a very skillful and well thought out manner. These issues came from “A Call For Unity”, which was a letter published by eight local clergymen expressing their feelings about what Dr. King was doing. One concern, in particular, that King did an outstanding job of confronting was that of the clergymen’s anxiety about him breaking the law. King addresses the question of, “How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?”
With sounds of youthful laughter, conversations about the students’ weekends, and the shuffling of college ruled paper; students file into their classrooms and find their seats on a typical Monday morning. As the announcements travel throughout the school’s intercoms, the usual “Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance” becomes no longer usual but rather puzzling to some students. “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, indivisible, with liberty, and justice for all.” Confusion passes through some of the student’s minds. With the reoccurrence of “God” in the backdrop of American life, the relationship between church and state has become of little to no matter for American citizens just as it has with American students. While congress makes no law respecting an establishment of religion, the term “freedom of religion” presents itself to no longer be the definition of “free”, while also having its effects on debates today. According to Burt Rieff, in Conflicting Rights and Religious Liberty, “Parents, school officials, politicians, and religious leaders entered the battle over defining the relationship between church and state, transforming constitutional issues into political, religious, and cultural debates” (Rieff). Throughout the 20th century, many have forgotten the meaning of religion and what its effects are on the people of today. With the nonconformist society in today’s culture, religion has placed itself in a category of insignificance. With the many controversies of the world, religion is at a stand still, and is proven to not be as important as it was in the past. Though the United States government is based on separation of church and state, the gover...
* McCuen, Gary E. Religion and Politics: Issues in Religious Liberty. Hudson: G.E. McCuen Publications, 1989.
On April 16th, 1963, Martin Luther King Junior, Baptist pastor and civil rights activist, in his letter entitled “Letter from Birmingham City Jail,” supports the civil rights movement and social justice. He supports this claim by first telling the people that they will attain freedom because it is their God given will, then by praising the ones who were standing up for their freedom, and finally giving the American people hope about the future. Through King’s use of tone, rhetorical appeals, and rhetorical tools he effectively persuades the entire U.S. population to justify their means of protest in order to bring attention to social justice, and to fight for their freedom.
On April 16, 1963, from a jail in Birmingham, Alabama, Martin Luther King Jr. composed an extensive letter to eight clergymen who condemned the timing of the civil rights movement. Although the letter was addressed to these eight clergymen, the Letter from Birmingham Jail speaks to a national audience, especially King’s “Christian and Jewish brothers”(King, 29). His peaceful but firm letter serves as a remarkably persuasive voice to an immensely chaotic mess, and is seen as a major turning point in the civil rights movement. King believes that without direct action, the full rights for African Americans could never be achieved. He defends the impatience of people in the civil rights movement, upholding that without forceful demonstrations, equality will never be reached. King upholds that human rights must take precedence over unjust laws. His eloquent language and use of classical argumentation make his case resilient and convincing. King’s expert use of pathos invokes anger, sympathy and empathy; his impeccable use of logos made his argument rational to all; and his use of ethos, especially his use of biblical references, makes his opinions more authoritative.
Hawley, Helen, and Gary Taylor. "Freedom of religion in America." Contemporary Review 282.1649 (2003): 344+. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
Religion is intertwined with culture, economics, politics, and modern social relationships on every dimension. Whether you attend a cathedral, a synagogue, or a mosque, habitually, intermittently, or abstain entirely, you simply cannot escape religion.
Talbot, Nathan. "Government Should Not Interfere with Personal Belief." Bach, Julie S., ed. Religion in America: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1989.
Schumaker, John F. “Can Religion Make You Happy?” Free Inquiry Summer 1998: 28+. Student Resources in Context. Web. 19 June 2015.
Religion plays a huge role that helps people make person. I used to be someone who did not care about anything important, but after I had made my connection with my religion I found the other side of me that no one could see. This new side of me helped me to get more respect from many people. My parents trusted me a lot. I never knew that my parents could trust people like this , and I got to experience that feeling of being
Religions have always played a vital role between humans and its society especially in terms of what is good and proper in the society. In modern world, people have become increasingly dissociated from religion and spirituality.
Social stability is the capstone of a fully-functioning society. Social stability is about the condition of freedom from social disorder that is commonly manifested in the custom of inter-group conflict and violence (Sengupta, p. 5103, 2004). It is the condition of sustainable development, and welfare, whereas, society would be free of poverty, hunger, corruption, exploitation and inequality (Sengupta, p. 5103, 2004). It is premised on social development, freedom, and harmony (Sengupta, p. 5103, 2004). There are many components which assist in the achievement of social stability; one being social justice through religion. The purpose of this paper is to examine social justice advocated through religion in an effort to attain social stability.
In Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, his belief was that any gains toward freedom and equality could not happen without the use of God’s will and the influence of Christian values. Dr. King Jr. believed that Christianity and his faith in God would help eradicate the many injustices in society. A guiding force in Dr. King Jr.’s nonviolent protest were the “principles dear to the Christian faith”, in which, the need to fight injustices against people was on of them.
For most religious individuals, religions provide belongingness for them. When they participating in the religions behaviors, people gain the sense of belonging, protection and identity. For example, because they believe in the soul, they can gain the comforts, which provided by the religions they believe in, when they are
You cannot believe in God until you believe in yourself. -- Swami Vivekananda "I would rather live my life as if there is a God and die to find out there isn't, than live as if there isn't and to die to find out that there is." -- Albert Camus In this essay, I will explore the religious experience in general and some of its variations around the world. The focus will be on the types of religious beliefs and religious leaders, especially in small-scale societies. An exploration of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, or any other major religion is beyond the scope of this essay.