So, an interesting thing about the free exercise of religion:
Back in the late 20th century, many African and Middle Eastern nations came under the rule of dictators, who fiercely quashed any political dissent (see Egypt, Saudi Arabia). But because these nations had rich Muslim backgrounds, dissenters found a loophole: they were able to organize politically as long as they branded it as “religious.” Al Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood both started this way, as political groups pursuing political goals under the cover of religion.
I think in the last 30 years, we’ve seen a similar dynamic play out in America: people who hold political positions that are unpopular or socially-untenable (like “women shouldn’t have autonomous control over their bodies”) have been able to organize under the guise of religion. They’ve done this tax-free, even as they violate the very lax rules that have been set up for this.
I think, given this, we genuinely need to decide what qualifies as a “religion,” because a lot of this so-called worship sure looks like fascists organizing to overthrow the state and strip rights from minorities. Just because they sing some hymns and donate a few soup cans shouldn’t mean that they can freely organize to destroy society, IMHO
So, an interesting thing about the free exercise of religion:
Back in the late 20th century, many African and Middle Eastern nations came under the rule of dictators, who fiercely quashed any political dissent (see Egypt, Saudi Arabia). But because these nations had rich Muslim backgrounds, dissenters found a loophole: they were able to organize politically as long as they branded it as “religious.” Al Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood both started this way, as political groups pursuing political goals under the cover of religion.
I think in the last 30 years, we’ve seen a similar dynamic play out in America: people who hold political positions that are unpopular or socially-untenable (like “women shouldn’t have autonomous control over their bodies”) have been able to organize under the guise of religion. They’ve done this tax-free, even as they violate the very lax rules that have been set up for this.
I think, given this, we genuinely need to decide what qualifies as a “religion,” because a lot of this so-called worship sure looks like fascists organizing to overthrow the state and strip rights from minorities. Just because they sing some hymns and donate a few soup cans shouldn’t mean that they can freely organize to destroy society, IMHO