Atheism, Christianity, Tolerance

April 21, 2007

Let’s take a look at several reputable Atheist and Christian sources, and try to discover their stances on controversial, personal rights issues.

We’re going to specifically exclude hate speech, which I define (for this article) as “Statements that indicate a strong prejudicial stance towards the subject, a stance that is not broadly shared” In other words, we’re not looking at individual nut-cases that might claim to follow the tenents of the group, but at the group itself.

We’re going to look at leaders and influential people among specific groups of Atheists and Christianity, and/or unbiased, quantitative data. The focus will be on clear statements, with as little interpretation as possible.

We’re going to avoid third-party, subjective commentary and focus only on statements from within the various groups, and quantitative data from outside.

Final note before we get started: These are generalizations. Not all members of a group will hold the opinions attributed to the group. I am trying to find succinct quotes that represent the majority opinion.

Now, On to the Controversy!

Homosexuality

  • Atheist, Cliff Walker, positiveatheism.com “Homosexuals are no different from anybody, and deserve the full rights that anybody deserves, on the same terms as anybody.”
  • Catholic, Pope John Paul II, Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons “Although the particular inclination of the homosexual person is not a sin, it is a more or less strong tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil; thus the inclination itself must be seen as an objective disorder. Therefore special concern and pastoral attention should be directed to those who have this condition, lest they be led to believe that the living out of this orientation in homosexual activity is a morally acceptable option. It is not.”
  • Lutheran, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, ELCA Assembly Addresses Homosexual Ordination, “The ELCA has acted to welcome gay and lesbian people to participate fully in the life of its congregations and to reject discrimination, assault, and harassment of gay and lesbian persons…”
  • Southern Baptist, Southern Baptist Convention, Position statement on Sexuality “ We affirm God’s plan for marriage and sexual intimacy – one man, and one woman, for life. Homosexuality is not a “valid alternative lifestyle.” The Bible condemns it as sin. It is not, however, unforgivable sin.”
  • Methodist, http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?ptid=1&mid=1324, “[S]elf-avowed practicing homosexuals are not to be certified as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in The United Methodist Church.”, “Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches.”
  • Mormon, http://www.mormon.org/question/faq/category/answer/0,9777,1601-1-60-1,00.html, “People inquire about our position on those who consider themselves so-called gays and lesbians. My response is that we love them as sons and daughters of God. They may have certain inclinations which are powerful and which may be difficult to control. Most people have inclinations of one kind or another at various times. If they do not act upon these inclinations, then they can go forward as do all other members of the Church. If they violate the law of chastity and the moral standards of the Church, then they are subject to the discipline of the Church, just as others are.
  • Pentecostal, http://www.spiritualabuse.org/issues/position/homosexuality.html, “The Position Papers of the United Pentecostal Church” “Let us therefore resolve that the United Pentecostal Church International go on public record as absolutely opposed to homosexuality and condemn it as a moral decadence and sin, and do hereby encourage prayer for the deliverance of those enslaved by that satanic snare.

The Christian condemnation of homosexuals stems from numerous biblical passages. (Genesis 19:4-11; Deuteronomy 23:17; 1 Kings 14:24, 15:12, 22:46; 2 Kings 23:7; Jeremiah 23:14; Judges 19; Leviticus 18:22; Leviticus 20:13; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Timothy 1:8-11; and 1 Corinthians 6:9-20.)

Abortion

  • Atheist, Steven Morris, PhD, http://www.atheistalliance.org/library/morris-abortion.php, “When abortions were illegal, hundreds of thousands of desperate women endured back-alley abortions every year. We will never know how many died, a horrific human sacrifice on the altar of Christianity. The Religious Right looks back on this bloodbath and says ‘Let’s do it again’ The truly pro-life position is to stand up and say, ‘Never!’”
  • Catholic, Cathleen Cleaver Ruse, Director of Planning and Information for the Pro-life Secretariat of the US Bishops’ Conference, http://www.priestsforlife.org/magisterium/bishops/abone.htm “The church has taught on this issue of abortion and its immorality since the Apostolic Age. It’s one of our longest standing moral public policy issues and it is not like any other issue really. It is, some might say, it’s non-negotiable. There are no instances where it is morally licit or justifiable. That sets is apart from other issues like capital punishment, like just war theory and many other social issues that are very, very important but don’t have that kind of no exceptions policy. So, the way the Church looks at abortion - abortion is one of those fundamental issues. If that right is taken away, if the very right to life is taken away then no other right matters. You don’t have the ability to hold another right or to have another right taken away. So, while health care, the right to a good education, housing all of these issues are very, very important, they are meaningless if the right to life is not first protected.”
  • Methodist, http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?mid=1732, “Our belief in the sanctity of unborn human life makes us reluctant to approve abortion. But we are equally bound to respect the sacredness of the life and well-being of the mother, for whom devastating damage may result from an unacceptable pregnancy. In continuity with past Christian teaching, we recognize tragic conflicts of life with life that may justify abortion, and in such cases we support the legal option of abortion under proper medical procedures. We cannot affirm abortion as an acceptable means of birth control, and we unconditionally reject it as a means of gender selection.”
  • Southern Baptist Resolution On Abortion, adopted at the SBC convention, June 1971: WHEREAS, Christians in the American society today are faced with difficult decisions about abortion; and WHEREAS, Some advocate that there be no abortion legislation, thus making the decision a purely private matter between a woman and her doctor; and WHEREAS, Others advocate no legal abortion, or would permit abortion only if the life of the mother is threatened; Therefore, be it RESOLVED, that this Convention express the belief that society has a responsibility to affirm through the laws of the state a high view of the sanctity of human life, including fetal life, in order to protect those who cannot protect themselves; and Be it further RESOLVED, That we call upon Southern Baptists to work for legislation that will allow the possibility of abortion under such conditions as rape, incest, clear evidence of severe fetal deformity, and carefully ascertained evidence of the likelihood of damage to the emotional, mental, and physical health of the mother.

Exodus 21:22-23 has an interesting take on abortion. If a man should injure a pregnant woman and cause her death, he is to be killed. But, if he causes her to miscarry, he is only to be fined.
Divorce

Houston Chronicle, Jan 8, 2000: Among born-again Christians, 27 percent are currently or have previously been divorced, compared to 24 percent among adults who are not born-again, Barna reports, adding that the large sample size makes the difference statistically significant. The rate among atheists and agnostics (21 percent) is below the norm, while people attending mainline Protestant churches have an overall rate equal to the national average of 25 percent.

Euthanasia

  • Atheist/Humanist, Frederick Edwords, The Humanist Philosophy In Perspective (1984) “As humanists who are committed to free inquiry and who see the value of social systems that promote liberty, we encourage the maximizing of individual autonomy. In this context, we support such freedoms and rights as religious freedom, church-state separation, freedom of speech and the press, freedom of association (including sexual freedom, the right to marriage and divorce, and the right to alternate family structures), a right to birth control and abortion, and the right to voluntary euthanasia.”
  • Catholic, http://www.catholic-ew.org.uk/faith/living/euthanasia.htm, “The Church’s opposition to euthanasia is founded on the principle that all human life is sacred, and no one has the right to take that life - there are exceptional circumstances when the Church would accept that life might be taken deliberately, but these are only self-defence and capital punishment. Even in the case of capital punishment, however, the Church would argue that there would appear to be very few cases when some other sort of punishment might not be found as an alternative to capital punishment.”
  • Evangelical, National Association of Evangelicals, http://www.nae.net/index.cfm?FUSEACTION=editor.page&pageID=77&IDCategory=9, “We believe that life is a gift from God, and that human life has absolute-not relative-value. Death is a significant transition that we all face. The physical and emotional suffering that may precede death can be very grievous, but it may also spiritually enrich us, and afford a last opportunity for reconciliation with mends, family, and God. While we firmly believe in mercy and compassion, that belief does not give anyone license to play God. We believe there is a profound moral distinction between allowing a person to die, on the one hand; and killing on the other (Deut. 5:17). We affirm the ethic ‘ always to care, never to kill. ‘ “
  • Mormon, www.lds.org “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes in the sanctity of human life, and is therefore opposed to euthanasia. Euthanasia is defined as deliberately putting to death a person who is suffering from an incurable condition or disease. Such a deliberate act ends life immediately through, for example, so-called assisted suicide. Ending a life in such a manner is a violation of the commandments of God. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not believe that allowing a person to die from natural causes by removing a patient from artificial means of life support, as in the case of a long-term illness, falls within the definition of euthanasia. When dying from such an illness or an accident becomes inevitable, it should be seen as a blessing and a purposeful part of eternal existence. Members should not feel obligated to extend mortal life by means that are unreasonable. These judgments are best made by family members after receiving wise and competent medical advice and seeking divine guidance through fasting and prayer.”

In researching this article, I had a hard time deciding what Atheist quote to use. You can find atheists of just about every position, weighing in for and against each of these issues. The Religious quotes were pretty easy - the position of the church is automatically the majority opinion. With Atheism, I had to decide if quotes that represented my own position also represented the majority.

Abortion was exceptionally rough, with multiple views across the map. My own opinion is that abortion should be legal for medical issues, and not legal for birth control. The majority opinion, though, seemed to be represented well as the pro-choice opinion I quoted.

Atheists tend to take a pragmatic view of existence. How does what a person does in their own bedroom harm society? How does a lawful abortion hurt my community? Is it our position to pressure a woman into trying to keep a fetus that is endangering her life? Are we to ridicule and harass a son who decides to pull the plug on his ailing father? Are we to force an individual to endure an excruciatingly painful death? Atheist marriages are, traditionally, the most successful - are Christians pressured into marriage too early? Are Christians painting a false picture of marriage?

A few positions surprised me - I didn’t think I would be able to find a Christian organization that permitted abortion of any type, let alone the Southern Baptist Convention. Likewise, the Lutheran position on Homosexuality was a refreshing surprise. Amazingly, Biblical references didn’t even support Christian positions on Abortion - assaulting a mother and causing her to miscarry was deemed a lesser crime than murder.

All in all, though, Atheists appear to be more willing to tolerate the exercise of personal freedoms than Christians.

Posted by rivalarrival | Filed Under Beliefs, Bible, Blog, Christianity, Morality, Uncategorized 

Comments

One Response to “Atheism, Christianity, Tolerance”

  1. Alpha Orionis on August 4th, 2007 4:48 pm

    It’s relatively straightforward, it is the churches that are holding back rights, and the atheists/liberals/odd churches that are fighting for them.

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