Religious Freedom and Freedom from Discrimination is a Zero Sum Game


What is the best definition of "Religious Freedom?" It is freedom to discriminate. That sums it up. 

It is difficult to see how this can be explained to those Christians advocating "Religious Freedom" except to discriminate against them. Only by being on the receiving end of discrimination can they understand what it is.

If Christian were turned away from apartments or motel rooms because only because they are Christian it might help. Being turned away from medical services could help too. Or, anti abortion women about to give birth could be required to watch a video of women crying because they were turned away from abortions. Or, maybe it would be helpful if every newly pregnant woman was told the probability of her death was higher if she gives birth than if she has an abortion. Added for good measure would be a required viewing for 10 minutes of the funeral of a woman who died in child birth.

There is a lot of leeway in the private sector to discriminate. People can not apply for jobs they think violates their views on morality. They can not purchase goods and services from firms they think have lower morality than they themselves have.

But when people apply for and receive a license from government they are obligated to preform the services even if they have some kind of moral objection. If doctors have a list of services to patients they find morally unacceptable but are legal such doctors should go into some line work, even in medicine, that is never confronted with moral issues. The same with pharmacists and cab drivers.

The point is that when one group decides to discriminate against another group the amount of "freedom" is a zero sum gain. One group's freedom goes up, another's down. This seems a far cry from the lofty aspiration of freedom for all or equal treatment of all.

One would have thought the Civil War decided our country wanted freedom for all. It gave birth to legal discrimination by segregation. When discrimination on the basis of race was outlawed it should have been a teaching moment for other kinds of discrimination. 

There seem to be people cannot learn even the most obvious of lessens. 


Comments

  1. Jon LindgrenJanuary 28, 2021 at 7:58 AM

    After I wrote this, an article appeared in Christian Post.com lamenting how terrible it would be if Christians had to treat law abiding citizens equal to other Christians. This, even if those they detested were others of the Christian faith. These Christians are segregationists of a few decades ago: https://www.christianpost.com/voices/equality-act-why-its-a-perilous-threat-to-religious-freedom.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ardy BJanuary 28, 2021 at 8:27 AM

      Jon, Jan 28, 2021 at 7:58 AM

      How telling, threatened by equality.

      Then there’s this kinder, gentler, more human Christianity from the Presbyterians in 2018, “Religious Freedom Without Discrimination (1):

      “The initial intent of “religious freedom” was to be like a defensive shield protecting the diverse practices of religious faith. It was not intended to be used as a hostile sword to discriminate against people seeking legal services and equitable resources. Such practices of inequality perpetuate second-class citizenship in the name of religion, a violation of the First Amendment’s prohibition of government establishment of religion.”

      (1) https://www.presbyterianmission.org/wp-content/uploads/religious-freedom.pdf

      Delete

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