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Loin Girders

A passionate orthodox Christian man's occasional blog to support those who stand firm. Gird your loins, noble warriors for Christ.

Thursday, July 21, 2005

State Control of Religion -- the newest thing in Canada?

Call for state control of religion in Canada Ottawa, Jul. 20 (LifesiteNews.com/CWN) - As Canada's Senate approaches the final vote on the gay marriage bill C-38, the country's national public radio, CBC Radio, has aired a commentary by a retired professor from the Royal Military College calling for state control over religion, specifically Catholicism. While parliamentarians dismissed warnings by numerous religious leaders and experts that the same-sex marriage law would lead to religious persecution, former professor Bob Ferguson has called for "legislation to regulate the practice of religion." "Given the inertia of the Catholic Church, perhaps we could encourage reform by changing the environment in which all religions operate," Ferguson began his commentary on Monday. "Couldn't we insist that human rights, employment, and consumer legislation apply to them as it does other organizations? Then it would be illegal to require a particular marital status as a condition of employment or to exclude women from the priesthood. " Ferguson continued, "Of course the Vatican wouldn't like the changes, but they would come to accept them in time as a fact of life in Canada. Indeed I suspect many clergy would welcome the external pressure." The former professor pitched his idea as a boon to religious freedom. "We could also help the general cause of religious freedom by introducing a code of moral practice for religions," he said. "They will never achieve unity so why not try for compatibility? Can't religious leaders agree to adjust doctrine so all religions can operate within the code?" Ferguson also suggested "obvious" prohibitions on religion including preaching of "hate." "I won't try to propose what might be in the new code except for a few obvious things: A key item would have to be a ban on claims of exclusivity. It should be unethical for any RRP (registered religious practitioner) to claim that theirs was the one true religion and believers in anything else or nothing were doomed to fire and brimstone. One might also expect prohibition of ritual circumcisions, bans on preaching hate or violence, the regulation of faith healers, protocols for missionary work, etc.," said Ferguson. The retired professor concluded his comments saying, "Now what is the point of proposing this? I do it because I am worried that the separation between church and state is under threat. Religion is important in our lives, but it can become a danger to society when people claim that the unalterable will of God is the basis for their opinions and actions. Yes religion can be a comfort and a guide, but we cannot take rules from our holy books and apply them to the modern world without democratic debate and due regard for the law." © Copyright 2005 Domus Enterprises. All rights reserved.

Friday, July 08, 2005

Is government sacred or profane?

How can we choose any one political course when they all seem to lead to loss of life and suffering for one group or another? Is government always and only profane? This question comes from posts started here by conversations between Dan Trabue and Jholder.

Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Orion > Orion Magazine > July | August 2005 > David James Duncan > What Fundamentalists Need

My brother sent me an article with the subject line, "Whaddya think of this?" He is a college professor and wonders occasionally about Christianity. I'm sure he was sent this by a friend. Angevoix, what do you think? Some of your and Dan's thoughts are expressed by this author. I'll just see where this one goes. I have definite opinions and responded to his simple question with a pretty long email. I'll share it, but would like your "read" first, if time allows.

Friday, July 01, 2005

GK CHESTERTON INSTITUTE FOR FAITH & CULTURE

This is a find. The Chesterton Review at Seton Hall University's G. K. Chesterton Institute is here. You can download a sample issue of the review dedicated to J. R. R. Tolkien, a friend of Chesterton's.