My Sunday Thought for 07242016: Religious Freedom or Hypocrisy?

"When evaluated as a whole, it's clear that opinions are shifting on the notion of religious freedom. For generations, religious beliefs enjoyed certain protections under the First Amendment. No longer, it seems. Increasingly, courts are declaring that if these beliefs are perceived as discriminatory in any way, they are unconstitutional. As a result, many Christians feel as if their fundamental belief system is under legal attack."

-- ULC Monastery, Christian Religious Freedom Under Attack

"Fundamental belief system," as mention in the article found above, indicates the obvious fact that Christians have fundamental faith in scripture, to wit:

You therefore have no excuse, you who pass judgment on another. For on whatever grounds you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

-- Romans 2:1

Who are you to judge a Servant who is not yours? For if he stands, he stands to his Master, and if he falls, he falls to his Master, for it is appointed to his Master to be able to establish him.

-- Romans 14:4

So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

-- Romans 14:12-13

Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’  For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

-- Matthew 9:12-13

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me?  Up to seven times?”  Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.  “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him.  Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.  “At this the servant fell on his knees before him.  ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’  The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.  “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.  He grabbed him and began to choke him.  ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.  “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’  “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.  When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.  “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.  Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?"

-- Matthew 18:21-33

One can find many passages in scripture which some of us, as Christians, seem to conveniently forget  or reinterpret as it suits our denominational agenda, but these few examples give a flavor for the point I'm trying to make about judging and a fundamental lack of tolerance, forgiveness, and mercy as we Christians tend to forget about placing our faith's best foot forward.  Some of us seem to prefer to show the ugly side of Christianity, for reasons which escape me.

Christians also forget how scripture clarifies the laws of God and Man.  In Mark 12:13-17 we learn to follow the laws of the land as laid down by the  government as Jesus addresses the necessity of paying the imperial tax, "Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's."  In this simple statement all is clarified.  If you wish to live in a country you must abide by the laws of that country.  If those laws run contrary to those of God, you have a choice to leave the country, leave "Egypt," if you will, for more agreeable pastures.  Fortunately, it seems scripture only runs afoul of our tolerant, democratic, government when we conveniently reinterpret, misinterpret, or just plain forget meaningful passages to suit our bigoted, selfish, desires.  We tend to forget history, and why our country was founded.

I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.

-- Matthew 25: 35

More simply stated, if you want to open a store in the United States be prepared to serve everyone or don't open the store.  Government is not asking you to show Christian tolerance, forgiveness, mercy, or any of the other traits which Jesus might require, they simply ask that you follow society's rule of law.  If this is too much to ask, then don't open a business to serve people.  It matters little to most of society what you do as your tolerance or hypocrisy will be weighed by your own master, after it is weighed by Caesar.

As for those that are offended by a business's lack of tolerance, the offended have recourse to file complaints.  Having filed the complaints, find somewhere else to patronize that is more accommodating to your beliefs and lifestyle.  If enough people stop patronizing the business they will either change or close.  Wanting to patronize a business that doesn't appreciate or tolerate your beliefs or culture is a bit masochistic.   Wanting to belabor the issue to the point of making it a public spectacle only reveals you to be at least as bad and perhaps even worse, than the business owners, since you are acting out of vengeance where they are simply ignorant, thoughtless, and bad business people.

I'm just saying.

"Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of my brethren you did it to me."

-- Matthew 25:40

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, and instructor. He is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path," which offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination.