Flame — HabitableZone

Flame » in reply to On the other hand...

Interesting question
Robert — (archived)

I think it leads to its own answer, though. There are quite a few believers in this community, and our discussions of religion haven't always been theoretical. Religion is definitely not offlimits for discussion at the HabitableZone. What matters is behavior: dogged proselytization, persecution, pernicious expressions of religious bigotry toward another member, threatening violence through a supernatural agency, assault with hellfire and brimstone...religious flames are easy to distinguish by their literal flaming imagery.

The believers among us have already established a code of civil conduct on the topic, and I'd merely expect the same tolerance and civility from any new person who wants to bring up the subject.

To sharpen the point further: Could we possibly object if a member of the community posts a prayer? How could we? People post greetings on religious holidays, expressing a religious sentiment, and it wouldn't occur to anybody that there's anything wrong with that. An expression of religion without the pretext of a holiday shouldn't be any less respected. Some of us are believers, here as in life in general.

At the scalpel's edge: If I link psuedoscience more closely to religion than to science, how can I not consider an expression of belief in such things to be as worthy of protection as an expression of conventional religious belief? If it's presented in a disruptive way it can be dealt with the same as any disruption. But I don't think it's right to persecute people for simply expressing their beliefs.

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