Beliefs are not due any respect.
People are.
Would you respect my belief if I said that the moon was made of green cheese or would you call it silly even though you respected me?
Would you respect my belief if I said that I believed that goblins made my garden grow or would you think me a bit off for putting out a bucket of cheese for them every night?
Would you respect my belief if I thanked the devil for all that we know because I thought he had been given a bad rap for all his supposed wrongdoings?
What if I said that I believed that the holocaust never happened and that I thought it was propaganda?
Would you respect that?
Likely not.
Nor should you.
They are ridiculous things to say.
That is my whole point, beliefs are not due any respect merely because we espouse them as beliefs.
They are only due respect if we can show that they are true, or that they have useful relevance to reality.
What is ridiculous are people who expect "respect" for unfounded and bizarre claims about reality when they go against everything that we know to be true.
What is ridiculous are people who hide behind the statement "it is what I believe" with the full expectation of it not to be questioned merely because it is a belief.
What is ridiculous are people who hold beliefs which are hateful, harmful and interfering under the guise of morality merely because they are religious.
Beliefs inform actions, and actions must be justifiable.
So far, religious beliefs are not,
and that is why I don't respect them.
I do and don't agree with you on this. I don't think we have to respect anyones beliefs. I also don't think we have to respect individuals unless they have shown they deserve that respect. I do respect their right to believe as they wish and do whatever they want as long as it harms no one else. With some people I respect the position they hold, such as President or police officer. Just because I respect their positions doesn't mean I respect the individual.
ReplyDeleteTrue enough. We should be respectful towards people otherwise we will find it very difficult to get along, but as far as respecting them, you are right. It is hard to respect people with harmful beliefs that clearly do not reflect reality.
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