Surely a detachment of religion and societal decision HAS to be the way forward. I accept in the US it may be different, but in the UK, secularism could solve many issues!

I agree. It think that a divorce from religion would solve many problems in any country. People do stupid things in the name of religion

(January 9, 2015 at 6:07 pm)lifesagift Wrote: Surely a detachment of religion and societal decision HAS to be the way forward. I accept in the US it may be different, but in the UK, secularism could solve many issues!

Agreed. Religious interference in government has never bettered the overall condition of a society.

However, I do think it is important that religious freedom is preserved.

Boru

(January 9, 2015 at 6:44 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(January 9, 2015 at 6:07 pm)lifesagift Wrote: Surely a detachment of religion and societal decision HAS to be the way forward. I accept in the US it may be different, but in the UK, secularism could solve many issues!

Agreed. Religious interference in government has never bettered the overall condition of a society.

However, I do think it is important that religious freedom is preserved.

Boru

What is religious freedom?

Religion covers 3000 gods... which one of those do you think should be free?


Or should we have a carte blanche political slate that prevails and provides basic human needs?

(January 9, 2015 at 7:11 pm)lifesagift Wrote:

(January 9, 2015 at 6:44 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: Agreed. Religious interference in government has never bettered the overall condition of a society.

However, I do think it is important that religious freedom is preserved.

Boru

What is religious freedom?

Religion covers 3000 gods... which one of those do you think should be free?


Or should we have a carte blanche political slate that prevails and provides basic human needs?

I think people should be free to practice whatever religion brings them peace (subject to restrictions common to all freedoms).

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by 'carte blanche political slate', etc. Could you rephrase it?

Boru

(January 9, 2015 at 7:53 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(January 9, 2015 at 7:11 pm)lifesagift Wrote: What is religious freedom?

Religion covers 3000 gods... which one of those do you think should be free?


Or should we have a carte blanche political slate that prevails and provides basic human needs?

I think people should be free to practice whatever religion brings them peace (subject to restrictions common to all freedoms).

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by 'carte blanche political slate', etc. Could you rephrase it?

Boru

I mean secularism... separation of social decision from religion... in all cases/scenarios

(January 9, 2015 at 7:55 pm)lifesagift Wrote:

(January 9, 2015 at 7:53 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: I think people should be free to practice whatever religion brings them peace (subject to restrictions common to all freedoms).

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by 'carte blanche political slate', etc. Could you rephrase it?

Boru

I mean secularism... separation of social decision from religion... in all cases/scenarios

Got it, thanks. I don't see a conflict. People should be allowed to practice their religions (same caveat as above) and religious influence can still be kept out of governmental decisions.

Boru

The problem with any attempt at a truly secular government is the majority of the politicians will be religious and use religion to gain position and power and use this position and power to influence the laws in accordance with their respective beliefs.

The only way it could work, is for government to completely ignore religion and make any mention of religious beliefs, while in the public view, completely illegal and disqualify them from further office. Other than that, treat religious institutes the same as any other business without any laws specifically favoring or punishing them.

Oh wait. Is not that what our constitution says? Damn, guess that will not work either.

I was under the impression that religion has very little influence on political life in the UK. Am I living in a fool's paradise?

I thought so too. Although we don't officially have the same setup as America, it seems our politics have a lot less to do with religion than theirs. Do you have any specific examples?