A Christian republic (POLL)

[BigRedBuster]

My biggest issue with them is the tenure issue.

 

I don't have a problem with a collective bargaining agreement.

[Making Chimichangas]

This thread is a bit confusing...

 

The title is about "a christian republic"

 

But the crux of conversation herein is about schools...

 

My initial post here in this thread addressed the "christian republic" not the schools.

 

For the record, I am 100% opposed to ANY aspect of this country becoming a "christian theocracy."

[JJ Husker]

This thread is a bit confusing...

 

The title is about "a christian republic"

 

But the crux of conversation herein is about schools...

 

My initial post here in this thread addressed the "christian republic" not the schools.

 

For the record, I am 100% opposed to ANY aspect of this country becoming a "christian theocracy."

Go back and read post #1 in this topic and you will understand better why the discussion is centered on schools, vouchers and a Christian republic.

[Making Chimichangas]

 

This thread is a bit confusing...

 

The title is about "a christian republic"

 

But the crux of conversation herein is about schools...

 

My initial post here in this thread addressed the "christian republic" not the schools.

 

For the record, I am 100% opposed to ANY aspect of this country becoming a "christian theocracy."

Go back and read post #1 in this topic and you will understand better why the discussion is centered on schools, vouchers and a Christian republic.

 

 

I really don't need to. I am opposed to a "christian republic." More specifically, I am 100% opposed with christian schools.

 

I went to a catholic school. I experienced 1st hand the utter bull**** of using schools to foster religious indoctrination.

 

Religion, religious schools, and christianity...is the anchor that keeps people ignorant and willing to blindly adhere to extremists.

[zoogs]

I have to say, 12-20 is a pretty believable result for this poll. It might even undersell the 12: I mean, there is a *clear* "right answer" here, which can tilt results in its favor.

[BigRedBuster]

OK...I'm going to use this thread to vent a little about my own family.

 

So.....yesterday we are sitting at the dining room table enjoying a very nice Easter dinner. All the great fixings...ham balls, cheesy potatoes, lemon pie.......It's just me, my wife and three children, and my parents.

 

Anyway, my daughter (freshman at UNL) says something about how she wishes she had Monday off from school because she didn't want to drive back last night....so, here is how the conversation went from there.

 

Grandfather = Why don't you get a day off for Easter?

 

Daughter = Well, the University wants to be very inclusive so they try to be secular.

 

Grandfather = Well, secular actually means "anti-Christian".

 

Me = What???? How is being secular "Anti-Christian"?

 

 

Well.....all hell broke loose from there and it was all aimed at me from everyone.

 

Unbeknownst to me, if the majority of Americans are Christian, then being "secular" means being "Anti-Christian". I honestly was the only one sitting at the table that was dumbfounded by this idea.

 

I said....."no, secular means "non-religious". I tried saying that to be "Anti-Christian", the University would need to NOT allow a day for Easter while STILL allowing a day for other religion's holidays."

 

People looked at me like I was the biggest idiot in the world. In fact, last night my wife even confronted me again about how wrong I was.

 

I am absolutely dumbfounded by this.

[zoogs]

I mean, I'm all for taking a day off on Easter. I wouldn't mind that at all. I understand that a lot of our days off revolve around the traditions and holidays people celebrate, many of which are religious.

 

I don't know if that is the reason they don't give Easter off. In my experience, universities don't have that many holidays in general. They do have Spring Break in March. It seems like January/February (MLK/Presidents' Day) are the other random Mondays, but they're all just some Monday or other to me. And grad students of course don't get vacations. Not really.

 

But yeah, I wish people wouldn't interpret 'secular' as a threat. I think it's being inclusive. If we all did decide to have Easter off it would be officially observed in a secular way. Christians can celebrate it as religiously as they choose, and it's a nice day off for everybody else who can get it.

 

I was actually taken aback at a couple of my friends posting some condescending snark over the holiday weekend about how atheists just don't get it. I don't understand why observing your own religious holiday has to happen like this, although it probably(?) isn't true for most people? I also attended a Passover Seder this year, somewhat relatedly, which was also lovely minus a passage or two about smiting nonbelieving heathens. I can understand how some of this stuff is baked into religions, but generally people are moving past these aspects of it.

[BigRedBuster]

I would have been fine having a debate on if the University should be secular or not. I personally believe it should be. But, I understand others don't thinking so.

 

But...the idea that being secular is "anti-Christian".....wtf???

[VectorVictor]

I would have been fine having a debate on if the University should be secular or not. I personally believe it should be. But, I understand others don't thinking so.

 

But...the idea that being secular is "anti-Christian".....wtf???

 

Sorry, but the belief that secular = anti-Christian comes across as rather childish and myopic IMO...like a petulant child that doesn't get their way, so they want to take their toys home instead of share them with the rest of the kids.

 

What's also sad is that many Christians I talk with don't feel this way...problem is, Christianity and church culture has gotten so toxic and vindictive, they can't speak out on this and other related topics for fear of being ostracized by their congregation. Maybe this is just a Texas or Southern US thing, I don't know?

[Danny Bateman]

IMO, the Christian voting bloc getting offended at secularism is a rather good parallel to White America feeling up in arms about "pandering" to minority voters, which really just equates to campaigning for their vote.

 

Both of the former groups have had things very good for a long time in our country as the dominant majority. Anything that marginalizes them a bit offends their sensibilities, and they don't seem to have a very good sense of how good they have it relative to other groups. They have unparalleled freedom and advantage in our country and yet pushing for the same thing for other groups necessarily encroaches on their rights.

 

I can't begrudge them for pushing for their own interests. But they could use a serious dose of perspective re: the bolded.

[Fru]

Not to dig on your family or anything, but when people are not able to understand that kind of nuance and claim that anything secular is "anti-Christian" is downright petulant childlike behavior.

 

Dudeguyy - Spot on.

[ZRod]

I would have been fine having a debate on if the University should be secular or not. I personally believe it should be. But, I understand others don't thinking so.

 

But...the idea that being secular is "anti-Christian".....wtf???

Even you daughter disagreed with you?

[BigRedBuster]

 

I would have been fine having a debate on if the University should be secular or not. I personally believe it should be. But, I understand others don't thinking so.

 

But...the idea that being secular is "anti-Christian".....wtf???

Even you daughter disagreed with you?

 

I think that's what bothered me the most. And, it wasn't that she disagreed with me, she wouldn't even listen to reason about it.....well....I guess she is a teenager.

[Ratt Mhule]

I went to a Catholic school growing up and we didn't even get the Monday after Easter off....unless spring break fell on Easter week which wasn't always the case.

[funhusker]

Ask your daughter if she also believes secular means "anti-Islam", "anti-Judaism", "anti-Hinduism", etc. It might be comforting for you to know if she is at least consistent.