Why are atheists against Christians attempting to legislate what they believe in?

Question

If you are against Christians attempting to legislate what they believe in, what exactly are you for?

Don't Christians have the right to try to have laws made to reflect what they believe? I'm sure most of you that would say homosexuals have that right...but at the same time when Christians do the same, they are somehow forcing their beliefs on you.

Lets look at abortion...one group believes it is murder and one does not. It just so happens that the one group is mostly Christians. Why is it wrong for them to try to stop what they think is wrong, but it is ok for others to try to promote what they think is right?

This is supposedly a free country, but it seems that ahteists would like to prohibit Christians from being free to legislate what they think is right. When the opposite side is trying to do the exact same thing, legislate what they think is right.

So where is the conflict here? And by not wanting Christians to legislate their beliefs,are you against freedom?

I'm asking about their right to do so, not if you think what they believe in is right/wrong in your opinion.

Nae: isn't it our responsibility as a whole society to agree on what is right or wrong? If you are choosing to live in a society that has a majority of Christians, then aren't you agreeing to live by that societies rules?

Jon M: Yes you have that right to work for legislation for equal rights. But because you have that right, you have to respect that others have the right to say you are wrong.

TG: the constitution also gives Christians the right to "attempt" to legislate what they believe in. If the system works correctly, then they won't be able to force beliefs on others. But they should still have the right to attempt it.

Wow, very interesting. Yes I am ok with anyone to have an opinoin on what they think would be correct laws, and they should have the freedom to say so and even lobby to have them made into law. I believe in anyones FREEDOM to do so. I also believe in our system that hopefully nothing that is unconstitutional will be passed into law.

Answer 1

because the world is to damn sensitive

Answer 2

Your point directly goes against the First Amendment. In the United States, freedom of religion is a constitutionally guaranteed right provided in the religion clauses of the First Amendment. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion" If everyone in this country was Christian, go ahead legislate whatever you want. But we are not all Christian. This is the melting pot of the world with many religions, or none at all. Your "Morals" are not mine. Because fundamentalist do not listen to science and claim that any abortion is murder, if a 12 year old girls were to be raped and impregnated, she could not have the abortion she should be able to choose to have because your "Religion" claims it is a sin. Some of your beliefs are so backwards, outdated and down right silly and do not speak for all in this country.

Secondly, if you want people to make legislation's based on belief, you would have to give all religions that right. So, that includes Muslims, Jews, Buddhist, Hindu, etc. and so on. I am not sure if you have noticed but those beliefs all have a bit of differences that I don't think you want to have be fought on capital hill.

Answer 3

Because in this country we do not allow laws to be based on religious belief. If you have nothing other than your religion to base your belief on, then you cannot make it into a law that would apply to other Americans. If a belief is from a source other than a religion, such as logic, then there is no reason it cannot be made into law.

Your reasoning is flawed. We don't live in a society where the majority gets to determine what is right and wrong, we live in a society where the rights of all are to be protected. What if the majority decided that it was right to send anyone with French blood to a prison camp? What if the majority decided that anyone with red hair should be sterilized? What if the majority decided that all left-handed people should be executed? The majority doesn't get to impose their will on the minority, the good of the society as a whole is what rules.

Answer 4

You are right in the sense that everyone has a right to try to legislate what they believe is right in this country.

That, isn't the issue. The issue is that many people, not just Atheists are against legislation of one religion over another.
That is where the conflict is.

I'm not sure if the examples you chose are really fair to the argument you originally presented. I suspect you are passively denouncing those who don't follow your belief system to follow a circular logic. Kinda, not cool.They are charged and shift the focus.

The point is, does group A have a right to TRY and legislate their needs, if their needs are different than group B the answer is Yes, and only yes if their beliefs are legal.

That doesn't change the answers to the questions whether or not in this case, the liberal, "atheist", agenda is trying to uphold and fight for. Two different arguments.

Answer 5

I know it is cliche but there is a divide between church and state and that is how it should stay. Yes this is a free country AND it does not promote any religion over another, at least that is what the constitution states. Abortion issue is more of a right to privacy issues than a religious one. The government should not have a right to say what you can do with your body and so that is why it is legal. The fact that gays cannot marry is discrimination and Christian's should back off and give them that right. I'm sure the intolerant Christian base was just as furious in the 60's when African-Americans were seeking rights.

Answer 6

We're not.

Of course, people will try to promote what they believe.

What we are against is stupid legislation that has no real basis, except superstitious nonsense. I don't care if it is religious nonsense or not. Bad legislation is bad legislation.

Note, there is much legislation that Christians believe good that I also believe good. There is even superstitious nonsense that promotes some good ideals.

However, the good ideals should stand on their own merit. If you believe something because of your Christian superstition, that's fine. However, if you wish to also convince me that your legislation is good, you'll have to actually use logic and reason, backed by some real evidence, to get me to buy into it.

BTW, religion is something that has no real basis. That's why the founding fathers decided to leave it out of the Constitution. As a matter of fact, the Constitution says that no religious test shall be required for public service. We have established, in this country, the right to believe or not believe any religion. Government, according to the first amendment, can't try to establish as one dominant over the other.

This is different than government passing laws promoting an ideal that happens to align (or not) with Christian beliefs. They can pass those all day, as long as the laws are agreed on by the people.

As for the abortion issue, that's a matter of what we, as Americans (not just Christians), believe the beginning of life is and what we, as Americans (not just Christians) believe our freedoms of choice are with regard to our own bodies. Currently, the courts have come down on the side of a woman being able to make that difficult decision for her own body. I happen to agree with that position and I am able to argue that position without ever bringing up the fact that I'm an atheist. You, as a Christian, if you think I'm wrong, should be able to use reason and logic and evidence to promote your side, without ever having to just rest on "God said so". If you are right, you are right independent of what religious beliefs you hold.

Answer 7

Well, my friend, we live in a democracy where the majority rules, and just because the majority is made up of Christians, the rest of us are forced to live under Christian law. When Christians make laws based on their beliefs, and those laws pass in a country that is not ONLY Christian, it's a bit offensive. Because Christians are the majority, and of course our president is a Christian, laws are passed daily that disregard other faiths. And that just isn't far, is it? If atheists ran the country, the only laws passed would be those that respect the faiths of everyone, and no religion would be brought into the process. I shouldn't have to be told by my government that abortion is wrong, because I don't believe in God, and therefore, abortion is not wrong to me. Understand? My president is not my priest.

Answer 8

Tell me which bill was tossed out solely because someone argued Christians have no right to "attempt" to legislate what they believe in. I'm not talking about bills voted down because they were unconstitutional. I mean bills that weren't allowed at all.


Honestly the best thing for everyone including christians is a government that does not show preference to any religion. because what if tomorrow you guys are not the dominant religion?

You're just so blind you can't see. The saddest thing is that the people fighting against you forcing your religion on others are protecting you from having religion forced on you. You're truly fighting to create a government that can force a belief system you don't believe in onto you.

But again I'm speaking to the voluntarily blind. You won't find any bills in the US by that way that meet the criteria you're crying about. You're free to be as blind as you like but that doesn't mean you're not blind.

Answer 9

This question alone is a spin -

It's not just Athiests. Christianity is attempting to combine Church and State.

I'm not a Christian or an Athiest and moral issues don't belong in the courts, but the Churches of our respective faiths.

The Constitution guarantees us religious freedom and any legislation is an end-run around that.

Also, I don't believe that it's just Christians attempting to do this. Erosion of our Constitutional guarantees has been on a steady increase since Bush. Christians are just one sector being used to manipulate us.

Answer 10

Your premise is mistaken. Christians do not have an equal right to legislate what they believe in. The constitution strictly prohibits any legislation based on religious belief. Efforts to get around this show how little regard some Christians have for the constitution and the fundamental basis of life in the United States. Jesus resolved this issue centuries ago. Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's. Religion has no place in politics.

Answer 11

The answer to this is actually very simple. Atheists do not believe in faith, right? So they cannot believe that anything we do is based on faith or God. They are in denial of something that can't be denied, which is that if we didn't have faith in something, we would never get out of bed in the morning. In other words, they are trying to operate as if the human being has no emotion, no feeling, no beliefs. Basically they are scared of the complexities involved with emotion and faith, so they want to obliterate it from other people's lives in the belief that their own lives would then be easier, because everything would be black and white, with no complications for themselves. Atheists propose that there is such a thing as a secular life. There is no such thing on Earth. All people function from some kind of value system, whether or not they know it. Having said all of that, it is not proper to impose one's religious beliefs upon another, so some of what may be desirous for Christians may not be appropriate for federal law, or even state or local law. But the presence of Christian symbols, such as a nativity on the town green should not be viewed as infringing upon anyone's beliefs any more than the presence of a porno book store or a strip joint is infringing upon the rights of a non-Christian. Towns with these sorts of restrictions against the expression of the Christian faith need to be brought to task through your activity on your town council. As for abortion, gay rights, and all that, it should not be handled on a federal level. It should be a personal decision, just like what shade of lipstick you should wear.