http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=573&ncid=757&e=3&u=/nm/20030603/od_nm/malaysia_dc
Malaysia, with just over 50% Muslim population, where the official religion is Islam, is now fining people for holding hands in public. 'About 30 unmarried couples have been fined $7.90 for holding hands in a drive to keep the city "morally clean," ', the 30 fined people were non-Muslims who do not consider holding hands to be morally wrong.
http://www.vexen.co.uk/religion/coe_fundamentalism.html
Growing Fundamentalism within the Church of England is causing a potential split and financial bankruptcy of the liberal traditional Church of England, as the Anglican Church continues to struggle with gay tolerance.
http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=25145
India passes anti-conversion laws. "These difficulties are exacerbated by the increased activity of a few Hindu fundamentalist groups which are creating suspicion of the church and other religions", the Pope said said, "Unfortunately, in some regions the state authorities have yielded to the pressures of these extremists and have passed unjust conversion laws, prohibiting free exercise of the natural right to religious freedom, or withdrawing state support for those in the scheduled castes who have chosen to christianity"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,969021,00.html
Northern region of Pakistan adopts Sharia law. This is the most extreme, barbarian form of religious fundamentalist rule that there can be, responsible for public stonings, apostasy laws and many other elements that we haven't known, in the UK, since the Dark Ages and Inquisition, but which are common in heavily Muslim countries. (The Muslim world is going through it's own Dark Ages, it has been said).
In other vaguely-remembered news (I can't be bothered to find more links...) a Canadian Anglican bishop/priest done a "gay blessing" ceremony, which is good, but according to Reform/Church Society (groups within C of E), 2/3 of bishops have stated they no longer recognize the Bishop as a Christian. In other good news, a Catholic/Protestant mutual service has occured, which is good although the Pope did say he didn't approve.
London, another city, and several European countries have ran government sanctioned gay relationship registration schemes for some time, to much opposition by Christian and Islam groups in the UK and Europe.
Link:
http://www.vexen.co.uk/religion/homosexuality.html
Vexen biased religious news from Vexen
June 5th, 2003
The point of the law is to recognize that discrimination, especially by officials and organisations, against sexuality is unlawful. Yet rather than admit that these Christians have unlawful and immoral beliefs, the government is chickening out and considering an exemption!
(Um, is available in popular press news sites, I can go find links on request)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2960008.stm
I don't know if it's mere scaremongering, or something to genuinely get worried about. In all honesty I thought society had moved on from this mentality, but it seems that nothing really changes.
Thanks for the link. In addition to the threat of teachers being fired, however, there is more. Any "faith-based" organisation is exempt, but, there is no definition of that. So for example Mr Vard (behind the Vardy Foundation, who run fundie schools in the UK, and car salesman) could declare his car organisation faith-based, and fire his gay employees. All he has to do is play up the faith aspect and apply some political pressure (two things which he is very good at) to do it, and no doubt evangelicals (who now comprise up to 2/3 of the Church of England) would no doubt do the same, being as anti-gay as you can get.
So within the refines of faith schools etc as long as they make it clear in their job specificatiosn that individuals must abide by that fiaths beliefs eg not be gay, though not necessarily of that faith, it may be exceptable..just
but only just
In short, it's not just new employees that'll be affected by the new law, but all employees of anyone who calls themself Christian. Any manager can declare his organisation faith-based, and any such evangelical can then fire gays & anyone else who doesn't support the "ethos" of the company.
Full quote:
Two Christian workers employed by Sefton Council have refused to take part in adoptions for gay parents. As such a thing is part of their job, they have been fairly enough been threatened with dismissal. The Christian Institute, one of the most active Christian political groups in the UK, is fighting for the two Christians cause "based on Christian principles".
"However, during the consultation on the Employment Directive [...] the Christian Institute - and other faith groups - fought for the right to sack non-Christian workers who didn't support the "ethos" of faith-based organisations that employed them. Now, it seems they think it is OK for Christian employees to undermine the ethos of secular employers and get away with it. "
The Christian Institute wants to be able to sack people for not having the same beliefs as themselves, Christians, but also wants Christians to be able to remain in companies despite having religious beliefs that undermine the job the employees are supposed to do. In short, the Christian Institute is not fighting for morals, but supporting sectarianism and discrimination based on religion, and undermining the stability of society.
It is my belief that if you cannot do a job, the employees do not have to pay you, and can fire you. So, if you object to doing your job for *whatever* reason, be it religious reasons, moral ones, personal circumstance, the boss can fire you. Now, in reality, if the logical reason is only a temporary inhibition, then the boss probably wont. And rightly, there are laws to protect pregnant women. But in the modern world, you simply can't discriminate against gays, even if you do believe they're "morally corrupt", because such discrimination causes hate and evil. But then again, the Christian Institute *is* famous for it's opposition of gay rights.
http://www.vexen.co.uk/religion/homosexuality.html
Re:
world sucks
We don't get them too badly in the UK, the USA of course is much worse (most fundie groups here are funded by US organisations), but other European countries (Greece, Poland) have some big problems with fundies. In Poland, it is Roman Catholic fundamentalists that are the norm. A popular pressure group there is lobbying to not enter the EU, but they're terrible... they describe the EU as "pagan" and "humanist fundamentalist" because it's secular:
"We, the real patriots, we must say No to this neo-pagan union which wants to impose abortion, euthanasia and homosexual marriages on us," one guest said on the [group's] radio’s late-night chat show [NSS newline 2003 June)
the obvous as per usual >had to get out<
"look, i'm jesus..! *bounce*"
ok, what i'm worried about is gay kids in faith schools, i went to about five random schools. one was faithfull enough to make me say the things i say about cht=ristians, but the rest all sang hyms and tried to deflict that cristianity was enetitable
so what about gay kids, huh. this meens that equality is still a distent dream, don't it
damned humans
Since he wrote that, it became clear that the current presidency is intent on pandering to popular ideology. Since there seems to be a majority in favour of public executions for selling cannabis to children, for example, this is deeply worrying, and no less barbaric than Sharia law.
That Sharia Islam gets a worse press than US Christian Republican Capitalism is largely a matter of spin - so far as I can see, the current US legislature and executive will gradually shift an indefinite distance to the right, and the only thing that will check them is overwhelming opposition from other nations, or a change in attitude by a large proportion of the population, followed by some decisive voting that can't be overcome simply by disenfranchising thousands of black Floridans.
I would also add that some non-muslim countries seem to be heading slowly back that way and many still have laws that force a woman to go through with a pregnancy even if it kills her.
I think the scale of the antihumanitarian events during the Reformation were not the same as at other times - although it was still bad by modern standards, and I agree that it is comparible to some current countries.
Yeah, some countries are going backwards, too.
question, do they realy NEED to be RECOGNIZED as bisops..?
bloody humans
So, fear people... but fear fundamentalism more!
Re:
it's a kind of thret you see...;~}
this is why i stey away from christianity. i had one HELL of a closset party due to the gits, the f'f, shall we say
well, maybee there HAS to be a religion for boreing people, as long as it don't get dangouse...
I now realize that my friends and I are
Polys. I didn't think there was a word for
our kind. I always just felt that my friends
and I have loved one another with a higher
consciousness than most people in society
possess. How nice that there is a term for
our philosophies! Your take on love reminds
me of a superb essay that I really think you
should read. You would enjoy it. Here:
http://www.katinkahesselink.net/kr/love.html
Thank you for everything. I love your essays
a lot. I learn so much from you all the time!!
Yay! Hail thyself. Thanks for having a
LiveJournal! Are you or have you ever been a
journalist? If not, then why?
- Nikki
That's good text on that page
Re:
Makes me wonder how far off my idea of an essay or [frightening] short story on An Islamic America really was! Another topic in my head, The End of Feminism. More scary stuff which would tie into the religious phenomena. I hope it never turns to fact!
I need to go read your essays.
Of those links, only one was by me.
Establishment