I didn't know the Druid bit, but it doesn't surprise me.
Poll after poll shows that most U.S. citizens would accept a woman, a Jew, a Mormon, even a gay person or a Muslim, as President, but these same people would not accept an atheist.
I'm skeptical about this. Given how one of the tactics used to undermine Obama's suitability as president was claiming he was a Muslim, I think a great many people who answered "Yes, I would accept a gay, Muslim, etc. as president" erm...lied.
I'm not religious, though I grew up Lutheran (I think this may have been brought up in previous discussions XD). I don't really know what to call exactly what I am now... Theist-leaning agnostic? With a smattering of apatheism?
But even when I still identified as a Lutheran, I would have agreed that it is inappropriate to have a Christian prayer (or anything other religious rite) before a council meeting/what-have-you.
I agree with Dreamflower though, that many of those proclaiming Belief are insincere -- or maybe they truly believe themselves and their words and actions to be Christian, when in fact they are anything but.
Those numbers surprised me as well, but I think the poll was conducted in 1999. Probably most of the respondents didn't then know what Islam even was. ;)
I don't really know what to call exactly what I am now... Theist-leaning agnostic? With a smattering of apatheism?
This was me for many years. I would call myself a spiritual agnostic, in that I liked to think on spiritual questions but did not think that, as a human being, I could ever discover Truth-with-a-capital-T. I preferred to take my cues from nature as to how the world works, which is how I've come to narrow down the label I affix to myself to agnostic Druid. ;)
Probably most of the respondents didn't then know what Islam even was. ;)
Haha, could be! Or they stopped reading after "Jew" and thought "well, the 'right' answer is yes, so I better put that down or else I'll look prejudiced".
I liked to think on spiritual questions but did not think that, as a human being, I could ever discover Truth-with-a-capital-T.
That's me too. We as humans cannot possibly KNOW for a fact whether there is or is not a God (or gods).
Regarding "heathen", it's actually not a word I hear a lot... My boss used to call the horses "heathens!" when they were showing a bit of spirit, but that's all I can remember. There are worse things I can think of to be compared to than a spirited horse. But that's just me. ;)
Poll after poll shows that most U.S. citizens would accept a woman, a Jew, a Mormon, even a gay person or a Muslim, as President, but these same people would not accept an atheist.
I'm skeptical about this. Given how one of the tactics used to undermine Obama's suitability as president was claiming he was a Muslim, I think a great many people who answered "Yes, I would accept a gay, Muslim, etc. as president" erm...lied.
I'm not religious, though I grew up Lutheran (I think this may have been brought up in previous discussions XD). I don't really know what to call exactly what I am now... Theist-leaning agnostic? With a smattering of apatheism?
But even when I still identified as a Lutheran, I would have agreed that it is inappropriate to have a Christian prayer (or anything other religious rite) before a council meeting/what-have-you.
I agree with Dreamflower though, that many of those proclaiming Belief are insincere -- or maybe they truly believe themselves and their words and actions to be Christian, when in fact they are anything but.
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I don't really know what to call exactly what I am now... Theist-leaning agnostic? With a smattering of apatheism?
This was me for many years. I would call myself a spiritual agnostic, in that I liked to think on spiritual questions but did not think that, as a human being, I could ever discover Truth-with-a-capital-T. I preferred to take my cues from nature as to how the world works, which is how I've come to narrow down the label I affix to myself to agnostic Druid. ;)
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Haha, could be! Or they stopped reading after "Jew" and thought "well, the 'right' answer is yes, so I better put that down or else I'll look prejudiced".
I liked to think on spiritual questions but did not think that, as a human being, I could ever discover Truth-with-a-capital-T.
That's me too. We as humans cannot possibly KNOW for a fact whether there is or is not a God (or gods).
Regarding "heathen", it's actually not a word I hear a lot... My boss used to call the horses "heathens!" when they were showing a bit of spirit, but that's all I can remember. There are worse things I can think of to be compared to than a spirited horse. But that's just me. ;)
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