RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE IS FOR IDIOTS

          It is a source of amazement to me to witness both locally and nationally the intolerance of a growing and alarming group of individuals who claim they are Christians but who by their words and deeds are nothing more than zealots and religious bigots.

          A Baptist minister blasted Republican presidential candidate Mitt  Romney for being a Mormon  He claims that Romney is a member of a “cult.”  Actually, he is right.  The Mormon Church is a cult.  But Methodists,  Presbyterians, Catholics, Lutherans and even Baptists are all members of cults.  Don’t take my word for it.  Look up “cult” in any standard dictionary.  It is defined as “a formal religious veneration.”  The veneration part generally applies to an individual, so I assume that in the case of  Christian denominations, this means a belief and worship of Jesus.

          There are those who say we are a Christian nation.  This, of itself, is not a problem. But, it is a problem when we levy our hate against anyone who doesn’t believe exactly as we do.  This nation was founded on religious freedom.  Early settlers wanted to live where they could decide who and how they worshipped.  That’s the way it began; that’s the way it should continue.

          So, I was particularly appalled to learn about the recent window smashing at Warrensburg’s Islamic Center.  This level of hate crime makes no sense. 

           .  A sizeable number of foreign students live and attend classes at the University of Central Missouri.  A number of them are of the Islamic faith.  They are welcomed here as key elements of the university’s diversity program.  We learn about the world, other cultures, other ideas by associating with those who are not exactly like us.  Top universities strive for diversity as a means of educating their students about the world.

          It is my belief that most of us in Warrensburg prefer for hate mongers and religious bigots to crawl back into their holes.