[cheebacheeba]

I'm surprised this got bought up again...I said it as a light hearted thing...but anyways offense may have been caused here, or not? I don't know.
Anyways...

I do not agree that people should not be allowed to practice their religion in public.

See, this to me (and I don't say this specifically to offend, I'm just trying to explain my point of view) is kind of stepping a little bit closer to being fanatical about your religion...because there's places of worship, and then there's not.
Choosing to make the entire open world a place of worship exposes other people to your religious practices without their choice or consent - and I don't think it's respectful of other people who simply choose to either
a: Not follow religion
b: Have religion, but not feel the need to have others observe them.
Of course, if you're part of a larger culture who does this as the "normal" thing, the statements above may not apply - some cultures where people are quite devout, will have this done as part of majority...in which case, I don't think you'd find any/many people to dispute you, as it's more of an appropriate forum where expressing your religious moxy is more widely acceptable.
Though I believe the original statement/play on words that started this thread is mainly applicable to "modern" multicultural societies.
Here, and I'm certain among many multicultural societies, the "normal" thing to do if one is religious is either stick to places of worship or the home.
Nobody is denying you your religion...I mean people may question your productivity if you're spending all day having your God time etc...but, but I honestly think that when you're living among a culture that this is not considered "normal" it's actually a bit disrespectful to conduct yourself in that manner. Not to mention a little strange.
As I said, there's places of worship, there's home, then there's everywhere else. Honestly, I'll say it however offensive it sounds...seeing people pray, kneel down, sing, or any such other display of worship in public...to me is like a guy walking around with a tennis racquet in full gear, swinging it around like he's still in the game, or a person walking along at a fast pace with their hands out in front of them like they're holding a steering wheel. That and, a little bit of "Yeah this is MY thing, just TRY to say anything about it so I can act all offended".

That said, don't even get me started on people who actually seek out others to join their religion in any way shape or form.
For that matter, I also find schools that devote any time whatsoever to religion to be absolutely wrong, no matter who, no matter what.
A person should have freedom to seek out information on their own on any given religion...it should not be thrust upon them like a campaigner looking for votes, and I do not think children should be bought up "in a religion", ever.
That's just my personal values there though, I believe in choice, exploration, and education.

just don't expect others to follow suit or start having conversations about how your religion rocks and everyone else is doomed.

Totally with you there.

Religion is the #1 problem with the human race. There is no sky god going to help us with our problems, It seems the belief in god only causes more problems. And the sooner we can reply on ourselves and science to solve problems, the sooner we can evolve and progress as a whole.
Stem Cell research being delayed, 9/11, Countless wars, All because someone thought it was gods will. People interrupt religion anyway they want. Believe in the pie in the sky because in the end, we're all gonna die.

Yes.
That and the whole abortion issue, people being forced into marriages for family status, eating/not eating certain foods, relationship exclusion of other cultures, and in other more extreme cases "bought up" to think that totally archaic and backward practices are normal to the point they don't even realise they're not afforded basic human rights.


There are reasons that I don't really choose to follow a religion, rather a value system...it's pretty generic and "fits all", not to mention most religions always have the old "Don't fuck about with other religions or else"...how do I know I've got the right one eh?
"They are wrong, we are right", so many religions preach acceptance and forgiveness yet only the most religious folks tend to sling so much shit at others. This mentality should never apply when it comes to religion or lifestyle. It's totally subjective, and unless there's a realisation that none are more valid than the other...
Let people find spirituality to what ends suit them - I just do not think that religion is something that needs to be displayed in public...and if you need to do it, respect others enough to do so discreetly.