Sunday, July 27, 2008

The Catholics and the Cracker: How can this be Happening?

The friend of the student who took a Eucharist and did not eat it is now facing possible expulsion for the incident.

Incident. Someone took a piece of bread and didn't eat it. I know, I know, we should respect people's right to practice their religions and not crash their parties. But that makes those who do so rude, not worthy of having one's education derailed, possibly affecting this young man for the rest of his life. That this has gone so far is an indication of just how truly crazy the norm of religiosity is here in the United States.

All the flap jabber about Richard Dawkins and other critics of religion supposedly attacking the extremes while ignoring the big reasonable middle sure seems empty now. Where is the reasonable middle to protest and stop this destruction of two young men's lives over a piece of bread? Oh right, they are calling for the young men's heads. So much for the reasonable middle.

Write the president of UCF and let him know just how out of proportion the reaction to Webster Cook's and Benjamin Pollard's actions are. Tolerance means tolerating those who believe differently than you do, whether they are religious or not.

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