Paul1405,

I have no problems with sincere people of good will having a religion. For many, religion supplies the reason for existence, a way of life, and is a great comfort. There is possibly a need in such people, and those who can embrace and practice a religion are to be applauded.

By religion, obviously those riddled with hatreds and prejudice are not included in these comments. Surprisingly, given the bad press homosexuality has received, many Christians are OK with it. Reform Judaism accepts it, and I understand, will provide services for gay marriage. To Islam, of course, homosexuality is an anathema - in Iran it attracts execution. I do not know about other non-Abrahamic faiths.

Whilst people experience great anguish or confusion within their lives, and religion provides some solace for them, I don't see that it should be condemned. We are not all the same.

While I am not a practising Christian, I can say without fear of contradiction that in the relatively small amount voluntary work I do, it is Christians and most likely conservative or middle of the road ones, that I meet doing voluntary work. They are always of good cheer, and come from all walks of life and income levels.

I have encountered the same people and later their families also volunteering that I met when I was mowing the pre-Kindy yard through to later years.

These are the parishioners of local churches. The churches themselves have always made their facilities available, unstintingly.

It has taught me lessons because while I always looked a bit askance at (say) the Roman Catholic Church, remembering the tough lives of some of my friends especially girls, in their schools (not referring to the molesting that has been in the news), that church for example is on the front foot helping the aged where few others might do it. I was also very happily surprised by the evangelicals during the Brisbane floods, through my exposure to a young evangelical pastor and his horde of tradesmen who worked tirelessly and donated building materials without a whisper of religion. They made me feel a slouch and I criticised myself for sometimes wanting some recognition when I was exhausted, thanks they did not expect at all, but simply rejoiced in helping the community.

It is about tolerance. There are compelling reasons why the Christian churches that are sledged by political correctness should be supported and shown tolerance. But then political correctness isn't about tolerance and that is the whole point of it. It is a cultural war. The great Charlton Heston addressing the graduating class of lawyers at Harvard put it so well years ago:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y29sSvJRhp8

onthebeach,

You are right, of course.

Many volunteers, if not most, follow a religion. By contributing man-hours and "products" these people save the government billions annually. They also reach those who would otherwise slip through governmental cracks.

We may not believe what they believe. But they have the right to believe what they want - we should respect this. Reality for most is subjective, anyway.

Danielle, What about the Freemasons? My beef is not so much with the general adherents of religions. Some devotees are perfectly 'good' people, although many harbor unreasonable predigests based on "teachings" from within, that is not a good thing. You can help the poor and sick, and still hate the homosexuals. My concern is with the church hierarchy who claim their opinions on things that matter in society, such as moral issues have some kind of divine approval and therefore should be totally adhered to under the pain of ever lasting damnation. Not to mention the human failings within churches, pedophilia priests to name but one, what gives them the right to lecture the rest of society on morality.
Next year I do believe the Catholic Church is conducting a synod of its hierarchy in Rome to pontificate on these very weighty moral issues. No doubt the hierarchy will firstly pray for gods intersession and his guiding hand in their most trying of deliberations. At the end of this talk fest, these elderly gentlemen will hold forth with an outpouring of supposed divine wisdom. Some where they will attach the word of god to their findings, and then command all to adhere to what will be nothing more than a continuation of the ridged conservative view which now prevails within the Catholic Church.
Danielle how do you view this.

http://www.smh.com.au/national/catholics-to-have-their-say-on-sex-marriage-divorce-20131103-2wuxy.html

Paul1405, "What about the Freemasons?"

Quelle horreur!

LOL. A fraternal society of moral law-abiding gentlemen, ordinary working folk, who are old fashioned enough to get dressed up to share one another's company over a glass of sherbet.

More secret rituals in the women's croquet club, or the CWA - which it was on a par with in country towns.

Beach, my Freemason comment what directed at Danielle's remark "Many volunteers, if not most, follow a religion" I said "What about the Freemasons?" I don't have a prob with any Masons, free, or the ones you have to pay for. I don't know what these lads get up to when they get together, I don't know what they do when they meet, a little peck on the cheek maybe, or a big slobbery one on the lips, I don't known. Like gays, what Freemasons do down at the lodge when the lights go out doesn't bother me. unlike those "churchies" who want to stick their noses in everybody's business.