"We are bound, you, I, and everyone, to make common cause, even with error itself, to maintain the common right of freedom of conscience." Thomas Jefferson
This idea - that we must all bind together to protect the freedom of all - is something completely unnatural in human affairs. Generally, we come to the defense (and offense for that matter) of ideas in which we believe - this is especially true in matters of religion.
Yet, we have come to see the attack on the belief system of even the smallest religious minority - no matter how bizarre or wrong we might think those beliefs to be - to be an assault on the religious freedom of all. This is so because religious liberty protects dissenting views, or it is worth nothing. And the majority view one day can easily become the oppressed view the next. More importantly, we have been given free will to choose - and that free will is bequeathed to us by the Creator (or Nature and Nature's Law) - it is inherent in us as human beings. Attempts to quash religious liberty, therefore, are attempts at destroying human nature and the subversion of our unalienable rights.
The temptation to ignore the religious liberties of others is ever present, which is why we must be ever vigilant.
For more, visit Patriot Week and Americas Survival Guide.
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