General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: So now there's also a "post-inaugural prayer service at National Cathedral"... [View all]MADem
(135,425 posts)America the Beautiful is a continually evolving nation. The ERA hasn't passed yet, either. Shall we boycott and pout because that hasn't been accomplished?
I'm not sure what you want--you'll probably never get "freedom from religion" no matter how hard you try. If you live in a nation where some people are religious, you're going to bump up against it. You should try living in an Islamic country like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Egypt or Iran--then maybe you'd develop an appreciation of what religious freedom and "no religious test" are all about. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blasphemy_law_in_Egypt
Neither marriage equality nor the ERA have anything to do with the benediction and invocation for an individual taking an oath at an inaugural ceremony.
If someone wants to bless or curse Barack Obama, and the nation he leads, that's on them. It's not your worry, frankly. If you don't like it, don't ever agree to conduct a benediction or invocation at an inaugural ceremony. Don't endorse it with a big hearty Ehhh-Men if you don't like it. Don't bow that head, and if someone says "Let us pray" then just don't oblige them. Why is that so hard for you to do? You'll only be happy if everyone is "like" you and does the things that "you" do and thinks the way that "you" think? Such hubris! Like it or not, we're a diverse nation. I am not afraid of people who are different from me. You are, apparently, otherwise what they do wouldn't matter to you.
If you don't like poetry, check your smartphone for email while the poet is rambling on, or go make a pot of coffee. Same deal. See, there's "no poetic test" in America, either. There's not even a Beyonce, James Taylor, or Kelly Clarkson test.
I must say, it is doubly ironic that you rail on about marriage equality while excoriating religious freedom, when the fellow who gave the benediction the other day--the pastor of that church you're griping about in the OP--performs marriages for couples regardless of their orientation.
No second rate status with him. But then, it's very easy to be prejudicial about people of faith and lump them all into an evil borg--way too many people do that, instead of approaching people as individuals.