The Bible? What About the Torah and the Quran?

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart

This is America. Freedom of and freedom from religious persecution is one of our greatest rights and guarantees in the First Amendment.

In the 21^st century, all organized religion is in decline. I am one of about 100 million Americans who reject all religions. We are split between agnostics and atheists.

A PERSONAL HISTORY

At the age of 16, I became another “fallen Catholic.” I had many questions but received no answers. In the beginning of my decision, I was an agnostic. However, now still alive at the ripe old age of 79, I am an atheist.

Raised by a single mother and inheriting the responsibility of caring for a younger brother, I became extremely independent. I have never accepted “statements of fact” without asking questions and fact checking.

I find it unrealistic to accept the teachings offered by a man or woman standing behind a pulpit. I believe that every human being is born with a conscience; the ability to know right from wrong. I also believe that most are born with a desire to find spirituality in their lives, simply known as a desire to be a better person.

The evil I see in the world today is bigger and stronger than the good. Around the world, I see enormous suffering and pain. Millions of men, women, and children who practice a single religion suffer enormous physical and mental anguish, while the men and women who are responsible for their care live lives of power, great wealth, and all too often debauchery and crimes against humanity. “Ethnic Cleansing is a reality in many parts of the world. We cannot let this happen in America.

No parent should have to face the loss of a child from an incurable disease. No child should lose his or her life at the hands of a vile and disgusting adult who uses them for his or her personal pleasure.

I believe that if a God did exist, He or She would never allow evil to triumph over innocence and virtue.

As an American, it is impossible for me to believe that if a God did exist, He or She would allow one old, white, and obese man to destroy the nation with the greatest possibility of becoming great. It might have been a country that served all of its people, guaranteeing their human rights and equal treatment under the law. This was before Trump

A FEW DAYS AGO, IT WAS ANNOUNCED THAT A GROUP OF MOSTLY OLD, WHITE MEN WOULD BE READING THE BIBLE COVER TO COVER

Nothing in this world causes me to feel greater anger than fake Christians. Millions of Americans use their “faith” for political and monetary gain. Many ordinary Americans use Christianity to justify their beliefs that they are superior to those who practice religions other than Christianity, or none at all.

These actions prove that these men and women do not believe in my America, and deny the Constitutional rights of others.

DIVERSITY IS AMERICA’S GREATEST STRENGTH

The population of the United States can be described as a “colorful patchwork of humanity.” Different races, ethnic origins, traditions, religious beliefs, and skin color make America the most beautiful and interesting nation in the world.

I have no objection to a Bible reading which includes your president. However, it is unconstitutional to exclude members of the other two major religions in our nation: Judaism and the Religion of Islam.

Time on radio and television must be reserved for the reading of the Torah and the Quran. The 14^th Amendment demands equal protection under the law.

AMERICA’S GREATEST WEAKNESS

I was fortunate to work in an industry where the employees were a poster for diversity. I quickly learned that the men and women I shared my days with were far more informed about what happens in their government than the people of America.

The existence of most of the men and women who compose the three branches of our federal government prove that American voters have no idea what and who they are voting for on election day. Most Americans follow Donald Trump’s belief. More than once, he told our nation’s people that the reason he refuses to read the Presidents Daily Brief is because, “I learn everything I need to know from television.” There’s a reason it is referred to as the “boob tube.”

I believe, no, I know that if every Christian would read the Torah and the Quran, they would learn that all three major religions share far more similarities than differences. In general, all human beings have the same needs and wishes for themselves and those they love.

Dr. Martin Luther King said it best.

“In a real sense all life is inter-related. All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be, and you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be...

This is the inter-related structure of reality.”

― Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail: Martin Luther King Jr.'s Letter from Birmingham Jail and the Struggle That Changed a Nation: Library Edition

Equality is the ultimate goal of all true Americans.

Op-ed by James Turnage

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Sources: gotquestions.org: What is the Torah?

britannica.com: Qurʾān

reddit.com: Is Christianity actually declining in America?