Religious Liberty

Usually when I blog I have a fair idea that what I am saying would be generally accepted in Evangelical circles, but with what I am about to say I am not just sure what people will think.

A couple of recent news stories to have come out of the United States have caught my attention, first of all there was the uproar regarding the building of an Islamic centre close to the site of the September 11th attacks and then only today I have heard reports of an Evangelical Church in the US state of Florida that is planning a book burning of copies of the Koran to mark the anniversary of the September 11th attacks on the world trade centre.

In the first instance can I clarify my position on Islam. Islam is a false religion that is both repulsive in its beliefs and practices as well as the fact that is damning the souls of Millions of it's adherents to hell. It is wrong, I have no time for it, the Koran is poisonous nonsense and it grieves me to my very core that mosques and Islamic centres are springing up all over the western world, however, as a believer in religious liberty I do not believe I have any right to suppress those who want to practice Islam for themselves. As long as a Muslim obeys the laws of the land he or she should be as free as the next person to worship as they wish.

If anyone should know about religious liberty it is the people of the USA, the land of the free. The pilgrim fathers who left Europe to settle America were often motivated by a desire to practice their beliefs free from interference from others. The largest Protestant denomination in America is the Baptist denomination. Baptist history in Europe is very interesting, the Baptists were like all true believers persecuted by the Roman Catholic church to a terrible degree and sad to say the Protestant Reformers even persecuted them as well. As a result many made their way to the new world as it was termed and a nation of free and tolerant people was formed and flourished.

It seems some of our American cousins have forgotten their history and now want to do unto others as was done unto their forefathers. I understand their animosity towards a religious system that hates them and their way of life, I don't like Islam either, but, we should not adopt the approach of denying Muslims religious liberty. They might burn Union Flags, Stars and Stripes, Effigies of Western leaders and even Bibles in Islamabad, but we should not stoop to their Fascist bully tactics. We should be better than that after all we are living by a higher code.

'And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.' Luke 10 v27

'Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.' Matthew 5 v 43-45

Just think, if we actually did what the Lord Jesus said maybe we would have more success in winning these lost souls for the Kingdom of Heaven.