Freedom of Religion:  A Few Short Stories

 

US Constitution:  Amendment 1 -  Freedom of Religion... -  Ratified 12/15/1791

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion...”

As long as I can remember I have been a preacher’s daughter.  That esteemed honor in life was inherent with Dad’s becoming a minister sometime in his twenties.

Before becoming a minister, Dad evidently enjoyed sleeping in on Sunday morning.  Mom always loved to tell the story about trying to get Dad out of bed to go to church.  On this particular Sunday morning she had tried everything she knew to do to get him up and going.  Mom usually practiced good sense and was a smart woman.  But, for some reason she allowed her frustration with getting Dad out of bed boil and fume until she decided to do the unthinkable.  She got a big pitcher of cold water and went to the bedroom.  As she stood over her sleeping husband she began to pour the cold water on his head.  

Back in those days I am told Dad had a bad temper.  So, as Mom poured the water Dad responded by jumping straight out of the bed and she knew that she had “stirred up a wasp nest”.   I am sure he used select words to express his feelings regarding her tactic to attempt to wake him up. 

Unfortunately Dad’s ranting didn’t end with a few words of annoyance.  Back in those days closets were often omitted as a part of the house floor plan, which was true in our house.  So, my parents had bought a huge metal chifforobe that had been placed in their bedroom not far from their bed. 

Dad is a very intelligent man, but he allowed his…well, anger to get the best of him.  He walked over to the metal chifforobe, slung one of his legs back, and proceeded to thrust his foot into the very stationary object.  Needless to say he was now wide awake and in pain.

I share this story with you as I want you to know I came from a very normal family that went through some normal experiences as they began their religious/spiritual life’s journey.    I was raised a Southern Baptist and I was in church every time the door opened, until my mid-twenties.

Much to the dismay of my parents I became, shall we say, disillusioned with the Southern Baptist denomination specifically, and organized religion in general.  To this very day I admittedly remain confused.  I know “church” is a good thing and I do not doubt it is the place where Christians grow in their faith and enjoy fellowship with other Christians.  But, in the interest of full disclosure, I do not go to church.  Well, that isn’t exactly true.  I do go on some special occasions.  I love to go when there is a musical program being presented.  Someday I may write about my experiences with various churches/religions and my spiritual journey, but not today.  I just thought it was important to let you know that my thoughts and opinions expressed in this blog entry are based on my Christian values and the fact that I do have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, not that I go to church. Call me a hypocrite, I’ve called myself worse. When I get to heaven one day I am sure the first conversation God will have with me is my lack of church attendance.  

The title of this blog post, Freedom of Religion; A Few Short Stories, deals with what was, what could be, and what is, not necessarily in that order.  I have used fiction and non-fiction.  I have felt God’s guidance in writing these words, and I hope and pray it is His words through me that give you something to think about.

 Chapter 1

Let’s pretend.  Let’s say we’ve just awakened to a beautiful Friday morning.  The sun rise was incredible and its millions of rays are shining bright.  We smell the coffee freshly made by the coffee maker we prepared and set last night.  We get out of bed and open the window blinds to get a better view of God’s lovely day.  All is right with the world.

We pour a cup of coffee and slowly sashay our way out to the back deck.  We think about the day ahead of us and remember the important committee meeting that we are chairing at 10:00 a.m.  There will be no casual Friday this week.  We glance at the clock hanging just inside the back door.  Oops, it is time to get in the shower.  We do, however, take the time to drink a couple more sips of coffee and think about the weekend.  We are going out to dinner with the family tonight and golf with the guys from the fitness center tomorrow morning.  Tomorrow night is Jerry’s, our best friend, 50^th birthday party.  That will be a hoot.  Oh, we’ve got to wrap that laptop we bought him for his “special” day.  Yeah, we sort of went overboard on that gift but we are doing okay in the financial department.  Besides, he is our best friend.  On Sunday we will go to early church and then head up to the mountains for a nice leisurely hike.  It is going to be a perfect weekend, again.

We walk into the bedroom and grab the television remote.  In our haste we click the power button, throw the remote on the bed, and then head to the shower.  We can hear the television in the background but it isn’t loud enough to hear what is being said.  Oh, the shower feels so good.  We love the feeling of clean and look forward to getting dressed and ready for work.   

We turn the shower off and pull back the shower curtain.  As we grab for the towel we can hear the television more distinctly now.  We thought we had the television tuned to our favorite news channel, but the guy’s voice doesn’t seem familiar.  As we begin to listen more attentively we hear the unfamiliar voice say something that sounded like “MARSHAL LAW”. 

Chapter 2

There he was, going about his business.   He was having a routine Iranian day.  He had taken his two sons, neither teenagers yet, to school.   After that, he went to his usual Morning Prayer breakfast.  Later that afternoon he would visit in the home of a church member dying of cancer.  Life was good.

Youcef Nadarkhani was born into a Muslim family from Rasht, Gilan Province in Iran, but is said to have converted to Christianity at an early age.  He was only three years old when Iranian hostage crisis ended.  He was now the pastor of a network of Christian “house churches”, and a member of the Protestant Evangelical Church of Iran. 

Pastor Nadarkhani was confident in his country’s tolerance of freedom of religion, it was guaranteed in the constitution.  However, before the end of the year 2006, he would come face to face with the Iranian government’s displeasure with his being a Christian, and a Christian pastor at that. 

Whether or not Pastor Nadarkhani had ever been a practicing Muslim was in question as his initial arrest was on the charge of apostasy from Islam to evangelism.  The charge of apostasy, or the renunciation of a religious or political belief or allegiance, was based on conflicting reports as to when his conversion to Christianity actually occurred.   He was eventually released and he continued as a Christian pastor. 

About a year later, Pastor Nadarkhani was arrested again for protesting a change in the Iranian educational system that required all students, including his two sons, to study the Qur’an in school.  A year later, Mrs. Nadarkhani was arrested and charged with apostasy.  Although she received a life imprisonment sentence, she was released from prison four months later.

For reasons I could not find, Pastor Nadarkhani’s charges were later changed back to apostasy and evangelism, his initial charges.  On September 21 and 22, 2010 he was sentenced to death for the charge of apostasy by the 11^th Chamber of The Assize Court of the province of Gilan.  He continues to await his fate in an Iranian prison.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the sixth and current President of the Islamic Republic of Iran.  Ahmadinejad's 2005 presidential campaign, supported by the Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran, garnered 62% of the runoff election votes. He became President on August 3, 2005, only a year prior to Pastor Nadarkhani’s initial arrest.  Ahmadinejad is a controversial figure both within Iran and internationally.  He has been criticized domestically for his economic lapses and disregard for human rights.  Therefore it would seem President Admajinejad has neglected reading the country’s constitution, or he is simply disregarding it.  I find that fact very interesting and one that we American’s might want to consider when we go to the polls to vote.

Chapter 3

The first vivid memory I have of politics was when John F. Kennedy was running for president.  Whether he was a democrat or republican was overshadowed for many by his being a Catholic.  I remember adults discussing his religious preference and commenting that the United States just wasn't ready for a Catholic in the White House. 

As history played out, Kennedy was elected president and the Camelot era began.  Shortly after he took office his presidency was challenged with the Bay of Pigs debacle, which I do not remember but have read about.  Then, in October 1962, Kennedy's abilities to lead the nation were tested by what has come to be known as the Cuban Missile Crisis.

On October 22, 1962, President Kennedy spoke to the nation about the crisis in a televised address.  I do not remember the televised message, but I did live through and remember the crisis.  As a small child I was aware the United States and Russia were at odds and the potential for a nuclear war was extremely high.  I was not aware that the US had responded to the threat of Russian nuclear warheads in Cuba, pointed straight at us, by imposing a naval blockade around the small country.  All I actually understood was that we were on the brink of nuclear war.

At the time of the crisis I had just turned 11 years old and was scared to death.  I remember everyone tried to avoid lights in homes and businesses.  And members of the church that my Dad was pastoring came together in the church basement to pray for our country and show support for one another.  That single light bulb hanging from the ceiling as the church spent time in prayer is imprinted in my mind.   I had seen pictures of the mushroom clouds made by nuclear bombs and I feared seeing them in person.

But, the leaders of both superpowers recognized the devastating possibility of a nuclear war and the Soviets agreed to dismantle the weapon sites in exchange for the U.S.'s pledge not to invade Cuba. 

That crisis instilled in me a fear of communism, from which I suffer to this very day.  Back in the day, we children were often told of the suffering and even death dealt out by communist regimes on those who would not deny God.  I remember adults and children alike who proclaimed their faith was strong enough to withstand such persecution, even until they took their last breath.  It was almost as though such commitment, bravery, and faith in God was a given.  Of course we would stand strong in our faith, just like John the Baptist before they chopped his head off.  However, even back then I don’t think we actually thought we would ever have to make that decision.  But, we did and still do have a strong fear of communism. 

That was well over 50 years ago and I had thought the threat of death due to ones belief in God had greatly diminished.  However, some recent events in our own country and abroad have given me pause for concern. In preparing to write this blog entry I did some limited research on religious intolerance and was overwhelmed by the amount of information on the subject.  I was also given pause as to the frequency of sources proclaiming alleged intolerance of Christians toward other religions.  As we all know, religious intolerance has been a part of history forever and that will never change.  However, the question I have is just how far will that intolerance ultimately go in our beloved United States?

I suppose the fact that scares me the most is that folks born post the 1962 Cuban Crisis have rarely, if ever, thought about war on our soil.  They have not had a personal encounter with the threat of a regime where there is intolerance of those who believe in God up to, and including, persecution.  Yes, there was the horrific loss of lives when the World Trade Center was attacked and destroyed by radical Jihadist.  And, I realize that horrendous event was tagged “an act of war”.  While I agree it was an act of war, it is also my opinion it did not have a lasting impact on our society.  Although there were thousands who perished that day, only a minute percentage of Americans were actually personally affected.   The nation did rally in unity for a while, but with time, that surge of energy focused toward those who want to do us harm has waned.  The majority of Americans did not internalize it as an attack on our way of life, our freedom to worship, our freedom of speech, etc.  Dare I say that even I do not have the same gut wrenching fear when I think about the World Trade Center as I do when I think about the Cuban Missile Crisis?  I may have a similar fear when I board an airplane these days, but once off the plane my fear is gone and I go on my way. 

Pastor Nadarkhani has/is experiencing the ultimate test of his faith in the Almighty Jesus Christ.  Unfortunately, he isn’t by himself as many, many Christians all over the world are facing some kind of threat and/or challenge based on their faith/religion.  And, what is so unbelievable is it is happening here in our own country. 

Just today the local newspaper had a story of a child being torn apart by his divorced parents in the name of religion.  The divorce decree stipulated that the parents would share in the decision making process in regard to their son, including decisions regarding religion.  The story hit the news when mom was arrested and spent over 24 hours in jail for violation of a court order.  Yes, the court actually intervened when dad decided he didn’t like his son going to the Baptist church and being baptized.  Did someone forget to read the US constitution?

The End

I wrote this blog entry for several reasons.  I think the first reason was to remind myself how blessed I am to have been born in the United States of America.  As an American I can express my belief in God without threat, and I can choose how, where, and when I wish to worship Him. 

Secondly, in recent days I have felt fear on the level I experienced during the Cuban Missile Crisis far too frequently.  Yes, I realize I may be overreacting to my observations of communistic countries, such as China.  But someone who has spent a lot of time in China expressed to me the other day, “They scare me.”  And, I may be overreacting to the threat of extreme jihadist who are in their “holy” fight to defend Islam, or in my opinion to propagate evil.  And, still yet, I may be overreacting to the state of our own nation and the powers that be, on both sides of the isle.

Lastly, I wrote this blog entry in honor of those first colonists who came to America to escape religious persecution.  It was they who guaranteed our freedom of religion today.  While the writers of the Constitution, with thought and purpose, decided to keep religion out of our government, that does not mean we are not a religious nation.  Religion has always played a major role in our day to day life.  It is tolerance of all religions that the Constitution calls for, yet we seem to be lacking more and more each day.  God help us all!

Just a penny’s worth….

Becky

 Sources:  INcontext Ministries website, Wikipedia, LCLJ website, The Christian Post website, U.S. Constitution Online