#religion in government

[studentofshinto]

Civic duty and Shinto

OK, so the title might be a bit of a misnomer.

I wanted to do an article which talked about the Japanese sense of civic duty and how it relates to Shinto only to have my search results popping up nothing but articles about State Shinto. Somehow any attempt to connect Shinto with the Japanese sense of civic responsibility is seen as bad from the typical western mindset. Undoubtedly a mindset being pushed by the same sort of people who want to throw out the Constitution's restrictions on Church and State. For the people who are so quick to point out how bad State Shinto was I suggest removing the word "Shinto" and replacing it with "religion". State Shinto sought to present the Emperor, and the Government by extension, as infallible. People who want to push their religion into government are in fact attempting to do the same thing. And it's not about putting Jesus back into schools, it's about power. Just as it was about power when the Japanese government began to create mandates that effected Shinto. When the government is in a position to dictate what people are allowed to believe and how they worship it can never end well. My own brother is so brainwashed that he gets enraged if anyone points out anything that threatens his world view.

At the end of the Pacific War (WW2) Shinto organizations found themselves in the rather awkward position of having to demonstrate that they were not branches of the government and were in fact religious organizations that had been misused by the government. Secular verses non secular. (https://www.jstor.org/stable/26854498?read-now=1&seq=4#page_scan_tab_contents)

At the same time there was a drive to eliminate all forms of religion seen as a cult to the western mindset. With Shinto falling into that awkward middle ground of being both a religion and not a religion at the same time it's a wonder it survived at all.

State religion sets out to create a leader, a king, or a president as infallible. Individuals within a certain party within the US are in fact actively trying to force their religion on everyone. The Supreme Court of the United States has proclaimed that the POTUS can not be prosecuted for official acts. So what is an official act? Well, pretty much any order given under an official capacity. Suddenly what at first seemed cut and dried starts getting kind of murky. Kind of like how it's near impossible to sue the police for violating people's rights. The police can literally rob people under a legal umbrella. It might be drug money/proceeds, guilty until proven innocent. Civil forfeiture.

Yes, this post is political in nature.

I strongly encourage everyone to register to vote, and vote. Not just in the big national elections, but in the little local elections. Japan, who's streets are some of the cleanest in the world and who are looked at for having pride in their civic responsibility, has a dismally low voter turnout. Lower even than the United States, and the US Voter turnout isn't much better. About average on the world stage.

In Shinto we see the world with reverence. Something that both looks after us and in turn must be looked after by us. How then can so many of us sit by and allow those who would throw it all away have their way?

Register to vote. Vote. I'm not going to tell you who to vote for. That's up to you. Just vote. Your vote may be far more important than you realize. I watched the Tony Gonzales / Brandon Herrera election in Texas a while back and the split was only 407 votes. The turnout was abysmal. In the upcoming national election the polls are neck and neck. One vote could flip the vote.

[isawthismeme]

[nando161mando]

[politijohn]

Source

This should never have been a thing

[n0thingiscool]

GOOD.

But it will be interesting to see where this goes because, like anything else ass backwards in the domain of human rights, the caste system is a system born out of religious belief.

I can see two things happening here... and honestly - this is brilliant challenge to religion in American government no matter which way this goes. What I see happening is either no one's going to step up and defend this disgusting religious belief of low caste by birthrite or someone will... while looking like a soulless cunt.

Gonna be an interesting new precedent on religion and government and I'm here for it.

[beauty-funny-trippy]

The truth about Republicans and Christian Nationalism

[gay-otlc]

Sure you hate nazis but do you, like, actually respect Jews?

[thatraccoonthing]

As a fandom, we need to start making an effort to get ciphertology to and past the level of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. We need to become a recognized religion!

[liberatingreality]

It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong.

Voltaire, The Age of Louis XIV

[scltbvrns]

right winged indians are so (i don't want to utter that word) when it comes to media literacy but all of them literally grew up in godi media so i cannot blame them either. like no one is saying INDI alliance is good. it's just the lesser evil out of the two.

[deepbreakfast]

[nando161mando]

[politijohn]

Source

Louisiana is ranked 40th in K-12 education quality. Glad to see their politicians’ priorities are right. /s

[nix-that-rad-lass]

Things that should be 100% separate from religion

- medicine

- politics/government

- education, especially of children

[beauty-funny-trippy]

The vast majority of Republicans support Christianity in theory, but not in practice. They don't want to actually live by the teachings of Jesus. They believe that merely declaring themselves to be a Christian makes them a Christian. But by supporting Donald Trump, a man whose values are in close alignment with Putin and Pontius Pilate, Republicans have given us proof that they are only pretending to follow Jesus.

Trump has trampled on Jesus' virtues of being Kind, Honest and Humble. Instead, Trump has replaced them with Vengeance, Lies and Vanity. He rejects Jesus' philosophy of compassion. Instead, Trump prefers to greet immigrant neighbors with Razor Wire, and disgraces himself by ironically calling them inhuman "animals."

Trump's values are the complete opposite of Jesus' values. True Christians see Trump clearly and are appalled. But Fake Christians have covered their ears to the truth and closed their minds to reason — convinced, by the strength of their own gullibility, that they have found a new savior.

Republicans could have chosen any other GOP candidate. But instead, Fake Christians chose the most fake Christian they could find.

There are really only two possibilities as to why conservative "Christians" would support Trump over other GOP candidates:

• either, they are completely unaware of what Jesus actually taught, ...or...

• they are aware of His teachings, but choose to ignore Jesus anyway — preferring instead to embrace Trump's conceited self-worship and mean-spirited way of life. Thus, Republican "Christians" have, themselves, become the hypocrites and fake followers Jesus warned us about.

[comradetoad]

Kai Winn is one of the scariest, most sinister villains in all of Star Trek, and did a lot of horrible things, but her talking down to Kira about mourning for her boyfriend who died a horrible traumatic death just a few months ago is what makes me hate her the most