That's How Trista Sees It

FYI: I am not being political. This has nothing to do with liberal vs. conservative. I am not defending the word of our president. I am simply explaining my point of view.

I recently read this article and it got me thinking. If you don't have time to skim or you don't feel like opening it, the overall idea of the article is that President Obama and Secretary Clinton have used the term "freedom of worship" lately, instead of the "freedom of religion" that we're used to. The author was pretty upset about this and said the following.

"Let's be clear, however; language matters when it comes to defining freedoms and limits. A shift from freedom of religion to freedom of worship moves the dialog from the world stage into the physical confines of a church, temple, synagogue or mosque. Such limitations can unleash an unbridled initiative that we have only experienced in a mild way through actions determined to remove of roadside crosses, wearing of religious T-shirts and pro-life pins as well as any initiatives of evangelization. It also could exclude our right to raise our children in our faith, the right to religious education, literature or media, the right to raise funds or organize charitable activities and the right to express religious beliefs in the normal discourse of life."

I can't help but disagree with the writer's point of view. To me, "freedom of religion" means the freedom to say, "I am Christian/Jewish/Muslim/Buddhist/Islam/etc., etc., etc." "Freedom of worship," on the other hand, is the freedom to practice that religion. It's not just your freedom to attend a religious service. I do not worship only when I walk into a church. I worship when pray. I worship when I loo at the mountains and realize how they came to be. I worship when I read the bible.

There was a kid who went to my high school. This kid was Muslim. And my high school was in a small, rather close-minded, southern town. This kid was the only Muslim student at my school. During a Muslim holiday for which he was to wear his prayer cap (I'm not sure which one), he was repeatedly told by teachers to remove his cap because "head coverings" were not allowed. Even after explaining why he was wearing his cap, they still made him take his cap off.

Yes, this kid had the freedom to say that he is Muslim and observing a religious holiday. He did not however, have the freedom to worship the way he wanted or was called to.

So that's the way I see it. Freedom of worship is much more accepting and tolerant than the current freedom of religion. If you disagree, please tell me why. I really am interested in hearing a different points of view and the reasoning behind it.