Jan 10, 17 / Aqu 10, 01 21:29 UTC

Re: Need to guarantee religious freedom in Constitution  

Credo che in una nazione che vive fuori dalla terra debbano essere lasciati in quest'ultima tutti i motivi che hanno sempre creato conflitti e guerre fra gli uomini. Una delle 2 principali è la religione nelle sue manifestazioni esteriori Ognuno in cuor suo avrà o non avrà fede e appartenenza a credi religiosi. Ma non dovrebbe mai propagandarli e farli diventare bandiere da sventolare. Ogni credo dovrebbe rimanere un fatto personale e privato. Non significa non parlarne. Ma significa non riempire il nuovo mondo di simboli e simulacri.

  Last edited by:  Loredana Agresti (Asgardian)  on Jan 10, 17 / Aqu 10, 01 21:29 UTC, Total number of edits: 1 time

Jan 12, 17 / Aqu 12, 01 21:43 UTC

I think that all people need to learn to gracefully agree to disagree. Morality is learned, not inherited. You have choice on how you deal with the things you don't understand.

My perception is that we all have been taught to think that "our" belief system is the best and should conquer all others. This has created a political, social and physical imbalance.

Until people can come back from dead and can tell us what comes next, all belief systems are a best guess, a faith that there is something after this life. No one knows what comes next. Just as we need to respect scientific, engineering, culinary ect.. ideas. We need to respect each others belief systems. Everyone cannot possibly be at the same religious level at the same time. We are unique individuals, growing physically and mentally at different paces.

All religions have similar teachings.

15 Great Principles Shared by All Religions. ( There are more but these stand out to me more than others. )

  1. The Golden Rule / Law of Reciprocity – The cornerstone of religious understanding. “Do unto others what you would have them do unto you.” – Christianity
  2. Honor Thy Father and Mother – Knowing them is the key to knowing ourselves. The day will come when we shall wish we had known them better.
  3. Speak the Truth – “Sincerity is the way of heaven, and to think how to be sincere is the way of a man.” – Confucius
  4. It’s More Blessed to Give than to Receive – Generosity, charity and kindness will open an individual to an unbounded reservoir of riches.
  5. Heaven is Within – “Even as the scent dwells within the flower, so God within thine own heart forever abides.” – Sikhism
  6. Love Thy Neighbor / Conquer With Love / All You Need is Love – Acts of faith, prayer and deep meditation provide us with the strength that allows love for our fellow man to become an abiding part of our lives. Love is a unifying force.
  7. Blessed Are the Peacemakers – When people live in the awareness that there is a close kinship between all individuals and nations, peace is the natural result.
  8. You Reap What You Sow – This is the great mystery of human life. Aware or unaware, all are ruled by this inevitable law of nature.
  9. Man Does Not Live by Bread Alone – The blessings of life are deeper than what can be appreciated by the senses.
  10. Do No Harm – If someone tries to hurt another, it means that she is perceiving that person as something separate and foreign from herself.
  11. Forgiveness – The most beautiful thing a man can do is to forgive wrong. – Judaism
  12. Judge Not, Lest Ye Be Judged – This principle is an expression of the underlying truth that mankind is one great family, and that we all spring from a common source.
  13. Be Slow to Anger – Anger clouds the mind in the very moments that clarity and objectivity are needed most. “He who holds back rising anger like a rolling chariot, him I call a real driver; others only hold the reins.” – Buddha
  14. There is But One God / God is Love – Nature, Being, The Absolute. Whatever name man chooses, there is but one God. All people and all things are of one essence.
  15. Follow the Spirit of the Scriptures, Not the Words – “Study the words, no doubt, but look behind them to the thought they indicate; And having found it, throw the words away, as chaff when you have sifted out the grain.” – Hinduism
  Last edited by:  Josie Guida (Asgardian, Candidate)  on Jan 12, 17 / Aqu 12, 01 23:47 UTC, Total number of edits: 1 time
Reason: spelling

Jan 13, 17 / Aqu 13, 01 23:39 UTC

That has already been established it is stated quite clearly that Asgardians will be able to follow any faith they choose should they choose to do so or none at all. What really needs to be guranteed regarding religion is the acceptance of all religions by one another. The reason why religious beliefs are not all accepted is because. Religion A. claims to be and acts superior to religions b, c, d, and e. Which causes it's followers to belittle followers of religions b, c, d, and e.

Jan 15, 17 / Aqu 15, 01 21:52 UTC

We shouldn't ban religion, but we also shouldn't build churches. We shouldn't burn the books,nor call them perfect. I am an atheist. Have been for 7-8 years now. It might not seem like much, but i am 20. After losing friends because of religious debates, i realised that the best policy is "Live and let live". There are plenty of people that bind religion and science and we shouldn't disregard them in any way.

Take this example: let's say that Asgardia will take off like crazy, and we will get the chance to go to space. All of us. On ship the size of a city. Now, the biggest problem we will have there will be each other. We have to get along. And on that ship, let's say it is a sunday. Day off. Well, i want to sleep in. But if i have a church nearby, banging the bell, cant really do that. But also, can't go to the church and say " Don't use the bells!"

The only ideea i can come up with is this. We shouldn't ban religion, bit we should ban the topic of religion. I am pretty sure that a true believer dosent need a church to pray in or a need to cenvert anyone. So just ban the subject. What you do in your home is your business, but when you are in the community, you don't talk about that. Like sex, pretty much. We should aim to keep it private. If the parents want to teach their kids about God, they can do that. But if they don't, they can also do that.

We can't expect to be the same, because we are not. So subjects that we see that on Earth are bringing hate and crime and war between people should be banned in the comunity. Another example here is history. I have seen first hand a French Guard at the Luvre refusing to help a german speaking lady. Might have been an isolated incident, but if we are to form something better than we have here, all the hate and mistrust ("i don't trust him, he is whatever and i know they can't be trusted") must go away. This is hard, we are influenced a lot by our history, but to be able to work together with anyone, we must lose that. We are not French or British or Russian or Chinese or Madagascar-ens. We are Asgardians and to that end we must be willing to make sacrifices, must be ready to leave who we were for who we will be.

Jan 19, 17 / Aqu 19, 01 19:42 UTC

While there should be freedom for people to practice and believe in and follow the tennants of their religion, there has to be a balance between that and the rights of people to be treated equally (e.g. LGBT rights vs Religious beliefs of some denominations of christianty/judiasm/islam/any religion tbh. If someone believes gay people shouldnt marry, the question of whether they should be obliged to marry them because of equal rights for all is important. Everyone has differing opinions and tbere has to be a balance.

Jan 19, 17 / Aqu 19, 01 23:44 UTC

I agree, for the most part, with awuori044 set of rules. However, I have two objections to it.

First, I don't think the inclusion of religion in the Constitution is a good idea- freedom of religion should be implied in the freedom of thought. Anything else would likely cause more problems than it prevents. Instead, limitations and protections of religious freedom (the two go hand-in-hand) should be an act of our legislative body, which differs from inclusion in the Constitution by producing a weaker effect, one that can be overturned as society changes.

Second, I personally believe that proselytization is an inherent function of religion, and therefore should not be banned. However, there should be some major limitations on it, based on whether it is public or private. Public proselytization (specifically, preaching) can be done only in specially designated areas (arranged such that pedestrians can reroute to avoid all such areas if they so choose,) cannot specifically target passing individuals or groups of individuals (unless previously acknowledge,) and no one group can proselytize in said areas for longer than a set period (which we could determine later). Hand outs could be permitted, provided the distribution of said handouts follow the previous rules (i.e. can only be done passively in designated areas). Private proselytization should be less restricted, provided that the individuals involved know each other and none of the parties have previously objected (i.e. no heckling work acquaintances and so on).

I see a lot of anti-religious sentiment on this site, which tells me a lot of people have had poor experiences with religion. However, I personally think that any religion (that does not by its nature demonize outsiders) can add more to society than it takes, in terms of ethics (which I recognize is not exclusive to religion, but was originally a product of religion), artistic inspiration, and fundamental, personal truth. Since Asgardia is, in essence, an experiment to produce and propagate mankind's best traits, I think that to limit people's exposure to new religions- and therefore, new ideas- could cripple their ability to become the very best person they can be.

Jan 20, 17 / Aqu 20, 01 04:02 UTC

I think people should be allowed to express their beliefs. I don't believe they should be allowed to force their beliefs or viewpoints to others. That being said, people use religion as a way to be closer to be what they consider to be the divine. Atheists do not believe in the divine. (As I understand it.) This is also fine. The way I see it, believe or don't what you want. As long as people are happy and not getting hurt, I don't really see the harm. However, I do think that Asgardia as a whole should be free of religious dogma. Religious worship is fine but I don't want to hear the one religion being better than another shtick. I want an open dialogue on all fronts. Not just religion. Understanding comes out of discussion after all.

Jan 20, 17 / Aqu 20, 01 09:09 UTC

je prône pour une interdiction totale et complète de toute forme de religion, de rite, de croyance dans asgardia , chaque individu pourra toutefois croire en ce qui lui convient, seul et de façon totalement individuel . Ni lieu de culte, ni rassemblement, ni évocation publique, ni signe ostentatoire d’appartenance.

Jan 23, 17 / Aqu 23, 01 00:14 UTC

My problem with religion as I see it right now is how its being pushed on everything else, especially politics. At one time for a canidate to say 'i'm a good christian' was to say that they would try to think of their people and do what was right, but quickly morphed into 'i will do what i think is right for my soul'. which then overrode all other goods. Not to mention the politically active preachers and such.

I would like to see people free to gather as they would like, and do what they feel is right. However I have been attacked in a park for putting on medieval armor and being considered 'sinful' and I do not want to give roots for such behavior to be acceptable in our ideal society. I think a scientist can persue his interests and still be a good christian, or muslim, or pagan, or whatever he wants to be.

I like the idea of calling it freedom of thought. People are allow to think as they will. And maybe religion needs to adjust to the new environment as much as we as individuals will have to. However we do not want to allow these schisms to follow us to our new nation.

Jan 23, 17 / Aqu 23, 01 03:03 UTC

I believe anything in this area should be formulated according to the following guidelines:

1 - Total separation of Church & State; the government can't be used to preference one religion over another, nor to benefit religious organisations directly.

2 - No one in a government role can use their position as a government agent to impact on the freedoms of others beyond the scope of their role: E.g. if gay marriage were legal in Asgardia and you don't want to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, either pass the matter to a colleague to do it, or resign; you're there to do a job - if you can't do your job, you don't belong in it.

3 - No one in a government role can use their position as a government agent to proselytise to people; your beliefs are a personal matter - don't conduct your personal affairs on government time or dime.

4 - All groups, including religious ones, have the right to peaceful assembly.

Jan 23, 17 / Aqu 23, 01 21:14 UTC

Hyperion Pansophos I would also add indirectly to that first point as well. Just to cover all bases. I would also add lobbying to this list and gerrymandering. I would prefer that my vote went to where it was intended for and for corporate money to stay WAY the hell away from any important decision. (Yes these things still exist in the 21st century.)

Jan 24, 17 / Aqu 24, 01 02:12 UTC

Those are good points Marlon.Diaz004 ; maybe we allow lobbyists, but without contact to politicians - they submit what they want or are offering (such as tenders for contracts) to a transparent registry and the whole population can view it.

In Australia, we've set up an independent agency to handle the drawing of electoral zones - in my opinion it's done well to prevent significant gerrymandering.

  Last edited by:  Ryan Donovan (Asgardian)  on Jan 24, 17 / Aqu 24, 01 02:13 UTC, Total number of edits: 1 time

Jan 24, 17 / Aqu 24, 01 10:33 UTC

Thank you Hyperion Pansophos. Although I'd say if we allow lobbyists then they are subjected a rigorous screening process (One that can't be fooled or tampered with in any way.) that lets the public know who they are dealing with. That way we know said lobbyists aren't tools of a corporate agenda. Alittle off topic but worth adding to the constitution if a corporate entity or company starts off in weapons research then they stay there. They aren't allowed to promote or create any sort of food and beverage products. Pesticides included. Dummy company fronts are also absolutely forbidden. If caught, said company or coporation is permanently forbidden from operating inside Asgardia ever again and any products that are traded to Earth stay there. If any products from said company make it back to Asgardia via trade from Earth they are sent on a one way flight to the sun. Again off topic, but I felt it should be added for protections sake. Is it draconian? Yes. However, the majority of things I have observed in my country (U.S.A.) seem to be run by coporations, lobbyists and career politicians instead of people who care about the welfare of others.

Jan 25, 17 / Aqu 25, 01 12:35 UTC

I do believe, here the main word is freedom.

Do we want to live in a free society or in a dictatorial and oppressive one?

For myself, I do not like to be oppressed or dictated and I don't want a be a dictator or an oppressor.

By consequence, I refuse to dictate to someone what to believe or not.

A constitution's normally staying for a wild and at the rate, the technologies advance it is not a utopia to believe as will we have to deal with extraterrestrials civilizations, do we will come as a dictatorial end oppressive encounter to directed them what to believe or not? Obviously not. then why to do it to the Asgardians?

Then YES we need to guarantee religious freedom in Asgardia constitution.

Jan 26, 17 / Aqu 26, 01 23:57 UTC

Reading through this topic harmonizes my experiences with religious people so far. SirCedric, you are a quite good example. Just before anyone said practically anything, you already made your stance and raised the crusader flag. Hardcore believers are provocative, trying to be manipulative, trying to blackmail with pitiful emotional stuff or picking our pride as human individual beings. But most importantly, they never ever can keep themselves in silence.

Weird, because for example Mother Theresa could work and pray instead of barking about freedom of speech. And I think she was unquestionably one of the purest believers.

The problem is, as always, lies within the people, and not entirely within the ideology - because religion IS an ideology, as it is a well-defined idea about the world and the way things should be. However, there are known religions, which are banned in several places, maybe with reason: Islam, Scientology, just to name a few.

Also about the religious jokes. Not funny. Also it is not funny to call others heretic, pagan etc.