Just because YOU don't believe it does not make it so. Your opinion is your opinion but it is not a fact. You have every right to not read anyone else's emails just as they have the right to not read yours. You bash someone when you refuse to believe that they have just as much right to their beliefs as you do. They have just as much right to believe theirs is a religion just as you do Sharon. If you feel that strongly then you should have just deleted the email that you disagreed with and John should have done the same.
see below--fact not opinion A religion is a set of stories, symbols, beliefs and practices, often with a supernatural quality, that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to an ultimate power or reality. It may be expressed through prayer <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayer> , ritual <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ritual> , meditation <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation> , music <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music> and art <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art> , among other things. It may focus on specific supernatural <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural> , metaphysical <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaphysics> , and moral <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morality> claims about reality <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality> (the cosmos <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos> , and human <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_nature> nature) which may yield a set of religious laws <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_law> , ethics <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethics> , and a particular lifestyle <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifestyle> . Religion also encompasses ancestral or cultural traditions <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradition> , writings, history, and mythology <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mythology> , as well as personal faith <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith> and religious <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_experience> experience. The term "religion" refers to both the personal practices related to communal faith and to group rituals and communication stemming from shared conviction. "Religion" is sometimes used interchangeably with "faith <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith> " or "belief <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belief_system> system," <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion#cite_note-0> [1] but it is more socially defined than personal convictions, and it entails specific behaviors, respectively. _____ From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of SharonK Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 10:36 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [Chihuahuas] Paul Harvey I am not bashing anyone. I have the right to refuse to read someone's posts. I am not bashing anyone's religious beliefs because wicca is not a religion. That's all I'm saying. I will make no more responses to this thread because, in the end, it's pointless. ----- Original Message ----- From: dasha <mailto:[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 9:26 AM Subject: RE: [Chihuahuas] Paul Harvey Sharon, a religion is what a person believes, not what you or anyone else says it is. Christ teaches tolerance, where is yours or anyone else that bashes a person for believing differently? _____ From: chihuah...@yahoogro <mailto:[email protected]> ups.com [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of SharonK Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 10:17 AM To: chihuah...@yahoogro <mailto:[email protected]> ups.com Subject: Re: [Chihuahuas] Paul Harvey I am neither ignorant nor rude. Nor am I denying anyone's right to their beliefs. Fyi, wicca is not a religion. ----- Original Message ----- From: Cindy <mailto:[email protected]> Sparks To: chihuah...@yahoogro <mailto:[email protected]> ups.com Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 8:59 AM Subject: Re: [Chihuahuas] Paul Harvey OMG Lets not start bashing other peoples religion, its wrong and petty to do that. This is as I understand it a chihuahua group first and foremost. I am neither one of the religions that have been mentioned yet you dont see me bitching about anything that is posted here as I value the advice and friendship of the people on the group. Please lets try to act like adults not show your ignorance by being rude and denying other peoples right to beleive what they want!! I admit that I dont personally know John or Claudia but they both feel like good decent people and I like to see what they write! On Wed, Jan 14, 2009 at 7:31 AM, SharonK <morgan7...@sbcgloba <mailto:[email protected]> l.net> wrote: There is absolutely no need to rename this group. And no one is forcing you to stay. We are a group of chihuahua lovers who also happen to love Christ. Sometimes these 2 interlace. I, for one, take objection to you Wiccan signature. I've never said anything about it though because I believe everyone has the right to make their own choices. But after reading this email from you, I can no longer hold my tongue. The Bible states that witchcraft (ANY kind of witchcraft) is strictly forbidden. I will no longer read any of your posts. SharonK ----- Original Message ----- From: John Kariotis <mailto:[email protected]> Jr To: chi huahuas <mailto:[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 7:43 AM Subject: [Chihuahuas] Paul Harvey Claudia and all; I do take issue with this. Paul's first premise is wrong. "Paul Harvey and Prayer " Paul Harvey says: "This is the United States of America , a country founded on Christian principles". The United States was not founded on Christian principles, Several of the Founders of the Constitution and Bill of Rights were not Christians. Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson were Unitarians. The Unitarians have never held Jesus of Nazareth as thier Savior as you Christians do. Yor Bible is a good piece of literature. If you choose to believe it as the Word of God, then so be it. I do not believe that the New Testament Bible is directly handed down from God anymore than the Qurran or the Old Testament, epecially if you read the King James Version of the New Testament. I thought this was a group where we could information on our dogs, not a place to have someone else's religion thrown at me at a constant basis. Maybe I was wrong. If so, then lets rename this group and I can leave. John Kariotis. (GraeWolf) Bide the Wiccan law ye must, in Perfect Love and Perfect Trust. Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill: "And ye harm none do what ye will". Lest in thy self-defense it be, ever mind the Rule of Three. Follow this with mind and heart, and merry ye meet, and merry ye part. -- cindy http://sparkyrat. <http://sparkyrat.deviantart.com/> deviantart.com/
