I believe we are bound to respect religious freedom for all due to our profound respect for the dignity of each and every human person. We are made in the image and likeness of God and we were given freewill by our Creator. That is the foundation of all our interactions with anyone – or it should be. Everything stems from that first acknowledgement that each of us are given worth, value, substance itself, by God – therefore, I do not outrank you in God’s eyes, in the reality of our journey. And so, if you have value, just as I do, I must allow you to speak and be heard and CHOOSE. The other half is our freewill, which is again, God-given. I cannot force anyone to conform to my religious beliefs without trying, futilely, to infringe upon something that is not mine to take (someone’s freedom to choose) and becoming a hypocrite.
