{"id":1286,"date":"2010-06-30T16:49:21","date_gmt":"2010-06-30T06:49:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.somethinkodd.com\/oddthinking\/?p=1286"},"modified":"2010-06-30T17:09:05","modified_gmt":"2010-06-30T07:09:05","slug":"the-copenhagen-declaration-on-religion-in-public-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.somethinkodd.com\/oddthinking\/2010\/06\/30\/the-copenhagen-declaration-on-religion-in-public-life\/","title":{"rendered":"The Copenhagen Declaration on Religion in Public Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

[Update<\/strong>: Turns out the document I was reading wasn’t a true copy of the original source, and it omitted some clarifying footnotes. Discovering this didn’t totally wipe out my original complaints, but does make them far less powerful. I guess this is a good thing, but I am dismayed to have learned this after posting, it means this post wasn’t worth posting.]<\/p>\n

So, it appears<\/a> that OddThinking Editorial Policy, at least for the time being, is not to take sides with one religious belief or another, or the absense of one but to promote the separation of church and state.<\/p>\n

Similarly, the editorial policy is not to generally<\/em> not take sides with one political belief or another, but to promote the use of reason in the political sphere. (I may have strayed once<\/a> or twice when politicians have offended me.) This extends past political parties to the whole political system. Part of the justification for this policy is ignorance. I am aware that, while I am not pro-communist\/pro-anarchist\/pro-dictatorship, my reasons for this are from growing up in a democratic society, with constant pro-democracy propaganda and culture. I haven’t given other forms of government sufficient consideration to justify my default position. (Aside, of course, from being pro-dictatorship, when I<\/em> am the dictator.) Hey, I appreciate all the rights and advantages that people tell me that democracy gives me. Thanks! I just haven’t looked very hard at the claims that only democracy would give me these rights, that only democracy can lead to “successful” societies, and that capitalism and democracy are an inseparable pair, so I don’t feel comfortable weighing in on the subject.<\/p>\n

Keep all this in mind, as you consider how I reacted to this:<\/p>\n

The recent Gods and Politics conference in Copenhagen adopted the following Declaration on Religion in Public Life<\/a>. The conference was the first European event of Atheist Alliance International<\/a>, and was co-hosted by AAI and the Danish Atheist Society<\/a>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Okay, so part of the fight of the politically-motivated atheists is to promote the separation of church and state, and to challenge people to overcome some of the biases that they have inherited, without thinking, from their grandparents’ times. I read on with interest.<\/p>\n

\nWe, at the World Atheist Conference: “Gods and Politics”, held in Copenhagen from 18 to 20 June 2010, hereby declare as follows:<\/p>\n