[QUOTE=Bob Bobford]
Firstly it is a bit of a dodge to merely say but THOSE choices of belief are cults, and therefore not valid. If you believe on principle that children should have religious freedom, then that should include freedom to choose whatever they want. There is no clear definition of what a cult is anyway. What if they come to their conclusions without an obvious figure controllinging them?
Bob
[/QUOTE]
I didn’t say that alternative choices of belief are invalid. I stated that radical cults in which terrorism, abuse, and denial of medical care are the norm cannot fairly be compared to modern American religious practice. It is not that I don’t get your point- it is that I find your examples purposefully subversive to the discussion.
[QUOTE=Bob Bobford]
I think the comparison is entirely appropriate
[/QUOTE]
If you wish to debate the sanctity of human blood, ask a Jehovah’s Witness. If you wish to debate the appropriateness of marrying girls younger than the age of legal consent, ask a Branch Davidian. If you wish to debate the merits of suicide bombings, ask a terrorist. If you wish to debate the necessity of treating emotional illness with medicine, ask Tom Cruise, the self- appointed expert on the history of psychiatry. As none of these faiths have been represented in this discussion, I don’t see your purpose behind addressing these issues here.
[QUOTE=Bob Bobford]
So what if your children joined a cult that wanted to them to quit school and move into a compound, Waco style, where they may or may not be abused sexually, would you let them? What if they needed regular blood transfusions, but they became a Jehova’s Witness and therefore wanted to stop all treatment, even though it would mean their death? What if they needed to take regular psychiatric medicine but they became a Scientologist and they told them to stop taking the medication? What if they converted to radical Islam and felt it was their religious duty to fight in Iraq, or Afghanistan, would you let them do that?
Bob
[/QUOTE]
In the examples you provided, the inherent risks to the child joining one of these cults are illness or death due to denial of medical care, possible suicide or terrorism, or sexual abuse. The inherent risk to a child joining the average American church is a subscription to specific religious customs and mythology. The two simply do not compare.
Most loving parents would try to prevent their child from joining a group which might cause them harm or cause them to harm others regardless of their core belief system. (I say most only because there are religions which encourage martyrdom.) It is safe to say that both atheists and Catholics would discourage a child from joining a group which might cause themselves or others physical harm.
[QUOTE=Bob Bobford]
A question I have been wondering to those who think that children should be allowed to “decide for themselves” (Kalhoun, I am particularly interested in your answer to this)…
How committed do you think we should be to the whole principle of “religious freedom?” Do you really want full religious freedom for your children, or just freedom to accept a set of religious choices that you find tolerable?
Bob
[/QUOTE]
You implication is that if atheists are to encourage total religious freedom, then they must also endorse a child’s attraction to a dangerous cult. With this statement you are impugning the parenting skills of an atheist.
If you hadn’t set up these inflammatory examples, the argument may have followed the course of “How do atheists instill morality?", “To what end do you insist that your children adhere to your beliefs?”, “What age might be a fair time to allow your child to decide for themselves whether or not to worship with you?” or “Do atheists forbid or discourage their children from attending church?”
I hope I have addressed your questions. I would like to respond to the OP now. I do not have children of my own. I am an atheist, and have not attended church other than Midnight Mass for years. I am also an occasional foster parent to teenagers with challenges. I attend the church of thier choice with them when they ask. I do not discuss my beliefs or lack of, and this is rarely addressed as most of my kids are working on strenuous self-improvement programs and too self-centered to be overly concerned with the status of my soul. My reasoning behind escorting these kids to church: after being uprooted and possibly facing charges or state custody, they crave familiarity. I would not deny them this comfort regardless of my beliefs. If they make no issue of religion and do not ask to attend church, there are thousands of alternative methods to teach morality. And I do teach morality, and rigorously. I have very high expectations of my kids. All of my kids have been 15 and older and have been close to the age of consent and have the ability to make spiritual choices for themselves. If I were to be certified as a caregiver to younger children, I would follow the requests of their permanent guardians. If the child or his guardians did not request church: we wouldn’t go. I would find some other constructive use of time and use alternative methods of teaching morality.