We have long become familiar with Christian colleges, Christian bookstores and, more recently, Christian dating services. Now, as advertised on TV last evening, there is a Christian insurance company that, according to their ad, only welcomes nonsmoking Christians. One wonders if they are willing to insure morbidly obese Christians; how about Christians who abuse alcohol or use injectable street drugs? Why not take a chance with Jewish tri-atheletes or Muslim vegetarians?
While they publicly espouse tolerance, religious organizations, zealously self-righteous, are among the most divisive forces in human society. If businesses can restrict access to members of one religion, why not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or socioeconomic status?
Perhaps this company is just testing the waters, trying to determine how sensitive America might be to such policies. Perhaps they are blind to the sectarian strife that pervades many other nations across this globe. Or perhaps they are just simple-minded zealots who place their narrow-minded views above any concern for the welfare of human society. Regardless of their motivation, their message of intolerance must be challenged if our country is to uphold the freedoms that we so vigorously defend.
