Posted: Mar 04, 2010 9:02 am
Paula1 wrote:Where does the line get drawn? When is it ok and not ok to inflict your beliefs and labels onto your child?
It's hard to say where the line gets drawn, isn't it? Some harm is clearly unacceptable (female circumcision, say), but I think much of the harm of inculcating religion in children is far less obvious than this.
However, the same argument can equally be levelled at secular parents, who impose their own various beliefs on their children in ways that cause direct harm to them. All parents harm their children like this, however determined they may be to avoid doing so. It is simply inevitable.
At least theists truly and honestly believe they’re acting in the best interests of their child in these particular ways (generally speaking of course, and however misguided this may in fact be). Many parents (theists and atheists alike) harm their children knowing full well that they do.
None of this exonerates the theist from harming their child, of course, nor does any number of wrongs make a right. I’m just pointing out that harming children is a universal and inevitable thing in the cruel real world, and to single out theists in this particular way is practically unhelpful. It's like identifying and blaming one particular drop in the ocean that drowns you.
Jef has totally nailed this issue, in my opinion. We borrow our children.