For many religions which are based on the assumption that their belief system is not only the Truth, but the Only Truth, this Truth cannot be questioned or challenged. To question basic assumptions is often to commit blasphemy. Today, as some of you may be aware, is International Blasphemy Day. In many parts of the world today people are not allowed to criticize, condemn, question, or satirize certain religions.
About the Word:
The etymology of “blasphemy” and “blaspheme” are fairly straight forward: the Middle English “blasfemen” was borrowed from the Late Latin “blasphemare” which in turn was borrowed from the Greek “blasphēmein” meaning “to speak ill of.” Today, blasphemy laws prohibit “hostility” to certain religions, religious beliefs, and/or religious believers. The concept of “hostility” may include any expressions which are critical or questioning of some aspect of religion.
About the Day:
In 2009, the Center for Inquiry helped to establish what would become International Blasphemy Rights Day. Ronald Lindsay, writing in Free Inquiry, reports:
“Freedom of political speech is still restricted in many countries with authoritarian governments, but criticism of religion is even more widely restricted, being prohibited under some circumstances even in countries that have democratic governments, including Greece, Germany, and Canada.”
Also writing in
Free Inquiry, Elizabeth Cassidy, the deputy director of Policy and Research at the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, reports:
“More than fifty countries around the world still have criminal blasphemy laws, though some of them use them more than others. These laws usually are discriminatory on their face, protecting only one or some religions.”
Robert Lindsay also writes:
“Those who favor the punishment of expression critical of religious beliefs will sometimes refer to the right of believers not to be offended. But there is no such right.”
Pakistan’s blasphemy law is the most severe and the most frequently applied. This law calls for the death penalty for blaspheming the name of the prophet Muhammad and for life imprisonment for desecrating the Qur’an.
Open Thread:
This is an open thread to talk about blasphemy and religious freedom.