The level of oppression and discrimination today:
With very few exceptions, Christian denominations have totally abandoned their original beliefs about race, human slavery and racial segregation. Most have abandoned or at least slightly modified their initial beliefs about the role of women. Some have abandoned their original beliefs about the nature of homosexuality and the status of homosexuals in the church and the rest of society.
The history of the United States and Canada contains many instances of groups who were originally oppressed, who organized and demanded equal rights, and who finally achieved at least equality in law. This included: African Americans, Roman Catholics, various waves of immigrants from Ireland, Europe, Asia, etc. Various forms of prejudice still exist at the personal level and in private organizations like the Boy Scouts of America's, discrimination against non-theists, gays, and bisexuals. However at least they are not supported by laws and the government.
Women seem to have followed the same path. They have not yet attained full equal rights, For example, they are currently refused consideration for positions of power and authority in many religious denominations, and in certain roles in the military. However, they seem well on the way towards equality. For example, as the first draft of this essay was being written in 2006-JUN, the Episcopal Church elected Right Reverend Katharine Jefferts Schori to be its Presiding Bishop, and the first female Primate of the Anglican Communion -- much to the anger of many of the other primates whose provinces don't even allow women to be consecrated as bishops.
Gays and lesbians were nearly universally considered as sexual perverts and mentally ill until sexual orientation was first seriously studied in the 1950s. Within about one generation afterwards:
Within about one more generation:
It is likely that this trend will continue until sexual minorities achieve equal rights. Religious and social conservatives are investing great effort in passing federal and state constitutional amendments to restrict marriage to one man and one woman -- thus temporarily preventing same-sex couples from marrying. However, support for marriage equality has been steadily increasing.
Debate over ordination of homosexuals and the recognition of their relationships is causing great stress in some mainline denominations and may yet cause major schisms. However, equal rights for homosexuals and bisexuals have greatly advanced over two generations. If past history is any indication, then the U.S. and Canada will continue to stumble in the direction of their often repeated goal of "liberty and justice for all."
There are other paths too numerous to list
Copyright © 2006 to 2011 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
This page translator works on Firefox,