The protest that took place outside of the Dove World Outreach Center illustrates how the demand for tolerance and acceptance in today’s society goes too far. The protesters have their beliefs about God and how a religious organization should act, but the church has its own beliefs. Protesting the beliefs of another group makes little sense to me.
If the church sincerely believes that certain lifestyles and behaviors are not what God wants for people, and if their intentions are to simply convey this message, there’s nothing intolerant about that. Yes, you may strongly disagree and think their beliefs are mean-spirited or based on bigotry, but I doubt that the church goes out and actively persecutes people by physically attacking or harassing them. Signs and shirts are peaceful and passive means of stating a viewpoint and do not infringe on another person’s rights, even though you may not agree with them. Therefore, the chruch has just as much right to express their beliefs as the protesters.
Tolerance is a good goal for a society such as ours, which is composed of a diverse group of people. Without it, society would be constantly undergoing an internal war, and nothing would be accomplished. But tolerating something does not mean you have to agree with it or support it. It means you allow it to take place. The church’s actions do not interfere with this from what I can tell based on the article.
