Freedom From Religion - Part 1 - A Case of Reverse Persecution

A single woman living alone discovers a live animal sacrifice going on twenty feet from her back door in her neighbor's tiny city backyard. When she complains, her neighbor begins to threaten and intimidate her until she is forced to sell her home. Rather than put a stop to it, the authorities all take a step back because the sacrifices are being done as part of a religious ritual.

This is the first part of a documentary series that uses interviews, re-creations and actual footage to present this incident but also to explore the influence of religion on the daily operations of an American city.

Freedom From Religion asks the questions:

- When does one person's freedom begin to take away another person's freedom?

- What are the rights of a practitioner of a minority religion...and what are the responsibilities?

- Would we be better off WITHOUT religion?

If you have experience with Santeria, or have a story about religion to tell, please contact me and you might become part of future Freedom From Religion webisodes!


This video is for educational purposes only.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• religion
• freedom
• belief
• faith
• intelligent
• design
• atheism
• creationism
• PETA
• animal
• sacrifice
• rights
• supreme
• santeria
• court
• documentary
• christianity
• catholicism
• pulcinella

[TheMhayc]

This case is typical of the privileged position religion demands for itself, and is all too often given by civil authorities. It's worse in "mainstream" relgion, with priests buggering young boys while the Church turns a blind eye. It's only a matter of time before radical Islamists demand that female genital mutilation be given First Amendment protection. We need to stop this nonsense.

[svallwood]

I practice this religion and I think the priest in the video is a real asshole. I'd never react that way and would do my best to ensure my rituals don't disturb the neighbors. And leaving all that trash and rotting carcasses in the backyard? Please don't think this represents the majority of adherents of our faith.

[Dracopol]

Santeria is kind of a DOS of human religions. Who uses DOS any more on their computer when there is something better? It was developed by primitive Africans who never spoke to anyone else, much less initiated any kind of philosophical exchange. We'd all be better off without Santeria or any other animal-sacrifice religion.

[tsharpmac420]

YOU ARE A DICK. Your girlfriend is homeless and u dont give her a place to stay? She can come stay at my crib for free

[ShaggyShagz13]

I want to create my own religion. Sacrificing practioners of other religions will be the only way to appease the god I create. The only way for a non-believer of my religion to gain exemption from sacrifice is to denounce their religion and convert to mine. Once everybody has been converted or sacrificed there will be no one left to sacrifice and my god will be satisfied. At this point, my god will want us to abandon worship of him but remain vigilant.

[ShaggyShagz13]

@ifbenruledtheworld Ignoring the smell of a pile of rotten carcases and trash is kinda hard.

[Alixblood]

I am ALL for Freedom "OF" Religion but that doesn't translate to "everyone can do as they please as long as it's in the name of their religion", there should be some boundaries... there should be some boundaries with everything.

[MrsWeeklyFletes]

@PutaLoca11 someone had a bad day.

[wade2bosh]

people have been hunting, killing, slaughtering, and ritual slaughtering animals forever. i dont have a problem with it as long as its done at a private place (meat factory/shop).................­.its not moral, but hey most of the humans on earth are omnivores....doing it in ur home is a bit offensive to ones neighbours.

[ifbenruledtheworld]

She is quite a nosey neighbor. If she minded her own fucking business, she wouldn't have any problems. I'm an atheist, but I don't butt into my neighbor's lives.

[Reverendjim1]

@PutaLoca11 These colonists consisted of all Christian "reformed" congregations. Quakers, Puritan's, Calvinists, Huguenots Etc... They were stridently Christian yet theologically disparate. The American founding fathers, the framers of the US constitution were heavily influenced by the plight of these colonists & many were their descendent's. The framers intent was NOT to protect the practice of all religions but to protect religious practice within the confines of Christianity.