On what basis could a modern government, which had gained office through the (Western) democratic process, impose upon all the people of the nation the politico-religious stances of either a majority tribe or those of a minority tribe which had gained control of the political process? The days of the god-king are over. His right, as a representative of the Almighty, to cast a cloak of obedience over his people went with the Dodo.
As an aside, for years, I tried (through the Internet) to find out how the practice of a god-king had come about. The way religion became part of the behaviour and values of a people does not explain the arrival of this concept. The only writer to offer an explanation is Zacharia Sitchin. The Anunnaki, from the extra-solar planet Nibiru, a giant people who allegedly ruled Earth for nearly half a million years before the Universal Deluge of about 13,000 years ago, brought this form of rule with them, he wrote.
Western democracy, being the sham that it is, is presented by its supporters as offering eligible voters the right to nominate and elect their parliamentary (or council) representatives. Not so. Political parties select their nominees for each electorate of interest to them. Electors vote for the party of their choice. A few independent self-nominated candidates are the exception.
If a minority of a population gains control of a major party, which then wins office, depending on the strength of the opposition parties, this minority can impose its religio-social values upon the whole nation.
This is why Australia has no human rights legislation, and denies voluntary euthanasia or physician-assisted end of life to those with a terminal illness and in un-relievable severe pain. It seems that those who claim to know God’s Will can live without compassion and universal human rights for fellow co-created humans.
So be it! Beware the Court of Cosmic Justice!
In contrast to the reported views of some leaders of institutional religions, reliable surveys show that about 85% of Australians have supported compassion for dying humans for decades; that is, only a minority of the doctrinaire Christians lack necessary compassion, and that our governments are ruled by this minority.
In relation to human rights, the rulers of authoritarian religions prefer their control to be unfettered. Gods Will? In an officially sectarian nation?
RAJA ARASA RATNAM 