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BREAKFAST BANTER: FROM STREET PREACHERS TO CINEWORLD – RELIGIOUS FREEDOM TODAY
https://archives.battleofideas.org.uk/2022/session/from-street-preachers-to-cineworld-religious-freedom-today/

For all the commentary that claims we live in a post-religious age, religion still throws up a number of political and moral dilemmas. On the one hand, expressing support for traditional beliefs about marriage and morality can clash with everything from equalities legislation to demands to be protected from offence. For example, street preachers have been embroiled in police altercations for quoting the Bible and accused of homophobia, and religious groups have faced censure on university campuses for organising pro-life societies.

On the other hand, some religious groups are themselves demanding protection from ‘offence’ in a way that arguably poses a challenge to liberal society. Take, for example, the protests against Cineworld by Muslim protestors who objected to the showing of the ‘blasphemous’ film The Lady of Heaven. At a more extreme end, the author Salman Rushdie was stabbed by a religious zealot earlier this year for his novel The Satanic Verses.

But drawing a clear line between the legitimate exercising of religious beliefs, and intolerant, unacceptable conduct, is not easy – as illustrated by debates about ‘buffer zones’ surrounding abortion clinics. Should protestors be banned from engaging with women making private choices about abortion? Or does freedom of conscience give people a right to try and change their fellow citizen’s minds? Was the recent arrest of a 76 year old, who was silently praying while walking near an abortion clinic during the first lockdown, a step too far?

More broadly, should critical, even blasphemous speech be tolerated – even if it causes offence? Or should we all be more sensitive to the sacred beliefs of others? Do some religious beliefs pose a threat to liberal society, and, if so, which ones? Are traditional religious views about marriage or gender identity falling foul of a new, secular kind of blasphemy law which forbids dissent? How do we negotiate religious freedom in a modern, secular society?

SPEAKERS
Khadija Khan
journalist and commentator

Lois McLatchie
communications officer, ADF UK; commentator

Paul Sapper
producer and journalist, GB News; Roman Catholic

CHAIR
Dr Piers Benn
philosopher, author and lecturer

Battle of Ideas 2022

From street preachers to cineworld: religious freedom today

Listen to recordings of our discussions and debates. Our aim is to expand the boundaries of public debate, to break out of today's echo chambers and challenge orthodoxies.