[MR] Religion in the Society (was: heraldry)

[EoganOg at aol.com]

In a message dated 6/5/01 3:37:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time, Velsthe1 at aol.com 
writes:


> Actually: (From Corpora)
> "6. POLICY ON RELIGION (June 1980, revised July 1988)
> Having no wish to recreate the religious conflicts of the period under 
> study, the Society for Creative Anachronism, Incorporated, shall neither 
> establish nor prohibit any system of belief among its members. No one shall 
> perform any religious or magical ceremony at a Society event (or in 
> association with the name of the Society) in such a way as to imply that 
> the ceremony is authorized, sponsored, or promulgated by the Society or to 
> force anyone at a Society event, by direct or indirect pressure, to observe 
> or join the ceremony. However, this provision is in no way intended to 
> discourage the study of historical belief systems and their effects on the 
> development of Western culture.
> 
> "Except as provided herein, neither the Society nor any member acting in 
> its name or that of any of its parts shall interfere with any person's 
> lawful ceremonies, nor shall any member discriminate against another upon 
> grounds related to either's system of belief."
> 
> 

No.  What I said before is exactly what Copora said, which I have read many 
times.  Religion is not forbidden.  Re-read the above with a fine tooth comb. 
 SCA, Inc., shall not establish an official religion, *nor will it prohibit* 
a belief system (i.e. forbid religion).  It can't.  This means the SCA cannot 
say "All members must be Catholic, or Hindi, or Jewish, etc."  Nor can it 
say, "Muslims cannot participate, etc."  

What corpora *is* saying is that a religious or magical ceremony cannot take 
place at an event under such circumstances that it appears the SCA, Inc, is 
sponsoring it and SCA members at the event are required to attend it.  But it 
does not forbid religion.  In fact, the last part specifically states that 
this is not intended to prohibit the study of relgion.  Yet this is what all 
too often happens.  We have a whole group of medievalists who are afraid to 
discuss religion in the Middle Ages because of a misunderstanding of corpora.

Saying the SCA forbids religion would imply that any religion person would 
not be welcome at an SCA event or meeting unless he or she checks that 
religion at the door.  And I know many SCAdians who would simply refuse to do 
that.  I understand that there is to be theology track at the next 
University.  Vivat!  So many times I have sat through a class on the English 
Rennasiance, or the Crusades, for instance, where the teacher tiptoed around 
the religion issue and never discussed it, because he or she was afraid that 
it would not be welcome in the SCA.  Hogwash!

Aye,
Eogan

Tighearn Eoghan Og mac Labhrainn, OPE, CP
Sacred Stone Pursuivant Extraordinary
Web Master et A&S Minister, Hawkwood
bard na hAlba agus Atlantia
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