Hi all, just perused the last few pages while on my lunch break.
I have to say, I'm curious to see how this thread has progressed. Several posters have really tried to elucidate the issue while the remaining ones seem entrenched in confusing the basic ideas involved.
People are not their beliefs!
It is possible to respect an individual and yet disagree with their beliefs, even to think those beliefs are wrong, possibly harmful.
It is also possible to not respect an individual but still share certain beliefs with them.
The two are not inseparably entwined.
Although it may vary from culture to culture, respect is general something someone earns due to their achievements, qualities or position. A certain amount of respect may even be granted to complete strangers; whether that level of respect increases or decreases depends on their continued actions and behaviors.
When we consider the meaning of the verb respect, I'm not sure it is even appropriate to use it in connection with any set of beliefs:
- admire (someone or something) deeply, as a result of their abilities, qualities, or achievements.
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Frankly, the meaning of the word belief is itself somewhat problematic:
Definition of BELIEF
- a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing
- something believed; especially : a tenet or body of tenets held by a group
- conviction of the truth of some statement or the reality of some being or phenomenon especially when based on examination of evidence
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Depending on our own particular background, education, training and disposition, we may find that one of these definitions seems more right than another. Context does matter.
I'd like to end this post with a short excerpt from an interview with Bertrand Russell.
He was asked by the interviewer, "Do you think there’s a practical reason for having a religious belief, for many people?
Russell: Well, there can’t be a practical reason for believing what isn’t true. That’s quite... at least, I rule it out as impossible. Either the thing is true, or it isn’t. If it is true, you should believe it, and if it isn’t, you shouldn’t. And if you can’t find out whether it’s true or whether it isn’t, you should suspend judgment. But you can’t... it seems to me a fundamental dishonesty and a fundamental treachery to intellectual integrity to hold a belief because you think it’s useful, and not because you think it’s true.
