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Conscientious Objector Status |
The Sacred Principle of Peace is a fundamental principle of the Church of Reality. We are committed to the Principle of Positive Evolution that society should evolve forward towards a better tomorrow and away from extinctionism. Our quest to understand reality the way it really is depends on a peaceful sane civilization. It is therefore contrary to our religious beliefs to participate in a war that is unjust, immoral, or illegal. Members of the Church of Reality are required to shun such wars. We are a religion of Peace. Members of the Church of Reality are required to do whatever it takes to avoid supporting an unjust cause.
Realists live throughout the world. Sometime we live in countries that are the "good guys". Sometimes we live in countries that are the "bad guys". In both cases the home nation will call on it's young men and women to go to war claiming that it is the duty to the nation to participate in the battle to defend the homeland. In such a case if your nation's cause hasn't risen to the standard of moral justification for war, then it is the duty of the Realist not only to refuse to fight for the unjust cause, but to actively ensure the failure of such cause.
Nations come and go but reality is forever. Nations rise and fall and many once great kingdoms are at best a means of job security for Archeologists who's job it is to figure out what they did wrong to become an extinct culture. Realists do not act in a way to promote extinction but rather evolution. We are thinkers and we look at the big picture and we commit to a higher purpose than short term disputes over land, wealth, religious differences, and other petty issues.
Nations of the world, listen up! The Church of Reality hereby refuses to further your military cause unless we determine it is in the best interest of the advancement of humanity.
Many nations allow people to opt out of war based upon their religious beliefs. If their religion prohibits war, they can get a religious exemption. The Church of Reality is such a religion and a Realist can draw upon our policies and beliefs as justification to refuse military service.
Different nations have different standards regarding the qualifications of the religious beliefs that are acceptable to be exempt from forced military service. Some nation states require that you be opposed to all wars, not just the wars you don't like. In their view, the religion is either fully against war or it is not. Some religions are against all wars under all conditions. Other religions take no position on forced military service. Our position requires that war is only justified if it passes the highest level of scrutiny of justification. Support for a war requires a consensus of the Council of Realists. Without such affirmative statement of consensus, the war is unjustified and against our religious beliefs.
Our religion requires people to think. We are prohibited from accepting the justification for war on "faith" in our resident nation state. Thinking and deciding for ourselves is part of our core belief system. We are a doubt based religion and we shall not be denied our doubt. Our Principle of Compassion requires that we feel empathy for our adversaries. Our Principle of Justice requires that we fight for the just cause only. Our Principle of Inclusiveness requires that we resist religious and racial hatred. We believe that nationalism is a mental disorder that is contrary to the advancement of humanity. The Principle of Scrutiny and Doubt requires us to question our actions to determine for ourselves and as a Church, what wars are justified and what wars are not. Our Principle of Wisdom requires that we rise above the herd mind and think for ourselves. Our Principle of Personal Responsibility requires that we make sure that we choose what is the right thing to do and that we do it. Our Principle of Bullshit prohibits us from participating in a bullshit war. And our Principle of Activism requires us to actively resist causes that are unjust.
We are one planet, We are all here together. It is our duty to figure out how to live in peace and to do what it takes to make that happen.
The belief systems in the Church of Reality are different than most other religions in that we are a reality based religion. Most religions have limited resolution in their faith relying upon their holy books as to if war is permitted or not. We are different in that we are reality based and we think things through and therefore we have infinite resolution in our moral evaluation process. We are required to think about each situation individually and apply wisdom to make the correct determination. One of our Sacred Missions is to ask the Sacred Moral Question - what is good. So even though the basis for a religious exemption in some religions might be all or nothing, in the Church of Reality it would be an infringement of our religious beliefs if we were forced to treat all war as being equal.
In a further message to the militaries and nation states of the world, it is the duty of all realists to act for the betterment of humanity and that the nation state of residence is of no consequence. If a Realist is forced to serve in a military unit, it is the duty of the Realist to undermine the military from within and to bring down the fighting force for which they are compelled to serve. We want to make it clear that Realists are not the kind of people that you want to force to serve in a war for an unjust cause because they will destroy you from within. To a realist, being forced to serve in an unjust war is an opportunity to destroy you from within.
If that cause is just, a Realist is the military's best resource. If the cause is unjust, then the Realist is your worst nightmare. Our message to the world is, if you are contemplating war, you better take reality into account.
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