Every once in awhile, I come across something that makes me scratch my head. A woman in Nova Scotia was banned from using a personalized license plate because of the offensive message. What horrible thing did she want on her license plate? IXOYE. This is the ichthus (Greek for fish) which is an acronym for Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Saviour. You can read the story here.
Why is this so offensive? Because it is religious and it may offend someone else. I just don’t get this. It is not because I am a Christian and I happen to believe the message. I don’t understand why we have to be ultra-sensitive to being offended. I have no problem with someone having a license plate that says ‘Allah’ or ‘Buddha Rocks’ or ‘No God.’ The fact is that people have different religious beliefs and we shouldn’t be offended that people have different beliefs than we do.
In the article it is argued that this is because of separation of church and state. First of all, separation of church and state is an American concept and not a Canadian one. Even if it was like the American concept, it would not cover something like this. Separation does not mean that the state is separated from all things religious, it means that there is to be no state church. It does not mean that religious phrases should be banned from license plates.
To put things in context, I am a chaplain with the Canadian Forces. On my army uniform, I wear with my rank a cross to identify myself as a Christian chaplain. Muslim and Jewish chaplains wear their symbols as well. There it is: the mixing of government and religious symbols. Why is this allowed? Because the army understands the difference between a chaplain wearing a cross and the government imposing a state church.
In summary, as a society we need to let go of this fear and sensitivity of being offended, especially when it comes to religion. People are different from you, accept it and move on.
