"I think we need to tolerate each other's religions and beliefs."

I know I use a lot of words in my posts, but it is only because words trigger my brain to connect points and analyse my life. Since coming to the U.S. I have heard the phrase "religious toleration" more than I had to. It bothered me that people have to be reminded to be "tolerant" of others' religions. What does tolerate mean anyway? According to Google, the definition is  "allow the existence, occurrence, or practice of (something that one does not necessarily like or agree with) without interference."

Why tolerate? Why not respect, or appreciate, or recognize, or acknowledge? Why tolerate?

I have a religion, you have a religion, you don't have a religion, whatever. We should tolerate each other? NO. Instead, we should respect each other. We should appreciate the diversity we are exposed to. We should recognize the different belief systems. We should acknowledge that by having different views and perspectives, we can achieve  more together . We shouldn't tolerate each other, we should be thankful for our differences, and treasure them. 

For me, respect is something every human being deserves. No matter how different a person might be, I need to respect them because they are human, and they need to respect me in return because I, too, am human. We need mutual respect in this world, not mutual tolerance. 

Tolerance is offensive. Tolerance is when my baby brother won't stop crying, but I have to endure it because I have no way of getting rid of it. Tolerance is that endurance. I don't want anyone to think like that about me, or my religion. I don't want to be someone people dislike, and practice a religion that is mis judged. I want respect, not tolerance.

Lots of lemons,
-Belle