Do we penalise individuals who bring their nation or religion into disrepute?

The RC church lost considerable reputation through the paedophile scandals. Extensive damages claims resulted, which the state - the Vatican - had to pay. The ‘disreputing’ staff were usually sacked, with some incurring additional civil penalties. It’s trickier with smaller bodies of course, and I am thinking of why the Rev Jones Quran-burning ceremony (which he hopes won’t result in any harm) cannot be stopped except by a fire dept fine he intends to pay. The US taxpayer generally believes their taxes are too high, but they are the ones who will pay for repairs to their embassies abroad and for the repatriation of the bodies of embassy staff - and the costs of extended conflict in Afghanistan and a possible recall to Iraq to clear up the mess. I can imagine that Iran might feel greater justification to a nuclear programme or at least provision of a bomb to Al Qaeda. After all, the greatest threat to world peace is the Taliban’s desire to take parts of the world back to a low-tech era where the Quran better fits its ‘operating environment’. In mediaeval times, book burning was common - it removed ideas viewed as toxic. Today, both good and toxic ideas exist in multiple copies world-wide, but they’d be academic if nuclear responses knocked out domestic power supplies. Extremists need little encouragement to enact such a plan, they work to a long-term timetable and vision. Remember that WWI was started by one lone assasin in Yugoslavia. The Rev Jones plans to assasinate a book. He may understand an alternative book, but not the world or how and why it has changed. He does not understand the peril his passion will unleash if it goes ahead - Interpol has already issued a global warning. It’s the stuff of a Hollywood story. Unfortunately, Rev Jones has a congregation of c.50, so the taxpayers of the world will pick up the tab for his actions. 20y ago, few outside of Florida would ever have heard of him. Today, the world knows at once. Rushdie and the guy that did the Danish cartoon didn’t have to pay that much, proportionately, for their individual actions. Burning the Quran is regarded by all Islamics (not just the fanatics) as an insult of biblical proportions. The Rev Jones would be deemed to be America’s agent. 20y ago I would not have asked the question, but the impact of an individual’s actions can have far-reaching consequences today but laws tend not to be written until After a problem has become serious. I expect we will see a new attitude develop, whether or not Rev Jones realises his folly. It’s always the state the picks up the tab, and obviously RC is the only theocracy apart from Iran. Christianity might subsequently want to form a body to protect itself from its rogue associates - this is a new problem brought about by globalisation. Bureaucracies like religions cannot deal with such levels of change quickly. Islam has built-in defence mechanisms that don’t require specific leadership, non-RC Christianity and most others do not, however.

Forgive and forget it does not matter as long as u pay Peter.

I’m not sure what point you were trying to make. The catholic church can punish it’s priests (although they didnt) because technically they are employees of the church. It is also the only reason they were sued. It is no different from any other business. Also there is a direct causal relationship. You molest kids, you pay the family for pain and suffering. You burn a quran, you pay if there is a terro.rist attack? It does not make sense and they cannot be equated.

Try it this way. A man publically burns a Quran and someone dies as a result, the facts of the case show a clear cause and effect. The book burner is not prosecuted, because book-burning is lawful, yet a person died. The book burner was told in advance that his act could result in deaths. Is he a killer despite his denial?

So do we not need secular law, because God’s team will sort it all out after death? Try these: Does a Buddhist meet Peter in between reincarnations? Does an evil Zorastrian go to a Zoroastrian hell or a Christian one? Which afterlives did the believers in all the pre-Christian religions go to? The earliest Egyptians did not get a chance at the afterlife, it was strictly Pharaohs only; later on anyone who could afford a Book of the Dead - and work the spells and passwords (just like a computer game actually) could have a chance. What happened to all the millions of pre-Christians?