Is there a concrete list of universal moral beliefs we can refer to? I didn't think there was, but correct me if I'm wrong.
Be good to others pretty much covers it
Golden rule and all that is pretty universal. Don't murder, don't rape, don't steal, don't torture, don't do violence upon others, etc etc etc
If there isn't, well, you can't tell someone their belief is less valid because it comes from a religion. They have every right to try and make it law. Shit, I have a right to try and get a law passed that says cats be elected into office, if I believe they should, and if the majority agrees with me, and if the system is such that the majority vote wins, well...
Actually, in the U.S. I can. Separation of Church and State is the law there. No one has the right to take any religion and force it to be followed legally, even if they have the majority, and if they do manage, it can be challenged and struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.
It's not you, Stellie, I've had a problem with that argument for a long time now. Don't get me wrong, I definitely don't want any one religion to take over the world but I think it's silly to expect that people will not try and fight for what they believe is right (whether it is or not) to be made law. And I can't differentiate between religious beliefs and moral beliefs, because, why, and how? Sure, some religious beliefs infringe on other people's freedom. So do some non-religious beliefs. Nothing new there.
It's not that I don't expect people to try or want to try. It's that anyone who does cannot expect those that disagree with them to sit back and say, "
well, it's your religious belief and I have to respect that, so I can't fight it, even if it infringes on my rights." That's why the statement of respecting your beliefs until they infringe on our legislation.
If your religion says that you can't eat chocolate, that's well and good for you and I'll respect your right to do that. If, however, you try to make chocolate illegal for everyone, even those who don't follow your religion, through legislation, my respect for your belief that chocolate is bad ends, and I'll fight you tooth and nail, even if it offends you. I won't respect your religious beliefs if you try to force them on me, basically.