Lesson 1.3: Major and Minor Religions

Before I started this chapter, I knew that there were religions that were considered “major” and “minor,” but I had thought that just meant which religions get practiced the most and which ones didn’t get practiced that much. But then when I delved into the chapter, I realized that it really means that the majority of religions which are considered “minor” get overlooked and unrecognized. In Michael Pincus’s article, he explains that Christian students get a full two weeks off for a holiday that spans two days, whereas other religious observances such as Ramadan, Diwali and Yom Kippur get overlooked in the school calendar and students who follow those respective religions are not able to celebrate those holidays and have to go to school instead. This doesn’t make sense for a country that claims to practice “religious freedom and equality” but won’t let their non-Christian students practice their respective holiday. I hope that changes sometime soon.