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A Letter Concerning Toleration

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In John Locke's A Letter Concerning Toleration, he contends that government has no authority over people who neglect their souls, health, and estate (406). From Locke's perspective, government's only aim is to protect one's property. By making laws that protect the property of the people from the harm of others, a government makes its citizens more autonomous. However, government's authority to establish laws comes from the consent of people who forfeit some of their natural rights (Locke, 304). In a sense, people have to give up some of their right in order to achieve greater autonomous. Because Locke believes that each person is his or her best judge of what he or she wants, as long as a person does not damage other's body or property, government should not interfere with his or her life. With regard to the relationship between government and religion, Locke states that "the care of souls does not belong to the magistrate" (Locke, 405). Put simply, government should not coerce anyone into a certain religion or belief because the purpose of government is to protect people's property. Even though the only authority that religious groups have is to care for one's soul, religious groups should not force other people to believe in their doctrines because each individual has the freedom to choose his belief. Although Locke admits that there is only "one true way to eternal happiness," he believes that no man knows which path is right(Locke, 407). As the result, no one, not even the magistrate, should have a say to one's religious belief. In fact, Locke argues that it is up to the individual to discover his belief and care for his soul, and neither God nor the consent of men elects magistrates to guide men to the true religion. Although I agree with most of Locke's ideas, I disagree with Locke's argument that government has no authority over a person who neglects his or her soul. I believe that in order to better protect one's property, government has to teach its citizens some moral doctrines of how to behave. Personally, I do not consider the best law enforcement system as a well-established regulations or an extensive police network, but a set of the moral beliefs that teaches how each individual should act. If a comprehensive legal system can prevent people from damaging other's property, bigger cities should have lower crime rate because they have more law enforcement agencies. However, urban cities such as Atlanta, Chicago, and New York City have higher crime rates than rural cities' crime rates. It is evident that law enforcement alone cannot truly protect one's property from the harm of others. Government has to educate its citizens a set of moral values so that its citizens know how to behave justly. People need to know that they follow regulations not because they are going to be punished if they transgress, but because it is a wrong behavior and they do not want the same behavior to happen unto them. However, establishing these moral values is not enough to better protect one's property. Even if moral beliefs is ingrained in everyone's mind, people have to act according to their beliefs in order to have a civil society that is free from property and violent crimes. The major difference between moral doctrines and existing laws is that those who are raised to be morally virtuous can only maintain peace in their conscience if they act in accordance to their beliefs. Because moral doctrines impacts both people's mental and behavioral aspect, moral doctrines not only teach people how to act, but also affect how they think. Current laws can only regulate people's behaviors. Government cannot hinder people from generating undesirable thoughts such as stealing, robbing, or murdering. It is therefore important for people to have the right moral beliefs because their beliefs become their thoughts, and their thoughts become their actions.

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