Homeschoolers Flee Persecution in Germany and Sweden

So, yes my #11 statement was poorly written.

As far as the authority of religion, apart from persuasion, I would suggest defining religion AND authority are necessary.

Is the Bible, KJV, an authority, persuasion or both ?

Religion, in the broadest sense, is and has been very authoritative and persuasive.

Persuasion, would imply a persuader, which in turn acts as an authority with or without the State.

To suggest the idea that all truth is relative, may be possible, it leaves most thoughtful individuals unsatisfied.

I would suggest defining religion AND authority are necessary.

Very well:

religion noun
the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, esp. a personal God or gods:
ideas about the relationship between science and religion.
details of belief as taught or discussed: when the school first opened they taught only religion, Italian, and mathematics.
a particular system of faith and worship: the world's great religions.
a pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance: consumerism is the new religion.

authority noun
1 the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience: he had absolute authority over his subordinates | positions of authority | they acted under the authority of the UN Security Council | a rebellion against those in authority .
the right to act in a specified way, delegated from one person or organization to another: military forces have the legal authority to arrest drug traffickers. official permission; sanction: the money was spent without congressional authority.

2 (often authorities) a person or organization having power or control in a particular, typically political or administrative, sphere: the health authorities | the Chicago Transit Authority | the authorities ordered all foreign embassies to close | she wasn't used to dealing with authority.

“Persuasion, would imply a persuader, which in turn acts as an authority with or without the State”

Some people (usually speaking in a humorous vein) refer to a hammer as a “persuader” by which they “persuade” a nail to penetrate a board. A “persuader,” in the more ordinary sense, is simply someone who persuades people to a particular opinion by their eloquence, and their (hopefully) logic.

In contrast, the State is always a hammer. Its ultimate “persuasion” invariably is, “do what I tell you, or I will kill you.” It seldom comes to that, of course, and “the State” is, in reality, an abstract concept, which means that the ultimate “persuasion” is enforced by an individual functioning as “the State,” but he has no authority other than the sanction of the State.

There are, of course, other meanings that are given to the word authority;
3 the power to influence others, esp. because of one's commanding manner or one's recognized knowledge about something: he has the natural authority of one who is used to being obeyed | he spoke with authority on the subject.
the confidence resulting from personal expertise: he hit the ball with authority.
a person with extensive or specialized knowledge about a subject; an expert: she was an authority on the stockmarket.
a book or other source able to supply reliable information or evidence, typically to settle a dispute: the court cited a series of authorities supporting their decision.
but, these meanings are only marginally applicable to this discussion.

In this last sense, the KJV is regarded as authoritative by some, but its authority would be hotly disputed by others.

In your msg # 7, you framed the issue as “The authority of the State vs. the authority of religion.”
These are two, very different, authorities. If a religion has any greater “authority” than opinion, it is an authority granted by the State.

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