Is it fair that religious events get away with noise pollution?

God is worth the noise! I believe the noise made by a religious congregation is justifiable compared to the noise made by drunkards fighting for a beer.

Thursday, January 03, 2013
Doreen Umutesi

God is worth the noise! I believe the noise made by a religious congregation is justifiable compared to the noise made by drunkards fighting for a beer. The Bible states in Psalm 98:4, ‘Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.’There have been funny suggestions that if you want to party till dawn and have no one question you in regards to noise pollution, put a giant cross at your gate as a prayer disguise and then blast the night away! I understand that people have to enjoy themselves when partying and to do that, loud music is a necessity, but a little courtesy by informing your neighbours about the noise pollution gigs you are going to traumatise them with would be nice. Some people think it’s a right to have fun and make noise citing freedom of expression. But they tend to forget that they are supposed to respect other people’s rights –the ones who wish to have a quiet and peaceful surrounding. It’s so unfair to compare the noise made in residential bars to that made during religious events. Religious events are meant to attract people to praise God and build a spiritual relationship with the Creator thus making it worth the noise just as it is stated in Psalms 66:8 ‘Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of His praise be heard.’ God is worth the praise and worship so there is no need to debate about that.  Just imagine how the world would be if people didn’t have the time to come together to boost one another’s spiritual growth and strength.  In fact most religious events are usually held during the day save for a few incidents such as night prayers. But bars attract more clients at night and close really late. I’m so unlucky that my humble home is next to a bar - the noise from the clientele makes it look like they are seated right in my sitting room. If they are not arguing or fighting for the hot girl in the bar, they are fighting over the accidental knocking down of a bottle of beer, forcing the other to buy another bottle. I can’t even invite my young cousins to spend a night because they would be traumatised. It is simply unfair to compare the noise made at religious events to that made by drunkards in bars.