oomis – you are right on. Except for that last paragraph. I will differ from you in that I believe anyone can change – and saying otherwise is a cop-out.
SJS – By a non-Jew 2 witnesses and warning is not a prerequisite. I don’t know how a verdict is issued but the requirements are not as difficult.
As far as your commentary on religion goes:
A) Christianity is avodah zara. They believe a man is a deity (one of three). Most people don’t know this (if they did missionaries would have a much harder time – messiah is easier to swallow than god)
B) I wasn’t referring to the major religions but there are plenty of avodah zara cults/religions around. I mentioned one in my post earlier. All are legitimate in this country.
C) Atheism is not a religious status but a state of not thinking logically/substituting wishes for beliefs. Agnosticism is possible in a rational being. That is not avoda zara.
On the topic of avoda zara, there certainly is a widely accepted one in the US and that is the Dollar. Sadly, even practicing Jews have been known to worship this deity.
I understand your complaint in this issue and I can appreciate your analogy to organ donation. However, I believe that if we had to be consistent we would be required to choose to give up our rights in order to prevent legitimizing the abomination.