In the civilised world, freedom of religion is typically recognised as a basic human right. You have the right to believe what you want, and, to a reasonable extent (and frankly, often even beyond what is reasonable), even act according to that faith. If you believe in a god, you may worship that god. If you believe in multiple gods, you may worship them. If you believe in no gods, no one can compel you to do so. In the end, the government is supposed to protect your rights, enabling you to live a full life, until you eventually die and find out the truth.
But for some atheists, this isn't enough. Much like any other religious extremists, they often see it as inadequate to prevent religious people imposing their will on them; they must impose their atheistic will upon atheists. One group that is particularly notorious for this is the so-called "Freedom From Religion Foundation". This group of bullies is so well known for its frivolous lawsuits that it once caught the attention of satirical program "The Daily Show".
So, what did they do to be worthy of satire? Did they burn a Bible? Did they open a church for atheists? No, they filed a lawsuit against a diner... for randomly giving a discount to customers who expressed gratitude.
In 2014, Mary's Gormet Diner in in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, drew the ire of the band of radicals when a photo of a receipt surfaced on social media, with the abominable words "-15%Praying in public".
Le gasp! How dare they knock $6.07 off the price of a meal for expressing gratitude? Owner Mary Hugard made it quite clear, by the way, that this is exactly what it is for: Expressing gratitude. "People are just jumping to this conclusion that it is a Christian thing. It is not tied to Christianity. It could be something spiritual between you and your idea of what God is, or it could be you in a moment being grateful to the universe."
In other words, objectively speaking, FFRF cannot even use the discrimination excuse. For one thing, a discount is not something that is owed. If you run a business, your own mother could not complain if you charged her full price for every product or service rendered. Businesses can offer discounts for whatever they want, and they can refuse for whatever reason they want. Throwing a tantrum because you are not offered a discount doesn't make you a righteous freedom fighter, it makes you an entitled little brat in serious need of a good old fashioned spanking.
But worse than that? It was all too easy for even an atheist to gain the discount! Sure, you could pray to God, but you could also pray to a myriad of other gods, or even breathe a gasp of gratitude! So even if there was some grave sin in offering a discount exclusively for Christians, that's not what was going on here. There were a myriad of ways for atheists to claim the discount.
Of course, the most obvious way is by just praying. It's not as if atheists are strangers to lying, so one fake prayer in order to save... $6... well, what's the harm? But it didn't even take such a lie. Is it so hard for an atheist to take a moment to be happy he is not among the thousands of people around the world who couldn't afford such a meal, even with a discount? Are atheists so allergic to the concept of God that expressing any form of thankfulness will cause them to melt like the Wicked Witch of the West?
You may have noticed that I keep using past tense. This is because, sadly, the FFRF's bullying worked. The 15% discount was discontinued, citing the lawsuit as the reason, a victory the FFRF still boasts of on their website to this very day.
This is just one tragic example demonstrates the irony of the term "freedom" from religion. Freedom is absolutely not a concept these people believe in. Whereas freedom of religion allows you to live as an atheist, "freedom from religion" compels you. Their version of "freedom" is not freedom from religion, but bondage to their religion.
"But we don't believe in God!", they reply. But neither do Buddhists. Contrary to popular belief, religion is not inherently Theistic. In fact, there are large numbers of religions that do not comment on the existence of God. Ironically, there are even atheist churches. Thus, there is no meaningful definition of religion that only includes Theistic beliefs.
There is, however, a meaningful definition of religion: "A belief about the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe". But we all have those. Every single one of us believes something about the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe. The very existence of the Freedom From Religion Foundation demonstrates not only that its members have these beliefs, but even what they are.
Every claim about God is a religious claim, even the denial thereof, just as if someone denied the existence of Steve Jobs, they would be making direct and impactful claims about Apple and their products. But it gets worse when you realise that moral claims, like "you should not offer discounts for expression of gratitude", actually require the existence of some form of god.
Moral claims are inherently religious; there is no possible way for an atheist to bind his moral views upon any other being. That is why atheists cannot even reach an agreement on morality. They have no foundation for it. Thus, atheists making moral claims must have one of the following assumptions:
There is no higher power, and therefore our views are objectively equal, but I'm going to try to overpower you because I want to, not because it's actually good.
I am the higher power; you will obey my because I'm better than you.
There is a higher power than both of us, and I believe my will is more aligned with it than your will.
Many atheists today, realising the philosophical inconsistency they face, opt for the first statement. Good, in their eyes, genuinely is relative, and so the only foundation they have is their own desires. This gets particularly awkward when you point out that in that case, not even history's most notorious tyrants, such as Adolf Hitler, were truly evil.
If you can get to the level of delusion where you can, with your hand on your heart, utter the words "the Nazis were not evil", nothing can be done to help you. But it takes a particularly stubborn atheist to go this far. So this leaves us with options 2 and 3. Option 2 is pure arrogance. The world has existed for 6,000 years. The majority of the human race, by contrast, has not even reached its first 100. To assume we can show up on the scene after so long, and be so significant for such a brief time that our desires actually matter, is frankly rather asinine. Thankfully, there are fewer atheists willing to take this option than there are to say Hitler wasn't evil.
This leaves us with option 3: Admit that there is a higher power than either atheists or religious people. Of course, that can't be a person or group of people, since we are all equal, and are all bound to its will. Now, what would you call such a higher power? A god! But which god? Certainly not one that is so conveniently aligned with those who deny its existence that they can use it as an excuse to persecute the religious.
So the only option atheists are left with is hypocrisy. Of course, since they reject God, there is nothing that realistically precludes this. If an atheist wants to be a hypocrite, he cannot be condemned for it within his own worldview.
In truth, however, there is. See, when atheists say "freedom from religion", what they really mean is "freedom from God". But this is the same lie we fell for in the Garden. When Satan incited Eve to rebel against God, he did so under the same false pretense as modern atheism: That we can somehow set ourselves free from God.
"Unfortunately", there is no way to separate yourself from the Author of life without death. As Adam and Eve found out the hard way, there are consequences for sin, and so when atheists attempt to escape God, all they are really doing is robbing themselves of His favor, instead storing up His eternal wrath.
Ultimately, there is no way to be truly free from religion in this life. Prior to our existence, we are free from religion, because it is impossible to have a belief about the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe if you are not a part of it.
During your life, you will gain those beliefs. It's possible you will become an atheist. It's also possible you will follow the same wise path out of atheism as the many atheists who, having followed the evidence, did not remain in ignorance.
But however long that life is, and whatever choices you make with it, it will eventually end. At this point, ignorance will be unsustainable. There will be religion in the afterlife, but only one. There will no longer be any doubt. Every eye will see Him, every knee will bow to Him, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. That is true freedom from religion. Not that there will be no religious beliefs, but that there will be no further challenges to God's divinity. His throne will be forever established, and His enemies will forever be His footstool.
Thus, ultimately, those who desire freedom from religion will one day get it. The question is, what form will that freedom take? Will it take the form of a defeated rebel, forever being "free" from the blessings God brings, or of a son of the One True King?
By nature, each of us begin our religious journey as the former. We all declare ourselves God, obeying our own lusts, irrevocably separating ourselves from the real God. But in His unfathomable mercy, God does not immediately give us our comeuppance. Instead, beyond all imagination, He took on our form, and took our punishment upon Himself. As He hung upon the cross, Jesus suffered the full wrath of God owed to sinners, so that all who sinned may receive forgiveness for it. The only condition is faith. By repenting of our sins, confessing Jesus as Lord, and believing in our hearts God raised us from the dead, we will receive a 100% discount on an inheritance in His eternal Kingdom. There is no lawsuit frivolous enough to make God discontinue this scheme.