The United States imposes speed limits, seat belts, and drunk driving laws. The Soviet Union banned all political parties except the Communist Party until the 1990s, and France banned ketchup in schools because it is not considered "French." These are all ways for a country to protect its citizens and preserve its culture. However, should countries be allowed to ban a religion? In France, during the French Revolution, everything Catholic was systematically eliminated. In 17th-century Japan, Christians were discriminated against, martyred, and ultimately banished from the country. I believe that banning religion is deplorable, and that totalitarian governments are the cause of these atrocities, and ultimately, no country or tyrannical dictator has the right to do this, for any reason. In Silence, Shusaku Endo addresses precisely this question in the 17th century. century Japan. The novel follows the movements of three Jesuit priests from Portugal, stationed in Macau, Sebastian Rodrigues, Juan De Santa Marta and Francis Garrpe, who plan a mission to Japan in order to find their mentor, Christovao Ferreira, who is said to have apostatized while he was tortured, which the men could not believe. The men first travel to Macau to convince the Church hierarchy that they should be allowed to leave. However, with persecution against Christians, the Church is reluctant to allow them to undertake such a dangerous journey. After some discussion with their superior, Father Valignano reluctantly agreed to authorize this secret mission. As the men were going to travel secretly to Japan, they needed to find a Japanese guide and a ship. They locate a drunk Japanese man named Kichijiro, who agrees to accompany them. Garrpe believes he is a Christian, which he denies... in the middle of a paper... through legal means, it is simply dictated by the tyrant. As Christians are systematically tortured, and ultimately martyred, it is not after a trial, it is simply by decree. When religion is banned, it is not by a vote of the people, nor by a law passed for the common good, to serve the common good. Rather, it is commissioned by a tyrant who is terrified that he will one day free his people. Although there is a common cause, there is also a common solution to resolve these problems. A justice system based on the rule of law and designed to protect the people, not the rulers, would avoid all of these problems. Let's assume for a moment that there was an appeals system, whereby Rodrigues could appeal his unjust detention, or where Ichizo and Mokichi would have been tried before a jury. These problems would be resolved and the bloodshed would have been limited.