[rntz]

It seems to me the author misses a purely practical reason to have respect for a variety of religions: peaceful and happy coexistence. Historically a lot of blood has been spilt over religious differences and a lot of people have suffered oppression because of their religion. This was straightforwardly bad, and we are not free of these conflicts or their causes yet; so it's wise to try to keep things smooth and tolerate a variety of religious practices (dietary restrictions, days off, prayer times, etc). Obviously the exact level to which this respect ought to be enshrined in law is up for debate. But "respect for religion" can be an instrumental rather than a terminal value.

[LadyCailin]

Why does that only apply to the big three? Why doesn’t my religion, which states that I can only eat kosher ice cream on Thursdays deserve respect? And before you question my religious sincerity, am I allowed to question anyone else’s sincerity also? Am I allowed to question how you are interpreting your religious doctrine? Am I allowed to criticize how closely you are or are not following your religion? If not, then I would say that the respect must go both ways, as otherwise we get to an extremely slippery slope extremely fast.