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which is an absolute necessity in today's global community. Its use removes a presumption of Christian foundations from discussions where that presumption is inappropriate or unprofessional. In academia it is only part of a much wider shift away from biased writing. Words like "mankind" and "men" are replaced with "humankind" and "people" by most publishers. Religious biases are also avoided, not in an attempt to suppress any one religion, but in an attempt to cease suppressing other religions. Rather than view our day as "post-Christian," it is usually recognized as multi-faith. Another advantage is facilitation in referring to centuries. Many do not realize that "ninth century AD" literally means "ninth century in the year of our Lord," which is nonsense. CE is correct following a year or a century.

While the reference point upon which BCE and CE are based remains the same, that reference point is erroneous to begin with, and carries absolutely no intrinsic religious significance. Changing the entire calendar system would be an absolutely impossible task, but using denominationally neutral terms is a globally acceptable method of avoiding religious undertones that may create discomfort. It should not be too much to ask of Christians to respect the sensitivities of others. After all, one of the primary arguments against the use of the terms is that doing away with AD and BC is offensive to Christians. We are not the only religious group that merits respect. Maybe it is time to treat others as we wish to be treated.

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