Green Gaia
Veteran Member
What causes religious hatred and intolerance, and how can we begin to heal those wounds and work towards peace among all religions?
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Religious hatred and intolerance
- Thread starter Green Gaia
- Start date
robtex
Veteran Member
By moving from a neutral corner. I have a theory that tension between religions has a geographical focus point and moves outward. For instance. The Jews and the Muslims have had a large amount of friction in our lifetime. The focal point is the garza strip and middle east. The tension disspates geographically outward. Here in the states Muslims and Jews don't kill each other but they don't exactly hang out either. It is a very passive apathitic relationship. I think a possible avenue would be for them to work on a bonding project here (or in europe but in this example US), that would include joint worship services at each others places of worship and leaders of the both religions working on joint projects that are community binding. The thing about both those religions in America is that they both keep in touch with members of their faith in the holy land. The connection is there even if its just email. Going on the theory that if there were a peaceful way out of the Jewish /Islam friction they could be persuaded I think an essential element would be a living example of the two religions Jews and Muslims living together and working together in a neutral corner showing the world the paradign is possible.
I just used Jews and Muslims but it might apply to any religions where the goals are similar. As a footnote I have a Muslim friend whom lives in Iran right now but is an american citizen. When he returns I am planning on asking my gf who is Jewish to consult her rabbi....about letting him attend services. I threw the idea by her and she said she liked it but I don't know when he is coming back (cause he stinks as a penpal) and I am not going to pose the question to the various parties until he returns.
I just used Jews and Muslims but it might apply to any religions where the goals are similar. As a footnote I have a Muslim friend whom lives in Iran right now but is an american citizen. When he returns I am planning on asking my gf who is Jewish to consult her rabbi....about letting him attend services. I threw the idea by her and she said she liked it but I don't know when he is coming back (cause he stinks as a penpal) and I am not going to pose the question to the various parties until he returns.
Man created religion to unite themselves within each group. The group shared the same beliefs, customs and "rituals". When groups encountered other groups with different beliefs, rather than try to merge and create an even bigger group who has learned even more, they promoted xenophobia, racism and ignorance. Also, many religions promoted insecurity by creating fear within their own group that their belief was the only one, and that if they even considered the beliefs of another group valid, they would be damned. Furthermore, some religions employed business practices to assure their survival. They started charging commissions used the same scare tactics to assure that no one strayed.Maize said:
The best way to get rid of differences is to get rid of differences. What I mean to say, is there should be one religion. We should all share beliefs, and views. Everyone should be able to contribute. No one should be excluded. No one should profit form anyone else. If you do away with all previous differences, you will note that people will no longer be bitter, as their grudges are based on those differences.
robtex
Veteran Member
huajiro said:
Your idea is to elimate hundreds of relgions that allready exist and forge them into one? I want you to take that idea and go draft a general plan for your idea. Than....go to your neigborhood and take your plan to 10 churches 4 mosques, 3 synagoues and one pagan community and when you come back be ready to address
1) which ideas the existing churches will need to bend on and or elimate
2) what a reasonable compromise is between polytheistic and mono theistic gods are..ie how many gods can this religion worship
3) which portions or whole text of each religion will be chunked and which will be intragrated into the new master text
4) what the new standard will be to be a holy person (minster pastor rabbi ect) for this new religion and what additional training the now undertrained holy men will need to get their game on in this new religion
5) what language (muslims say for instance that the koran must be in arabic to be authentic) will be the master lang of this new one religion
6) which holy cities would stay be chunked out or how many and which is the holiest
7) how it would define the afterlife (resurrection, nothing, paradise)
8) how the new god(s) would be named
It is great to be committed to religous tolerance but I am thinking your idea if it ever (by some mircle) got off the ground would make more intolerance instead of tolerance.
The reason intolerance exits isn't because beliefs are different. It is because different beliefs at times cannot co-exist.
Lightkeeper
Well-Known Member
Start spreading the word that there is not just one truth and listen to the wisdom of others.
Ardhanariswar
I'm back!
fear and misunderstanding leads to hatred.
Green Gaia
Veteran Member
I wonder how much of it comes from thinking you are right and everyone else is wrong and God is on your side?
maggie2
Active Member
I think that fear and ignorance are the two main problems. And additionally, I don't necessarily think that having different religions is a bad thing. After all, the Creator created many different types of animals, flowers, trees, etc. etc. And we have many different types of charitable organizations. The problem with religions is that most people think their religion is right and everyone elses is wrong. I think what we need is for people to allow others to have their beliefs and not want to convert them. Oh yes, and to respect their differences.
There are political and religious leaders who exploit fear and ignorance in order to gain support, power and wealth -- that's one of the problems. They sell the fearful and ignorant on intolerance and hatred.
It seems that there is also a tendency of petty minded people to indulge in intolerance and hatred in order to feel superior to others. This false superioity seems to be addictive for them -- they have a very hard time giving it up.
It seems that there is also a tendency of petty minded people to indulge in intolerance and hatred in order to feel superior to others. This false superioity seems to be addictive for them -- they have a very hard time giving it up.
Obviously it would not be easy, but I feel it could be done if everyone was willing to compromise a little. What I was trying to get at in my original post is that the difficult part is resistance, you seem to be focused on that, and forgetting the main idea of compromise. I am not talking about doing away with religions, I am talking about accepting others....combining them. I think the Hindus actually accept other religions, if I am not mistaken.robtex said:
Not bend, not eliminate, combinerobtex said:
Again combine, acceptrobtex said:
Text has basically been used to detail the differences and stress them. If join them, you don't need so many details.robtex said:
Why do you need one holy person when everyone will learn about the religion? The idea is to not have someone trying to manipulate others. Those who know can pass on to others.robtex said:
Why not have a universal language? The Muslims say that (as I mentioned above) to maintain their group. If they don't feel threatened, they won't concentrating on their difference, but compromise, to understand one another better.robtex said:
Hmmm, I never understood how a piece of land could be holy....but I am willing to compromise.robtex said:
I am sure an understanding could be acheived.robtex said:
Why can't all "Gods" exist, as we do? The one "God" who can't live with the others could be taught to co-exist as does a young child.robtex said:
The reason intolerance exits isn't because beliefs are different. It is because different beliefs at times cannot co-exist.[/QUOTE]robtex said:
With understanding and true tolerance, we can all co-exist.
robtex
Veteran Member
Hindus do accept other's beliefs..their saying goes, many paths one truth. It is a beautiful religion.
You have a heart of gold but i gotta say I am skeptical of combining. The reason is that ideas of some relgions are contrary or mutually exclusive to others.
For instance, monotheism vs polytheism.
resurrection on earth or paradise with God
righteous living or original sin (plus forgiveness)
the reason i bring this up is that many religions see these mutually exclusive aspects of their religion as absolute. You may be able to combine somethings but many of them will not be able to.
don't take my word for it scetch it out...a rough draft and see how it looks...
holy lands are very important to the various religions too though....
what you said is very unitarian......learning from all religions...but to edit some of these relgions on the spot is to take away culture some of it thousands of years old from various parties...but actually map it out....its silly to argue an abstraction...its not even presentable at this stage.....
map it out and for the sake of academics only include say 7-10 religions .....but in them use
catholism
protestant christianty
judism (preferreably roman orthox cause that would be a tougher one to intragrate)
islamic relgion
hinduism
buddism
and what else you want to use or nothing else.....make a rough draft and see how it looks on paper.. no hurry......
I guess i am stuck on the theory that intolerance exits because the beliefs at times cannot coexist instead of intolerance on the theory that the beliefs are different......which would if the theory is correct make the idea of one master religion pointless......but i will work on qualifying that thought if you make us a rough draft qualifing your idea...
You have a heart of gold but i gotta say I am skeptical of combining. The reason is that ideas of some relgions are contrary or mutually exclusive to others.
For instance, monotheism vs polytheism.
resurrection on earth or paradise with God
righteous living or original sin (plus forgiveness)
the reason i bring this up is that many religions see these mutually exclusive aspects of their religion as absolute. You may be able to combine somethings but many of them will not be able to.
don't take my word for it scetch it out...a rough draft and see how it looks...
holy lands are very important to the various religions too though....
what you said is very unitarian......learning from all religions...but to edit some of these relgions on the spot is to take away culture some of it thousands of years old from various parties...but actually map it out....its silly to argue an abstraction...its not even presentable at this stage.....
map it out and for the sake of academics only include say 7-10 religions .....but in them use
catholism
protestant christianty
judism (preferreably roman orthox cause that would be a tougher one to intragrate)
islamic relgion
hinduism
buddism
and what else you want to use or nothing else.....make a rough draft and see how it looks on paper.. no hurry......
I guess i am stuck on the theory that intolerance exits because the beliefs at times cannot coexist instead of intolerance on the theory that the beliefs are different......which would if the theory is correct make the idea of one master religion pointless......but i will work on qualifying that thought if you make us a rough draft qualifing your idea...
Runt
Well-Known Member
Inter-faith dialogue seems like a great way to diminish or even end religious hatred and intolerance... I think this way people will realize that their religions have more in common, and after they achieve that understanding they can come to learn about one another's differences from a more openminded perspective.
I have actually bought around 7 books from some of the different religions (The Christian and Catholic Bibles, The Qur'an, The Bhagvat Gita, Teravada and Mahayana Buddhist Bibles and The Tanakh. I plan on spending a good part of a year studying them thoroughly to find similarities and weed out information that does not serve my purpose of uniting them. I will let you know what I come up with.
I do appreciate your comments, as well as your helping me to define further what exactly what I believe is called. I guess I would be considered closer to a Unitarian than a Theist. I am not looking to be classified, but it is nice to find people closer to what I believe.
I do appreciate your comments, as well as your helping me to define further what exactly what I believe is called. I guess I would be considered closer to a Unitarian than a Theist. I am not looking to be classified, but it is nice to find people closer to what I believe.
Green Gaia
Veteran Member
The Buddha did say that the worst sin of all is ignorance.Rex_Admin said:
Most monotheistic religions are naturally violent, each group has violence sanctioned by God to use against individuals and nations. In the Christian faith the most fundamental doctrine (at least for orthodox and fundemantal Christianity) is the doctrine of the 'atonement', that is the death of Jesus for the salvation of humantiy. This very doctrine is built upon the abuse of a father (God) on his son (Jesus). In the Jewish faith a center story is the story of Abraham, Abraham was told to sacrifice his son and he was going to do it until the very last moment. This story has promoted the idea of obedience of children which could potential foster up the concept of sanctioned abuse for the purpose of keeping order.
Honestly I can't speak definitively about the Islamic faith, but I do also know that they hold the Abraham story in high esteem as well.
Religions are perpetuated on violence, the question becomes what type of violence. I don't believe it is possible for the different religions to come together the reason would be because there are plenty of fundamentalist in each group.
The best bet would be to possibly get rid of religion completely and do something different. Each group has good things, but all groups depend upon out dated myth to perpetuate their views (except some Buddist and Hindu.) There needs to be a different movement today, what it looks like I don't know.
Honestly I can't speak definitively about the Islamic faith, but I do also know that they hold the Abraham story in high esteem as well.
Religions are perpetuated on violence, the question becomes what type of violence. I don't believe it is possible for the different religions to come together the reason would be because there are plenty of fundamentalist in each group.
The best bet would be to possibly get rid of religion completely and do something different. Each group has good things, but all groups depend upon out dated myth to perpetuate their views (except some Buddist and Hindu.) There needs to be a different movement today, what it looks like I don't know.
I honestly think that the place that the 'new religion' will be hammered out is within a combination of religion, science, philosophy, and the arts. Possibly taking place upon the net like this, but to just happen on the net means nothing, the movement when it happens needs outside momentum. It will not get that momentum from most of the other religions of today.