Religious Diversity as a tool for War

Earlier today BBC News.com posted at a story about the role Religious Diversity in India and how it the linchpin to war according. The article opens at a dinner party at the White House where the Dalai Lama was in attendance. President Obama stood up at the dinner and spoke about the beauty of India. Along with his description of the India President Obama also mention how the religious diversity threaten to rip the country apart. Then several individuals that served India in the cause of peace are mentioned along with their contributions to bring religious freedom to India.
My interpretation of the story is the fact that religious diversity is being used as a tool in which not only to turn people against one another but also ignite war among them. Religious differences among the people of India have been the cause of  wars, famines, and social unrest. The article is like a becon of hope that maybe one day the people of India could live in harmony and religious tolerance.

9/11 Controversy, Ryan Wehrenberg

Ryan Wehrenberg

9/1/11

Religious Division

Remembering 9/11

            The 10^th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks is coming up very soon but there is chaos when it comes to discussing the event.  The New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg decided that the focus of the event would be on the families who lost loved ones during the attacks and both president Obama and George W. Bush will make brief remarks.  Another problem that has raised some controversy is that the first responder’s won’t be speaking and many of them don’t like that fact but they will still get recognized for the great things that they have done.  The main controversy is that the Mayor will not be allowing any clergies to come and speak.  There will be six moments of silence so that people can pray or meditate.  There is even a petition that is being put into action to demand that Bloomberg switches the course of his actions. 

            After analyzing the situation that the Bloomberg is in I think that he is doing the right thing because you can’t always make people happy because most people that are going to be at this event are going to have a different religion.  Plus he doesn’t want to turn this event into a debate when it is there so that we can remember all the people that we lost and all the hero’s that saved so many people.  I think that when speeches are done then they can be religious in nature and that’s fine but he doesn’t want people to come and speak about a particular religion.

http://blog.au.org/2011/08/30/concocted-controversy-religious-right-complaints-about-911-commemoration-ring-hollow/

Religious Division In Egypt Shows Potential To Change Despite Hardships. Blog 10

Brian George

Blog 10

12:05 pm

4/1/11

One year ago the gap between Muslims and Copt Christians in Nag Hammadi, Egypt appeared to be bridged by an unsteady and rotted plank that had the ability to give way and break only to be replaced by yet another rotted and unsteady plank.

On Christmas Eve, a Muslim gunman opened fire on Christian worshippers as they left church; seven were killed and ten were wounded. The motivation behind the attack was due to the alleged rape of a Muslim girl by a Christian male who has since been jailed.

While the authorities have since arrested the male accused of sexual assault, they have also been able to arrest three individuals who killed the Christians. Despite this and previous events that have occurred over the years, the government of Egypt had yet to address the issue at hand; the brutality between its citizens when it comes to religion. As I’ve mentioned before, there is no immediate solution to a problem that has plagued this country for decades, but if no effort is put forth to solve troubles that occur, then the only thing that can come of it is more fighting and death.

“Egypt has experienced many clashes over the years between its Muslim majority and Christian minority, and has always insisted that the conflicts were driven by something — anything — else. A land dispute, a personal grudge, a crime for profit. The official narrative is that these are singular, unrelated crimes…But local people, commentators, members of Parliament, Christian and Muslim alike, say that the government’s narrow view of the shooting ignores an underlying tension that is roiling society all across Egypt, where an estimated 10 percent of the population of about 80 million is Christian. No matter the gunman’s motive, the attack and subsequent clashes and riots have underscored the religious divide.” (In Egypt, Religious Clashes Are Off the Record http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/01/world/middleeast/01egypt.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2).

Clearly this type of lack of authority in the government begets interreligious tension and violence, not only did the system do little to protect the religious minorities but promoted the fact that little would be done to calm any situations that flared up between opposing religious forces.

Some Copts have said attacks from Muslims against them have gone either unpunished or if any sentences are given they are usually light. Again this is an environment where the lack of enforcing laws and basic civil rights will in turn bring more violence and tension into communities and between individuals who practice different religions openly.

Yet some still manage to form limited bonds with Christians despite being Muslim and vice versa, but it’s often limited in many ways.

But since then, there have been many changes. The revolution that has begun in Egypt not only has brought forth the idea that things could drastically change within its government and the protection offered to all religious organizations and its members.

But also because of the unity that has occurred between the two religions due to the fighting that most are involved in against the government they oppose.

“Muslims and Christians joined hands and formed human shields to protect each other from riot police as members of the different faiths prayed during the protests in Cairo. Alongside banners demanding Mubarak's resignation and an end to emergency rule, protesters held aloft posters of the Christian cross and Islamic crescent together against the red white and black of Egypt's flag.” (Egyptian revolution brings show of religious unity, http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/18/us-egypt-christians-idUSTRE71H6KA20110218?pageNumber=1).

In my eyes this is a sure sign that there can be peace and harmony between the two religions…even though it did come at the expense of more fighting; it is a start. Despite a bomb that killed several Christians that have occurred in January of this year and this past December, the two groups have been able to stand together against a common enemy.

I hope peace and a mutual understanding of some kind and can be a starting point for a way of life that won’t involve harming one another due to the actions of someone else or because one felt insulted due to not wishing to learn the other’s religious word.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/01/world/middleeast/01egypt.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/18/us-egypt-christians-idUSTRE71H6KA20110218

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8444851.stm

Religious Divide And Discrimination In France

Brian George

Blog # 8

3/18/2011

Currently the country of France has the infamous reputation among its Islamic citizens for being quite discriminatory against those who practice the religion. In a way it’s common knowledge that France yields a large population of Catholics and Protestants, it’s only ‘recent’ that individuals of the Muslim faith have migrated to the country. “Islam is today constitutes the second largest religion in Europe. There are currently believed to be about five million Muslims in France, many of whom are of North African descent. Muslims first started immigrating to France in large numbers during the 1950’s and 1960’s when France needed manpower to sustain it’s economic boom.” (Religion In France http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/article/France/Religion-in-France/565). So in the past the presence of Muslims were in a way welcome and very much needed to keep the country from loosing it’s economic growth.

But currently it’s been quite the opposite, during a research study there was proof that many places of employment don’t care to hire Muslims; “The researchers next conducted a “correspondence test,” creating employment CVs for three fictional job-seekers with differing religious and national signals, one an apparently French-indigenous individual, one a French-Senegalese with a Christian given name and one a French-Senegalese with a Muslim given name. The CVs were then sent in pairs, one from the “French” applicant and the other from either the “Christian” or “Muslim” applicant, in response to advertised positions at 300 French companies. The results showed clearly that the “Christian” job applicant was more than twice as likely to receive a call back as the “Muslim” applicant..” (New study points to religion as basis for discrimination against Muslims in France http://bignews.biz/?id=854641&pg=1&keys=muslim-france-discrimination-stanford ). In many places of employment in the city, there’s hiring discrimination against individuals who practice Islam. Perhaps they’re afraid their customers may be a bit ‘intimidated’ or afraid of a employee with a ‘Muslim sounding’ name, or they simply don’t want to hire someone who didn’t want to assimilate to the majority who lived there aka French Catholics or maybe even Protestants.

There’s been no recent report of discrimination against other religions in France regarding those who practice other religions that may be seen as respectable in their region but the divide placed against Muslims has been clear.

Along with the unfair discrimination when it comes to gaining employment there has been blatant and sadly successful attempts to keep signs of Islam and Muslim denizens out of the public eye by enforcing laws that keep the women from wearing certain attire that is significant in their culture as well as the religion they practice; “In the mid 1990's, religious freedom in France was restricted by a law which outlawed religious proselytizing by persons of all faiths. The French Minister of Education strictly interpreted this law as prohibiting the wearing of the hijab. This is a scarf that covers a woman's head, neck and throat. It is traditionally worn by teenage and adult Muslim women for protection, and to display modesty. It is not simply an expression of religious affiliation, like a Christian cross or crucifix. It is considered an obligatory covering for devout Muslim women.” “France, Attacks On Religious Freedom; http://www.religioustolerance.org/rt_franc2.htm). While there have been reports of innocent girls and boys being suspended from their schools for wearing certain attire pertaining to their Islamic religion; there were no such reports indicating that those who were crosses or other items dealing with various other religions were suspended.

Both instances are twisted and infuriating facts that let us know that people in other countries harbor the same disrespect and hate towards things they don’t understand. It would be a pleasure knowing that there is little to no worry when it comes to filling out one's job application and knowing my religion nor name will be a determining factor in whether or not I get hired. And it would also great knowing future offspring won't have to worry about any small religious trinkets or attire they may want to wear will result in them being expelled or suspended.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/rt_franc2.htm

http://bignews.biz/?id=854641&pg=1&keys=muslim-france-discrimination-stanford

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/article/France/Religion-in-France/565

Religious Division In Egypt: Unable to be Christian

Brian George

Blog # 6

2/25/2011

In most religions the people who practice them urge peace and acceptance; in some way shape or form. Whether they learn it from a book, from a person or from their own notion of what their religion means or what their God, Gods, or Goddess(es) are attempting to encourage them to do.

Many individuals are born Muslim if their father and or mother was such, and often if a child’s father made the change to become a follower of Islam; they child themselves would be a follower. So for any who may consider converting to another religion, many times they are not recognized by family, friends or the government in terms of identification.

And often such a dangerous choice could be a death sentence for any who manage to build up the courage to find their own spiritual path. The story of this father and daughter are disturbing, as well as the behavior of many other individuals who spew their hatred across the land while praising their own religion.

“They tell their story out of fear and desperation. Born Muslims they chose to convert to the Christian Church after both claim they had religious visions. Now Maher says:

“Muslims try to kill us, and will kill us if they find us.”

Several religious fatwas have been issued for “spilling his blood” after Maher asked an Egyptian Court to legally recognize his conversion, so he can one day be buried as a Christian and so his daughter won’t be forced into a marriage by her Muslim mother. (Lewis, Dana. Christian in Egypt: They try to kill us. http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/01/26/christian-in-egypt-they-try-to-kill-us/#ixzz1EzQwDiup)

Quite sadly are many who may preach or urge followers not to mix or interact with those who worship another deity, and those who worship any God but their own; are blasphemers and must not live.

Men, women and children are not only ruled by fear of attempting to find themselves’ spiritually but are also limited to places of worship if they do manage to convert or openly express their religious affiliation. “The approval process for church construction continued to be time-consuming and insufficiently responsive to the wishes of the Christian community…They also maintain that security forces have blocked them from using permits that have been issued, and that local security officials at times blocked or delayed permits for repairs to church buildings.” (http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2002/13994.htm)

For the umpteenth time, a sickening and frightening example of the point of views and tactics used to discourage individuals to hone their spirit in the temples and deities of their choice. Again I fail to see beyond the ignorance and small-mindedness of some people...regardless of one's preference to worship; they should not be marked for death, banned/ignored by their communities nor done wrong by their government.

http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2002/13994.htm

http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/01/26/christian-in-egypt-they-try-to-kill-us/

Can Islamic Religious Disputes Ever Be Settled Peacefully?

For more than a thousand years, the Hindus and the Muslims of India have been disputing over "sacred land" of their faith. Apparently, this "sacred land" belongs to not only the Hindus but also the Muslims. On September 30th, 2010, a ruling was passed by three judges of the Allahabad High Court. The ruling was passed out to put an end to this longstanding dispute between the Muslims and Hindus over a site in Ayodhya. They decided that the 2.77 acres of this site must be divided equally among each of the three factions. The Sunni Muslim "Waqf Board" will receive a third, as will those who wish to build a Hindu temple and the NIrmohi Ahkara, a Hindu group loyal to the deity Hanuman. As said before, the Hindus and the Muslims have been fighting for over a thousand years over this site. Temples have been burnt down and there have been many riots around this land. Finally in the end, there has been a settlement.

Although there has been a settlement between all of the parties, I do not believe that this settlement will be peaceful. Some parties are not happy with the settlement and are willing to challenge it to the supreme court of India. I feel that there will more riots and fighting. I think that the parties should be satisfied with the agreement and just move on with the whole dispute and get over it. That almost never happens. I think that they need to designate a whole different part of Indias land to the Hindus and the Muslims. I believe that nobody should get the tarnished land because it has been fought over way too much. They should leave it at rest and make it a historic landmark. Nobody is going to be happy in the end so why give it back? Make new temples elsewhere.

http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.7532/pub_detail.asp

Religious Ignorance Hurts All

This article is basically about an editor reading a poll about who knows more about the Christian religion or the Bible. Atheists, agnostics, Jews, Catholics, "white mainline" Protestants, evangelical Protestants, Mormons, "black" Protestants, and Hispanic Catholics took this poll. What his argument was, why did atheists and agnostics know more about the Bible than all of the other religions? He first goes into saying that maybe all the other groups are ignorant of their religion. He then goes into saying that maybe they are asking the wrong questions and even goes to list what he thinks are good examples of questions. He also said that he was suprised that the lowest score was the "black" Protestants being that he is a part of this particular group. He also says that he didnt learn of other religions until he reached college. What does this say about the whole article and even the whole column?

I personally believe that the columnist is biased and ignorant himself. Why is he only suprised that the "black" Protestants scored the lowest. He should be suprised that majority of the groups scored lower than the atheists and agnostics. He makes it all about the color of your skin. Its not about that at all. Its about the ignorance of all the groups whether you are black, white, hispanic, or any other race. The groups of the Christian faith or any other religion really need to step up and start becoming educated in their religion. Their ignorance shows that all they care about is that other people seeing them as "followers of Christ," but are they really living it? This whole poll and even this article shows that they are not. They are just borrowing the label. According to their religion they need to be "saved" to go the Heaven. Their ignorance about it and just using the label is not being "saved." A poll is a poll and the questions are most likely accurate. You have to be prepared for anything. Blaming it on the questions does not excuse you from being ignorant about your own religion.

http://www.charlotteobservercom/2

NC Teen: Nose Ring More Than a Fashion, It's Faith.

A 14-year-old girl, Nikki Lanoco, was suspended from Clayton High School for having a nose ring. Certain facial piercings are not allowed due to the schools dress code. Nikki and her mother claim that they are part of religion that is called the Church of Body Modification, a small group in rural in North Carolina. Their belief is a non-theistic faith that draws people who see tattoos, piercings, and other physical alternations as ways of experiencing their divine. The Johnston County Schools dress code policy prohibits many different types of facial piercings but do allow officials to make amends regarding religious conflict. The only problem is that officials are questioning the religion saying that it is made up or don't exist. After being suspended the first time, Nikki and her mother went back with the nose ring still in and was suspended another five days. If she comes back when her time is up with it still in, she will be suspended for another 10 days or referral to alternative schooling. The Laconos have went to North Carolina ACLU for help to win the court case.
My critique on this case is that Im in the middle. I agree with both parts. The school has the right to go by their policy and they can't let any slide by it and not get in trouble. I thought we had to seperate church and state. But at the same time, I have faith in Christianity and if someone was trying to make me do something against my religion, I'd fight too. It is only a nose piercing. Why are the schools making a big deal? Is it really altering other people by having to see it? This is the first time I have heard a school having no facial piercings in the dress code policy. I think its really bizzare and the schools are being ridiculous. So even though that religion is not very well known and small they should respect her religion like every other one.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hfzIAZx8J9TaN6TwZpSftLVbGCeAD9I8UHB01