Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
How does religion affect war essay
Religion and war
Effects of religion on war
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Many times we can’t pin down the precise reason as to why wars are caused, but we can say as to why we choose to fight. We fight to defend what we believe in. Many would say that war is not caused by religion, but what exactly is religion? Religion is “Something one believes in and follows devotedly; a matter of ethics or conscience.” (dictionary) Although many things cause war, one cannot discount the role religion plays in the cause of war. According to Prominent US Catholic theologian Dr. William Cavanaugh “If one tries to limit the definition of religion to belief in God or gods, then certain belief systems that are usually called “religions” are eliminated, such as Theravada, Buddhism, and Confucianism. If the definition is expanded to include such belief systems, then all sorts of practices, including many that are usually labeled “secular,” fall under the definition of religion.” (Cavanaugh) This is a rather interesting statement, if we broaden our view on what religion actually is we can clearly see that “Religion” does have an impact on war. Some would say that religion only deals with those that believe and or follow God or gods others like Dr. Cavanaugh say that religion can consist of something entirely different. With this in mind we will begin our search on the role religion has in war we will first take a look at six out of the many recognized world Religions and what their beliefs are about war. A “Holy War” or a “Just War” is how some Religions justify war. The chart below shows six religions of the world and what their stance on war is. The outer ring shows the religions that do believe in any type of war and the inner ring shows the religions that do not believe in war, as you can see there are more religions t...
... middle of paper ...
...Dictionary of World History. Oxford University Press, 2000. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Lake City Community College. 29 October 2010 http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t48.e1384
"Crusades" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Lake City Community College. 29 October 2010
.html?subview=Main&entry=t142.e2980>
Cavanaugh, William. T. Lyrical Ballads. London: Oxford U.P., 1967. Print.
"Civil War, American" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University
Press. Lake City Community College. 30 October 2010
Alchin, Linda.“Middle Ages” 16 July 2006. 24 Nov. 2010 .web.
The First Crusade was a widely appealing armed pilgrimage, and mobilized a vast conquering force at a time when the Christian Church was moving towards centralization and greater political influence in Europe. The Church gained a wider audience more accepting of its leadership, benefitted economically, and developed its own militarily force. These outcomes, along with the Church’s documented ambition to expand and its reversal of prior teachings, support the idea that the First Crusade was a deliberate political maneuver, intended to to expand and consolidate the authority of the
Among some of the largest conflicts in the world stand the Crusades; a brutal conflict that lasted over 200 years and was debatably one of the largest armed religious conflicts in the history of humankind. Since this is so clearly an event of importance, historians have searched vigorously for the true answer as to why the crusades began. Ultimately, because of accusatory views on both the sides of the Christians and of the Muslims, the two groups grew in such hatred of each other that they began to act in deep discrimination of each other. Moreover, Christian motives seemed to be driven mostly by the capture of Jerusalem, the dark ages of Europe and the common-folks desperation for land, wealth, and a spot in heaven. What seems to be continually
Upshur, Jiu-Hwa, Janice J. Terry, Jim Holoka, Richard D. Goff, and George H. Cassar. Thomson advantage Books World History. Compact 4th edition ed. Vol. Comprehensive volume. Belmont: Thompson Wadsworth, 2005. 107-109. Print.
The Crusades were one of the most prominent events in Western European history; they were not discrete and unimportant pilgrimages, but a continuous stream of marching Western armies (Crusaders) into the Muslim world, terminating in the creation and eventually the fall of the Islamic Kingdoms. The Crusades were a Holy War of Roman Christianity against Islam, but was it really a “holy war” or was it Western Europe fighting for more land and power? Through Pope Urban II and the Roman Catholic Church’s actions, their proposed motivations seem unclear, and even unchristian. Prior to the Crusades, Urban encouraged that Western Europe fight for their religion but throughout the crusades the real motivations shone though; the Crusaders were power hungry, land coveting people who fought with non Christian ideals and Morales.
Flory, Harriette, and Samuel Jenike. A World History: The Modern World. Volume 2. White Plains, NY: Longman, 1992. 42.
"The Crusades (Overview)." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 12 Oct. 2011.
Contrary to many commonly held notions about the first crusade, in his book, The First Crusade and the Idea of Crusading, Jonathan Riley-Smith sets out to explain how the idea of crusading thought evolved in the first crusade. In his book, Riley-Smith sets out five main arguments to show how these ideas of crusading evolved. Firstly, he argues that Pope Urban’s original message was conventional, secondly that a more positive reaction was drawn from the laity (due to the ideas surrounding Jerusalem), thirdly, that the original message of crusading had changed because of the horrible experiences of the first crusaders, fourth, that due to these experiences the crusaders developed their own concept of what a crusade was, and lastly, that these ideas were refined by (religious) writers and turned into an acceptable form of theology. Riley-Smith makes excellent points about the crusade; however, before one can delve directly into his argument, one must first understand the background surrounding the rise of the first crusade.
Ellis, Elizabeth Gaynor, and Anthony Esler. World History: The Modern Era. Boston: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2007. Print.
“The emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says, ‘It's a girl.’” (Chisholm). Where do women fit in the social order of society today? Many women today fit in the same role as they would have been expected to long ago. Though generally speaking, women have a lot more options today. The male hierarchy still governs most aspects of society, but with many more limitations because women are discovering that they can stand on their own, and have no need for constant regulating from their male counterparts. Patriarchal influences are the base of society. In Antigone Sophocles tells a tale about Greek values and women’s status. Antigone has just witnessed her two brothers kill each other; one brother died defending Thebes and the other died betraying it. Creon’s law keeps anyone from burying the traitor and Antigone is set on contravening this. Conversely, Ibsen’s playwright, A Doll’s House, is a story about an intelligent woman, Nora, who is misunderstood by her husband, Torvald. She takes desperate measures to keep her family intact but in the end wines up going out on her own. As the stories progress the both Nora’s and Antigone’s characteristics become very similar in that they are both rebellious, are subservient to male jurisdiction, and are resolute and strong-willed in their decision.
“...never let some woman triumph over us. Better to fall from power, if fall we must, at the hands of a man —never be rated inferior to a woman, never.” This quote spoken by Creon, in Sophocles’ Greek tragedy Antigone, adequately represents the opinion on women during the time in which Antigone would have been alive. Women were viewed as lower than men and were expected to be docile and passive. They were expected to never object to a man’s words, no matter if those words were to be unfair or unjust. Despite this, Antigone refuses to follow one of the most fundamental teachings of her culture by burying her brother even though the king, Creon, explicitly forbids the action, since her brother is a traitor. She rebelliously does what she feels is right, which cannot be said for her sister, Ismene. Ismene represents what a woman of her time was viewed as: weak and submissive to men’s
Feminism is a large issue in present day while it was not such an important idea throughout history. Man was historically stronger, smarter, and more useful than woman. As it turns out, that idea is incorrect although at the time that “Antigone” by Jean Anouilh was written, this idea was widely accepted by both man and woman. The play itself is about breaking what is law to do what is right, but under all of that lies the true theme of man vs. woman. Antigone is set out to see how far a woman can push a man before a war is started.
Imagine being born into a world where your social status is dependent on your gender, where women are considered inferior to men. This idea is exposed in two Ancient Greece plays “Antigone” by Sophocles and “Lysistrata” by Aristophanes. In both plays most women are considered inferior and do not go against rules established by men. However, there are some women who do not let men restrain them from expressing their feelings. Therefore, the women in Ancient Greece were considered inferior to men, however, they were gallant.
Antigone, the protagonist of the play, has what is seemingly the most powerful female role. From the very beginning of the plot she foreshadows her demise but expresses it through her stubbornness and inability to realize the great power of man. It is possible that she was aware of Creon’s capabilities as a leader, but nonetheless, she fights back by going t...
The sexist stereotypes presented in this tragedy address many perspectives of men at this time. Creon the arrogant and tyrant leader is, the very character that exemplifies this viewpoint. Antigone's spirit is filled with bravery, passion and fury; which allow her to symbolize the very essence of women. She is strong enough to do what her conscious tells her despite the laws of the land. Many examples in the play prove that Antigone's character is very capable of making her own decisions in the name of justice. First, Antigone opposes Creon's law and buries her slain brother; because in her mind it was immoral not to. She does this because she is compassionate and loves her brother very much. Creon, however, believes that his laws must be upheld and would do anything to prevent any type rebelling. He is even more infuriated when he learns that a woman has broken his laws. He tries to show Antigone who's in charge by sentencing her to a life of imprisonment. Secondly, Antigone shows how determined she is by accepting her consequences with pride. She does not try to hide that she is responsible for breaking Creon's laws, moreover, she takes all the credit. All the while she maintains her strength because she truly believes in her actions. These sorts of actions ultimately prove that Antigone is courageous and willing to stand up to men, which was completely against the norm at this time. Her spirit refuses to submit to the role of a helpless woman like her sister Ismene's character does.
Duiker, William J. , and Jackson J. Spielvogel. World History . 6th. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Pub Co, 2010. print.