In the modern world there are plenty of freedoms, rights and liberties. The United States’ Constitution guarantees the freedom of speech, expression, assembly, and many others (US Constitution). And of course it includes the freedom of religion. There are three main branches of monotheistic religions nowadays, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. All people are free to choose the most comfortable religion for themselves, according to their culture, values, beliefs, and motherland. And they do so. Since the world was created, people had been searching for an explanation for different things, which are around, from the natural phenomena to the miracles. People have to follow someone and to believe that there is a Higher Power which leads them. Because wherever people look, everything has the head, the ruler: a family, school, city, country. Moreover, there is an inventor and creator for everything. So, someone had to create, if not everything, but a starting point and help the world to develop. It is a theory of intelligent design, which states that the evolution takes place, but it is lead by someone well-known. People need to have something that unites them together. That is, basically, the purpose of a religion. But the problem is that every religious organization considers itself the best and the right one. Religious wars and conflicts involve millions of people throughout the history, even against their own will. Some religious groups have done their best to establish their religious rules in different states and forced people to obey these rules (Judd 266). But also one of the issues nowadays is that if there is a denomination of one religion which is doing something wrong, people start to accept the whole religion as wrong, they...
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...igious country. Ant here is the point; how such a religious country can be so violent? Someone can think that religion allows it. it is not an attempt to offend Christianity or The United States, because they are great and amazing. It is just an attempt to understand how different people view different people.
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When I was younger, my parents gave me some advice: “When talking in public, avoid discussing religion.” I took this advice because I didn’t want to offend anyone or cause drama. Overtime, I’ve grown and realize this “controversial” topic can bring about the best conversations. Talking about religion has allowed me to explore my faith, along with other peoples’ faith. Signing up for Religion and Popular Culture this semester allows me to understand a common query: What is religion? Shortly after the first week, I learned there isn’t a set definition, along with comprehending other elements of religion in different points of view.
Culture is made up of three main components: ethics, aesthetics, and religion (Lincoln 52). The lines of culture become skewed as it often blends in with political and religious views. In Western Europe during the time of the Reformation, the Church was the central ruler of the society. This meant that religion was not only a cultural view, but also a political one. As time moved on, the Church became less important, but today’s standards still connect religion to culture. This becomes an issue as individuals who are noticeably outside the culture in forms or religion are often judged and looked down upon (Lincoln 56). Due to this outcast it can cause anger to certain religions and culture which can often lead to these acts of violence. With the hate between cultures, religion becomes the justifiable mean on which violence can occur. Many individuals can state that God wants them to make their own religion superior, and one way they can draw attention to their religion is terrorism and other forms of violence. Due to this connection to culture, religion can not be separated into it’s own personal category, as it is forever affected by the changes and culture of the community (Lincoln 57). As time and culture progress, the religion of the community will either change with it, or fight the changes which will often cause conflict. This can be seen in the results of the practice of Jihad, the Reformation and
Evans, C. Stephen. Critical Dialog in Philosophy of Religion. 1985. Downers Grove, IL. InterVarsity Press. Taken from Philosophy of Religion - Selected Readings, Fourth Edition. 2010. Oxford University Press, NY.
...hal. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2009. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Called to Love: Christian Witness Can Be the Best Response to Atheist Polemics." America 198 (2008): 23. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.
Lesley, Alison. "Religious Violence, Discrimination, Intolerance at an All-Time High in Some Countries." World Religion News. N.p., n.d. Web.
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...Opposing Views And Continued Conflicts." Journal Of Religion & Health 51.1 (2012): 162-178. Academic Search Complete. Web. 7 Nov. 2013.
Every state, culture, and society in the world has some form of religion. The most popular religions in the world today are Christianity, Buddhism, and the Muslim religions. Members of every religion follow some form of philosophy or ideology that shape their thinking and behaviors. One common thing about the existing religions is the presence of a supreme being. People misinterpret existing religious ideologies serving their personal interests that at times turn out to cause war. Religious ideologies brainwash populations who end up acting violently in different deviant forms (Richardson, 518). Religions use specific ideologies to make people living in a society violent to peaceful members who may fight back in self-defense.
Throughout the course of history, man has looked to religion for answers. Curiosity as to how we got here and why we are have driven people to seek out answers to these somewhat unanswerable questions. Over the past few thousand years, several varying religions have been established, some more prominent than others. Many of them share a similar story of a divine creator who has always been and will always be. In the case of Christianity, whether true or not, it has proven to be beneficial to society as a whole. The Bible set the standard for the moral compass that humans live their lives by to this day. The key fundamental problem with religion, although not the fault of religion, is that man has often used it as a gateway to power and prominence. In the case of the 18th century Gallican church, the French were abusing their religious powers, thus creating vast inequality throughout France, which eventually led to a rebellion against the church, and the eventual destruction of the church within France.
Religion, “part of the human experience that has to do with a god or gods, a higher power, or the ultimate values of life” (Cason & Tillman 6-7), is one of the most controversial and interesting subjects for humanity. It has been around for as long as anyone can recall and they have difference and similarities in their founders, beliefs, and history. Religion has served to give some sort of a meaning to life and everything around it. In modern society, some religions have grown and expanded significantly. These larger religions have been classified as world religions. In addition, these world religions have been split into two categories known as Eastern and Western religion.
However, with the passing of time, came the creation of many other religions and communities. So much so that now, in the modern era, religion is no longer a universally singular thing. Different people have different beliefs and different moral standards. So who is to decide or say whether one god has the right to rule or influence the laws of people who happen to have another religion? Just as one person should not be tasked with too much power, no one religion should be allowed to rule over all, for fear of corruption. People should have the right to decide their own
Conflict and violence is around us throughout the world and the mass media has made a huge impact of what we think of violence and the relation to religion, especially in the last couple of years. In addition violence has been considered as being part of human nature and comes from our biological structure of aggression. It is an out let for us to relieve stress levels and some believe that it can be a device of vengeance and a positive mechanism to human survival. For example it is a system for the survival of the fittest and reproduction. Another way that we can look at it on a different spectrum is the way religious beliefs utilise non violent mechanisms that try to diminish the impacts of aggressive behaviour. When we think of religion and violence we do not think to situate them together. This is because “theologically, it can certainly be concluded that all religions have the goal of peace” . People who are outsider of a religious tradition can make many generalisations. In this essay it will discuss why some religious traditions in South East Asia oppose violence. In addition the rejections of violence have shaped and changed religious practices within Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism. There have also been many generalisations about the above traditions. Moreover I will try and answer why non violence has become a generalisation and how it has impacted India as a whole.
The clash between Muslims and Christians persists today. On September 22, 2013, a Christian congregation of about 500 people was violently infringed upon by two Taliban suicide bombers. As the church had been filled with innocent women and children, this devastating att...
In the world we are in today, every continent, city, and smallest village has some sort of belief set. Religious belief frequently has the most impact over societies with religion’s ability to mold social laws, boundaries, and sometimes hold entire sway over government systems. However, because religion is left to interpretation of its audiences, religion itself can only be as peaceful or as violent as its followers make it. When religious beliefs are paired with religious intolerance, and people willing to act on that intolerance, religious beliefs can take a turn towards violence, death, and destruction. Religious intolerance is being unwilling to tolerate another 's religious beliefs or practices