Sun, 11. January 2015
Respect must be earned
I don't like religion - any religion. Their stone age beliefs are an insult to humanity and are a blatant contradiction of the everyday life we lead. Religion encourages turning a blind eye to reality, it advocates a non-questioning acceptance of nonsense from authority figures and permits the gullible masses to make their own interpretations of the doctrines.
I respect the right of any person to believe whatever they choose. If they like to believe that they have a personal god, a lord, a creator, a ghost or a spirit, a saviour or a prophet, who talks to them, guides them, reveals herself to them, reads their thoughts, obliges them with minor favours, responds to repetitive singing or happy-clapping, and vainly thrives on sycophantic adoration, then that is up to them. I choose reality over imagination.
Respect for their right to believe does not extend to respect for the religion itself or to its unproven beliefs and absurd practices.
Religion falls down with its teaching that their bible/koran or other book is the word of their god. Many people - perhaps a majority - pick out the "good" bits and ignore the "bad" bits.
Yet many fringe dwellers, fundamentalists and cranks and people with violent tendencies like the violent bits - of which there is much in their books - and the bits which tell them that they are the "chosen ones" and they must convert, conquer or destroy their opponents.
Religion needs to get its house in order because a belief in violent doctrinal domination and intolerance of other beliefs leads directly to atrocities.
Christianity is still largely intolerant but - by and large - grew out of most of its medieval bloodthirsty domination techniques, although it is clear that the tendecy to commit violence in Jesus' name is still bubbling under the surface and that many Christians would be happy to restore them.
The Muslim world is not that far advanced yet and its primitive intolerance of other beliefs is legendary. Whilst the Christians still match them with their indoctrination of stone age beliefs into children, the Muslim embracing of barbarism far exceeds any other religion. Executions, stonings, floggings, bombings, female suppression, genital mutilation, sharia law, punishment of victims and so-called "honour" killings are still endemic. Their society, their culture, their religion and their governments have nurtured these practices; and these warped ideas all play their part in producing terrorist acts. Now the genie is out of the bottle and no-one knows how to stop them.
The list of terrorist attacks perpetrated in the name of Allah is growing. Recent attrocities include last month's siege a few kilometres away in Martin Place, Sydney, an attack on the Canadian Parliament and the senseless killing of cartoon journalists, a policewoman and civilians in Paris this week.
The attrocities are born out of religion, although many media outlets and politicians prefer to paint a picture of individual acts of political violence. They are afraid to use the R word, for fear of offending the adherents to the faith who claim to be peaceful and who may dislike barbarism but still tolerate it and most certainly do not do enough to stop it. Religions - all of them - need to stop senseless acts of violence committed in the name of their gods.
The non-Muslim public calls for retaliation and intolerance; whilst others call for calm and tolerance. The solution lies between the two. Attacking innocent Muslims will achieve nothing - except to make the situation even worse. We must resist imitating their culture of barbarism and false religious notions.
Rooting out the terrorists is necessary - but is only a stop-gap measure. New terrorists will always pop up to replace those captured or killed. The only solution to Muslim extremism is for their own religion to turn against them, to stop putting senseless ideas into their heads; to crack down on those with violent tendencies; and to stop selling them silly notions of proud martyrdom and everlasting life.
Christianity needs to play a part too because, when the Western World eliminates its own bigotry; becomes completely tolerant of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation; stops executing humans and torturing its enemies, only then can the West truly look at others and tell them to stop their intolerant barbarism. Respect must be earned.
Wouldn't it be great if Christian and Muslim leaders pledged to work together to stamp out terrorism and intolerance emanating from within their own organisations - and then actually did just that?