Role of Religious Beliefs in Promoting Social Conflicts and Wars - Research Paper Example

Role of Religious Beliefs in Promoting Social conflicts and Wars Introduction: Religion is a pivotal point of peace for some nations, whereas menacefor some others as is evident from the history of nation different nations. Especially those nations that emphasize on spirituality as well as possess a diverse set of religions, beliefs, cultures and traditions (e.g. India, Africa etc) are hot spot for all the hazardous ramifications that entail from religious orthodoxy. Religious beliefs and ideologies have since time immemorial been acting as catalysts in promoting conflicts and history has stood testimony to each of these rage filled riots. The paper at hand analyzes how it happens and what often results in social conflicts as well as wars. Religious Beliefs and Social Conflicts: Few religions or other such systems of beliefs cling on to their creeds and “dogmas,” without the slightest “compromise” with anything or anyone (Brahm n.pag). Religious dogmas play a major role in promoting conflicts. Almost every “religion” has different elements of “faith” systems which are meant to be “accepted” by its people, no matter what. Therefore, these people always tend to have an “extremist” approach and this acts as the root cause to all the problems (Brahm). According to Brahm, such type of people hold their religious views as the supreme one and have no respect for another religion or other people and this often “contributes” in arousing antagonism. Eric Brahm further says that this “escalates” the conflicts and brings in harmful consequences for all. The measures of “evangelism” with wrong approaches entail “conflicts” and persecutions. “Religious nationalism” is another element which one should not overlook (Brahm). Here, the national issues are articulated with the religion of the nation, which will entail in negative impacts more than positive ones (Brahm). Communalism is closely attached to this view. Communalism is a phenomenon, which comprises of various extremist approaches that are harmful both for the society as well as people. The every day havocs caused by communalism are evident from the news all around the world, where people follow communalism. Communalists say that a specific religious group have commonality with respect to their other socio-political needs too. This further creates sects and religion thus creates division among people. Such divisions, to a certain extent are considered good, as is the case for providing an identity for different people. However, when the identity issue crosses its bounds, antagonism rises and all types of complexities start to originate. Hindutva ideology tells that India is a country of the Hindus and therefore other religions are to be brought under the Hindu fold, thus leading to rebellion among the other communities. The acknowledgement is good as far as it is seen from the point of view of an Indian, but when it becomes sole Hindu acknowledgement, there arises various problems. An important aspect of the political realm that results in bad consequences is issuing laws of “restriction” or “favouritism” for a particular religion. Brian J. Grim analyzes the role of government “laws” to protect the “religious right” (Grim 17). Majority of countries with various forms of religious restrictions belong to “Asia or the middle East–North Africa” (Grim 5). These are countries where a high rate of conflicts is seen to occur on a daily basis. With some variations, this is the same in other countries with certain fluctuations. This is mainly due to the fact that restriction brings tendency to break out with force, resulting in persecution. By showing favouritism to a religion, persecution rises resulting in mutiny and different kinds of conflicts. Iraq is an apt example for this kind of turmoil created through favouring Islam. “Constitutional laws,” when unable to provide complete “religious freedom” to people, result in the emergence of various tensions in the socio-religious realm (Grim 20). The first decade of this century has been a witness of these dire consequences. Religion is usually considered as an element representing good as well as the Almighty. But “desecularization” in the modern world is focused on proving that theory wrong (Reychler n.pag,). Reychler talks about the “conflicts” in “Africa, Europe” (from the mid 20th century) and elsewhere which suffered a lot under various consequences arising out of religious misconceptions. Many such issues currently draw the people’s attention towards charging the “militant” attitude of those emphasizing “fundamentalism” (Reychler). Few religious organizations are seen to manipulate religiosity and take “political” advantage of the “escalating” conflicts. It becomes clear that religious orthodoxy can cause unreligious and unethical consequences most of the times. “Still today most violent conflicts contain religious elements linked up with ethno-national, inter-state, economic, territorial, cultural and other issues” (Ibid). A look at Nigerias struggles can clarify this view a little further, as religion stands at the centre of Nigerian hearts. “Nigeria” has been witnessing uncountable conflicts caused by “ethno-religious” clashes since the “1980s,” due to the fact that different ethnic groups belong to different religions (Salawu 346). The two main religions of Nigeria are “Islam” and “Christianity” (Salawu 345). Clashes usually occur between a religious group or an ethnic tribe and another group who follows a different religion. Mutual fear as well as misunderstanding, often occurs as a result of activities undertaken by the religious groups with an aim to create a status of their own as well as to make others accept their ideologies and this ignites any spark of dispute that may arise in the process. The most significant aspect that Salawu brings to fore is that the state also “operates” on the religious-ethnic grounds and tries to solve the issues. Nigerias religious “ideologies” were developed in the “Middle-East” and the global “Moslem” thinking operates the Nigerian social behaviour (Salawu 349). The conflicts, however, are in one way or the other, connected to religious disharmony and intolerance. Religion is very easily, intentionally or unintentionally, articulated to other socio-political elements, which in turn makes the problems worse. As per a survey conducted by the USIP (United States Institute of Peace), “religion” has a hinge point in many of the “international conflicts,” for example the 9/11 attack (Smock 1). David further explains that some nations have made “religion” as their “centre” and all their policies as well as activities revolves around that centre, which often wreaks havoc. According to David, “Muslim” countries such as “Iraq, Iran, Canada, Sudan, Nigeria” are but a few nations that are driven by their religious centre and have experienced various problems in recent history due to it. Suggestions and Remedies: This demands a serious rethinking on the whole issue of religious sensitivity. People have to think thoroughly from all points of view in order to find remedies to tackle these problems. Intolerance can be balanced by a talking frankly and open-mindedly with each other. Only when the differences are accepted, will the misunderstandings and misconceptions disappear. I would whole heartedly suggest that at this juncture, religion should not be shunned or be feared of, but should be respected with good spirit. Every religions primary purposes must be kept in focus, which would help to better understand people who belong to other religions. Moreover, the countries must recognize the sensitivity of religion amidst plurality, and aim to pragmatically deal with this rather than just merely amending laws against violations. Militant attitude should be charged against and radical political ideologies like “Hindutva” in India must be reviewed critically. Conclusion: The paper discusses about the various effects of religion on people and the society, as well as the various conflicts that occur based on religious standpoints. Religion, thus, is seen to play a major role in creating social conflicts. Many issues, though not directly articulated with religion, are indirectly linked with it. Especially, countries with that put a heavy emphasis on religiosity and religious distinctiveness, face troubles in going together with the common attitude and ideologies of a society that consists of diverse and plural systems. Religious dogmatism must be shunned and intolerance must be rethought. Intolerance to each other must be neutralized by adopting various approaches and this would create an overall benefit to the society and the people. Religion has the supreme power to reunite all in universal fraternity, and this is what each individual should bear in mind and, therefore, try to work out the differences with individuals belonging to other religious communities. Annotated Bibliography: Brahm, Eric. “Religion and Conflict.” Beyond Intractability. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. November 2005. Web. 7 Apr 2013. Eric explores the most sensitive facet of the given topic. “Religious dogmas” play a crucial role in promoting conflicts. Dogmas thought of as “divine” and uncompromising, are now seen to create “intolerance” among different religious groups. “Extremists” and “fundamentalists” then pull the trigger thus producing destructive waves, which would indeed one day wipe out the humans from the face of earth if immediate measures are not undertaken to put an end to various conflicts. The respective sects, when they sense any opposition or “threat,” end up in clashes with other groups. “Muslims” and “Hindus” are two religious sects who share a long history of conflicts and are still chained to such issues. The measures of “evangelism” with wrong approaches entail “conflicts” and persecutions. When the gap increases between various religions, mutual understanding decreases and gradually a hate and disgust is created thus making things worse. Eric proposes an excellent remedy to decrease this gap, which is “inter-faith dialogue,” and he recommends it as a very effective tool to work out the various problems arising out of differences of people. Therefore, it can be construed that Erics perspective would help this analysis to get to the roots of the problems. Grim, Brian J “Religion, Law and Social Conflict in the 21st Century: Findings from Sociological Research.” Oxford Journal of Law and Religion Vol. 1, No. 1. 5 Jan 2012. Web. 7 Apr 2013. In his essay, Brian gives a different point of view to explore. The “Pew Forum Research” has put an effort in supplementing ideas from Reychlers analysis in the following paragraph. Brian adds his insight about bad consequences of “restriction” or “favouritism” shown for a particular religion. He also analyses the role of government “laws” to protect the “religious right”. The first decade of this century has been a witness of these harmful consequences. Majority of countries with various forms of religious restrictions belong to “Asia or the middle East–North Africa.” These are countries where a high rate of conflicts is seen to occur on a daily basis. With some variations, this is the same in other countries with certain fluctuations. This is mainly due to the fact that restriction brings tendency to break out with force, resulting in persecution (pp.1-6). By showing favouritism to a religion, persecution rises resulting in mutiny and different kinds of conflicts. Iraq is an apt example for this kind of turmoil created through favouring Islam (pp.11-15). “Constitutional laws,” when unable to provide complete “religious freedom” to people, result in the emergence of various tensions in the socio-religious realm. Brian gives a firm analysis by substantiating the unnoticed religious reasons causing conflicts. This would well support the topic under discussion and so it proves to be a very reliable source. Reychler, Luc. “Religion and Conflict.” The International Journal of Peace Studies. n.p. n.d. Web. 7 Apr 2013. According to Luc Reychlers article “Religion and Conflict,” religion has been considered as an ordinary element and not in anyway as harmful. But the “desecularization” in the modern world has proved this wrong. Reychler talks about the “conflicts” in “Africa, Europe” (from the mid 20th century) and elsewhere which suffered a lot under various consequences arising out of religious misconceptions. Many such issues currently draw the people’s attention towards charging the “militant” attitude of those emphasizing “fundamentalism.” Few religious organizations are seen to manipulate religiosity and take “political” advantage of the “escalating” conflicts. It becomes clear that religious orthodoxy can cause unreligious and unethical consequences most of the times. Reychler does not neglect the need to find remedies for these problems. He discusses about different measures to maintain peace and appeals to partake in this “venture.” However, because the main discussion in the paper is about the role of religion in conflicts, the remedial part can be avoided. Overall, one can get a fresh look on the issues in this concern by clarifying the prejudices and becoming alert. Hence the analysis in this paper finds this source useful. Salawu, B. “Ethno-Religious Conflicts in Nigeria Causal Analysis and Proposals for New Management Strategies.” European Journal of Social Sciences Vol. 13, No. 3. 2010. Web. 7 Apr 2013. Salawu talks about a nation that possesses a heart which pulsates religion in every beat. “Nigeria” has been witnessing uncountable conflicts caused by “ethno-religious” clashes since the “1980s,” due to the fact that different ethnic groups belong to different religions. The two main religions of Nigeria are “Islam” and “Christianity.” Clashes usually occur between a religious group or an “ethnic” tribe and another group who follows a different religion. Mutual “fear” as well as misunderstanding, often occurs as a result of activities undertaken by the religious groups with an aim to create a status of their own as well as to make others accept their ideologies and this ignites any spark of dispute that may arise in the process. The most significant aspect that Salawu brings to fore is that the state also “operates” on the religious-ethnic grounds and tries to solve the issues. Nigerias religious “ideologies” were developed in the “Middle-East” and the global “Moslem” thinking operates the Nigerian social behaviour. The conflicts, however, are in one way or the other, connected to religious disharmony and intolerance. Salawu states religion here as an object which is very easily knowingly or unknowingly articulated to other socio-political elements, which in turn make things worse. This view helps to explore other areas related with religion. Smock, David. Religion in World Affairs. United States Institute of Peace, Special Report 201, February 2008 . USIP has some significant material which would help further in this paper. This report asserts that “religion” has a hinge point in many of the “international conflicts” (e.g: 9/11 attack). Some nations have made “religion” as their “centre” and all their policies as well as activities revolves around that centre, which often wreaks havoc. The “Muslim” countries such as “Iraq, Iran, Canada, Sudan, Nigeria” are but a few nations that are driven by their religious centre and have experienced various problems in recent history due to it. This report supports the analysis in the paper, yet drives one’s attention from the bias as well. The negative effects of religious “intolerance” and misconceptions are basically discussed here and at the same time David reminds the fact that one must not forget about religion being a peace instrument too. Another element to remember is that religion is often “entwined” with other elements like “social, economic, and political” factors, which together result in various conflicts. So religion cannot always be said as the primary and lone reason for all conflicts and wars. However, it is seen to act as one of the root causes of all these problems. This counter argument of this report would allow one to think widely and not radically. Read More