Does Religion Cause War - Research Paper Example

? Does Religion Cause War? Table of Contents I. p.3 II. Does Religion Cause War p.4 III. Literature Review p.4 a. The role of Christianity in causing wars : p.4 b. The role of Islam in causing wars : p.5 c. The role of Jews in causing wars : p.6 IV. Discussion : p.7 V. Conclusions : p.9 VI. References : p.10 I. Abstract The involvement of religion in causing wars is a highly debated topic now. Some people argue that the major reasons behind some of the ongoing conflicts in this world are purely cultural rather than political or economic. They cite Afghan war, Iraq war, conflicts in the Middle East, Kashmir issue etc for substantiating their views and opinion. Even though America was highly secular until recent times, it changed its secular face after 9/11 World Trade Center attack by Al Qaida. Christianity is slowly taking control of American politics now and the rise of the concept of Christian Right is clearly underlines above belief. The ongoing war on terror in Afghanistan and Iraq are motivated culturally rather than politically which is evident from the words of American political leaders itself. In Palestine - Israeli conflict also, religion plays an important role. The conflicts between India and Pakistan also believed to be the clashes between Hindus and Muslims. In short, the involvement of religion in many of the ongoing wars is evident to everybody now. Even though political and religious leaders deny such religious involvement in wars, nobody can deny the fact that wars between similar communities are not occurring whereas wars between different communities or religion are going on now. This paper explores the extent of religious involvement in some of the ongoing wars. II. Does Religion Cause War? The importance of religion in human life cannot be denied under any circumstances because of the huge contributions it provided to the development of human life in different periods of time in the past. In fact religion is the only entity which forces the people to maintain certain morality and ethics in life. While science and technology stressed the importance of human life in this world, religions give more emphasize to the life after death. Majority of the religions describe our earthly life as only a temporary assignment. Moreover religions ask its believers to lead a peaceful and sin free life in this world to achieve permanent or eternal life after death. In short, religions were perceived as the symbols of peace and harmony in the past. However, the scenario has changed a lot in the recent past. “Since September 11, 2001, there has been a revival of the discussion of the just war theory by theologians, as well as political theorists, social philosophers, and the like”(Ali, 2009, p.241). Many of the current sociologists, philosophers, politicians and psychologists are of the view that the major reason behind recent wars was cultural rather than political or economic. According to the prominent American political scientist of the modern era, Samuel Hutington, “the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict are cultural. The clash of civilizations is dominating current global politics” (Hutington,1993, p.22). In short, the involvement of religions in politics is causing major problems like wars, according to many scholars. III. Literature Review: a. The role of Christianity in causing wars According to Kyle (2007), American secularism is undergoing drastic changes in recent times. Many of the theologians and other religious leaders are of the view that America was established on Christian principles and that it is a Christian nation with a special mission. However, the concept of a Christian America has been hijacked by the secularists and feminists in recent times (Kyle, 2007). According to Ray Moore, president of Exodus Mandate, a South Carolina-based group which organizes home-schooling for Christian children, “Political involvement by Christians is not wrong”(Spillius, 2009). In his opinion, spreading of Christianity is the right of every Christian and therefore there is no point in Christians staying away from religiously motivated politics. Rozel & Wilcox (1996) have pointed out the rise of ideology Christian Right as an example to cite the growing influence of religion in political matters in America. They also pointed out that the success of Christian right in American politics was “neither a sudden occurrence nor an accident. It was the result of a calculated, sophisticated strategy to build a disorganized social movement into a formidable party faction with a grassroots oriented network of activists”(Rozel & Wilcox, 1996, p.271). Froese & Mencken (2009) have argued that the major reasons for Iraq war were religious rather than political or economic. In their opinion, “throughout the course of the Iraq War, the Bush Administration has consistently framed its war policy in decidedly religious Language (Froese & Mencken, 2009, p.103).They have also mentioned that many of the comments made by George Bush before and after Iraq war contained elements of religious thoughts, faith and beliefs. Moreover, “Bush’s chief speech writer from 1999 to 2004, Michael Gerson, affirms that he inserted religious language and biblical quotes into nearly all Bush’s speeches, literary references understood by millions of religious Americans” (Froese & Mencken, 2009, p.104). b. Role of Islam in causing wars If Christianity played an important role in forcing America to conduct several wars, it was Islam which caused several wars in Arab world. Ali (2009) has mentioned that the involvement of Islam in politics started not in recent times, but in the time of the Prophet Mohammad himself. “Islam began the process of political rule, exercise of power, and even the exertion of political will and exercise of force; and the formation of a highly effective governance and expansion” (Ali, 2009, p.239). For Islam, the concepts of war, battle, and conduct of war, among other things, are not some accretion that has to be theologically justified after well over 300 years of life of the faith, but rather they are central to the formation of Islamic theology, jurisprudence, and ethics, because they happen during the life of the Prophet and during the process of revelation itself (Ali, 2009, p.240). The term jihad is often cited for proving the liberal views of Islam towards wars. Even Muslim scholars are not ruling out the importance of jihad in Islamic beliefs. According to Ali (2009), “In recent years jihad has become one of the most frequently used terms by the Islamists who see jihad, along with sharia as an indispensible triad for the regeneration of Islamic faith and the Muslim community” (Ali, 2009, p.243). c. Role of Jews in causing wars Jewish belief also has no problems in supporting wars for saving religion and country. Dr. Da’na (2009) has pointed out that the rise of neo-liberal Zionism in Israel marked by the Likud party ascendance to power, the increasing political sway of Israel’s right-wing, and the decline of labour Zionism as the major reasons for the growing influence of religion upon politics in Israel (Dr. Da’na, 2009, p.212). A short survey of the relevant trends in Islam reveal that the New Islam, rising in the post nation-state moment reinvented not only traditional theology, but also nationalist politics as well, producing the latest brand of Arab nationalism. The new Islam, it is possible to argue, is the new Arab nationalism given both the structure of its political discourse and the failure of earlier secular brands (Dr. Da’na, 2009, p.216). America’s soft corners towards Israel are heavily criticized by Muslims all over the world. Many people have the belief that America and Israel have formed a nexus to destroy Islam. They are of the view that Islam is the common enemy for America and Israel and therefore America’s foreign policies towards Israel and Arab world are entirely different. Shannon(2003) has pointed out that “There are several lenses through which one can interpret US policies aimed at the Arab-Israeli conflict like, contrasting national interests, special relationship politics with Israel, bureaucratic politics and individual beliefs” (Shannon, 2003,p. 3). Avineri Shlomo (2001), in his article, A Realistic U.S. Role in the Arab-Israeli Conflict, wrote that in the post-September 11 context, Israelis hope that the United States-now a victim of massive domestic terrorism-will have more sympathy for them while Palestinians hope that the United States will revive peace talks (Avineri, 2001). India and Pakistan fought two wars over Kashmir issue. The ownership of Kashmir is claimed both by Hindu dominated India and Muslim dominated Pakistan. Both the parties are currently occupying some portions of Kashmir. The conflicts between India and Pakistan are also religiously motivated. The most notable one is the expulsions of the non-Muslim communities both from the Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and also from the Srinagar valley of the Indian held Kashmir. Non-Muslims were driven out from the Pakistan occupied areas of Baltistan, Skardhu, Hunza and Gilgit, the four semi-independent kingdoms associated with the state of the Jammu and Kashmir; there are large-scale infiltrations of Muslims into traditional Buddhist area Ladakh and the Hindu areas of Jammu (Kashmir problem - Islamic Republic of Pakistan v/s Secular Republic of India, n.d) IV. Discussion Earlier Christians in America showed little interests in spreading their religion. In fact Christianity stayed away from interfering in politics until recent times. However, 9/11 gave momentum to the Christianization of America. It should be noted that America was one of the most liberal countries in the world in which people from all over the word had the freedom to spread their religion. However, America’s faces as a secular democratic state is slowly changing especially after the 9/11 incident. Even though many of the external political observers heavily criticized America’s war in Afghanistan and Iraq in the aftermath of 9/11, majority of Americans extended strong support to these wars. In other words, Americans started to think differently after 9/11 incident. They started to realize that it is illogical to remain silent when other religions try to dominate their religion. The election victory of President Bush is often cited as the best example for growing influence of religion or Christianity in American politics. Before the elections, many people thought that Al Gore may get easy walkover in the presidential election. Al Gore was a charismatic personality in American politics at that time and his liberal views on various political issues attracted many Americans. However, Americans decided to elect Bush ahead of Gore, only because of Bush’s strong belief in Christianity. It should be noted that Bush belongs to conservative party which gives more importance to religious beliefs and traditions compared to Democrats. Even though America cited numerous reasons for Iraq war and Afghan war, many people believe that America is consciously engaged in an effort to baptize Arab world. Apart from China, Islamic world is causing big headaches to America’s efforts to rule the entire world. After the destruction of former Soviet Union, America became the sole superpower in this world. They wanted to rule the world without many resistances from any corners. Islamic countries such as Iran, Iraq and Libya were able to resist American challenges until recent times. America did succeed in bringing Iraq and Libya under its control through wars whereas Iran is still resisting America’s effort to dominate Middle East politics. Iran is currently developing nuclear weapons in order to resist challenges from Israel and America. Both Israel and America do not want Iran to become a nuclear power. They are currently making every possible move to prevent Iran from developing nuclear arsenal. It should be noted that America has no problems in Israel making nuclear weapons. It is an accepted fact that Israel possesses nuclear weapons even from 1960’s and 70’s even though they are not ready to accept such claims. In short, America is following different policies with respect to the development of nuclear arsenal in the case of Israel. This is purely because of cultural similarities between Jews and Christians. In other words, America does not like Muslim or Hindu countries developing nuclear arsenal. It should be noted that America has lifted the nuclear embargo upon India only in recent times and that because of unavoidable circumstances. Many people outside Muslim community are of the view that Islam is actually encouraging wars. It is a fact that the call for Jihad (sacred war) against enemies of Islam is justified by many of the Islamic scholars. For Islam, religion is the preliminary thing whereas politics is only secondary. That is why in majority of the Islamic countries, Islamic administrations are prevailing. Islamic administrators know that democracy may prevent them from continuing in power and that is why they strongly oppose any movement to democratize their country. For example, it is not easy to democratize Islamic countries such as Saudi Arabia in which religion plays an important role in politics. At the same time, in majority of the other countries, democracy is currently prevailing. This because of the fact that Islam shows less tolerance towards democracy compared to other religions. So any effort made by external sources to democratize Islamic world would be perceived as an attempt destroy Islam by the people in those countries. Perhaps, Islam is the most adamant religion as far as beliefs and traditions are concerned. They are not ready to dilute their beliefs and customs under any circumstances. So any attempts made by others to cultivate new thoughts in their soil will be perceived as an agitation against their religion. It should be noted that even Hosni Mubarak, Saddam Husain and Gadhafi like Islamic dictators did everything possible to exploit the sentiments of their religion in a last minute attempt to stay in power. They described the agitations in their country as an attack against Islam rather than an attack against some individuals. Arab – Israel conflict has history of thousands of years. In holy Bible, different incidents were mentioned about Arab-Palestine wars and conflicts. In fact, Arab – Israeli conflict has multi dimensions. For Jews, the land of Canan was offered to them by the God even though it is situated in Palestine. However, Palestine cannot accept the claims of Israel. In their opinion, land Canan is offered to them by their father Abraham. Jerusalem and Bethlehem are sacred places for Christians also as Jesus has taken birth in Bethlehem and spent majority of his times in Jerusalem. It should be noted that Christians, Jews and Muslims have a common father in Abraham and therefore these religions are often referred as Abrahamic religions. Because of the common origin in Abraham, many of the places in Jerusalem are disputed now as all the three religions have claims on these places. India and Pakistan fought many wars in the past over Kashmir issue. Moreover, both India and Pakistan came close to a war in recent times because of the Mumbai terrorist attack. India alleged that Pak sponsored terrorists were responsible for Mumbai attack. Pak involvement in Indian parliament attack was also suspected by Indian leaders. It should be noted that Pakistan is trying to create problems in India not only because of Kashmir issue, but also because of the destruction of Babri Masjid in Agra by some Hindu fundamentalists. Pakistanis believe that Muslims in India are facing huge discriminations and torture from the hands of Hindus and therefore it is their duty to help Muslims in India. In short, the major reasons behind India – Pakistan conflicts are religious rather than political or economic. V. Conclusions The role of religion in causing wars cannot be neglected under any circumstances when we go deeply into the reasons of some of the ongoing wars. Religious fundamentalism is growing day by day now and even some of the most advanced and civilized countries like America are not free from it. In America, the development of the concept of Christian Right is playing a vital role in deciding America’s foreign policies. After 9/11 incidents, Americans are increasingly aware of the necessities of spreading Christianity all over the world. The reasons for ongoing Iraq and Afghan wars and the rapidly developing crisis with Iran are cultural rather than political or economic. Israel –Palestine conflicts and India- Pakistan conflicts are other examples which underline the role religions played in causing wars. Israel does not like the establishment of a Muslim state in its immediate neighborhood. So they are doing everything possible to destabilize Palestinians. On the other hand, Pakistan does not like the rise of India as a world power. So they are trying to create problems in India to slow down India’s economic progress. In short, cultural differences or different religious beliefs are causing conflicts or wars. VI. References 1. Avineri S. (2001). A Realistic U.S. Role in the Arab-Israeli Conflict, Retrieved from http://www.carnegieendowment.org/publications/index.cfm?fa=view&id=866 2. Ali C.W.A. (2009). Jihad and Just War Theory: Dissonance and Truth. Dialog: A Journal of Theology • Volume 48, Number 3 • Fall 2009 • September 3. Dr. Da’na S. (2009). Islamic resistance in Palestine: Hamas, the Gaza war and the future of political Islam. DOI: 10.3366/E1474947509000559 4. Froese P & Mencken F.C. (2009). A U.S. Holy War? The Effects of Religion on Iraq War Policy Attitudes. Social Science Quarterly. Volume 90, Number 1, March 2009 5. Hutington S.P. (1993). The Clash of Civilizations?. Foreign affairs. Vol. 72, Number 3, 6. Kyle R. (2007). The Bedrock Beliefs of the Christian Right. Direct Journal. Spring 2007 Vol. 36 No. 1 · 31-42 http://www.directionjournal.org/article/?1463 7. Kashmir problem - Islamic Republic of Pakistan v/s Secular Republic of India, (n.d.). Retrieved from http://hinduworld.tripod.com/views/kashmir.html 8. Rozel M.J & Wilcox C (1996). Second coming: the strategies of new Christian right. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/pss/2152322 9. Shannon V P.(2003). Balancing Act: Us Foreign Policy and the Arab-Israeli Conflict (Us Foreign Policy and Conflict in the Islamic World) Ashgate Publishing (August 2003) 10. Spillius A. (2009). US religious Right concedes defeat. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/barackobama/5136050/US-religious- Right-concedes-defeat.html Read More