Posts Tagged ‘ belief ’

The killing of Osama bin Laden may only have turned us into our enemies

May 30, 2011
By

Giles Fraser, Guardian – Comment is free, May 24, www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2011/may/24/violence-the-soft-option

Last week, the American catholic intellectual George Weigel had another go at “soft-minded and ill-informed religious leaders”, especially in “Old Europe”, for their discomfort at the manner of Osama bin Laden’s death. “The death of Osama bin Laden demonstrated yet again how badly the just war tradition has been received by its intellectual custodians.”

I do not weep that Bin Laden is dead. But he was not the only casualty of that moonless night in Abbottabad. For the idea that it can be just for an unarmed man to be gunned down in his bedclothes conflates justice and revenge in a way that flies in the face of the clear teachings of Jesus, who urged his followers not to respond to the violence of the other in the same manner.

Read the complete article here.

Now Let the Healing Begin

May 2, 2011
By

Farooq Murad, Muslim Council of Britain, May 2, www.mcb.org.uk/media/presstext.php?ann_id=444

Farooq Murad, the Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain, made the following statement on the reported death of Osama bin Laden:

“Few will mourn the reported death of Osama bin Laden, least of all Muslims. Many Muslims will reflect on the ten years that have passed in which our faith and our community have been seen through the prism of terrorism and security. The Muslim Council of Britain has consistently stood firm against terrorism and violence, and will continue to do so. His extremism has been responsible for the deaths of many people, including many Muslims around the world. The actions of his movement which have no basis in the teachings of Islam have led to the pursuit of unjust wars and untold suffering.

Today our thoughts must be with the families of all those who suffered in the terrorist attacks around the world as well as of thousands of innocent lives lost in the wars against terrorism. It is unfortunate that his assassination has deprived them of the opportunity to see him brought to justice in the court of law.

Al-Qaeda’s ability to sow discord and mistrust between Muslims and others has caused untold damage. We must restore our belief in human dignity and peace by ensuring that we stand firm against all forms of hatred, injustices and violence.”

This is the complete article.
 

 

Muslims back Christian electrician over van cross

April 23, 2011
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Nick Fagge, Daily Mail, Apr.20, www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1378704/Muslims-backing-Christian-electrician-persecuted-cross-van.html#ixzz1KLJMQPxB

Hindu, Muslim and Sikh leaders last night offered support to electrician Colin Atkinson who faces the sack for making a stand over his Christian beliefs.

The religious leaders joined former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey to demand that the 64-year-old grandfather be allowed to mark Easter by displaying a tiny palm cross in his work van.

Mr Atkinson has been thrown out of his workplace and fears he will lose his job at Wakefield District Housing (WDH) because he refuses to remove the cross.

Christian leaders have condemned his treatment as ‘scandalous’.

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey described Mr Atkinson’s case as ‘an outrage’.

And last night Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs added their voices to the uproar.

Read the complete article here.

Other Resources

April 6, 2011
By

Values in Harmony

A resource produced by Geoff Lachlan for the Scottish Inter Faith Council in 2009, “Values in Harmony”. This includes comparative versions of the Golden Rule as found in the writings of 11 faith and belief communities and can be downloaded from

www.scottishinterfaithcouncil.org/resources/VALUES+IN+HARMONY.pdf

 

‘Belief in Dialogue – a Good Practice Guide’

This resource aims to encourage constructive dialogue between those who hold religious beliefs and those that do not hold religious beliefs.

Belief in Dialogue has been produced for the Scottish Government, and contains case studies of good interfaith practice in a number of diverse situations.

You can download the guide as a pdf from  www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/03/22143221/0

International Golden Rule Day – 5 April

April 6, 2011
By

Ekklesia, Apr.5, www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/14491

Today has been designated International Golden Rule Day.

The idea is to stop and ask ourselves and our neighbours how our lives might be different if the Golden Rule was lived… individually, in community, in our faith groups and denominations, in the city, the region, the nation, and the world.

The Golden Rule is expressed in the words of Jesus recorded in two of the Gospels as follows: “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7.12) and “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (Luke 6.31).

Many religions and spiritual teachers express this positive reciprocal responsibility in slightly different ways, points out the Rev Bosco Peters from New Zealand, who runs a wide-ranging liturgical resource website at: http://www.liturgy.co.nz/.

There is also a negative way of expressing a similar concept – the so-called “silver rule”: “One should not treat others in ways that one would not like to be treated”.

2009 was the International Year of Reconciliation. Religious Leaders of Ethiopia proclaimed 5 April as the Golden Rule Day.

Ambassador Mussie Hailu was the chair of the Interfaith Peace-building Initiative and the representative of United Religions Initiative to the United Nations Economic Commission of Africa. He had Golden Rule Day endorsed by the United Nations. It is now recognised by numerous organisations around the world.

The back-story is here – http://allafrica.com/stories/200909230374.html

A resource produced by Geoff Lachlan for the Scottish Inter Faith Council in 2009, “Values in Harmony”. This includes comparative versions of the Golden Rule as found in the writings of 11 faith and belief communities and can be downloaded from www.scottishinterfaithcouncil.org/resources/VALUES+IN+HARMONY.pdf

 

Polytheism and Monotheism: A Hindu Perspective

April 2, 2011
By

Ramdas Lamb, Huffington Post, Mar.31, www.huffingtonpost.com/ramdas-lamb/polytheism-and-monotheism_b_841905.html

Today, the two most popular theological beliefs in the West are monotheism (the belief in a single all-powerful divinity) and atheism (the belief that there is no divine entity). The Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam preach the former, while those who base their world view exclusively on material or scientific rationality tend to adhere to the latter. Yet, in much of the rest of the world, polytheism, or a belief in multiple divinities, has been a long held and popular conviction.

In Hinduism, polytheism and monotheism coexist in a relationship much like the parts of a wheel. The many deities are like the spokes, all of which emanate from the hub and each playing an important role. The more common of these deities to be propitiated by rural agriculturalists Bhudevi (Mother Earth), Surya (the Sun God), Ganesh (Lord of Auspiciousness and Success), regional deities, and various river goddesses. Among the myriad of others who receive attention and reverence are Lakshmi (Goddess of Wealth), Saraswati (Goddess of Knowledge and Learning), and Hanuman (Devotion Incarnate), to name just a few. Countless deities are regularly propitiated, often together.

Then, there is the Hindu form of monotheism, in which the Divine is formally referred to as Brahman (not Brahmin, the priestly caste). It is said to be the source, the hub, from which all deities are manifest. It transcends all attempts at defining or qualifying it. It is not male nor female, has no form or description.

The merging of polytheistic and monotheistic concepts in this way is unique to Hinduism. It allows people to believe in and pray to their own conceptualizations of the divine in whatever form they choose, while at the same time elevating all of them to their ultimate reality, which is the singular omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient divinity, who demands no allegiance, punishes no one for lack of belief, yet provides wisdom, comfort, compassion, and freedom to those who seek it. All they need to do is look within.

Read the complete article here.

‘Belief in Dialogue – a Good Practice Guide

March 28, 2011
By

This is a link to the ‘Belief in Dialogue – a Good Practice Guide’ which aims to encourage constructive dialogue between those who hold religious beliefs and those that do not hold religious beliefs.

Belief in Dialogue has been produced for the Scottish Government, and contains case studies of good interfaith practice in a number of diverse situations.

You can download the guide as a pdf at www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/03/22143221/0

Christian-Muslim tension in Egypt: religious freedom must prevail

March 17, 2011
By

Leonard Leo  and Elizabeth H. Prodromou, Washington Post, Mar.16, www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/guest-voices/post/christian-muslim-tension-in-egypt-religious-freedom-must-prevail/2011/03/16/ABaXRIe_blog.html

While the world remains focused on how Egypt’s court of public opinion drove an autocrat from power, an Egyptian court of law recently rendered a verdict that is dismaying for those seeking a more democratic future.

Late last month, an Egyptian emergency court acquitted two of the original three men accused of the religiously motivated murder of six Coptic Orthodox Christians, along with one Muslim guard, in the town of Naga Hammadi on Coptic Christmas eve in January 2010.

While Hosni Mubarak’s resignation could be the first step toward advancing the rule of the majority, the Naga Hammadi verdict could signal a regrettable step backward in the fight for protecting the rights of individuals and minorities, especially the pivotal right of freedom of religion or belief.

Read the complete article here.

While the world remains focused on how Egypt’s court of public opinion drove an autocrat from power, an Egyptian court of law recently rendered a verdict that is dismaying for those seeking a more democratic future.

Blasphemy Laws Are Against Islam

March 17, 2011
By

Salam Al Marayati, Huffington Post, Mar.16, www.huffingtonpost.com/salam-al-marayati/need-to-oppose-blasphemy-_b_836290.html

Blasphemy laws or laws prohibiting defamation of a religion are incompatible with Islamic thought and philosophy. The concept of Defamation of Religions denies a person their free will to choose — one of God’s greatest gifts to humanity — and deprives individuals of their right to free speech and expression. It also creates a climate of intolerance that can breed discrimination and violence.

This was the message I delivered last week during a Human Rights First panel discussion in Geneva, where the United Nations Human Rights Council is expected to discuss a resolution seeking this week to criminalize “defamation of religions,” as it has done several years for the past decade.

The Quran mandates “there shall be no coercion in matters of faith” (2:256). This Quranic injunction is meant to protect freedom of religious belief and expression for all people; it is also meant to prohibit any government or group of people from intruding on the private lives of its people. Islam calls for the freedom, not for the suppression, of free speech and it condemns violations of fundamental human rights.

People of all faiths need states and international bodies to protect them when they are discriminated against based on their religion. Unfortunately, they are not getting any such protection. For example, Europe has not faired well on guaranteeing freedom of religion for its Muslim citizens.

Read the complete article here.

How Can Germany’s Interior Minister Do the Job?

March 11, 2011
By

Editorial, New York Times, Mar.8, www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/opinion/09wed3.html?_r=1&ref=religionandbelief

Germany’s new interior minister, Hans-Peter Friedrich, has gotten off to a disturbing, loathsome start. Just three days after Chancellor Angela Merkel named him to the position, Mr. Friedrich told reporters that Islam, the religion of four million Germans, did not really belong in Germany because it was not rooted in the country’s long Christian history and way of life.

That kind of thinking — casting four million Germans out of some mythic community of true Germans because of their religion — is not just shockingly offensive. It makes it hard to see how Mr. Friedrich can ever succeed at his job.

Read the complete article here.