Most devout Christians would take offense if someone claimed that the story that proves their existence is in fact a myth. A myth is not just some story to the people, but rather a truth. They forget that a story can be false. According to the text Exploring Religion, “Myths are distinguishable from other forms of sacred stories in that they are more fabulous than realistic, more imaginative than factual, and more evocative than analytical” (Schmidt 185). Myths help us to make sense of things, and also give us purpose.
Muslims are living in fear from the public hate and the government’s intentions on dismantling the civil rights of this minority, using three specific factors which have instigated this fear. These factors are government action, irresponsible media, and the hate speech of some national leaders. ‘Government action ' has done a great deal to undermine the self-confidence of Muslims. Arrests, special registration, police raids, FBI interrogations, profiling at airports, and secret evidence have left Muslims, particularly men, feeling insecure and even paranoid. Since 9/11, mainstream media, generally, have taken up the cause of the government and fully support the 'war on terror.'
Because of the way Muslims are viewed by other religions and the negative publicity the culture has gained, the media does not think twice to blame the Islam religion for everything and anything that is related to it. "You receive constant messages about how your community is full of terrorists, ignorant people, oppressive people." (Esposito, J. L. (n.d). Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam. )—How is one supposed to feel when the media has pigeonholed their culture/religion?
Christianity, like most traditions, has always had a violent side. The bloody history of the tradition has provided images as disturbing as those provided by Islam or Sikhism, and violent conflict is vividly portrayed in both
In discussion of Pascal’s wager, one issue has been the persuasiveness of Pascal’s argument, as well as the holes in some of his reasoning. On the one hand, Simon Blackburn argues that we know nothing about this “God” we are supposed to believe in, so we do not know whether this is a jealous God who will send people to hell for not believing in Him, or if this “God” is the Christian God that Pascal presents. Blackburn eventually states that regardless of which type of God exists, “a God that punishes belief is just as likely, and a lot more reasonable, than one that punishes disbelief.” On the other hand, Linda Zagzebski contends that Pascal does have a compelling argument, yet his reasoning is flawed. Zagzebski states that it is wrong for people to believe in God because of their self-interest, based around the fact that if they do believe in God and if he does exist, they will be rewarded with infinite gain. Furthermore, Zagzebski employs an intriguing analogy by comparing one who chooses to believe in God just for infinite gain is similar to someone who chooses a mate with a high income, and then tries to love that person.
Jihad is supposed to be an internal struggle however; people often confuse it with an external struggle in which they use violence for dominance. “Despite the fact that Jihad is not supposed to include aggressive warfare, this has occurred. Jihad means to counter such threats and assert the predominance of Islam.” Intercollegiate Review; Spring2002, Vol. 37 Issue 2, p24-32, 9p Just and Unjust War in the Terrorist Age. Many people consider Jihad to be a movement which causes a problem in the Muslim community because of the misinterpretation of the religious beliefs.
Jesus is acknowledged by the Islamic faith as a prophet. They do not believe that Jesus was executed, but rather taken away from the situation by God, or Allah, before any harm was done. The crucifixion and resurrection are not part of their texts. Now, because of the opposing views on the two different religions, Muslims and Christians have been in disagreement for many, many years. The main disagreement being that Christians believe that all men are created equal and Muslims believe that they are the chosen ones and all others are considered infidels.
Atheist may feel their punishment is complete once they served their sentence, but since Christians believe taking someone’s life is committing a sin; they therefore question the likelihood of their soul entering into heaven. This principle held by Christians lays a greater feeling of sorrow for their decisions. Many people have been raised upon the idea of what is right or wrong, but it is evident that not everyone can come to an agreeable term. The religious and nonreligious laws have affected the decisions one would make. Yet, the history of a person’s background will determine the feelings they have towards their own
- Religion; Religion is a very well know way for starting a war or a conflict. If people have different religious views, it can cause conflict between them as they believe in different gods or ways of life. An example of a Religious conflict is what is happening in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland conflict began because many Irish Catholics consider themselves to be the Irish nationals and want to be separate from Britain whereas others consider themselves to be British and have a political outlook on
* The sources used as cited above clearly indicate the reasoning behind euthanasia not being acceptable in the religious arena. They clearly state that only God has the right to give and take life and we overstep the boundaries by taking our death into our own hands. * The sources also indicate that euthanasia is considered murder in many religions and that it interferes with the circle of life and rebirth. * This particular argument is difficult to substantiate because it is not necessarily based on fact. The assumptions are only valid if the person reviewing them has a belief in the