The concept of martyrdom is not exclusive to any distinct religion, faith, or society. Becoming a martyr is an idea that has been embraced by many different people with very different beliefs and ideas. A martyr by definition is “a person who willingly suffers death rather than renounce his or her religion. (Dictionary.com) Although this definition varies depending on who is asked, the basic idea is that martyrdom is influenced by religion. The act of giving ones life for a religious cause is what makes someone a martyr. Due to the many different beliefs of what a martyr is, becoming a martyr in different religions means different things and is achieved through different acts. Some people may give their life for others, some may take their own, and a few may take innocent lives in combination with their own.
Contrary to popular belief, martyrdom is not an idea exclusive to Islam. Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, also known as the Semitic faiths, all believe in the concept of becoming a martyr. The only difference regarding martyrdom between these three religions is that the motivating factors and path to becoming a martyr changed over time to best fit each individual doctrine. (Hakam) Christianity itself is based on the belief that Jesus Christ gave his life to wash away the sins of man. This could be considered the greatest act of martyrdom of all time. In order to preserve the innocence of his followers and save their souls, Jesus was tortured and willingly crucified knowing that he was giving his life for a bigger cause. Jesus Christ hoped that by giving his life he would give mankind a second chance. This is why many Christians devote their lives to living a life free of sin with hopes of going to heaven after their time h...
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...e defending their faith.
Works Cited
Martyr. Dictionary.com. LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2011, from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/martyr
Hakam, S. (n.d.). The concept of martyrdom and sikhism. Retrieved from http://www.globalsikhstudies.net/articles/The Concept of Martyrdom and Sikhism-Dr Hakam Singh.pdf
Greenberg, I. Israeli Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Tourism. (n.d.). Masada: desert fortress overlooking the dead sea. Retrieved from http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Archaeology/Masada1.html
Zarick, A. (2007). Shades of martyrdom. Dean's Book Course, 2. Retrieved from http://scholar.googleusercontent.com/scholar?q=cache:9vRoYLhK_6QJ:scholar.google.com/ shades of martyrdom Allison Zarick&hl=en&as_sdt=0,3
Pakin, Tern Toles. "Explosive Baggage: Female Palestinian Suicide Bombers and the Rhetoric of Emotion." Women and Language Fall 2002: 79-88
Anson Rainey and R. Steven Notley are the authors of The Sacred Land Bridge, which is an Atlas of the biblical world and includes maps, pictures, and historical cementation as to the significance of this region. The biblical world that this atlas focuses on is defined as the eastern Mediterranean littoral, or more commonly called the Levant in modern archeological discussions. In my critique of this book I will be focusing on pages 30-34 which will define the boundaries and explain the importance of the Levant.
In Robert Pape’s Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism he investigates the three hundred and fifteen suicide terrorist attacks that have occurred from its beginning in 1980 up until 2003. By examining these attacks he explains the three logics behind suicide terrorism, the strategic, the social, and the individual logic. Pape uses Dying to Win as a tool to educate the public on suicide terrorism. He hopes people will begin to understand that it is not irrational, but requires reason and strategy. He brings to light that suicide terrorism is not directly correlated with Islamic fundamentalism, but rather political objectives, trying to put to rest many preconceived notions. By understanding the logic behind suicide terrorism people can work together to prevent it from happening in the future. After reading this book it is clear that suicide terrorism is not random, but does demand some thought in order for it to work.
Trofin, Liliana and Madalina Tomescu. “Women’s Rights in the Middle East”. Contemporary Readings in Law and Social Justice Vol. 2(1). 1948-9137 (2010): 152-157.
Surprisingly, the Christian martyrs did not care that they were sentenced to death. They believed that by dying for what they believe, it would only bring them closer to God and the Gates of Heaven. The document states, “For this cause have we devoted our lives, that we might do no such thing as this; this we agreed with you” (para. 18). To the martyrs, nothing was more important than fulfilling God’s duties.
Anyone willing to die for a cause is obviously wholly committed to it. Sincere, genuine belief is par for the course in martyrdom. Muslim radicals who martyr themselves for the sake of their faith are obviously committed to their beliefs. The difference in Christian martyrdom, however, is that the apostles died for a belief they claimed to have seen with their own eyes. “There is a massive difference between willingly dying for the sake of the religious ideas accepted from the testimony of others (Muslim radicals) and willingly dying for the proclamation of a faith based upon one 's own eyewitness account (apostles).”3
Martyrdom helped to spread Christianity because when people heard about the deaths, they realized that Christianity was important enough for people to die for. For example, Perpetua, a Christian martyr was killed because she went against the Roman emperor’s law in order to be baptized and convert to Christianity. Since she sacrificed her life and died a terrible death in order to join the religion she believed in, many decided to convert to Christianity. Additionally, she wrote about her belief that she would go to
Sartwell, Crispin. "The Genocidal Killer in the Mirror." Writing and Reading for ACP Composition. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Custom, 2009. 252-54. Print.
A martyr is a person that defends a principle, even though it means giving up everything that is important to that person (Webster 236). Some martyr's are put in jail for standing up for Jesus Christ or God. Most martyrs are killed because of their beliefs. Martyrs are the strange ones who challenge society with a different way of thinking. They are the rebels and heretics of today (dc Talk 6). For some, standing up for Jesus actually means dying for Him (dc Talk 7). In John 15:13 NIV Jesus says, "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." Today some people refer to martyrs as Jesus Freaks. The very nature of Jesus Freaks is to thrust away from the mob mentality, away from the things that society tells us to care about (dc Talk 8).
Gerber Hansuli John, “The Road to Nonviolence”. www.amaricamagazine.org October 18, 2010. Web December 26, 2010.
White, Matthew. Selected Death Tolls for Wars, Massacres, and Atrocites Before the 20th Century. 1999-2010. Document. 30 October 2013.
Lila Abu-Lughod’s article titled, “Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving?” takes a closer look at the problematic ethnocentric approach many have when trying to gain an understanding of another culture that may be foreign to that individual. In this analytical paper, Lughod looks at women in Islam, specifically the treatment of women and how it might be utilized as a justification for invading into a country and liberating its people. The country Lughod refers to in her article is Afghanistan, and Lughod points out the misunderstanding from the people to the Bush administration like First Lady Laura Bush who believed that intervention was necessary to free women from the captivity of their own homes. It is important to consider the role that different lenses play into all of this, especially when one’s lenses are being shaped by the media. Depictions of covered women secluded from society leave a permanent image in the minds of many, who would then later support the idea of liberation. This paper will discuss that the practice of using propaganda when referring to the lifestyle in the Middle East is not exclusive to the U.S; rather it has been utilized throughout history. Additionally, we will take a closer look on the importance of symbols, such as veils in this case; help to further emphasize the cause to liberate. Finally, we will analyze Lughod’s plea towards cultural relativism and away from liberal imperialism.
Universal pacifists are morally opposed to all violence, not just killing. And many universal pacifists derive their views from christian gospel. Immanuel Kant believed that morally proper action consists in choosing to act in such a way that your conduct could serve as an example for all mankind. Some universal pacifists appeal to this idea, arguing that if everyone were a pacifists then the world would be a much better place. Leo Tolstoy, who, in his early years, was a nihilist, and later in life became a fervent christian pacifist or anarcho-pacifist wrote this in his book My Religion or What I Believe, which is a comprehensive explanation of his faith, “Instead of regarding it as natural that our entire existence should be controlled by coercion; that every one of our amusements should be provided and maintained by force; that each of us from childhood to old age should be by turns victim and executioner instead of this I tried to picture the results if, by precept and example, we endeavored to inspire the world with the conviction that vengeance is a sentiment unworthy of humanity; that violence is not o...
The Web. The Web. 7 Feb. 2012. Krause, Wanda C. "Gender: Gender and Politics." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa.
McLeod, W. H. (2004). Sikhs and Sikhism. Oxford India paperbacks. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
As an Arab American, a Muslim and a woman writer, Mohja Kahf challenges the stereotypes and misrepresentation of Arab and Muslim women. Her style is always marked by humor, sarcasm, anger and confrontation. “The Marvelous Women,” “The Woman Dear to Herself,” “Hijab Scene #7” and “Hijab Scene #5” are examples of Kahf’s anger of stereotypes about Muslim women and her attempts to fight in order to eradicate them, in addition to her encouragement to women who help her and fight for their rights.