Characterize and analyse differing Muslim or Christian attitudes to possession of holy land or holy sites that might constrain peacemaking and explain alternative Muslim or Christian points of view that might facilitate peacemaking.
Many Christian communities have ancient claims to the holy land of Jerusalem, which might constrain peacemaking within the area because their claims often conflict with various other religious and political claims; thus causing further disagreement rather than solving it. Disagreement can also be seen amongst different Christian communities because their approach to the Bible varies. Commonly Christians would refer to the Bible as a “source of strength” (Ateek, 1989, p.75) because it leads them to a solution; in this scenario the solution would be positive peace. However, many Christians in the West have used the Bible to support injustice (Ateek, 1989, p.76). They are often referred to as Christian
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fundamentalists or Christian Zionists, because they support the idea that the Jewish people need to return to the Jerusalem in order to fulfil Biblical prophecy. The disagreement stems from the divide in opinion of what the true word of the Bible is. On one hand there is the fundamentalists who use the Bible to validate their subjective claims and prejudices. On the other hand, there is the Palestinian Christians who are searching for a hermeneutic, which will identify the true word of God (Ateek, 1989, p.79). This is the same divide between Jewish people and Zionists. For the Christians, Jesus is the ultimate key to understanding the true meaning of God’s word; as a result of understanding the true meaning of God, peace can be reached because of the universal acceptance of the word of God. Therefore, Christianity can facilitate peacemaking. Take Genesis 17:8 for example: The Old Testament says the Jewish people will reside in the land as a foreigner (Genesis 17:8); therefore, they are outcaste from the rest of the community. However, Jesus tells us not to neglect strangers, but show them hospitality (Hebrews 13:2) because it is God who has welcomed them to the land; therefore, they should not quarrel over varying opinions (Romans 14:1-4). When taking this into consideration, it is clear to see Jesus deciphered the underlying word of God, making it easy for various religions to live in Jerusalem. However, the Christian fundamentalists understand God will protect them, and curse those who dishonour them (Genesis 12:3). They take examples from the Bible, such as the exodus from Egypt in which God supported the Jewish rebellion against the Pharaoh by sending the 10 Plagues (Exodus 9:14). The fundamentalists believe that God supports acts of injustice if it is for the benefit the Jewish/Christian people. Therefore, Zionists view persecution of the Muslims and Arabs in Jerusalem as acceptable because it is God’s plan for Jews to live there. However, the examples the Zionists are using can be viewed as unsuitable. Take the exodus from Egypt as an example, the Hebrews were being persecuted and enslaved by the Egyptians, so God was acting in accordance with his covenant: curse those who dishonour you (Genesis 12:3). In the Israel/Palestine conflict, the Jewish people are not being oppressed by the Muslims; thus, it is unreasonable to assume that God would support their condemnation of the Muslims and Arabs. In conclusion, the Christian claim to the land predates the beginning of the fundamentalists settlement in the land (Nazir-Ali, 2006, p.207), but both Christian views of the possession of the land can be validated by their explanation; thus, causing a constraint against peacemaking.
The fundamentalist approach to gaining possession of the land will more than likely result in negative peace being achieved, because it is not achieved by peaceful means. Therefore, it could be suggested that the peace would not last. Furthermore, the Christians are stereotypically considered “good hearted,” so it is hard to understand how many can agree with the oppression of the Arabs and the Muslims (Ateek, 1989, p.76). So by allowing the Bible to be open to interpretation, the “good hearted” Christians accept varying religions living in one state. This would be an example of positive peace because it would allow for structural integration, which has been achieved without violence. Therefore, it is possible that Christians can facilitate
peacemaking.
During The First Crusade peasants and knights alike fought for God and glory travelling east towards Jerusalem. In 1099 Christian forces reached Jerusalem and prepared for recapture. The western crusaders attacked the city and gained control of it. During the capture of Jerusalem, the crusading forces massacred not only Muslims, but Jews and even other Christians. Men women and children alike, no one was safe from these crusaders who did what they wanted. They butchered Jerusalem’s inhabitants in the streets, without care of what God might think (which is ironic considering this w...
Brenda Shoshanna once stated, “All conflict we experience in the world, is a conflict within our own selves.” This quote recognizes how much conflict influences our everyday lives and personality. The wise words were especially true for Gene, the main character in A separate peace, who let his battles with other characters and the society of his time become his own internal battles. In John Knowles’s novel, A separate peace, all the types of conflict are shown through the main character Gene.
In the novel, A Separate Peace by John Knowles, the protagonist, Gene Forrester “battled” within himself to find “a separate peace” and in this process directed his emotions at Phineas, his roommate. Forrester and Phineas formed the illusion of a great companionship, but there was a “silent rivalry” between them in Forrester’s mind. Self deceptions in Forrester led him to believe that Phineas was “out to get him” (Forrester). Subconsciously Forrester jounced the limb of the tree and forced Phineas to fall and break his leg. Phineas found out the truth of his “accident” with the help of Leper Lepellier and Brinker Hadley, who were friends that attended Devon High School. Gene Forrester’s conflict between his resentment of and loyalty toward Phineas’ personality and athletic abilities was resolved by the death of Phineas.
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, three of the world’s great religions, have their roots as well their “holiest places” in the Middle East. All three religions revere Abraham as a common ancestor. Yet all three have had bloody interchanges throughout history. How and why did Abraham’s children become such a dysfunctional family? Where is God in this “family feud?” Finding answers to these theological questions that could help provide a peaceful future are important for all. Conflicts surrounding this “family of God” involve more people and places than were involved even 50 years ago. For example, currently there are more Muslims living in the United States than Methodists (Geisler and Saleeb, 2001).1
On the streets of Jerusalem, in the rubble of Ramallah, in synagogues, in mosques, in the hearts and minds of millions in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the remainder of Israel, Israelis and Palestinians are locked in a clash of civilizations. In his masterful work, The Clash of Civilizations, Samuel L. Huntington outlines a theory which approaches international politics on the scale of civilizations. However, he circumvents discussion about Israel. Huntington cautiously describes Israel as a “non-Western” (Huntington 90) country, but identifies the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as one along a fault line between civilizations (267). Though he chooses to avoid the issue, Huntington’s theory provides a groundwork for analyzing the conflict in Israel in terms of a clash of civilizations between Judaism and Islam. This is a dangerous and provocative idea. But if we dare examine its implications and explore its insights, we risk a more complete understanding of the conflict which has plagued relations between Palestinians and Israelis in particular, Muslim countries and Israel in general, for over fifty years.
Among some of the largest conflicts in the world stand the Crusades; a brutal conflict that lasted over 200 years and was debatably one of the largest armed religious conflicts in the history of humankind. Since this is so clearly an event of importance, historians have searched vigorously for the true answer as to why the crusades began. Ultimately, because of accusatory views on both the sides of the Christians and of the Muslims, the two groups grew in such hatred of each other that they began to act in deep discrimination of each other. Moreover, Christian motives seemed to be driven mostly by the capture of Jerusalem, the dark ages of Europe and the common-folks desperation for land, wealth, and a spot in heaven. What seems to be continually
Jerusalem offers sacred sites to both religions. The Temple Mount (Haram Al-Sharif) is believed to be the site where Solomon built his temple to house the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark housed the original ten commandments given to Moses by god. These commandments were god’s laws passed down to the Israelites on their journey to the promised land. For Muslims, this site is where the Prophet Muhammad left earth to travel to heaven to converse with god. This used to be their direction of prayer before God instructed Muhammad to face Mecca instead. Mecca is now the holiest site in Islam. The wailing wall is also a source of contention for Muslims and Jews. Here we see a wall that is believed by Jews to be the site of the second temple built by ancient Jews. This spot is also revered by Muslims, as Muhammad is said to have ties his winged horse to it on his night journey into heaven. These sites have been prone to conflict for ages. There are two reasons for this, the first is easy to understand. Sacred sites allow a group of people to be closer to god, it can allow them to feel closer to the divine. When these sites are also points of contention, fighting follows. The second has a more insidious design. Political actors use these spaces to control a populace, or a set of believers. With this control they can use it to their own ends for their true reason, and that is
A possible solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the two-state solution. The two-state solution would become a peace agreement in which establishes a Palestinian state alongside the current state of Israel (Bourke). In the opinion of the Maghar Druze’s community, peace is the main objective in which the two-state solution could provide. As follows, most Israeli Druze’s would encourage the current peace talks in aim of a two-state agreement. Despite the fact that the two-state solution requires compromise in which it is believed the Palestinian are not able to accommodate. In particular, the Maghar Druze’s do not believe the Palestinians will ever be satisfied with a two-state agreement because of the need for retaliation fo...
What defines a psycho? The way a person behaves or how that person thinks? A psycho is a mentally crazy person. Psychos are usually the people that stand out from others because they act differently and weirdly. In A Separate Peace, the main character Gene is displayed as a troubled character who fits the personality of a psycho because he is affected by his emotions negatively, he is emotionally unstable and he fears becoming a psycho in the future.
Editors: Douglas Johnston and Cynthia Sampson compiled these essays for the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Douglas Johnston has since founded the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, with the goal of encouraging faith based mediation through education and strategy development. Cynthia Sampson is the president of Peace Discovery Initiatives, a faith-based organization with the goal of peace building around the world.
In 1095, Jerusalem was a flourishing city that was the main powerhouse for three religions; all three religions wanted complete control over the holy land. These three religions were Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, and all three religions were known to use Jerusalem as a place of religious reasons. But in turn, the best part about Jerusalem was the political power it held. Pope Urban’s demand for power and Jewish Israel’s desire to control Palestinians are the factors in the political conflict over the holy land.
Every state, culture, and society in the world has some form of religion. The most popular religions in the world today are Christianity, Buddhism, and the Muslim religions. Members of every religion follow some form of philosophy or ideology that shape their thinking and behaviors. One common thing about the existing religions is the presence of a supreme being. People misinterpret existing religious ideologies serving their personal interests that at times turn out to cause war. Religious ideologies brainwash populations who end up acting violently in different deviant forms (Richardson, 518). Religions use specific ideologies to make people living in a society violent to peaceful members who may fight back in self-defense.
In the Islamic conquest, Muslims conquered large areas consisting of distinct religion members. Muslims believed that all religions should be treated respectably; hence Jews and Christians followed ...
Starting from one of the very first holy wars, the Crusades are a prime example of this disuniting force of religion. Stemming from Pope Urban II’s rallying cry for soldiers to reclaim the Holy Land, this was a series of religious wars launched by Christian states of Europe against the Muslims. Thousands of men, both young and old, were motivated by promises of wealth, religious salvation, and chivalry to fight this religious battle against the Muslims. Despite the nobility, these wars had severe consequences between Christian and Islamic believers. In the article “The Crusades” by W. Robert Godfrey, he expresses, “Hundreds of thousands died, and the terrible massacre in Jerusalem by the crusaders has seriously damaged the reputation of Christianity among Muslims ever since.” This major event in history created tension between Christians and Muslim faiths. As one of the bloodiest wars in history, this conflict between the Muslims and the Christians represents how religion ruptures peace between two segregated sides.
What is Christianity and why has it been able to develop into a continuously growing and evolving religion?