Religious Violence

“A mentally-ill Muslim smashed a landmark Hindu statue in central Bangkok, worshipped by people of many religions, and was then beaten to death, police said on Tuesday”- Bill Weinberg-

People from all around come to worship this Hindu statue, which they believe answers their wishes, so I guess if it’s smashed their wishes won’t be answered? This concept of thinking is so different for me. I cant even imagine worshiping to have my wishes answered and then confining my god to a statue, and if it breaks then its game over. What rage these people must have, the question that comes into my mind though is; are they mad their god has been disrespected? Or are they mad because their wishes will not be answered? Either way, how can you justify retaliation when it ends with death? If someone walked into my church and destroyed something representing Jesus, I don’t think I would have it in me to harm that person. Yes I would be angry, but killing a person would not even cross my mind! I do realize I live in a different culture, with different values and beliefs, so I guess for the Hindus it was acceptable. Its sad to see people fighting over beliefs like this.

http://www.ww4report.com/node/1777

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"Our 'War on Easter' is of course completely without violence of any kind. Christians believe that beating a man to a pulp and nailing him to a cross somehow solves all the world's problems. Beyond Belief Media does not." - Brian Flemming-

Religious violence, to me, has always been a conflict between people with different beliefs, bringing the argument to the next level with violence. This quote by a self described “former Christian fundamentalist” has made me rethink the idea of religious violence. I never thought Christians would be portrayed as violent extremists because of the cross. It makes sense for the world to view Christians like this, because if they have no knowledge of why Christ died, then of course they are going to think we are violent people. This is an outcome derived from misunderstandings. As Christians we know we will face trials and tribulations so its not something to stress over, but it should tell us how ignorant the world is of Christianity and how we should take initiative to reverse those misunderstandings. I think this man is confused, and if he really is a former Christian then he is fully aware of what God is about. For him to plant media in churches, proclaiming that God is simply a fairy tail is bold, but wrong.

http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49678

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"They should all be murdered the way that their bastard Christ was ... slowly and painfully, all Christians should be murdered without pity or remorse! SATANAS VENIRE!!!"- Raymond Earl Shipley-

Raymond Shipley told this to the police after being arrested for a dive-by shooting at a Christian drug rehab centre. Raymond Shipley is a lead singer of a band that is being accused of playing hate music. Reading this is hard because I feel like, what is that Christians have done to deserve such a hate? But its unavoidable, no matter what we do, there will always be someone who hates Christians. As Christians we cant look at this as discouragement, but rather something to build on. The hate people portray towards us will only strengthen our faith and our relationship with the Father. What hits we take now, will only further the glory of God. Retaliation to this hate should be the last thing on our minds and what’s even sadder then people hating Christians, is Christians hating back. If Christians hate back, it gives people more reasons to hate us. It is their way of getting us to hate, because it looks pretty stupid if they are the only party involved in hating. We need to remember what Jesus went through and that we too need to pick up our cross daily and turn the other cheek. This quote reminds me how horrible hate is and how crucial it is in my own life not to hate those who hate me because in the end it’s not between me and them but between me and God. If I hate people, I ultimately hate God.

http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=63

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“Christian mobs in this southern city attacked Muslim motorists and traders Wednesday, leaving more than 30 people dead, according to witnesses, as religious riots sparked by the publishing of cartoons of the prophet Muhammad continued into a fifth day in Nigeria. Nationwide, the death toll reached at least 80”- Chris Timberg

To see the phrase “Christian Mobs” makes me cringe. How can those two words be used in the same sentence? Is it not an oxy moron? In the dictionary, mob is defined as: a loose affiliation of gangsters in charge of organized criminal activities: an association of criminals. It’s hard as a Christian to see this happening because if one Christian associates themselves with this behavior, it reflects all Christians. What happened to turning the cheek? What about everything Jesus has taught us as Christians? What a twisted sense of faith, that they feel the need to kill in the name of Jesus. The entire problem began with cartoons! Something so small is causing such uproar among the religious groups. Muslims are in a fury because of the cartoons drawn of Mohammed, and they have a right to be angry but how far does it need to go? The cartoon should never have been drawn in the first place. I don’t understand why people need to start things like this. How could you live with yourself knowing your drawing has sparked death? This quote was taken from a recent news article, and its sad to see such violence between religions, especially when Christians are involved because I know that is not what Jesus taught us.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/22/AR2006022200876.html