Civilization Clashes, Culture Wars, and Religious Violence
1. Summarize the central themes, theses, issues, or arguments of the reading assignment.
The reading assignment discusses how the 21st century is a time that’s afflicted with severe conflicts among the world’s religious communities, that unlike in the 20th century when conflicts existed among nation states, our present time is plagued by conflicts among civilizations where each civilization consists of a number of nation- states that share a common religion and historical identity (Selengut, 2003).
The conflicts arise mostly from religious beliefs that have been passed down through the generations and that, despite the modernization that’s occurring in our societies, still hold true for certain groups. These religious groups refuse to be influenced by modern ways of thinking that they respond in violence if they feel that they’re being forced to.
The author showed how this problem exists in all parts of the world and involves all types of religion – whether among the Hindus in India, the Muslims in the Middle East, the Jews in Israel, or the Christians in Europe. He also showed that the conflicts that currently exist in the world are more religious than political, cultural, or economic in nature.
2. Summarize at least four key points made by the authors. In the case of multiple authors, indicate which author you are referring to for each point.
The author points out that civilizational commitments and identities should not be treated with casualness but should be considered as greatly significant for the individuals and societies whose historical identity and religious fate are defined by these civilizational perspectives. The author goes further to point out that Westerners have incorrectly assumed that people from all around the world are similar to themselves in that they, too, would accord more importance to business opportunities, economic growth and efficiency, and rational political compromise than to the fulfillment of religious goals. On the contrary, however, more sensitivity to these civilizational perspectives should be shown, especially since according to the author, politics, religion, and history are closely interwoven and some sacred memories are not easily forgotten. A violation of these beliefs then leads to violence where, as the author points out, politics and war become the venues for religious battles.
3. Raise at least two or more questions, critical or informational, related to the reading.
As people who are influenced by the western and modern way of thinking, it’s easy for us to see how other religious groups are unreasonable in their ways of thinking. However, it is true that we also hold on to our own beliefs – religious or otherwise. If others try to impose their beliefs on us in a way that seems disrespectful for us, would we also react as strongly as the various religious groups do? I mean, it would be easy to impose laws and determine what’s legal from illegal, but if we look at religion from an impartial perspective, who really has the right to say what’s religiously right from what’s wrong?
Another question is, with religious beliefs deeply embedded in our cultures and traditions, will there ever be a permanent solution to end all this religious violence?
4. In a paragraph, characterize your critical reflections on the ideas presented in this reading assignment.
While I acknowledge that yes, religion does become the source of a lot of the violence that occurs in our society and that fanaticism can become extremely dangerous, I’ve also realized that religion is very subjective and that it would be hard to impose one’s idea of what’s right from wrong on another person. The qualification of right from wrong would largely depend on the person’s perspective, which may be influenced by their religion. As such, I’ve realized that it’s important to respect each other’s beliefs and not assume that we’re always in the right. We’ve obviously failed to promote peace by imposing our beliefs on others, so maybe showing more respect and sensitivity towards each other’s differences would yield better results.
References
Selengut, C. (2003). Chapter 4: Civilization Clashes, Culture Wars, and Religious Violence. In
Sacred fury: Understanding religious violence (pp. 121-158). Lanham, MD:
Rowman Altamira
