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The Global Challenge of Fundamentalist Religion (1) In public consciousness, 20 th century is traditionally associated with the rapid pace of cultural and scientific progress. At the same time, during the course of this century, the religious fanaticism continued to affect socio-political dynamics in many countries, which proves that it is much too early to consider this fanaticism as such that had lost its existential might, in the light of recent scientific discoveries. On September 11, 2001, Islamic fundamentalists, inspired by Osama bin Laden, were able to carry out an effective attack against U. S. Islamist beliefs of a single individual allowed him to declare war on the most powerful country in the world and to succeed in inflicting terror upon the majority of American citizens, who had suddenly realized that there can no effective protection against those who are willing to die in the name of Allah with only one thought in their mind to kill as many unbelievers as possible. Therefore, it is perfectly understandable why in recent years; the religious fanaticism has been mainly discussed within a context of Islam.
However, many Christian lams of God are no better then Islamic fundamentalists, because, just like their counterparts, they seriously believe that causing people harm somehow pleases God. The lack of imagination, on their part, does not allow them to indulge in killing people on the mass scale, but they are still able to bring misery into the lives of those who are naive enough to believe that God really does care whether they take his commandments for real or not. In American South, a religious movement of so-called snake handlers continues to gain popularity. Jehovah Witnesses never get tired of sending the members of their sect to spread the good news, even though majority of citizens associate these messengers with nuisance.
Even American President considers it socially appropriate to discuss international politics within a context of Good vs. Evil and to refer to Jewish tribal God as the highest authority, even though American Constitution is based upon the principle of separation between state and the Church. What is the reason for fundamentalist Christianity and Islam to remain very much alive in our days, despite the fact that the obscure religious dogmas, contained in Bible and Koran, do not correspond to the realities of post-modern living? In this paper, we will try to provide an answer to this question, along with outlining possible scenarios, in regards to what religious fundamentalism might be facing in the future. (2) The reason why it is namely Christianity and Islam that we traditionally associate with fundamental lack of tolerance, can be explained by the fact that both religions are of Semitic origin.
Semitic perception of divinity, apart from being monotheistic in its essence, implies the existence of chosen people, who are in favor with God, and unbelievers, who deserve to be exterminated. For example, Bible specifically requires believers to engage in acts of genocide against those who failed to embrace the shining truth: But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me (Luke 19: 27). There are many similar pearls can be found in Quran as well, because both holy books were originally meant to appeal to the existential psyche of Jews, who are known for their tendency to refer to representatives of other nations as goyim's, which literally means cattle. If we look at the history of Islam and Christianity, it will appear that only people with mental deviations used to be attracted to these religions the most. For example, Thomas Torquemada - the head of Spanish Inquisition in 16 th century, during the time when burning heretics at the stake was given a status of mass entertainment, was homosexual. The Islamic holy prophet Mohammad was 52 when he married his nine years old wife Aisha.
According to Quran, men are allowed to indulge in sex with animals, when there are no women around. Anwar Shaikhs article Mohammed a True Saint, which is available on the web site of Hindu Unity. Org, contain many factual proofs that allow us to refer to Mohammed as sexual pervert: For women any sort of sexual exploration is punishable by death. Whereas for a man, any form of perversion is pardoned by the all merciful Allah. Such fairness can only be found in the holiest of the holiest books, the Koran (Hindu Unity). If we look closer at numerous Christian saints, it will appear that the majority of these people suffered from mental inadequateness.
They were nothing but sadomasochists that took pleasure in having physical pain inflicted upon themselves, while following the example of their guru, who taught them not to work, not to marry, not to burry dead and not to wash hands before eating, because kingdom of heaven was at hand. Therefore, it is wrong to think of Christianity and Islam as essentially good religions, while referring to millions of people killed by Inquisition and by practitioners of Jihad, as result of slight deviations from shining truth, on the part of Christian and Islamic devotees. We need to understand that the teachings of Jesus and Mohammed are fundamentalist in their essence. Thus, mainstream Medias make a mistake when they talk about religious fundamentalism as socially motivated phenomenon.
Fundamentalists unshakable faith is a result of their inability to apply sense of logic, when it comes to dealing with reality's challenges. In its turn, such inability is biologically predetermined. For example, there is no point explaining what the concept of metaphysics stands for to a person who has IQ of 75. In his article Fundamentalism and Social Progress, Shapur Ramendra makes a perfectly good point when he suggests that: Strong belief in the literal truth of statements contained in the religious scriptures, in spite of a total lack of evidence in support of them, is bound to obstruct the growth knowledge The negative role of fundamentalism in this respect is amply demonstrated by the examples of Copernicus, Galileo, Bruno and Darwin (Ramendra). The instinctive loathing of the process of gaining an empirical knowledge, on the part of fundamentalists, usually corresponds to their biological deficiency. It is not a secret that in U.
S. , Christian fundamentalism is especially popular in Southern parts of the country, where the incest among close relatives was a widespread practice. We have already mentioned snake handlers at the beginning of this paper. What they do at their gatherings, is allowing poisonous snakes to bite them, while they pray, because they take literally Jesus following statement: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover (Mark 16: 17 - 18). People who die from poison are being refered to as such that lack faith. In his article Snake Handlers Hang On in Appalachian Churches, Brian Handwerk comes to conclusion that the mental deficiency, associated with peoples willingness to be bitten by snakes, is often a result of inbreeding: Churches survive and grow not by attracting new members, but because of enduring family traditions.
Serpent handling is maintained through powerful families whose children have carried on that tradition for up to four generations (Handwerk). The overdeveloped lower jaws, saliva that drips from the mouth, the absence of intellect in the eyes these are the features by which one can easily identify snake-handlers. The same applies to other Christian fundamentalists, even though to a lesser degree. It is quite understandable why German National-Socialists used to send Bible thumper's straight to concentration camps they simply wanted to prevent them from poisoning the young generation of Germans, in ideological and biological sense of this word.
At the same time, it would be wrong to suggest that Christian fundamentalism, in its present state, poses just as much threat to the well-being of ordinary citizens as Islamic fundamentalism. Christianity has traditionally been the religion of White people. In 1900, White people constituted 30 % of Earths population, whereas today there are only 6 % of them left. In fact, White race stands on the brink of extinction, which is why the spiritual aspirations of White Christians, and especially of those that profess Protestantism, are not associated with their existential vitality, as it used to be the case when Christianity was at its strongest.
Christianity is dying. It is not a secret that many African-Americans now convert to Islam, because they feel potency in this religion, on subconscious level. Therefore, we can say that, even though religious messages, contained in Quran and Bible, are equally obscure, it is Islamic fundamentalism that represents the biggest danger to post-industrial world. Islam is alive religion. Even in such secularized countries as Kuwait or UAE, people bend down on their knees to pray Allah five times a day, just as Quran requires. However, this is not because Islamic truth is better then Christian truth, but because it is a common practice in Moslem families to have as many as 10 - 15 children, whereas White Protestants wait until they are forty, before they decide to conceive one child.
Thus, the rise of Islamic fundamentalism is better discussed within racial and demographic contexts. People in Islamic countries rightly consider themselves as being oppressed by Western powers. Ever since Islamic armies had sustained a defeat at the gates of Vienna in 1651, the Islam has been in the state of decline. The geopolitical influence of Christianity in 17 th- 19 th centuries was spreading very rapidly, which can be explained by the fact that back then, it was also a common practice for Europeans to have ten children in the family. Because White nations were biologically healthy, at the time they were infused with Christianity, they were able redefine the very essence of Christianity, as a form of Judaism. There is very little left from the original spirit of Christianity in Catholicism, for example.
All that Catholics need to know is that Satan is evil and Jesus is good and that Saint Mary is a person to pray, in time of need. Thats about it. In fact, Catholic Church used to actively resist any attempts to translate Bible into secular languages from Latin, because it would automatically result in many people becoming aware of the fact that the tribal god Jehovah does not even consider them as being worthy of following his bloodthirsty commandments. The rise of Protestantism was caused by White people gradually realizing themselves as masters of their own destiny. They did not need God as someone to rely upon, while dealing with their problems, but as someone who would confirm that they were leading a righteous lifestyle they felt growing God inside.
This caused a situation when majority of todays Protestants can be only nominally referred to as Christians. They might go to church once a week to listen to some boring sermons, while trying not to fall asleep. However, their high intellectual level prevents them from seriously believing in Christian nonsense. The article Christianity Dying In The West? , which can be accessed on the web site of Christian Aggression. Org. , confirms the validity of earlier statement: Christianity is dying in the West. But it is springtime for Christianity in Asia and elsewhere.
A Paradox? No. The Pope himself says so. According to Pope Benedict, there is no longer evidence in the Western world for a need of God, even less of Christ (Christian...
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Research essay sample on The Global Challenge Of Fundamentalist Religion Part 1
