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Religion is a bloody disgrace
(Tony Bayfield, The Guardian, September 11, 2004)
The Abrahamic family of faiths is now frighteningly dysfunctional . . . We have singularly failed to face up to the inescapable truth that faiths only exist relationally. That is that they simply cannot continue posturing as monopolistic corporations, smugly proclaiming themselves as the finished article, the last word and the ultimate truth. They surely should have discovered by now their own provisionality, fragmentary nature and deep flaws. . . . It is bizarre that we should still affirm a God who would bestow the totality of Her truth on any one group of human beings, and still more bizarre that we should believe in groups of human beings as being capable of grasping the totality of God's truth. . . . We have made desperately poor progress on the practical agenda of pooling what is best in our respective traditions for the good of humanity and the globe because we cannot bring ourselves to face up to the theological disclosure implicit in our diversity. . . . But clinging to old imperialistic and triumphal notions in the face of glaring reality is not the only charge against us. We have utterly failed to stand up against the fearful, exploitative and reactionary forces - to be labelled for shorthand and convenience purposes only as "fundamentalist" - and allowed them to dominate each of us and the world stage perhaps as never before. I hope it is sufficient to say "settlers", "far-right churches in America", and "Islamic extremists" for us to be clear about whom I am talking. . . . The alibis and excuses - they are not really Christians or Muslims because proper Christians or Muslims do not believe/do those things; you mustn't tar everyone with the same brush, some of them are nice, sincere, peace-loving people; people are entitled to their beliefs, you should listen to them; or, worst of all, "What can we do?" - simply underline our moral and spiritual bankruptcy. Wimps, the lot of us. . . . John Bowden has described as "terrifying", forms of faith that are "very hostile to other faiths and driven by a sense of malevolent activity by hostile powers that have to be combated". Religion which is aggressive, triumphalist and thrives on conflict. . . . Even in Judaism, which is far too small to consider converting Africa or the Far East, it is the "born again" proponents of inerrancy who read the texts as divine licence to advance and impose their views by whatever means are necessary. . . . I look at Indonesia, Chechnya, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Israel/Palestine, Northern Ireland, the Balkans and Sudan, and each instance of bloody conflict has a strong religious dimension. The people involved are Muslims, Christians and Jews, however much they may be behaving in a way that the best or main thrust of their respective traditions contradicts. . . . What I do argue is that all faiths, particularly the embarrassingly dysfunctional Abrahamic family, have to acknowledge that no faith tradition is supreme, that no one has a monopoly on God or truth, and that the reality of pluralism discloses a theological obligation to be humble and self-critical, to pool resources, to work together for the good of humanity and the globe rather than fuel its blight and destruction.

posted by LoZo 4:22 PM