![\"Palestinian](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/186\/2019\/01\/Church_Beit_Jallah_-_panoramio.jpg\")
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I continue with my quick response to a reader of my blog who was not at all pleased with my assertion that, although we have different views about him, Muslims and Christians (including Latter-day Saints) \u2014 and, for that matter, Jews \u2014 worship the same God.<\/p>\n
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He points to what he sees as a fundamental moral difference between us as proof that we worship distinct divine beings.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe Israeli Jews,\u201d he says, \u201care constantly battling for their very existence against the MUSLIM Palestinians and the MUSLIM Iranians, among others.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The words among others<\/em> are important and should not be passed over lightly. \u00a0Why? \u00a0Because the Arab\/Israeli conflict has never been principally about religion and, even now, despite the rise of Hamas and Hezbollah and the Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamic Republic of Iran, is arguably not primarily about religion. \u00a0It\u2019s certainly not solely about Islam.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Some examples to illustrate my point: \u00a0George Habash (1926-2008), the founder of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, wasn\u2019t a Muslim. \u00a0He was a Palestinian Christian. \u00a0So is\u00a0Ghazi Hanania, who is\u00a0a\u00a0member of Fatah and of the\u00a0Palestinian Legislative Council. \u00a0So is Dr.\u00a0Hanan Ashrawi,\u00a0a\u00a0Palestinian legislator, activist, scholar, and member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Palestinian National Council, whom some at least will recall as the official spokesperson for the Palestinian delegation to the Middle East peace process.<\/sup><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n A sizeable percentage of the Palestinian Arab Community, both in Palestine itself and scattered in its diaspora, is Christian, not Muslim, and it\u2019s not at all obvious to me that their attitudes toward Israel are significantly different than those of their Muslim compatriots.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Speaking of the Israelis, my blog commenter declares that \u201cThe violence that they commit against their foes is in self defense, not a result of religious bias against Muslims because they medically treat their wounded enemies as well as their own wounded.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Now, I am by no means an enemy of Israel \u2014 although I\u2019m also not an uncritical supporter \u2014 and I recognize many good things in Israel, Israeli culture, and Israeli society. \u00a0But I object very much to the notion that the Arab\/Israeli conflict is a battle between (good) Judaism and (evil) Islam. \u00a0Instead, it has its roots in a classic clash of rival nationalisms contending over the same geographical territory. \u00a0As I\u2019ve observed, a not insignificant element in the Palestinian population is Christian. \u00a0Moreover, a very substantial proportion of Israeli society is quite secular.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe big difference between Jews and Muslims as I see it,\u201d says my correspondent, \u201cis their fruit. Jews don\u2019t threaten the existence of Muslims, but many if not most Muslims clearly want Israeli Jews driven into the Mediterranean.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Again, though, it\u2019s not at all obvious that the principal factor in this conflict is religious. \u00a0On either side.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n But now my interlocutor moves on to what he calls \u201cISIS and Al Qaeda types.\u201d \u00a0\u201cThey think they are doing Allah a favor,\u201d he says, \u201cwhen they kill \u2018infidels\u2019 just for being \u2018infidels.'\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Sadly, this is true. \u00a0But are ISIS and al-Qa\u2018ida representative of Muslims worldwide?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n No. \u00a0They\u2019re not:<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are there so few Muslim terrorists?\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Still, speaking of Muslims, my correspondent asks, \u201cIf they don\u2019t [worship Satan], why is there so much murder, violence, mayhem, poverty, and dissatisfaction in Muslim nations?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Well, as the link above suggests, there isn\u2019t<\/em> all that much murder and violence in Muslim states. \u00a0Is there poverty? \u00a0Yes. \u00a0But there\u2019s also poverty in non-Muslim states like Paraguay, Rwanda, the Solomon Islands, Haiti, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Brazil. \u00a0Do we really want to say that these peoples are all poor because they\u2019re Satan worshipers? \u00a0Really?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Moreover, is it actually true that Islamist violence is primarily driven by religion or religious zeal?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Not obviously so, no:<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIs Islam a primary cause of international violence?\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIs suicide bombing in the Middle East really motivated by religion?\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Here\u2019s an interesting point that my correspondent makes: \u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t have to remind you that the only perfect person borne [sic<\/em>] to this earth was a Jew.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n However, I\u2019m not exactly sure what conclusion I\u2019m intended to draw from this statement. \u00a0I think it may have been intended to demonstrate that, as a general class, Jews are morally superior to Arabs and Muslims. \u00a0But does it show anything remotely like that? \u00a0Does it prove that, say, the Dutch and the Chinese and the Bolivians fare better, when compared to Jesus? \u00a0Not that I can see. \u00a0Does it show that Jews, as a general class, are closer to Jesus on the perfection scale than others? \u00a0 \u00a0Honestly, I can\u2019t see that, either. \u00a0Are Judas, Caiphas, and Annas particularly exemplary or admirable, morally speaking? \u00a0All of humanity, as I understand Christian doctrine, are imperfect. \u00a0All of us.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cJews,\u201d observes my correspondent, \u201chave won Nobel prizes in many academic areas in numbers far out of proportion to their representation in the world population.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n This is absolutely true, and quite remarkable. \u00a0But how it proves Islam evil or demonstrates that Christians and Muslims worship different Gods eludes me.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n He also attempts to use Latter-day Saint history to judge modern-day policy questions regarding the Arab-Israeli conflict, declaring that \u201cOrson Hyde\u2019s prayer on the Mount of Olives in 1841 could hardly be said to comport with what is known as a \u2018two-state solution\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n For the life of me, though, I can\u2019t see that his prayer has much to say on the question one way or the other.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n For the background of the prayer, see this Ensign<\/em> article by David B. Galbraith (Ph.D., Hebrew University of Jerusalem) who was, for many years, the leader of BYU\u2019s study programs in Jerusalem and the leader of the Church there:<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n