\nIn light of the many violent conflicts around the <\/p>\n \n \nT.D.\u00a0 New Haven, CT<\/span><\/span> \n<\/p>\n \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \nDespite \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \nKey \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \nIslam and <!\u2013 n<\/p>\n \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n n<\/p>\n \nWhy, then, is there so much violence that has a religious tinge to it in the world today? Part of the reason is that faith is very basic to a person\u2019s identity. What an outsider sees as neutral or \u201csecular\u201d may seem to a person of faith like a direct attack on his or her faith. Ways of doing business, styles of humor or artistic expression, and the way people dress all provide occasions for these conflicts, and in a world with increasing global interaction and religious diversity, we can expect to see more of them. Leaders in business, journalism, and the arts, as well as in government, need to cultivate sensitivity to these differences and find ways to accommodate faith, rather than challenge it. We Americans do this pretty well in our domestic political life, despite some controversies, but we have a long way to go in thinking about it globally. It\u2019s easy to recognize an \u201cfaith-based initiative\u201d when it comes in a familiar form and supports our civic values, but some of us are tone-deaf to faith when it\u2019s singing a different tune from the ones we know.\n<\/p>\n n<\/p>\n \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n n<\/p>\n \nKnowing the potential for religious conflict, some people conclude that the solution is to keep faith private and exclude religion from politics and diplomacy. But the same traditions that sometime authorize war also talk about respecting others who live their faith in peace and integrity. If you try to prevent war by isolating politics from religion, you may also cut yourself off from one of the most important sources of peace. Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders have made that point in American life, but we\u2019re still looking for religious and political leaders who can connect faith to peace and mutual respect on the global level.\n<\/p>\n \u201c,1] \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \nWhy, \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \nKnowing \n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\nworld involving people of different faith traditions \u2014 Christians,
\nMuslims, Jews, and others \u2014 what's the difference between Christianity
\nand
\nother religions when it comes to making decisions about war? <\/em>T.D. New Haven, CT<\/span><\/span>\u00a0 <\/em>\n<\/p>\n
\n\u00a0In light of the many violent conflicts around the
\nworld involving people of different faith traditions \u2014 Christians,
\nMuslims, Jews, and others \u2014 what's the difference between Christianity
\nand
\nother religions when it comes to making decisions about war?\u00a0<\/em>\n<\/p>\n
\nthe political tensions which divide Christian, Jewish, and Islamic
\ncommunities from one another, the three faiths have a lot in common in
\nthe way they think about the use of force. Of course, each includes a
\nrange of positions, from pacifist or mystical traditions that reject
\nwar to more militant views that seem easily stirred to violence. What
\nChristianity, Judaism, and Islam share, however, is a broad mainstream
\nin each faith that views war as always regrettable, sometimes
\nnecessary, and permissible only under certain conditions.\n<\/p>\n
\namong those conditions is that the faithful do not use violence to
\nadvance their personal ends or to enrich themselves. If force is to be
\nused, it must be to relieve those who are oppressed or to defend the
\ncommunity of faith from aggression. The war, once begun, must serve
\nthose ends and be disciplined by those purposes, so that random acts of
\nvengeance and excessive violence are not permitted. In Christianity,
\nthese ideas are summed up in the doctrine of the \"just war,\" which must
\nbe fought for the right reasons, using the right means.\n<\/p>\n
\nJudaism, for a variety of historical reasons, have nothing exactly like
\nthe Christian just war concept, but\u00a0similar insights and principles are
\narticulated by religious and legal authorities in various places in
\nthose traditions, too. Also, leaders in all three faiths have accepted
\nthe growing body of international law that governs the conduct of war,
\nthe treatment of enemy combatants, and the protection of non-combatant
\ncivilians.<\/p>\n
\nD([\"mb\",\"\n<\/p>\n
\n);
\n\/\/\u2013>\n<\/p>\n
\nthen, is there so much violence that has a religious tinge to it in the
\nworld today? Part of the reason is that faith is very basic to a
\nperson's identity. What an outsider sees as neutral or \"secular\" may
\nseem to a person of faith like a direct attack on his or her faith.
\nWays of doing business, styles of humor or artistic expression, and the
\nway people dress all provide occasions for these conflicts, and in a
\nworld with increasing global interaction and religious diversity, we
\ncan expect to see more of them. Leaders in business, journalism, and
\nthe arts, as well as in government, need to cultivate sensitivity to
\nthese differences and find ways to accommodate faith, rather than
\nchallenge it. We Americans do this pretty well in our domestic
\npolitical life, despite some controversies, but we have a long way to
\ngo in thinking about it globally. It's easy to recognize a \"faith-based
\ninitiative\" when it comes in a familiar form and supports our civic
\nvalues, but some of us are tone-deaf to faith when it's singing a
\ndifferent tune from the ones we know.\n<\/p>\n
\nthe potential for religious conflict, some people conclude that the
\nsolution is to keep faith private and exclude religion from politics
\nand diplomacy. But the same traditions that sometime authorize war also
\ntalk about respecting others who live their faith in peace and
\nintegrity. If you try to prevent war by isolating politics from
\nreligion, you may also cut yourself off from one of the most important
\nsources of peace. Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders have made that
\npoint in American life, but we're still looking for religious and
\npolitical leaders who can connect faith to peace and mutual respect on
\nthe global level.\n<\/p>\n