Tag Archives: slavery

Enslaved on Hajj

Some readers are generally confused as to why I discount to a large extent the influence of official ideology, text, or received tradition, over the long-term course of a religious society. The main reason is that the exceptions to the … Continue reading

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Diverse radicals

In regards to Heather’s post below there are many complex issues here, and frankly I get tired of those who want to claim that religion or anti-religion have some necessary and exclusive association with any given movement, whether it has … Continue reading

Posted in history, politics | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Religion and rights

A review of a new book by Simon Schama about American culture makes the usual argument that religion, not Enlightenment values, was responsible for abolishing slavery and expanding civil rights for blacks: The main weapon in both the fight against … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 12 Comments