The myth that all religions are\u00a0basically the same\u2014and\u00a0basically benign\u2014is a nonsense that could only flourish in a society that has little knowledge of the past and, for that matter, of the nature of religious belief. Naturally it\u2019s an idea that is being actively peddled in both Europe and America today.<\/p>\n
For a truly nauseating example of this phenomenon at work, pour yourself a calming drink and check out former nun Karen Armstrong\u2019s Charter for Compassion <\/a>(it\u2019s no great surprise to discover that the persistently irritating Ms. Armstrong is behind this venture). On the home page we read:<\/p>\n \u201cThe principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves\u2026We therefore call upon all men and women ~ to restore compassion to the centre of morality and religion ~ to return to the ancient principle that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or disdain is illegitimate ~ to ensure that youth are given accurate and respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures ~ to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity ~ to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings\u2014even those regarded as enemies\u2026\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And so on.<\/p>\n We also are given the opportunity to watch a video<\/a> which, as an example of moral preening and smug self-regard really does take some beating. As acerbic British blogger Mr. Eugenides notes<\/a>:<\/p>\n If you’re not on your knees after that, praying to your God for the cleansing hellfire to engulf all the simpering cretins in that advert, you’re spiritually dead inside.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It\u2019s difficult not to agree.<\/p>\n Now, don\u2019t get me wrong. Compassion is a marvelous thing and it\u2019s splendid if people of different faiths are able to get along together.\u00a0I’d add that\u00a0so far as the latter is concerned, I\u2019m profoundly skeptical that the constant ironic\u00a0references to \u201cthe religion of peace\u201d (complete with scare quotes) that we often see elsewhere achieve very much that’s very constructive. That said, the idea that the challenge of Islamic extremism\u00a0(because that\u2019s what this Charter is really<\/em> about) can be defused with ahistorical mush of the type that Armstrong is promoting is dishonest, delusional and, I suspect, ultimately very dangerous.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The myth that all religions are\u00a0basically the same\u2014and\u00a0basically benign\u2014is a nonsense that could only flourish in a society that has little knowledge of the past and, for that matter, of the nature of religious belief. Naturally it\u2019s an idea that … Continue reading