OPPOSING VIEWPOINTS: "RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE CAN LEAD TO WAR"

This article opens with the irony that people can use religion as an excuse for violence. This exact idea has been brought up many times latley. For example, many extremists use teachings of their religion, and twist them into a belief that their religion promotes violence towards those who do not agree with their ideas. However, the article also states, "American culture has been much improved by its foundation of the bible." It argues that the bible has helped create and shape America's ethics, laws, family, and even religious tolerance. However, again this brings up the idea of has it truly helped improve America for everyone? Not everyone believes in the bible, or its teachings. However, because the majority of society does, the bible is seen as one of the greatest influences upon American culture. The article also argues that the bible promotes peace and well being among different religions. However, it also argues that within today's society, those messages of tolerance are forgotten, and burried under other ideas. "Prohibitions against worshipping other gods have led to intolerance, hatered, and even destruction of those who have other religious beliefs." People believe so strongly in their own religions that they are not willing to tolerate the concept that not everyone believes in those ideas. Therefore, many who do not agree are looked down upon. The article brings up a very interesting point. "If I am really right and you disagree, then YOU must be wrong." This is the root of intolerance. Because one believes their ideas are right, they will support the ideas that everyone else is wrong. One of the most well know forms of religious predjuice is anti-semitism. For centuries Jews have been the targets of religious hatred. This hatred often times creates outrageous presumptions about the Jewish religion. PResumptions like Jews have horns and tails, that they who are doctors want to spread AIDS, that Jews want to take over the world, etc. People are willing to believe about a religion if that religion does not agree with their own. However, the article also clearly points out that the Jews are not complelty innocent either. They too can hate other religions, and can be unwilling to accept others religious beliefs, such as Christanity. They believe in their religion, and therefore religions such as christanity who do not agree are wrong. "Religious intolerance and hatred is not a one- way street." However, there are still many within America who are bostful about their igonrance towards other religions. It gives the example of a profesor teachign at an all catholic school. He told his students he was JEwish, and one of his students replied, "Well, where are your horns and tail?" MAny do not see it as necessarily wrong to act this way. They believe that their religion is somethign that should be respected, honored. Disagreeing with those who do not support that religion is okay because they look at it as doing nothing more then defending, and supporting their own.

Brooks, Roger. "Religious Intolerance Can Lead to War." Opposing Viewpoints: War. Ed. Tamara L. Roleff. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1999. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 10 Feb. 2010 .

NEWS CURRENT EVENT: "TOLERANCE? WE HAVE WAYS TO GO"

Our Constitution guarantees all citizens the rights to practice free religion, but it also entitles American's to freedom of their own thoughts and ideas. Within this article, Mitt Romney and his presidential campaign can be used as a prime example. The article states that one of the things that impacted Romney's nomination most negatively was the fact that he was a Mormon. He is a key example of American's supporting their own beliefs. Many American's still do not look positively upon Mormon's. Therefore, many American's did not vote for Romney because they did not want the leader of their country to be a Mormon. However, the article also states, "Polls show that Muslims, Buddhists and people without a religion are all viewed more warily by Americans." Again the ironic idea of America being free and diverse comes into play. Because American's have freedom of ideas, they choose what things (in this case religions) they want to be accepted. However, isn't it even more odd that even with equal rights a majority still has an influence. American's will not accept these religions often times because they are minorities. Without a majority supporting such religious beliefs, these religious minorities cannot expect to be completely accepted by "American Societies." A study of tests was done to see how much a religious belief played into the way other American's looked at religious minorities. They used Romney's statements on a survey and asked whether a citizen would vote for that candidate. Some surveys included that Romney was a Mormon, some included that he was a church leader, etc. This affected many people's votes. Many people in America today do not even accept that Mormon's are Christens. Simply, religion beliefs do affect American's acceptance. Although, maybe being part of a minority isn't always a bad thing. Romney stated, "Each religion has its own unique doctrines and history. These are not bases for criticism but rather a test of our tolerance." Romney illustrates within this that he realizes that each religion is different, and that not all beliefs will agree. Each religion has history, and ideas that support the belief's their followers hold today. He also has gained one central, important, idea that American's much accept if we want religion within the country to succeed: Just because certain religions believe certain things does not make those religions wrong. We should not be focusing on what we disagree with about certain religions. Instead, Romeny conveys the idea that religion is part of America's diversity. That diversity will only remain if religions can learn to get along instead of judging people based on those differing beliefs.

Campbell, David E, John C. Green and J. Quin Monson. "Tolerance? We have a ways to go.(NEWS)." USA Today. (Nov 30, 2009): 21A. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 9 Feb. 2010 .

NEWS CURRENT EVENT: "NO RELIGION, NO PROBLEM"

With the number of different religions within America it is quite surprising to find out that 1 in 5 Americans do not believe in any kind of God or religion. USA Today stated that "No religion" is the fastest growing religion within the United States Today. Well, I'd say thats quite ironic. The article stated, "More people are willing to identify themselves as being outside of religion or without belief in a supernatural being." In a country such as America where people have the freedoms to create and follow their own beliefs, this is not surprising. Many people may see religion as something that limits their beliefs. People who chose to generate their own ideas might find that their religious beliefs do not necessarily support their ideas, thus leading them to look at their religion as limiting, and completely disown their religious identities. The article also points to the idea that, "I am hoping that this new survey will help bring much-needed changes in the relations between the faithful and those who are outside of the established faiths." This idea leads back the idea of outcasting or looking down upon people based on their beliefs. If those "atheists" ideas do not agree with the ideas of a certain religion, atheists are often looked down upon as being bad, unfaithful, or outcasted. "Americans rank atheists as the most disliked minority group in the country." Again supporting a "my way or the highway concept." Religious followers look at atheists as random, unsupported, untrue ideas. Many times it seems this way because religious believers may feel threatened by the idea that a new form of society is rising, and it is a society who does not share their belief of the importance of God. However, the article illustrates that atheists are just as civil and normal as anyone else. They have families, jobs, beliefs. Just because they are part of a minority does not make their beliefs any less righteous or wrong then any other religion. America has a bad habit of secluding many minorities because although we live in one of the freest countries in the world, we live in a country full of majorities ideas of a "norm."

Lalli, Nica. "No religion? No problem.(NEWS)(United States' religious groups)." USA Today. (April 6, 2009): 15A. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 9 Feb. 2010 .

THE CONVERSION OF THE JEWS - PHILIP ROTH

Although the main character, Ozzie, is only 13 years old, he has a very mature way of thinking about religion and the world. In the beginning of the short story, Ozzie shows both the connections and differences of Judaism and Christanity. When attending Sunday school, his Rabbi explained to Ozzie that the Jews believe that Jesus existed, but they believe he was human just like they were. However, his Rabbi also explained that Catholics believe that Jesus is God, and is also the son of God. They believe that Mary was a virgin , and that Jesus was the miricle. However, the Rabbi says that Jews do not believe that it was possible for Mary to have a baby without intercorse. Ozzie has a want for deeper knowledge. On many occasions he has challenged the things that his Rabbi has said. Ozzie understands what the Rabbi is explaning, but he cannot grasp the concept that God could not create a child without intercorse but could create so many other miricles. Ozzie stated, "' I asked Binder (the Rabbi) if he could make all that in six days, and he could pick the six days he wanted out of nowhere, why couldn't He let a woman have a baby without intercorse?" (pg 5). Ozzie is unique from his peers because he is willing to challenge beliefs. He does not just say he believes something because an authority told him to. Ozzie goes back to a memory where he challenged the Rabbi and his idea of Jews being the Chosen People. Ozzie cannot make sense of the idea that the Decleration of Independence says that all men are created equal, but the Jews call themselves the "Chosen People." He couldnt comprehend that when a plane crashed, his grandmother only mourned for the Jews who died. He shouted in his hebrew school class that he wished all 58 people were Jews. Both of these times, Ozzie's mother needed to come into school. Ozzie is looking for logic, something that will make everything make sense. What Ozzie does not realize is that religion is faith. Not everything necessarily makes sense, but it is a belieg that one follows if they have faith in a certain idea or God. But Ozzie needed to understand God. When the Rabbi tried to answer his questions, he did it based on Jewish ideas. However, in Ozzie;s mind the Rabbi was not understanding god. "Ozzie suspected that he had memorized the prayers and forgotten about God" (7). Ozzie didnt feel that the Rabbi understood God because he could not answer Ozzie's questions. When Ozzie tells the Rabbi he doesnt know God, the Rabbi slaps him accross the face. Ozzie runs out of the building locking himself on the roof. When he is up on the ledge, he is not even thinking about jumping. He needed to be alone and to try and make sense of his beliefs and ideas. While his friends cheer for him to jump, the Rabbi and his mother cry and beg for him to get down. He orders everyone to kneel down and admit that they believe in Jesus. Although he did not realize it, he was acting as if he was God. He was ordering people to do as he wanted. He many times refered to the Rabbi and his ideas as a dictator. However, Ozzie is trying to control peoples ideas and beliefs, in essence acting like a dictator. Even more odd is that Ozzie is a 13 year old Jewish boy trying to convince people that Jesus's birth was possible. Ozzie's belief that God could create earth, light, wind... create Ozzie's belief that Mary was a Virgin, and that Jesus was a God. His last idea that he tells everyone, especially his mother, who had slapped him for questioning the Rabbi at hebrew school, was that "You'll never hit anyone over God" (20). This idea goes far beyond a physical slap. He is saying that people should not be punbished for believing something, and that each person should have the own ideas and create their own beliefs about god. Religion is an influence to beliefs, but it should not limit ones ideas or beliefs.

From The Book :"Modern Jewish Stories" Edited by Gerda Charles
(Short Story: "The Conversion of Jews" by Philip Roth

PRIMARY SOURCE - REFORMED JUDAISM

Freedom of religion not only offered people the right to follow a religion of their choice, but how they chose to believe in a specific religion. A large example of this is Judaism. Originally, the only type of Judaism that was acknowledged was Orthodox Judaism. Reform Judaism was created by a group of Jewish businessmen. They argued, "We wish not to overthrown but to rebuild; we wish not to destroy but to reform and revise the evils complained of; we wish not to abandon the institutions of Moses but to understand and observe them" This idea is so interesting because it directly connects to the idea of modernizing a religion. These business men argued that the idea that prayers were only to be read and preformed in hebrew would eventually cause modern day Jews to stop following the religion. They argued that the most popular language within the United States was English. Most Jews within that time period who were living in America chose English as their first language. Therefore, they argued that if they wanted Judaism to continue to remain a strong and followed religion, they needed to make Judaism more modernized. They argued that their were certain tradidions that were too difficult to practice within American society. Therefore, they needed to keep the most important traditions, and modernize the traditions that would challenge maintaining a Jewish Society.

"The Beginning of Reform Judaism," Annals of American History.

THE GROWTH OF RELIGION

Freedom of religion first began when The Founding fathers came to the New World. In doing so, they created the Bill of Rights, which included an amendment stating that citizens have the right to freedom of religion. One of the first major religious groups were known as the Protestants. American Protestants believed that through conversion to Christianity, past sins would be forgiven, and avoided. This idea is very interesting because it illustrates how Christan's believe in Jesus. Many believe that Jesus died for their sins, and therefore their sins are forgiven. The Protestants illustrated that even if one was not originally Christan, their sins could still be forgiven if they converted to Christianity. Protestant's influenced a new religious group within the 19th Century known as the Mormons. During this time, many Mormon's believed that corrupt churches needed to be reformed. They also believed that the end of the world would come when Jesus Christ appears on earth again, otherwise known as millennialism. Perfectionism, the idea that people could live sinless lives, is was also part of Mormon's beliefs. Religion continued to change drastically during a period of great immigration. Before the 19th century, most immigrants came from English, Scottish, or German backgrounds. However, during the period of the 19th century, many Catholics and Jews immigrate4d into the United States. The number of the Catholics immigrating grew so much that Catholicism was the largest denomination within the country. However, in many ways this large income of new religious influences posed a threat to Protestants. This could be because new religious influences took away some of the power that Protestant's had, and threatened a way of life that they were used to living. Judaism has never been a large part of America's population. Two major groups of Jews came to America. The Sephardic Jews, and the Ashkenazim Jews. Sephardi Jews originally came from Spain, where Ashkenazim Jews originated primarily from Germany. However, the Holocaust caused over 2 million Jews to immigrate to the united states. Again, because Judaism was another religious influence coming to the United States, Jews faced hostility from both Christan's and Protestant's who felt that their power and originally way of life was being threatened. However, during the 19th century, Jews were not the only ones who were being out casted because of their religion. Slaves were often forced and influenced to follow the Bible. They slaves believed that the bible made them equal because they followed the same beliefs, and had the same God as their masters. For example, Nat Turner used the idea of religious equality and freedom as an influence over his actions. However, what is more interesting is the way slave owners looked at influencing Christianity. The believed that "it helped them maintain discipline over their slaves." Included in this struggle for religious reform were the Native Americans. The US government forced Native Americans onto reservations. Native Americans however found a new way to support their religions. They created something called "ghost religions" which included preforming rituals they believed that their lands would be restored, and believed that spiritually their ancestors would come back to earth. Religion again transformed after the theory of evolution was brought to attention. Many religions were uncomfortable with the idea that evolution did not correspond with their beliefs. One of the most well known groups were called the Fundamentalists. They rejected Darwin's theory of evolution, and even went so far as to ban the teaching of evolution in schools. This idea connects to the issues of church and state. By banning the teachings of evolution, church was in many ways influencing the state. After World War II, many Jewish immigrants arrived in America, increasing the Jewish population more then ever before. Islam presented itself in America around the time of the 1960s. The Islamic religion has many different Muslim groups, however, they all believe in the five pillars. Light was truly shined on Islam during Civil Rights. Malcom X was a strong leader of the blacks, and used the religion of Islam to influence many of his beliefs and actions. He believed that Islam provided true freedom and equality. Even today, religious beliefs and conflicts are growing. The pledge of Allegiance includes the controversial words, "Under God." "President Dwight Eisenhower stated, 'Everybody should have religious faith, and I don't care what it is." However, who is one man to say what a whole country should believe in?

"Religion in the United States." American history. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 29 Jan. 2010.
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FREEDOM OF RELIGION

Ever since the creation of America, the idea of whether religion should be an influence of American culture has been controversial. One intresting idea is when the idea of God is included within legal documents. For example, the Decleration of Independence refers to the idea of God many times. However, within the Constitution, there is no presence God, or an idea of God. To eliminate the possibility of a a National Church, the Bill of Rights was created. One of the most well know Amendments within the Bill of Rights was the First Amendment which clearly states that each American has a freedom of religion. However, a well known clause that helps protect the idea of freedom of religion. There are some people who believe that church and state must remain seperate. However, there are many others who believe that religious benifits do not negetavily impact "the state." The Supreme Court has often had to deal with what is acceptable within the relationship of Church and State. For example, within the court case of Abington vs. Schempp, The court defended the seperation of church and state by banning a school to require daily readings from the bible. However, there were also cases in which the court allowed religion to influence schools. For example, in the court case Wisconsin vs. Yoder, the court allowed Amish children to stop attending school after 8th grade because the Amish believed that education taught in these schools did not agree with their own beliefs. However, it is agreed that even in America today, the freedom of religion is still fully supported by the goverment.

"freedom of religion." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 1 Feb. 2010. .