Faith and Fanaticism

Today's newspaper carried a very good article by Alan Mattingly of NY Times.  I like to add my comments.

The world can live with religions.  Religions can co-exist.  It's Fanaticism that is destroying the world.

However, in order to gain a foothold, all new religions, or split-offs of old religions, must be fanatical.

Same with Christianity.  Admittedly, the early Christians and Apostles were fanatics too.  They were saying "Time is short.  Christ is returning soon (during their lifetime).  Go tell the world and everybody the Good News."  Many Christians died and suffered for their zeal and fanaticism!

Today, August 2014, fanaticism is sprouting all over the world!  Muslims against Jews in the Holy Land. Buddhists against Muslims in Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Muslims against Muslims in Iraq and elsewhere.  Boko Haram in Nigeria, etc.

My view is that we are living in the world of 7 billion individuals.  7 billion differences.  If we do not moderate our beliefs, live and let live, we will be killing each other on Earth all the time.

Hence, in order to have peace while on Earth, we must accept differences in beliefs.  At the personal level, we could be most extreme in what we believe and do.  But at the social level, we must let others believe whatever spirituality they want.  There is a need to compromise at the social level.

Perhaps when we all leave this world some day, there will no longer be a need to compromise.  Then, we will know what is, and what is not, for sure.