COMECE assesses the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum:
“put Human dignity and Common Good at the centre of the future negotiations”
In view of the International Migrants Day, the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) calls upon the EU and its Member States to put the human dignity and the common good at the centre of the future negotiations on the recently proposed EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. The statement, published on Wednesday 16 December 2020, includes policy recommendations elaborated by the COMECE Working Group on Migration and Asylum.
Following the analysis of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, proposed by the European Commission on 23 September 2020, the COMECE Working Group on Migration and Asylum expresses its concerns about the effectiveness of the Pact to alleviate the difficult situation, aggravated by COVID-19, in which migrants and refugees find themselves.
While recognizing the efforts of the European Commission to set out a new and comprehensive framework aimed to create a fair and predictable migration management mechanism, COMECE urges all negotiating actors to promote a welcoming context as well as a fair and just approach to those in need.
The COMECE document also proposes a series of concrete policy recommendations toward a multi-level solidarity mechanism, external relations based on reciprocity and fair partnerships, and an integrated management of external borders, that would protect and promote the human rights rooted in human dignity of all individuals and families arriving in the EU.
Especially in the context of the current Covid-19 pandemic, “which exacerbated the poverty, social exclusion and stigmatization of migrants, asylum seekers and victims of human trafficking, […] the Pact should create a sustainable and human system of solidarity and responsibility sharing that recognizes the mutual advantages of migration and protects refugees” – reads the statement.
The contribution is the result of the multiple online meetings of the COMECE Working Group ants its experts, who also contributed to the Public consultation on the future of EU legal migration aiming to identify areas of improvement of the EU framework on legal migration.
Already on 16 October 2020 COMECE contributed to the Public Consultation on the integration and inclusion, highlighting the importance of Church based organizations in the process of integration and the need for these organizations to be recognized and be included in future funding.
Lashing out at anti-liberation and radical forces, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said the country achieved independence in lieu of the blood of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians, adding that she will never allow any division and anarchy in the name of religion.
“The people of the country will move on towards prosperity, progress and development keeping the religious morale high based on communal harmony,” she said on Tuesday evening. The 50th victory day of Bangladesh will be celebrated on Wednesday.
“I will never allow any division or anarchy in the name of religion in this country. Keeping the religious values high, the people of this country will move forward towards progress, development and progress,” she said.
“The people of Bangladesh are pious, not fanatics. We must not allow the anti-liberation radical forces to make religion as the weapon of politics. Everyone has the right to perform their own religious rituals,” Hasina mentioned.
“Everyone has the right to practice their religion here, country of Fakir Lalon Shah, Rabindranath Tagore, Kazi Nazrul, Poet Jibanananda Das and also the Sufis – Shah Paran, Shah Makhdum. No radicalism or fundamentalism is allowed in Bangladesh of Bangabandhu… 16.5 crore Bangalis love to live in peace with communal harmony,” she added.
Addressing the country’s youth, she said: “Take a vow that you’ll transform the country into Golden Bengal imbued with the Liberation War spirit of communal harmony.”
In her 18-minute speech, Hasina urged all to take a vow on the eve of the Victory Day not to forget the debt of blood of millions of martyrs.
“We must not let the spirit of communal harmony of the Liberation War fade away. My request to the youth and the new generation is — You must not forget the supreme sacrifices of your predecessors ever, you must not let dishonour the red and green coloured flag that they have gifted us.”
On the eve of the golden jubilee of independence, Bangladesh PM paid homage to Father of the Nation, ‘Bangabandhu’ Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, four national leaders and martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the country.
“Some people who were defeated against Bangladesh in 1971 are trying to confuse the people by telling lies and distortions of history and religion in an attempt to create unrest,” Hasina said.
Dhaka: Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday cautioned people against reappearance of fanaticism in the country and said that her government was determined to prevent any attempt to use religion as a “political weapon” to create social unrest.
“Don’t use religion as a political tool…we will not allow anyone to create any anarchy or division in this country in the name of religion,” Hasina said in a televised speech on the eve of the 50th Victory Day.
Hasina said a section of defeated forces of 1971 Liberation War reappeared in the political landscape to mislead ordinary Muslims with concocted and confusing messages to create social unrest to return the country to a situation which the nation overcame 50 years ago.
She said being patronized by a political quarter, these elements even dared to show their red eyes to the government though Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had warned the nation against the use of religion as a political weapon many decades ago.
“The people of Bangladesh are pious, not religious bigots…the people of this country will proceed towards progress, advancement and development upholding the religious values,” she said in an apparent reference to a recently launched move by a quarter against sculpture.
“Let us not trample the Liberation War’s spirit of non-communalism…let us not forget our debt to tens of thousands of martyrs,” she said.
Hasina reminded her countrymen that the country’s independence came in exchange of bloods of the followers of all faiths — Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians. Bangladesh still carried the heritage of liberal spirituality, culture and pluralism, she added.
“This Bangladesh is the land of Lalon Shah, Rabindranath, Kazi Nazrul, Jibonanda…This Bangladesh is the Bangladesh of Shahjalal, Shah Paran, Shah Makhdum and Khanjahal Ali; this is a land of 16 and a half crores of Bengalis — this country belongs to all,” Hasina said.
She particularly urged the youths and new generations to uphold this spirit and not forget the “sacrifices of your forefathers”.
Bangladesh won its victory on December 16 in 1971 following a nine-month long Liberation War with Indian support against Pakistan.
Hasina’s warning came as extreme rightwing Muslim groups waged a campaign against sculptures in the wake of the government’s plans to setup statues of Bangabandhu in major cities.
(Photo: Ecumenical News / Peter Kenny)Professor Thomas Schirrmacher of the World Evangelical Alliance speaks to the media at the World Council of Churches 10th Assembly in Busan, South Korea on November 5, 2013.
The biggest crisis facing the evangelical, global church today is the growing lack of biblical literacy worldwide, Thomas Schirrmacher, the newly head of the World Evangelical Alliance says.
“Our biggest problem is that Bible knowledge is fading away,” Schirrmacher told The Christian Post according to the WEA website. “This is the utmost problem we have beyond all theological differences, financial problems, and political questions.”
Schirrmacher studied theology in Switzerland and the United States, and serves as the WEA’s Associate Secretary General for Theological Concerns, although he will become Secretary General next year.
He said that in the Western world “more and more kids that come from evangelical families are not really rooted in the Bible,” and many of them leave the faith.
“In the Western world, the percentage of kids from Christian families who stay in the faith is going down,” Schirrmacher said.
The number of young people leaving the faith in Western countries is “counteracted” by people becoming Christians as young adults in other parts of the world, according to Schirrmacher.
The conservative magazine the National Review carried an article headed “Why American Children Stopped Believing in God,” on Dec. 13.
“The time has come for religious parents to take their children back from the state.
‘RELIGOSITY DETERMINED EARLY’
It said, “It turns out that religiosity is usually determined very early in life. All the data suggest that, by and large, kids brought up in religious households stay religious and kids who aren’t, don’t.
“Consequently, childhood religiosity has been, and remains, the most important indicator of America’s religious trajectory. The story of religious decline in America is not the story of adults consciously rejecting the faith of their forefathers:
“It’s the story of each generation receiving a more secular upbringing than the generation preceding it. What accounts for this secularization of childhood over time? Taxpayer dollars.”
Schirrmacher said that young Christians also lack deep biblical knowledge and “only know about the Bible what they learned from their conversion,” he said. In rural areas, young Christians are often tasked with leading large churches despite their lack of biblical and theological knowledge.
“So many people are becoming believers that the one who has been a believer the longest becomes the leader of the church,” Schirrmacher said.
“That might be three years. Short for us, but long for them. We have such a high conversion rate worldwide, that it’s extremely difficult to follow up with discipling, with teaching, with Bible knowledge.
“The result is that people know much less and are more much more open to secularism and strange things like the ‘health and wealth’ gospel.”
WEA cited the State of the Bible 2020 report released by the Barna Group and the American Bible Society, U.S. adults who say they read the Bible daily dropped from 14% to 9% between early 2019 and 2020.
The study found that the proportion of Americans who read the Bible daily also fell to fewer than one in 10 (9%), the lowest number on record during the 10 years of the State of the Bible research study.
A 45-year-old Afghanistan refugee has reportedly murdered a young Nigerian man, identified as Henry Onyekachi, in a circumstance which portrays religious intolerance in Lisbon, Portugal.
Onyekachi, 29, arrived the country some months ago as a refugee and was put in the same room with the unnamed Afghan refugee.
According to CM Lisbon, the incident happened on December 8, in Lisbon.
It was gathered that Onyekachi appealed for help from people around the area at that time, but no one responded to rescue him, till he bled to death.
A source said they had a clash over house chores and the fact that the suspect was having a negative influence on the other refugees in the apartment.
Additionally, Onyekachi’s family has called out to rights activists around the world to seek justice for their son in a statement.
“We, the family, need the help of the entire world to seek justice and to put a stop to this hyperactivity because we don’t know who may be the next victim,” a member of his family said.
Onyekachi was from Ngwugwo Ibere community in the Ikwuano Local Government Area of Abia State, Nigeria.
Nota del editor: Las reporteras ejecutivas de The Daily Universe, Andrea Cabrera y Sydnee Gonzalez, entrevistaron a personas en Utah y Washington, D.C., para averiguar cómo la política y la religión se mezclan en los Estados Unidos.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Durante su niñez, Sam Dearden, miembro de La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días, escuchaba con frecuencia comentarios como, “No puedes ser liberal o demócrata y ser un buen mormón”.
A pesar de que compartía la misma religión con la mayoría de sus compañeros, cuando su familia se mudó de Boston a Utah a sus 11 años, Dearden—quien ahora trabaja para la Agencia de los Estados Unidos para el Desarrollo Internacional—no encajaba en su nueva comunidad. Como adulto, se da cuenta de que las diferencias se derivaron en parte por una distinción en la forma en que él abordó la política, en comparación con muchos otros miembros de La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días
“Creo que, para muchos miembros de la Iglesia, quienes suelen tener orígenes conservadores, es algo natural decir a menudo que estas dos identidades van muy bien de la mano”, dijo Dearden. “Creo que eso es bastante inapropiado, teniendo en cuenta que el ser ‘conservador’ y ‘republicano’ no son identidades remotamente importantes como la de ser cristiano”.
(Metraje por Andrea Cabrera y Sydnee Gonzalez. Edición por Andrea Cabrera.)
<
p id=”block-d07071c9-9eb2-41a0-874c-1027a05a9481″>En el actual clima político, miembros de todas las religiones tienen que equilibrar sus creencias religiosas con sus puntos de vista políticos—y no es tarea fácil.
El equilibrio entre la política y la religión no es algo nuevo en los Estados Unidos. La separación entre la iglesia y el estado está escrita en sus documentos fundacionales; sin embargo, las ramificaciones filosóficas de esa idea aún se debaten. ¿Dónde está la línea entre los dos? ¿Se encuentra entre un salón de clases y una invocación a lo divino? ¿O se encuentra en algún lugar cerca de las líneas declarativas de “Una nación bajo Dios”?
Los estadounidenses están divididos sobre el asunto. Una encuesta de Pew Research Center en 2019 encontró que, aunque el 63% de los adultos estadounidenses quieren que los grupos religiosos permanezcan fuera de la política, más de la mitad de los estadounidenses opinan que la religión es una fuerza positiva en la sociedad.
Una línea borrosa: Las ideologías políticas y los principios religiosos
Para el senador Mike Lee, la religión es una parte fundamental de sus ideologías políticas. “Mis creencias religiosas forman cada aspecto de mi vida. No hay nada en mi vida que no sea influenciado de una manera u otra por ellas”, declaró el Santo de los Últimos Días a The Daily Universe.
Ryan Griffith, estudiante de UVU que presenta un podcast conservador llamado “Not at the dinner table” (No sobre la mesa del comedor), también utiliza la religión para dar forma a sus posturas políticas. “Siempre lo veo a través de la perspectiva de que las verdades eternas están en juego aquí”, manifestó el presentador. “Asi que cuando trato temas como el aborto, considero la verdad interna del albedrío, pero también tomo en cuenta la elección y la responsabilidad, y el valor eterno de la vida”.
Mo Elinzano, socio de la empresa de organización digital Biden para Presidente, trata de centrarse en la plataforma del partido que mejor representa sus valores religiosos y morales. “Estoy muy apasionada y orgullosa de ser mormona y demócrata”, sostuvo Elinzano. “Si realmente tratamos de emular al Salvador y ser como Él, no creo que el Partido Republicano, especialmente bajo el liderazgo de Trump o el conservadurismo, refleje eso”.
Mezclar los dos no siempre es sencillo. En octubre, Lee recibió críticas extensas por comparar al Presidente Donald Trump con el Capitán Moroni, héroe del Libro de Mormón, durante una concentración política en Arizona. Reconoció que no todos los miembros de su fe estaban de acuerdo con la comparación, pero añadió que no estaba impresionado con la manera en que las personas expresaron su desacuerdo.
“No debemos menospreciar a los demás cuando se basan en un argumento espiritual o escritural en defensa de lo que creen”, dijo Lee. “Decir: ‘No invoques las escrituras,’ ni compares a un ser humano mortal falible con alguien venerado por las escrituras, simplemente no es para mí… Tiene el efecto de esencialmente prohibir el pensamiento y la expresión religiosa de la plaza pública”.
Lauren Lethbridge, escritora de Utah quien tiene una tendencia conservadora, cree que tratar de mantener la religión y la política separadas puede ser agotador y que las personas deben dejar que su moral y sus creencias personales, que a menudo pueden basarse en la religión, guíen sus acciones y decisiones.
Ella recuerda que, desde una temprana edad, la política y la religión se mezclaban y dijo que sus padres a menudo buscaban la guía de los líderes de la Iglesia para determinar sus decisiones u opiniones políticas. Sin embargo, al crecer ella se ha alejado de esa conexión. “Si tengo una visión disidente de la mayoría de la Iglesia, no se refleja en mi posición personal dentro de mi religión ni en mi relación con Dios”, declaró la escritora.
Para Matteo Caulfield, estudiante de Georgetown, no eran sus familiares o amigos los que estaban fusionando las opiniones de los líderes religiosos con las opciones políticas; era su propia iglesia.
“La Iglesia Católica es una organización intrínsecamente política que a menudo da orientación a sus miembros sobre cómo involucrarse con la política pública”, estableció Caulfield. “Estas enseñanzas están tildadas como las enseñanzas católicas de la justicia social”.
Sin embargo, Caulfield señaló que la política de la que se habla desde el púlpito no significa que los católicos estén vinculados a un partido político o al otro. De hecho, el Pew Research Center ha encontrado que los votantes católicos se han dividido por igual entre los dos partidos principales.
Libertad religiosa para todos: La disección de la política de creencias
Bogdan Banu, exalumno de BYU, director de una ONG en Washington, D.C., originario de Rumania y miembro de la Iglesia Ortodoxa (Oriental) Rumana, dijo que la fuerte mezcla entre la política y la religión en la política estadounidense es inusual, especialmente en comparación con la política europea.
“Una persona es más elocuente al presentar su punto si tiene buenos argumentos sobre cuál se basa su punto de vista”, afirmó Banu. “Simplemente decir ‘Creo en algo’ puede funcionar en el contexto religioso, pero si uno quiere traducir eso a una política, debe tener ciertas evidencias para respaldar su punto de vista religioso”.
Arsalan Malik, un abogado no religioso en Washington, D.C., tuvo una formación religiosa que se dividió entre un padre ateo y una madre musulmana. Él está preocupado por lo que percibe como una fusión no auténtica de la política y la religión que viene por parte de los políticos.
“Cuando los políticos mencionan la religión, al menos recientemente, no es con fines altruistas; es por su propio interés en expandir al electorado”, dijo Malik. “La otra cosa que me ha estado preocupando últimamente es que la política se está volviendo más divisiva, y la religión se está convirtiendo en una manera de armarse contra las minorías”.
Como ejemplo, señaló la prohibición musulmana de Trump. Enfatizó el hecho de que mientras los políticos pueden ayudar a proteger la libertad religiosa, hay una distinción fundamental entre mejorar las libertades para todas las religiones y complacer a solo una.
Manifestantes mezclan la política y la religión con sus carteles en Lafayette Square, justo entre la Iglesia Episcopal de San Juan y la Casa Blanca, el martes 3 de noviembre del 2020.
El reverendo Patrick Conroy, quien sirve como capellán de la Cámara de Representantes de los Estados Unidos, hizo eco de los sentimientos de Malik. El clérigo dijo que hay una línea entre si el gobierno protege las prerrogativas religiosas y si protege la libertad religiosa.
“No debemos pedir al gobierno que haga cumplir nuestras posiciones”, estableció el reverendo. “Estamos haciendo un trabajo religiosamente importante y valioso cuando tratamos de trabajar dentro de nuestro sistema en lugar de exigir que nuestro sistema aplique nuestras posiciones que vemos como si fueran en blanco y negro y moralmente veraces, porque esas no se comparten en todos los ámbitos”.
El punto intermedio: Encontrar un equilibrio entre la política y la religión
Conroy cree que la religión tiene una importante presencia en el ambiente político. Ha descubierto que muchos miembros del Congreso valoran tener a alguien entre ellos que pueda recordarles de la gravedad de sus posiciones y el impacto que tienen en los estadounidenses. “Me han dicho que realmente les importa que yo esté presente.”
El ministerio de Conroy sirve como modelo de cómo la religión en la esfera política puede ser unificadora en lugar de divisiva. Aunque es sacerdote jesuita, Conroy se esfuerza por hacer que su ministerio sea inclusivo tanto para individuos de todas las religiones como aquellos que no son religiosos.
“Quiero que esta oficina sea el único lugar donde todos puedan decir amén”, afirmó el eclesiástico. “La única vez, tal vez todo el día o todo el año, que pueden ponerse de acuerdo debería pasar en la Oficina del Capellán”.
Su consejo a las personas que tratan de equilibrar la política y la religión es sopesar el propósito práctico del gobierno en contraposición a la certeza religiosa de una iglesia.
Para algunos, equilibrar la religión y la política es más fácil decirlo que hacerlo. Para Alicia Moulton, Santo de los Últimos Días, el camino hacia el compromiso político no ha sido fácil. “He tenido una relación de amor-odio con la política. Siento que es importante ser un buen ciudadano, pero a menudo he estado decepcionada por la forma en que la gente habla de temas políticos”, declaró Moulton. “Me ha costado mucho”.
Algo que la ha ayudado a poder participar con la política ha sido su fe. “Nuestra creencia que las personas son hijos de Dios y que todos son dignos de respeto puede ser una estrella guía para nosotros—no para dictar nuestras opiniones, sino en ayudarnos a hacerlo de una manera que sea semejante a Cristo”.
La periodista Dianna Douglas, quien actualmente produce un podcast que se llama Zion’s Suffragists (Sufragistas de Sion) que trata la participación política de las mujeres SUD, dijo que los Santos de los Últimos Días tienen un largo legado de participación política.
“Mi fe es la razón por la que estoy involucrada en la política hoy en día”, aseguró la periodista. “Como Santos de los Últimos Días, nuestro deber es tratar de cambiar el país para mejor, tratar de cambiar la sociedad para mejor, trabajar en nuestras comunidades, salvar nuestras comunidades, mejorar nuestras comunidades”.
Un paso clave hacia un sistema político saludable es la diversidad de opiniones y pensamientos. Después de vivir tanto en Utah como en Washington, D.C., Douglas ha visto de primera mano las desventajas de las comunidades de fe que se identifican excesivamente con un solo partido político.
“Tanto la Iglesia como el estado de Utah estarían mucho mejor si hubiera un poco más de equilibrio y diversidad en la política. De la misma manera, también creo que la política de Washington, D.C. sería mejor con un poco más de espacio para más opiniones y más perspectivas”, dijo la productora.
Jeffrey Stark es analista de sistemas de información geográfica para el Servicio Postal de los Estados Unidos (USPS, por sus siglas en inglés). Actualmente con sede en Washington, D.C., también ha experimentado el mormonismo en las costas este y oeste. “Aquí no existe tanto la actitud que ‘el Partido Demócrata es la grande y abominable iglesia,’ como lo que experimentarás en el oeste de los Estados Unidos”, mencionó el analista.
No se ha visto atraído por la política liberal durante su tiempo en Washington, D.C. Al contrario, se ha mantenido como moderado, una identidad a la que ha llegado en parte debido a su fe. Sin embargo, se ha sentido frustrado al ver que unos miembros de la Iglesia menosprecian a otros miembros con puntos de vista religiosos opuestos.
“Tal como lo veo, no todos los elementos de la plataforma republicana o de la plataforma demócrata están totalmente en línea con las enseñanzas del Evangelio”, manifestó Stark. “Cuando se trata de varias políticas, no existe la contienda del camino del Señor o el camino del mundo”.
“Las creencias religiosas tienen un lugar en el punto de vista del público sobre la esfera política”, sostuvo Rugh. Agregó que incluso los miembros de la misma fe pueden terminar respaldando diferentes soluciones. “La religión abarca los valores y los principios; la política tiene que ver con el proceso del compromiso y consenso, la construcción de coaliciones, la aprobación de las leyes y la realización de algo”.
Ben Mack, miembro de los Santos de los Últimos Días quien tiene experiencia en Capitolio y tiene una campaña en el Congreso de los Estados Unidos bajo el brazo, cree que los estadounidenses—y especialmente los Santos de los Últimos Días—tienen la oportunidad para crear puentes en el ambiente político actual.
“(La religión) me ayuda a mí a ver otras personas a mi alrededor de cierta manera. Sin importar qué tan apasionado que me sienta por una cierta postura política, los veo como mis hermanos y hermanas y los veo como hijos de Dios”, dijo Mack. “La camaradería y la hermandad, la uniformidad que tenemos es mucho mayor”.
Para Jared Burton, escritor independiente SUD, la camaradería de la Iglesia lo ha sostenido durante una crisis de identidad política. Aunque se crió en una familia republicana conservadora en Colorado, sintió que la política había cambiado después de regresar de servir una misión SUD en Brasil.
“Ha sido genial experimentar esto, ya que tengo este cambio de identidad política que me está pasando, tengo un sentido de pertenencia en la Iglesia. No tengo que preocuparme por pertenecer a un partido (político) específico”, declaró Burton.
The U.S. Department of Education alongside eight other federal agencies on Monday announced changes to protect the religious liberty of faith-based groups that participate in government-sponsored programs and make sure they don’t face more barriers or burdens than secular groups. Under the changes, for example, private religious schools would not be disqualified from participating in grants for federally fundedUpward Bound programs that help low-income, homeless, disabled, and otherwise disadvantaged high school students prepare for successful college application and performance.
The joint rule follows other protections for religious people and organizations flowing from an executive order President Donald Trump issued in May 2018.
Last week, the Department of Labor announced a rule giving faith-based government contractors the right to make employment decisions based on their religious beliefs. The change clarified that religious employers can hire only people who adhere to the tenets of their faith. It also extends religious liberty protections for churches to also cover “a corporation, association, educational institution, society, school, college, university, or institution of learning” that is “organized for a religious purpose.” That means it could protect for-profit entities like a small store or a hospital as long it is upfront about its religious purpose.
While groups like the American Civil Liberties Union have called the rule a “license to discriminate,”religious liberty advocates praised the agency for protecting faith-based organizations’ ability to carry out their goals.
“When a religious group hires people of the same religion to carry out their mission, it’s not ‘discrimination,’ it’s common sense,” Becket Senior Counsel Luke Goodrich told Catholic News Service. “And when the government refuses to work with religious groups that do the best job of caring for the needy, it’s not ‘equality,’ it’s nonsense.”
Critics predict that President-elect Joe Biden’s administration will take steps to roll back these protections, but that’s not done at the flick of a pen. “Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program,” quipped economist Milton Friedman, hinting at the difficulty of change. That may work to liberty’s advantage this time.
Issuing a strong warning against religious fanatics, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said the government would not let anyone create any division and anarchy in the country over religion.
“This Bangladesh is the Bangladesh of Lalon Shah, Rabindranath, Kazi Nazrul, Jibanananda… this Bangladesh is the Bangladesh of Shahjalal, Shah Poran, Shah Mokdum, Khanjahan Ali; this Bangladesh is the Bangladesh of Sheikh Mujib and 16.5 crore Bangalees — this country is for all. We won’t allow anyone to create any division and anarchy in the name of religion,” she said.
The premier was addressing the nation on the occasion of Victory Day.
Hasina said a section of the defeated force of 1971 are out to confuse the religion-loving Muslims through providing false, fabricated and fictitious information as they want to create anarchy in the society.
“In 1972, the Father of the Nation had said not to make religion a tool of politics. But the associates of the defeated forces are now dreaming of taking the country to a situation which prevailed in the country 50 years back.”
The PM alleged that these bigots with political patronage were showing their audacity.
“The people of Bangladesh are pious, but not fanatics. We must not make religion as the weapon of politics. Everyone has the right to perform his own religious rituals.”
Hasina mentioned that Bangladesh is a country of communal harmony. The country achieved its independence in an exchange of blood of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians. “The people of the country will move on towards prosperity, progress and development keeping the religious morale high.”
She briefly described various development programmes of Bangabandhu and Awami League governments for flourishing Islam in the country.
DEBT OF BLOOD
In her 18-minute speech, the PM urged all to take a vow on the eve of the Victory Day not to forget the debt of blood of millions of martyrs.
“We must not let the non-communal spirit of the Liberation War fade away. My request to the youths and the new generation is that you must not forget the supreme sacrifices of your predecessors ever. You must not let someone dishonour the red and green flag that they have gifted [us],” she said.
The premier said youths must take a vow to transform the country into Golden Bengal imbued with the spirit of Liberation War.
VICTORY DAY AMID COVID
Talking about the Covid-19 pandemic, Hasina said the country is going to celebrate the Victory Day this year in a different situation.
“We have to bring changes to our daily routine due to the coronavirus pandemic. We are carrying out our personal, social and national activities avoiding public gatherings. Each life is invaluable…the death of a single person due to negligence is not desirable.”
The PM urged all to perform their everyday works and celebrate the Victory Day following health safety rules. “Make sure that you are masked up while going out of home and clean hands with soap or sanitiser regularly. Your protection is the safeguard for all.”
She said the whole nation faced the coronavirus unitedly and set an example in the world.
“In Bangladesh, we have been able to tackle this adverse shock to some extent with timely steps and programmes. We have announced a stimulus package worth Tk 121,000 crore which is 4.3 percent of the GDP.”
After absorbing the initial hit, the remittance inflow, agricultural production and export have bounced back, the PM added.
Hasina said the government has changed the celebration programmes of the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman due to the pandemic.
“Our independence will step into the 50th year next year. Had there been no pandemic, we would have celebrated the Golden Jubilee of independence in a befitting manner simultaneously with the programmes of the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation.”
The premier said Bangabandhu used to say that nobody honours a beggars’ nation.
“We have erased that bad name of Bangladesh in the international arena as Bangladesh is now the name of a dignified country. Today’s Bangladesh is not a country of a fragile economy; today’s Bangladesh is self-dependent Bangladesh.”
Hasina said Bangladesh has fulfilled the eligibility criteria for graduation from the list of least developed countries to a developing country.
She said it was the dream of the Father of the Nation to establish secular Golden Bengal which would be free from hunger and poverty.
“We are at the doorstep of implementing his dream… we have to continue this development. With this, we will be able to fulfil our dream to become a developed and prosperous country by 2041,” the PM added.
State-owned Bangladesh Betar and Bangladesh Television simultaneously broadcast the prime minister’s address. Private television channels and radio stations also aired the speech.
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Written by Jon Stickler
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Pale Waves have unveiled a new song, She’s My Religion.
Following Change, the track serves as the second preview of the Manchester indie-pop quartet’s forthcoming second album ‘Who Am I?’, due out on February 12 via Dirty Hit.
It arrives after vocalist Heather Baron-Gracie posted a demo of the cut in May, calling it a “gay anthem”. More recently, she revealed a picture via Twitter with the caption ‘She’s My Religion – Tuesday’.
The band will appear alongside Charli XCX, Clairo, Beabadoobee and Phoebe Bridgers on the support bill for the 1975’s rescheduled headline show at London’s Finsbury Park on July 10.
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<p>Tue 10 Nov 2020
Pale Waves Announce New Album 'Who Am I?', Share Lead Single Change
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Pale Waves will release their second album next year.
Terming people of the country “religious” and not fanatics, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today called upon all not to use religion as a political tool.
“The people of Bangladesh are religious, not fanatics. Don’t use religion as a political tool. Everyone has the right to practice their own religion. It (Bangladesh) is a country of communal harmony. It was liberated with the blood of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians,” the premier said while addressing the nation from Gono Bhaban, on the occasion of Victory Day.
“This is the Bangladesh of Lalon, Rabindranath Tagore, Kazi Nazrul Islam and Jibanananda Das. This is the Bangladesh of Shahjalal, Shah Paran, Shah Makhdum and Khanjahan Ali. This is Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Bangladesh; Bangladesh of sixteen and a half crore Bangalees. This country belongs to everyone,” she said.
Reiterating that the government will not allow any kind of division and chaos in the name of religion, Sheikh Hasina said people of the country will move forward on the path of progress and development while upholding religious values.
She said a section of the defeated forces in 1971 has been trying to distract devoted Muslims with false and fictitious statements.
They want to create unrest in the country, she said, adding that the defeated forces are plotting to take the country 50 years back.
Mentioning government’s initiatives undertaken to combat Covid-19 fallout, she said her government’s timely steps have reduced the negative impact of the pandemic in the country.
She also highlighted the government’s ongoing development projects including the Padma Bridge and initiatives taken for the spread of Islamic studies and religious practices.
Calling upon the people to follow the health guidelines during the Victory Day celebration programme, the PM said not a single death is desirable.
“China’s attempt to change the status quo on the Line of Actual Control along the northern borders amidst the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated high levels of preparation on land, sea and in the air,” the CDS said.
The Indian Army, following the Doklam stand-off in 2017, has taken measures to ensure that the situation does not escalate there any further, he maintained.
Indian forces are carefully watching the activities of the PLA at Doklam, where the armies of the two most populous countries in the world were engaged in a 73-day eyeball-to-eyeball stand-off in 2017.
“We have taken necessary action to counter anything that would be a cause of concern to our national security,” he said when asked about possible Chinese misadventures in the eastern sector, in the midst of the Ladakh impasse.
The CDS further said that the Indian Armed forces have adequate strength and reserves to counter any threat, and is looking to equip themselves with more cutting-edge technology.
“Time has come now to look at the future of warfighting, imbibing technology into our systems,” he said.
Talking about the continuous ceasefire violation by Pakistan, he said India is fully prepared to deal with it and that it is the other side that should be more concerned about carrying out such activities.
Asked whether India should have more submarines or procure another aircraft carrier, Rawat said both have their advantages and disadvantages.
“Submarines have a separate place in naval warfare, in the domination of the seas, and so does an aircraft carrier,” he said, maintaining that the Navy needs an air wing.
The country needs to utilise its large number of island territories for strengthening security along the sea lanes of communication, Rawat said.
He also said that islands can be an option for launching naval strike aircraft.
“Once we have studied all that and understood in detail, we will take a call,” he asserted.
Rawat said that the three forces — Army, Navy and Air Force — will be integrated while retaining the niche capabilities of each service.
“We strongly believe that no single force or no single service can succeed in any conflict situation if we are to face conflict with our adversaries anywhere — whether it is land, air or sea,” he said.
The integration will ensure synergised application of the country’s combat potentials, the CDS said.
“We have successfully overcome some of the misconceptions about force restructuring by allowing space to each force to develop niche capabilities based on their strengths, and thus enhance our overall combat power,” he added.
Popular Tanzanian singer Ben Pol has for the first time opened up about his new found faith months after converting to Islam. Speaking during a recent interview with E FM, the Moyo Mashine singer began by expressing his disappointment at netizens for associating his public life with his faith.
“First of all, there’s this one thing I think people mistook and that was linking Ben Pol the celebrity with my faith. I really feel that that was a big mistake.”
In his explanation, the award-winning Bongo Flava star stated that he wanted his religious life to stay private without any interference or judgment from his celebrity life.
“Someone like me who is known compared to an ordinary person, they have the privilege of making as many mistakes as they can and get away with it you know. But as a celebrity, everything you do is under scrutiny. You make one mistake and the mistake is seen by millions of people, and honestly, that’s why I think linking my faith to my celebrity life was a big mistake. A celebrity is like an entity, for instance, the President’s office or government property or since we are here like E FM, you cannot associate it with religion,” he said.
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“When I go to my place of worship, whoever will see me there, that’s fine. Whatever happens behind the curtains should stay there. I don’t have to attach that to the celebrity side of my life. Personally, I’m tired of having to separate the two and with all due respect would wish to stop talking about it,” he added.
Relationship
Touching on his marriage with Keroche Heiress Anerlisa Muigai, Ben Pol assured his fans that everything was okay between him and his wife despite the breakup rumors that had been doing rounds on social media. The singer recently shot a music video with the love of his life, and many assumed they prerecorded the video months ago and are currently not together.
“That video is very current, and I think what was getting many people confused about our relationship and alleged break up was the fact that we never responded to the allegations and let them come up with their own versions of what was going on. You know some people when something happens between you they come out and start making up stories about you or for instance, the both of you are going through ups and downs, which is very normal.
“It happens even at places of work; at home, it’s very normal. Someone can use that to say something very extreme about you to try and make your situation worse. Most of the time, we were at very different frequencies with the world. When they think we are fighting or not talking, we were very much okay. We had agreed never to let anything come between us no matter how big social media made it seem, and that is what worked for us,” he said.
NEW DELHI — A gathering held recently by the Bahá’ís of India looked at the need to reconceptualize the institution of the family based on the principle of equality between women and men. Among the attendees of the gathering were organizations concerned with the issue of gender equality, academics, and school teachers.
“The challenges women face within the family have become a most pressing issue during the pandemic in many societies. In some cases, education has come to an end for many girls. There are a lot of child marriages taking place because families see no other path for their daughters during this crisis. At the same time there are many organizations that are trying to reach out and help out,” says Carmel Tripathi of the Indian Bahá’í Office of Public Affairs.
“We felt it was timely,” she continues, “to create a space for various segments of society to explore together the kinds of changes that the family as an institution must undergo.”
This gathering is among numerous other efforts of the Indian Bahá’í community over the past decades to contribute to the discourse in society on gender equality.
Anshu Gupta, a panelist at the gathering and founder of the relief organization Goonj, spoke about the effects of culture and tradition on the family environment, asking: “What is tradition? It is something you keep following. To stop taboos, we have to talk about them … in a common language. So we create dialogue and stop claiming that we have to do certain things because it is tradition.”
Commenting on the significance of the meeting, Ms. Tripathi explains that people often hold back from a deeper exploration of the role of family in contributing to gender equality. “There is a tendency to think of the family as something isolated from society and very private. In reality this should be discussed openly because this is where patterns of thought and behavior that are associated with being a man or women are learned and practiced.”
In a paper prepared for the discussion and distributed to participants at the gathering, the Bahá’í Office of Public Affairs highlighted several themes, including “Sharing the functions of nurturance and care-giving” and “Consultation as the basis for decision-making.”
The paper reads in part: “If decision making in a family is not to be an outcome of arbitrary and dictatorial authority, members of the family will need to learn to communicate with each other with respect and openness drawing on a whole range of qualities such as love, humility, tact, empathy, courtesy and moderation. The capacity to consult in a loving, considerate and yet frank manner in arriving at collective decisions is an art whose value humanity is only beginning to appreciate.”
Murari Jha, a panelist and an educator in Delhi government schools, spoke about the need for greater rigor when analyzing social progress, stating: “We need to be vigilant of misunderstandings. When you look at what was mentioned in the seminar paper about decision making within the family, the real measure of gender-equal practices is who is making the decisions, such as whether and whom to marry. If we are not allowing our daughters, our sisters… to be part of important decisions, then the act of sending them to school is not really the symbol that we are practicing equality.”
Nilakshi Rajkhowa of the Office of Public Affairs highlights other concepts from the paper, such as the need for families to develop an outward orientation while serving the needs of society.
“Bahá’í community building endeavors encourage families to plan and consult together when they undertake initiatives. As a result, often, profound discussions can happen in homes in which other families join in as they assist with activities. Prayer also plays an important role in creating a unified spirit. Communities in which families work together in this way develop the capacity to look at the issues affecting their lives and to address them without waiting for someone from outside to give aid and support.
“What we are observing is that by consciously learning to apply the Bahá’í principles of unity, consultation and equality between women and men, structures within families begin to change where no members dominate others.”
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<p class="content__segment combx meterwall__content">A $2.5 million grant to the National WWI Museum and Memorial will allow it to hire an endowed curator for faith and religion, the museum announced Monday. </p>
Lilly Endowment Inc. gave the grant through its Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative, according to a release. The WWI Museum is one of 18 institutions to receive a grant from the initiative, which awarded a total of more than $43 million.
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<p class="content__segment combx meterwall__content">The grant will allow the museum to explore how World War I affected religion and faith. It will work to preserve related artifacts and make findings accessible to the public, in part through online exhibitions. </p>
The grant will help the museum achieve three goals outlined in its strategic plan: Improve visitors’ experience; tell the stories of minorities, women and indigenous people who served in World War I; and make the collection accessible to a global audience.
“We are thrilled to have the support of Lilly Endowment for this strategic initiative that fits within our Three Big Ideas,” WWI Museum CEO Matthew Naylor said in the release. “The endowed curatorial position and accompanying support will allow us to provide global leadership to this area of WWI research and add considerably to our understanding of the Great War and its enduring impact.”
Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment is a private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly and his sons through gifts of stock in the family’s pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly. The philanthropic organization remains a separate entity.
The WWI Museum received a $655,000 donation earlier in December to aid in its digitization efforts. Staff members have been working on digitizing the museum’s collection since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Employees already have transcribed more than 13,000 letters and artifacts, and more than 2,000 object records have been digitized this year.
COMECE Legal Affairs Commission: children and their rights as a EU priority
The COMECE Legal Affairs Commission met on Thursday 3 December 2020 to exchange on current EU and national initiatives in the area of fundamental rights. The event took place by video conference due to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis under the chairmanship of H. E. Mgr. Theodorus C. M. Hoogenboom, Auxiliary Bishop of Utrecht.
The meeting prioritesed the situation of children in the Europea Union. In dialogue with a representative of the European Commission, the experts delegated by the EU Episcopates analysed the EU strategy for a more effective fight against child abuse, emphasising the importance of a multi-stakeholder approach.
The future strategy on the rights of the child (2021-2024) was also discussed with the European Commission. The exchange was timely, as COMECE subsequently contributed to the consultation on this topic.
The impact of the pandemic on the rights of the child and of their parents, as well as the possible expansion of the setting for the future Expert group on violence against children, were among the key points that emerged in this regard.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which entered into force in May 2018 and is a permanent priority in the fundamental rights domain, was also addressed. Concerning the Church in the Member States, the experts also shared information and legal questions on recent developments regarding the GDPR, as well as on national systems of Church funding.
In view of the upcoming Christmas period, the COMECE Commission also assessed the impact of the recently issued EU Stay Safe Strategy on religious ceremonies.
The COMECE Legal Affairs Commission will meet for its next meeting on Thursday, 25 February 2021, with a focus on EU non-discrimination policies and initiatives to counter money laundering.
Personally, I accept that the intentions behind the legislation are good. The problem is the apparently rushed and ill-considered overreach which could have broad and – one trusts, but is not quite certain – unintended consequences for freedom of belief, speech and religion.
A meeting of leaders of Victorian churches unanimously supported the intention of the bill to protect vulnerable people from coercive practices.
I emphasise that the churches do not want to be a source of harm to vulnerable people, and it is clear that, sadly, in some cases that has happened, that people have suffered psychological and spiritual damage. A meeting of leaders of Victorian churches last Wednesday unanimously supported the intention of the bill to protect vulnerable people from coercive practices.
Yet, so far as I am aware, the number of coercive conversion therapy cases historically in Victoria is tiny, certainly not enough to justify legislation of this magnitude.
The text of the legislation is troubling, interfering as it does with Christian practices of prayer, conversion, Christian formation, spiritual accompaniment, family and church life, and the ability of individuals to seek advice or counselling to make their own decisions.
Frankly, should someone actively wish to change their orientation, or to seek advice about practising celibacy, or any private matter of conscience, it is none of the government’s business.
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By what right does a secular government try to determine “conversion”, a normal Christian practice – I am an adult convert to Christianity myself – or how Christians may pray? By what right does it try to restrict what people can or cannot say to each other, even if they are adults of a shared cultural or religious identity?
Take celibacy. For two millennia, the Church has advocated that people should refrain from sexual relations outside marriage. What if a young heterosexual and a young homosexual seek counselling about struggles in this area – a not uncommon scenario? Is a pastor to advise the heterosexual but remain silent to the homosexual?
If a married adult is struggling with sexuality and asks for prayer so s/he can contain sexual expression to the marriage, are people praying for them guilty of a “change or suppression practice”? What if a polyamorist is advised to stay faithful in a marriage but decides this advice has damaged him? The bill explicitly says these prohibitions are regardless of consent, or the desires of the subject.
What if a pre-pubescent child requests gender-reassignment treatment, but the parents, who know and love that child, encourage him or her to wait and see if their feelings change? Are the parents guilty of a “change or suppression practice”? That certainly seems a possible interpretation of the legislation.
Further, the definition of sexual orientation has been amended extraordinarily broadly.
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What next? Church leaders are seeking a delay in taking the bill to the Upper House so proper consultation can take place – for example, on clear definitions and on articulation of harmful practices. The explanatory notes say the legislation is not intended to proscribe what can be said in a sermon or lecture, but this is not included in the bill.
Astute observers have also noted that the bill (under Section 57) requires an independent reviewer – chosen by the Attorney-General, so a political appointment – who must consider the need for a redress scheme. That raises the stakes.
The penalties under the bill are severe, including imprisonment. The government wants to suggest that not much is changing but, with the bill as it is, that is clearly untrue. How can it hurt the government to hold off a little longer, and actually consult? If the churches are sympathetic to the government’s motives, as they are, why not allay their concerns?
Barney Zwartz, religion editor of The Age from 2002 to 2013, is a senior fellow of the Centre for Public Christianity.
Barney Zwartz, a senior fellow of the Centre for Public Christianity, was religion editor of The Age from 2002 to 2013.
New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Since its inception in late 2015 Actual Villains has been an evolving project. Formed from the dissolve of the singer’s prior band, Close to Home (Artery Recordings/Razor & Tie Records) Andrew DeNeef and his former guitarist set out to continue their signature blend of pop-punk and metalcore with their first single “Cave In”. These two parted ways in 2016 shortly after releasing the self-titled Actual Villains EP. The project sat in hiatus for a few months until Andrew moved back to Phoenix, Arizona where he met producer and guitarist Hiram Hernandez, a former label-mate from the band The New Low and former guitarist for Glass Cloud. The duo released their first single “VOID” in 2019 and have been busy in the studio writing new tunes for 2021.Their newest venture, just in time for the original song’s 30th anniversary, is a dynamic cover of one of our favorite songs of all time, R.E.M.’s Losing My Religion.
A music video for the track is now streaming here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRH1Iekq_rI&feature=youtu.be.
DeNeef says, “To me, R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion” has always been a quintessential Alternative Rock song. Since it’s release thirty years ago, It’s been one of the only songs from my childhood that I never grew tired of as my musical tastes went through multiple stages of evolution. I’ve always felt the lyrics are about the frustrations of feeling like you’re losing control, at the end of a rope, trying to find yourself through the noise and confusion of the world. A feeling I know all too well lately.
This year has been particularly tough, with all of its challenges and stress, it’s led to a lot of moments of introspection and soul searching. Throughout this time this song kept finding its way into my life, like a sign begging for my attention. I’ve been apprehensive in the past about doing cover songs but the more I sang along to this song, the more relevant the lyrics seemed. I could hear my own version of the song in my head taking shape, begging to come to life.
I wanted to homage the original song but bring in new energy and a more dynamic sound overall, taking into account my very diverse pool of influences. It starts with a sense of sadness that boils into rage by the end, taking the listener on a journey that matches the feelings this song evokes still today after three decades. I hope you enjoy my vision for this timeless classic. “Losing My Religion“, reimagined by Actual Villains.”
Doubting Thomas needed the proof, just like a scientist, and now is a cautionary Biblical example. Caravaggio/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/ElJjyrewL3Yx.WLXbgybVA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTUyMS40MDYyNQ–/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/D8zu_.xsKFSYPbZdE6s7og–~B/aD0xMDY1O3c9MTQ0MDthcHBpZD15dGFjaHlvbg–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_conversation_us_articles_815/29eb26bf204a73bf24b4075ddbaa0442″ data-src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/ElJjyrewL3Yx.WLXbgybVA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTUyMS40MDYyNQ–/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/D8zu_.xsKFSYPbZdE6s7og–~B/aD0xMDY1O3c9MTQ0MDthcHBpZD15dGFjaHlvbg–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_conversation_us_articles_815/29eb26bf204a73bf24b4075ddbaa0442″/>
Doubting Thomas needed the proof, just like a scientist, and now is a cautionary Biblical example.Caravaggio/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY
As the West becomes more and more secular, and the discoveries of evolutionary biology and cosmology shrink the boundaries of faith, the claims that science and religion are compatible grow louder. If you’re a believer who doesn’t want to seem anti-science, what can you do? You must argue that your faith – or any faith – is perfectly compatible with science.
But I argue that this is misguided: that science and religion are not only in conflict – even at “war” – but also represent incompatible ways of viewing the world.
Opposing methods for discerning truth
My argument runs like this. I’ll construe “science” as the set of tools we use to find truth about the universe, with the understanding that these truths are provisional rather than absolute. These tools include observing nature, framing and testing hypotheses, trying your hardest to prove that your hypothesis is wrong to test your confidence that it’s right, doing experiments and above all replicating your and others’ results to increase confidence in your inference.
And I’ll define religion as does philosopher Daniel Dennett: “Social systems whose participants avow belief in a supernatural agent or agents whose approval is to be sought.” Of course many religions don’t fit that definition, but the ones whose compatibility with science is touted most often – the Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity and Islam – fill the bill.
Next, realize that both religion and science rest on “truth statements” about the universe – claims about reality. The edifice of religion differs from science by additionally dealing with morality, purpose and meaning, but even those areas rest on a foundation of empirical claims. You can hardly call yourself a Christian if you don’t believe in the Resurrection of Christ, a Muslim if you don’t believe the angel Gabriel dictated the Qur’an to Muhammad, or a Mormon if you don’t believe that the angel Moroni showed Joseph Smith the golden plates that became the Book of Mormon. After all, why accept a faith’s authoritative teachings if you reject its truth claims?
Indeed, even the Bible notes this: “But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.”
Many theologians emphasize religion’s empirical foundations, agreeing with the physicist and Anglican priest John Polkinghorne:
“The question of truth is as central to [religion’s] concern as it is in science. Religious belief can guide one in life or strengthen one at the approach of death, but unless it is actually true it can do neither of these things and so would amount to no more than an illusory exercise in comforting fantasy.”
The conflict between science and faith, then, rests on the methods they use to decide what is true, and what truths result: These are conflicts of both methodology and outcome.
In contrast to the methods of science, religion adjudicates truth not empirically, but via dogma, scripture and authority – in other words, through faith, defined in Hebrews 11 as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” In science, faith without evidence is a vice, while in religion it’s a virtue. Recall what Jesus said to “doubting Thomas,” who insisted in poking his fingers into the resurrected Savior’s wounds: “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”
And yet, without supporting evidence, Americans believe a number of religious claims: 74 percent of us believe in God, 68 percent in the divinity of Jesus, 68 percent in Heaven, 57 percent in the virgin birth, and 58 percent in the Devil and Hell. Why do they think these are true? Faith.
But different religions make different – and often conflicting – claims, and there’s no way to judge which claims are right. There are over 4,000 religions on this planet, and their “truths” are quite different. (Muslims and Jews, for instance, absolutely reject the Christian belief that Jesus was the son of God.) Indeed, new sects often arise when some believers reject what others see as true. Lutherans split over the truth of evolution, while Unitarians rejected other Protestants’ belief that Jesus was part of God.
And while science has had success after success in understanding the universe, the “method” of using faith has led to no proof of the divine. How many gods are there? What are their natures and moral creeds? Is there an afterlife? Why is there moral and physical evil? There is no one answer to any of these questions. All is mystery, for all rests on faith.
The “war” between science and religion, then, is a conflict about whether you have good reasons for believing what you do: whether you see faith as a vice or a virtue.
Compartmentalizing realms is irrational
So how do the faithful reconcile science and religion? Often they point to the existence of religious scientists, like NIH Director Francis Collins, or to the many religious people who accept science. But I’d argue that this is compartmentalization, not compatibility, for how can you reject the divine in your laboratory but accept that the wine you sip on Sunday is the blood of Jesus?
Others argue that in the past religion promoted science and inspired questions about the universe. But in the past every Westerner was religious, and it’s debatable whether, in the long run, the progress of science has been promoted by religion. Certainly evolutionary biology, my own field, has been held back strongly by creationism, which arises solely from religion.
What is not disputable is that today science is practiced as an atheistic discipline – and largely by atheists. There’s a huge disparity in religiosity between American scientists and Americans as a whole: 64 percent of our elite scientists are atheists or agnostics, compared to only 6 percent of the general population – more than a tenfold difference. Whether this reflects differential attraction of nonbelievers to science or science eroding belief – I suspect both factors operate – the figures are prima facie evidence for a science-religion conflict.
The most common accommodationist argument is Stephen Jay Gould’s thesis of “non-overlapping magisteria.” Religion and science, he argued, don’t conflict because: “Science tries to document the factual character of the natural world, and to develop theories that coordinate and explain these facts. Religion, on the other hand, operates in the equally important, but utterly different, realm of human purposes, meanings and values – subjects that the factual domain of science might illuminate, but can never resolve.”
This fails on both ends. First, religion certainly makes claims about “the factual character of the universe.” In fact, the biggest opponents of non-overlapping magisteria are believers and theologians, many of whom reject the idea that Abrahamic religions are “empty of any claims to historical or scientific facts.”
Nor is religion the sole bailiwick of “purposes, meanings and values,” which of course differ among faiths. There’s a long and distinguished history of philosophy and ethics – extending from Plato, Hume and Kant up to Peter Singer, Derek Parfit and John Rawls in our day – that relies on reason rather than faith as a fount of morality. All serious ethical philosophy is secular ethical philosophy.
In the end, it’s irrational to decide what’s true in your daily life using empirical evidence, but then rely on wishful-thinking and ancient superstitions to judge the “truths” undergirding your faith. This leads to a mind (no matter how scientifically renowned) at war with itself, producing the cognitive dissonance that prompts accommodationism. If you decide to have good reasons for holding any beliefs, then you must choose between faith and reason. And as facts become increasingly important for the welfare of our species and our planet, people should see faith for what it is: not a virtue but a defect.
This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.
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Jerry Coyne does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
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