Letter: Religious comparison doesn't look at facts - The Prescott Daily Courier - Prescott, Arizona

10/27/2010 9:55:00 PM
Letter: Religious comparison doesn't look at facts

EDITOR:

After reading Nigel Reynolds' letter comparing the religious intolerance between fundamentalist Christians and radical Muslims, I can only come to the conclusion that Mr. Reynolds is suffering from a near terminal case of moral relativism. Whatever historical events he may cite are meaningless when looking at the results of radical Islamic intolerance and comparing it to Christian intolerance in today's world.

An intolerant Christian in the United States may write letters to editors or elected officials to change laws or report and complain about activities he thinks are sinful or anti-Christian. A radical Muslim may kill a daughter he thinks has "dishonored" his family or a wife he thinks has been unfaithful, in the name of Islam. Throughout much of the Islamic world, women are subject to beatings if they disobey their husbands or wear clothing not sufficiently "chaste" for Muslim sensibilities. Wherever Sharia Law is in place, Islamic intolerance results in death or maiming of those caught violating it.

In addition, within Islam itself, Shiia Muslims consider Sunni Muslims to be infidels and vice versa and often kill each other in the name of their sect of Islam. When was the last time Lutherans killed Methodists or Catholics in this country? It doesn't happen here. But "honor killings" by Muslims do, in the name of their religion.

R. F. "Buz" Williams

Prescott





Reader Comments

Posted: Saturday, October 30, 2010
Article comment by: D. E.

To: Buz Williams
I think you may have missed my point. I was trying to show sincere appreciation for Destiny, Manifest's ability to express my own thoughts on the evil, narrow-minded, and dangerously biased teachings which I endured for the first nine years of formal education, being raised in a religious environment, and attending parochial schools.
The only thing I can be proud of is the fact that I had the common sense to see beyond the occult mentality, and learned to think for myself. <

Posted: Friday, October 29, 2010
Article comment by: War on Brains

Nice dodge there, Buz. You would have made a fine politician.

Posted: Friday, October 29, 2010
Article comment by: Buz Williams

"War on Brains" suggests that I'm a fundamentalist Christian, but D.E. is a lot closer to the truth. I'm a Catholic and went to 12 years of parochial school, St. Jerome's elementary and St. Bernard's High School, both in the area of the Los Angeles Airport.

Posted: Thursday, October 28, 2010
Article comment by: D. E.

To: Destiny, Manifest
I can't tell you how much I appreciate your ability to put (so eloquently) into words, what I've thought my entire life.
Where were you during my K-8 parochial school years?

Posted: Thursday, October 28, 2010
Article comment by: Buz Williams

Honky brujo, talk about your "ill education and just plain mental laziness", curiosity has only one 'c' in it when correctly spelled. Beyond that, Hitler did not kill for his religious beliefs, he killed others for their religion and ethnicity.

You can take the victims of all of the others you mentioned, plus the victims of every other religious fanatic in history and it is a drop in the bucket compared to the number killed by the secularists in the 20th Century, (Hitler, Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, just to name a few). Perhaps 'plain mental laziness' prevented you from doing a bare minimum of historical research before spouting erroneous left wing myths.

Posted: Thursday, October 28, 2010
Article comment by: War on Brains

A fundamentalist Christian cheers his nation on as its holy warriors wage a war on foreign soil that kills thousands of innocent men, women, and children of another faith each year, then has the gall to call anyone who disagrees him a moral relativist.

Posted: Thursday, October 28, 2010
Article comment by: Destiny, Manifest

Buz, not a case of moral relativism, a case of religious relativism. Morality is individual regardless of a religion or lack thereof. The view from your own particular religious persuasion is narrow, as it would be by others trapped within their own moral superiority of their religion. Religion divides us, creates the illusion of believing you are more moral than others who do not hold your beliefs. That your group are the saints while the others the infidels, while the others are doing the same. The sense of morality in humans is not dependent upon religion, but of educated enlighten self interest and ethics. Religion is a human creation reflecting our own human sense of that same morality, a tool for good or bad. The fact that all religions speak to morality, demonstrates that morality exists outside of any one religion. Although, I think you missed the main point of your own faith, nor understand its history of bloodshed and the killing of the innocents. Time for the world to put away the irrational things of childhood and the deadly consequence in perpetuating these myths to another generation.

Posted: Thursday, October 28, 2010
Article comment by: honky brujo

Yeah Buzz, how about David Koresh, Jim Jones, the IRA, Hitler, the crusaders, John D. Lee (mormon) Stonewall Jackson, etc all good Christians. All religions are assine, all are based on superstition, lake of curiocity, ill education, and just plain mental laziness. You Christians are responsible for more human deaths than any other religions.