Monday, January 24, 2011

Religious conversions are outdated

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/01/religious-conversions-are-outdated.html

Your religion is dear to you as mine is to me. Neither should I denigrate your religion nor should you consider mine less than yours.

Every religion works for the "believer", it brings a balance within and builds an orderly society. Neither Muslims nor Christians are obligated to convert any one to their faith,

Once upon a time, conversions were sought to uniformize people, to have support for their personal (ill) intentions to dominate and control and fight their manufactured enemies. Today that will not work and should be out of our system. No two Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Jews.... agree on the issues, and then what is the need to convert?

People should have the free will to choose what they wear, eat, look, and believe. Let it be their personal choice a choice that gives them spiritual atonement.

Jesus said to go to every corner of the world and spread the good word and that word was for people to treat others as they wanted to be treated and some Christians took it in literal sense, just as some Muslim do.  God sent a revelation to the Prophet, your role is to convey the messages of goodness and it is up to people to follow it, perhaps to concretize the free will, God chose to have Prophet's own uncle die without accepting the message of the prophet. There is a great wisdom in it.

Both Christians and Muslims agree that their religion makes a better human out of them, and precisely that is the goal of a religion, any religion, whether it they follow the book or the oral tradition.  It is the insecurity in people that generates 'trickery" in them to protect their interests to have people tune into the same music, it was once, not any more. God has made us diverse with a unique thumb print, DNA, eye print and what not... Let's learn to respect and accept the God given uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge.

There is no one version of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism or Buddhism. Even the smaller numbered religions like Judaism, Jainism, Sikhism or others do not agree on certain basics. In America, the Christians fight over Abortion rights.

Religion will not serve politics in the long haul, although the right wing in America and elsewhere have demonstrated that it can, but it will be temporary and will not last. People will return to the roots of goodness as Religion is about bringing humility and creating orderly societies and not ganging up on others. By the way no one can cast the first stone. 
Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer. He runs the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other and is committed to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress.  Mike is available to speak on Pluralism, Islam, Civil Societies, and Peace & Justice at your place of worship, school, work place, seminars or conferences.  He is a media commentator offering pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. 

Mike's work is reflected at three websites & twenty two Blogs listed at http://www.MikeGhouse.net/

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