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%GENERALITY ADEQUACY INERRANT LITERAL TRUTH GOD'S+990804
%CONTROL DISCIPLINE PUNISHMENT COMMANDMENT IDOLATRY 990804
Conflicts between religious people often flow from
conflicting ways in which various religious people select,
regard, approach, interpret, use, abuse, and depend upon
holy scriptures. Variations occur of course between
different religions which focus upon different scriptures.
Variations also occur between splintered groups of the
same religion who ostensibly are based upon the same
collection of scriptures. Variations occur between
individual members of any given splinter group of any
given religion. Religious leaders who are preoccupied
with issues of control do not deal well with variations in
how their followers select, regard, approach, interpret,
use, abuse and depend upon the authorized scriptures upon
which they as religious controllers depend.
Consider the nature of some of the variations from
which conflicts flow:
1. Views as to scriptures' origins vary in that
some people regard their scriptures as literally
strings of words dictated by God to a chosen scribe;
or less directly as words inspired by God and faithfully
written down; or even less directly as collections of
writings of religious people who did their best to
write down ideas, ideals, values, commandments,
stories, etc. which seemed helpful to them in their time
and place.
2. Views vary as to the completeness and/or adequacy
of the collected scriptures. Some people regard their
collection as containing all that is needed to guide every
life in every time and place; complete adequacy. Other
texts are regarded as unnecessary, in competition,
misleading, errant, and/or evil --- in varying degrees.
For example, some religious leaders dismiss most if not
all of modern scientific/professional research and texts
reporting scientific/professional research. Other
religious leaders dismiss most if not all texts of
complementary religions.
3. Views vary as to the inerrancy, coherence,
integrity, and reliability of scriptural texts. Some
religious leaders make it as a matter of faith that their
texts are without error; coherent, of full integrity and
utterly reliable. Other religious leaders take more
pragmatic and less extreme views.
4. Views vary as to the interpretations of texts.
Some religious leaders make it a matter of faith that
meanings of scriptural texts are to be found in literal
understandings of what the words say. They acknowledge
no reasonable interpretations other than their own.
They do not acknowledge that different people of
integrity can with integrity find different meanings
within the texts --- in the light of different
understandings of the contexts of the writers, readers,
and interpreters of the texts.
5. Views vary as to the generality, particularity
and authority of religious texts. Some religious leaders
and authorities regard their chosen texts as adequate
grounds for religious controls over the lives of all
people in all places. Other religious leaders who are
less preoccupied with issues of control in regarding
differing religious texts as offering helpful insights
into a wide variety of different human situations and
needs for gracious responses to local circumstances.
6. Views vary as to how sacred, holy, perfect and/or
ultimate religious texts are. Some religious leaders
encourage their followers to worship their religious texts
as equivalent to God; ultimate in power, might, truth, and
righteousness. They encourage their followers to become
idolatrous in their reverence towards the chosen
scriptures.
Needless to say differing religious leaders and
followers will engage in conflicts which reflect the
conflicts inherent in their differences regarding the
scriptures which they take to be most important. Conflict
resolution and peacemaking will be undermined to the
extent that they worship their various differences and
conflicts.
(c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in
www.essayz.com Search for Integrity and Honesty
(On Being Yourself, Whole and Healthy)
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