IS IT SCIENCE OR RELIGION?

By now, thanks to Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and their friends, we all know that religion is the source of most of the evil in the world. Well, at any rate, the cause of most of the wars and violence humans have endured. But, like so many of the things we all know, it isn’t true.

Certainly religion is a factor in some violence. The Crusades are a handy historical example, as are the Inquisition and witch-hunts. And 21^st Century sectarian struggles fill our TV screens. But even Jihad may be motivated by factors other than religion, and many conflicts have no religious roots at all.

Consider the two great wars of the 20^th Century.  WWI, with its focus on Germany and England, was hardly a battle between the Lutherans and Anglicans. And WWII (Germany and Italy against the rest of us, with Japan seizing the opportunity to seize an opportunity) is equally hard to characterize as a religious affair. So, if religion isn’t the main problem, what is?

Well, why did the Persians, Babylonians, Assyrians and Egyptians spend so much of their time beating up on their neighbours, seizing their territory, stealing their stuff, and generally killing and enslaving them? And why did the Greeks, Romans, and Barbarians do the same things in most of the world they knew? And what about the Brits, French, Spanish, Dutch (yes, piddly little Holland for heaven’s sake); why did they wander all over the globe from China to the Americas doing the same things to everyone they could find? And if it was because they were Christians and the rest of the world was not, why were they also, at the same time, beating up on each other?

The truth is, the motives for these conflicts are obvious; seizing territory, stealing stuff, generally killing and enslaving people, and of course the fear of being on the receiving end of said activities. Fear and greed are the central motives in all this violence. But it takes more than motive. You need an opportunity, an advantage, the perceived likelihood of success.

It seems to me, throughout the long history of conquest, you find the masters of advanced technologies beating up on those who have not yet mastered them. The Bronze Age runs over the Stone Age, the Iron Age runs over the Bronze, Steel runs over Iron, and the folks with the Nukes pretty much get their way. The spear, the bow and arrow, the long bow, the musket, canon, rifle, scope, all enabled one people to dominate another. The Europeans, for example, had the technology, i.e., the opportunity to create vast empires. And the did. Even piddly little Holland.

Why do nations rise up and inflict horrifying violence upon other nations? Because they can. And they can because they happen to have some folks who’ve figured out how to do things others haven’t. In other words, they have the best scientists. It’s actually all about Science.

When I was a kid “we” were in an arms race with the Soviet Union. They were nominal Atheists as we were nominal Christians, but it wasn’t about that. It was about preserving and advancing our respective ways of life, i.e., affluence and influence. In short, we each feared what might happen to us if the other mastered the advanced technologies we had not yet mastered. The focus was technology, not theology, and the battle fields were Indochina, Africa, and the Middle East.

In January of 1991 we watched, with shock and awe, as a US led coalition of 34 countries (including Canada), in an amazing display of developed technology, made war in the Persian Gulf. We wanted to do this for lots of reasons, but we did it because we could.

In September of 2001, we watched, with shock and awe, as a tiny band of terrorists from the Persian Gulf, in an amazing display of borrowed technology, retaliated in New York. They too had lots of reasons for wanting to do this, but they did it because they could.

What I’m suggesting here is really quite simple. Religion is not the problem and Science is not the solution. The solution, if there is one, lies elsewhere.

Love your enemies , do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. Luke 6:27-31

What a concept!