Chapter Thirteen

1
Chapter Thirteen

• Religion, Culture, and Conflict

2
Interfaith boundaries

• The boundaries between the worlds major faiths.
• Nigeria with 110 million population, a
  multilingual country with two major religions
  North-Muslim (Hausa-Fulani) zone and Christianity
  in south (Ibo and Yoruba)
• 55 million -Muslim and 37 million Christians and
  12 million others
• Politics dominated by Muslim is a problem in
  south plus aggressive expansion of Islam among
  smaller population created adds to the problem
• Nigerias Christian-Islamic coexistence serves as
  a model for other countries

3
Sudan

• With similar interfaith, but more conflict.
• Language in north, 2/3 Arabic-Muslim and 1/3
  non-arabic-Muslim
• Sharia laws- too harsh for entire country
• War caused dislocation of millions.

4
The African Horn

• Amharic Christians control most the region, a new
  state emerged Eritrea in the late 90s, mostly
  Muslim.
• Ethiopia still contains a large Muslim population
  of Somalis in its eastern zone the south and
  west are non-Muslim and Coptic Christian still
  cluster in their highland domain.

5
South Asia

• In 1947, interfaith boundary in South Asia the
  political boundary causing one of the largest
  human migrations of modern time as Muslim and
  Hindus moved
• Three development in India 1) Sikhs, seeking for
  independence, is a reaction to Islam and Hinduism
  called Sikhism 2) late 80s, a shrine at
  Ayodhya housed temple and mosque, judge ruled it
  was a Hindu site, created conflict between Muslim
  and Hindus. 3) 83, Save Hinduism marches across
  country, the rise of fundamentalism and
  militancy, politically potential for the
  politicians (Hinduism is never an aggressive
  faith).
• Bombay to Mumbai

6
Sikh Populations
7
Sikh

• Influenced by Hindu and Islam,founded by Guru
  Nanak (born in 1469 AD), advocating active
  service.
• No smoking/alcohol, No caste system/image
  worship/priesthood/pilgrimage, but keep Hindu
  doctrines of karma and transmigration.
• Refused to accept any groundless
  rituals,superstitions,etc.
• Nine other Gurus. The last Gurus started Baptism
  ceremony
• The first five Baptized Sikhs were named Panj
  Pyare (Five Beloved Ones)
• Guru Granth Sahib -the only scripture complied
  by the founders of a faith during their own
  lifetime, compiled y the Fifth Guru- Guru Arjan
• Guru Arjan built the world famous Gurdwara
  (sikhs temple) - Darbar Sahib

8
Darbar Sahib - a reflection of clarity,
simplicity and logic of the new movement, and the
location in the center of the pool would
symbolize the synthesis of nirgun and sargun the
spiritual and temporal realms of human
existenceLink to temple
9
The Former Soviet Union

• 15 Soviet Republics and two great religions -
  Eastern Orthodox and Islam in Central Asia and
  Between Caspian and Black seas 1) The Armenians,
  mainly on the Black Sea side were Christians 2)
  Azerbaijani on the Caspian side were Shiite
  Muslims

10
Soviet Union

• Enclave - of Christian Armenia created within
  Muslim Azerbaijan. (figure 13-3), soon after the
  USSR collapsed, Muslim and Christian are at war
  with each other.
• USSR policy of promoting atheism applied to
  Central Asian Muslims as well as Russian
  Christians. 1) After USSR collapsed, Sunni Muslim
  in Turkestan quickly revived 2) Orthodox Church
  is also under resurrection. These events create
  the potential for friction.
• Most serious problem could develop in Kazakhstan
  where the interfaith boundary runs right across.
  (North is Russified and South with Muslim mostly)
  (find a site describe this country)

11
Figure 13-3 Two Exclaves in Transcaucasia
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Chechnya

• Is this country a country?
• Religion
• People
• Language
• Others

13
Chechnya(see link)
14
Chechnya

• 1,000,000 Chechen, 400,000 in Grozny (capital)
  now depopulated by Russian bombing
• Sunni Muslims of the Hanafi school
• Low-land grains farmers and highlanders raise
  sheep
• Social structure rely on family and clan honor,
  respect for to ones elders, hospitality, formal
  and dignified relations between families and clans

15
Europe

• Ottoman Turks brought Muslim into Slavic
  communities, now they center on Bosnia and its
  capital-Sarajevo
• Complex interfaith boundaries Muslim in the
  middle between Orthodox Church and Catholic
  Church
• Ethnic cleansing Ousted others, such as the
  ousters of Muslims and Serbs and Croats also
  cleansed each others territories.

16
Other Interfaith Boundaries

• Bangladesh - with Muslim and Hindus in the
  country, its future relies on the religious
  situation in India
• Sri Lanka - 70 of pop are Buddhists with north
  and northeast small group of Hindus, conflict
  exist.
• Southeast and - Southern Philippines -
  Christianity and Islam
• Southwest Asia - Jewish settlement in West Bank
  created interfaith boundaries within its country,
  still this area is so sensitive to the religious
  instability.

17
Holy sites

• Vatican City for Catholics
• Mecca in Saudi Arabic for Muslims
• Volture Peak in Rajgir for Buddhists
• Jerusalem - Old City - Temple Mount (to Jewish)
  or al-Haram al -Sharif (to Muslims)

18
Northern Ireland

• Protestant vs. Catholic
• During British dependency, Protestant (mostly
  from Scotland) immigrated into northeastern
  Ireland
• Protestant, constituting about 2/3 of the total
  population had all the economic and political
  advantages.
• It is a conflict over access to opportunities,
  civil rights and over political influence.

19
Figure 13-5 Religious Affiliation in Northern
Ireland
20
Religious Fundamentalism

• Born of frustration at the perceived breakdown of
  societys mores and values, loss of religious
  authority, failure to achieve economic goals,
  corruption of political systems and loss of a
  sense of local control in the face of the
  globalization of culture and economy

21
Christian Fundamentalism

• Catholic Church - issues about 1) birth control
  2) family planning 3) role of women in the
  religious bureaucracy.
• With 6B population, how the Catholic Church adapt
  and adjust its position?

22
Islamic Fundamentalism

• In Catholic Church, modernizers are located far
  from the heartland, in the Netherlands and US.
• In the Muslim world, conservatism is strongest in
  a tier of countries extending from Sudan to
  Pakistan and weak in Turkey, Malaysia and
  Indonesia so called laisez-faire Islam, but
  still, fundamentalism found its ground in these
  countries
• Case in Iran from Shah to ayatollah

23
Jerusalem

• Walled city - walls fell and rebuilt over
  thousand years, out of Jerusalem stones
• These walls were built during Ottoman period
  between 1537 and 1541
• Walls of Jerusalem have eight gates-Zion, Jaffa,
  New, Damascus, Herods, Lions. Golden and Dung
  gates
• Where in ancient times used to take out the
  garbage. The Golden Gate was sealed up in the
  Crusader Period

24
Old City Divisions

• Four residential areas in Old City - lives closer
  to their holiest sites the Church of St. James
  for Armenians, The Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa
  Mosque for Muslims and the Church of the Holy
  Sepulchre, which contains the tomb of Jesus, for
  the Christians and Jews.

25
Old City in Jerusalem

• Temple Mount to Jews and Haram as-Sharif -- Noble
  Sanctuary to Muslims
• Two mosques- Al Aqusa and Dome of the Rock - mark
  the spot from which tradition holds Islams
  Prophet Mohammed ascended to heaven.
• A battleground between Palestinians and Israelis
• More than ten day of bloody clashes between
  Israelis and Palestinians.