Religious History and Conflict
We spent the majority of our Wednesday class discussing the validity of historical documentation. Yet at the end of the day, with religion at its current stage, does historical validity matter? If the archeological digs in Jerusalem disproved major sections of the Christian Bible, Hebrew Bible, or Quran, would this new understanding of history be accepted? The centuries of conflict created over the differing readings of religious texts has already established a firm history of violence and incompatibility among the religious groups in Jerusalem. Even if religious texts are disproved, the history of religious conflict is firmly established.
Currently, the basis of validity for a number of holy sites in Jerusalem, at least the validity provided in the documentary, is rocky. For example, the documentary explains that many Christians believe Jesus was crucified where the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is located based on the 300 AD Christian graffiti beneath the church which states “Lord, We Have Come.” While it provides evidence that Christans have long taken pilgrimages to this site, it does not provide evidence that it is the spot where Jesus was buried. Additionally, nor is there much evidence that the rocky outcrop at the Dome of the Rock is the Foundation Stone.
Religion, at its core, is about faith and belief–which doesn’t have to align with historical accuracy. With this context, it isn’t likely that Jerusalem will find peace among the competing religious groups. The lens of the documentary attempted to provide hope for future peace, but the faith placed in religious texts and the now long history of conflict and war doesn’t provide support. Even if the validity of those religious texts–the documents which have spurred centuries of conflict–are disproved, it likely would not stop conflict from arising. The hopeful angle of the documentary seems too hopeful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLW6vO-7rFk
Nice blog post about religious history vs secular(?) history and the seeming futility of the situation. You raise a number of important questions in light of what are deeply held beliefs that are often perceived to be mutually exclusive to other deeply held beliefs. You also do a nice job of bringing in ideas from the reading about history.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Can't peace be achievable even when there are competing religious claims? Can history provide ideas or what works and what doesn't work? Can human ingenuity devise new ways to achieve peace?
Suggestions: you might want to make your photos larger in future posts so they fit better on the computer screen; you should also include captions and citations for the photos. You might also want to explicitly refer to the readings when they are relevant; for example, here you could have cited the reading about history when you discuss the "rocky" history.