I am speaking on this for an English presentation and I was wondering about your opinions on the matter. Is there to much religious intolerance…should more be done about it? Or should it continue to take place? Do you think it the main cause of most feudal wars and persecution? What should be done about it?
I would appreciate your views. thankyou for your time.
Make democracies of Middle Eastern countries ?
Seriously though... not much can be done while some education is in the hands of religious groups. Even secular education all round won't stop people from holding so strongly to their beliefs that others are but wrong doers and misguided fools.Okay, we aren’t supposed to help people with their homework here but you are asking for opinions so let’s give it a shot. First, we need to reformulate your questions. In fact, by stating it as intolerance you are showing that you feel there is something wrong with it. Also, by asking Yes/No questions you are leaving it open to Yes/No answers which are fine for polls but lousy for getting interesting quotes. Let’s change the first question to:
“Should more be done about it? Or should it continue to take place?” By having already set up religious intolerance as a negative thing you have given the person answering your questions a choice that isn’t really a choice, one that does not allow for nuanced interpretation. A person may believe that his religion is inherently better than others and that to be a good believer he should try to bring all people into the fold. Your questions as much as state that his beliefs are wrong and this will just make him mad. Try something a little less absolute and confrontational:
In what ways, both positive and negative, could sharing a common religion affect a group of people?
In what ways, both positive and negative, could not sharing a common religion affect a group of people?
“Do you think it the main cause of most feudal wars and persecution?” First, “feudal wars?” What do you mean by that? Lose the “feudal” and you start to have a question that makes sense, but still telegraphs your opinions on tolerance. Still, though, the opinion part of it is covered by the previous question while mostly it is a question with a factual answer you could get out of an encyclopedia. Let’s lose it entirely.
“What should be done about it?” Again, your views are obvious, making anybody who disagrees with you “wrong.” How about:
Perhaps we are still talking too generally for an effective and interesting discussion. Would you consider being more specific, perhaps discussing tolerance on a local level or how it affects international relations?
[QUOTE=Crimson Teardrop]
Is there to much religious intolerance…should more be done about it?QUOTE]
I say there is too much religious tolerance. I’m tried of organized religion and all that goes along with it. We as a society are getting to the age where someone needs to tell us that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny aren’t real. What happens after we die and who has the better imaginary friend is not worth killing over. Forget intolerance between religions, you should be focusing on intolerance towards religion.
What is (fill in name of religion here)'s position on those of other faiths? The scriptures I’ve seen (and I’ll grant I haven’t seen all of them) all seem to have some variant of “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” in them, and while they may teach that their way is the only way (or at least the best way) to eternal reward, they don’t teach their followers to kill anyone who doesn’t accept that.
Are there individuals or governments who have perverted religious teachings and used them to justify acts of intolerance? Certainly, but so much has been said about them that I hardly consider it a worthy topic of debate.
And, yes, I am familiar with the statement “More wars have been fought over religion than anything else.” I believe the same assertion could be used with “money.”
Convert to Unitarian Universalism. 
Esprix
I hate “there are two kinds of people” posts, but…
There are two kinds of people: those who try to insist that everyone else think what they “know” to be right, and those who are willing to live and let live, those to whom a difference of opinion is not an evil to be corrected, but a source of intellectual and emotional enrichment.
Those categories do not correspond to religious beliefs or lack thereof, except that (as Esprix wryly noted, most UUs fall in category #2). As witness, contemplate the last few drive-by witnesses we’ve had here, and emacknight’s post just above. Both have in common that they know the truth, and everybody else had better shut up and accept their POV. (If I misinterpret what you say, emacknight, kindly correct me – but it sounds like my belief in God is an offense to you – and you have no more right than the itinerant fundamentalist to tell me what I must think.)
I agree completely with Polycarp’s position on the matter. As an ardent defender of religious tolerance myself, I find that debating with the religiously intolerant can be rather intense work. Right now, I’m trying to show that there is definite religious intolerance towards Scientologists.
I, myself, am willing to defend any religion because I find myself a basic skeptical atheist, but I’m not about to tell everybody else that they must submit to the same evidence that I see fit. I LOVE learning about people’s religions, whether they be old ones or new ones. What I don’t like is when people disparage other people’s religions (or lack thereof).
So many conflicts are caused by simple religious intolerance. I do, however, think things are getting better.
For more info, go to www.religioustolerance.org/ .
www.beliefnet.org/ is also a decent site, though a bit more introspective rather than academic.
Just because we don’t understand the