Religion & Human Experience - Topic 1: Religion and Conflict

I- The Religious Society of Friends

M- Christian

P- In countries of unrest

A- Teaches the need for peace, equality and possitive social change

C- Inspired by the teachings in the Bible and the way Jesus lived his life

T- In the UK they are promoting the 'peace tax' which means they want money from taxes to be spent on peace not war.

KEYWORDS

• the five precepts-principles or rules to follow for correct behavior and spiritual progress
• metta-loving kindness which is neither grasping nor possesive
• Dalai Lama:the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people

KEY TEACHINGS

• Best record of non-violence of all religions
• First precept- 'ahimsa' supports non-violence
• They believe in 'metta'.
• They believe actions have consequences (e.g peace and pacifism will be rewarded).
• They are pacifists
• The Dalai Lama said 'Hatred will not cease by Hatred but by love alone'.

I- Buddhist Peace Fellowship

M- Buddhism

P- Work on a global scale

A- They work for peace, social justice and environmental sustainability

C- They hope to liberate the world from the suffering manifested acros the world in individuals, relationships, instituitions and social systems.

T- They have worked for human rights in Bangladesh, Veitnam and Cambodia and engaged in issues of war disarmament and nuclear war.

KEYWORDS

• Beatitudes-the name used for sayings of Jesus in Mathew 5, all are sacred.
• Bible-the holy book of Christianity split into the old and new testament.

KEY TEACHINGS

• They follow the teachings of Jesus who said 'Happy are those who are merciful to others; God will be merciful to them' and 'Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.
• The believe in what the actions of Jesus who for example forgave Zaccheus the tax collector despite him being selfish and a cheat and fargave him giving him a new sense of life and purpose.
• The Lord's prayer talks of forgiving those so God will forgive you.

KEYWORDS

Just War- the idea of a war justified under certain conditions

KEY TEACHINGS

• Sometimes war is neccessary aka it is a 'just war'.
• Jesus said 'Those who take up the sword, die by the sword'.
• Some Christians interpret the teachings of Jesus to mean non-violence is essential (e.g. Quakers).
• Jesus taught to love your enemies and pray for as a form of victory far mor worthwhile than that obtained in battle.

KEYWORDS

• the Four Noble Truths- set out in the Buddha's first sermon concerning the problem with life, the way the problem is caused, how the problem is overcome and how this might be achieved

KEY TEACHINGS

• Eight Fold Path
• Right view means to understand the Four Noble Truths 
• Right aspiration means to free oneself from attatchement and acheive dispassion
• Right speech means don't tell lies
• Rigth action means to follow ahimsa and not hurt anyone or anything
• Right effort means to exert yourself in regards to your content of mind
• Right mindfulness means to focus your energy on overcoming craving, hatred and ignorance.

• Someone who is opposed to violence.
• Could be due to their religious beliefs.
• Actively campaign for non-violence in the world.
• They feel violence is morally wrong.
• Examples of famous pacifists are:
  • Martin Luther King Jr.
  • Mohandas (Mohatma) Gandhi
  • The Dalai Lama

KEYWORDS

• non-violent protest- making a stand for what you believe in in a peaceful way

• the five precepts-principles or rules to follow for correct behavior and spiritual progress

KEY TEACHINGS

• Peace, compassion and calm are important in Islam.
• 'Ahimsa' or not harming is part of the five precepts.
• Harmful acts may be acceptable if they are taken to help others.

• People who refuse to fight on ethical grounds
• Won't fight in a war
• Won't fight in the army

They believe:

• Killing another human being is unjustifiable
• War is the cause of too much suffering
• War is a waste of resources 
• War goes against the idea of stewardship
• Conscription goes against a persons human rights as it might go against their conscience or beliefs.

KEYWORDS

• Beatitudes-the name used for sayings of Jesus in Mathew 5, all are sacred
• Bible- the holy book of Christianity split into the old and new testament

TEACHINGS

• During some services churches offer worshippers to ‘share peace’ by shaking hands.
• Before Holy Communion Catholics make a confession to the preist.
• Quakers (branch of Christianity) are pacifists.
• Jesus said ‘Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the children of God.’

I- Corrymeela ('hills of harmony')

M- Christianity

P- Corrymeela works with individuals aand communities who have suffered due to the political divisions in Northern Ireland.

A- They do a mix of youth and community work to build intercommunity relations.

C- Their commited to building possitive relationships and interactions through reconciliation which is an important part of Christianity.

T- Each year over 6,000 people come to their peace building centre in Barrycastle which has facilities for over 100 residents in three units.

KEYWORDS

• the Four Noble Truths-set out in the Buddha's first sermon concerning the problem with life, the way the problem is caused, how the problem is overcome and how this might be achieved

TEACHINGS

• Life is Suffering as human nature is imperfect and as such suffering is simply a part of life.
• The Orgin of Suffering is Attatchment as nothing is permaneant so the loss of a short-lived thing you're attatched to will inevitably be followed by suffering.
• The End of Suffering is possible by freeing yourself from worries or nivana or Acheiving dispassion
• The Path to the Cessasion is a gradual path of self-improvement.

KEYWORD

• the Dalai Lama-the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people 
• the five precepts-principles or rules to follow for correct behavior and spiritual progress

KEY TEACHINGS

• The five precepts require believers to not harm another living thing or 'ahimsa'.
• Compassion, kindness and love are at the heart of Buddhism.
• Buddhists hope to achieve inner peace.
• The Dalai Lama encourages the meeting of violence with peace.

KEYWORDS

• Job-a book in the Bible telling the story of a man who endured much suffering but never lost faith in God

TEACHINGS

• Trough prayer.
• By reading the Bible.
• Thorough studying the lives of others who have suffered (e.g Job).
• By believing what they are enduring is part of some divine plan.
• Through helping others less fortunate than themselves (e.g through charity work).

KEYWORDS

• non-violent protest- making a stand for what you believe in in a peaceful way

KEY TEACHINGS

• Some denominations favour non-violent protests as that was the way of Jesus.
• St. Paul states the importance of following the authorities.
• Non-violence is humane.
• Christians should stand up against injustice.
• E.g. The work of Martin Luther King Jr.

KEYWORDS

• Bible-the holy book of Christianity split into the old and new testament
• the Fall-refers to the time when the first humans disobeyed God so evil and selfishness entered the world
• Job-a book in the Bible telling the story of a man who endured much suffering but never lost faith in God
• original sin-the idea that since the fist humans disobeyed God it has become easier for humans to chose the selfish way

KEY TEACHINGS

• It is believed that as a result of the original sin andfree will.
• It enables us to know when something is good.

Just War- the idea of a war justified under certain conditions

• Clauses written by St. Thomas Aquinas.
• Must be for a just cause.
• Should be declared by a legitimate government.
• Must be for the right motives
• All other options should have been explored.
• No innocent people must be harmed.
• The destruction caused should be minimal.
• There must be a good chance of success.

conflict-clashes and breakdowns of relationships interfaith community-a community that makes possible religious respect and dialogue interfaith dialogue-exploring common grounds between different faith groups just war-a war undertaken to protect the innocent or those being violated and to restore justice and peace moral evil-suffering caused by someone or something, for example the Holocaust natural evil-suffering not caused by someone or something, for example volcanic eruptions or a tsunami non-violent protest-showing disapproval without damaging property or people pacifism-the belief that any form of violence or war is unacceptable reconciliation-bring harmony to a situation of disagreement suffering-patience, endurance: the bearing of pain or stress.

I- Liverpool Interfaith Youth Council

M- Multifaith

P- Liverpool

A- Creates a platform for 14 to 19 year olds to share, understand and respect each others faiths

C- Promotes an understanding, respect and co-operation. It enables interfaith dialouge.

T- It provides workshops, conferences and youth camps for the young people to get to know each other through

KEYWORDS

• metta-loving kindness which is neither grasping nor possesive

KEY TEACHINGS

• Follow 'metta'.
• Believe in morality or good conduct and patience (second and third perfections).
• Believe in the actions of the Buddha who for example let Angulimala become a monk despite how merciless he had become.