Members of the Christian sect Jehovah’s Witnesses do not accept blood transfusion. This restriction is mandated by the religious doctrine and has been in existence since 1945. The rationale is that life is God given and that human agency shouldn’t intervene in its termination. Hence, in all medical situations, including emergencies, the faithful are prohibited…
Category: Religion
Why has freedom of religion become a controversial issue in our nation?
Our nation is quite advanced in terms of religious freedoms it affords its citizens. Often billed as the melting pot of religions and cultures, the nation exhibits a truly cosmopolitan ethos. Yet, religious tolerance, prejudice and discrimination do crop up in public affairs. Christianity being the religion followed by a majority of the population, there…
Arab Identity: The views of Sayyid Qutb, Sati al-Husri and Taha Hussein
The first text in question is Milestones by Sayyid Qutb. One of the pioneers of the idea of Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, his martyrdom for his cause has enhanced his standing in contemporary Islamic revivalist movements. Qutb is a passion advocate of his beliefs about nationality in the Islamic context. He begins his essay emphatically…
Religious trends in Latin America
Religion plays a major part in the political affairs of several Latin American countries. Christianity (of various denominations) has strong roots in the region, going back to the time of early colonial settlers. Religion in the region has been in the news recently, with the impending visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Mexico and Cuba….
Did God Have a Wife?: Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel By William G. Dever
The book ‘Did God Have a Wife?’ was written by Syro-Palestinian archaeologist William G. Dever and published in the year 2005. This is a fascinating piece of scholarship that delves into the evolution of early religious ideas and practices in Ancient Israel. Given the importance of Israel (and the greater Middle East) to the understanding…
Critical Analysis of God is Alive (1966) by Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen is one of those artists of rare breed who drew creative inspiration from the rapidly changing social and cultural atmosphere after the Second World War. He is also one of the most versatile and accomplished artists, in that his genius is evident in various art forms such as music, poetry and the novel….
A comparison between Buddhist and Christian denomination teachings
Buddhism and Christianity are two dominant world religions in contemporary times. They both converge at certain points, but largely their philosophical and theological underpinnings are divergent. The rest of the essay will provide supportive arguments in favor of this thesis. Firstly, many Buddhist scholars would argue that Buddhism is not even a religion in the…
Bishop Thomas Dexter Jakes: A Profile
Bishop Thomas Dexter Jakes is a popular religious leader for the black American community. He is known affectionately as the “shepherd to the shattered” for his humanitarian work and compassionate personality. He is the founder and pastor of Potter’s House, which is a rapidly rising Church in the country with more than 27,000 members. Bishop…
William Jennings Byrant’s defense of the Bible in John Scopes Trial and Henry Louis Menken’s view on the dangers of fundamentalism
The Scopes Monkey Trial, formally known as The State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes trial, is a watershed event in the history of American justice system. A Tennessee high school science teacher John Scopes was brought to court for violating the state’s Butler Act which prohibited teaching about the theory of evolution. Although Scopes…
Satha-Anand’s explanation of apparently misogynist Buddhist texts as really anti-sexuality, not anti-woman
Core Buddhist texts, written as they were more than two millennia ago, tend to carry patriarchal social overtones. Indeed, in many passages in the Tripitaka (especially in the Jatakas) the Buddha admonishes his disciples for their interactions with women. But as Satha-Anand takes pains to explain, the real issue countered by the Buddha is sexuality…