THE CHANGE THAT RELIGION NEEDS – RELIGION URGENTLY NEEDS TO REDEFINE ITSELF TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE MODERN TIMES

THE CHANGE THAT RELIGION NEEDS – RELIGION URGENTLY NEEDS TO REDEFINE ITSELF TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE MODERN TIMES

As we embrace the new millennium, we face the uphill task of managing the new society with access to ever growing sophisticated technology and with completely new ideas and knowledge. In this scenario, religion needs to radically redefine itself to stay important, relevant and to continue to influence society in a big way.

World is changing fast. Technology is growing at a hypersonic speed and this is necessitating changes in other social dimensions as well. So much so that religion – the force which shaped human societies in the past – is fast loosing it’s pre-eminence and significance, more so in the developed world. These changes are also happening in the developing world albeit are at a much elementary level, and are bound to catch up in the Islamic World as well, sooner or later, in some degree at least. Unless religion changes itself as per the needs, it is feared that it would loose it’s importance and consequently this could lead to a world with lesser moral values, more crime, violence, gross individualism and various forms of immorality.

Any religion can be said to be composed of five parts, namely – Philosophy, ethics, legends, rituals and practice. From the first four the fifth (practice) follows, which is the way people interpret the first four parts and the manner in which it is followed in the society. All are entwined to form a complex whole, which is inseparable and of it’s own kind. What religion today needs is reinterpretation of it’s philosophy, revision in it’s ethical system, new look at it’s legends, purging of most of the rituals and using only those which are necessary, and this all would lead to a complete new way of practicing religion.

Different religions need to redraw their belief systems in different manners. However  a common outline can be said to be presented. First and foremost, religion must give up it’s claim of being indisputable/inviolable/infallible WORDS OF GOD. All the religions, barring some exceptions, claim to hold that they have monopoly over truth. As if what they have said is the only truth and all others are falsehoods/nonsensical/figments of imagination/ perverse ideas. Thus we have claims of Bible/Koran/Vedas/Guru Granth Sahib being the books of ultimate authority which are true till the lost dot, and which can not be questioned. They are important, very valuable and precious and works of great beauty, but what is important is the spirit, the essence contained in them, their sublime message and import, only that is meant for the community and the entire humanity. There are many things in the all of these scriptures which  are time-specific, that is they are truths of the age when these were composed and have now lost their importance or were never moral or rational but were followed in those times only because of ‘erroneous belief systems’.  

Religion should not kill the individualities. It should help foster spirit of enquiry and scientific temper. All religions should not see each other as competitors, rather they must unite in the common cause of provider of happiness and harmony in the society. Religion needs to be more tolerant, inclusive and accommodative of the various factors in the world. It must accept and accommodate atheists, the use of contraceptives, sexual minorities and so on. Different religions must give up their narrow stance towards each other and should completely support humanist causes, and unequivocally condemn superstitions, dogmas, unnecessary rituals, crusades, jehads and other types of holy wars.

Religion should come back from where it started, it is an individual pursuit, a journey to the unknown, an inner odyssey, making sense of the unchartered territories of human existence. Religion is the maker of man. It is the fountainhead of morality and ethics. In one sense, the advancement of science is a boon for religion. It has inspired religion to come in it’s best form, to blossom like a garden full of flowers.

Religion is being ousted of late. It is a dangerous trend. Only a reformed religion can solve the problems of the modern world. 

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BY THE POWER OF RELIGION

BY THE POWER OF RELIGION

From the dangerous call given by the dead and dreaded terrorist Osama Bin Laden to muslims across the world to attack American interests from wherever they are - to the crores of people strong congregation at Allahabad for a holy dip in the Holy Ganga during Mahakumbh ; From the faith invested by perhaps well over a billion people in the authority of The Wise Pope as the holiest and most important man on Earth - to the fanatical and senseless destruction of Babri mosque by Hindu karsevaks at Ayodhya ; from the inner peace and tranquility experienced by lakhs of people who accomplish the mandatory and holy Haj - to the unjustified and often ruthless excesses being meted out by The Buddhist Bhutanese govt over Hindu nepali ‘immigrants’ - religion continues to dominate man, society and the global community for the bad or for good.

As we embrace the 21st century, the past baggage refuses to abandon us. Religion continues to be the most potent socio-political factor even in the new millenium. It comes back as a major cause of conflict in some of the major issues of the world namely - as a veiled conflict between West and Islam in the war on terror being waged by the USA and the European bloc, in the form of internal strains within the European union at the perceived prospects of increased and sutained immigration from Asian and African countries, as a potentially dangerous conflict between the two South Asian neighbours - India and Pakistan, which arguably has a communal undertone.

Religion is in reality a search of man for the unknown within, it is a connection with essence of nature, it is the end (result) of immense internal contemplation, it provides the higher meaning of life and the place of man in the world. It is the fountainhead of ethics and morality and the preserver of social order. But unfortunately religion has been given negative and violent assignments, it has been made into us vs them, while on the contrary it is all about self improvement and reformation. Religion as a vision is the great saviour, and religion as an imagination is the ultimate destroyer.

There are numerous religions in the world diverse, different, which have developed at different stages of times and in varying geographies - From the miniscule Jains to the mighty Christianity, from the relatively new born Bahai faith to the ancient Hinduism, from the hardcore logicist Scientology to the zealous and enthusiastic Islam. These religions symbolise moral and philosophical-ethical development of different branches of human races seperated by times and geographies. They all are like flowers that adorn this planet. They should be preached and practised in their correct prespective.

"Hinduism has tolerance, Buddhism is highly rational ; Christianity is progressive, Islam has strong theistic traditions ; Sikhism beleives in brotherhood, while Jainism is morally austere."

The politicians, administrators and policy makers of the world need to be careful in their attitude towards religion. Special responsibilty rests on the shoulders of the rich, developed and powerful countries of the world, as they are the people who can bring about big difference. Good points are to brought up, bad points must be ignored/removed. Suppression of religion is a big mistake, instead eliminate communalism, fundamentalism, superstition - the negative side of religion.

Religion will always remain man’s possession. It is the duty of enlightened people to see to it that it is not misused to serve vested interests. Only a world free of darker side of religion and full of true and right type of religion can usher in an era of peace, prosperity and happiness.

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