When I was growing up, if one was described as religious
that pretty much meant one thing—one was a Christian or maybe Jewish (which
really was perceived as closely related and foundational to Christianity itself). Now other religions are increasingly
appearing across America, perhaps most notably Islam. For the first time in my lifetime, there is an
increasingly competitive religious environment in America. This looming competition could hold in store
various possibilities. On the one hand
it could take on a divisive character in which the religious seek to outdo one
another in claiming to be sole representatives of truth and rectitude. Continuing ideological dissention in time could
produce a strident, divisive, and sanctimonious partisanship across which divide
antagonism and resentment would fester and perhaps eventually lead to violence
itself. As prior to the Civil Rights
movement race wars seemed to threaten America’s future, in this internecine climate religious wars would seem to lurk on the horizon.
My son George (named Nurideen meaning “enlightened”
in Islam) gave me tremendous hope the other day. He said so long as religious competition in
America centered over efforts to provide caring service to improve the health
and welfare of all, then the more competition the better—in this light the fact
that the “game is on” is good news .
This is my hope for America—that religious diversity will motivate us to
greater concerted efforts of beneficent service and generosity thus supplanting
bitter dogmatism and dissention. Religious
tolerance would then not be an onerous task filled with anxiety, suspicion, and
dread; but an actualization on a daily basis of shared goals and service. This would underwrite respect and goodwill while encouraging trust and would testify to the profound impact of guaranteed rights and freedoms upon
ameliorating human behavior.
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