In May the state of Israel will celebrate it's 60th Anniversary. There are now 7 million inhabitants living in this tiny (+/- 8,000 sq. mi.) country which is probably most famous for containing all of the important biblical landmarks.
Historically the European Nations tried to convert and colonise the entire world under the guise of Christianity. ..in reality it was about money, power, and territory..OK it was about money.
For that bit of world domination you can thank the Roman Emperor Constantine who made Christianity the official Religion of the Roman Empire and of course Saint Paul. Christianity started out as an offshoot of Judaism. Had it not been for Saul of Tarsus aka Paul, and his remarkable efforts to proselytize the neighbouring countries, Christinaity would have no doubt been eventually reabsorbed into Judaism as the majority of the apostles had attempted to accomplish back in Jerusalem.
Whether or not you are as skeptical of the historicity of the Bible as I am, the fact remains that the Government of the reigning Superpower, the USA, and the UK which was the reigning Superpower of the last Century, are both deeply committed to preserving the State of Israel. This is largely due to the fact that so many of it's inhabitants regard this piece of Middle Eastern Desert as 'Holy Ground'.
For many believers the stories from the Bible are MORE REAL than any other part of history..in fact they refer to it as 'HIS Story'. I grew up in an era when it was still fairly unthinkable to question the accuracy of the 66 books of the Bible (Protestant Version of course) from Genesis to Revelation.
Any of you who were in grade school in the early 60s know what I am talking about.
In two short generations it is finally OK to look at what was going on in the rest of the world before and after the so called Biblical Era. However there is no doubt that nothing, including both progress and conflict, has steered the direction of history in the Western World over the past two Millenia, than those who believed (whether superficially or devoutly) in the authenticity of the Biblical stories.
Humankind entered the new Millenium still filled with purposely incited Religious hatred and violence. Ignorance and the hesitation for many Humans to accept the relevancy of scientific discoveries, were painfully thwarted for hundreds of years by religious objectionists.
The newest obstacles to progress have been brought to the forefront by the twisted logic of politically motivated extremists who have bastardized the relative newcomer on the block, Islam.
I can't help wondering when Muslims are going to finally get fed up with the sociopaths that have kidnapped their brand and 'take care of their problem'?
More than anything I appreciate Israel for it's attempts to operate a Democratic system of Government....because aside from Turkey, it is the only democracy in the Middle East...a part of the world which is notorious for being openly hostile to issues of basic Human Rights.
That being said many would argue, including Amnesty International, that Israel's treatment of the Palestinians is a dismal failure.
There are always three sides to every story but to be fair not very many modern countries have to deal with 600 million immediate neighbours who want to vaporise your population and melt your desert into glass via a thermonuclear device.
I am crossing my fingers that these intolerant, historically-challenged, idiots who want to reduce the world to cinders based on their gross misinterpretation and reinvention of their sacred scriptures, do not take advantage of this anniversary to strike a blow that could set off World War 3.
No doubt the Israeli Government and it's Western Allies have been preparing for such an event for years but hatred can be very diabolically inventive. ..
as the world discovered some 60 years ago when the Allies liberated the Death Camps of Europe. This horrendous discovery proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Humans are far too easily swayed to inflict unbelievable, inhuman, suffering and pain on their neighbours. ..and it was by no means limited to the Nazis. The victims of Stalin and Mao vastly outnumbered the unfortunate Jewish population of Europe..not that there is any reasonable way to calculate the degree of inhumanity through mathematical data. One Person is too many.
Historically religious bigotry and intolerance have continuosly pushed various groups of Humans over the edge. It is usually used as a 'front' for economic and political gains, but few weapons offer a more explosive ignition to incite hatred.
Religious intolerance seems to be the most powerful cataslyst..
it probably always will be.
