Christians form about 33 per cent of the total world population. Muslims number around 18 per cent. That means that Christians and Muslims are more than a half of humanity. Moreover, theirs are the two religions most widespread geographically. The prophet Mohammad urged his followers to fight a holy war (Jihad) to spread the faith to unbelievers. Pope Urban the II ordered the holy wars or Crusades to uphold the Christian faith.
Using one of the evidences below, break into groups and discuss the relations between Muslims and Christians in the 21stC.
In your journal take a page to create a reflective statement on the relations of these two groups today. Use the evidence below to support your views.
EVIDENCE A Joiint Promotion of Peace
Among the values shared between Christianity and Islam, peace deserves special mention. Both religions stress the pre-eminence of peace. "Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you, a peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you" (Jn 14:27), said Jesus to his Apostles the night before he suffered and died. And after his Resurrection when he appeared to them he generally began with the greeting: "Peace be with you" (cf. Jn 20:19, 21, 26). St Paul calls Christ "our peace" (cf. Eph 2:14). For Muslims, Peace is one of the Beautiful Names of God. Does this fact not give added significance to the customary greeting among Muslims: alsalamu 'alaykum? Peace is necessary for individuals, within the same religious community, between two or more religions, between peoples and between States. Christians and Muslims have a duty to promote this tranquillity of order. No rightthinking Christian or Muslim today should support crusades or holy wars
EVIDENCE B The September 11, 2001 attacks (also referred to as 9/11 or September 11) were a series of coordinated terrorist attacks upon the United States of America carried out on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, in which a total of nineteen hijackers simultaneously took control of four U.S. domestic commercial airliners. The hijackers crashed two planes into the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City — one into each of the two tallest towers, about 18 minutes apart. Within two hours, both towers collapsed. The hijackers crashed the third aircraft into the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters, the Pentagon, in Arlington County, Virginia. The fourth plane crashed into a rural field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, following apparent passenger resistance. The official count records 2,986 deaths in the attacks, including the 19 hijackers.
The 19 conspiring hijackers who carried out the attack were affiliated with al-Qaeda, an Islamic terrorist group led by Osama bin Laden, a former Saudi national whose citizenship was revoked in 1994.[1] Fifteen of the hijackers were from Saudi Arabia, two were from the United Arab Emirates, and one each came from Egypt and Lebanon. American investigators concluded that it was Khalid Shaikh Mohammed who led the planning of the attacks. He was captured in 2003. The 9/11 Commission states in its final report that the attackers were terrorists. Bin Laden initially denied responsibility,[2] but later claimed direct responsibility for orchestrating the attacks.[3][4] The September 11th attacks are among the most significant events to have occurred so far in the 21st century in terms of the profound political, psychological, and economic effects that followed in the United States and many other parts of the world. The attacks, and the subsequent U.S. led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have made United States homeland security concerns much more prominent than they were in the previous decade.
EVIDENCE C
New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma said he plans to set up a taskforce of community leaders to discuss how to prevent further violence like the race riots in Cronulla in Sydney's southern suburbs on Sunday.
Mr Iemma described the behaviour as "stomach turning" and
said it would not be tolerated.
"I saw yesterday people trying to hide behind the Australian flag, well they are cowards whose behaviour will not be tolerated," Mr Iemma told Channel Nine.
"That was the most disgraceful, disgusting behaviour that I've ever seen."
Islamic and political leaders condemned the violence which was launched by mobs of youths who attacked people of Middle Eastern appearance on Cronulla beach in southern Sydney on Sunday.
Prime Minister John Howard said the attacks were intolerable.
“Attacking people on the basis of their race, their appearance, their ethnicity is totally unacceptable and should be repudiated by all Australians,” said Mr Howard.
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