Is religion killing us? : violence in the Bible and the Quran / Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer.

Is religion killing us? : violence in the Bible and the Quran / Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer.

9780826417794 (paperback)
0826417795 (paperback)
9781563384080 (hardcover)
1563384086 (hardcover)
0862417795

New York ; London : Continuum, 2005.

English

xvii, 169 pages ; 23 cm

205.697 N428i 2005

(OCoLC)62345230
(OCoLC)62345230

Coverage of recent world events has focused on violence associated with Islam. In this book Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer claims that this narrow view ignores the broader and unfortunate relationship between human violence and the sacred texts of Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Both the Bible and the Qu'ran, he believes, are riddled with violent images of God and with passages that can be reasonably interpreted to justify violence against enemies in service to God's will. According to Nelson-Pallmeyer, many wondered how Muslims could in God's name kill innocent civilians by flying airplanes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Few, however, questioned U.S. leaders and citizens invoking God's name, or assuming God's favor, to fight the responsive "war against terrorism." And in the Middle East, the roots of the continuing and seemingly unsolvable conflict and violence are to be found in both the Torah and the Qu'ran. Nelson-Pallmeyer challenges the understanding of power that lies at the heart of the sacred texts of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He argues that nonviolence is powerful and necessary and that a viable future for human beings and the planet depends on challenging the ways in which sacred texts reinforce visions of power that are largely abusive. A viable future, he says, depends on re-visioning God's power.

Originally published: 2003.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

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