The Fear Basis of Fundamentalist Religion

(Above: Victim of the attack on the gay youth center)

Readers of this blog know that I am no fan of Christian fundamentalists who in my opinion not only betray the Gospel message of Christ but also limit God to conform to the mindless, check off the box belief system that they and their fundamentalist forebears have constructed. Contemplating the recent attack on the LGBT teen center in Tel Aviv - which some are blaming on ultra-orthodox Jews and their message of hatred towards gays - and events in Iran what struck me is that all three religious fundamentalist groups, be they Christian, Muslim or Jewish, have the same basis: fear and hatred of those who are differen. Added to that is a contempt for modernity, and in the final analysis very weak faith on the part of the fundamentalists. I say they have weak faith because they cannot tolerate anything or anyone who challenges their fragile belief system construct. They fear people and things - like modern knowledge - that might raise questions in their minds or the minds of their children that just perhaps their fundamentalist beliefs are wrong. Combined with that is a fear/hate of those who live their lives openly as who they are and accepting a God/Allah that is not a limited vengeful being. Indeed, at times I think they want everyone else to be as miserable and unhappy as they are in their own lives so that they can more easily beat back the doubts that subconsciously creep into their minds.

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All three of these religious belief systems base their beliefs on writings that track back to centuries before modern knowledge of the scope and size of the universe, the complexities of the human body and mind, the germ theory of disease and a host of other matters. Yet all three religious groups resist acknowledging the limitations that are therefore inherent in their sacred texts and/or that a literal reading of the same is unwarranted. They are fearful - terrified in fact - that the beliefs they have clung to and in many cases have sacrificed their individual happiness for may not be true. Rather than admit doubt and the failings of the human authors of the sacred texts, they reject knowledge, denigrate others, disseminate blatant untruths, and even commit murder - as may well have been the case in Tel Aviv. And in this process, they become the antithesis of what their alleged religions are intended to represent.

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Fundamentalist Christians, Islamists and ultra-orthodox Jews all hold a similar contempt for freedom of religion for others and ultimately democracy. They all seek theocracies and the subjugation of other citizens to their house of cards religious belief system so that no one can call into question the veracity of their beliefs. Behind all of it is fear. And hatred of those who are different because they fuel the flames of doubt that the religious adherents so desperately seek to beat back. Fear and hatred become their true God/Allah.