Where Fundamentalism Went Wrong

The truth of the matter is all three of the Abrahamic faiths - Christianity, Islam and Judaism - in their most fundamental forms are the most intolerant religions in the world.

But over time theologians moved past that fundamental stage and, just as society evolved, religions also evolved. New insights are continually found. Perceptions and realities change. Whereas in Jesus' time, they did not condemn slavery, we now say it is evil. Whereas in his time, women were considered second-class citizens, we now say that women have the same rights as men. And so on and so forth.

That's where fundamentalism goes wrong. Fundamentalists - whether Christian, Muslim or Jewish - are wrong to assume that changes and additions to our faith traditions are automatically bad and they want people to go back to the "fundamentals", at times imposing their will to the rest of society whether they like it or not. Both Christian and Muslim fundamentalists want women to remain subservient to men just like in the Bible and Koran. But we now know that there is nothing wrong with giving women equal rights. There is nothing wrong with discovering new "truths" as humanity moves forward and we progress in many fields. There is nothing wrong with science discovering that what we hold as true and factual in our faith traditions are in fact wrong - that it took way more than six days from the beginning of time until Earth (with all its creatures) was formed, that the Earth is not really flat, that it is not the center of the universe, that having epilepsy is not necessarily being possessed with evil spirit, that Adam and Eve were not really our first ancestors, and on and on. There is nothing wrong with banning slavery even if it is not banned in the Bible and the Koran. We now know it is evil. There's even nothing wrong with the Catholic belief in purgatory even if it is not mentioned in the Bible. It is a more humane view of the Christian eschatology.

Fundamentalists want believers to follow the Bible and the Koran to the letter. Creationism is right. Science is wrong. The Earth is only 10,000 years old and was created in just six days. Strict dress code. Wives should submit to their husbands. The Talibans require beard among men. They even brought back death by stoning for adulterers. ISIS brought back slavery. They want us to go back to the times in the Bible and the Koran. Many Christians in the West ignorantly believe all Muslims are fundamentalists. Hardly. Blame the media and the hate preachers.

Perhaps the day will come when the newest generation will come to understand that there is nothing wrong with gay people even if Paul condemned them in the Bible. Fifty years from now, some of us who will still be around will be scratching their heads why we are so violent against gay people. Just as we do now looking back at the 1950s and 1960s in the Deep South, we find it disturbing that in that era ordinary white Americans even kids were not even bothered at the sights of black men and women being hanged on trees. We find it embarrassing that decent folks in that era were not even bothered by the obvious discrimination against black people in restaurants, on buses and elsewhere.

That's living. We move on.