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A Philosophical Look Into Religion And Freewill In The Light Of James William
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STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
I have come to find
out through history that almost all the wars and rancor that ravage the
world have either economic or religious motive. Casting a look back to
the Roman Empire, we will observe that most of the wars they fought had a
religious motive. The last straw that broke the Camel’s back was;
The
fall of Roman Empire in 476 ushered in a period of intellectual
darkness. The barbarians who destroyed the political might of Rome also
shattered the institutions of culture in Western Europe. Learning came
almost to a halt.8
The Romans’ and the Barbarians were of different
antagonistic religious background. So In the medieval period the
Barbarians ravaged Rome and made away with almost the whole body of
ancient literature. The Barbarians signifies the Muslim world while
Europe signifies the Christian world. Even the September, 11th 2001
suicide bombing that destroyed the world Trade Centre has evidences of
religious bigotry. Thus Bush in his speech after the attack said that
the enemy tries to hide behind a peaceful faith.9
Narrowing it down
to Nigerian experience, Nigeria has Muslim and Christian religions. The
country has experienced series of rancours, some times it is described
as tribal wars. But a critical observer will understand that it has a
lot of religious sentiments attached to it. This is because churches
will always be burnt at each squabble. This tussle is not just among
different religions but it is equally present among different
denominations of one religion. As a result of this many families are put
asunder. It seems absurd that it is in the name of this same religion,
which is meant to be an avenue of peace that human beings kill one
another. One race bracing up to wipe another from the face of earth.
Having
said this, the problematic and perplexing question remains: how free is
one to practice his religious beliefs without undue molestations from
other religious sects? Is there any need for religious tolerance? The
onerous task of this research is to proffer a lasting panacea to the
problems raised above. In the course of this analysis we shall have
recourse to the thought of William James as a guide.
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