Coexist Poster

Coexist Poster 12″x18″ 18″x 24″

We need to be able to get along peaceably, to coexist, and be able to work together for the sake of our communities, nations, the world, etc. How we coexist is an important question to consider, though. I am troubled with the suggestion that we should coexist because of common beliefs. In other words, the idea that all religions are essentially the same is problematic in that it’s simply not true. There are certainly those, both from a negative and positive perspective, who will try to argue that all religions are the same. In his book “The God Delusion”, Richard Dawkins quotes Cathy Ladman who said, “All religions are the same: religion is basically guilt, with different holidays.” On the more positive side, a number of people have echoed the basic thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi who said, “The essence of all religions is one. Only their approaches are different.”

The conscious acceptance of religious pluralism and the peaceful coexistence of different communities can arise from two opposite origins. First, from an indifference to the religious experience, or second, from a conscious experience of the innermost essence of Religion. On the other hand, intolerance between coexisting religious communities and cultural traditions can arise from either religious seeds (i.e., extreme fundamentalism) or alternately from nonreligious roots (i.e., political or nationalistic factors) which use religion for their own pursuits. All of these roots continue unabated in many areas of the world.