Tragedy in my city
A 16-yr-old girl was strangled by her father and succumbed to injuries Monday night. The girl went to the high school just down the street from my house. Like everybody else, I'm shocked and saddened by what's happened.
From the news I've read, the girl's friends claim she was killed in a family dispute about hijab. She wanted to stop wearing traditional clothing. Obviously her father disagreed.
I don't want to blame Islam for her death. I want to argue that she was killed by her father, not by a religion, the same way I'd argue that stupid laws by stupid people shouldn't be blamed on Christianity itself. Faith exists, and it's good and helpful and holy. Too bad we humans sometimes pervert the good for our own ends, because we're imperfect and wrongheaded and more concerned about feeling persecuted than seeing the persecution we inflict on others.
But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe religion is partly to blame for the evils of the world. I'm sure there are atheists (some of whom are on my flist) who'd argue that religion, and even faith, is the opium of the masses. We've committed terrible atrocities in the name of Christianity and of Islam. Is it religion's fault? Can we really separate the people of a faith from the faith itself? The former tarnishes the (reputation of the) latter, no question. But does that mean we should believe that the Thing Itself is, incontrovertibly, only as good and holy as its frail and fallible body parts?
From the news I've read, the girl's friends claim she was killed in a family dispute about hijab. She wanted to stop wearing traditional clothing. Obviously her father disagreed.
I don't want to blame Islam for her death. I want to argue that she was killed by her father, not by a religion, the same way I'd argue that stupid laws by stupid people shouldn't be blamed on Christianity itself. Faith exists, and it's good and helpful and holy. Too bad we humans sometimes pervert the good for our own ends, because we're imperfect and wrongheaded and more concerned about feeling persecuted than seeing the persecution we inflict on others.
But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe religion is partly to blame for the evils of the world. I'm sure there are atheists (some of whom are on my flist) who'd argue that religion, and even faith, is the opium of the masses. We've committed terrible atrocities in the name of Christianity and of Islam. Is it religion's fault? Can we really separate the people of a faith from the faith itself? The former tarnishes the (reputation of the) latter, no question. But does that mean we should believe that the Thing Itself is, incontrovertibly, only as good and holy as its frail and fallible body parts?