Causes of religious violence violence in the Middle East

Editor: Vladimir Bajic | Tactical Investor

Understanding the Various Forms of Religious Violence

April 2023

Throughout history, humans have fought for various reasons, including religious disagreements that can be particularly intense. Sectarian violence occurs when religious doctrine or practice interpretations differ, leading to conflicts like the Sunni and Shia Muslim divide.

Religious fundamentalism is closely associated with this conflict, with strict adherence to religious principles leading to conflict between believers. Additionally, wars have been fought between different religions, although most conflicts stem from secular causes like political power struggles, resource control, ethnic rivalries, and economic competition. Full text

source: weforum.org

Understanding the Complex Issue of Religious Violence

Religious violence is a complex issue that may stem from various sources, including scriptures, their interpretation, and human weaknesses. The violence can be directed towards individuals, religious institutions, cultural symbols, and authority figures and can be caused by overzealous individuals or groups expressing their social, cultural, national, or communal dominance. Differences in social, economic, and racial issues in diverse societies where people practice multiple faiths can also lead to religious violence.

Political and ideological differences may also lead to religious conflicts. However, violence is inherent to human nature, and many factors can incite individuals into violent behaviour, with spiritual attachment or loyalty being one. Religious violence may be expressed in various explicit and implicit ways that discriminate, demean, oppress, minimize, or harm particular groups or people.

It is caused by religious and secular groups who incite religious violence or aggravate religious passions for their political or ideological agendas. While religions have been the source of great violence and suffering for many people in the past and present, the problem of religious violence is a complex issue that should not be oversimplified with generalizations. Source