Someone said to me recently that most of the wars ever fought were over religion. It was as if he was blaming war on religion and that if we did away with religion and religious people that there would be no more wars. In part, it seems to be true. Consider the Crusades and the current wars in the Middle East between Muslims and Jews. Even when I was kid in Catholic School we sang, “Onward Christian soldiers, marching off to war.” The sacrament of Confirmation made us in part, soldiers of Christ.
Yet, the axiom that most wars are fought over religion just doesn’t seem to be rational, let alone true. Since the Crusades, what wars were fought over religion, or were initiated by religious people fighting other religious people? Most wars were fought over land, economics, ideologies, and cultural beliefs, not religion. Could it not be that warmongers use religion as an excuse or rational for war? Some warmongers drum up support for war using religion.
Having taught History, no where did I read that The Revolutionary War, The French and Indian War, The War of 1812, The Civil War, The Mexican American War, both World Wars, Korean War, The Vietnam War, and even the recent Middle East Wars were motivated by religious beliefs. Are wars participated in by religious people? Yes! Yet, I know of no soldier whose major motivation to fight, was faith in God.
Wars are most often initiated by evil people who may use religion as an excuse to justify killing and conquering other people. Religious people are often made the scapegoat for civil unrest and are blamed for society’s evils. Thus Christians, Jews and Muslims are blamed for the spread of evil across the world. They are blamed for the destruction of indigenous peoples, the ruin of other cultures, and economic disasters. Communist blame religion for supporting corrupt capitalist ideology and seek to stamp it out. Hitler blamed the Jews and killed millions of them. Millions of Christians, Jews, and Muslims died in each of the communist revolutions. Religion, rather than being the cause of war, has been used as an excuse for war by evil people who wish to pursue their own ends.
The notion that most wars were fought over religion, is just not true. Religious people have always sought to avoid war, not start them. Most often religious people are the victims of war, not the perpetrators. Where did this false notion come from, if not by people opposed to religion?
“May the Lord bless and keep you. May he let his face shine upon you, be gracious to you and give you his peace.
