7 | - Número: 024 | 11 de Maio de 2013

If that teaches us anything is that the power of rhetoric is a dangerous weapon when enforced on the weak by the powerful. This is particular true in societies where liberties are limited, resources sparse and poverty generalized, but not only that. Also in developed countries there are marginal groups, often victims themselves of discrimination and social pressure, who become easy prey for some false prophets and swank ideologues. When seen up close these tensions as well – frequently promoted for political gain – may look unpleasant to the sight, and for the oppressed masses who coexist daily with such reality, for whom the sole horizon of living begins and ends in some hopeless ghetto, the temptation of channeling disappointment into violence against other who might not share the same convictions and beliefs may often be too great.
But it’s when we add religiousness to this equation that the pilars of our democracies become the most endagered.
To put these freedoms in question is to jeopardize Man’s place in the world. The question of religious expression is therefore one we must addres with caution. With sensitivity.
Never as with the issue of religious freedoms has Man felt so harassed before the perspective of their restriction. To ensure his freedom of believe a man will to such lengths and he will not regarding any other aspect of life. He may sell his home and move to another country. He may endure humiliation and sometimes kill. Because a man’s religion is in fact his actual home.
The place where he comes in contact with his inner self, where he is allowed to express to his Iman, his priest, his guide impressions of himself that the world rejects as futile and impractical, but which are in fact the core essence of one’s existence – a manna more powerful than even love or friendship.

That is why we must actively take steps to ensure any type of religious intolerance and discrimination anywhere in the world is condemned. I agree with Mr. Volontè who urges in his report we take action against this menace. I have already referred to the intrinsic laudable values of the human being. These are the same ones that allowed different communities, cultures and even religions to cohabit peacefully even in eras when far off places like Istambul weren’t at the distance of a 3-hour airline flight – in times when wars were often sparked by religious interests.
It’s true that in recent decades the rise of globalized communication, globalized information, has done much to bridge the understanding gaps between peoples, cultures and religions. At the distance of a click a young person in Faro, Portugal, can now establish meaningful conversations about art, tastes and other interests with another youth in Amman, Jordan, regardless of creed, sexual orientation or language differences.
In this willingness to converse, to understand and share, resides the ‘glue’ that binds us as Humanity, which is also the main underlying message of any important religion at its best.
But too often the bortherly way in which these lines of communication are established are smothered with even greater sophistication, by those rogue States and leaders who are all too willing to pervert canonical interpretation to push their own purposes.
Radical agendas are then promoted and these only come too handy in the blame game between civilizations and cultures. Because religious feeling is at the core of Man’s experience as a conscient being, this rhetoric of hatred becomes even more dangerous when pitted against the minds of the weak and ignorant – they who are often to be found at the frontline of some of the most vicious attacks perpetraded in the name of extreme radicalism.
In this political game no one is safe from being influenced. Even here in Europe, with our long tradition of tolerance and democracy, an unsuspecting person can be led to commit the worst atrocities in the name of faith.
In this case, as in all the cases of terrorist massacres, ignorance is to be found at the base of these actions.
But one must not discount the machiavelian thoroughness with which certain factions are prepared to recruit the new ‘crusaders’ of their cause – although the paradigms of ‘equal treatment’ and ‘equal opportunities’ taught from an early age within our borders.
No one is immune to a fallback in life. No one is immune to traumatic events that might sever one’s ability to relate with his fellow brothers and sisters. It is up to us to help identify the ‘prophets of hate’ that undercover of the internet, or sometimes the respectable outfit of ‘political parties’, prey on our weakest and youngest, with skills and abilities worthy of a hypnotist.