- Millions have in the past, been killed in the name of religion. Sadly, people are still being killed by religious fanatics across the globe while the world watches unconcerned.
Written By Michael Kwadwo Nketiah - For choosing love over religion, 21 year old Lisa, a Hindu college student and her Muslim partner Ramiz, have been living in fear after a right wing Hindu nationalist group urged its members to "find and hunt them" along with 99 other interfaith couples living across India. The crime of these 200 people has nothing to do with stealing, murder, rape or even religious blasphemy.
Their only crime is for falling in love with someone who doesn't share their religious beliefs. For the record, India is a Hindu majority country with well documented clashes between Hindus and Muslims. For just trading in cattle, Muslims are easily killed by Hindu vigilante groups who regard cows as a sacred animal to their religion. And the perpetrators of these despicable acts often go unpunished in India.
In 2014, the world was shocked to hear that an 8 month pregnant woman in Sudan had been sentenced to receive 100 lashes and also to die by hanging just because she denounced her Islamic faith to become a Christian and later married a Christian man. A court in Khartoum ruled that it is adulterous under Sudanese law for a Muslim to marry a non-believer and handed her the harsh sentence.
It is unthinkable that some religious fanatics, militants and crusaders continue to live under the misguided illusion that individuals and societies should live to the confines of their religious beliefs and teachings. That when the lives of even unbelievers contradicts the so called values, beliefs and teachings of these fanatics, men who claim to be part of religions that preach nothing but peace, love and oneness think they have the power to shamelessly take the lives of others ?
When these same holy men commit sins of various degrees, the pray to seek forgiveness from their objects of worship (God, gods, deities, angels and whatever people believe in) but are NOT READY TO FORGIVE OTHERS.... Interesting, isn't it?
Millions have in the past, been killed in the name of religion. Sadly, people are still being killed by religious fanatics across the globe while the world watches unconcerned. Whether Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus or Atheists, people should be given the free will to practise whatever religion they believe in. Societies and states must not be allowed to compel people to practice religious beliefs they do not subscribe to. Why people kill in the name of religion still baffles me. Perhaps Karl Max was right by suggesting *religion is the opium of the masses* It makes people go so 'high,' so mad, eat grass at the command of their pastors and even follow the directives of a certain Angel Obinim.
Michael Kwadwo Nketiah