Violence is immoral because it thrives on hatred rather than love.
Uncontrolled anger makes us lose the opportunity to win people’s trust.
Many people are unaware of their uncontrolled anger.
Many have fires burning in their bosoms, yet pretend to be loving and caring.
People condemn Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Al-Shabaab, Boko Haram, and persons or groups who slit people’s throats and decapitate people, and yet they turn around to do evil to fellow humans.
We condemn suicide bombers in the Arab countries, in Europe, etc., yet we lynch people without evidence that they deserve to die by such inhuman acts.
Some Christians, despite the teachings of Jesus, use the wrong frontal method of attacking angry and violent people. It is unwise to attack angry and violent people; especially when they are defending their beliefs. You make them angrier.
Uncontrolled anger can produce angry responses from listeners. And angry responses can interfere with listeners’ minds. They may feel your responses are attacks and would want to defend themselves. The listener may feel intimidated and belittled.
Uncontrolled anger can misrepresent the truth about our opinions
We must, therefore, learn to control our anger.
Angry moods convey antagonistic impressions — they attack the persons we want to win over.
Angry hostile people are difficult to communicate with
How to communicate effectively with angry hostile people is a problem many people struggle with.
Communicating With Hostile People
It is not easy speaking with angry hostile people.
You could become frustrated trying to make angry hostile people listen and understand your point of view.
While you are trying to explain your point, the angry hostile person would be shouting, intimidating and not listening.
You might get carried away by emotions and respond by shouting back or even hitting him or her.
Many people struggle with questions like,
• How to present their message without offending angry hostile people.
• The right way to communicate with angry hostile people.
• Why it is difficult to make angry hostile people listen.
Share interesting ideas or information when you communicate with angry hostile people
Angry hostile people will listen to you if what you are telling them is interesting and concerns them. Make your message simple, easy to understand and interesting.
Your initial approach should be to make angry hostile people friendly
Some topics are confusing and difficult to understand or accept. Certain religious doctrines, for instance, are difficult to understand by the non-believer. A prejudiced listener may close his or her mind and may not want to listen. He or she may even become angry when you discuss such topics. Especially if he or she believes your doctrine or view may pollute his or her mind. Abraham Lincoln said, “I conquer my enemies when I make them my friends.” Somake the hostile listener a friendly one.
Encourage angry hostile people to engage in dialogue in a peaceful way
Create a peaceful atmosphere with your angry hostile listener. That can make the angry hostile listener friendly. A friendly person can listen to people express their views.
Have an idea of the mind of the angry hostile people you are sharing your views with
Is the person defending a belief? This will become clear as you engage him or her in the dialogue. Is the listener interested in knowing the truth? Or is he or she covering up the inefficiencies or weakness of a belief? Does he or she have prejudices and misconceptions about the issue you are discussing? You can notice that from the body language and how he or she opposes you.
Let them feel involved; let them participate
Do not shut angry hostile people off. Ask questions that will lead to the answers you are providing. The questions you ask will help encourage them to participate in the discussion. Elicit direct responses from them.
Be ready for negative or violent reactions from angry hostile people
Be cool and smile while you are discussing. But do not be sarcastic with your smile. And do not forget to be friendly and respectful. Aim at convincing angry hostile people that your solution or view is relevant. Do not compromise the truth, but do not make angry hostile people feel that you think their ideas are silly.
“The tongue of the wise uses knowledge aright; but the mouth of fools pours out foolishness,” (Proverbs 15:2; NKJV).
Make angry hostile people conscious of the problem associated with their views
It will help prod him or her to consider your solution or line of argument. But don’t provoke or be sarcastic.
He or she may need time to see your point. Goad him or her patiently with questions that will make him or her to seek clarification or information. Address your listener’s need, and create expectations for him or her. Make your listener want to learn more.
Do not engage in useless arguments
A lot of talking will not convince your listener.
When he or she is talking, stop and listen. None of you will be listening to the other when both of you are talking at the same time. Don’t turn a discussion into an argument.
Learn to make angry hostile people like what you share with them. Make them love your acquaintance. They will love to listen to you when they are comfortable being with you.
Remember to portray your cause as a good one when you engage people in a discussion.
If your attitude is angry, violent or evil, people will see same in what you are presenting.
Use positive and loving ways to proclaim your cause. That will make angry hostile people want to listen to you.
How do you respond to anger without getting angry?
Responding to anger without getting angry is difficult and frustrating. Because anger is a powerful emotional energy and can blind reasoning.
Do not answer an angry person while you are angry.
To respond to an angry person without getting angry, you need to deal with your own emotions first. Three things are necessary to consider when you are in an angry situation.
1. How do I respond to anger without getting angry? 2. What should I do if I am angry? 3. How do I deal with the anger in the other person?
1. How do I respond to anger without getting angry?
Nelson Mandela said,
“If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.”
You can respond to anger without getting angry if you deal with your emotional anger. Tell yourself you must not get angry. Restrain the impulse to hit back,and wait for a chance to express yourself.
Anger makes us want to react immediately. Angry people most often do not wait and think before reacting. Because anger makes us impetuous. And impetuous people act without thinking about the outcome of their reactions; impetuous people act by impulse.
Don’t focus on what your opponent is saying because that is what is making you angry. Focus, rather, on what you want; how to make him or her listen to you and agree with you.
While your opponent is talking don’t be thinking about how to rebut. If you are not pleased with what your opponent is saying, talk about your feelings calmly without using angry words.
If you keep calm and listen well, you might understand whether your opponent is speaking because of hurt or not. Or if he or she might have misunderstood you.
2. What should I do if I am angry?
The first thing to do is to stop being angry. But that is not easy for some.Philippians 4:8 says,
“Whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these,” (NKJV).
Exercise control over the temptation to retort in anger. Wait some minutes before reacting. The strength of the emotions to retort in anger weakens when you delay your response or reactions.
Mahatma Gandhi said, “Nobody can hurt me without my permission.”
Stop when you notice that the discussion is becoming contentious. Don’t strike back — don’t say anything that will aggravate the situation.
Proverbs 17:14 says,
“The beginning of strife is like releasing water; therefore, stop contention before a quarrel starts,” (NKJV).
3. How do I deal with the anger in the other person?
Shouting will not solve the matter. So be calm when your opponent is angry and shouting. And when you get the chance to respond, speak calmly but firmly.
Alexandre Dumas said,
“There is nothing more galling to angry people than the coolness of those on whom they wish to vent their spleen.”
A soft answer has the power to cool anger in an angry opponent. Accept that he or she is angry. Even if he or she is not right. Do not argue, but discuss. Let him or her know you want to discuss what is upsetting him or her; you don’t want to argue.
Tolerance helps us to listen and to reason with each other.
You could lose objectivity if your mind is only on winning.
Give him or her the chance to express his or her view. Pay attention to what he or she is saying; try to see his or her point of disagreement. After you have listened to him or her, explain your side in a calm and respectful way.
If he or she still will not see your point, do not argue to prove your point. There is nothing you can do when your opponent is not ready to accept the truth. Francis Bacon said people tend to believe that which they would like to be true.
Angry people are narrow-minded and acerbic with their words.
They have no patience to listen to divergent views. They are sarcastic and insulting.
Don’t react angrily and negatively to what they say; even when they say negative things about your person. Do not echo their attitude!
“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” (Proverbs 15:1; New King James Version)
Use positive words to correct their negative attitude. Encourage them to engage positively with you. For instance, instead of saying, “Your bottle is half empty,” say, “Your bottle is half full.”
Don’t return fire for fire.
You will stir their emotions and make them angrier when you use harsh language.
Angry people usually struggle to control their anger when told how wrong they are.
Their ego will not allow them to accept the truth when it is bitter. They become uncomfortable when you tell them straight in the face that they are wrong.
You trigger their emotions when you speak in a confrontational way. He or she feels you are attacking his or her opinion and so becomes defensive. Using the reverse method, instead of the frontal attack, therefore, can make them comfortable to listen to your differing opinion.
Don’t focus on your opponent’s anger or insults, because they can make you angry. And when you are angry, you may find it difficult to reason, and so, fail to explain your views well. Concentrate on what you want to say. Say it kindly and truthfully.
Don’t argue; you would be wasting time.
Medical research explains that when we speak, even alone to ourselves, one part of the brain speaks while the other part listens. Therefore, learn to listen to others when they air their views, even if you do not agree with them. You will learn a lot when you listen; it will help you understand the problem and how to deal with it appropriately.
How do we help to nurture and grow religious militancy? We do that by our inactions and actions! We help to nurture and grow religious militancy by our covert and overt encouragements!
Edmund Burke said,
“All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing.”
When religious leaders say nothing against the violence and evil that is perpetrated by some of their fellow believers, they are indirectly helping to perpetrate evil. Some religious leaders do not speak against violence perpetrated against other people because they share the same faith as the perpetrators of the violence and evil.
Some even covertly help with funding, because they know the violence is perpetrated against other religions. They fail to know that, by their inactions and actions, they are indirectly supporting and nurturing militants who perpetrate evil, and that they are training militants who will become a problem in the future.
Under the guise of serving God, militants use their power and control to inflict pain and suffering on helpless people
When they secure power, they turn against their own people whom they regard as not radical. They do not differentiate any more between people of their own faith and people of other faiths.
They claim God has given them the mandate to wipe out every other person who does not share in their way of beliefs.
We are inundated daily with horrifying news reports of religious militants who claim they are serving a loving God by attacking and killing people.
They claim they are fighting God’s battle. They claim they are proclaiming a God of peace and a compassionate deity who loves people; yet they unleash suffering on people.
Jesus, the Prince of Peace, said that, such people do not know God. They are not promoting the God of peace. He said,
They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. And these things they will do to you because they have notknown the Father nor Me. (John 16:2-3; New King James Version)
God is Peace and Love; He hates violence
A group of armed terrorists, the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab, forcefully entered the Westgate Mall in Nairobi and unleashed senseless violence upon customers and workers, killing some in the attack …Boko Haram continues to attack and kill people; they abduct women and girls, and force them, as if they are slaves, to marry people they don’t love… ISIS groups are attacking and killing people… Al-Shabaab militants are invading, attacking schools and killing innocent people… The Lord’s Resistance Army are recruiting child soldiers to engage in senseless wars. All these claim they are fighting on behalf of the peaceful and merciful God!
How can a merciful deity be so unmerciful?
How can a deity who is behind the violence and the pain inflicted on innocent people be seen as peaceful and compassionate? How can a merciful deity be so unmerciful as to instruct people to rape innocent girls?
Why would a powerful deity send terrorists to attack helpless people? How can one perpetrate violence and expect people to see one as non-violent?
This is happening because good people refused to speak when the violence and evil started!
Now we see and hear much violence perpetrated through religion. Religion that is supposed to bring peace and happiness is now unleashing terror!
Why should much of the violence we hear and experience come from the religious quarter? And why is it that one particular religion is noted for that?
Could it be that the leaders failed to educate their people about the true nature of the Creator God? That a merciful and compassionate God does not delight in killing people and making families miserable?
Jesus told His disciples to preach peace and demonstrate peace. He said if people refuse to receive them, they should let them be and go elsewhere. He said they should never use force. They should leave them for the Day of Judgement, (Luke 10:5-12).
Violence does not promote peace. An eye for an eye will deprive us of our sight. Don’t seek to conquer people; seek to win their confidence.
Martin Luther King said, “That old law about an eye for an eye leaves everybody blind. The time is always right to do the right thing.”
Martin Luther King, Jr. was prominently engaged in the African-American Civil Rights Movements in the 1960s. In spite of the attacks and inhuman treatments meted out to him, he believed in what Jesus said about loving one’s enemies and not retaliating.
In 1964, King became the youngest man to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (for his work as a peacemaker, promoting nonviolence and equal treatment for different races). On April 4, 1968, King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, still on peacemaking trails. Today Martin Luther King is an icon in the history of the American Civil Rights movement, and he is well known for peacemaking.
Mahatma Gandhi said, “If we practice an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, soon the whole world will be blind and toothless.”
The Bible advises us to restrain from violence. The Christian is to be like Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
Violent people wreak havoc on people and properties as a way of expressing their anger; they want to conquer by using violence and intimidation. They justify their actions by saying that they are obeying God’s command. Wherever they go they spread violence and cause mayhem. They have no patience and cannot tolerate other people’s divergent opinions.
Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God,” (Matthew 5:9).
People who practice violence cannot be God’s children. They are not doing God’s will!
Terrorists are angry people who have not been able to get what they want.They turn to terrorism to express their anger. They attack even those who have no quarrel with them.
Unforgiving spirit leads to hate and violence
Proverbs 25:15 says, “By long forbearance a ruler is persuaded — and a gentle tongue breaks a bone.”
Be patient and forgiving. Articulate your views; persuade and convince. Don’t use force.
A Gaelic proverb says, “Patience wears out stones.” Rousseau also intimated, “Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.”
We read news stories like, “15 killed in University Attack, or 30 people killed in a suicide bomb attack…” Sometimes thousands of people are displaced as result of militant attacks. A religious group pops up and declares that it carried out the attacks in God’s name.
One wonders why the Almighty God, who has power to control people’s minds, will not use His Almighty power to make people to do His will, but will send humans who cannot control the minds of other people, to use physical force to make them change? Why would the Judge of Righteousness command people to destroy the lives of helpless and innocent women and children?
In Uganda, some religious extremists threw acid on a religious leader. The victim sustained severe burns that blinded one of his eyes and was threatening the other eye.
A newspaper reported that, in one city, eleven people died when religious militants bombed a worship center and attacked a police station.
Militants do not restrict their attacks to people of other religions. They attack their own fellow believers they think are not radical enough.
Violence does not promote the cause of a merciful and peace loving God. Hurting or killing people does not advertise a loving God.
Robert Green Ingersoll asserted that, “Anger is a wind which blows out the lamp of the mind.”
A 43-year-old in New Jersey called police to say he had a knife and was threatening to hurt himself. Apparently, he was angry at something. Officers swooped over his Clay Street home and kicked on the door to his room, which he had blocked with furniture.
When he stood up, he shouted at the officers and frantically stabbed himself all over his body, leaving more than 50 stab wounds.
Officers saw that his intestines were sticking out from the wound in his abdomen. When they tried to approach him, the man allegedly threw some of the skin and intestines at them.
They tried to talk him down, but did not succeed. He slashed at them with the knife. Officers sprayed two cans of pepper spray at him, but it had no effect. They called the Bergen Country SWAT Team, who helped subdue him with beanbag projectiles.
The man underwent emergency surgery and remained in critical condition at the time of the news report.
That was an angry man who was angry with everyone, including himself.
BBC News Report
Anger makes suicide bombers kill innocent people… and getting killed, too!
Christianity does not use violence to promote its cause…. it does not promote evil.
Christianity uses love and tolerance to win people’s confidence and trust.
Christianity does not seek to conquer; it seeks to win friendship.
Violence produces pain and sorrow. Violence kills and destroys.
People hate violent people. They can’t trust violent people.
You can’t use violence to make people love you. The peace loving God calls in peace. A peaceful person preaches and practices peace.
Abraham Lincoln said that he conquered his enemies when he made them his friends.
When we make an enemy become a friend we actually have succeeded in converting that person from being a hostile enemy into a loving friend. In doing that we eliminate violence.
Fighting against each other breeds animosity. By doing that we are nurturing hate in the minds of our children, and training them to grow to hate others. We end up creating violent and unforgiving societies.
Do not use religion to promote hate and anger.
When we use our religions to spread anger, fear and hate against people who disagree with us, or who do not share our beliefs, we make them see our religions as violent. Preaching by violence does not instill the love of God in our children and followers. It makes them become violent and hateful. Jesus taught us to love … not to hate. Jesus told the story about the Samaritan helping the Jew in a context that His listeners understood very well. The Jews and Samaritans were enemies; each desiring the complete annihilation of the other.
We remember the encounter Jesus had with the Samaritan woman by the well in John chapter 4. When Jesus asked the Samaritan woman to give Him water to drink, the Samaritan woman was surprised that a Jew could be bold to ask a Samaritan for water.
She said, “How is it that you, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan?” The passage ends emphatically with the statement… “For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.”
When it was getting to the time that Jesus would leave this world, a few things remained for Him to do in Jerusalem before He departed. Luke writes that He set His face to go to Jerusalem; meaning He would not have time to interact with the Samaritans. However, He and His disciples had to pass through a village of the Samaritans. His disciples decided to prepare a place for Him in that Samaritan village before they proceeded to Jerusalem. The Samaritans refused to receive Him because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. When the disciples, James and John, saw that, they became angry and said to Him, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”
The disciples wanted to use anger and hate to pay for anger and hate, instead of love against anger and hate.
Jews and Samaritans, being enemies, each misinterpreted the actions of the other. The Samaritans were not happy because Jesus had made Jerusalem His priority over them. Influenced by the historical problem between them and the Jews, the Samaritans misinterpreted His intention, and so refused to receive Him. Jesus’ disciples, too, being Jews, interpreted the actions of the Samaritans in line with their Jewish way of thinking; the Jewish-Samaritan conflict that existed. Since Jews regarded the Samaritans as inferior, they asked Jesus to allow them to call fire to destroy them. Jesus refused, and told them to go to another village. He told them He came to save lives and not to destroy lives. God’s mission (always) is to save, and not to destroy lives, (Luke 9:51-56).
Jesus advised them to follow the path of peace no matter the provocation. Some people use religion to gain control over people.
They are not promoting the God of peace. They attack everyone, including their own fellow believers. Their aim is to kill and put fear in people. They want to bring people under their control. They seek places where people gather, because those places are where they can get many people to intimidate and to kill. They attack churches, mosques, market places and malls. You would think that they would not attack their own places of worship; but they do.
Using violence portrays you and your cause as evil
Expressing your grievances by killing innocent and helpless people does not win sympathy. Rather people will see you as violent and evil. People despise your cause when you attack and force them to accept your beliefs. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, came to promote peace.He did not wage war on people. He waged a spiritual war against Satan, sin and sickness. The angels announced at his birth, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:14.)
God sent Jesus Christ to be the Peacemaker in a world full of hate, violence and evil.
In Isaiah 9:6, we read, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Jesus asked all of us who love the God of peace (and follow Him) to exhibit love and peace even to our enemies, (Luke 6:27-36).
God does not send killers to kill unbelievers. He sends peace loving people to preach peace, love and reconciliation. God is Peace, Compassionate, Ever Merciful. Peace lovers preach peace and love.
Convince by articulating your views and providing the right answers …
Who are the true presenters of peace? Those who preach and conquer by violence? Or those who preach peace and love?
There are those who claim they are peaceful, yet they promote violence!
Christians were accused of embarking on the Crusades!
The Christians explained that they were forced to embark on the Crusades in self-defense. They said they were pushed into a ‘life or death’ situation; there was nothing they could do to free themselves from the brutalities of the Jihad, so they had to fight back.
The Jihad
The Jihad started after 633 AD. Lands were conquered and the conquered people told they had to convert to the new religion. If they did not convert, they had to pay a protection levy so they could remain in their faith. However, they would not be allowed to proclaim openly their religious faith. Some could not pay the tax and so had to covert and accept the new religion imposed on them.
The warriors called their war(s) “The Jihad” — striving for God (which became popularized as Holy Wars); wars promoting God’s cause or religion.
Many died in the wars. Women and girls captured in the wars were forced to marry the conquerors and the sons of the conquerors. (The conquerors said they were doing the women a favor by marrying them as their husbands and men had died in the wars.)
Christians could not openly proclaim their faith anymore. Some churches were converted to accommodate the new faith and to serve as worship centers for the new faith. When the Christians could not bear the agony any longer, they cried to their leaders to do something about the situation. At first, the leaders would not respond.
Then the conquerors blocked the Mediterranean area, making trading activities difficult. When Pilgrimage to Jerusalem, the Christian Holy Land, was also made difficult to Christians, the Christian leaders decided to respond.
It took 400 years for the Christians to respond. (The first Crusade was in the 11th Century, while the Jihad started earlier in the 7th century.) The Christians responded to free themselves and their lands from the invaders who had caused much pain and sorrow to many families. The invaders cried out and condemned the action of the Christians. They said it was wrong for the Christians to rise up and fight (though the Christians were actually defending themselves).
The Christians, too, (actually) went into excesses
Although the Christians went into excesses, those who started the hostilities (the Jihad) 400 years earlier should also have been told that they were wrong in starting their holy war.But that did not happen; rather the Christians who decided to defend themselves were accused of embarking on the war (to defend themselves).
The Crusades (and the Jihad) finally ended. Both Muslims and Christians learned that war was not right.
Suicide bombings, horrific killings, (decapitation of Christians, journalists and others), abductions, rape, etc., are being used to promote a cause.
Those who commit the atrocities say they are a peaceful and loving people. They assert that they are preaching a peace-loving deity, and that they are only proclaiming to the world how good it is to follow their ‘peaceful’ cause. They use violence because they want everyone to love and worship their compassionate deity!!!
Is this the world God intended?
The Bible presents a God of peace who sent the Prince of Peace (Jesus Christ) to preach love, forgiveness, peace and non-violence.
Peace-lovers preach a peaceful God, not a violent and killer deity!
Peace-lovers do not preach hate!
You destroy the cause you represent when you preach and practice violence! You destroy the testimony of your fellow believers who are peace-lovers and who preach peace!
Presentation on Making People Listen Without Provoking Them
Do you struggle with the question, “How do I make people like me and listen to me?”
Do you wonder why people hate you and your cause?… why people say negative things about you and your beliefs?
You might have tried many times to explain and give reasons as to why people should accept your views, why they should accept your religion or your party’s ideology without success. In spite of efforts, you continue to fail; nobody listens to you; nobody seems to like you or your religion.They hate you, and you wonder why.
Your attitude may be the problem!
People will not like you if you cannot tolerate them. They will not like you if you force your views on them. Allow people to analyze what you tell them; allow them the freedom to decide to agree or disagree with you. When you are wrong, admit it; do not be angry when people tell you that you are wrong. Do not be on the defensive when you are wrong. Allow them to explain or express their views.
Respect people’s opinions; be polite when you disagree with their opinions. Learn to listen to people when they express themselves and tell you what they want. Do not be like religious militants who do not listen to other people’s opinions .
Don’t be insulting. Don’t make people’s lives miserable.
“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity,” Psalm 133:1.
Dining together in love and unity (Queens Bible Church, New York)
It is incompatible with the character of the God of mercy to kill innocent and helpless people. Therefore, do not project a deity that is always angry and murderous.
The God of peace and mercy loves all the time. He persuades and gently leads people to the truth.
Instead of killing, the God of peace and love gives life and happiness.
When you are sarcastic, you make people angry.
Sarcasm makes it difficult for people to listen when you express your views. Sarcasm does not win empathy or understanding.
Your body language might make your suggestions or responses appear insulting.
A vicious personality portrays you as a violent person.
You can’t convince people that your religion is peaceful when you are hostile and attack people who disagree with you.
Violent behaviors and murderous actions are some reasons people may see you as evil and murderous.
Remember that you can win people to your cause without being violent or angry.
Christianity asserts that God is kind, merciful and loving; …..that God does not destroy innocent lives. He protects and guides in the way of righteousness.
The Christian Bible describes God as
“…long-suffering and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.” (Numbers 14:18; New King James Version)
Islam, too, proclaims that Allah is merciful… or does it?
Every chapter of the Qur’an, except chapter 9, begins with the character of Allah as “The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.”
Islamic teachers tell us that Islam is a peaceful religion, and that Islam does not allow violence, except in self-defense.
Unfortunately Boko Haram, ISIS, Al-Shabab, and other militants, contradict them as they continue to perpetuate violence and atrocities in the name of God and religion.
Pointing out the evil that people do in the name of religion is not an attack on religion. It is a cry against the atrocities! Good and loving people will always speak out against atrocities even when the evils are done in God’s name. The New York Times reported how women were enslaved and raped repeatedly. Each time, before the rapist raped the victim, he performed a prayer in front of the victim, raped her, and then performed another round of prayer in front of her. He justified his action that Allah permitted him to do that because she belonged to another religion.
We can conquer without being violent! We can win people to our cause without attacking them.
Rockeybell has written books on how to win without being violent.
For the electronic versions visit… Conquering Without Being Violent Persuasion Is Better Than Force (Electronic version of “Winning Without Attacking – Why Persuasion Is Better Than Force”)
Using evil does not promote a good, kind, loving and merciful God.
That 12-year-old girl will never love the religion that permitted her to be raped. She will never be able to believe that the rapist’s God is a loving God.
Why would a merciful God send a rapist to punish her instead of teaching and guiding her to the right path? Why would God allow her to be born into that family, and then punish her for being born into that family?
The saved are to direct those not saved to the right path; not to attack and kill. Jesus would not allow His followers to command fire from heaven and consume the Samaritans as Elijah did, because He came to save lives and not to destroy them, (Luke 9:51-56).
The Bible does not allow rape, fornication or adultery, even when done in God’s name.
Do religious leaders condemn slavery and the slave trade, yet turn round and condone it in their own camp?
When we use force or use atrocities on people because they do not share our religious convictions we make them see the God we present as evil.
No compulsion in religion The Christian Bible teaches that God does not use force to make people love Him. It instructsChristians to preach the message of God’s love and let the listener himself or herself decide (Ezekiel 3:17-19; Luke 10:5-12; Mark 16:15-16). The Qur’an also declares,
“Let there be no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clear from error…” (2:256) “… And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed, all of them together. So, will you then compel mankind, until they become believers?” (10:99)
