Differences
Posted by Absar | Posted in Life And Love, Society | Posted on 01-02-2008
Tags: life, Society
4
Faith is a difficult thing to understand – it can bring people closer, or it can blow them apart. It’s just a matter of how you look at it.
I have been thinking differently about faith since I started work here in Abu Dhabi, the work environment here being so diverse in cultures and religions. I notice how we wish all the Christians a Merry Christmas, and although I’ve not been here long enough for any Hindu occasions to have occurred, we do wish them for those as well. And I think to myself why can’t we be more tolerant of the different sects of our own religion?
I find it mildly unsettling that one person can be two different things, believe in different things, show differing levels of tolerance, open mindedness and integrity based on his coordinates. But then I am comforted that at least today a change of coordinates does bring about this change – what if this change, too, disappears?
I just wonder if racism has anything to do with it?? will people feel the same intolerance if a white caucasian is sunni /shia ?
I think this intolerance comes from insecurity which in turn comes from lack of faith and knowledge. If one is secure within her/himself , one does not feel threatened by other people’s point of view.
Long time back I read somewhere ” It is easier to love humanity as a whole than to love your neighbour”
..and traveling and living in different cultures does open up your mind.
Its not the question of racism.
I dont think that there is as much divesity in UAE as there is here in Canada.
But its all good to deal with it.
At least I think so.
Well I agree with Zios, its our own insecurities. When it comes to our own faith, the one in which we truely believe, we cant tolerate differences in thinking. and its not just in muslims. You can select any beleif system and find such intolerance. Roman Catholics for example.
And I think this is because, We as humans, are social animals have a psychological fear that our group will be weakened and eventually broken into two if such a deversity exists. this is a mathematical (or rather statistical) fact. If any one of you have read the clustering theories you would see so too.
@Zios: I guess it is, in part, racism. But not completely, because I honestly don’t think Pakistanis feel any racial insecurities with Indians. And open-mindedness is something you can adopt or avoid regardless of where you work
And that’s a wonderful quote man 
@Qurrat: Deal with it?
I guess we should embrace this anywhere and everywhere we are. Divisions are eating up the entire Muslim ummah.
@Safiullah:
Nice way of looking at it. I really do believe in mans territorial instincts, and I think I agree with you on this here. It’s more about religious diversity than racial diversity at this point. 