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New Release: The Soldier's Tear |
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| Published on 7/26/2007 |
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| By Stephen M. Apatow |
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New Release: The Soldier's Tear
After 911, peace efforts focused on the role of religion in the escalation of violence across the globe. In 2002, the International Interfaith Peace Declaration initiative outlined the importance of the subject matter presented in the paper "This War is About Religion, and Cannot be Won Without it " (Marc Gopin, Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution, George Mason University):
"The sooner we face facts, the more powerful our chances to succeed in making religious terrorism a temporary phenomenon of human culture. But we cannot do this if we hide our heads in the sand. Politically incorrect or not, this war is about religion. In case anyone thinks that it is not about religion then they should take a good hard look at the document written by the terrorist mastermind of the World Trade Center bombing, Mohammed Ata, in order to help his soldiers prepare for their sanctified deaths. It is one of the most profound religious documents I have ever seen, and its preparation for a beautiful death and afterlife is so compelling that I almost forgot, as I read it transfixed, that it was really about mass murder. I felt tempted to join the journey myself. If I felt tempted as a non-Muslim, how much more tempting to tens of millions of alienated young Muslim men in search of significant lives and meaningful deaths. This death wish is a careful weaving of purification rituals to be accepted into Paradise, including asking God for forgiveness of sins! Mass murder is, of course, not one of the sins in this unique reading of Islam. It is, on the contrary, a supreme religious act of struggle with the forces of evil. But the atrocity is not even mentioned by name. It is simply the struggle with evil. In fact, it is overshadowed in the letter by the holy rituals of death preparations, as if a meditative concentration on Paradise is at the core of every act leading to the end, rather than revenge or murder."
Silence, in regards to the causative factors of aggression, combined with threats and counter aggression only perpetuate the cycle of violence. Temporary fixes overlook the solution oriented initiatives needed for democracy, religious tolerance, human rights, women's rights and the pursuit of peace and social justice.
"The Ultimate Objective" (Humanitarian Resource Institute) outlines the importance of love and the golden rule as the central focus of all faiths and in the context of the widespread violence in Iraq, the song "The Soldier's Tear" focuses attention on the teaching of the Prophet Mohammed (Selected and Translated by Kabir Helminski):
"You will not enter paradise until you believe, and you will not believe until you love one another."
In the hope of peace,
Stephen Michael Apatow
http://www.myspace.com/apatow
http://www.artistopia.com/StephenMichaelApatow
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