Violence Leaves Young Iraqis Doubting Clerics
After almost five years of war, many young people in Iraq, exhausted by constant firsthand exposure to the violence of religious extremism, say they have grown disillusioned with religious leaders and skeptical of the faith that they preach.
In two months of interviews with 40 young people in five Iraqi cities, a pattern of disenchantment emerged, in which young Iraqis, both poor and middle class, blamed clerics for the violence and the restrictions that have narrowed their lives.
“I hate Islam and all the clerics because they limit our freedom every day and their instruction became heavy over us,” said Sara, a high school student in Basra. “Most of the girls in my high school hate that Islamic people control the authority because they don’t deserve to be rulers.”
Thanks to that pic I won’t sleep for a week. Thanks John
Unfortunately, the first impulse of some Americans will be that it’s time to send missionaries to convert the Iraqis to Christianity, now that they’re finally disillusioned with false religion and hungry for the one and only “true” god.
Maybe things are different these days, but that prediction reflects my firsthand childhood observations.
I hate to say it, but GOOD. It’s about time.
We can only hope that over time, Iraq will become a country which deeply hates extremism, distrust clerics in general, and acts accordingly.
IF that happens (admittedly a big IF given all their other problems), then Iraq may actually become the most stable and prosperous Muslim country in the region, if not the world because if they don’t trust their clerics, then maybe they will start thinking for themselves.
Unless street gangs and being desensitized to extreme violence doesn’t destroy the place.
Um… atheists? Nice try Dave. Try this for an more accurate headline “Hope In Iraq — Violence Causing The Young To Ditch Islam”.
So it’s impossible to become an atheist so maybe they’ll be jews or christians, the other two war waging hate cults
Iraqis are reacting to the same set of circumstances that Europeans have endured for the last 500 years. They have achieved it in five.
Yes, and I would think it entirely natural for some to also hate American Foreign Policy, and for the same reason—its not what it says it is, but in a heavy handed way.
The youth in Iran aren’t far behind. Living in a theocracy sucks.
Ahhhh, I see that the Zionist plan is working as expected…
http://tinyurl.com/zhpyd
#2 I hope you are wrong because any religion leads to hatred… then to war.
WHOOO HOOO!!! alright!!! way to go religous right! keep this up and you will cure the world of yourselves!
congrats on a job well done!!!
Well, it’s logical that they would become atheists because there is in fact no god.
I guess they get tired of waiting around for divine intervention.
In the US they get lots of divine intervention by way of burnt toast, water stains and such. It’s a shame really.
I wonder if their so called god could create a piece of toast so big that even he could not eat it?
Julieb, did you go off your meds again?
Wouldn’t it suck if they turned to Scientology? Or would it…
indeed this is actually good news coming out of Iraq.
God bless those atheists
Number 3 says:
“We can only hope that over time, Iraq will become a country which deeply hates extremism, distrust clerics in general, and acts accordingly.”
When this ill happen for the US though?
I am not surprised that they are rejecting Extremists. But those of you who think that Iraq will become an Atheist state need to go back to smoking your peace pipes. Iraq will be primarily an Islam country for the foreseeable future, and if Islam should fall out of favor, most likely another religion will take its place.
This not not necessarily a bad thing though. The false assertion that many on this board make is that religion in itself is not a bad thing. Its extremism of almost anything (even atheism) thats a bad thing. The “mellowing out” of Islam in Iraq, can only be a good thing for Iraq, Islam, and the world at large.
The antics of the bible-addled end-timers in the US has had exactly the same effect on me. This is a very hopeful sign indeed.
I extremely skeptical of the whole “disillusioned” argument. Once a believer, likely always a believer (in something). Most likely those 40 will just latch onto something else, in a short time. Or it will latch onto them. I’ve seen it time and time again, with relations of my own. They’re always too eager to believe in the newest flavor of the year, religious leader. After becoming disappointed by the last one. And even though we’re in the 21th century now. Tv is ripe with the phony occult (Medium, Ghost Whisperer, etc). Have the viewing public just gotten dumber in the last quarter century, that they believe that fortunetellers might be real?! And they’re some kind of dogooder? Pul-lease!
Maybe there is something good to come out of this lame Ass war.
Yeah….I gotta say the pic is definitely disturbing…
The big story that is coming in the aftereffects of the tsunami in Thailand is that Christians went over in droves to convert the Buddhists. After all people who go to convert love disasters. The sufferers are low hanging fruit.
John S
A very good development indeed. Let the clerics continue for a short while longer and the hateful religion will implode. Same way as it to a large extent has done in Europe. Then give the people knowledge through education- then religion as in fundamentalism will die. A good law enforcement to hold the ‘looser’ at bay is a good idea too.
The girls father had his blown off after failing to stop for a US warning shot. the entire family was in the car.
But back to bickering about religion sheep….
This was my reaction…I wanted to sit beside her, put my arm around her, and cry with her. May Allah have mercy upon me, may God have mercy upon us all for our callousness and even our unwitting contributions to the sufferings of millions like her.
hai
John S..you disgust me.
That was a horrible thing to say! The reason people go to countries is help the people when a disaster happens; to give them some hope again. You honestly think we are heartless like that?? I know religion start wars, it almost always have; and it’s sad, really is. but you can’t blame God in any way because of it..it’s US WHO IS DOING IT! Children are starving and dying because of what we’re doing. It’s up to us to fix that.