[saden1]

Originally Posted by JoeRedskin

And this is what causes people like BleedBurgandy to dismiss all religion as equivalent of unicorns and lunacy – human misuse of revealed wisdom. It is also why I am so angered by leading Islamic clerics failure to loudly, proudly and unequivocally condemn vengeful actions.

saden - Do you believe that when read as a whole and working to resolve apparently conflicting out of context statements within the Qu’ran about vengeance, violence and Allah’s mercy through critical study, that any truly thoughtful, rational Muslim could believe that Allah as revealed in the Qu’ran condones vengeful actions against, or the murder of, those who simply do not believe in the Qu’ran’s teachings?

CRR – Similarly, do you believe that a similar study of the Talmud, the whole Talmud, would lead any truly thoughtful, rational Jew to believe that the Judaic God seeks the death and destruction of all non-Jews?

All I ask is for religious leaders, on all sides, is to seek the actual wisdom revealed in their Holy Scriptures – all of it, not just the parts they like - and, accordingly, teach their flock to forego vengeance, to condemn violence and to seek Truth.

Yes. It is a utopian vision but, dammit, the Truth Is Out There!

No but then again I'm a Spinozist.