In my opinion, extremism in any religion is dangerous.
:arrow: Islamic Extremism
In terms of Islamic extremism, we have, of course, seen examples thereof brought to the forefront in recent years; the World Trace Center bombings are likely the most prominent examples of terrorism exercised by an extremist sect of what should be quite a peace-advocating religion, according to the texts and more moderate interpretations exercised in North America.
The danger posed by Islamic extremism tends to be obvious and overt; physical manifestations of violence are the prime source of fear of Islamic extremism as being "dangerous", and rightly so. There is definite cause for concern abroad; however, we are lucky to have Muslims living in Canada and the United States of America who choose to exercise their religions within the framework of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the relevent American legislation.
:!: Christian Extremism
This type of extremism is of particular concern to me; it is more covert and systematic, in my opinion, then the extremism of other religions. Extremist Christians are known for attempting to force their religion upon others, systematically; passages from religious texts are often, in my opinion, manipulated to serve the agenda of the Religious Right¹.
This type of extremism is, in my opinion, extremely dangerous. For example, take Fred Phelps; he manipulated the Bible to make it seem as though Christians had a religious obligation to be in favour of the murder of Matthew Shepard, running about cities advocating slogans such as "Matt Shepard Rots in Hell", "AIDS Kills Fags Dead", and "God Hates Fags". They even had the audacity to picket the man's funeral services with their hateful messages. Or perhaps Heather Stilwell who, in Canada, attempted to have books that disagreed with fundamentalist Christianity removed from schools (those dealing with Hallowe'en, the Wicca religion, or native-Indian spirituality — I cannot believe this one; she attempted to ban another form of spirituality from schools because it wasn't Christian).
I find that type of extremist particularly disturbing and dangerous; but perhaps on these points I am biased. I have my own personal reasons to be concerned about how Christian extremism could affect my life on a legal level and, therefore, I find both forms of extremism to be equally dangerous — however, in very different ways.
:!: Revision : Footnote
¹ By the "Religious Right" in this opinion, I refer exclusively to Christians on the "extremist" side of the spectrum — not a majority of Christians, just as I would suggest that not a majority of Muslims are extremist.
:arrow: Islamic Extremism
In terms of Islamic extremism, we have, of course, seen examples thereof brought to the forefront in recent years; the World Trace Center bombings are likely the most prominent examples of terrorism exercised by an extremist sect of what should be quite a peace-advocating religion, according to the texts and more moderate interpretations exercised in North America.
The danger posed by Islamic extremism tends to be obvious and overt; physical manifestations of violence are the prime source of fear of Islamic extremism as being "dangerous", and rightly so. There is definite cause for concern abroad; however, we are lucky to have Muslims living in Canada and the United States of America who choose to exercise their religions within the framework of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the relevent American legislation.
:!: Christian Extremism
This type of extremism is of particular concern to me; it is more covert and systematic, in my opinion, then the extremism of other religions. Extremist Christians are known for attempting to force their religion upon others, systematically; passages from religious texts are often, in my opinion, manipulated to serve the agenda of the Religious Right¹.
This type of extremism is, in my opinion, extremely dangerous. For example, take Fred Phelps; he manipulated the Bible to make it seem as though Christians had a religious obligation to be in favour of the murder of Matthew Shepard, running about cities advocating slogans such as "Matt Shepard Rots in Hell", "AIDS Kills Fags Dead", and "God Hates Fags". They even had the audacity to picket the man's funeral services with their hateful messages. Or perhaps Heather Stilwell who, in Canada, attempted to have books that disagreed with fundamentalist Christianity removed from schools (those dealing with Hallowe'en, the Wicca religion, or native-Indian spirituality — I cannot believe this one; she attempted to ban another form of spirituality from schools because it wasn't Christian).
I find that type of extremist particularly disturbing and dangerous; but perhaps on these points I am biased. I have my own personal reasons to be concerned about how Christian extremism could affect my life on a legal level and, therefore, I find both forms of extremism to be equally dangerous — however, in very different ways.
:!: Revision : Footnote
¹ By the "Religious Right" in this opinion, I refer exclusively to Christians on the "extremist" side of the spectrum — not a majority of Christians, just as I would suggest that not a majority of Muslims are extremist.
