Religion is an element of cultural diversity that has led to disputes in some places. The attempt by intense adherents of one religion to organize Earth’s surface can conflict with the spatial expression of other faiths or of nonreligious ideas. Conflicts arise in all continents, but disputes involving religious groups have been especially intense across Asia.

Key Issue 4: Why Do Territorial Conflicts Arise Among Religious Groups?

Religions and Social Change Religious conflict has intensified due to the rise of fundamentalism, the literal and strict adherence to what they define as the basic principles of a religious group. Recently these groups have mixed politics with religious belief and are convinced only their views are correct and may resort to violence in support of their convictions.

India: Hinduism and Social Equality Changing cultural, political, and economic customs may challenge traditional religious values. In South Asia, Hinduism has recently come into conflict with secular ideas introduced from the West. In East Asia, Communist doctrine has challenged Buddhism and its place in society. The caste system of the Hinduism faced opposition from the British during their period of colonial rule of India in the nineteenth century. The caste system is based on the class or distinct hereditary order into which a Hindu was born. When the Aryans invaded India circa 1500 B.C.E., they divided themselves into four castes that stratified social and economic positions.

These four castes are:

1. Brahmans, the priests and top administrators.

2. Kshatriyas, or warriors.

3. Vaisyas, or merchants.

4. Shudras, or agricultural workers and artisans.

A fifth class of people, Dalits (untouchables), were theorized to have descended from the indigenous people who were invaded by the Aryans. Until recently, social relations between the castes were limited, and the rights of non-Brahmans, especially Dalits, were restricted. In recent years, the caste system has grown relatively relaxed, but remnants persist today.

Communism: Religion & Revolution Communist governments have downplayed the role of religion in everyday life or openly opposed religion. The Soviet Union felt religious doctrine was a potential threat to the success of the Marxist revolution. All church buildings and property were nationalized and could be used only with local government permission. Countries in Central Asia, such as Uzbekistan with Muslim majority populations need to decide whether to maintain secular laws or adopt laws conforming to Islamic tradition.

China: Buddhism & the Dalai Lama Conflict between communism and religion is evident today in relations between the People’s Republic of China government and its autonomous Xizang (widely known as Tibet) province, home of the Dalai Lama. Communist China took over the region in 1950 and put down an unsuccessful rebellion in 1959.

Challenges for Religions in Southwest Asia Religious disputes have become embedded in ethnic and political conflicts in Central and Southwest Asia.

Jews, Christians, & Muslims in the Eastern Mediterranean Jews, Christians, and Muslims have fought one another for control of a small strip of land in the Eastern Mediterranean (or Middle East) in a prolonged series of conflicts. These conflicts are the result of overlapping histories of the three religions. The Crusades were a series of wars fought against Muslims in the Middle East by Christians intent on reclaiming Jerusalem. The Muslim Ottoman Empire controlled Palestine/Israel for most of four centuries between 1516 and 1917. After the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in World War I, the United Kingdom took control of the region. The present-day conflict in Palestine/Israel has its roots in ancient history, but more recently with the creation of the state of Israel by the United Nations in 1947.

Arab-Israeli Wars Following the United Nations’ 1947 partition of Britain’s Palestine Mandate into two independent states, one Jewish and one Arab. Four wars have been fought over conflicting territorial claims: The 1948-1949 Independence War, 1956 Suez Canal War, 1967 Six-Day War, and 1973 Yom Kippur War. The Old City of Jerusalem changed hands several times. In the Six-Day War, the West Bank, the Golan Heights, the Gaza Strip, and the Sinai Peninsula were all captured by Israel. In the Camp David Accords,

U.S. President Jimmy Carter mediated an agreement between Egypt’s President Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Prime Minister Menachem Begin where Israel returned control of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in exchange for Egypt’s recognition of Israel as a sovereign nation.

Geographic Perspectives in Southwest Asia The Palestinians view themselves as the legitimate rulers of Palestine which in their view, is comprised of the territory occupied by the independent state of Israel.

Israeli Perspectives The relatively small size of the state of Israel and its three distinct physiographic regions (the coastal plain, a series of hills, and the Jordan River valley) all play a role in Israel’s interaction with its neighbors. After Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in 1967, Israel permitted settlement in the area. Israelis have moved to the area due to their perceived right to live in their historical homeland, and lack of affordable housing within Israel’s pre-1967 borders. A barrier or security fence has been constructed around the West Bank.

Palestinian Perspectives Five groups of people consider themselves Palestinians:

• People living in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem territories captured by Israel in 1967.

• Some citizens of Israel who are Arabs.

• People who fled from Israel to other countries after the 1948-1949 war.

• People who fled from the West Bank or Gaza to other countries after the 1967 Six-Day War.

• Some citizens of other countries, especially Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.

Until his death in 2004, Yassir Arafat lead the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in the fight against Israel. Israel permits a limited form of government for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, called the Palestinian Authority. The Palestinians are generally not satisfied with either the territory or the power they have been given thus far. Currently, the struggle for power between the Fatah and Hamas parties colors many internal conflicts.

Jerusalem’s Challenging Geography Jerusalem feature sites holy to Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Controlling Jerusalem represents a key geographic problem to peace in the region.

Judaism’s Jerusalem Jerusalem is particularly holy to Jews as the location of the Temple, their center of worship in ancient times. The First Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E., and the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 C.E. The Western Wall of the Second Temple remains today. Following the capture of the Old City of Jerusalem in the 1967 Six-Day War, the Western Wall became a site for daily prayers by observant Jews.

Islam’s Jerusalem The holiest Muslim structure in Jerusalem is the Dome of the Rock, built in 691 C.E. Muslims believe that the large rock beneath the structure’s dome is the place from which Muhammad ascended to heaven, as well as the altar on which Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac (according to Jews and Christians) or his son Ishmael (according to Muslims). The al-Aqsa Mosque was built on the site of the ruins of the Jewish Second Temple. However, because the holy Muslim structures literally sit on top of the holy Jewish structures, the two sets of holy structures cannot be logically divided by a line on a map.

6.4

Caste System A rigid set of social classes that provides privileges for the higher classes and limits on the lower classes - a person is born in a caste and castes only change upon reincarnation

Fundamentalism Literal interpretation and strict adherence to basic principles of a religion (or a religious branch, denomination, or congregation).