Elsa and
the Significant Others
So, are all religions basically
the same?
Over and over I've heard that all religions are equal. Especially, anytime anyone says something even potentially critical of Islam, that comes up.
The last time I heard, "all religions are basically the same," this is the thought that came to me:
It's common for people to convert from one religion to another. But if all religions are basically the same, why would people do that? After all, Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism - it would be all pretty well the same.
More re conversion. People pick very different branches of a religion. People don't all go for one kind of, say, Buddhism. They may go for Thedavara Buddhism. Or for chanting Buddhism (I forget the formal name).
Not only do people convert to different religions, they may move from one branch to another of a religion. At a wedding, I met a friend I hadn't seen for at least a decade. She was the minister - a Unitarian minister. But I knew her background was Catholic.
Why convert from one branch to another of a religion, if all religions are basically equal or the same?
The answer is clear: they aren't. In this case, the friend was a woman who wanted a religion where women had full equality. Out went Catholicism. In came Unitarianism.
Is there nothing after death? Is there heaven and hell? If so, what gets you to one place or the other? Is there reincarnation? Do animals have souls?
There are huge differences between religions, and between different branches of the same religion.
The ethics of different religions differ enormously - what god approves or and disapproves of. The moral codes can be utterly different.
I've put photos of myself and my band on this page. Why?
I spent yesterday evening with the 2 men in the band. I've known them for years. The 3 of us were alone in a room for hours - a recording studio. Just the 3 of us. And I thought: this couldn't be, in an Islamic world with Sharia.
For the 3 of us, it's normal. We take it for granted, that we can spend time together, work on music together wthout supervision - female and male, unrelated. No one we know would be surprised or shocked or make any objection.
I tremendously care to keep this kind of freedom.
No, all religions are not equal. Some are against this kind of freedom.
Elsa
October 3, 2012
PS. By the way, the song we were working on is called, I Live Freedom.
previous next
To go from these blog journals on, are all religions equal,
to the song we were working on, I Live Freedom,
click here.
To go from the question, are all religions equal,
to a video on good ethics,
universal ethics,
click here.
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