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Religions have the ability to co-exist peacefully if they desire
by Joseph Earnest December 24, 2011
Newscast Media VATICAN CITY — Society has always had an inclination to spirituality and religion as a way to either regulate the conduct of humans or as a vehicle to seek solace and inspiration. Even without organized religion, people had their own ways of finding both religious and spiritual expression. Major religions found a way to coexist peacefully with each other because most of them share a common thread and belief in the supernatural.
In the eight and ninth centuries there were two super-powers that ruled the world. One was Christianity with the Byzantine Empire, the other was Islam, controlled by the Caliphate. There was yet a third force that had no particular religion called the Khazarian Empire as shown in the map below:
Byzantium in purple, Khazaria in brown and the Caliphate in green A.D. 800
The Khazar king was interested in adopting a religion and took a look at both forces. He reasoned that if he submitted to Christianity, he would be under the jurisdiction of the Holy Roman Emperor, and if he chose Islam, he would have to answer to the Caliph of Baghdad. In order not to offend both religions, he chose the Hebrew religion and traditions since Christians and Muslim also believed in the Old Testament.
A few centuries later, the Khazars moved North to southern Russia and eventually assimilated throughout Europe. Islam remained in Arabia and North Africa, while Christianity spread all the way down to South America. In Africa, Christianity was introduced by French and British missionaries after it had already spread around the world. This time of the year, all major religions are celebrating the Christmas season in their own ways. Some do it by giving gifts, others through reconciliation, while some do it through prayerful worship.
The purpose of the map above is to demonstrate that major religions do have the ability to coexist peacefully if they choose to. During my travels, I was able to capture some of the symbolism used in Christianity in the video below I filmed in the Eternal City, as we celebrate the Christmas holidays and a new year that's at hand.
Videography by Joseph Earnest - filmed in Rome, Italy
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