In America today we maintain an incredibly diverse society, catering to people from all around the world. With this great diversity, it is inevitable that there will be a clashing of values and beliefs for those participating in our society. Our country is becoming increasingly more plural in its varying religious views that have been introduced into the social sphere over the years. Yet, to be a truly pluralistic society requires that those with varying beliefs must acknowledge and respect the belief systems that are different than theirs. “History shows us that in most societies, pluralism does not occur naturally; it must be deliberately and carefully nourished, for it evolves gradually. It must also be protected and never taken for granted, for we have plenty of examples of societies that were once pluralist becoming exclusivist and antipluralistic.” (Asani p.42)
Being a pluralistic society does not mean simply tolerating others beliefs that are different than yours; this creates ignorance for all beliefs that are different than the ones you hold and is not conducive to creating a productive society. This is largely the problem with the current social situation in America, we recognize that there are many people around us who come from varying cultures and backgrounds that differ from ours yet very few of us make a conscious effort to learn and understand these differences. We tend to stay in our own private social spheres and when encounter other beliefs that differ from ours “it is not so much a clash of civilizations as it is a clash of ignorances.” (Asani p.42)
By taking a step back and realizing that while the differences across our cultures may be vast at times, these different beliefs are extremely important to others and cannot be simply written off as “wrong”. By making a stronger effort to really understand the beliefs that differ from us we can help to achieve a society that is truly based on pluralism.
"So That You May Know One Another": A Muslim American Reflects on Pluralism and Islam
Ali S. Asani
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 588, Islam: Enduring Myths and Changing Realities (Jul., 2003), pp. 40-51
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc. in association with the American Academy of Political and Social Science
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1049853
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Understanding religions is not the same as believing in it and I think thats why many people are closed off to understanding religions that are not their own. I agree that being tolerant is simply not enough in today's society because although one can be tolerant, a clash of views is bound to occur when people are ignorant of someone else's religious background. People may go by stereotypes and make false assumptions or accusations towards someone of a different religious background.
ReplyDeleteI agree with NLO, tolerance does not seem like enough in todays society because of those opposing views. There is a difference between understanding a religion and believing it. Many times people feel as though because they understand it they know how people of that faith feel, which is not fair to those who actaully practice because it might be based on a stereotype of assumption.
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