Nowadays, it is difficult to talk about religion and leave out politics and vice versa. This is because most of the religious acts and information that is presented by the clergy men will in most cases attract political views and discussions. Therefore, though they may look as diverse and completely different from each other, there exists a close link between politics and religion. For instance, the pope’s remarks on the use of condoms attracted various views. As Silk, reports in Beliefnet, (2010), it leads to discussions on what the church was opposed to. Some of the political views that arose following these remarks were that the church was only opposed to artificial contraception thus a condom could be used between two men since in such a case it would not be considered as a contraceptive. Political views also challenge some religious beliefs and hence challenging us to think and understand more deeply the religious beliefs that we hold.
According to Hirschfield reporting in Beliefnet, (2010), politics and culture meet the religious wisdom. The reading about Jacob wrestling with “a man” in the Bible strikes thoughts like what it refers to be a wounded victor as Jacob emerges after the wrestle. Therefore, in the society that we are living in, it is difficult for politics and religion to exist separately. This is because people will have varied and critical perspectives and views and will argue differently on religious matters and this is what brings about the politics. Taking a critical perspective enables me to appreciate the differences that exist between different groups and hence not take any culture as being dominant over the other. For instance, the links between politics and religion show that the two coexist and one should not be considered as the determinant in everything.
References
Beliefnet, (2010). Inspiration. Spirituality. Faith. Politics [Online]. Retrieved from: http://www.beliefnet.com/. Accessed November 23, 2010.
