15th September 2010
Religious freedom in the free society
Tolerance and respect for others’ opinions is the basis of religious freedom – the distinguishing hallmark of the free society. This month I briefly review how mankind discovered tolerance. I then ask whether India is tolerant. Finally, I outline the religious freedom policy of the Freedom Team of India (FTI: http://freedomteam.in/).
The History of Religious Freedom
Intolerance has been the norm throughout most of human history. Organised religions have spearheaded this intolerance, their surface claims of love for humanity masking their support for brutal violence against those who hold different views. Collectivist, even tribal in their origin (often geographically localised), organised religions think of life as a zero-sum game with the loss of one ‘soul’ from a particular religion being seen as another’s gain. There is, in consequence, a ferocious competition to harvest our souls.
It is true that, as Vivekananda noted, it is not necessarily the founders who stoked intolerance, but their followers. “The disciples of all prophets have always inextricably mixed up the ideas of the Master with the person, and at last killed the ideas for the person”. But it hardly matters to the innocent child killed in religious violence whose ideas killed him – the founder’s or a follower’s.
The modern conception of tolerance has taken an inordinately long time to develop. Nascent forms of tolerance arose in ancient Persia and India. Thus, “[t]he Hindus had one peculiar idea – they never made any doctrines or dogmas in religion; and the latter has had the greatest growth” (Vivekananda). In its policy on religious tolerance, FTI accepts that India should be proud of this history of tolerance. It is important to remember, however, that the ancient Hindu conception was not a theoretical formulation but an experiential practice, a loosely defined way of life. Hindu tolerance therefore frays easily when stressed, often being skin-deep. On the other hand, religions now often classified as intolerant, like Islam, had some episodes of (relative) tolerance in the past.
But it is Christianity that makes the loudest claims about its “contributions” to tolerance. Robert A. Sirico goes further, claiming that “[i]t is Christianity that lies at the root of the body of ideas we know today as classical liberalism”[1]. This view is factually incorrect. In my draft manuscript, The Discovery of Freedom[2] (DOF), I show clearly that the modern conception of tolerance was a reaction to internecine massacres within Christendom, not a consequence of its positive advocacy of religious harmony.
The credit for laying the theoretical foundation for tolerance must go squarely to liberal philosophers like John Locke (1632-1704). Locke cited a few never-practiced elements of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to advocate “[t]he toleration of those that differ from others in matters of religion”[3]. Voltaire (1694-1778) shamed Christendom with his commentary on the massacre in Béziers. Only then did Christendom begin to move away from its 1,500-year history of mindless brutality.
The modern liberal voice has been institutionalised through constitutionally protected tolerance. Even Christianity now speaks of tolerance. In the 1965 Declaration of Religious Freedom, Pope Paul VI wrote that “the human person has a right to religious freedom. This freedom means that all men are to be immune from coercion on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, in such wise that no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own beliefs, whether privately or publicly, whether alone or in association with others, within due limits.” One only hopes that all organised religions will one day internalise this idea of the philosophers of liberty.
Religious Freedom Under Siege in India
The level of religious freedom in India declined precipitously with the advent of Islam, particularly in reaction to fanatics like Aurgangzeb who overshadowed relatively benign kings like Akbar. A bitter taste from religious excess disrupted relations between Hindus and Muslims. During India’s independence movement, a few unthinking statements and actions by the leaders exacerbated the existing rift. This led to the partition of India on religious grounds – a grievous blow to liberalism, formalising as it did, at least implicitly, a place for religion in the affairs of the state
Post-independence, India’s major political parties did not try to clearly separate the jurisdictions of the state and religion. Instead, our lawmakers enacted laws for specific religious communities in the Indian Parliament. Our major political parties identify themselves with religion: one provides state-based subsidies for Muslims; the other insists on a greater role for Hindus. Communal tensions continue to fester below the surface, ready to explode at the slightest provocation. Religious freedom is under siege in India. This has had adverse impacts on freedom of expression as well, as I discussed in my articlein Freedom First in July 2010.
One would even suggest that religious fundamentalism is stronger today than it was ever before. Believers in Hindutva reject the idea of religious freedom altogether and want to re-open ancient wounds (at least that is the inference one draws from the writing and actions of those who claim to follow this ideology). Therefore, even after living in India for nearly a thousand years, Muslims do not always feel welcome – which is not to say that they have always helped their own cause.
Firmly separating the domains of religion and the state by enforcing law and order and bringing about a sense of common national purpose requires leadership of a calibre that India has not yet produced. Only liberals can provide such leadership, but India’s liberals have deserted the battlefield – or they had until now when FTI has started assembling.
FTI’s position on religious freedom
FTI is a group of leaders unambiguously committed to freedom including religious freedom. Its members firmly believe that religion is a personal matter to be practiced inside our own homes, temples or churches, not something on which governments should create policy and enact laws. Governments should never get involved in any religious activity (such as through subsidies) unless it trespasses others’ liberties. FTI therefore does not inquire into or ask its members to alter their personal religious beliefs. Simply speaking, their religious beliefs are not the business of FTI.
FTI believes that once the rule of law is enforced, religions will thrive on their own merit. FTI policy asks everyone, including religions, to be given complete freedom of speech – subject to accountability. This includes the right to preach one’s religion and convert others to one’s faith. (I have reservations against the use of foreign funds for such advocacy, but this concern is not FTI policy at the moment.) FTI requires such freedom to be exercised with care since freedom is never license to cheat. To the extent that religious activity leads to conversion, the state has an interest in ensuring that no coercion, bribes, or misleading conduct is involved.
Freedom Team of India
It is abundantly clear that no major political party in India cares about our liberties. The only way, therefore, to foster religious freedom and tolerance is for liberals to assemble and seek a mandate from the people through the hustings. Please therefore join or otherwise support FTI. Become a Freedom Partner!
[This article was published in the September 2010 issue of Freedom First]
[1] Robert A. Sirico, Must Religion Be a Threat to Liberty? Sydney: Centre for Independent Studies, 2008, p.12.
[2] Available for comment at http://discovery.sabhlokcity.com/
[3] Locke, John, A Letter Concerning Toleration, 1689, [http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/l/locke/john/l81t/]
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