In this post I want to talk about the promise and perils of pluralism.
In the final session of Host Linda Woodhead asked us to entertain a very interesting question: If you had to design a religion "from scratch," from the ground on up, what would you include?
It's an interesting thought experiment. What should a religion include? And what things should be left out?
We had a lively discussion and toward the end of the conversation Linda asked another interesting question: Since we're creating religion from scratch should there be only one religion for the world? Or should there be many? Should pluralism be built into religion?
Fascinating question. It sounds really creepy to insist that the whole world should subscribe to only one religion. Pluralism seems more desirable here, for a variety of reasons. And yet, implicit in many religions is the assumption that there should only be one religion for the whole world, the impulse to convert the whole world to your faith.
So maybe there should be many religions, or at least more than one.
And yet, religious pluralism also seems to be at the source of a great deal of conflict, often violent conflict. Pluralism seems desirable but we can't seems to handle it.
When it comes to pluralism it seems we're damned if we do and damned if we don't.
Trying to overcome the suspicions between groups was at the heart of Tim Nash's presentation, his effort to foster greater understanding and sympathy between the West and China. Difference is hard and we have to be intentional not to default to the worst impulses of group psychology.
Of course, one thing that might be suggested here is that the best answer to Linda's thought experiment is that we should have no religions. In my opinion, not surprisingly, I think the problem isn't religion but the tribal instinct at work in human psychology and sociology. I don't think we're wicked because of religion. I think we're wicked because of human evolution. And religion is often captured by those beastal instincts. Religion at its best works against those impulses. Religion at its best makes us human.
