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Pittsburgh Post Gazette
Nov 2 2014
Book Review
'Fields of Blood': It's not religion, it's the economy, stupid!
Obsessions with greed and power cause war, not matters of faith, scholar argues
November 2, 2014 12:00 AM
By Rebecca Denova
"It's the economy, stupid."
James Carville's remark during Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential
campaign may appear trivial as the summation of a book about the
history of religion and violence, but it is appropriate for Karen
Armstrong's theme and ultimate conclusion.
In "Fields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence," Ms.
Armstrong challenges the modern myth (particularly after 9/11) that
all the violence in the world is the result of religious dogma.
A renowned scholar and popular author ("A History of God," "Muhammad:
A Prophet for Our Time"), Ms. Armstrong, a former Roman Catholic nun,
claims that this current politically correct assessment of religion by
secular liberals is not only misplaced but historically inaccurate.
All wars, including religious wars, stem from humanity's obsessive
greed for wealth and power.
The book is a tour-de-force of the history of the world's major
religions. Ms. Armstrong repeatedly reminds the reader that prior to
the modern age, religion was never understood as something personal or
private, but was integrated into all aspects of daily life.
________________________________
"FIELDS OF BLOOD: RELIGION AND THE HISTORY OF VIOLENCE"
By Karen Armstrong
Knopf ($30)
________________________________
For the history of each tradition, she begins with hunter-gatherers
and their eventual occupation of land, which remained the source of
wealth for millennia. Aggression over land created the rise of the
economic classes, which became supported through a warrior ethos. This
social structure was then validated through religion.
The reason that Ms. Armstrong refuses to blame religious dogma as the
sole cause of violence is that the history of each religion includes
the counterbalance to destructive madness. Each faith has produced
great teachers, reformers, prophets and mystics, all of whom attempted
to reconcile economic inequality with humane treatment for all
classes, justice for the oppressed and an end to warfare.
However, despite such ideal goals, reformers in each tradition could
never overcome the competitive, structural violence inherent in
land-owning agrarian societies. To this day, armed aggression revolves
around economic and political dominance.
Although she does not include a comprehensive survey of every detail
of the historical elements of each faith, such a history would require
several volumes, and Ms. Armstrong limits the material to her theme of
economic and political oppression.
But methodologically, her argument contains a contradiction.
Consistently pointing out that before the modern age religion could
never be separated from culture, politics, or economics, she then
proceeds to dissect some of the historical religious wars (such as the
Crusades, the Inquisition, and the wars of religion in Europe) by
highlighting their political and economic motives.
When she argues that World War I and World War II were the result of
economics, politics, territorial expansion and the rise of
nationalism, most Jews will find it difficult to agree that Nazism had
no basis in religious beliefs. Nor would Armenians agree that their
suffering under the Ottomans had nothing to do with religious
differences.
Her analysis of the modern, secular world, where religion has been
relegated to the private world of the individual, neglects that the
secular values of those individuals are nevertheless rooted in a
traditional religious morality that was appropriated by nation-states
and their constitutions.
Similar to her other books, Ms. Armstrong presents an apologia for
Islam, so that we should not fault the religion for the current
jihadist atrocities. This is a much needed corrective in American
culture in terms of educating the American public, but it remains a
hotly debated issue, particularly because of the level of barbarism
involved.
Adherents of many faiths continue to believe that it is permissible to
kill in "the name of God," and until that concept changes, until that
concept is no longer utilized to justify political and economic
oppression, then "religion" will be blamed as the primary cause of
violence in the world. Nevertheless, "Fields of Blood" is
thought-provoking as it examines one of the more fascinating elements
of human civilization.
Rebecca I. Denova teaches early Christian history in the Department of
Religious Studies at the University of Pittsburgh ([email protected]).
http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/books/2014/11/02/Fields-of-Blood-It-s-not-religion-it-s-the-economy-stupid/stories/201411020022
Nov 2 2014
Book Review
'Fields of Blood': It's not religion, it's the economy, stupid!
Obsessions with greed and power cause war, not matters of faith, scholar argues
November 2, 2014 12:00 AM
By Rebecca Denova
"It's the economy, stupid."
James Carville's remark during Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential
campaign may appear trivial as the summation of a book about the
history of religion and violence, but it is appropriate for Karen
Armstrong's theme and ultimate conclusion.
In "Fields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence," Ms.
Armstrong challenges the modern myth (particularly after 9/11) that
all the violence in the world is the result of religious dogma.
A renowned scholar and popular author ("A History of God," "Muhammad:
A Prophet for Our Time"), Ms. Armstrong, a former Roman Catholic nun,
claims that this current politically correct assessment of religion by
secular liberals is not only misplaced but historically inaccurate.
All wars, including religious wars, stem from humanity's obsessive
greed for wealth and power.
The book is a tour-de-force of the history of the world's major
religions. Ms. Armstrong repeatedly reminds the reader that prior to
the modern age, religion was never understood as something personal or
private, but was integrated into all aspects of daily life.
________________________________
"FIELDS OF BLOOD: RELIGION AND THE HISTORY OF VIOLENCE"
By Karen Armstrong
Knopf ($30)
________________________________
For the history of each tradition, she begins with hunter-gatherers
and their eventual occupation of land, which remained the source of
wealth for millennia. Aggression over land created the rise of the
economic classes, which became supported through a warrior ethos. This
social structure was then validated through religion.
The reason that Ms. Armstrong refuses to blame religious dogma as the
sole cause of violence is that the history of each religion includes
the counterbalance to destructive madness. Each faith has produced
great teachers, reformers, prophets and mystics, all of whom attempted
to reconcile economic inequality with humane treatment for all
classes, justice for the oppressed and an end to warfare.
However, despite such ideal goals, reformers in each tradition could
never overcome the competitive, structural violence inherent in
land-owning agrarian societies. To this day, armed aggression revolves
around economic and political dominance.
Although she does not include a comprehensive survey of every detail
of the historical elements of each faith, such a history would require
several volumes, and Ms. Armstrong limits the material to her theme of
economic and political oppression.
But methodologically, her argument contains a contradiction.
Consistently pointing out that before the modern age religion could
never be separated from culture, politics, or economics, she then
proceeds to dissect some of the historical religious wars (such as the
Crusades, the Inquisition, and the wars of religion in Europe) by
highlighting their political and economic motives.
When she argues that World War I and World War II were the result of
economics, politics, territorial expansion and the rise of
nationalism, most Jews will find it difficult to agree that Nazism had
no basis in religious beliefs. Nor would Armenians agree that their
suffering under the Ottomans had nothing to do with religious
differences.
Her analysis of the modern, secular world, where religion has been
relegated to the private world of the individual, neglects that the
secular values of those individuals are nevertheless rooted in a
traditional religious morality that was appropriated by nation-states
and their constitutions.
Similar to her other books, Ms. Armstrong presents an apologia for
Islam, so that we should not fault the religion for the current
jihadist atrocities. This is a much needed corrective in American
culture in terms of educating the American public, but it remains a
hotly debated issue, particularly because of the level of barbarism
involved.
Adherents of many faiths continue to believe that it is permissible to
kill in "the name of God," and until that concept changes, until that
concept is no longer utilized to justify political and economic
oppression, then "religion" will be blamed as the primary cause of
violence in the world. Nevertheless, "Fields of Blood" is
thought-provoking as it examines one of the more fascinating elements
of human civilization.
Rebecca I. Denova teaches early Christian history in the Department of
Religious Studies at the University of Pittsburgh ([email protected]).
http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/books/2014/11/02/Fields-of-Blood-It-s-not-religion-it-s-the-economy-stupid/stories/201411020022