By guest contributor Emmanuel C. Mbaezue
Though intertwined with many beliefs and purposes, religious fundamentalists and extremists depart significantly from each other in their basic operations.
Typically, it is the fundamentalist who creates the vision of the group and their religious and moral legitimization for action. While the leaders provide the concept, the followers design the practice or action.
It is usually in the process of implementing those designs that discrepancies between the original ideas held by the group leaders and subsequent actions arise—the traditional “follower fallacy.” Most importantly, it is also at this point that overzealousness, particularly from the followers, tends to magnify discrepancies.
There are a lot more differences between fundamentalism and the extremism that explain the violence-prone nature of religion today. However, it is important to deemphasize the role of religious leaders in religiously-motivated violence and focus instead on the most basic underlying causes of violence—for example, poverty and inequality–which can be manipulated for personal and group purposes.
Basically, the radicalism and blood-stained nature of religion today can be blamed mainly on structural defects. People frequently need something to believe in, particularly in times of crisis. As Karl Marx once opined, religion is the opiate of the masses.
If the violence and killing prevalent in society today are to be reduced, then we must be ready to help people gain the basic necessities of life. This could be achieved through an honest respect for fundamental human rights, recognized by both international and local laws.
Emmanuel Chukwuemeka Mbaezue has a Master of Science in Conflict Management and Peace Studies from University of Jos, Jos, Plateau State. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators, and works as a paralegal counsel at the Legal Aid Council for the Federal Ministry of Justice in Nigeria.