Why shouldn't religion and politics mix?

Answer 1

Religion should not be mixed with politics. Because in a country like India there are numerous religions. What is happening today is the politicians are using these different religions for their vote bank. Sometimes they also provocate the people by their speeches which results then in communal disharmony which is simply dangerous for the unity of our country. Besides, the people must understand that they do not elect such people who try to divide them in the name of religion. Instead we must elect such candidates who vow to work for the peace and the development of the nation.

Answer 2

No, it shouldn't they are two different things, although these days many people mix religon with politics. But religon is something spiritual and each person has their own freedom to chose the religon they want to follow, or follow the religon of their ancestors and parents, and thus it shouldn't be associated with politics The historic facts clearly define that religion and politics were always intimately wedded. The rational and scientific minds of the world have challenged religion/politics to get in sync with increasing social realities and. Diversity.

The overwhelming consensus in relation to international human rights is that religion has absolutely no justification for surreptitiously manipulating the state/government to support or sanction their religious prejudices.

In other words absolutely no religion should be allowed to influence political decisions with the possibility of encroaching upon the personal rights of any individual. Religion - especially Christianity - has been inextricably linked to politics since the time of Jesus and the Roman Empire - and rightly so.

Despite some shameful episodes in the Church's history (eg the Inquisition) the Church over the years has spoken out against many wrongdoings of society.

In our grandparents' and great grandparents' memories - in the 19th Century - the Church was heavily involved in the abolition of slavery, prison reform, housing, welfare, education and medical aid for the poor of society, care for the homeless, destitute and oppressed and so on. Much of the spur that caused these changes to happen were the result of the Christian duty to love ones neighbour as oneself.

In the 20th Century and this Century, the church that involves itself in politice tends to be that church that continues to grow and thrive. The Liberation Theology movement in South America spoke out against poverty in those areas - and is thriving. In Africa the Church, through many Christian relief agencies, has been there in amongst the poor and oppressed at ground level, often at great danger to themselves, especially in war-torn areas. Other politically active organisations such as Amnesty International, Fairtrade and so on all have a Christian presence amongst either their staff or their supporters.

As one more recent and simple example of what can happen when the Church becomes involved in politics, a few years ago a few churches decided to picket peacefully the G8 summit when it took place in Edinburgh to draw attention to third world debt. The support that was received exceeded all expectations when over 300,000 descended on Edinburgh, all dressed in white, and encircled the whole city in a white band of humans - several times. The only arrests were three drunks who had nothing to do with the march. As a result of this peaceful protest, the G8 countries made a covenant to reduce - and in some cases write off - the debt of the poorest countries in the world in order that they could spend money on improving the lot of their own people rather than paying back interest at exhorbitant rates to the richest countries of the world.

It is difficult to pull the two apart Politics has always been influenced by the religious beliefs of the place where the laws and governments are formed. In the majority of the Christian world, at least the developed and reasonably well educated parts religious interference in the politics of the country is becoming less pronounced though many laws are still based on religious not factual tenets. But the truth of the matter is that religion should play no part in politics.

Answer 3

Religion should not be mixed with politics because it is very dangerous.Politicians ask votes to the people in the name of religion,then after some time the people also get sympathized and forcely give thier precious votes to wrong poilticians.They are benefited by this way and thus there should be a strict check that politics should not be mixed with religion.

Answer 4

There will be a mix of strongly held opinions. This response looks at possible long-term consequences of a government's devotion to a particular religion, and not so much at the everyday discourse as it may exist in today's political environment.

One of the major forces behind the colonization of the Americas and the eventual formation of the US is the idea that people should be free to practice the religion of their choice. This is an important part of who we [in the US] are. Because there are so many religions, and different approaches to basic faith and belief in a deity, it is extremely important that the fundamental law of the land be to the extent possible religion neutral. This is necessary to assure that no religion take dominance over any other, and to assure that no religion take dominance over government itself. This is not an anti religion position.

We see what happens in countries where religion and government are inseparable and are in fact literally identical. Fundamentalist extremism takes over and religion works to remove any semblance of cooperative and consensus government. In countries where this kind of government is in force, there is little or no tolerance of freedom of religion. People who reach prominence in the clerical ranks of religion reign as Absolute Princes, very much in the spirit of the Divine Right of Kings, only to an extent that was rarely reached by western rulers. After all, when you claim (and have convinced all to believe) that God's words come forth directly from your mouth, who will stand up and oppose you and remain safe? By what mechanism will we retire you from authority?

Where governments are religion neutral, and where religions practice within the limits of an enlightened and civil law approved by the population, all religions flourish. Otherwise, we should be prepared for decades or centuries of 'religious' wars.

Answer 5

The history of Christianity shows how disastrous for all concerned it is when religion and politics come together. Modern day Iran is another example of religion and politics being together under a single leadership. It just does not work.