Christianity and other semitic religions, still an obstacle to peace with nature

Ruth Eisenbud

Christianity in America has also given rise to a subculture of greedy, hypocritical and reactionary charlatans preying on the poor, the gullible, and the clueless. It includes major figures like Joel Osteen (above), Billy Graham, Jimmy Swaggart and many others. In matters concerning animals or the environment, they have proven to be worse than useless.

We have all heard of someone with a gambling problem who believes this time his horse will come in, this time he will beat the odds and win. Often these are charming individuals, who tell you with a straight face, I dont have a gambling problem or I have recovered and am better now, just lend me the money one more time…

So too we are called on to enlist the rhetoric of Christianity as a sure bet to end social injustice and animal abuse. The Jesus addiction is strong, the rhetoric compelling, but the underlying seeds of violence based on a hierarchical structure, an all powerful god at the helm, humans godlike in their tyranny over the animals… and the animals at the bottom of the power structure prevent progress.  There is a reason this model has resulted in as the article on the Greanville Post puts it: “Let’s face it, Christianity has been an accomplice to more wars and genocides than any other religion”:

https://www.greanvillepost.com/2013/10/01/lets-face-it-christianity-has-been-an-accomplice-to-more-wars-and-genocides-than-any-other-religion/

Keep in mind that this confession is not meant as an act of contrition, but rather to disarm critics with its seeming honesty. Yet much like the compulsive gambler, the author is pleading with us to take a chance on a system which to this day has resulted in terrible violence to those not of the fellowship or at the bottom of the pecking order.  Should we choose to believe this plea for one more chance to get it right or should we stop following bad money, with good?

Perhaps it is time to consider a different paradigm; ahimsa, with proven record of peace, non-violence and compassion towards all living beings. Ahimsa is the foundation of the Jain religion of India which encompasses animals, humans and nature in its circle of compassion: no exclusions, no hierarchies, no excuses to violate others.

Those invested in their status in the violence prone semitic religions are reluctant to give up their hold on often violently obtained power and wealth. They must find a way to justify their violence with disingenuous admissions of past transgressions, as they plead for one more chance.

Can we afford to gamble with their assurance, that this time they will get it right?

The Jains of India live in peace with their neighbors, animals and the earth and have done so for thousands of years.. Perhaps, if we have the courage to observe and understand. the message of the Jains, this time we will get it right.

Ruth Eisenbud is a veteran animal defense activist. She’s working to perfect her embrace of the Jain way of life.

Gary Francione: Jainism’s greatest gift – Ahimsa

April 16, 2011 in Guest Blog by  Gary L. Francione

Although many are aware of the Buddha or the deities of Hinduism, few of us know anything about Mahavir (599-527 BCE), whose birth the Jain community around the world will celebrate on April 16. This celebration is known as Mahavir Jayanti.

Jainism, along with Hinduism and Buddhism, are the three primary spiritual traditions of India, and archeological evidence indicates that although Mahavir was a contemporary of the Buddha, Jainism predated Mahavir by hundreds of years and, therefore, is the oldest religion in India.  Mahavir is considered to be the last in a line of what the Jains call “Tirthankaras,” which literally means “maker of a ford” and refers to a human being who achieves omniscience and then teaches the path to liberation to others, thereby establishing a ford across the river of rebirth.

A Tirthankara is also referred to as a “Jina,” which means “spiritual victor,” or as an “Arihant,” which means “destroyer of enemies.”  A Jina or Arihant is a victor or destroyer in that he or she has conquered inner emotions and passions, and has complete equanimity that is characterized by an absence of attachment and aversion.

Mahavir was a social revolutionary.  He rejected the caste system and the sexism that pervaded the society of his time (and that unfortunately persists), and promoted a radical social justice movement based on complete equality and equal inherent value.  He did not limit this revolution to humans and was the first historical figure to regard all nonhuman animals as full members of the moral community.  He was also the first historical figure to articulate the view that the planet itself, including air, water, and earth, consists of living systems.  Mahavir was, indeed, the first ecologist.

The notion of revolution is often connected with violence, particularly in modern times.  The central feature of Mahavir’s revolution, however, was Ahimsa, or nonviolence.  Mahavir provided the most expansive concept of Ahimsa that the world has ever known not only by extending this notion to include all living beings, but by making clear that violence was not simply a matter of what we did, but what we thought and said.

Mahavir also taught us about two other central tenets of Jainism—Anekantavada, or the notion that truth is many sided, and Aparigraha, or non-possessiveness.  The latter two principles cannot be understood except as aspects of Ahimsa.  The doctrine of Anekantavada serves to promote social harmony and to reduce the violence that results from absolutist views of truth.  The doctrine of Aparigraha recognizes that attachment to wealth and the accumulation of material things makes us more inclined to act in violent and destructive ways.

Mahavir taught that “all breathing, existing, living, sentient creatures should not be slain, nor treated with violence, nor abused, nor tormented, nor driven away.”  This is the only moral or spiritual principle that we need to know. If we live by this principle, we will be at peace with ourselves and the world will be at peace. Whatever our religious tradition may be, let us celebrate Mahavir Jayanti 2011 by recommitting ourselves to a simple but profound idea that all may embrace: Ahimsa.

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For more on Mahavir Jayanti, please read guest columnist’s Monika Jain’s: “Celebrating Jain beliefs“.  Dr. Gary Francione is a professor of Law and Philosophy at Rutgers University in New Jersey. He has been teaching animal rights and the law for more than 20 years, and he was the first academic to teach animal rights theory in an American law school.