quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
I was raised Protestant (albeit not one of the evangelical or Southern Baptist sects), but my mother wanted me to go to a Catholic school, because it was the best school there was in our town. My father was against it because he said I would become Catholic. I wasn't sure why that was a bad thing at the time, but they compromised and I went to Catholic school. I graduated and still hadn't become Catholic, although I went to a lot of masses and religion classes over the years. Interestingly, the religion classes included other religions, including Islam and Judaism. Then, I went to a Methodist college that also required a world religions course. Later, after I married I became a Catholic (although not a very good one especially if you ask my wife). My father learned to accept that and realize that there is not that much difference. There is certainly more in common than differences.

Currently sitting on my desk for reading is a copy of the Quran. I haven't read it yet, but the reason for my wanting to read it is to identify what we have in common. Too many people focus on differences. I think we need to identify what we all have in common and work from there. Fanatics, of all religions, are a problem for all of us. They always have been throughout history.