Today when we were coming back from our day trip to Lindos, we passed by four cemeteries right next to each other: Muslim, Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Greek Orthodox. Our tour guide made the comment that Religion has caused so many wars and arguments, yet we all end up next to each other in death. This comment sent me into a spiral of thought.
One of the most interesting things about the island of Rhodes is the people and religions that coexist peacefully here. I'm sure there have been issues in the past, but for the most part this seems to be a very peaceful island. I was just kind of thinking: How many places in the world would you see four cemeteries right next to each other, existing peacefully, all from different faiths? It doesn't make sense, but at the same time it does.
While I hold strong to my Christian beliefs, I have always been respectful of other religions. Having had an interesting faith journey myself, I understand how important respect between religions is. I was baptized Russian Orthodox, became Episcopalian with my family at a young age, and was confirmed Lutheran. It wasn't that I necessarily wanted to switch churches as much as that's where circumstances landed me. But every time I joined a new church I was welcomed with open arms.
Today we were unfortunate to encounter someone who wasn't quite as respectful. There was an American at one of the churches we looked around who had moved to Greece because Greek orthodoxy really hit home for her. Well great, but she felt the need to make negative comments about protestantism and anyone who wasn't Orthodox. When we talked about the place we visited, it wasn't as much about how amazing the works of art in the church were as much as how unwelcome that person had made us feel.
Anyways, I mostly told that story just to emphasize how important it is to me to respect the faith of others. Everyone thinks their own faith is "right." But what if there isn't a "right" faith? One of the ideas I've toyed with while being in this class is about the soul. What if when you die your soul goes where you always believed it would? What if you just have to do what you believe you need to to find eternal life? I realize I'm not the first person to think of this, and I also realize that this is a scary and strange thought for some. But even if this is a crazy and unacceptable idea, is it too much to ask to respect others' beliefs and the way they choose to live their lives?
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