Amanda Bischke

10106770
http://bit.ly/1RTUPyT
Growing Ideology, Destroying History
Pseudonym: ANB
I read an upsetting article, written by Martha Mendoza, Maya Alleruzzo and
Bram Janssen, entitled Oldest Christian monastery in Iraq razed by Islamic State,
Globe and Mail, January 20th 2016 (http://bit.ly/1RTUPyT). The article highlights the
Islamic States activities in relation to attempting to force Christians out of their
region. Over 100 religious and cultural sites have been destroyed, while most
recently, the Islamic State has demolished St. Elijahs Monastery of Mosul, a place of
rich history and significance for many as its origins come from the before the
separation of the Orthodox and Catholics. The article concludes with an overview of
the churchs life and statements from church goers.
I believe that the Islamic State is choosing to target significant buildings in an
attempt to weaken civilians and local Christians. By demolishing sacred places they
may disrupt routines as civilians find other places to practice their religion and they
also instill a sense of sadness or frustration in those groups. However, it may also
draw them closer together as they worship the memories together and unite as a
community to move beyond the tragedy. Others believe that this destructive
activity is done in order to gain media attention and propagate their ideology. The
targeted sites and stolen objects represented views in opposition to the Islamic
State ideology (Almukhtar, 2016).
As one group tries to take over another and war erupts, we often intervene
with peace keeping missions resulting in more violence before restoring the
situation. Similar to how we discussed religious bias in class, we often think of our
beliefs as the ideal and may disagree with others either consciously or
subconsciously. One should remember that although we may prefer our views, are
often equally valid. We may not all believe in the same religion, but we all are
seeking happiness and a successful life. Instead of attempting to abolish each other
we need to work together as a population to respect those differences and
showcase our uniqueness.
I am fascinated in learning the history of St. Elijahs, it was once a place of
pilgrimage after several Monks were massacred, it has been both an Iraqi and
American military training base, it has been vandalized and covered with garbage
before it became a protected place. Today it remains as a memory, a happy place
for many where they came to worship and pray. I feel as though we do not have
many buildings with the same rich history in Canada, or maybe I am simply
unaware of them. I hope that our world can find peace and we can unite our views
as we work together for the better. There is no need to destroy things of value to
others simply because we want to propagate our own ideology.
Identifier: ANB

Bibliography
Almukhtar, Sarah. The Strategy Behind the Islamic States Destruction of Ancient
Sites, The New York Times, 2016, http://nyti.ms/1RTaP3F
Mendoza, Martha., Alleruzzo, Maya and Janssen, Bram. Oldest Christian monastery
in Iraq razed by Islamic State, 2016, http://bit.ly/1RTUPyT
Hexam, Irving. Week Two Myths and Paradigms, 2016, http://bit.ly/1nFnrze