Religion and politics in the United States Research Paper

Religion and politics in the United States - Research Paper Example Ground Zero became a symbol for American perseverance and a shrine for all the lives lost in the tragedy. Ten years later, plans have been made to build a mosque near the site which has caused much strife in the American public. The construction of an identity that is rejected by the traditional American has been the result. This society is based on the exclusion of those who oppose the dominant ideology as opposed to including diverse ideology out of appreciation. Indeed the history of the U.S. has been a history of the exclusion of various groups at multiple points throughout the history of the nation. The current conflict is merely an extention of previous conflicts manifested with a new enemy. The best means of fully understanding this conflict is through an analysis of current and historical events, social transformations, and American narratives. The plans to build the 100 million dollar mosque were headlined by Sharif El-Gamal who has stood for religious freedom in the face of adversity and hate (Baum, 2011). In fact, recent polls indicated that most New York inhabitants did not want to have a mosque near the cite (Baum, 2011). In spite of this, Michael Bloomberg defended religious freedom by stating that â€Å"there is no neighborhood in this city off-limits to God's love and mercy (Baum, 2011)." On the opposite side of the table was Pamela Geller who is a conservative activist that leverages her blog, Atlas Shrugs, to attack El-Gamal for being a front man for the money behind the project as well as for Islamic supremacist who believe in constructing a mosque near the site of a war victory (Baum, 2011). Ironically, a current candidate for president, Donald Trump, used money as an incentive to attempt to get the mosque moved to a different location. In response, El-Gamal asked, "Are we supposed to move so we can create a Muslim-free zone, Muslim-free blocks (Baum, 2011)?" He was furious with the notion that the criminal act that occurred on September 11 th is a representation of all Muslims. In terms of the historical relationship between Islam and Christianity, the two communities have shared conflict and feuds. The reason why Islam is being compared to Christianity is because it is the primary religion in the U.S (Gaustad, 2004). Empirical examples that prove this to be true is the fact that currency holds that â€Å"In God We Trust† and each day we pledge allegiance, it is â€Å"Under God†. When these two concepts came under heat by activist, it was the Christians that stood in defense of the terms. Much like that situation, Christian sects are arising to contest the establishment of the mosque (Sachedina, 2001). This conflicts stems all the way back to the year 1095 where the first crusades began. The crusades were a series of religiously sanctioned wars where followers fought over a rite of passage (Stokes, 1950). It seems as if Christianity is consistently attempt to stop the spread of Islam as is proven in the Crusades where the cause was because of the attempt to recapture Jerusalem from Muslim rule. While Jerusalem served as the birthplace of the Christian figure Jesus, It serves as the point of ascension into heaven for the Islamic figure Muhammad. In fact, the Bill of Rights already settles the issue concerning the mosque by establishing Freedom of Religion as an essential right of all Americans (Stokes, 1950). It states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof (Mutua, 2004). This means that the formation of the country was more geared towards the free exercise of religion as opposed to the persecution of individuals who don’