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Terrorism often appears to be motivated by religion. To me it seems as if we are bombarded by images of people committing atrocities on behalf of their god. This is, in my opinion, highly paradoxical. All religions teach that divinity is present in all forms of life, so to destroy life is to destroy that which is divine. How then can religion be a factor in a terrorist's motivation for killing?

Terrorism is the name given to any act of war which is unjustified in the eyes of the international community. In truth there are always opposing views on the justification for any violent act, be that a fist-fight, a riot or a full-scale military conflict. Therefore, to at least one person, every act of war can be seen as terrorism. What we see as a terrorist attack may be seen by others as justifiable, just as what we see as a justified war may be seen as a terrorist atrocity. Even Nelson Mandela, possibly the most famous modern day fighter for freedom was seen as a terrorist. Of course, we can look back and know that he was morally justified in his militant activities against the apartheid state at that time, but the fact still remains that to some people he inspired dread. It's all a matter of perception. With that in mind, the justification for terrorism can be looked at in the same we as we find reasons for going to war. Almost all wars are motivated by politics and power struggles. Throughout the ages, control and not belief has remained the prevalent reason for any group of people to take up arms. Religious institutions have been involved in violent acts, many religious groups over the millennia have raised armies from their followers. In these cases, however, it has been religious leaders seeking to control what people believe who have instigated the violence. Rarely, if ever, has anyone acted on belief alone. No religion justifies mass-murder in it's teachings. However, those who preach any religion have a great amount of power of their followers. To control what someone believes in is to control their view of the entire universe. In this way, it is very possible for a preacher of any religion to justify any amount of violence, or anything else for that matter, in the minds of their followers. Suicide cults are another example of this ability to use faith to create an atmosphere where even the most extreme actions appear to be right thing to do. People who have such extreme views to us seem 'brain-washed', but this is simply our word for describing someone who's

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