Tribalism, Jonah And The Fundamental Impediment To Peace

A much better reproduction of Pieter Lastman's "Jonah and The Whale" is available at:

http://www.marintheatre.org/productions/the-whale/whale-jonah

Jonah

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Jonah

At four pages, "Jonah" is the shortest book of the Bible.

Alan: The essentially tribal affiliations of jihadists and Christian conservatives render them mirror images of one another.

The nearly irresistible seduction of tribalism is that it feels bloody good - with the emphasis on "bloody."

Consider the Nuremberg Rallies. 

Consider Brian Mulroney's observation: "In politics you need two things, Madame. You need friends, but mostly you need an enemy."

It has been observed that Old Testament Judaism is grounded in the hermetically-sealed perception of The Chosen People and that Jonah was the only prophet -- an exceptionally reluctant one -- who was sent to preach among "infidels."

"The Story Of Jonah And The Whale" (Brilliantly Retold By Anne Herbert) 
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-story-of-jonah-re-told-by-anne.html

It can be argued that the cornerstone of Christianity -- at least contextually -- is to reach beyond tribe to the indivisible wholeness of The Human Family. 

Notably, the initial success of Mormonism was attributable to its bedrock focus on family (in itself a good, admirable and perhaps indispensable proposition) despite the fact that founding "prophet" Joseph Smith was a sexual pervert and (at least) statutory rapist.

"Mormonism Is Not A Christian Religion. Founding Prophet Joseph Smith Was A Sex Pervert"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/08/polygamy-legal-again-in-utah.html

"In an earlier stage of our development most human groups held to a tribal ethic. Members of the tribe were protected, but people of other tribes could be robbed or killed as one pleased. Gradually the circle of protection expanded, but as recently as 150 years ago we did not include blacks. So African human beings could be captured, shipped to America, and sold. In Australia white settlers regarded Aborigines as a pest and hunted them down, much as kangaroos are hunted down today. Just as we have progressed beyond the blatantly racist ethic of the era of slavery and colonialism, so we must now progress beyond the speciesist ethic of the era of factory farming, of the use of animals as mere research tools, of whaling, seal hunting, kangaroo slaughter, and the destruction of wilderness. We must take the final step in expanding the circle of ethics." - Peter Singer, philosopher and professor of bioethics (b. 6 Jul 1946)