Religion is a set of beliefs brought forth by the existence of a superhuman controlling power (e.g, a God, or gods.). These beliefs can influence the morals and actions of people faithful to a specific belief and bring them together, thus creating a community of like-minded individuals. As such, Religious Intolerance, as opposed to Religious Tolerance, is defined as the expression of fear or unjust prejudice and treatment towards people of a specific religious faith or of different beliefs and values. It is a type of discrimination and is a complex issue that results in many conflicts.

I have decided to focus on major inter-faith religious conflicts that have brought about violence. Due to the similar teachings of just moral behavior and values in the different religions, the existence of religion in this world can also be described as a moral restraint against negative actions such as violence, seriously deceptive lying and theft etc. I find it sadly ironic that religion would conversely be one of the contributing factors to conflict and violence in this world.

Religious intolerance can be brought about by certain reasons. One reason of inter-faith conflict would be the difference in views and beliefs of different religions. Instead of allowing everyone to follow their own chosen spiritual/religious path (or lack thereof) and having an open mind to accept the differences, certain people try to force their own religious beliefs and actions upon others. An example of one such incident would be the burning of the Quran by Terry Jones.

Terry Jones, now 60, is the pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center in Florida. The topic of burning the Quran stirred outrage from millions of Muslims and others throughout the world after the pastor’s church threatened to destroy a copy of the Quran in September 2010. The uproar cooled over after pastor Terry backed down, but