The Big Picture

Does believing in something bigger alleviate existential pressures or undermine agency?

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The common wisdom to eschew conversations concerning religion may be better replaced by caveats against discussing beliefs. Nothing is quite so fundamentally personal. The immense power of belief means it is often met by equal potency when our world view is challenged. There’s a reason why our most fundamentally held beliefs are known in psychology circles as ‘core beliefs’; any affront to them in the form of disagreement or contrary evidence can literally cut us to the core. When beliefs are inflexible and align with a morality system that doesn’t value human life, as in the case of some fundamentalist religious convictions, the human toll can be high.

Yet beliefs that form in response to beliefs may be similarly intolerant and damaging, threatening social cohesion and peace. Pauline Hanson’s recent attempts to convince voters of links between asylum seekers and terrorism are a case in point.

Reem Sweid, president of the Muslims of Progressive Values group of Australia says that negative beliefs surrounding Muslims and Islam can be hurtful, especially when misinformation is reported. “Being Muslim is about being moral, and Islam plays an important role in that. When people advocate for banning Islam, it can be confusing because for many Muslims Islam is their moral compass, and what can be good about getting rid of that?” The group, developed in 2007 in the United States, has chapters across the globe to support progressive interpretations of Islam. “It is hard to say what Muslims believe in general, because Islam is unique to every Muslim. Some can be really conservative and others progressive, some believe that it is okay to marry four wives others believe in temporary marriages with stipulated end dates. There are so many ways to be a Muslim, it’s not just about wearing a hijab or going to the mosque,” Sweid says.