24 April 2008

"How many more architects and mechanical engineers must hit the wall at 400 miles an hour before we admit to ourselves that jihadist violence is not merely a matter of education, poverty, or politics? The truth, astonishingly enough, is that in the year 2006 a person can have sufficient intellectual and material resources to build a nuclear bomb and still believe that he will get 72 virgins in Paradise. Western secularists, liberals, and moderates have been very slow to understand this. The cause of their confusion is simple: They don't know what it is like to really believe in God."

Quote from Sam Harris

3 comments:

BlackRX said...

In relation, Michael Burleigh (author of The Third Reich: A New History), has written two books in the influence of religion on European politics.

Chuang Shyue Chou said...

May I know if you have read them?

Chuang Shyue Chou said...

How are these two books?

Sacred Causes: The Clash of Religion and Politics, from the Great War to the War on Terror by Michael Burleigh

Earthly Powers: The Clash of Religion and Politics in Europe, from the French Revolution to the Great War by Michael Burleigh