Violence in the Name of Religion

On September 11th, around 4,000 Americans were slain by religious extremists who believed that their mass murder would be pleasing to their God. Such violent acts in the name of religion is nothing new in world history — nor are they unique to Islam. Abortion doctors have been slain; wars fought over the holy land; civilians killed by suicide bombers — all in the name of religion. Mark Juergensmeyer has extensively interviewed several religious terrorists, including Mahmud Abouhalima, who was involved in the first World Trade Center bombing. This hour, Juergensmeyer asserts that violence associated with religion results from the fundamental structures of the belief system of all major religions.

Guests:

Mark Juergensmeyer, professor of sociology at UC-Santa Barbara and author of "Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence"