Religious extremists aren't religious

How can you force someone to do something? Are you talking about extremists taking control of a country and forcing the citizens to convert?

Well, that sort of thing isn't unheard of, persecution of the original religious beliefs in a conquered land

I think both things are separte. Someone forcing religion it's annoying and to me doesn't work. It has to come from within. Killing in the name of a religion or a god Is just wrong. Not the point of religion.

I don't think it's at all possible to force anyone to convert (in mass quantities) in pretty much the entirety of the Western world. I'm pretty sure that even those countries with a national religion respect other religions.

Exactly. For example, some of my less-educated friends think that the Jews aren't a race but a religion. Obviously, they are a race. However, does religion even play a part in that? They are often said to be ethnoreligious, but how can each and every Jewish person be a Judaist? I don't think ethnoreligion makes sense.

Isn't there a Jewish religion (Judaism) and a Jewish culture? Slightly different than Islam where Islam is the religious culture and much different from Christianity because Christianity pretty much fits wherever the hell you want it to be because practicing it isn't that obvious (if you're careful)?

Exactly what is fundamentalism?

Pretty much take the Holy Scripture as literal except you take every bit of it. Extremism is where you selectively take bits and either literalize or overinterpret them.
https://sites.google.com/site/mideastp6weirddivide/extremist-vs-fundamentalist
http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/difference-between-fundamentalist-and-extremist/

So fundamentalism is like the converse of extremism? Or have I not got the full picture?

Extremism is fundamentalism to the extreme.

Aha. But how can a Christian not take the Bible seriously? Unless they're a nominal Christian, of course.

We don't take the Bible literally. We don't for example, stone adulterers and divorcers. We (from all denominations) try and spread the basic teaching of acceptance, forgiveness, and love which extremist organizations like WBC and KKK don't promote, which is why I (and some others) don't consider them Christian. It's not even that they don't follow the basic DETAILS, but they don't follow the basic PRINCIPLES upon which Christianity was founded.

As a Christian myself, I can see where you're coming from. But stoning adulterers and divorcers was never meant to be taken literally in modern times. The Law Covenant was only ever applied by the Israelites, and since they refused to follow it, it was replaced with the universal New Covenant when Jesus came to Earth.
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And yes, I would agree with everything else you said. Since Christianity is basically following Jesus, so-called Christian organizations should follow his example a whole lot more.

Switching topics slightly, please give me a tl;dr refresher on the New Covenant. It's been a while since I've gone to church. Isn't it simply love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbors as you love God?

Protestants aren't extremist.

And? What about being extreme discounts one from being religious?

Being "extreme" does discount one from being religious.

"What about being extreme discounts one from being religious?"

Well, if you disparage others or cause acts of terror in the name of religion, you probably don't have religion in mind and are just using the name of a major religion as a subterfuge.

Wait wait wait, to Spoderman, Protestants can be extremists, Protestants forced Catholics out of their homes using force, Protestants oppressed Catholics for generations in the 6 occupied counties in Ireland, Protestants can be extremists, just look at the shankhill butchers, went around slitting Catholics' throats because they were catholic, so yes, Protestants, can be, and have been extremists in the past

But those individuals weren't real Protestants (every religion teaches peace.) They're what we call "apostates". They obviously used religion as a cover for doing some very antireligious things.

I'd still say they were Protestants, bad ones, yes but still Protestants, their actions of violence can't really disown them from their religion

What if their religion says what they are doing is wrong? eg. Islam condemning ISIS

It still doesn't disown them from their chosen religion, you can't go around dictating what religion you can or can't follow as by what you do wether it breaks a rule in the religion or not

If you're not following the religion, then how are you part of that religion? You're branching off into your own little cult. In the same way that Protestants arose from Catholicism.

But the Protestants made a clear choice to leave Catholicism, I'd say as long as you have in your mind that what you are doing is right and you are part of your religion then you are, there's no one to stop you

Well yeah, no-one really bats an eyelid until you turn extremist.

Protestants aren't heathens? Read your Catholic better.
And don't forget the Inquisition. That was a Catholic thing...

I think you're talking to ecumenical here, but I'mma just say something. I've seen pictures of the Pope shaking hands with Hitler. With the amount of power the Catholic Church had back then, they could have prevented the Holocaust. I guess they were in it for the money which would be stolen when the Jews got murdered.

I was talking to garlog

I'm not going to comment on what you just said because I don't have the education to have the right to say anything in that matter.

Okay, fair enough. You're not Catholic, are you? Because I'm not trying to offend anyone.

Nope. I'm non denominational.

Yeah, I'll admit Catholicism has done wrong, the Catholic Church has certainly abused it's power at certain points in time but I was just trying to point out that Protestants can and in the past some have been extremists, I'm not saying every Protestant is or that every Protestant was an extremist I'm just saying that it can happen

Yeah, but you know, you can't really blame a whole religion for what some have done wrong.

I'm not, I'm just saying that any religion can have extremists, it wouldn't surprise me if one day there was some sort of Buddhist extremist, no matter how peaceful the religion there will always be people who will bring extremism into the picture

Yeah, but if you're going against the laws of the religion, doesn't that mean you're not really part of that religion?

Well, I consider myself a catholic but I believe it's okay to kill someone in self defence, that doesn't make me a non-catholic even though one of the rules of Christianity as a whole is "thou shalt not kill"

But even the law doesn't believe that's okay.

Still, if someone comes at me with a knife (just for example) and they have clear intent to kill me or my family and I have say, a gun, I will not think twice about shooting them

Well, if I die, God will remember me. To me, that's better than killing someone, which would damage my conscience (and may end me up in jail anyway.)

I believe there are certain situations in which killing someone can be acceptable, I would believe that if you are being judged by your god he would see why you took a person's life in those certain situations and let you off with it. Because no matter what if someone came with intent to kill a member of my family I don't care what you have to say I'm going to defend them no matter what even if the attacker ends up dead themselves

But this isn't the only life we will get. And I can see where you're coming from, but isn't it God's job to take care of those thugs when the time comes for judgment?

Yeah, I suppose so. I mean within Christianity there's that whole concept of forgiveness and that so they could possibly go slightly under-punished for their actions but i too understand where you are coming from with this, and also can I say thank you for the conversation

You're welcome! It's been fascinating to hear another point of view, I wish you all the best.

Thank you, the same to you

I think the attitude of how you killed in self-defense also matters. For example, if you just reflex-killed that's pretty excusable because it's a reflex. Self defense is probably a weight towards my going to hell because I would very probably be vengeful and not regret whipping someone who tried to take my life.