As a social species, humans build narratives to sustain and strengthen group bondage and identity. Like all human constructs, narratives can bring positive or negative results. We should generally respect different philosophies and narratives, but there are some narratives we simply cannot accept—for example, a narrative like that of a white European who believes Aryan white culture is superior to others and acts on this idea like fascists and Nazis did in the twentieth century.
Why should we accept notions of Christian superiority held by some Catholics who supported massacres committed during the crusades, or similar notions among some Orthodox Christians who supported massacres committed during the crusades and during the civil war in Lebanon? Why should we accept the notions of an Islamic “Umma” as articulated by Osama Bin Laden that all Muslims should stand as one and justify mass killing of “the others”? And why should we...
