Interfaith and Intrafaith Conflict
Interfaith conflict is conflict between religions. Religion has been used as a reason for conflict since time immemorial. For example, instead of politics, economics, and prejudice, religion was used as the excuse for the landgrab known as the Crusades (Croucher & Cronn-Mills, 2011; Edbury, 1996; Hallam, 1989).
Nehru (1946), reflecting on another significant religious conflict, this time between Muslims and Hindus, the partition of India, said that when religious dogma and philosophy clash, conflict emerges. As we reflect on relations between religious groups, we can clearly see how dogma, belief in religious doctrine, creates divides between religions. Groups are often unable to see eye to eye, and therefore tensions boil over into conflicts. From both a theoretical and a practical perspective, recognizing the influence of religion on conflict can hopefully help in diffusing interfaith conflict.Intrafaith conflict is conflict within a religion. While Catholics and Protestants differ on some aspects of Christianity, they are still Christians. The differences between the two denominations are significantly pronounced in Northern Ireland. Particularly since the Ireland Act of 1949, Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland have fought an ethno-religious conflict over political control. The issue of contention is whether Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom (Protestant) or join Ireland (Catholic) (Cairns & Darby, 1998; Hewstone, Cairns, Voci, Hamberger, & Niens, 2006; McLernon, Cairns, & Hewstone, 2002). A better understanding of how Protestants and Catholics conceptualize conflict could help community organizers/leaders mitigate such intrafaith disputes. At the least, understanding the different ways in which religious groups approach conflict can help in the development of better conflict resolution techniques in such disputes.