Religious hatred: prejudice, islamophobia and antisemitism in global context by Paul Hedges

Religious hatred: prejudice, islamophobia and antisemitism in global context by Paul Hedges

Why do we hate? Paul Hedges sets out to answer this question in his new book on antisemitism and Islamophobia. Religion and hate often mix, but religious traditions do not have agency of their own, only humans do. Hence, religious hatred is a subset of general, human hatred: it is a form of prejudice, shaped by cognitive, psychological, sociological, and contextual factors, which can and do lead to discrimination, dehumanisation, and brutality.

Hedges wants to “untheorize” the study of religious hatred by unpacking concepts such as genocide, Islamophobia, and antisemitism. He dismantles the grand narratives and overarching theoretical explanations that portray such phenomena as unique, inexplicable manifestations of hate and shows how each fit into a larger framework. Hate and prejudice are general, shared human inclinations and experiences, but the way they take form in the world and in interpersonal relations are situational and context bound.

The book presents theoretically and conceptually driven research, richly illustrated by both historical and contemporary ethnographic examples. Hedges widens the view from a purely Western, Europe-centred discussion to a more global perspective, including e.g. Islamophobia in the Buddhist and the Hindu world. The good news is this: religious hatred is something human beings do to each other. We may also choose to do differently and foster dialogue, plurality, and interconnectedness.