Nationhood

Subject: Nationhood

In a country which seems determined to abolish the sense of nationhood in an effort to substitute it for a generalised global approach, where everyone is the same regardless of culture or what used to be called “birth right”.

Wales are playing Italy in Cardiff and the traditional singing by the fans of the anthem ‘Land of my Fathers’, is a beautiful rendition of national sentiment, which always makes me gulp with emotion. It was especially so at the start of this game as George North, Wales’s emblematic wing/centre  lined up for his last game.  George North has for season after season been one of the strong man and played such a decisive part in many of Wales‘s games. To see the tears streaming down his cheeks as the anthem rang out through the stadium was very moving.

But we are now in our localised world encouraged to ignore the vast difference between the goings on in Pakistan or in the Middle East generally, including the Jewish state of Isreal and reveals to me that we are not all singing in from the same hymn sheet and that our differences are more fundamental than we wish to admit. I believe the goal of a truly ‘unitary state’ is political pie in the sky in countries like Palestine for instance, human beings are far to susceptible to being influenced by views that are the antithesis of coming together. Religion is implicit, in its various rule books, handed down hundreds of years ago and based on what today we would describe as mysticism. It  prevents the coming together (other than in a superficial way) of harmony without first committing those it oppose to its view on the unique relationship it has with god.

I t could be argued that Gaza (Palestine / Jewish hegemony) is a religious war and the whole of the conflict in the Middle East is a hand-me-down religious conflict in the cloth of political posturing.

One of the deepest issues is the inconvertible aspect of religious and political zealotry, even within a religious movement, such as the centuries old enmity between the Sunni and Shia sects of the Muslim faith. It  is deeply dividing and dangerous because it brooks any honest discussion and any sense of give and take.