One thing I do admire, is the concept of separating religion from politics.

The function of politics is to govern men's everyday physical behaviour and make policy as to how one achieves a good standard of physical well being, by acting in the best interests of the population at large.

The function of religion is to take care of spiritual matters, and make every effort to preserve what we might refer to as men's souls.

There is no valid point of contact between these two objectives in the best organised of social systems, and in poorly organised systems religious input into political policy has inevitably proved disastrous.

It will, I'm afraid, be ever thus, unless we make it universally the case that priests stick to saving souls, and leave government to secular agencies.

This, if established about the time of the emergence of Christianity and Islam, would have prevented the massacres of the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, and the annihilation of the Cathars, as well as forestalling the current belief that there is a Jewish Race.

Israel consists of a multitude of different nationalities who happen to follow the Jewish religion, along with a number of different nationalities who follow the Christian religion, and some Arabs and Palestinians, who espouse a variety of religions, including Christianity and Islam.

The permanent residents are Israeli by nationality, NOT Jewish. When they, and others in the area get to grips with this concept, THEN, and ONLY then, will there be progress toward peace.

IMHO, of course, for whatever that's worth.

Don T.