Does religion cause war?

[The Batorys]

Nearly every war and conflict in human history has had religious justification, from the Sumerians to the American military in Iraq, the soldiers have used their religious beliefs to justify atrocities and murder. The Sumerians would say that they fought, murdered, and enslaved their own people on behalf of their city's patron deity.
The 523rd Fighter Squadren of the USAF named the "Crusaders" which includes a Christian cross and a helmeted crusader painted onto their aircraft. During the Gulf War, an F-14 fighter/bomber had "Isaiah 21:9" written on it's explosives.

But these weren't the real reasons for going to war.

Religion is often used as a public justification, and by the grunts on the front lines.

It's almost never the true reason for going to war, which is, the vast majority of the time, land/resources, and the power that's often connected to these.

[Second Korean Empire]

Personally, I believe that there are two two main types of wars: wars of race and wars or ideology, religion being a subsection of ideology.

A war of race is, for the most part, purely waged by the aggressors/participants with the primary objective being to increase national territory and/or influence. Some examples of these wars include: Persian invasions of Greece, Han/Sui/Tang Chinese invasions of Korea, the Hundred Years' War between France and England, the Seven Years' War (both that of Asia during 1592-98 and Europe 1756-63), the Crimean War and WW1.

A war of ideology, on the other hand, is one in which the partipants' main aim is to impose their own set of beliefs over another state or defend that of their own, the chief examples being the Crusades and Jihads waged over the Holy Land of Jerusalem, as well as the American Revolution and the American Civil War.

Wars that are arguably influenced by both principles of race and ideology, to differing extents, may include: WW2, the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-21, the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, the Thirty Years' War between the Catholic and Protestant (Catholic France participated alongside the Protestants in order to keep in check the powers of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire) states of Europe, and the Cold War.

I don't think that religion 'causes war' on its own. I agree with the statement that some people have already put forward, that fanaticism is the main cause of religious wars. Apparently, Buddhism is the only major religion that has not waged a single Holy War in its history, due to its advocacy of peaceful disposition to others.

[Big Jim P]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

[Moon Landia]

Religions do not cause war, in fact most religions, including Islam, are against seeing it out.

Do ignorant people use religion to start wars? absolutely but that is not the religions fault, in these cases they're often picking and choosing what part of their religion they believe.

[LandofWarriorWitch]

Crusades.
The Spanish Armada.
Violence in India during partition.
Sectarian violence in Iraq.
Al-Quaeda/Taliban/Terrorism generally.
Israel and Palestine.

Is this a question worth asking?

^This. When you have several religious institutions that are adamant in their belief that they hold all the answers, are 100% right, everyone else is wrong, and the institutions MUST forcibly change the minds of the other institutions; then yes religion does start wars.

[NERVUN]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

Pretty much this.

I think the thread can be locked now, ne?

[Big Jim P]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

Pretty much this.

I think the thread can be locked now, ne?

Won't be the first one I've killed.

[Vorond]

Religion can certainly lead to "death by faith-healing."

Religion leads to death every day, 'cause the catholic church keeps telling the inhabitants of aids-ridden Africa that protecting themselves is a sin.

[Maroza]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

Actually ants wage war all the time.

[New Manvir]

Yes. Often but not always.

[Tlaceceyaya]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

Actually ants wage war all the time.

But ants are obeying instinct. They cannot logically weigh the benefits or warring or not warring and convince other groups, they just obey their instincts.

[Coccygia]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

Actually ants wage war all the time.

Presumably not over religion, though...

[Big Jim P]

HUMANS cause wars, and will go to war over some of the slightest, dumbest differences. Religion is just one of those differences.

Actually ants wage war all the time.

I am aware of this. However, theirs were not the wars under discussion (unless I missed something).

[Big Jim P]

Actually ants wage war all the time.

Presumably not over religion, though...

Maybe, maybe not. They are an alien species, thus we can not (yet) tell their motivations.

[Genivaria]

Presumably not over religion, though...

Maybe, maybe not. They are an alien species, thus we can not (yet) tell their motivations.

Food.

[Big Jim P]

Maybe, maybe not. They are an alien species, thus we can not (yet) tell their motivations.

Food.

OK. ALL their motivations.

[Hallistar]

Sometimes, but there are tons more other reasons why nations/tribes/whatever have gone to war against each other as well

[Genivaria]

Food.

OK. ALL their motivations.

Instinct. They are not intelligent enough to have more complicated reasons.
Even if the movie Antz was awesome.

[Konilid]

I think only certain religions cause war.

[Big Jim P]

OK. ALL their motivations.

Instinct. They are not intelligent enough to have more complicated reasons.
Even if the movie Antz was awesome.

Humans themselves prove that intelligence is not necessary to wage war.
Your taste in movie is you own.

[Makkan Arabia]

Religion itself has never started a war. It was ignorance, hatred, pride, and greed that has started every war in history. If you bring to the table any war that has been "started by religion" these will be the actual underling reasons. For example, The Crusades of the Middle Ages are commonly called wars of religions, but actually it was ignorance, hatred, pride, and greed that was the reasons for the wars. The Christian Armies were ignorant of the Muslim inhabitants of the Holy Land which lead to hatred for them, because they are different. This hatred fueled the pride and greed. They said, "We're proud Christians, we deserve our Holy Land".

[Meon]

Neither of these things are true, speaking as a religious nationalist.

Oh yes they are.

Great, you've sure proved me wrong.

[Arkinesia]

No, humans cause war.

Gawd, this is as bad as people claiming guns cause gun violence.

[Maroza]

Actually ants wage war all the time.

I am aware of this. However, theirs were not the wars under discussion (unless I missed something).

My point is that human do not cause war or at least are not the only cause of war.

[Tlaceceyaya]

No, humans cause war.

Gawd, this is as bad as people claiming guns cause gun violence.

Guns don't promote hatred of non-gun owners and disputes about which gun is better don't tend to cause death nearly as often as religion.