The Violence of Religious Fanaticism
Teacher gave Silas the names of the three sénéchaux and the Grand Master, and Silas confronts them with deadly force.
“Teacher, I have returned.” “Speak,” the voice commanded, sounding pleased to hear from him.
“All four are gone. The three sénéchaux... and the Grand Master himself.” There was a momentary pause, as if for prayer. “Then I assume you have
the information?” “All four concurred. Independently.”
“And you believed them?” “Their agreement was too great for coincidence.”
An excited breath. “Excellent. I had feared the brotherhoods reputation for secrecy might prevail.”
“The prospect of death is strong motivation” p. 13.
It is clear that when given the order, Silas is never too hesitant to use violence to hunt, interrogate and kill the four members of The Priory. In fact, it seems that for
him, violence is the only answer, whether it is physical violence or non-physical violence, when it comes to interacting with people that he has been told are
“Enemies of God”. This sort of attitude is common among fanatics because for them, only two
kinds of people mattered: those who follow and respect their holy religion, and those
who seek
to defile
and destroy
their holy
religion http:www.psy.ku.dkmirdalterrorisme1.htm. They love only those who
conform to their ways; and for those who are against them, they are given the privilege to be defenders of God to seek and destroy. Indeed, as defenders of God,
they feel that they have become superior beings and have been given the right to remove those who challenge their doctrine. Violence, for them, no longer
becomes a burden, but an honor. Killing an enemy of God means that you have done a great service to God and therefore should receive respect and esteem. This
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is why a lot of fanatics run to battlefields to wage war in the name of their religion.
Silas’ fanatical zeal towards his religion brings him through the same twisted emotional experiences. When the Teacher tells him to eliminate the Priory of Sion
because they have a keystone that could threaten the existence of his Church, Silas immediately sees that order as a heavenly quest given by God. He believes that
God is requiring his service to save His great name. He feels great honor knowing that he is tasked with the carrying on God’s will, even though he knows that it will
require the sin of murder. He also feels that all his violence can be justified because what he is doing, using his skills to hurt people, is done in service to God.
Tonight, however, it had all come rushing back. The hatred he had fought so hard to bury had been summoned. He had been startled how quickly his
past had resurfaced. And with it, of course, had come his skills. Rusty but serviceable p. 34.
This brutality is, of course, a contradiction to Jesus Christ’s teaching that is “to love others” Kohmescher, 1990: 150 without exception. Yet Silas created his
own wisdom in order to justify his actions, and it is that those who try to destroy the message of Jesus Christ must also be destroyed.
Jesus message is one of peace... of nonviolence... of love. This was the
message Silas had been taught from the beginning, and the message he held in his heart. And yet this was the message the enemies of Christ now
threatened to destroy. Those who threaten God with force will be met with force. Immovable and steadfast
p. 34. Therefore in reality, he is actually also working against God. It is a logical fallacy
to think that he can save the Laws of God by breaking them. Yet his fanatical mind offers him only violence as the only solution towards the “enemies of God”.
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He is just too ignorant to realize that while he aims to please God, his fanatical violence has caused him to become unworthy to be called a Christian.