Does monotheism insist on monoculture?

It is an argument that has been employed by the three great faiths at different points in history, human designed laws are the rules of man, but theological laws are the rule of God and so have more legitimacy. Some quarters of Islam are currently the most vocal but we have heard it all before from the other faiths. It is not only very logical; it is also very dangerous as it requires the complete cultural submission of every diverse community. Can any monotheist therefore ever allow others to live outside of their religious convictions?

Perhaps the Jews can offer us the best example of what peaceful diversity can mean in 21^st Century Europe. Jews have an ancient theocratic heritage dating back to Yahweh’s gift of a legal framework to the early Israelites in the Old Testament. But they have a longer heritage of exile and Diaspora since the Babylonian Empire. Most Jews therefore have learnt to live faithfully to Yahweh but as a minority culture and have given up the need to dominate.

Christians were not given a law like the Jews, or a Sharia like Allah gave Mohammed, and yet since Constantine in the 4^th century CE Christianity still has dominated Europe politically, culturally and legally. Christians did not install a biblical legal system, but abstracted their laws from biblical principles. Today, the decline of Christianity as a cultural and political force has concerned many Christians who feel threatened that Europe is losing its Christian heritage. Yet the early church was a minority church and the bible only gives rules for faith and life in this cultural context. These need to be relearned today.

Perhaps Muslims will find European culture the most difficult as for many Muslims, the Koran pulls strongly towards a Sharia dominated political framework. Yet even Islam had a period in its early existence as a minority community, and history records the positive values it brought to local cultures. If Islam is to be successful in the West, it needs to learn again from the early Muslim communities and Mohammed’s early religious leadership.