Tolerance

According to some accounts, the Muslim population of Ethiopia is about
30% whereas the Christian population comes to nearly 65%. However, a
look at Ethiopian history shows there have been periods when Muslims
were coerced to yield to a predominant Christian culture, so the
accuracy of these numbers is up to interpretation. Nevertheless, no one
can deny that Ethiopia today--where Muslims and Christians live
side-by-side--demonstrates the kind of tolerance that is necessary for
real religious freedom to flourish. For example, a Christian may marry a
Muslim, but it is not necessary for the couple to chose one type of
ceremony over another. Instead, they may freely chose to combine the
traditions so that leaders from both religions may be present and
participate in the ceremony.
At least one of the instructors, E, at the water center is Muslim and he
told of his studies in England when he lived with four other Ethiopians
in a house owned by a man from Bangladesh. This landlord would come in
the morning to collect the rent when the men were sharing breakfast, and
they invited the man to join them. The landlord was a Muslim and,
inquiring about everyone's names, he came to realize that two of the
roommates were Christian, so he asked E how he could share food with
these men. Up until then, E had never considered it to be a problem;
only from this man's intolerance did he realize that some people would
find offense. So from then on they no longer invited him inside, they
only provided him with his rent money. One can only hope that this
landlord also learned something, since he did allow them to remain
renters, and considered the tolerance between these Ethiopian Christians
and Muslims as something that is possible, peaceful and desirable.