ANALYSIS/OPINION:

Because of radical Islamic terrorism, your religious affiliation has become an existential issue across the globe. Whether you are a Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist or Jew can literally mean life or death, no matter what country you are in. Western nations are not excluded from this scourge.

The curse threatens the very existence of nation-states as well. Israel is routinely threatened by Iran and others — because it is Jewish. If Israel were not Jewish, it would not be targeted for destruction.

The religion of a nation can also unite and bring power to a country. Iran has used Shia Islam to maintain and project power throughout the Middle East. Its new ally, the Russian Federation, is using religion as well — this time Orthodox Christianity — to consolidate its power and increase its influence across the globe.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday visited the cloister of “Old Believers” in Moscow, the first head of state to visit the site in 350 years. The “Old Believers” or “Old Ritualists” split off from the Russian Orthodox Church in 1666 to protest reforms to rituals which had been practiced for centuries. The group was persecuted by the czars and fled to locations around the world, including Alaska and South America, where they can still be found today. But recently the Kremlin has been making efforts to bring them back, offering free land in Siberia, and many have returned.

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