By Michael Brown
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Al-Qaeda. The Taliban. Boko Haram. The Islamic State.
Islamic Jihad. Hamas.
Christians being beheaded. Muslims slaughtering Muslims.
Schoolgirls being kidnapped. Schoolboys being burned alive.
These are the images of Islam that we see on the news day
and night, but we are told repeatedly that this does not represent true Islam.
Instead, we are told, these atrocities are examples of radical Islam, committed
by savages who know nothing of the real faith, people who misuse the Koran for
their own malicious purposes and who represent perhaps 15 percent of the world’s
1.2 billion Muslims.
That would mean that the vast majority of Muslims are
peace-loving, with no desire to take over the world violently or enforce their
religion on others by means of the sword.
Of course, I fully understand that there are many “moderate
Muslims” who are not true Muslims any more than many liberal Christians are
true Christians. In other words, they are nominal believers only.
But there are certainly many Muslims who claim to uphold
the Five Pillars of Islam and who feel that they, and not the radical Muslims,
are following in Muhammad’s footsteps. And they would explain that while it is
true that their prophet engaged in violent acts of war and that the Koran calls
for harsh treatment of the enemies of the faith, this is no different than the
book of Joshua in the Old Testament – something that happened in the past but
is not to be repeated today.
To be sure, the moment I speak up about a controversial
issue that is happening today, such as Israel’s right to defend itself against
Islamic terrorists, my social media pages are flooded with Jew-hating comments
made by angry Muslims, expressing sentiments like, “the decimation and
annihilation of Israel is coming soon inshaalllah [Allah willing]. End of
Israel will be fact I'm sure.” And, “Can somebody resurrect Hitler? [The Jews]
are chosen. Chosen to be killers. Rapists. Racist. Murderers and worshippers of
satan . . .”
Do they represent the true spirit of Islam, or are these
some of the 200-300 million “radical Muslims”? (By the way, whether “radical
Islam” is normative or not, it is, without a doubt, a massive threat to the
world today.)
As for the “moderate Muslims,” whom I don’t seem to hear
from as much, the ones who do write do not seem not to be that religious, based
on the sentiments they express.
I’m aware that statements have been made my respected
Islamic leaders renouncing violent jihad, but for the sake of clarity, I’d like
to ask some simple questions which, I believe, can be easily answered.
If you uphold the Five Pillars of Islam and believe in
the divine inspiration of the Koran and the reliability of the Hadith, I’d love
to hear your responses to these questions.
The Islamic State has demanded that non-Muslims convert
or die. Do you categorically and without qualification denounce the practice of
forced conversions? Do you agree that conversion at the edge of the sword
cannot possibly be true conversion?
All radical Muslim groups want to enforce Sharia Law. Do
you stand against the implementation of Sharia?
There is a famous Hadith which states, “The Hour [of
Resurrection] will not come until you fight the Jews. The Jew will hide behind
stones or trees. Then the stones or trees will call: ‘Oh Muslim, servant of
Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.’”
Do you categorically and without qualification denounce
this tradition which allegedly goes back to Muhammad?
The concept of suicide bombers being shaheeds (martyrs
for Allah) is widespread these days among radical Muslims.
Do you reject the idea that a suicide bomber who kills
others – especially civilians – in the name of Allah is guaranteed a place in
Paradise?
As you know, non-Muslims living in some Muslim countries
have been reduced to severe second-class citizen status (dhimmitude, in full)
and forced to pay the oppressive jizya tax. In some Muslim countries, they can
be jailed or killed simply if someone accuses them of blaspheming Muhammad.
Do you categorically and without qualification denounce
these practices and welcome non-Muslims to live as complete equals in your
countries?
It quite a few Muslim countries, conversion is forbidden
under penalty of death, which is obviously a fundamental assault on religious
freedoms.
Do you categorically and without qualification denounce
this practice and allow for free and open religious interaction as we have, for
example, in the United States, with no corporal penalties for conversion?
We often hear horror stories of little girls being
married to older men, along with honor killings of women who allegedly brought
disrepute on their families.
Do you categorically and without qualification denounce
the practices of child brides and honor killings?
There are many more questions I could ask, and I do so in
the interest of understanding more than argument, since I would love to debate
and discuss the deeper issues of our faith with those who renounce radical
Islam.
The question many of us have here in the West is very
simple: Is radical Islam normative Islam?
I look forward to reading your responses, and I encourage
non-Muslim readers of this open letter to share it widely with your friends so
as to reach the maximum number of moderate Muslims.
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