Showing posts with label Quran. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Quran. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Actions have Consequences: Burning the Quran

An outfit calling itself the Dove World Outreach Center says it plans to burn a Quran on September 11 this year. They're marking the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 attack that killed thousands of folks in New York City and elsewhere.

They're also exercising their constitutionally-guaranteed freedom of expression - and demonstrating world-class foolishness, in my opinion.

Or, maybe not. That Quran-burning could be useful to reinforce loyalty in the group's followers, or as a marketing tool for merchandise.

It's also, in my opinion, a dangerous act. More importantly, the top U. S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan thinks it is.
"...'Images of the burning of a Koran would undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan -- and around the world -- to inflame public opinion and incite violence,' Gen. David Petraeus said. 'Were the actual burning to take place, the safety of our soldiers and civilians would be put in jeopardy and accomplishment of the mission would be made more difficult.'

"His comments followed a protest Monday by hundreds of Afghans over the plans by Gainesville, Florida-based Dove World Outreach Center -- a small, evangelical Christian church that espouses anti-Islam philosophy -- to burn copies of the Koran on church grounds to mark the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks...."
(FOXNews (September 7, 2010))

No, I Don't Feel Sorry for Terrorists

Given the screwball attitudes and beliefs floating around these days, I'd better clarify a few things. I'm quite sure that:
  • The 9/11 attacks
    • Really happened
    • Were committed by Islamic terrorists
    • Were not committed by
      • The CIA
      • The FBI
      • The Jews
      • The Illuminati
      • Shape-shifting space-alien lizard people
    • Were not justified
  • Islam
    • Is not a monolithic block of people with identical
      • Cultural standards
      • Sophistication
      • Background
      • Psychological stability
    • Muslims are
      • Individuals
      • Not all alike
I've used the leadership of Indonesia as an example of Muslims who - by and large - seem able to deal with a world in which not everybody is exactly like themselves. Other followers of Islam don't seem as willing to accept the idea that it's no longer considered polite to kill people you don't like. The latter are in for a long, hard period of adjustment, in my opinion.

'There Oughta be a Law:' Maybe

I'm pretty sure that burning a Quran - or a Bible - is legal in America. Freedom of expression, and all that.

Whether or not it should be legal may be discussed, after that bunch of (self?)-righteous folks in Florida go through with their Opernplatz reenactment. I'm not at all sure that defining some actions as 'thought crimes' is a good idea. I was doing time in American academia while political correctness was in flower, and am no great fan of "hate speech" legislation as a result: largely because too often "hate speech" was defined as any expression of an opinion that the establishment didn't like.

As I said, I'm pretty sure that burning a Quran - or a Bible - is legal in America. In some countries, like India, it's not legal to deliberately offend another person's religious sentiments. (A Catholic Citizen in America (February 22, 2010) As a member of a religious minority, that sort of law has a certain appeal. As a survivor of higher education, I'd be hesitant to endorse that sort of legislation.

'Incitement to Riot' isn't an Excuse to Riot

I think that the Dove World Outreach Center in Florida is ill-advised to consider burning a Quran. They'll probably enjoy short-term gains - at the risk of endangering the lives of other people.

I do not think that the Outreach Center's appallingly warped judgment is an excuse for others to lash out. Not because I don't think a Muslim should be angry about what is planned: but because I think that violence is not an appropriate response in this case.

A couple years ago a university professor trashed a page from the Bible, the Quran, and another book, shoved a nail through a consecrated host, posted a photo of the lot online and bragged about it. (August 5, 2008) I was angry about that. Doubly so, since as a Minnesota taxpayer I'm required to help pay his salary.

But violence was not an appropriate response to that act - and I don't think it would be to what that Outreach Center has planned, either.

Still, I think that what the "evangelical" group plans is wrong.

Related posts:In the news:
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Sunday, September 5, 2010

Burning the Quran? Better Than Burning a Muslim: Still - - -

America is, really, a very tolerant country. Which isn't to say that all Americans are tolerant. From yesterday's news:
"Thousands of Indonesian Muslims protest US church's plan to burn Koran on 9/11"
The Associated Press, via FOXNews (September 4, 2010)

"Thousands of Indonesian Muslims rallied outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta on Saturday to denounce an American church's plan to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks by burning copies of the Koran.

"The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, said it will burn the Islamic holy book Wednesday, the ninth anniversary of the terror attacks. Local officials have denied a permit for the bonfire on the church's grounds, but the center - which made headlines last year by distributing T-shirts that said 'Islam is of the Devil' - insists it will go ahead with the plan...."
I don't think much of that church's (self?) righteous actions. Partly because I don't think that burning books is a good way of showing how decent and good one is: partly because I'm a member of another religious minority that some virulently virtuous folks say is 'of the Devil.' (A Catholic Citizen in America (March 5, 2010)

If that Florida church simply has more T-shirts to sell, or wants its members to reinforce their loyalty to the "Outreach Center," maybe that book burning makes sense.

If they're seriously interested in reaching out to folks who aren't just like themselves - that reenactment of the Opernplatz book-burning probably isn't the best move they could make.

Related posts:In the news:Related posts, on tolerance, bigotry, racism, and hatred.
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Friday, February 6, 2009

What is Islam? Even Muslims Don't Seem to Agree

A simple version of the War on Terror is that crazed, fanatic Muslims, followers of an ancient death cult, are monolithically dedicated to wiping out Western Civilization, beer, and bikinis. And, that America Alone stands between the world of Sports Illustrated and Playboy, and a burqa-covered future.

Life isn't that simple.

For starters, there's more to Western civilization and culture than skimpy swimwear and tacky Superbowl ads.

And Muslims are nowhere near as unified - and weird - as some seem to think. Someone said, in a comment last month: "...You should read the Koran, but be careful, for the Koran prohibits non-Muslims from reading it...."

I'd been chatting online with quite a few Muslims - who knew I wasn't a Muslim. They were offering their opinions on which translation of the Quran was better, and where I could find it. They didn't have a problem with my possessing, or reading, their holy book.

On the other hand, Ahmad Ghaws Zalmai may be killed - executed - by the Afghan judicial system, for translating the Quran - and not putting the original Arabic alongside the translation.

According to The Associated Press, Muslims "regard the Arabic Quran as words given directly by God. A translation is not considered a Quran itself, and a mistranslation could warp God's word...."

I don't take The Associated Press as a final authority on Islam and Muslim beliefs. But that sounds more likely than what Geert Wilder's defender wrote, about the Quran (Koran, he spelled it) and non-Muslims being allowed to read it.

The Many Faces of Islam

I think that what many westerners are beginning to realize is that there are many different sorts of Muslims, and many different sorts of Islam.

There's Al Qaeda's Islam, the Islam of those weird (mouse-hating?) Saudi clerics, the Islam practiced in Indonesia and New York City, and many others. All of them with what seem to be distinct beliefs.

It's a complicated world out there: and Westerners who make wild statements about Islam and Muslims - without checking the available facts - are, I think, not all that unlike the 'Mickey Mouse must die' sort of Muslims. Both are, I think, sincere, passionate, dedicated: and a very real problem for the rest of us.

(I think that the Afghan courts are on the wrong page about that Quran translation - but that's a topic for another blog.)

Related posts: In the news: Background: http://anotherwaronterrorblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/what-is-islam-even-muslims-dont-seem-to.html
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Monday, December 1, 2008

Quran On Demand Text Service - By an Israeli Company

I think this is a great idea, but then: I'm no Muslim.

Pelephone has a Quran text service. Muslims in Palestine can get verses of the Koran on their mobile phones. I understand that the Salah prayer routine should be done five times a day - so this should be a big help.

The screen display looks like an actual Quran that users can scroll through

It's New, So it Must be an Attack on Islam?

Happily, no Imam has issued a fatwa against Pelephone's Quran text service. Yet.

In fact, a researcher of Islam, Dr. Mordechai Kedar, thinks it's a good idea: " 'I'm not a subscriber yet, but I think it's a very practical idea. As a researcher, I can see myself going into the Koran via a 3G phone and urgently retrieving a specific verse. It's certainly something accessible and good. I also think that the Muslim community very much likes all the technological innovations on the market,' " he said in a Haaretz.com article.

It's early days, though. The service is a couple weeks old, so some Muslim leaders may not have heard of it yet. I can see a few objections right off the bat:
  • Pelephone is owned by Bezeq
    • That's the Israel Telecommunication Corporation Ltd.
    • Jews?!
    • Providing a Quran text service??!!
  • Pelephone has had a similar service for the Christian Bible for about six months
    • Words of the Holy Quran getting mingled with un-Islamic text on the cell phone channels?!
    • And/or -
      How dare these Jews insult Islam by having this service for those Christians before us?
  • This service could lead to great evil
    • Like men and women praying in the same room

That's Ridiculous! Muslims Wouldn't Act That Way

Many wouldn't: and don't. Quite a few Muslims, unhappily, aren't the best spokespersons for their beliefs. Or, rather, for what I sincerely hope the beliefs of Islam are.

Islam doesn't have a monopoly on crackpots, of course. On the other hand, the ruler of the House of Saud, in his self-proclaimed capacity as "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques" is running a kingdom that doesn't quite seem to have made the transition into the thirteenth century. Examples:
  • The head of Saudi Arabia's highest tribunal declared open season on network owners.
  • A former Saudi diplomat to Washington, D.C identified Mickey Mouse is one of Satan's soldiers
  • A highly-respected Saudi cleric said that women should only use one eye at a time when they're let outside
And that's just in the last half of 2008. Then, there's the case of the Egyptian doctor who was sentenced to death by slow torture.

Granted, "death" wasn't in the sentence. But, when you put a 53-year-old man in a Saudi prison and lash him 1,500 times over a period of 15 years: death isn't too unlikely. It works out to about 70 lashes a week, by the way. Another doctor was sentenced, too. The charge seems to be malpractice. A Saudi princess demanded morphine. When she got her way, she 'then' became an addict. So the doctor must be flogged. Probably to death.

It's not just Saudi Arabia, of course: there's a fairly steady stream of things like the strange case of the teddy bear vs. Islam in Sudan. As I've said before, with friends like these, Islam doesn't need enemies.

No News Will be Good News

If this dial-a-Quran service doesn't get in the news again, that will be very good news. I sincerely hope that devout Muslims in that part of the world can accept an assist from Information Age technology. Even if it doesn't come from a pure Islamic source.

Finally, some good sense from " '"The integration of Muslim ideas that were born in the seventh century with 21st century gadgets is a welcome phenomenon. In my class, for example, there are Arab students who download ringtones from the Internet that are the Adhan, the chant the muezzin uses for reciting the call to prayer. When they forget to turn off their cellphones, I suddenly hear the muezzin in the middle of my class.' " (Haaretz.com (November 24, 2008))

In the news: Background: Related posts, on Islam, Christianity, Religion, Culture and the War on Terror.
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Tuesday, August 5, 2008

"Self-Satisfied Ignorance?" Eucharist, Quran, and Atheist Book Trashed

The University of Minnesota, Morris' associate professor Paul Myers does a quite good job of clarifying his views in a blog post of July 24, 2008. In reference to the pages from the Quran and a book by atheist Richard Dawkins, associate professor Myers wrote, "They are just paper. Nothing must be held sacred."

My reaction to the way he demonstrated that opinion is in two posts: To say that I'm upset about this display of disrespect for the beliefs of others is a great understatement.

I'm also disturbed that so little attention has been paid to associate professor Myers' treatment of the Quran (Qur'an, in this Latinization). I don't understand just what the Quran means to a follower of Islam, but have gotten the impression that it is regarded as more than "just paper." (Paul Myers explained that "... I didn't want to single out just the cracker, so I nailed it to a few ripped-out pages from the Qur'an and The God Delusion. They are just paper....")

Repeating a request from yesterday's post, I would appreciate it if a Muslim would explain (briefly, if possible) what significance the Quran has to Muslims, whether or not associate professor Myers' acts are acceptable: and why.

Academic Freedom and Our Tax Dollars at Work

Associate Professor Myers' blog is not connected with the University of Minnesota, Morris. In fact, the U. of M., Morris, removed a link to his blog from their website.

The chancellor of the U. of M., Morris, has termed associate professor Myers' statements and actions "reprehensible." ("I believe that behaviors that discriminate against or harass individuals or groups on the basis of their religious beliefs are reprehensible," as quoted in yesterday's post.)

The chancellor also wrote that the university's policy on academic freedom and responsibility "affirms the freedom of a faculty member to speak or write as a public citizen without institutional discipline or restraint, and the responsibility to make clear that he or she is not speaking for the institution in matters of public interest."

So, associate professor Paul Myers is off the hook. Academic freedom, at least in Minnesota, means that he can insult two world religions, and the 'stupid' people who follow them, and desecrate what about a billion people believe to be sacred.

And, along with other Minnesotans, I get to have part of my tax money used to keep associate professor Myers employed.

I do have sympathy for the chancellor of the U. of M., Morris. As she's defending his right to insult and abuse my faith, he's informing the world that she's overseeing "a third-rate university." It can't be easy, being an administrator with someone like that on the staff. Particularly when the rules don't require the staff member to exercise the sort of mature responsibility that most of us must.

Fresh Eyes, a Questioning Mind, and Nailing the Quran

I thought that these excerpts, from two different blogs on scienceblogs.com, would shed light on associate professor Myers' bit of performance art.
  • "24 hours of silence"
    Greg Laden's Blog (July 24, 2008)
    • "This blog will now engage in twenty four hours of silence as a show of respect for the all those who have suffered at the hands religious zealots around the world and throughout history.
    • "I say this out of inspiration from a post written on Pharyngula by biologist PZ Myers. PZ makes the link between medieval anti-Semitic church law and the original idea that the Eucharist is holy. You must read his post, the best written and most meaningful thing on the internet this day...."
    • [following an enlargement of part of associate professor Myers' photo] "...Jesus' Tits, Margaret! If that ain't a picture of Jesus himself them I'm a monkey's nephew. And I AM a monkey's nephew!!!!
    • "It is almost like the rusty nail is pointing right at the Image Of Christ! I can see the thorns in his forehead and everything. Won't Richard Dawkins be surprised!!!!
    • "Well, clearly, the 24 hours of silence is off... "
  • "The Great Desecration"
    Pharyngula (July 24, 2008)
    • "It is finished.
    • ""I wonder how many of our Catholic friends have heard of the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215? This is the event where many of their important dogmas were codified, including the ideas of Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus, that the Eucharist was the sacrament that only properly ordained priests of the Catholic church could give, and that the Jews were a pariah people, who could hold no public office, had to pay a special Jew tax for their right to exist, and were required to wear special clothing to distinguish them from Christians. The yellow badge marking the Juden was not an invention of the Nazis, but a decree by faithful Catholics in the Middle Ages. That's an interesting juxtaposition, that a symbol of Christian exceptionalism was formalized at the same time that they formally decreed the Jews to be inferior, and a target of hatred.
    • "That combination was useful, too. Declare something cheap, disposable, and common to be imbued with magic by the words of a priest, and the trivial becomes a powerful token to inflame the mob — why, all you have to do is declare a bit of bread to be the most powerful and desirable object in the world, and even if it isn't, you can pretend that the evil other is scheming to deprive the faithful of it. Now you could invent stories of Jews and witches taking the communion host to torture, to make Jesus suffer even more, and good Catholics would of course rise in horror to defend their salvation. None of the stories were true, of course — Jews and infidels see no power at all in those little crackers, and the idea that they were obsessing over obtaining a non-sacred, powerless, pointless relic is ludicrous — but heck, it's a cheap excuse to make accusations illustrated by cheesy woodcuts of hook-nosed Jews hammering nails into communion wafers and lurid tales of blood-spurting crackers and hosts that pulsed like and beating heart, and thereby providing a pretext to encourage massacres....."
    • "...OK, time for the anticlimax. I know some of you have proposed intricate plans for how to do horrible things to these crackers, but I repeat…it's just a cracker. I wasn't going to make any major investment of time, money, or effort in treating these dabs of unpleasantness as they deserve, because all they deserve is casual disposal. However, inspired by an old woodcut of Jews stabbing the host, I thought of a simple, quick thing to do: I pierced it with a rusty nail (I hope Jesus's tetanus shots are up to date). And then I simply threw it in the trash, followed by the classic, decorative items of trash cans everywhere, old coffeegrounds and a banana peel. My apologies to those who hoped for more, but the worst I can do is show my unconcerned contempt.

      (from PZ Myers, Pharyngula (July 24, 2008), used w/o permission)
    • "By the way, I didn't want to single out just the cracker, so I nailed it to a few ripped-out pages from the Qur'an and The God Delusion. They are just paper. Nothing must be held sacred. Question everything. God is not great, Jesus is not your lord, you are not disciples of any charismatic prophet. You are all human beings who must make your way through your life by thinking and learning, and you have the job of advancing humanity's knowledge by winnowing out the errors of past generations and finding deeper understanding of reality. You will not find wisdom in rituals and sacraments and dogma, which build only self-satisfied ignorance, but you can find truth by looking at your world with fresh eyes and a questioning mind."
Related posts, on Islam, Christianity, Religion, Culture and the War on Terror.

Related posts, on tolerance, bigotry, racism, and hatred.
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Monday, August 4, 2008

Quran, Eucharist, Atheist Book Nailed by Equal-Opportunity Desecrator

Not a whole Quran, actually: just a few pages.

A University of Minnesota, Morris, associate professor, Paul Myers, put a rusty nail through the some pages of the Quran and a book by atheist Richard Dawkins. Professor Myers did the same to a consecrated Host, and chucked the whole mess in a trash can.

Myers had a reason for desecrating the Quran pages and the Host, and mistreating a book written by an atheist. Earlier this month, a University of Central Florida student took a consecrated Host from a Catholic church, and later returned it. Then, the student said, he got death threats.

So, the University of Minnesota, Morris, associate professor posted this response:
"There are days when it is agony to read the news, because people are so goddamned stupid. Petty and stupid. Hateful and stupid. Just plain stupid. And nothing makes them stupider than religion...."
My guess is that associate professor Paul Myers believes that sticking a rusty nail through some pages of the Quran and a book by atheist Richard Dawkins, doing the same to a consecrated Host, and throwing them away is a very reasonable response to what happened in Florida.

Religious Beliefs Matter

If professor Myers' system of belief is similar to what I encountered in my college days, he believes that the "cracker," as he puts it, and those sheets of paper with ink on them, are equivalent. And disposable.

I'm not sure what a follower of Islam would think of professor Myers' treatment of the Quran. As a Catholic, I do know that his treatment of the Eucharist is appalling.

That "cracker," since it has been consecrated, is the Body of Christ. You don't have to believe that. I'm not trying to force you to accept that. But that is what informed Catholics believe. (The "Catechism of the Catholic Church" has a somewhat technical discussion of the Eucharist: "Article 3 The Sacrament of the Eucharist" (1322-1419).)

Catholics see those "crackers," after they're consecrated, as the Body of Christ. That may help you understand why Catholics are not happy about associate professor Myers' treatment of the Eucharist.

About what he did to a Quran: I'd appreciate it, if a Muslim would leave a comment, saying whether removing a page from the Quran, piercing it with a rusty nail, and tossing it in the trash, is acceptable or not. And, why.

Tolerance and Academic Freedom

I used to know what "academic freedom" meant. Now, I'm not so sure.

On July 25, 2008, Jacqueline Johnson, chancellor at Morris, made this statement (excerpt from Catholic Explorer (July 31, 2008):
  • "I believe that behaviors that discriminate against or harass individuals or groups on the basis of their religious beliefs are reprehensible," Johnson wrote, adding that the University of Minnesota board of regents' "Code of Conduct" prohibits such behavior in the workplace.
  • At the same time, she added, the university's policy on academic freedom and responsibility "affirms the freedom of a faculty member to speak or write as a public citizen without institutional discipline or restraint, and the responsibility to make clear that he or she is not speaking for the institution in matters of public interest."
To the University of Minnesota, Morris' credit, they've removed a link to Myers' blog. That would seem to take care of the "reprehensible" part of the chancellor's statement. The associate professor has received no disciplinary action. Apparently, that's the affirmation of academic freedom.

My Take on the Morris Mess

Some people, faced with ideas and behavior they don't like, call for prayer. Others, like Jim Adkisson, shoot up a church. Still others, like associate professor Myers, go out of their way to stir up emotional reactions.

A point that I think quite a few news articles and blogs miss is that Myers' actions were not anti-Catholic. They were anti-religion. By including pages from the Quran in his demonstration, associate professor Myers made it clear that he disdains Catholicism and Islam: and, since he describes himself as an atheist, probably all religions.

The Morris mess is another case where I've got more in common with faithful Muslims than with secular academics. (More at "I'm With the Devout Muslims on This One" (September 19, 2007). My reactions as a Catholic are at "Sacrilege Down the Road: A Very Serious Post" Through One Dad's Eye (August 4, 2008).)

I find his treatment of what people hold sacred despicable. Although I'm personally involved in this one, I hope I'd say the same, if Myers had limited his desecration to a Quran.

America, and the world, is in a very stressful period. It's time for all of us to act like grownups.

In the blogs:
  • "READER ALERT: Update on Professor Paul Myers' hate attack"
    InsomiMom (July 24, 2008)
    • "Paul Zachary Myers, benighted professor of biology at the University of Minnesota Morris, looks to be having a great big giant fatwa opened up on his head with his latest hysterical rant that he will desercrate both the Eucharist and a copy of the Koran in a childish display of equal opportunity bigotry...."
  • "University biology professor desecrates the Eucharist"
    St. Michael's Cyber Parish (July 29, 2008)
    • "For all the talk of tolerance and freedom in our society, I find the following story nothing less than unbelievable, from CNA:"
    • "Saying 'Catholicism has been actively poisoning the minds of its practitioners' and characterizing religious instruction as 'a devastating crime against the whole of the human race,' University of Minnesota at Morris biology professor Dr. Paul Zachary Myers claims to have carried out his threat to desecrate the Eucharist.
    • "Prof. Myers says that he pierced a Host with a rusty nail and then threw it in the trash alongside coffee grounds, banana peels, and pages torn respectively from the Koran and a book by the atheist polemicist Richard Dawkins...."
  • "IT'S A FRACKIN' CRACKER!"
    Pharyngula (July 8, 2008)
    • "There are days when it is agony to read the news, because people are so goddamned stupid. Petty and stupid. Hateful and stupid. Just plain stupid. And nothing makes them stupider than religion...."
    • "...That's right. Crazy Christian fanatics right here in our own country have been threatening to kill a young man over a cracker. This is insane. These people are demented f***wits. And Cook is not out of the fire yet — that Fox News story ends with an open incitement to cause him further misery...."
    • "...So, what to do. I have an idea. Can anyone out there score me some consecrated communion wafers? There's no way I can personally get them — my local churches have stakes prepared for me, I'm sure — but if any of you would be willing to do what it takes to get me some, or even one, and mail it to me, I'll show you sacrilege, gladly, and with much fanfare. I won't be tempted to hold it hostage (no, not even if I have a choice between returning the Eucharist and watching Bill Donohue kick the pope in the balls, which would apparently be a more humane act than desecrating a goddamned cracker), but will instead treat it with profound disrespect and heinous cracker abuse, all photographed and presented here on the web. I shall do so joyfully and with laughter in my heart. If you can smuggle some out from under the armed guards and grim nuns hovering over your local communion ceremony, just write to me and I'll send you my home address...."
    • (I've Bowdlerized one word in the Pharyngula excerpt. Associate professor Myers was quite frank and candid in presenting his position.)
In the news:
  • "Clergy confraternity calls for prayer and fasting in reparation for Eucharistic desecration"
    Catholic News Agency (July 29, 2008)
    • "Baltimore, ... (CNA).- The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, a national association of over 600 priests and deacons, has responded to the reported desecration of the Eucharist at the hands of a Minnesota biology professor and science blogger by asking for the Catholics of Minnesota and the entire nation to join in a day of prayer and fasting.
    • " 'We find the actions of University of Minnesota (Morris) Professor Paul Myers reprehensible, inexcusable, and unconstitutional,' the group said in a statement. 'His flagrant display of irreverence by profaning a consecrated Host from a Catholic church goes beyond the limit of academic freedom and free speech.'
    • "The confraternity argued that Myers' claim to have acquired and desecrated a consecrated Host is a violation of the freedom of religion guaranteed in the Bill of Rights.
    • " 'Lies and hate speech which incite contempt or violence are not protected under the law,' they further asserted, arguing that freedom of religion means 'no one has the right to attack, malign or grossly offend a faith tradition they personally do not have membership [in] or ascribe allegiance.'..."
  • "Minnesota professor claims to have desecrated Eucharist"
    Catholic News Agency (July 26, 2008)
    • "Morris, MN, ... (CNA).- Saying 'Catholicism has been actively poisoning the minds of its practitioners' and characterizing religious instruction as 'a devastating crime against the whole of the human race,' University of Minnesota at Morris biology professor Dr. Paul Zachary Myers claims to have carried out his threat to desecrate the Eucharist.
    • "Prof. Myers says that he pierced a Host with a rusty nail and then threw it in the trash alongside coffee grounds, banana peels, and pages torn respectively from the Koran and a book by the atheist polemicist Richard Dawkins.
    • "In a rambling prelude to his announcement of the desecration, Myers tried to explain his actions in a Thursday post on his blog 'Pharyngula.' Referencing the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215, which he said codified Catholic doctrine on the Eucharist and established legal punishment for Jews, he said that accusations of Eucharistic desecration had been harmful to Jews in medieval Europe.
    • " 'That is the true power of the cracker, this silly symbol of superstition. Fortunately, Catholicism has mellowed with age — the last time a Catholic nation rose up to slaughter its non-Christian citizenry was a whole 70 years ago, after all — but the sentiment still lingers,' he said, apparently making a reference to the Spanish Civil War...."
  • "Communion wafer held 'hostage' raises holy heck"
    Minneapolis Star Tribune (July 11, 2008)
    • "A Minnesota university instructor and avowed atheist is jousting with a national Catholic watch dog group over a smuggled communion wafer, which the associate professor dismisses as a 'frackin' cracker.'
    • "Paul Z. Myers, who teaches biology at the University of Minnesota, Morris, on his blog this week expressed amazement that a Florida college student who briefly took a wafer 'hostage' from a church ceremony has been receiving death threats for an action that was characterized 'a hate crime' by the Catholic League.
    • "Under the headline, 'It's a frackin' cracker!' Myers wrote in an at-times profane blog entry: 'Crazy Christian fanatics right here in our own country have been threatening to kill a young man over a cracker. This is insane.'..."
    • (Note: news reports have carefully stated that the University of Florida student has claimed to receive death threats. That's not quite the same as "Crazy Christian fanatics right here in our own country have been threatening to kill a young man over a cracker.")
  • "Minnesota professor encourages theft and desecration of Eucharist"
    Catholic News Agency (July 11, 2008)
    • "Morris, MN, Jul 11, 2008 / 07:09 pm (CNA).- A Minnesota professor and science blogger has said he will personally desecrate the Eucharist and publish photos of the desecration on the internet if any of his readers acquire a consecrated Host and mail it to him. 'I'll show you sacrilege, gladly, and with much fanfare,' he has written.
    • "Paul Zachary Myers, an associate professor of biology at the University of Minnesota at Morris, made the threat while commenting on a University of Central Florida incident in which a student senator stole and held hostage a consecrated Host from a June 29 Mass.
    • "In the Florida incident, student senator Webster Cook presented himself at Sunday Mass to receive the Eucharist. According to wftv.com, Cook said he intended to take the consecrated Host back to his seat to show a curious friend. After being stopped on his return to his seat, he put the Host in his mouth but removed it upon sitting down.
    • "He said a church leader grabbed his hands and tried to retrieve the Eucharist, after which he left with the Host. Cook filed an official abuse complaint with the UCF student court, while Catholic students filed other complaints alleging Cook engaged in disruptive conduct.
    • "Cook stored the Eucharist in a Ziploc bag for a week and then returned it last Sunday.
    • " 'I want to thank the individuals who explained the emotional and spiritual pain my possession of the Eucharist caused them to experience,' Cook wrote in a letter to the church, according to wftv.com. 'They have demonstrated that the use [of] reason is more effective than the use of force.'
    • "He said some people had threatened to break into his room to retrieve the Eucharist. A spokesperson for the Diocese of Orlando said the diocese does not condone the threats but is happy Cook returned the Host.
    • "Professor Myers criticized the incident in a derisive July 8 post on his science blog Pharyngula, hosted at scienceblogs.com. He also solicited his readers to acquire consecrated Hosts...."
  • "Student Who Took Religious Icon Getting Death Threats"
    MyFox Orlando (July 7, 2008)
    • " ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35, Orlando) --A University of Central Florida student claims that he is getting death threats for messing with something sacred.
    • "Webster Cook says that, instead of eating a Eucharist wafer as he was expected to do during the Sacrament of Holy Communion, he smuggled the blessed piece of bread out of mass. Once blessed, the piece of bread is viewed by Catholics as the true Body of Christ...."
Reading associate professor Myers' blog brought back memories of the years I spent in college classrooms. The University of Minnesota, Morris, has removed their link to Myers' blog, but the biology professor is still posting:

Pharyngula
("Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal")

The name of the blog, Pharyngula, is a technical term: "pharyngula: a developmental stage in vertebrate embryos, after fertilization, cleavage and gastrulation, in which the embryos are characterized by a notochord, a post-anal tail, and a series of paired folds in the neck region."
(From Explore Evolution.)

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Islam in the Information Age: Afghan Journalist Charged with Blasphemy

It's not easy, maintaining the assumption that Islam is a "peaceful religion." Sure, President Bush said so, several times ("Backgrounder: The President's Quotes on Islam" (The White House)). So has the Dali Lama.

It helps, knowing that Muslims who live in the Information Age are trying to drag Islam into the eighteenth century. You'll find some of their groups in the blogroll.

Today's news from Afghanistan, however, doesn't help.

"Afghan Journalist Jailed for Blasphemy Faces Death If Convicted, Danger If Acquitted"
FOXNews (July 30, 2008)

"An Afghan journalist who printed a translation of the Koran in a Persian dialect is on trial for blasphemy and could face the death penalty if convicted. But with threats from various powerful groups, he could face the same fate even if acquitted...."

The target du jure is Ghaws Zalmay. He's been a spokesman for the Afghan Attorney General and the Afghanistan's Journalists' Union head.

Part of the charge is true: Zalmay did have a translation of the Quran printed. It's in one of Afghanistan's official languages, Dari.

His third hearing is coming up. I'm not clear on how official any of the three are.

Apparently, about 1 in 5 cases in Afghanistan go to official courts. The rest get thrashed out in tribal councils or by village elders.

Finding a lawyer to represent him, in kangaroo court or something a trifle more official, has been tricky. The lawyer would be seen as supporting Ghaws Zalmay's position - and would likely be killed around the same time that Zalmay is.

Zalmay didn't write the new Quran. An Iranian-born Shiite cleric, Ghodratolla Bakhtiyarinejad, did. He seems to be living in America, and so is temporarily safe from Islamic law. That's good for Zalmay: he may be able to dodge the charge that he's calling himself a prophet.

The biggest problem with the new and improved Quran seems to be Bakhtiyarinejad's views on sensitive subjects like homosexuality, alcohol and begging. Bakhtiyarinejad thinks he's got it right, quite a few Afghan bigwigs don't agree.

The old-fashioned Afghans may have a point. I remember, about four decades back, reading some downright imaginative 'New Gospels:' very groovy, very hip, that were accurate expressions of the translators' preferences: but not very accurate translations.

But, being what I am, I wouldn't try to kill anyone over the things. I may even have a copy or two around. (I'd check, but the family library is being re-organized right now.)

Afghanistan's government, on the other hand, has to deal with local and regional leaders. Some of them are in the habit of killing people they don't agree with.

That puts at least some of Afghanistan's religious leaders in about the same category as Jim Adkisson, who shot up a Tennessee church last Sunday. According to the police chief, Mr. Adkisson killed a couple of people and injured more because "he hated the liberal movement." ("Church Mourns as Cops Say Shooting Suspect Targeted Liberals" FOXNews (July 29, 2008))


(From FOXNews/Knoxville News Sentinel, used without permission)
This is America: He's charged with first-degree murder.

In America, Jim Adkisson is one angry man, and now a criminal.

In Afghanistan, it looks like the Jim Adkissons are in charge.

That's not good for Afghanistan, and it's not good for Islam. Many of Indonesia's Muslims get by without killing people they don't entirely agree with, showing it's possible for Islam to exist in an Information Age culture. Islam's defenders in Afghanistan, on the other hand, seem determined to demonstrate that Islam really is an antique death cult.

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Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Quran Shot by American Soldier: American, Iraqi Leaders Respond

Some American soldier, probably a staff sergeant, shot a Quran near Baghdad on May 9, 2008. He's been re-assigned out of Iraq, disciplined, and will face charges for what he did.

The good news in this is that, according to the Calgary Herald today, there hasn't been a violent reaction in Iraq.

Here's what we've learned in the news, about this exercise in world-class cluelessness:
  • May 9, 2008:
    American soldier uses a Quran for target practice
  • May 11, 2008:
    Iraqi police find the holy book of Islam "on a firing range in Radwaniyah, west of Baghdad, with 14 bullet holes in it and graffiti written on its pages
  • May 11-18, 2008:
    The soldier claims he didn't know it was a Quran.
    "U.S. officials rejected the claim."
    American military officers respond to the incident:
    • Colonel Bill Buckner: "both serious and deeply troubling" - and that the shooting was the action of one soldier
    • Major General Jeffery Hammond (top American officer in Baghdad) (May 17, 2008): "I come before you here seeking your forgiveness," speaking to tribal leaders and others in a ceremony of apology - "In the most humble manner I look in your eyes today and I say please forgive me and my soldiers." (CNN video (2:45))
    • Lieutenant General Lloyd J. Austin III, second in command for American forces in Iraq, made individual visits Monday to Iraqi
      • President al-Maliki (Shiite)
      • Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi (Sunni)
        • Parliament speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani (Sunni)
    • General David Petraeus, Commander of American forces in Iraq, made an official apology in a meeting between Lieutenant General Austin and Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi
  • May 20, 2008:
    • President of the United States George Bush apologizes Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, promises prosecution of the American soldier who started this mess
    • An American embassy spokeswoman said that in the call Bush expressed his deep concern over the incident and the "completely unacceptable conduct of an American soldier."
Meanwhile, while this avalanche of apologies was starting down the slope, Loyal and devout Muslims in Iraq were responding:
  • Sheikh Hamadi al-Qirtani, speaking on behalf of all tribal sheiks of Radhwaniya, called the incident "aggression against the entire Islamic world."
  • "The Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq also condemned the shooter's actions and the U.S. military's belated [!] acknowledgment of the incident."
    " 'As the Association of Muslim Scholars condemns this heinous crime against God's holy book, the Constitution of this nation, a source of pride and dignity,' the groups statement said, 'they condemned the silence by all those who are part of the occupation's agenda and holds the occupation and the current government fully responsible for this violation and reminds everyone that God preserves his book and he [God] is a great avenger.' "
    CNN (May 18, 2008)
Belated? Well, it was a week after the Quran's discovery, before the command structure of the American military started kissing Qurans (literally, in at least one case) in an effort to make nice.

I'm not terribly surprised at the "belated" response. There are quite a few levels of command between a staff sergeant and a major general. And, despite what people in other countries seem to think, Americans are not Kryptonians, with powers and abilities beyond those of mortal man. There's no big "S" on any of our chests, and we have to get facts through normal channels, just like anyone else.

The Calgary Herald reports that "Iraq's government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Bush's apology was not enough.

" 'We need to try this soldier since he committed a grievous crime. This is what the Iraqi government wants. It is not satisfied with just an apology,' he said.

"The Iraqi cabinet said the U.S. military should also educate its soldiers to respect Islam and Muslim holy sites."

Odd. I thought there was already a training program about what to say, what to wear, what not to say, what not to wear, and all the other points necessary to keep Muslims from getting offended.

I'm not sure what would satisfy the Iraqi cry for justice. Perhaps stoning the American soldier, after burning his immediate family alive, followed by the beheading of his extended family, would be enough.

I recognize that shooting the holy book of Islam - with insulting graffiti in it - is absolutely reprehensible behavior. And, I hope that there is an appropriate punishment for the soldier responsible for starting this international incident.

But, the key word there is appropriate.

I am deeply disappointed in two things, in relation to this incident:
  1. That one American soldier, of the thousands in Iraq, was so abysmally foolish as to shoot a book that many people hold sacred
  2. That so many Iraqi leaders appear to have such little understanding of how the outside world works, that they demand dire retribution for some nitwit shooting a book
News about this mess, over the last few days:

"Iraq party: Punish U.S. soldier who shot at Quran"
CNN (May 19, 2008)

"BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraq's most powerful Sunni Arab political party on Monday said a U.S. soldier's desecration of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, requires the 'severest of punishments,' not just an apology and a military reassignment.

"The Iraqi Islamic Party, the movement of Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, condemned what it said was a 'blatant assault on the sanctities of Muslims all over the world.' "

(The word "sanctities" makes sense in this context: "2 a: the quality or state of being holy or sacred : inviolability b plural: sacred objects, obligations, or rights." (Miriam-Webster))

"Bush apologizes to Iraqi PM over Koran shooting
Calgary Herald (May 20, 2008)

"BAGHDAD (Reuters) - President George W. Bush has apologized to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and promised prosecution of a U.S. soldier accused of using a copy of the Koran for target practice, Iraq said on Tuesday.

"Bush apologized in a telephone call on Monday with Maliki, who told him the incident had humiliated and angered Iraq's largely Muslim population, the cabinet said in a statement.

"A U.S. embassy spokeswoman said that in the call Bush expressed his deep concern over the 'completely unacceptable conduct of an American soldier.' "

More, at:
"Bush Calls Iraqi PM, Apologizes for Koran Shooting Incident"
FoxNEWS (May 20, 2008)
" US sniper shot at Koran in Iraq"
BBC (May 18, 2008)
"Iraqi VP Urge Action Against US Soldier Over Koran"
Limun.Hr (May 18, 2008)
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Friday, February 1, 2008

Islam, Assault, Culture, and a
Houston Area Crisis Hotline

"Abuse of U.S. Muslim Women Is Greater Than Reported, Advocacy Groups Say" FOXNews (January 31, 2008)

I strongly recommend reading that article.

It will probably be a generation or more before we discover how many times Muslim men in North America and Europe have beaten or killed their wives and children. Aside from the dominant culture's seeming hesitancy to appear "intolerant" of non-western customs, Muslim women may be understandably hesitant to embarrass other Muslims and Islam. Even after they learn that routine beatings aren't acceptable in their new country.

I make a distinction between (When their masters blew those two women up, 73 people died: many in a pet market, others in a bird market.)

I think that old-fashioned Muslims, particularly in America, face a terrible choice.
  1. If they choose, they may become part of a vibrant culture which has already welcomed them.
  2. Or, those Muslims may try to turn back the clock, and live as many of our ancestors did, a thousand or more years ago.
The first choice will be difficult.
  • The few noisy hotheads who are genuinely anti-Islamic will make it difficult for many Muslims to feel accepted.
  • Understanding western culture may take time: for example, that the right to build mosques, pray daily, and read the Quran is part of American law, but that assault and homicide are not acceptable religious observances.
  • Learning to live in a world where not everyone lives in the seventh century may require a radical and profound re-thinking of what Islam is: and I've gotten the impression that Islam hasn't encouraged that sort of intellectual curiosity for a very, very long time.
The second choice will pit men who follow their version of Islam against:
  • Muslim women who will, like it or not, discover that being beaten isn't acceptable.
  • Infidels who regard killing one's children as reprehensible; and, more to the point, illegal.
  • Everyone who has embraced the last several centuries' progress in human rights; particularly those changes which came from a revolution by some British colonies, in the 18th century.
An excerpt from the FOXNews article:

"Shariq Siddiqui, the executive director of the Muslim Alliance of Indiana, says some Muslims manipulate their faith and culture to justify abuse.

" 'I hate to use him as an example, but Usama bin Laden is doing this at a macro level, and Muslim-American men who abuse women are doing it at a micro level,' says Siddiqui, who works with Muslim domestic violence victims through the Julian Center, a non-profit agency in Indianapolis.

"But many are reluctant to quantify to what degree Muslim faith perpetuates the problem.

"Practicing Muslims, even battered women, do not want to portray Islam as an abusive religion or demonize all Muslim men.

" 'There's domestic abuse in every community,' says Rafia Zakaria, an Indiana University scholar and writer who is working to educate Muslims about spousal abuse."
Finally, at the risk of seeming anti-Islamic, here's a Houston-area organization created by "a few determined women" who want to "help women, children and families in crisis."

DAYA Houston (www.dayahouston.org):

"Serving South Asian Families in Crisis

"DAYA promotes healthy family relationships in the South-Asian community by providing services that include counseling, referrals, legal advocacy, and financial support to women and children affected by family violence and sexual assault. Daya also promotes awareness on topics relevant to the welfare of South Asian families through educational seminars, publications, and outreach events.

"Help Line: 713-981-7645

"A crisis counselor is available to answer your call Monday-Friday, 9 AM-5 PM.
Our voicemail system is available after hours and on weekends."

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Thursday, October 25, 2007

Quran to Oklahoma Legislators:
Not the Worst Idea

The Oklahoma Governor's Ethnic American Advisory Council (EAAC) decided to give each of the state's 149 senators and representatives a copy of the Quran. Personalized, embossed with their names.

Not the worst idea I've heard of. Although Muslims are a small minority in Oklahoma, Islam is very much in the public's mind. Encouraging the Oklahoma leadership to get informed about Islam's holy book makes sense.

EAAC even sent an email to the proposed recipients, asking them if they wanted a copy, last Sunday.

Chairwoman of EAAC and Muslim Marjaneh Seirafi-Pour said the Quran was a way to introduce EAAC to Oklahoma lawmakers so they can use it as a resource to "serve their offices and constituents." Oklahoma lawmakers got a copy of another holy book, the Bible, earlier this year from The Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma.

"In the spirit of commemorating Oklahoma's 100th anniversary of statehood, the Governor's Ethnic American Advisory Council is distributing the holy book of Quran to its legislative members," the email said. The Quran giveaway is supposed to be "inspired by a local church, which provided legislators with a copy of the Bible that bears the state's centennial seal. The Quran to be distributed also will bear the centennial seal, either on its jacket or on its first page, Seirafi-Pour said Tuesday, and members' names will be embossed in gold on the cover." (OKInsider.com) Sounds spiffy. Pricey, but then these are state legislators: people in that class tend to be rather up-scale.

One of the Oklahoma leaders, in a televised interview, said that he first asked if any state money was being used to prepare and distribute the Qurans. The answer was 'no.' He declined, anyway, since he said that sending him the book wouldn't be a useful way to spend time and money. I failed to catch his name, confound it.

Some of the Oklahoma legislators declined politely, some made it into the headlines: "OK-Some legislators reject Ethnic American Advisory Council's Quran."

One of Oklahoma's representatives, Rex Duncan, said that he's read about the Quran on the Internet.

in his reply to the EAAC email, Duncan wrote "Please encourage you (!) fellow Oklahoma Muslims to speak out and condemn acts of violence committed in the name Muhammad and the Quran.

"Most Oklahomans do not endorse the idea of killing innocent women and children in the name of ideology" Fair enough. However, he says that the Quran supports that sort of killing. "That's exactly what it says," Duncan said. "I think it's pretty straightforward. By their own admission those are the exact words. They don't all practice that." (Duncan, about that Baptist Bible: "It's one of the nicest things I've received in my three years in the Legislature.")

EAAC's Seirafi-Pour, on Duncan's assessment of Islam: "I know he referred to Islam as an ideology. That is not a fact. It is a religion. It is very peaceful, very inclusive."

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) spokesman in Washington, characterized Duncan's characterization of the Quran and Islam as "disturbing" and "offensive" to Muslims. "It just points to the amount of education about Islam and the American Muslim community that is needed in all levels in our society, including elected officials," he said. I'd say Hooper is right.

Other (non-Muslim) people don't go as far as Duncan, but aren't on the same page as the EAAC. One blogger began his post with, "Is there only one kind of Ethnic American in Oklahoma?"

Here's the score, so far, in the Oklahoma legislature:
Total legislators:149
Asking that the Quran not be sent17
Thanking EAAC For the Quran5
Legislative Assistants Requesting Copy1

Not every legislator who asked to not receive a Quran had Duncan's attitude. Representative Scott Martin said 'thanks, but no thanks. David Derby made a don't-send reply, because he already had a copy of the Quran. Others were in the same position. Derby says he got his at Bible college.

As for me, I'd be happy to have a free Quran, as a research source. Providing it was in English. Having my name embossed on it? That's not so much of an incentive.

And, I hope we have more leaders like Martin and Derby, and fewer like Duncan.

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Saturday, October 20, 2007

"Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Canada

17 young Muslims had bought explosives, and planned to blow up the stock exchange, another building, and parliament. They also planned to behead at least one of the members of parliament, if I caught it right.

They were arrested. They were members of the Saladin Mosque in Toronto, run by Ali Hindi.

A talk show host, Tarek Fatah, said that blowing up parliament wasn't a good idea. So, now he's been identified as an "enemy of Islam," and accused of besmirching The Prophet and Islam.

Tarek Fatah has been physically attacked for his views: understandable, since he claims that sharia law is more of a cultural creation than something in the Quran.

For this, he's called an extremist.

Ali Hindi says that jihad is Muslims defending Muslims - in expanding circles around the original 'attack' - and that armed force is quite justified.

Ali Hindi also doesn't like the idea of women being independent. Tarek Fatah thinks women are people, and can make decisions. So, Fatah is an extremist.

I'm no expert, but Tarek doesn't sound all that far off-base.

Posts about "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:"
  1. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Denmark
  2. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Canada
  3. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Canada - Women
  4. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Chicago
  5. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Michigan
  6. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" Arizona
  7. "Inside Islam: Faith vs. Fanatics:" France
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Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Flushed Koran Angers Quran Defenders

And they've brought on hate-crime charges against the the Quran-flusher.

You've heard about it by now. A student at Pace University in New York threw a Quran in a toilet. Twice.

I'm not clear on how many Qurans were involved. The news article I read implied that the same book was used on both occasions ("he threw a Quran in a toilet at Pace University on two separate occasions"). That seems unlikely, so it looks like the student desecrated two copies of the Muslim holy book.

Tacky? Boorish? Really stupid? Yes to all three.

Hate crime? Good question. I'll leave that to the courts.

I don't blame Muslims with being upset. What that student did was unconscionable in any group claiming to be a civilized society.

As a Catholic, I'd be upset if some artist put a crucifix in urine, put the thing on display, and got taken seriously as an artist. Or decorated a picture of the Virgin Mary with dung.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations has come to the defense of the Quran in the Pace University Quran desecration. They're the same bunch that came to the defense of the Minnesota Imams who just happened to re-enact the 9/11 martyr's pre-hijacking behavior.

My guess is that the Quran-flusher is in for a lot of trouble.

And that we'll be hearing a great deal about how put-upon Muslims in the states are.

That student's exercise in self-expression was not helpful.
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Sunday, July 15, 2007

"Islam is a Peaceful Religion" 2

Any time now, attention will be paid to groups like the Fiqh Council of North America and the Islamic Society of Central Florida. Anniversaries of the 9/11 attack of 2001 and the July 7, 2005 bus and subway bombings in London are coming up, giving news media an opportunity to do 'this month in history' pieces.

I was particularly impressed with the Fiqh Council of North America a couple years ago, when they made a quite definite statement about the place of mass murder in Islam.

The short version is 'terrorism isn't right.' The long version is still available online (NPR's All Things Considered, July 28, 2005) with a sort of digest in an MSN/NBC article of the same date.

I'm still impressed by this excerpt of the fatwa, taken from the NPR page:
"Islam strictly condemns religious extremism and the use of violence against innocent lives. There is no justification in Islam for extremism or terrorism. Targeting civilians' life and property through suicide bombings or any other method of attack is haram – or forbidden - and those who commit these barbaric acts are criminals, not 'martyrs.'

"The Qur'an, Islam's revealed text, states: 'Whoever kills a person [unjustly]…it is as though he has killed all mankind. And whoever saves a life, it is as though he had saved all mankind.' (Qur'an, 5:32)"
(NPR's All Things Considered, July 28, 2005)
That's about as definite a statement as I could hope for. The statement about "religious extremism and the use of violence against innocent lives" needs a precise definition of "extremism" and "innocent" to make me completely convinced: but that's nitpicking.

Even more impressive, this was a fatwa, or "scholarly opinion on a matter of Islamic law" - which is about as authoritative as it gets in Islam. With no hierarchical authority, Islam leaves a lot of elbow-room for alternative interpretations.

Now, that keeps things interesting.

The Fiqh Council of North America has an article "In Regards to the 9/11 Tragedy" on their website. It's undated, but that page has a 2006 copyright statement. The article makes the same basic points as the 2005 fatwa, as this excerpt shows:
"The Fiqh [juristic] Council of North America reiterates its earlier, repeated, unequivocal and unqualified condemnation of the destruction and violence committed against innocent men and women on September 11, 2001. This condemnation is deeply rooted in true Islamic values based on the Qur'anic instructions which consider the unjust killing of a single person equivalent to the killing of all humanity (Quran, 5:32).

"It also condemns any subsequent acts of violence and victimization of Muslims or others."
(The article's full title is "Statement of the Fiqh Council of North America on the Day of Remembrance of the Tragic Events of September 11, 2001.")
More good news surfaced about a year ago in Florida. U.S. Muslims Warn of Threat From Within headed an article of August 31, 2006. Imam Muhammad Musri, head of the Islamic Society of Central Florida, was quoted as saying "'Here in Central Florida, talking to most people, they are literally upset by the actions of Muslims _ or so-called Muslims _ overseas in Europe and the Middle East, because they say, "We wish they would come and see how we're doing here,"' Musri said. 'We know who the real enemy is _ someone who might come from the outside and try to infiltrate us. Everybody is on the lookout.'"

What's the point of bringing up all this old news?

First, not all who follow Islam are itching to kill people they don't agree with. Saying "Islam is a peaceful religion" isn't the lunatic statement that events in the Middle East and elsewhere might suggest.

Second, there are, here and there, Muslims who are willing to say, publicly, that the people who say that they're killing for Allah aren't being good Muslims. Considering how easy it to lose your head over such statements, that takes nerve.

Maybe Islam really is a peaceful religion.

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Blogroll

Note! Although I believe that these websites and blogs are useful resources for understanding the War on Terror, I do not necessarily agree with their opinions. 1 1 Given a recent misunderstanding of the phrase "useful resources," a clarification: I do not limit my reading to resources which support my views, or even to those which appear to be accurate. Reading opinions contrary to what I believed has been very useful at times: sometimes verifying my previous assumptions, sometimes encouraging me to change them.

Even resources which, in my opinion, are simply inaccurate are sometimes useful: these can give valuable insights into why some people or groups believe what they do.

In short, It is my opinion that some of the resources in this blogroll are neither accurate, nor unbiased. I do, however, believe that they are useful in understanding the War on Terror, the many versions of Islam, terrorism, and related topics.