Is there a robust zone of Muslim belief that lives up to the term "moderate?" Or is "moderate Islam" more of a hopeful Western construct? Wafa Sultan and Daniel Pipes disagree.
Bio
Daniel Pipes
Daniel Pipes is director of the Middle East Forum and a prize-winning columnist who writes for the New York Times Syndicate. His website, DanielPipes.org, is one of the most accessed internet sources of specialized information on the Middle East and Islam.
The Wall Street Journal calls Mr Pipes "an authoritative commentator on the Middle East." CBS Sunday Morning says he was "years ahead of the curve in identifying the threat of radical Islam."
For example, Pipes wrote in 1995, "Unnoticed by most Westerners, war has been unilaterally declared on Europe and the United States." The Boston Globe states that "If Pipes's admonitions had been heeded, there might never have been a 9/11."
Pipes received his AB (1971) and PhD (1978) in History from Harvard University and spent six years studying abroad, including three years in Egypt. Mr Pipes speaks French and reads Arabic and German. He has taught at the University of Chicago, Harvard University, the US Naval War College, and Pepperdine University.
Pipes also served in various capacities in the US Government, including two presidentially-appointed positions: vice chairman of the Fulbright Board of Foreign Scholarships and member of the board of the US Institute of Peace. He was director of the Foreign Policy Research Institute in 1986-93.
Wafa Sultan
Wafa Sultan is an author and well known critic of Islam. Sultan trained as a psychiatrist in Syria and is a U.S. naturalized citizen.
James Taranto
James Taranto (born 1966) is a Manhattan-based columnist for The Wall Street Journal and editor of its online editorial page, OpinionJournal.com. He is best known for his daily online column, entitled Best of the Web Today, in which he links to and comments on news stories and Web sites submitted by readers. He also appears occasionally on Journal Editorial Report.
Major world religion founded by Muhammad in Arabia in the early 7th century AD. The Arabic word islam means “surrender”—specifically, surrender to the will of the one God, called Allah in Arabic. Islam is a strictly monotheistic religion, and its adherents, called Muslims, regard the Prophet Muhammad as the last and most perfect of God's messengers, who include Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and others. The sacred scripture of Islam is the Qur'an, which contains God's revelations to Muhammad. The sayings and deeds of the Prophet recounted in the sunna are also an important source of belief and practice in Islam. The religious obligations of all Muslims are summed up in the Five Pillars of Islam, which include belief in God and his Prophet and obligations of prayer, charity, pilgrimage, and fasting. The fundamental concept in Islam is the Shari'ah, or Law, which embraces the total way of life commanded by God. Observant Muslims pray five times a day and join in community worship on Fridays at the mosque, where worship is led by an imam. Every believer is required to make a pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city, at least once in a lifetime, barring poverty or physical incapacity. The month of Ramadan is set aside for fasting. Alcohol and pork are always forbidden, as are gambling, usury, fraud, slander, and the making of images. In addition to celebrating the breaking of the fast of Ramadan, Muslims celebrate Muhammad's birthday (seemawlid) and his ascension into heaven (seemi'raj). The 'Id al-Adha festival inaugurates the season of pilgrimage to Mecca. Muslims are enjoined to defend Islam against unbelievers through jihad. Divisions occurred early in Islam, brought about by disputes over the succession to the caliphate (seecaliph). About 90% of Muslims belong to the Sunnite branch. The Shi'ites broke away in the 7th century and later gave rise to other sects, including the Isma'ilis. Another significant element in Islam is the mysticism known as Sufism. Since the 19th century the concept of the Islamic community has inspired Muslim peoples to cast off Western colonial rule, and in the late 20th century fundamentalist movements (see Islamic fundamentalism) threatened or toppled a number of secular Middle Eastern governments. In the early 21st century, there were more than 1.2 billion Muslims in the world.
Pray tell us how liberals misinterpret and misapply the "doctrine" of 'separation of church and state' when that is the main reason there are 38,000 separate Christian denominations from Roman Catholics to Southern Baptist? Who gets to decide which denomination, be it Episcopal, who actually run the National Cathedral in Washington D.C. or maybe the Greek Orthodox church, gets recognized as the national religion of the United States? That's what you want, correct? A "Christian" nation, under God? There are 38,000 and I guarantee you that 37,999 denominations are going to clamor for the original intent of the "doctrine" of separation of church and state, if one denomination was chosen. Really, it's all a moot point and I'm surprised that an attorney couldn't see the logical ramifications.
I am a Proud American Muslim and very happy to live under the US-constitution because what this two faced bigot forgot to mention is that i am commanded by Allah - and its clearly explained by our noble Messanger Muhammad (Peace be upon him and his family) - is to follow the laws of the land that i am living in regardless of what their faith is.
For example, In beginning days of Islam, in Muhammads (Peace be upon them) LIFETIME when muslims were persecuted and chased out of Mecca due to their faith they were commanded to Migrate to whats now called Ethopia under Christian Hercules. Those who know the very basics of Islam would know that, the very simple action of ordering muslims to live under christian king makes it a Sunnah - the traditions/commands/example set by the noble Messanger either by action, word of mouth and/or by simply allowing it to happen and what makes it more solid is that it happened with His (PBUT) blessing and guidance in his LIFETIME. This event is so important that the migration (Hijra) became the starting point of Islamic calander.
WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THAT WAFA? OR IT SIMPLY SUITED YOU TO NOT MENTION IT?
According to Islam i have to obey the laws and serve the country faithfully unless and untill those laws are specifically made to force me to abandon my faith and endanger my life, family or property simply because i am a muslim. An example could be the laws Nazi Germany made against the Jews for their complete extermination and/or the laws that the Jews are making now a days against Palestinians in order to confiscate their lands, destroy their rights, choke their lives and force them in each and every way possible to get them out of Palestine so that they could have the entire land for themselves.
Is thats whats happening to Muslims in US wafa? You tell me ?
Secondly, absolutely, i would like non-muslims to read about Islam and convert to Isalm, - I am a Shia muslim but it doesnt matter as long as you convert to Isalm whether Sunni or Shia - but on you own choice without force because Islam fills the void in your life or you are impressed by one of its tenents or whatever else. Its exaclty the same as a Christian would like the non-christians to convert to their faith if they find Christianity a better way of life for themselves. Why is that so strange? Are there not Christian missionries preaching in Islamic lands right now as we speak so whats wrong with me wishing a christian to convert to Islam?
These filthy bigots like Wafa Sultan or John Hagee - who claims in his book Jerusalem countdown that muslims marry christian women in American so they could produce Terrorist sons through them or muslims have this secret plan to plant crescent flag over white house are themselves the real Terrorits and haters of humanity. They terrorize the intellect of innocent minds and create hatreds among other wise totally decent human beings. People like these are not different to me then Wahabis like Abu Musab Zarqawis or Mustafa Abu Yazids - spokesperson of AlQaida - of this world who simply use religion and God to incite hatred and misguidance.
Australia has tackled this problem with Sharia laws in very humane way. They say you cannot have Sharia schools and Sharia laws. Muslims have to abide by the processes set by elected representatives in parliament. Same day And all Muslims gathered and took oath of alliance.
How can you teach a child laws which are contrary to laws of the nation? By allowing such things to be taught terrorism is fostered.
Religion by it's nature is unstable, it is faith based and not evidence based.
The best policy is to slowly educate it away and the elimination of of freedom of religion laws with freedom of fantasy laws (with restrictions). Freedom of religion laws do far more harm than good in the west and should be eliminated.
All religions, unfortunately are fertile grounds for extremism, not just Islam.
Debater 1: I think Islam is followed by a bunch of father-f---ers.
Debater 2: I think Islam is followed by a bunch of mother-f---ers.
Conclusion: Those who follow Islam are f---ers.
I was hoping to be informed about the issues facing the people who follow the second largest religion in the world and how the West and those who follow Islam can peacefully co-exist.
I am disturbed by extremist Moslems, extremist Christians, extremist Jews, extremist anything.
The vast majority of people I have met are good people whether they were Agnostics, Atheists, Christians, Hindus, Humanist, Jews, Moslems, Neopagans, Pagans, Rastafarians, Sikhs etc.
She never alluded to any healthy, peaceful Islamic alternative.
(Chortle.) As if the phrase "healthy, peaceful Islam" isn't an oxymoron. Tell us, please, where such an "Islam" exists anywhere in the past or present--especially one that is/was healthy for non-Muslims!
Pearl said he understood the book also included ‘verses of peace’ that proponents of Islam uphold as the religion’s true intent.
Neither Mr. Pearl nor your "proponents of Islam" appear to have heard of orthodox Islam's doctrine of abrogation which says the more conciliatory, "Meccan" ayas (verses) are abrogated by the more militant and aggressive--later--"Medinan" ones.
Some Islamic scholars have attempted to propose and promote a "Meccan" version of Islam, but they have been rejected by orthodox Muslims as heretics--sometimes mortally so.
What is really at issue here is the definition of true Islam. If you define it, as Wafa Sultan and orthodox Muslims do, on the basis of the primary source texts--the Qur'an, Hadith and Sira--especially with the historically orthodox belief in abrogation, then Islam is inherently both imperialistic and supremacist.
To define Islam any other way is, historically, to invent your own, technically heretical, form of Islam (falsely so called).
The plain fact is, the only way Islam can be made "moderate" is to proffer interpretations of the primary source texts that contradict those texts in both letter and spirit. The "radicals" have Islam's primary-source texts on their side.
Historically, some Muslims have moderated their "Islam", but never in a situation where Islam has been the dominant political force, and only when it was prudent for Muslims to accommodate non-Muslim ruling authorities. These moderate forms of Islam have since been exported to other countries when its followers have emigrated, but they are not in conformity with Muhammad's Islam.
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Wafa Sultan wrote for the neo-conservative website Hudson New York,
As an Arab woman who suffered for three decades living under Islamic Sharia, it is clear to me that Islam’s political ideology and Sharia must be fought relentlessly by Western civilization to prevent its application in a free society.
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. She has a medical degree from the University of Aleppo in Syria.
Does the Taliban in Syria let women get medical degrees?
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In an op-ed piece published in the Los Angeles Times (June 25, 2006) and titled “Islam’s Ann Coulter,” Rabbi Stephen Julius Stein at Wilshire Boulevard Temple, who attended a fundraiser for a local Jewish organization where Sultan was a speaker, wrote, “The more Sultan talked, the more evident it became that progress in the Muslim world was not her interest…. She never alluded to any healthy, peaceful Islamic alternative.”
The rabbi mentioned that Judea Pearl, father of murdered journalist Daniel Pearl, “was one of the few voices of restraint and nuance heard that afternoon. In response to Sultan’s assertion that the Koran contains only verses of evil and domination, Pearl said he understood the book also included ‘verses of peace’ that proponents of Islam uphold as the religion’s true intent. The Koran’s verses on war and brutality, Pearl contended, were ‘cultural baggage,’ as are similar verses in the Torah.”
He added, “Sultan’s over-the-top, indefensible remarks at the fundraiser, along with her failure to mention the important, continuing efforts of the Islamic Center (of Southern California), insulted all Muslims and Jews in L.A. and throughout the nation who are trying to bridge the cultural gap between the two groups. And that’s one reason why I eventually walked out of the event.”
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