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| Terror Networks |
| Can Islam Change? |
| 2004-09-10 |
| Intro and conclusion. Long but interesting article from LLL Brit Mag New Statesman. The answer to the question posed is critical to the length, breadth and depth of the WoT which is really a WoI. I am not convinced there is enough time to change enough minds without eliminating a lot of them prematurely or being eliminated ourselves first; but I'd love to be wrong. The Muslim world is changing. Three years after the atrocity of 9/11, it may be in the early stages of a reformation, albeit with a small "r". From Morocco to Indonesia, people are trying to develop a more contemporary and humane interpretation of Islam, and some countries are undergoing major transformations. Much of the attention is focused on reformulating the sharia, the centuries-old body of Islamic law deeply embedded in a medieval psychology. The sharia is state law in many Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan and the Sudan. For many conservative and radical Muslims, the sharia is Islam: it cannot be changed, and must be imposed in exactly the shape it was first formulated in the ninth century. Since 9/11, there has been a seismic shift in this perception. More and more Muslims now perceive Islamic law to be dangerously obsolete. And these include the ulema, the religious scholars and clerics, who have a tremendous hold on the minds of the Muslim masses. ... Both Malaysia's Islam Hadhari and Indonesia's deformalisation emphasise tolerance and pluralism, civic society and open democracy. Both are likely to spread. Malaysia is trying to export Islam Hadhari to Muslim communities in Thailand and the Philippines. Meanwhile, Morocco is trying to persuade Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates to adopt its model of family law. Muslims worldwide are acknowledging the need for fundamental change in their perception of Islam. They are making conscious efforts to move away from medieval notions of Islamic law and to implement the vision of justice, equality and beauty that is rooted in the Koran. If such changes continue, the future will not repeat the recent past. Ziauddin Sardar's Desperately Seeking Paradise: journeys of a sceptical Muslim is published by Granta Books (£16.99) |
| Posted by:Mrs. Davis |
| #11 Gratuitous, oh well, but Sir Lucky, ouch? |
| Posted by: Lucky 2004-09-11 1:57:27 AM |
| #10 A man I'd like to meet some day CiT. Your a bloke? As a matter of fact, regarding such, I knew it also. PD was cool too! Parabellum. Aint it the big question, taste I mean. Glade to be apart of your day. incredulous; it is more apparent to me everyday that this is a world of Bi-polar thought. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2004-09-10 11:57:12 PM |
| #9 Islam is changing. It's growing, and it's polarizing. Growth isn't the problem, depending on the brand of Islam. Moderate Islam is moral, sincere and coexistant. Racical Islam is narrow, extreme and destructive. The focus should be on influencing the stream of Islam, by moderating the incubators - those institutions and governments which instill beliefs and ideologies. It's not possible (or desirable) to wipe out the Islamic world, which consists mostly of innocent, live-and-let-live humans. It is possible to address the radical streams, promote clerics who are wise and peaceable, and institutions which are tollerant, sophistocated and cohabitant with other faiths. |
| Posted by: incredulous 2004-09-10 11:03:06 PM |
| #8 the vision of justice, equality and beauty that is rooted in the Koran. Say what? Sardar and I must not have read the same koran. The one I read was full of injustice, intolerance, violence, ugliness, misogyny, lies and murder. Hmmm... Time for a bourbon/rocks methinks. You guys can have your peat-smoked furrin booze. I'll take oak aged corn likker over that stanky stuff any day of the week. |
| Posted by: Parabellum 2004-09-10 7:59:07 PM |
| #7 "Sorry, CiT, tain't no such thing. Only bad Scotch (if such even exists)." Zen, I shall clarify. After consuming enough Scotch (Johnnie Walker Red, neat) to kill a small pony, I took umbrage to Sir Lucky and his gratuitous use of "thingy". I'm all better, for now. |
| Posted by: CiT 2004-09-10 6:32:13 PM |
| #6 Can Islam Change? Wrong question. Islam can change, be it by internal reformation or simple annihilation, change it shall. The key question is; Will Islam change? The quote below embodies much of this central issue. For many conservative and radical Muslims, the sharia is Islam: it cannot be changed, and must be imposed in exactly the shape it was first formulated in the ninth century. If Islam is unable to abandon its fixation upon the outdated notions of Caliphate dominion and hidebound adherence to sharia law, then they will not change sufficiently soon enough. Western cultures need to serve Islam notice that its Salafist and Wahhabist factions are essentially foredooming Islam to extinction. While Europe carries no small degree of blame for inhibiting the proper assimilation of their own Muslim populations, there is a sterile symmetry in the way so many Islamic immigrants seek to maintain "cultural purity" in the midst of entirely different social structures. Sharia's insistence upon patently abusive curtailment of women's rights represents an insurmountable stumbling block to any accommodation with the West. There is no way possible to dovetail such blatantly discriminatory practices with modern secular cultures. Somehow, in their obsessive pursuit of unaltered religious doctrine, Wahhabist and Salafist proponents have lost sight of their own chances for success. This single-mindedness seamlessly blends into the realm of fanaticism. While unappearant to these intransigent pillars of Islamic supremacy, such glaring incompatibilities are becoming ever more obvious to those who suffer the atrocities inflicted by Islamist terrorists. As mentioned before, it is not a matter of whether Islam can change, it is a matter of whether Islam will change ... in enough time to avoid obliteration. PS: ... excess of Scotch consumption ... Sorry, CiT, tain't no such thing. Only bad Scotch (if such even exists). |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-09-10 4:58:14 PM |
| #5 Lucky: "There CiT, I did it again. But I promise to cool it." No worries mate, she'll be right. While suffering from an excess of Scotch consumption I yanked your chain about it. You just go ahead and "thingy" all you want. 8-) CiT |
| Posted by: CiT 2004-09-10 2:40:58 PM |
| #4 How possibly could it change? There is madness in it. Muslims need new religion intirely. The evil thing will, I fear, always be in the "thingy". There CiT, I did it again. But I promise to cool it. Just for fun, Carrol Cassidy, who is running against Bagdad Bob McDermit is really hitting him hard on his Saddam connections on the radio. Things like how Bob "partied" with saddam and such. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2004-09-10 2:05:33 PM |
| #3 Can Islam change? Not if the Salafist movement has anything to say about it! |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2004-09-10 1:28:38 PM |
| #2 What the article does not address is the fact that in the West (e.g., France, Sweden), the virulent form of Islam is becoming the dominent strain. several reasons - 1. Seperation from local traditons that are more moderate than Salafism. 2. Personal alienation in western society 3. A greater role for Saudi money in setting up mosques etc 4. Difficulties with assimilating into closed European societies, in contrast to USA and Canada. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-09-10 10:58:40 AM |
| #1 As the article acknowledges, while Islamic reformation is making some headway in some countries, in other countries the virulent form reigns supreme. What the article does not address is the fact that in the West (e.g., France, Sweden), the virulent form of Islam is becoming the dominent strain. |
| Posted by: mhw 2004-09-10 10:27:03 AM |