Liam, the title is dead on, but there's a basic flaw in the logic of this article, of your primary source and of a lot of people who look at contemporary islam.

The mistake is conflating the political and theological aspects of Islam. That's what creates the misunderstanding about extrmism and orthodoxy which you site.

Islam has always had a peculiar dual nature, starting from the time of Mohammed, as both a religious and a political movement. In that context, it is possible to be religiously conservative yet politically moderate, and religiously relatively unmotivated and politically radical or extreme.

There are great examples of this going both directions. For example, Hezbollah as a group is not particularly religious by nature. They're certainly muslims, but their radicalism is political, not religious. Conversely, Sufis as a group are religiously quite extreme but politically they are very moderate or even apolitical.

Another comparison. Under Saddam Iraq was more or less a secular society and thus religiously moderate, but it was politically radical with its support for terrorism in Palestine and hostile attitude towards the US and its neighbors. Iran's government on the other hand is relatively politically moderate - despite a certain amount of posturing - while they're religiously much more extreme.

The most reasonable Islamic states seem to be those which are both politically and religiously moderate, like Lebanon before the Iranians and Syrians and Israelis destroyed it. Kuwait and many of the UAE states still fit that model, however.

So my point is that you've got to look at Islam as both a political and a religious movement, and often consider those two aspects separately to really understand it.

Dave

"The mistake is conflating the political and theological aspects of Islam."

But doesn't Islam demand that political aspects are determined by the theological? Didn't mohamed unite the two? Are you trying to create schism in Islam?

But doesn't Islam demand that political aspects are determined by the theological? Didn't mohamed unite the two? Are you trying to create schism in Islam?

No need. They already did it themselves. This is a large portion of what the disagreement between Shiites and Sunnis is all about.

Dave

Mr. Bailey,

Currently, a majority of U.S citizens and residents are held captive to the Bush administration's policies. Soldiers are forced within our laws to occupy Iraq and Afghanistan. At home, mass illegal immigration is being fought to no avail . Our politicians, both dems and repubs are useless, no backbone. We are in a mess and hoping that the next election starts to rectify the situation. If the next election does not start to alieviate the insanity, then a second revolution will ensue.

What always strikes me about these conversations are the Leftists insistance that us Non-Muslims jump through hoops trying to sort out who is who.

Well.. good luck.. one must first understand what Islam is before you can go around labelling what kind of Muslim an individual is.

And from the comments here, such understanding of Islam seems lacking.

Here's an email I wrote to an Islamic group that is protesting a sign a church put up that said you don't see christians or jews being suicide bombers. The response by the group was the typical one "Islam is a relligion of Peace".

So read my letter and let me know if you knew these doctrines:

From: Vince P
Sent: Sunday, May 13, 2007 08:45
To: Subject: To Debbie: "The Islamic faith really calls for peace."

Can you please provide me the doctrinal basis for this statement attributed to you in the news?

According to Surah 2:177, A Muslim must accept all these things:

QUOTE
It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces to the East and the West; but righteous is he who believeth in Allah and the Last Day and the angels and the Scripture and the prophets
UNQUOTE

The Last Day is the most important thing after belief in Allah. The Last Day consists of the coming of the Imam Mahdi along with the appearance of the Muslim Jesus.

For the Last Day to come, the Muslims must go to war and slaughter the Jews

QUOTE
The last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say: Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him; but the tree Gharqad would not say, for it is the tree of the Jews.
UNQUOTE

But the Muslims don't stop there.. once that's accomplished:

QUOTE
al-Mahdi will receive a pledge of allegiance as a caliph for Muslims. He will lead Muslims in many battles of jihad. His reign will be a caliphate that follows the guidance of the Prophet. Many battles will ensue between Muslims and the disbelievers during the Mahdi's reign...
UNQUOTE

Harun Yahya, a moderate and very popular Muslim author refers to the Mahdi's invasion of numerous non-Muslim lands:

QUOTE
The Mahdi will invade all the places between East and West.
UNQUOTE

In today's world.. non-Muslims are not killed or forced to convert if they pay the Jizya in Muslim lands and agree to live as dhimmis. Well apparently even that wonderful option will be eliminated during the Muslim Last Day. I'm assuming the pigs in this quote means Jews.

QUOTE
Volume 3, Book 43, Number 656: Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah's Apostle said, "The Hour will not be established until the son of Mary (i.e. Jesus) descends amongst you as a just ruler, he will break the cross, kill the pigs, and abolish the Jizya tax. Money will be in abundance so that nobody will accept it (as charitable gifts).
UNQUOTE


Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri (d. 1368) from The Reliance of the Traveller, the classic Shafi manual of Islamic jurisprudence states:

QUOTE
"... the time and the place for [the poll tax] is before the final descent of Jesus (upon whom be peace). After his final coming, nothing but Islam will be accepted from them, for taking the poll tax is only effective until Jesus' descent (upon him and our Prophet be peace) ..."
UNQUOTE

Ayatollah Ibrahim Amini clearly articulates this vision:

QUOTE
The Mahdi will offer the religion of Islam to the Jews and Christians; if they accept it they will be spared, otherwise they will be killed.
UNQUOTE

Sheikh Kabbani, Chairman of the Islamic Supreme Council of America clearly articulates the Islamic perspective regarding Jesus' evangelistic role when He returns.

QUOTE
Like all prophets, Prophet Jesus came with the divine message of surrender to God Almighty, which is Islam. This verse shows that when Jesus returns he will personally correct the misrepresentations and misinterpretations about himself. He will affirm the true message that he brought in his time as a prophet, and that he never claimed to be the Son of God. Furthermore, he will reaffirm in his second coming what he prophesied in his first coming bearing witness to the seal of the Messengers, Prophet Muhammad. In his second coming many non-Muslims will accept Jesus as a servant of Allah Almighty, as a Muslim and a member of the Community of Muhammad.
UNQUOTE

Al-Sadr and Mutahhari, likewise articulate this same expectation:

QUOTE
Jesus will descend from heaven and espouse the cause of the Mahdi. The Christians and the Jews will see him and recognize his true status. The Christians will abandon their faith in his godhead (sic).
UNQUOTE

So tell me Debbie: How is your death cult religion of war a "religion of peace"