8/14/07

Fundamentalism

Short Interview: Robert Spencer on Fox & Friends Aug 14 2007

Robert Spencer, of JihadWatch.org, explains (in almost sound-byte form) the difference between moderate Muslims and violent extremists: the moderates are “bad” Muslims, in the sense that they don’t follow what the Qur’an actually teaches. The extremists, on the other hand, actually pay attention to what the Qur’an tells them to do and then do it ― things like engaging in violent “struggle” against those who “threaten” Islam by believing other creeds and killing Christians who “dishonor” Allah by worshipping Jesus.

In much the same way as many liberal Christians have drifted far afield from what the Bible actually teaches, and yet still call themselves Christians, many Muslims have chosen to ignore vast swaths of Islamic teaching and ideology yet still call themselves Muslims. This makes them “bad” Muslims in the sense that they’re unfaithful to the literal teaching of Mohammed and the Qur’an, but “good” Muslims in the sense that they have no interest in killing your children.

Which is a good thing.

The problem is that the extremists can come into a moderate area and tell the people there how they are not following the teachings of the Qur’an and are not being faithful to Allah. And according to the Qur’an, they’re right. It doesn’t take a university-educated professor of Arabic and Islamic theology to see that the literal reading of the Qur’an supports the jihadi ideology, and it seems that an unfortunate number of previously-moderate (i.e., not-very-Qur’an-following) Muslims end up becoming radicalized. Or should I say “literalized.”

Anyway, watch the video, and read more of Spencer’s stuff on the true, literal, fundamentalist nature of Islam. Then help me decide what we’re going to do about it.

2 comments:

Dennis L Hitzeman said...

In my humble opinion (ok, maybe not really humble, but it is opinion), what we need to do is win this war--the war against fundamentalist Islam, not just Afghanistan in Iraq. Unfortunately, this war _is_ about civilization against a religion, but I have often opined that its end will be us dead, us Muslim, or a lot of dead Muslims. I see no way around that conclusion.

Victory means owning up to the facts, accepting them, and then doing what needs to be done. Anything else guarantees the enemy success, hence the reason modern jihadis are still fighting a war Muhammad started in the 630s while most everyone else things it started in 1949.

-=DLH=-

Anonymous said...

You could say the same thing about most religions. If you are religious and moderate then you are paying lip service to one of those ideals. I can't suppport religion for this reason. I will find my own path, one without bloodshed and persecution of others.