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August 26, 2006
What Went Wrong in Islam—An Excellent Analysis
For long, I have been arguing that the bigoted or violent religious interpretations we see in the Islamic world are results of not the Koran, but of the post-Koranic traditions that arose in the early centuries of the Islamic civilization. In other words, I have been claiming that the original message of the Koran, which was tolerant, humane and gracious, was overshadowed over time.
I have just came accross an excellent analysis of this devolution in a piece by David Forte, Professor of Law at Cleveland State University. The piece, titled "Islam's Trajectory," is probably the best article I have ever read by a Western scholar on this topic. After giving examples of the bigoted approach towards apostasy in contemporary Islamic world � such as the notorious case of Abdul Rahman, an Afghan who converted to Christianity and was threatened by execution by the legal authorities in that country � Dr. Forte explains that this is barbaric intolerance is completely contradictory to the Koran and the original message of Prophet Muhammad. That message, according to him, was distorted for political means and by political actors. "Three institutions have deflected the trajectory of Mohammed's original message", he says "the law, the empire, and the tribe."
Since I very much agree with Dr. Forte's view, and deem it highly crucial, I directly quote much of his article. Yes, here is a good summary of how things went wrong in Islamic jurisdiction:
Continue reading "What Went Wrong in Islam—An Excellent Analysis"
Posted by Mustafa Akyol at 1:38 PM | Comments (7)
August 19, 2006
Islam and the West
[Originally published in International Herald Tribune]
Three decades ago, few would have predicted that the hottest topic of the early 21st century would be Islam. Now, not a single day passes in the Western media without news or comment about Islamist terrorism or calls for Islamic reform.
What's going on, exactly? Some hawks in the West talk about a "clash of civilizations." This is a perilously shallow idea. The world's 1.2 billion Muslims, some of whom live happily in Western societies, do not constitute a single entity that sees itself engaged in a war of civilizations.
Yet many Muslims have deep suspicions and worries about the West, and the way the West deals with Muslims deeply influences their thoughts. So it is imperative that Westerners understand the nature of Islam and its current crisis.
Continue reading "Islam and the West"
Posted by Mustafa Akyol at 12:11 AM | Comments (4)
