What Defines A Muslim? (3) C'mon, Now, Really

Look. I think it all comes down to one very simple point that I made in Part 1. If you really believe God sent down the Qur'an, do what He says to do in it.

Honestly, though? Just do what you want; what you believe to be right. I'm not going to treat you any different or any of that which comes with a medieval outlook and "you're not one of us" BS. It's you and God. But please, claiming yourself to be 'Muslim' as you directly contradict the essence of Islam itself – the Qur'an – is, I think, as much of a crime as Osama Bin Laden's twisting of the Qur'an to fulfill his own sick fantasies. After all – he had an interpretation of his own, right? An interpretation that any sane person immediately condemned. They did not cast him out of Islam – only God can do that, and no human being can judge another – they did not accuse him of 'not being a Muslim anymore', but they condemned his interpretation. His action.

That is what I hope we can do here. Never condemn the person – never treat them but anything with the utmost respect, love, kindness. The way you want to be treated. But, for God's sake, do not condone their actions. Condemning a person and what they do are two very different things and that's the reason why I'm not a sick maniac whom you would be justified to call a self-righteous isolationist. Condemning PEOPLE, casting myself as God, determining who's right and who's wrong (and I hope I've made it quite clear) is not what I'm talking about.

I'm just saying, look within yourself and ask yourself if you can really justify what you're doing. I hope I've not offended anyone and that I've been able to get my message across clearly.

(Incidentally, I also regard with a jaundiced eye those who say my point of view is 'idealistic' and 'not caught up with the times'. So refusing a glass of wine and that flirty hunk is that difficult? Making time for God in your day is impossible? Come on. We have countless examples of faithful, practicing Muslims who manage to do it in spite of the barrage of urges to do otherwise! Why give ourselves the easy way out?)

In all, God gave us these instructions for a reason. C'mon, people. Let's follow them.

What Defines A Muslim? (2) The Interpretation Question

Okay all, here's part 2 of this series: my bound-to-come-short attempt at the definition of a Muslim. It was brought on by discussions on Twitter as well as, believe it or not, walking through a Saudi mall!

One thing that must be stressed here is that this is NOT meant to represent that I'm walking around with a checklist of Criteria To Be Met if someone Claims To Be Muslim - "or else". I'm just kind of annoyed at the extent the 'Muslim by name' phenomenon has reached. Here in the Arab world specifically, Saudi Arabia especially, it's getting kind of ridiculous. I once was speaking to a girl in my class; she mentioned that she didn't cover her hair when she traveled. I asked her, "Do you really believe that you should?" She said "Sure!" – and, when asked further about why she didn't back up her beliefs with actions, simply shrugged.

So is this a case of words not matching up with actions? Beliefs not translated into real, live, factual stuff? I think it is. I think it's an attitude of carelessness, a kind of laissez-faire picked up from the general attitude about religion nowadays. "It's what in your heart that counts." Of course it is – but what is in your heart and words and intentions are NOTHING without deeds to back them up, as well as vice-versa. That's just common sense. Why else is "those who believe" always, always directly followed by "and do good deeds" in the Qur'an?

So I really detest this attitude of "I know what I'm going to do but I'm too lazy to do it"… which is the first category of non-practicing Muslims. Frankly, if the girl had told me "no, I actually don't believe I should cover my hair" because she had researched the actual subject and had come to the conclusion (as many have) that covering one's hair is indeed unnecessary, I would've respected her far more.

This brings us to the second category: Muslims who claim that their interpretation of the sacred texts has enabled them to follow Islam as they see fit. Naturally and as a matter of course there are different understandings of how Islam ought to be practiced. As mentioned in Part 1, that's the beauty of it, and re-interpretation MUST be done if a true Islamic Reformation is to be accomplished. It's part of Islam and refuting the, unfortunately, all-too-often outdated, misogynistic, patriarchal, *insert synonym of BAD of your choice here* system and edicts Muslims have been following blindly for centuries because someone told them the door of interpretation was closed and that's it. I'm of the opinion that the decay and downfall of the Muslim world was in part caused by that cursed idea. It needs to be rectified, immediately – and responsibly. Let's not get carried away here.

So excuse me if I regard with a jaundiced eye the claims of people who drink, who don't pray, who have sex without being married. It's just, how exactly do you 'interpret' (impolitely: 'twist around') direct orders? Nothing ambiguous, just "do" and "don't do"?

Don't drink alcohol.

Direct punishment for those who have sex outside of marriage.

PRAY, for God's sake!

Do I really need to get verses in the Qur'an to back this up? Really, guys? (As always, I'd love to hear if you've got an interpretation that says it's OK for any of the above.)

(continued in Part 3 - I'd get sued for length otherwise.)

What Defines A Muslim? (1) An Introduction

(I'll be as clear-cut and to the point as possible today. Please do not be offended and if you have any comments you’d like to make after reading this piece, feel very free to comment below or contact me on my Twitter handle @TheLogicker.)

Okay, let’s get on with it. Today’s blog post shall be about the definition of a Muslim. Simple, right? You believe in God and that Muhammad is His Prophet; pray five times a day; fast for a month once a year; give to charity; and of course make the pilgrimage to Makkah. The five pillars of Islam, basically... But no.

Two conversations with two excellent people, both on Twitter, brought an opinion contrary to mine (dubbed the traditional viewpoint) to my attention, and which they agree upon: that it doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you identify as a Muslim. Basically, as long as you introduce yourself as “I’m Muslim” you can be doing whatever you want, five pillars optional. Just “be a good person” (whatever that’s supposed to mean) and you are welcome to the club.

No doubt their opinion is shared by many, but not by me.

I do see where they’re coming from. An isolationist, self-righteous, “we’re the only ones who are right” technique, an exclusive club in which only self-proclaimed members can join is not the way to go. We see it a lot today in Muslims and I guess that’s what spurred this small but growing movement on. Let us not abandon, isolate, hate. Let us embrace, let us love. But my lack of acceptance of this stems from my belief that there is quite a difference between loving someone and accepting them, and condoning what they do - and that is the difference which concerns us here. Melting into society, to the extent that there are no truly unique people anymore, is not the way to go either. It stands for something not good that it has started happening now.

Because we ARE different. God tells us that He has created us “in different peoples and tribes that you may get to know one another” (Qur’an Hujurat- ), and we should celebrate that difference. No, we do not want to go back to rampant racism, and superiority because of religious or ethnic background. We do not want to go back to “I’m right and you’re wrong” to be settled at the tip of a sword, and a world in which we fight over faith. We have come too far to return to that. But what we most certainly do not want to do is to water our faith down into a name, a label (is not the very worst thing we can do to ourselves is to self-label?), until it means nothing at all.

Let us begin with something I think we can all agree distinguishes a Muslim: belief in the Qur’an. If you’re going to disagree with me on that, really… Stop reading now, please. The Qur’an is what began identification of Islam as a distinct religion, is the revelation sent to the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad, may peace be upon him - so to beat around the bush with anything resembling “I’m a Muslim but I don’t believe in the Qur’an” is going a tad too far. Really. (Any other opinions, of course, disagreeing with my previous statement I’d be glad to hear.)

Okay, the Qur’an. I’ve gotten into arguments with people (yes, it would be more polite to call it ‘a discussion’ but I’m being honest) when I tell them MUSLIMS FOLLOW WHAT IS IN THE QUR’AN: they say, “but who can determine what the Qur’an says in the first place? There are so many interpretations!” They are right, and that is the beauty of Islam: the multiple interpretations. The possibilities left open.

I’ll go off on a tangent here: the beauty of Islam is that it is a modern religion without having to be modernized. Islam does not truly need ‘reform’, or change, which is why I distrust any self-proclaimed reformation movements. I think a belief that a religion really needs such a thing would contradict the belief of its being from an all-Powerful, omnipresent, omnipotent Creator. If a religion so desperately needs to be changed from its core, it’s a clear sign to me that it’s just not the right thing to believe in. I’d abandon my faith in that religion - without a single qualm, I hope - because I refuse to belittle myself to the point of attaching myself to a belief system that’s been concocted by human hands.

Because really - would we ever need to teach God anything? Would we need to change anything that comes from He of the Ninety-Nine Names, a system we have been ordered to follow? No. All we can do is cut away the man-made trappings that’ve been draped on it over time - and boy, how those mundane trappings have obscured the crystal brilliance in this religion. The stem of this entire argument - of my entire professed belief as a Muslim - is that whatever discrepancies or faultiness we may see in Islam is nothing but the errors of people. Therefore we should have no qualms in accepting Islam as a whole: mind, body, and soul: the farthest thing possible than merely a label.

Gah. I’ve overstepped myself. Time to cut this off here and continue later - and, I assure you, God willing this will be continued. Like I said discussion is welcome. I’d love to hear your thoughts as I continue with this, so you can help me formulate my own ideas. Nothing in our heads is set in stone unless we deem it to be, and to deem anything in my head solid or beyond doubt is beyond naïve (aka: you of the opposite viewpoint, you have the chance to convince me yet ;).

I’ll see you soon.

(NEXT: The Interpretation Question)

OBL and the Saudi Reaction

Like everyone else, we'd pretty much forgotten about Osama bin Laden here in Saudi Arabia. Also, like everyone else - other than those who happen to be specially affiliated with the CIA - I was very surprised to learn of his death. But while mine was tinged with something close to a feeling of triumph - I was not sad to see him go, for reasons I will detail later - different opinions were expressed at my girls' government school here. But not for the reasons which might be expected.

I won't go as far as to say I celebrated his death: human life is human life. At the very least it's unseemly to whoop and sing about the death of an enemy, to celebrate it. Celebrating the spilling of blood: primitive, isn't it?

I digress. There are many who say that the US should not have stooped to his level in killing him; that they should have brought him in for a fair trial; that what happened in Pakistan was no more than an assassination. I'm not going to delve into that today. All I know is that when I went to school and brought it up, I found many who were indeed sad to see him die - but not for the sake of his announced cause.

First of all, many people believe he did not orchestrate the 9/11 attacks in the first place. Conspiracy theory or not, it has substantial backing here. But most tellingly, most importantly, they do not support him for his message of terror and fighting against non-Muslims. The idea of a 9/11 setup is essential here. People are proud of him for 'standing up to America', for an attitude of 'never backing down' to a dictator, for 'pride in the face of colonialism' - not for killing non-Muslims. I reiterate that you will not find a single person who says that killing non-Muslims is okay here in Saudi - well, in my school anyway. That attitude simply does not exist anymore. Even with the strictest imams, non-Muslims are considered to be under treaty, at the least. But what does exist is the idea of FREEDOM-FIGHTING.

In a Facebook post by a very good friend of mine, she compared Bin Laden to Omar al-Mukhtar, the Libyan hero who struggled against Italian colonialism. The lack of differentiation between political and religious interests comes into play here: just as the US's invasion of Iraq was portrayed as a 'crusade', instead of a political move that played into the US's political interests (I admit, I've recently seen Green Zone); just like the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is portrayed as one between Muslims and Jews, instead of a simple case of land theft and ethnic cleansing.

This is the fodder of terrorists.

This is where the work must be done.

It is naive, misguided and simply very wrong to say that terrorism is a black-and-white bloodthirsty fight by Muslims against non-Muslims. That is nothing but complete and utter nonsense. Putting aside that that attitude is hardly justified by the Qur'an or the example of the Prophet Muhammad, if that was the case: why do they bring up Palestine 24/7? Why constantly bring up the thousands of innocent lives lost, the blood shed in Iraq and Afghanistan?

Because by portraying America as the occupier, the terrorist, the crusader (when I brought up the thousands of innocents killed by Bin Laden on 9/11 some girls even retorted with the exact same rhetoric: "What about the innocents killed in Iraq and Palestine?"), terrorists and their groups find support for their immoral activities.

People feel that they are 'fighting back'. The impotent feeling of helplessness created in Arabs by their despotic governments comes into play here as well; to feel that they are doing something to help their 'Muslim brothers suffering in Iraq, Palestine and Afghanistan' they join these repulsive people and their repulsive cause, and in the meantime cause so much irreparable damage.

That brings me to why I personally am not sad to see him go. Why I replied vehemently to the girls who championed him as 'a representer of us Arabs' with 'if we Arabs are represented by him, we're in big trouble'. Why I insist upon not mourning him; why I look upon his death with a grim feeling of justice being done. Because even with believing he was not behind 9/11 - did Washington really have any proof other than Bin Laden's 'boast of what he saw as a great achievement'? - he did just that. He boasted. Even those who delude themselves - a girl seriously told me "No, he hasn't" when I told her this: it cannot be argued that Osama bin Laden is the single most hated, damaging figure to Islam, Muslims and Arabs today, who does indeed represent Islam, Muslims and Arabs to many Westerners today, unfortunately.

Personally, I think he should've gone on trial so this could be resolved one and for all - not to mention the basic human rights it represents.

But I am not sad to see him go.

Talking Objective!

I'm going to cut to the quick here. The thing that concerns me most at the moment – overlooking school and all the mundane worries of life – what concerns me, just as a person living in the world, is the way people see Islam.

I've had a lot of interaction with people of different faiths (predominantly Christian or people) and while most of them treat me as just another person in the world to get along with, some – while having no personal objection to me – feel the urge to "explain" my faith to me, or "expose" it.

Let me elaborate on this.

Have you noticed how all of a sudden there are so many people who sell themselves as "experts" on Islam? This in America or otherwise; they are people who, without naming names, quote authoritative-sounding passages in the Qur'an or in the examples of the Prophet Muhammad that are to the average non-Muslim or even a less knowledgeable Muslim quite frightening.

For example:

Islam is violent.

Muslims are ordered to kill/maim/subjugate/enslave/not live peacefully with non-Muslims.

Muhammad was a filthy human being who lied, cheated and lusted his way to the top and happened to be a pedophile.

Islam's Shariah law is primitive, degrading, demeaning and unfair - especially to women: who deserve a category to themselves in speaking of smears against Islam. Let's give them one.

Women are seen as objects (incidentally, a point that one could definitely make about the treatment of women in today's pop culture); they have no rights in marriage, divorce, inheritance, etc.; they are punished for being raped - I once talked to someone who thought that women are LEGALLY RAPED as a PUNISHMENT in Shariah law; and are just in general treated extremely unfairly.

Of course, we also have the barbaric and primitive nature of the Qur'an. But then that's a given isn't it.

So. God willing, I'll be discussing...

OH, I nearly forgot. Now THIS, ladies and gents, is just priceless...

'Al-lah' is not OUR God! Not the merciful, just Judeo-Christian God, ho no. Allah is nothing but a moon god that the ancient Arabs used to worship. And Muhammad, um, how shall we say it? 'Stole' the god and basically made him the main one to kinda ease the transition for them pagan Arabs... Kind of like Zeus over all the other Greek gods. Must have something to do with all the other cultures that influenced Muhammad - like how he practically copied the Bible word-for-word. Yeah.

:)

To get back to a few sentences up, I will, OUR God willing, be discussing each of these points. Next post will hopefully be about just how I will go about doing that.

DISCLAIMER:

I just want to assure everyone here that I am by no means an absolute word of authority. Pretty much nothing I'll say here will be original; I'll try to go back to sources in trustworthy books and websites whenever I can. I just hope that my contribution might help whoever might read this.

Peace to you all.