Muslims do speak out

Some people, I hope they are few, complain that Muslims don't speak out about terrorists claiming to act in the name of Islam.  Did we have a lot of Christians in the South who spoke out against the Ku Klux Klan?  How many southerners were as strong defending the rights of blacks as Atticus Finch of Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird"  How many of us speak out against anybody who unfairly speaks ill of another person or group?

Like any very large group, Muslims have a diverse set of views.  Too often, like in other groups, the rigid dominate any discourse.  Iran under the Shah was a rigid dictatorship that allowed quite a range of freedom in non-political behavior.  Iran under the Ayatollahs is a rigid sort-of democracy that constricts freedoms in many non-political behaviors.  Unfortunately, it has become even more rigid and even less democratic since the election fraud of 2009.

As seen in the riots in Egypt, Muslims have a wide range of opinions of what government should be about, not all think that Shari'a law is a legitimate source of government.  Remember also that more people showed up to mourn the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi than took part in the attack or justified it.

See also "Exploiting the Prophet", Nicholas Kristof, New York Times, 2012-09-22

One group of Muslims has set out to be a more open religious group that allows for more diversity and less gender or other sexual divisions.  It is Muslims for Progressive Values.  Among other practices prayer meetings are not segregated by gender and women do lead prayers.  They were supposedly changing their website on January 25th, but as of this posting it hasn't happened.  If the "Keep It Halal" video is not on the site when you visit, you might find it on YouTube at http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=44UsNBJE2ho&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D44UsNBJE2ho.

O ye of little faith!

Someone in the U.S. posted a video uncomplimentary of Mohammed.  Some Muslims in Libya attacked the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, resulting in the deaths of the U.S. Ambassador and three other U.S. diplomats.  Now demonstrations and attacks by some Muslims on American interests are happening all around the world where there are a large number of Muslims.  Is this the way to promote Islam as a religion of peace?

The idea of Islam as a religion of peace is something that many American Muslims believe and need in order to be part of their communities.  Unfortunately, attacks like those above work against American Muslims.  Why?  Because there are too many non-Muslim Americans who believe that ALL Muslims are terrorists.  Consider the uproar being made by Rep. Michele Bachmann about U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton having a Muslim aide, Huma Abedin.

When I was a kid a counter to those who called others by derogatory names was "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names cannot hurt me!"  Some Muslims are letting derogatory names hurt them and are breaking other people's bones.

"Allah akbar!  God is great!" shout those demonstrating against the uncomplimentary video.  Do you think a great God would worry about the callous remarks of a petty criminal?  If a great God were concerned with such remarks, wouldn't He do something about it?  If God is not doing anything about some stupid remarks, should you?  There is an old Greek word for the sin of knowing better than the gods - hubris, a form of misplaced pride and conceit.

Before some non-Muslims have their own bit of hubris and conceit about their own religion's tolerance, consider some Christian history.  Early Christian leaders had some really heated debates about what Christianity should be, and many of them branded those who disagreed with them as heretics.  For too many years, the Roman Church with the blessing of monarchs tortured and executed those who they suspected of not being devout Christians.  The Puritans in Massachusetts hung Quakers for preaching in public.  The Ku Klux Klan used the symbols of Christianity and terrorized and murdered blacks for a long list of crimes real and imagined.

The world is getting smaller and more crowded.  If we can't learn to have some tolerance for each other, no god is going to save us from destroying ourselves.

For a good analysis of the larger picture of the long-standing conflict, see "A Dangerous Misperception and Cultural Divide", Alon Ben-Meir, Huffington Post, 2012-09-17.