During the same week that India and Israel were reminded of Islamist brutality, liberal Muslims made progress in reclaiming our faith, both in the East and in the West.
Let us start in the East. For almost three decades, Pakistan has followed a controversial set of laws called "Hudood." Named for "hudd," or penalties prescribed by God, these laws determine punishment in cases of rape and adultery. Finally, the Hudood ordinances are being seriously challenged. And not a moment too soon: Under them, more than 4,600 Pakistani women have been thrown in prison for charges that include adultery. By contrast, virtually all men accused of rape have gotten off. Thanks to a vocal but religiously respectful campaign by civil society groups, Pakistan's Council for Islamic Ideology - an influential body - recently recommended changing the Hudood laws. That move laid the foundation for President Pervez Musharraf to begin releasing 1,300 jailed women who were awaiting trial. Even Muslim clerics in Pakistan now hint that the Hudood laws are not divinely created. The politics behind them tell us so.
...At the same time, the liberal reformation of Islam picked up speed - in Copenhagen, the city that served as Ground Zero for worldwide riots over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. A Danish newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, first published the caricatures. I joined 99 other "Muslim Leaders of Tomorrow" in Copenhagen to debate how Islam and the West can enrich each other.
...One delegate tested the young clerics: "Is Islam the only way to salvation?" A Danish imam gripped the microphone. "The short answer," he said, "is no." A British imam disputed that response and an Italian took the middle road. Remarkably, they never accused each other of being evil or insincere. For the first time in my life, I heard the message that in Islam, unity is not uniformity.
Maybe the most compelling insight came from a surprise guest: Flemming Rose, publisher of the reviled Prophet Muhammad cartoons. After addressing us and answering our challenges, Rose confided that the reception we gave him was more civil than anything he has experienced at the hands of humanist groups.
A liberal reformation of Islam will be marked by at least two features: the empowerment of women in the Muslim world and the willingness of Muslims in the West to exercise our freedom of conscience.
I applaud liberal Muslims who have the courage to confront their extremists and challenge them for their faults. I wish them the best of luck as they struggle to take back their image and faith. They are the most valuable weapon liberals and others have as they fight against the popular conception that all Muslims are terrorist or their de-facto supporters. We can't kill every Muslim, nor should we. What we need to do is help change minds and policies- theirs and ours.
That's what these Muslims are doing. They are standing up and putting their money where their bleeding-heart defenders' mouths are. For that, they should have our respect.
Edit: Anyone think this will make it into Arutz-Sheva's "Good News" section? I mean, isn't this a little more significant than "Ancient Latin Translation of King's David's Psalms Found in Irish Bog", where the editors have to torture the text in order to make it even slightly relevant to their readership?
Double-edit: More.
3 comments:
it's cute but it's not remotely relevant to how the majority of muslims live even in europe, let alone the muslim world and in fact the hard line flavors of islam are gaining while the moderates are declining
are we seriously going to pretend that Manji, a lesbian, for crying out loud wouldn't be stoned to death throughout much of the muslim world
Who's pretending? I'm congratulating liberal Muslims for doing what they're doing and wishing them much success and good luck in what is sure to be an uphill battle.
it's not remotely relevant to how the majority of muslims live even in europe, let alone the muslim world and in fact the hard line flavors of islam are gaining while the moderates are declining
All the more reason to point out when the moderates achieve something. I'm not blind; I know hardline Islam is growing significantly. That said, I am fairly convinced that the most effective way to stop Islamic terrorism is to change Islamic thinking- and that can't happen without moderate and even liberal Muslims like Manji.
And I still say it's far more qualified to be considered "good news" for Jews than finding some "translated psalms" (aka a Christian prayerbook) in a mud pit.
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