Does Islam Sanction Terrorism?

[MustafaMc]

Short clip from lecture "Is Terrorism a Muslim Monopoly"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bxk5AAA5FbI

Full set of lecture segments posted by Syilla:
http://www.islamicboard.com/comparative-religion/54790-why-christianity-fake-5.html#post888597

It is not fair to judge a lecture on a single quote in the first clip, but the title of the lecture by Dr. Naik "Is Terrorism a Muslim Monoply?" is not a good title. I watched most of the segments and saw that he pointed out terroristic acts done by others to show that Muslims were not the only terrorists of history. He skirts the issue that Islam and Muslim leaders are portrayed and perceived as promoting these acts as jihad, an integral part of Islam.

A better title would be, "Does Islam Sanction Terrorism?" This is a question that Muslims in general and Muslim leaders in particular avoid like the plague. I contend that suicide bombing, killing innocent women and children, and mutilation of dead bodies are not sactioned or approved as being consistent with the Qur'an and the Sunnah of Muhammad (swt). In fact, I contend that the teachings of Islam CONDEMN these acts. As a respected authority among Muslims, Dr. Naik could have a major impact on how Muslims feel about terrorism and how the world perceives Islam - if only he and others in positions of authority would speak in light of the Qur'an and the Sunnah regarding this issue.

 

[snakelegs]

from what i know, it does not.
but it seems that some (including some here)
think otherwise.
check out this thread
http://www.islamicboard.com/general...-house-yday-innocent-until-proven-muslim.html

 

[MustafaMc]

This thread was started as a break off from "Why Christianity is Fake".

 

[snakelegs]

i know that, but this topic is (sort of) being discussed on that thread, with one member seeming to believe that it is ok to kill innocents and muslims in non-muslim lands do not have to obey the law of the land. i think she is dead wrong.
in any case, it is better that you have started a thread on the subject specifically.

 

[MustafaMc]

check out this thread
http://www.islamicboard.com/general/54927-did-any-one-go-event-london-friends-house-yday-innocent-until-proven-muslim.html

my question to you is do you make any distinctions? how do you define "warrior"?
someone fighting foreign troops in afghanistan
someone fighting foreign troops in iraq
someone blowing up a bus or a subway full of men, women and children

are they all "warriors of islam", comparable to the sahabas?

I did go to that thread and the person that you addressed the questions (listed in quote above) to danced around the subject and did not clearly voice her opinion. It disturbs me immensely that we Muslims are not more vocal in condemning acts of terrorism done in the Name of Islam.

 

[snakelegs]

that is too frequently the problem - people dance around it, like on that thread, like with naik. though dancing, the opinion seemed pretty obvious.

 

[MustafaMc]

Al-Bukhari hadith 3.624 Allah's Apostle said, "Help your brother, whether he is an oppressor or he is an oppressed one." People asked, "O Allah's Apostle! It is all right to help him if he is oppressed, but how should we help him if he is an oppressor?" The Prophet said, "By preventing him from oppressing others.

and 9.84 Allah's Apostle said, "Help your brother whether he is an oppressor or an oppressed." A man said, "O Allah's Apostle! I will help him if he is oppressed, but if he is an oppressor, how shall I help him?" The Prophet said, "By preventing him from oppressing (others), for that is how to help him."

Are not terrorists and suicide bombers in fact oppressors of innocent people?

 

[Grace Seeker]

I'm hoping to see a great deal of response to this, not just from agnostics, atheists, and Christians, but our Muslims brothers and sisters as well.

 

[Isambard]

As snakey said, the actions of certain muslims even here on the board, seem to indicate that Islam = terrorism.

Ill be the first to admit that your avg muslim is very different from the foamy-mouthed death to the kuffar type of folks you see on tv.

But there does seem to be silent consent with their crazy breathern.

I man strapped with bombs and yells "Allah Akbar" right before blowing himself and passangers up.

No response or outrage from the Islamic community

Terrorists bomb subways killing a bunch of civilians.

Little to no response from muslim community.

A man writes a controversial book that almost noone reads and even fewer understand.

"OMG! THE WORLD IS ENDING TAKE TO THE STREETS MY MUSLIM BREATHERN!"

Someone draws a lewd cartoon about your hero

"PROTEST DAY AND NIGHT! SHOW THE WORLD HOW MAD YOU ARE!@"

Me thinks the majority of muslims have their priorities mixed up

 

[ranma1/2]

i think muslims,christians ( or just about any organization) sanction terrorism if they dont speak out againsts it when it is performed in the name of their religion(cause).

By themselves. No.

 

[Isambard]

i think muslims,christians ( or just about any organization) sanction terrorism if they dont speak out againsts it when it is performed in the name of their religion(cause).

By themselves. No.

There's a difference between never speaking out, and only speaking out for stupid reasons.

 

[Malaikah]

But there does seem to be silent consent with their crazy breathern.

I man strapped with bombs and yells "Allah Akbar" right before blowing himself and passangers up.

No response or outrage from the Islamic community

Terrorists bomb subways killing a bunch of civilians.

Little to no response from muslim community.

A man writes a controversial book that almost noone reads and even fewer understand.

"OMG! THE WORLD IS ENDING TAKE TO THE STREETS MY MUSLIM BREATHERN!"

Someone draws a lewd cartoon about your hero

"PROTEST DAY AND NIGHT! SHOW THE WORLD HOW MAD YOU ARE!@"

That is not a logical comparison. You are making it sound like only terrorism gets a mild response, but in reality it is everything else that gets a mild response, and the only exception being the slander of the Prophet or Islam.

And by the way there is always a response from the Muslim community when there is a terrorist attack. The community condemns it over and over again. Just because it doesn't make from page news world wide when a Muslim condemns terrorism doesn't mean it doesn't exist!

For example, did you know Muslim scholars have issues warnings and rulings against Osama bin Laden and his ideology from even before 9/11 happened?? No, you probably didn't.

 

[Isambard]

That is not a logical comparison. You are making it sound like only terrorism gets a mild response, but in reality it is everything else that gets a mild response, and the only exception being the slander of the Prophet or Islam.


You are right. Someone expressing their freedom of speech to disagree with you is much worse than a man killig civilians in the name of your religion.

And by the way there is always a response from the Muslim community when there is a terrorist attack. The community condemns it over and over again. Just because it doesn't make from page news world wide when a Muslim condemns terrorism doesn't mean it doesn't exist!

Theres a difference between sending letters and telling ppl you disagree then ooo lets say firebombing a building, telling folks you are actively going to hunt down/kill a certain writer/cartoonist, amassing in huge numbers and going on about injustice.

Yes. I can see how the two are comparable laying:

For example, did you know Muslim scholars have issues warnings and rulings against Osama bin Laden and his ideology from even before 9/11 happened?? No, you probably didn't.

Nice assumption.

Yes I do know. I also know there are many who still have Osama as a hero yet I dont see any marches agaisnt these muslims for "insulting the image of Islam" like there was with Rushdie.

 

[Malaikah]

Well, I'm glad at least some people know. But most don't.

 

[caroline]

I did go to that thread and the person that you addressed the questions (listed in quote above) to danced around the subject and did not clearly voice her opinion. It disturbs me immensely that we Muslims are not more vocal in condemning acts of terrorism done in the Name of Islam.

I agree. It also disturbs me that Christians are not more vocal in condemning the acts of terrorism done in the Name of Christianity.

 

[czgibson]

Greetings,

And by the way there is always a response from the Muslim community when there is a terrorist attack. The community condemns it over and over again. Just because it doesn't make from page news world wide when a Muslim condemns terrorism doesn't mean it doesn't exist!

This is true. Unfortunately, too often these kinds of condemnation are ignored by the world's press, and indeed by some Muslims.

I think the main problem is this: there is much disagreement within Islam. If there was a world Muslim authority which all Muslims respected, things would undoubtedly be safer, as I take it for granted that the great majority of Muslims oppose terrorism.

What is the current ultimate Islamic authority? The Qur'an and Sunnah. Unfortunately, these can be interpreted in widely varying ways. Quotes can also be taken out of context. Imagine a Muslim who is not very well-informed reads some of the jihad verses and, for example, takes the injunction to "Fight the unbelievers wherever you find them" (9:5) literally. Now, we all know that verses like that apply to a specific historical context, but what if someone doesn't know that? They might well believe that they would be justified in killing kaffirs indiscriminately and would be serving the will of Allah by doing so. Then you get idiots like this filling the streets:

[I have to say that I don't really know the provenance of this image, so it could be a fake; however, we have all seen similar ones, so you know what I'm talking about.]

For example, did you know Muslim scholars have issues warnings and rulings against Osama bin Laden and his ideology from even before 9/11 happened?? No, you probably didn't.

It's quite well known that you can find scholars who support bin Laden and scholars who oppose him, just as you can find fatwas that oppose suicide bombing and ones that support it.

Once again, I call for Islamic unification. If you are a Muslim, you will be aware that your people are in a deeply worrying situation. You must work together to ensure that the true message of Islam is brought to the world effectively. No-one else can do it for you.

Peace

 

[Gator]

Religion is not the source of terrorism. People are going to do what they feel they have to do. In order to do that, they need to feel justified.

Given that, they will twist the belief system they have (no matter what it is) in order to sanction and justify the most horrible of acts (the mundane ones too).

I believe, people have been murdering and torturing each other since the human race evolved. It comes down to the inborn laws of survival fed by emotion and no intellectual/philosophical/religious overlay is going to stop it completely.

Just my 2 cents. Thanks.

 

[Keltoi]

As to the question of whether Islam sanctions terrorism, I think the obvious answer is no. However, there are many Muslims that do. That is the problem.

 

[Nájlá]

Greetings,


This is true. Unfortunately, too often these kinds of condemnation are ignored by the world's press, and indeed by some Muslims.

I think the main problem is this: there is much disagreement within Islam. If there was a world Muslim authority which all Muslims respected, things would undoubtedly be safer, as I take it for granted that the great majority of Muslims oppose terrorism.

What is the current ultimate Islamic authority? The Qur'an and Sunnah. Unfortunately, these can be interpreted in widely varying ways. Quotes can also be taken out of context. Imagine a Muslim who is not very well-informed reads some of the jihad verses and, for example, takes the injunction to "Fight the unbelievers wherever you find them" (9:5) literally. Now, we all know that verses like that apply to a specific historical context, but what if someone doesn't know that? They might well believe that they would be justified in killing kaffirs indiscriminately and would be serving the will of Allah by doing so. Then you get idiots like this filling the streets:

[I have to say that I don't really know the provenance of this image, so it could be a fake; however, we have all seen similar ones, so you know what I'm talking about.]



It's quite well known that you can find scholars who support bin Laden and scholars who oppose him, just as you can find fatwas that oppose suicide bombing and ones that support it.

Once again, I call for Islamic unification. If you are a Muslim, you will be aware that your people are in a deeply worrying situation. You must work together to ensure that the true message of Islam is brought to the world effectively. No-one else can do it for you.

Peace

i dont have any thing to say u have said it all i agree with u

 

[MustafaMc]

As to the question of whether Islam sanctions terrorism, I think the obvious answer is no. However, there are many Muslims that do. That is the problem.

I agree with your statement.