Re: Islam and Apostasy
Hi Sharvy,
Of course, I feel comfortable endorsing him as an Islamic scholar. I personally know the man: he graduated with a religious studies degree from Egypt's top theological school, and I know for a fact on the basis of that degree he went on to teach Islamic studies at a reputable American university.
But since you are not familiar with Islamic scholarship yourself, how would you know what qualifies someone as an Islamic scholar and what doesn't? Because of his degree? On its own, it doesn't say very much. Because he teaches Islamic studies? There are numerous non-muslims in many western univerisities who teach Islamic studies having never been a Muslim.
He told me he had no doubts and was a firm, devout believer (i.e., no wavering doubts) upon his arrival in the US, but abandoned his belief living and studying in the US.
Now this is more interesting. So he changed his way of life after moving to another society? You mentioned that he
gradually became disillusioned with all organized religion. This 'gradual' change only began after he moved to the US? Before that his faith was perfect and he was perfectly satisfied with 'organized religion'?
Ansar, I am saddened by the accusatory tone of this dialogue.
I'm not sure what accusations you feel were implied in my post, but at any rate, I apologise if my post offended you.
But that realization brought me to the real point of the original post on this matter: the acknowledged existence of such apostates has never weakened the strength of the religion in general, or challenged the faith of true believers. In general their view is that such faith is a deeply personal matter between the individual and God. And I daresay Ansar, no amount of "proof" concerning this apostate is going to challenge your own deep faith in Allah - and nor should it! That was the real point I am trying to make - though the existence of this apostate is a fact.
It is true that one's personal commitment to God is independant of another person's lack of commitment in their religion. But my original point remains the same. There simply have never been educated and devout Muslims who have later rejected the religion, though they have had the opportunity and often pressure to do so, especially in Non-Muslim countries. As Dr. Laurence Brown MD writes
The question pops into the average Western mind, “Why do some scholars of Christianity and Judaism embrace orthodox (Sunni) Islam?” There is no pressure upon them to do so, and a world of fleshy reasons not to -- things like losing their congregation, position, status, friends, family, job, retirement pension, etc. And why don’t Islamic scholars turn to something else? Other religions are much more permissive of worldly desires, and there is no enforcement of a law against apostatizing from Islam in Western lands.
So why have many Jewish and Christian scholars embraced Islam, while educated Muslims remain firm in their faith? Muslims suggest that the answer returns once again to the definition of Islam. The person who submits to God and not to a particular ecclesiastical belief will recognize a divine sense to revelation. The Muslim presents a continuum between Judaism, Christianity and Islam which, once recognized, sweeps the
sincere seeker down the smooth flow of revelation. The claim is that once a person sees past Western prejudices and propaganda, doors of understanding open. (Brown, The First and Final Commandment, p.33)
Dr. Brown was an atheist who converted to Christianity and finally to Islam.
If I do produce a copy of his degree and post the information, what then: character assasination, public hatred, embarassment for his family, or even worse?
You don't need to produce a copy of his degree for me or reveal his identity. I'm just trying to understand his story, which I'm hoping you can clarify. When did he leave Islam, after having learnt how much about Islam, etc. There are some Muslims who move to the west and give up practicing their religion and lose their faith. But none of them were educated devout Muslims who rejected Islam because they actually believed the religion was inadeuate or flawed. It is only the social or political environment which has ever caused uneducated non-practicing Muslims to drift from their religion.
Even in the case of your friend, you mentioned that he did not reject Islam or see any flaw in it, but simply grew disillusioned with all organized religion gradually.
(Perhaps that is the real reason there are so few "knowlegeable Muslims" that come forward with their apostasy.)
First, as Dr. Brown mentioned, there is no law against apostasy in the western countries. Second, the Muslim community doesn't care about someone who is not harming them or propagating a negative image of Islam. Christian priests who convert to Islam only praise Islam in their speeches but they usually don't go around throwing mud at Christianity. If an educated and devout Muslim became a Christian or Atheist, especially in a western country, and didn't bother himself with attacking Islam, he would not be bothered by the Muslim community. But if he publicly began attacking Islam and propagating a negative image of Islam in the media, that is when he might expect a negative reaction. So this really isn't an excuse because a knowledgeable Muslim could easily have the opportunity to leave Islam without any negative consequences, yet such an occurance has never happened.
Note that in this day and age such apostasy from other religions rarely produce such dire consequences.
I disagree. I have read the stories of
numerous christian converts to Islam who speak of being thrown out by their families, continually harassed by their former community, slandered and once part of the Muslim community they become an outcast in society - getting strange looks and nasty remarks for their hijab or kufi. You can read a few convert stories
here. These people continue to convert to Islam inspite of the difficulties that they face.
Regards
