“Islam is not represented by the lifestyle and behavior of Muslims, nor is it represented by any one period of history of Islam, nor by any book written on Islam. Islam is the Quran.” — Ismail al-Faruqi
I have a habit of burning bridges and sinking boats. My impetuous nature causes me to make hasty decisions. To leave a group suddenly. To delete a hundred files. To speak my mind too freely. To be cynical in the midst of a frenzy of adoration. And ultimately, at my turning away, all my companions …
Eight hundred and thirty years ago to the day, on 2 October 1187, Salah al-Din al-Ayubbi liberated Jerusalem from Crusader forces after an 88 year occupation of the city. Muslims everywhere rejoice, dreaming of such a hero for today. The world is awaiting another Salah al-Din, chant the masses: a great warrior; an honest leader; a …
Whenever any kind of crisis occurs in the Muslim community, it becomes clear almost immediately that we are incapable of responding justly. If the person or group accused of wrongdoing is from our own sect, school, madrassa or tariqah — or is simply our friend — we will give them their seventy excuses without a …
Tabloid Islam claims to be egalitarian and liberationist, but in practice holds men and women to different standards. Men are always given 70+ excuses when accused of misdemeanour, while women will feel the full force of communal condemnation for showing a strand of hair under her hijab. A man’s reputation is paramount. A woman’s reputation …
The Muslim community cannot hear, because it will not listen. Dissent is not tolerated. Criticism is always an insult or an attack, against which the subject must be earnestly defended.
Nearly four years ago I wrote of a vast and complex edifice I had engineered, which towered high above me; my conscience told me to pull it down, but a battle raged within. Over the years and months that followed, I sent in demolition repeatedly, only to build it back up again within weeks or …
You will probably see this image repeatedly over the coming days if you use social media. The insinuation is clear.
Leave him alone with his heresies, they say. Banish him; send him away. Ignore him and do not reply. He has gone too far this time. Don’t feed the opinionated fool, who knows not of what he speaks. Yes, it’s lonely being the heretic of your time. Be silent, they demand. Be quiet. If only …
On numerous Muslim news sites in Turkey and now on social media, the document below is being celebrated as evidence of a timeworn relationship of solidarity between the Turkish people and the Rohingya Muslims of Myanmar.
I’m no fan of gaudy palaces filled with gold leaf and French furniture, nor of the politicians who reside in them, but why do people have lie and fabricate for added effect? The caption of this Facebook post mockingly reads, “In service of the nation” — in juxtaposition to the President and his family enjoying …
Here is another gruesome and disturbing image being circulated on social media in respect of the unfolding crisis in Myanmar (the annotations are mine).
The image below, shared on social media by friends, demands that we recognise and share what is happening in Myanmar, for the sake of Allah. The text is attributed to Cübbeli Ahmet Hoca, who is a popular imam in Turkey. After mentioning the tyranny faced by the people of Arakan (Rakhine State), the text roughly …
For all its overtures in respect to the Myanmar crisis, your celebrated Leader of the Ummah — the pious nation of legend — has much in common with that indicted State.
