Arab Christian Victims of Islamophobia

Well it seems that a gang of aspiring rocket scientists vandalized an Arab (Assyrian) Christian church in Detroit thinking it was a mosque. In spite of the fact that there were a "number of crosses adorning the building," the words "1 God Jesus" and a cross were painted on a wall by the vandals...so obviously these Neanderthals thought they were defacing a non-Christian institution. If they had only managed to kill themselves in the process, this would have been a incident worthy of submission to the Darwin Awards...but alas.

Based on the stupefying level of ignorance prevalent in your typical Islamophobe, I don't find this hate-mongering misadventure surprising in the least. Disgusting? Yes. Surprising? No. Keeping in mind that after the 9/11 attacks a number of Sikhs in America were mistaken for Muslims and violently attacked (and even killed in at least one case), only makes this ugly incident in Detroit easier to believe. For those wanting to know more, articles detailing this hate crime can be found here and here.

For my non-Muslims readers who don't know, please let me explain: Not all Arabs are Muslims and not all Muslims are Arabs...and vandalizing places of worship is wrong regardless of who we're talking about. Thus please realize that the word Arab identifies someone as a member of an ethno-linguistic group, not religion or ideology. While it is true that most Arabs—roughly 90%—are Muslims, about 5%-10% (depending on which statistics you believe) of Arabs are Christians. Additionally, there are also Arabs who are Jews, atheists and adherents of every other religion and ideology under the sun. This is easy enough to comprehend once one realizes that being an Arab is an ethno-linguistic, not religious, classification.

Also, in spite of anti-Islamic propaganda to the contrary, when Islam spread, Muslims didn't offer people the choice of converting or being put to the sword. If this were true, there would have been no Christians or Jews left in the Middle East, but—believe it or not—there are substantial Arab Christian minorities living in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Palestine and Egypt...and there are even Arab Jews in Morocco and Yemen...after over fourteen centuries of Muslim rule. And it's worth noting that this is a much better record than pre-Enlightenment Christianity had in regards to dealing with adherents of other religions, and the fact that the actions of some Arab Christians in the modern Middle East have sometimes been less than stellar as well.

For those wanting to know more about the Christian Arabs of the Middle East, I suggest reading The Arab Christian: A History in the Middle East, by Rev. Kenneth Cragg, From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East, by William Dalrymple, Who Are the Christians in the Middle East?, by Betty Jane Bailey and J. Martin Bailey, and (now out-of-print) The Forgotten Faithful, by Said K. Aburish. Although these books tend to be rather one-sided, they do offer detailed and interesting information about Arab Christians and their current plight in the contemporary Middle East. While you're at it, you also might want to take a look at Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People, by Jack G. Shaheen, and "Evil" Arabs in American Popular Film, which document how Arabs have been demonized by Hollywood to a degree that would make Joseph Goebbels proud.

That having been said, we need to also address the "All Muslims are Arabs" myth, which is a very common misunderstanding. Generally, the fastest way to expose this myth as completely false is to put forward the fact that only about 15% to 20% of the Muslims in the world are Arabs. Indeed, there are more Muslims in India than there are Arab Muslims, and yet still more Indonesian Muslims than Indian Muslims! Believing that Islam is only a religion for Arabs is a fallacy that was spread by the enemies of Islam early in its history. This mistaken assumption is possibly based on the fact that most of the first generation of Muslims were Arabs, the Qur'an was revealed in Arabic and the Prophet Muhammad—salla Allahu 'alayhi wa salam—was an Arab. However, both the teachings of Islam and the history of its spread show that the early Muslims made every effort to spread their message of Abrahamic monotheism to all nations, races and peoples. Yes, from the very beginning, followers of the Prophet Muhammad—salla Allahu 'alayhi wa salam—came from a wide spectrum of individuals. There was Bilal, the African slave; Suhaib, the Byzantine Roman; Ibn Salam, the former Jewish Rabbi; and Salman, the Persian—which is a rather diverse group of followers even by today's standards.

Also, since children of Adam are one universal brotherhood, Islam teaches that Almighty God's final revelation is meant for all people regardless of race, nationality or linguistic background. Taking a look at the Muslim World—from Nigeria to Bosnia and from Malaysia to Turkey—should be enough to prove that Islam is a universal faith—as well as the fact that significant numbers of Europeans and Americans of all races and ethnic backgrounds continue to embrace Islam.

Anyway...back to the misguided attack on the Arab Christian church in Detroit...which seems to have been carried out by Christians who made a spray-painted effort to teach the Arab congregation that there's "1 God Jesus"...well if I was morally deficient enough to adopt the twisted methodology of Islamophobic propagandists like Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity, at this point I would start asking questions like: "What's wrong with Christianity?" and "Why aren't Christian leaders condemning this?"...and then ignore it when they do.

Since we're on the subject of Islamophobia and its oft accompanying double-standards, I suggest taking a look at the humorous (and very sarcastic) Call that humiliation?, by Terry Jones, which appeared in The Guardian Unlimited on Saturday.

Deen on...

Khaled Abou El Fadl - "I follow...the Mutazila"

While there never should have been any doubt for anyone both familiar with the history of Islamic theology and the (admittedly sometimes rather valuable) writings of Khaled Abou El Fadl that he was, at a minimum, a de facto adherent of the Mu'tazilah school of Islamic thought, those who were offended by this ominous label being applied to him—since it would seriously undermine his status as the great reformer of Sunni Islam that they perceived him to be—now have something of a bitter pill to swallow. That's because we now have an unambiguous admission straight from the proverbial horse's mouth. Actually, this admission was made way back in September 2002—and I clearly remember hearing it while watching PBS FrontLine's Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero. However, I didn't come cross the actual transcript of this interview with Khaled Abou El Fadl until relatively recently—an interview in which he clearly states:

"I follow a school within Islam called the Mutazila..."

Over the past several years, most of the informed Muslims that I mentioned this admission to reacted somewhat skeptically. Generally speaking, they had a hard time believing that someone who is put forward, especially by American academia, as something of a "Muslim Martin Luther" would openly admit that he adheres to the theology of one of Islam's earliest heretical sects. I faced this reaction so many times that my certainty on whether it was actually Khaled Abou El Fadl who I had heard make this forthright admission on PBS dropped to about 99% (down from 100%). However, now that I've managed to find the transcript, my memory of this interview has been validated...which comes as a relief to me, simply because the truth needs to be known.

Other than pointing out that Khaled Abou El Fadl has clearly admitted that he adheres to the theology of the Mu'tazilah—whose Greek influenced speculative thought was debated, then rejected, by the large majority of Muslims, I don't have much else to say at this point. That's because addressing the simplistic arguments and false dilemmas that Professor Abou El Fadl puts forward in the rest of the interview would take more time than I can spare at the moment...so hopefully a word to the wise will be sufficient. Thus in lieu of a full refutation, I'll just point out that his assertion that "God...is not the creator of evil...and also is not the creator and maker of all good" logically necessitates that he believes that there's more than one creator existing in the universe...which isn't a very good position to be in from the point of view of monotheism.

I pray that Almighty God guides us all to the Straight Path of Abrahamic monotheism as understood, defined and advocated by the overwhelming majority of Muslim scholars—the moderate legions of the great sages of the Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah—and away from misguidance, baseless speculation and wishful thinking...wa Allahu 'alim.

Before closing, I think a point of clarification is probably needed in order to preempt the questions that I often receive from people who seem to misunderstand (what I see as) basic and agreed-upon religious terminology. Due to this, please realize that I employ the word heretic to mean "a person who adheres to unorthodox beliefs and opinions"—beliefs which, however misguided, do not put one completely out of the fold of the faith. This being understood, it should be rather clear that I am not calling Khaled Abou El Fadl a disbeliever (kafir) or apostate (murtid)...and may Almighty God save us from all that. Rather, I'm simply making it known that he has personally and publicly admitted to adhering to beliefs that have been deemed unorthodox by Sunni Islam...which I consider to be a very serious matter.

One should also realize that the application of such labels isn't something that I've come up with, nor is it a one-way street. Indeed, to the Mu'tazilah—and to the Shi'a and Khawarij as well, Sunni Muslims are the misguided heretics and, as anyone familiar with the writings of the scholars of these sects should know, they don't hesitate to apply the label to us. So please don't think that accusing someone of heresy (i.e. following or advocating unorthodox beliefs) is tantamount to calling them a kafir...since that's certainly not what I have in mind. As I said at the beginning of this post, the writings of Khaled Abou El Fadl are "admittedly sometimes rather valuable." Indeed, since he's obviously a highly intelligent, often articulate and well-educated man, some of the thoughtful analysis that he's done regarding pitfalls that Muslim scholars have often (but not always) fallen into over the centuries are quite valuable. Due to this, I acknowledge Khaled Abou El Fadl as a critic (not reformer) whose insights Muslim scholars would do well to take into consideration and reflect upon...at least in some cases. However, that doesn't change the fact that he has some nonsensical positions and unorthodox beliefs as well...the fact that he's a self-admitted Mu'tazilah being only one of them.

Deen on...

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf on the Prophet - Peace be upon him

Below is a transcript of a very beautiful piece that Sidi Hamza did for the BBC World Service's In Praise of God programme last year around the time of the Prophet’s Birthday—salla Allahu 'alayhi wa salam. A copy of it was sent to me earlier today and I felt, especially being so close to the Mawlid, that others would find it beneficial as well, insha'llah.

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Twenty-six years ago I became a Muslim largely because I fell in love with a beautiful human being. "I was only sent to perfect noble character," said the man declared as a "mercy to all the worlds."

As time passed, this love grew as my knowledge of him increased. I painfully watched his religion hijacked by some for their own ends distorting his message and forgetting that he was indeed a mercy to all the worlds. I am troubled by the media’s portrayal of him sometimes in the worst of lights. How could the man I came to know and love be so vilified and maligned by those who claim to represent him and also by those who aim to be unbiased interpreters?

Muhammad, peace be upon him, was a shy, reticent man who lived among his people with such high moral character they called him al-Amîn—the Trustworthy.

The Prophet of Islam was born in the city of Mecca, Arabia, into a poor but noble branch of an aristocratic clan known as Quraysh, a people who despised treachery, lies and stupidity, while honouring bravery in battle, generosity in partying, and cleverness in poetry.

Some families, were so ashamed of their baby girls, that they would bury them alive instead of suffering the possible indignity of future dishonour. The religion of the Arabs at the time was a hodge-podge of superstition, divination and idolatry. To them, man's life ended with his death and his afterlife was based on his military exploits might be immortalized by a poets tongue.

The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was born into this world on April 9th, 570, Christian era in the lunar month of Rabi'a al-Awwal. His father, Abdallah died during his mother’s pregnancy. And for the first four years he was raised in the relative purity of the desert by a Bedouin woman named Halimah. After which he returned to his mother, Aminah. But in his seventh year, his mother died leaving him in the care of his grandfather.

At the age of twenty-five, he was employed as a commercial agent by Lady Khadijah, a successful widow from his own clan. She soon recognized his honesty and good nature and proposed marriage. Although fifteen years younger than she was, he accepted her proposal, and fathered six of his seven children with her.

At the age of forty, it had become his custom to escape the idolatry of Meccan society by seeking solitude in a cave on the mountain known as "the Mountain of Light." In the solitary confines of his small cave a voice pierced his consciousness declaring: "Recite!"

Alarmed and shivering he fled to his wife, begging her to wrap him in a cloak. He feared for his sanity, concerned that a desert spirit or poetic muse might be pursuing him. More revelations soon followed and Muhammad came to the understanding that he was not only a prophet in a long line of prophets, but that he was the last of them who was sent with a universal message.

As the days passed his revelations increased and they were powerfully rhythmic punctuated with intoxicating messages that challenged listeners to reflect on everyday miracles such as the alternation of the night and day

These revelations revealed to Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, came to be known as the Qur'an, the Muslim holy book. For thirteen years he invited his clan to worship one God, sit with slaves in spiritual solidarity, respect women as soul-full equals and the source of human mercy, care for the widow, the orphan, the weak and the oppressed.

At first people ridiculed his message and accused him of attempting "to make the gods one." His message threatened his people’s financial control of the markets of Mecca where pilgrims from all over Arabia came to spend their wealth.

When his clan failed to stop his preaching they plotted to kill him in his sleep. But he was warned by the Angel Gabriel and told to flee in the cover of darkness to Madina with his beloved friend and lifelong companion Abu Bakr.

Setting out, the two sought refuge in a cave to escape the skilled trackers of Mecca hot on their trail. The bounty hunters quickly came upon the cave, but a spider’s web had already covered the entrance and a dove with her young rested in a nest above it.

When the posse left and the two felt safe again, they continued their journey to the city of Yathrib. And as they entered it the young girls and children of Bani Najjar came out chanting lines of poetry which is still sung all over the world in remembrance of this auspicious occasion.

The name Yathrib was changed to Medina, city of hope. It became a city founded on the brotherhood of virtue. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, enacted a treaty uniting the once warring groups. He secured the rights of the Jewish minority by granting them full citizenship and freedom to practice their religion without constraint.

Days after his arrival in Medina he began the construction of a mosque, a sanctuary of prayer and meditation, in the centre of the city. And he had his companions; the Muslims create their own marketplace in order to ensure economic strength.

The Meccans, sensing that a rising power was now emerging in the peninsula, plotted ways of subverting the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and his growing community of believers.

And the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who had practiced a strict pacifism in Mecca for thirteen years and disliked the use of coercive force, was now given permission by God to defend against any attacks by his enemies. The Qur'an declared, "Fighting has been prescribed for you and you detest it, but perhaps you detest something and in it is much good. And perhaps you love something and in it is much harm, and God knows and you do not know." [Qur'an 2:216].

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Never desire to meet your enemies, rather ask God for peace and well-being; but should you be forced to meet them, then act courageously." [Sahih al-Bukhari]

Muslims are not ashamed of their Prophet’s teaching about war. On the contrary, for us it is a great source of pride. He was courageous as a great lion against the strong and oppressive yet gentle as a shepherd with the weak and the oppressed.

The true object of war fought for God should always be peace. What the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, taught is that Muslims fight for a just cause only. In this world, there are only two choices: two sides, truth and justice or falsehood and oppression. You don’t have to be a Muslim to understand that.

After years of conflict between members of his clan and his followers, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, had a revelation that he should visit the sacred mosque. In the eighth year after his migration to Medina the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, set out for Mecca but his adversaries refused to allow him in. They sent out an arbitrator to strike an agreement that would bring the stand-off to an end. And on every point of this treaty the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, compromised his own position in pursuit of peace.

On the journey back to Medina some of the companions were deeply troubled by what had just taken place and disappointed that they were thwarted from visiting the sanctuary. When asked to explain, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, replied, "Did I say it was going to be this year?"

And so the following year, in accordance with the treaty, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and his followers performed a pilgrimage completely unmolested. But soon his clan the Quraysh broke their end of the deal, massacring another clan with alliance to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, attacking them even in the sacred precinct. Abu Sufyan, the head of the Prophet’s enemies, attempted to restore the truce but it was too late. News of the massacre enraged the believers and the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, summoned all of the Muslims capable of bearing arms to march on Mecca. When the nearly ten thousand Muslims arrived on the outskirts of the city, the Quraysh realized they did not stand a chance and people either fled or stayed in their homes.

And so it was, after years of persecution, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, marched triumphant into the city of his birth at the head of the largest army ever assembled in Arabian history. With his head bowed in humility he declared a general amnesty and granted war criminals refuge.

His overwhelming magnanimity of character led to a mass conversion among the citizens of Mecca. Even Abu Sufyan, his archenemy, embraced the religion of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. In the months that followed, almost all of Arabia dispatched representatives to swear allegiance to this Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and to enter in the faith of Islam. In a period of twenty-three years Muhammad, peace be upon him, had succeeded in uniting a feuding people trapped in cycles of violence into one people with a sense of destiny and a mission that would transform the world.

He elevated the low, and he lowered the elevated that they might meet in that middle place known as brotherhood. He infused in them a love of learning unleashing a creative power that would lead to some of the most extraordinary scientific breakthroughs in human history.

He died on the same day he was born, in the same house he had lived in for ten years in Medina, on a small bed made of leather stuffed with palm fibres, in the arms of his beloved wife Aishah. His dying words were, "Treat your women well, and do not oppress your servants, the prayer, the prayer, don’t be neglectful of the prayer. O God, my highest companion, O highest companion."

But the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was more than just a great historical person, he was a father and friend, a husband, a companion and above all he was a human being. The Prophet’s unique physical appearance, his high character and willingness to sacrifice for others, are often at the essence of any description of him. He was once described by a contemporary in the following words:

"The Messenger of God was imposing and majestic. His face was luminous like a full moon. He was taller than medium but not excessive in height. He had wavy hair, which he parted and it never went beyond his shoulders. He was light-skinned with a high brow. He had full eyebrows and a small space between them. He had a fine, aquiline nose. His beard was full, his eyes black. His physique was supple and lithe, with a full chest and broad shoulders. When he walked, he was determined and his pace was as if he was walking down hill.

When he spoke he was always brief and reflective. He spoke when he saw benefit and spent long periods in silent contemplation. His speech was comprehensive being neither wordy nor laconic. He had a mild temperament and was never harsh nor cruel, coarse nor rude. He expressed gratitude for everything given to him no matter how insignificant. When he spoke, his companions lowered their heads as if birds were perched upon them. When he was silent, they felt free to speak. He never criticized food or praised it excessively. He never swore, nor did he find fault in people. He did not flatter people but praised them when appropriate.

People entered his gatherings as seekers and left enlightened. He would ask about his companions when they were absent often making inquiries about people’s needs. He never stood nor sat without mentioning the name of God. He never reserved a special place for himself in a gathering and sat where space provided. He gave each of those who sat with him such full attention that everyone felt that he was the most important person in that gathering. Voices were never raised in his presence. The aged were respected for their age and the young were shown compassion for their youth."

The Qur'an reminds Muslims that when they are slandered by those who reject them they should bear it patiently and be forgiving. I yearn for a deeper understanding of this man, his gentleness towards children, his love of animals, his concern for the weak and oppressed, his sense of justice tempered always with mercy.

I personally love his humour and his sense of tomfoolery. He said once, "I joke but always tell the truth." His wife Aishah said, "he was always making us laugh in the house." One of his names is ad-dahhak—the smiling one. His humour and cheerfulness even in the face of the most difficult of times is so needed today in our troubled world. I imagine him telling those of us who don’t laugh enough to lighten up, to show more gratitude even in what appears to be difficulties. And as for those who laugh too much and do so inappropriately, I imagine that he would ask that they reflect deeper on the condition of humanity and nurture compassion in their hearts.

“Those who sin while laughing enter hell crying,” he once said.

Once an old woman asked him if she would enter paradise and he replied, "Old people don’t go to heaven!" The woman was crestfallen with the answer he had provided, to which he added with a smile, "You shall enter paradise in the prime of your youth."

The Arabs believed dates made eye infections worse. His companion Suhayb was eating dates one day while his left eye was infected. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Suhayb do you eat dates and your eye is infected?" To which Suhayb said, "I am eating with my right eye only O Messenger of God." To which the Prophet, peace be and blessings be upon him, laughed heartily.

And once a gruff desert Bedouin came into the mosque and prayed out loud saying, "O God forgive me and Muhammad and don’t forgive anyone else." Hearing this the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, laughed and said to him, "You are limiting the vast mercy of God."

I feel so incredibly grateful and blessed to have come to know him and to learn from him. A day of my life has not gone by that I haven’t felt indebted to him for the wisdom he has given me in making sense of my life and my world.

Every day my love for Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, increases. Like the vast majority of my fellow believers across the world and through times he is, indeed, the Beloved—the Praised One.

To the solace of his name, simply saying Muhammad, has an incredibly soothing effect on me.

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Be in the Know...With Marifah.net

The other day I came across a hot new traditional Islamic site which promises to rank right up there with Masud.co.uk and Living Islam due to its excellent collection of articles exposing the errors of the so-called "Salafis". The site is called Marifah.net, and they have sections covering Aqidah, Fiqh, Hadith and Tasawwuf.

I've already printed and read most of the articles on the site, and while in some cases similar content can be found elsewhere, quite a few of the articles are original translations previously unavailable in English (at least as far as I know). I especially enjoyed Assessment of the Division of Tawhid into Uluhiyya and Rububiyya since it very effectively deconstructs and exposes the errors of both Ibn Taymiyyah and Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab (from whose name the "Wahhabi" eponym is derived).

Insha'llah, this article will be of great value to those Muslims who have been duped by the "Salafi" misuse and abuse of Qur'anic verses relating to the beliefs of the pagan Arabs and other idolaters. This is especially because, to the uninformed, the "Salafi" explanation of these verses often seems to make sense, as does their applying these same Qur'anic verses to the practices of Muslims who (allegedly) "worship saints and tombs." Unfortunately for the "Salafis" there's another view that all thinking Muslims need to consider, and that's the view of the Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah...which is exactly what the article in question sheds some light on. So all the Muslims out there, especially converts in the West, who have concluded that the "Salafi" 'aqîdah, including their three types of tawhîd, is beyond reproach...well stand by for a shock.

As Assessment of the Division of Tawhid into Uluhiyya and Rububiyya ably shows, there are plenty of Qur'anic verses that simply do not fit into the narrow interpretations of the "Salafis"—who are ironically adhering to an understanding that came about long after the time of the true Salaf, as the article makes clear:

"Their view that tawhîd divides into uluhiyya and rububiyya was unheard of before Ibn Taymiyya and is unimaginable as you shall soon learn. The Messenger of Allah—salla Allahu 'alayhi wa salam—did not say to anyone who accepted Islam ‘there are two tawhîds, and unless you single out Allah in uluhiyya you are not a Muslim’ and neither did he demonstrate this in a single discourse and this was not heard from a single member of the salaf who they [the followers of Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn `Abdul Wahhab] boast of following in everything."

This erudite exposé goes on to demonstrate that, as always, the understanding of the Ahl al-Sunnah agrees with all of the textual evidence, not just a few conveniently selected Qur'anic verses which are subjected to hermeneutical distortion.

Not only that—and possibly more importantly—the article addresses head-on the "Salafi" (i.e. Wahhabi) claim that the pagan Arabs were monotheists in tawhid al-Rubuiyya, since they had only "one Lord", but polytheists in tawhid al-Uluhiyya’ since they worshipped idols. I encourage anyone who has bought into, or been bamboozled by, this "Salafi" distortion of the Qur'anic text to read and reflect on the proofs in this article, since they clearly demonstrate that the "Salafi" construct is haphazard and untenable. This is of utmost importance in these trying times when the Muslim Ummah, already under external attack from all sides, is being internally poisoned by a narrow, divisive and intolerant brand of Islam that not only imprudently brands large numbers of Muslims as disbelievers, but implies that the overwhelming majority of Muslim scholars were misguided for the overwhelming majority of Islamic history. Once this is realized and understood, it's easy to see why the Salafi-Wahhabi movement has been labeled Neo-Khawarij, since those who adhere to this heresy "took (Qur'anic) verses which were revealed about the disbelievers and applied them to the believers” [related in Sahih al-Bukhari]...so reflect on that.

Insha'llah, there will be a lot more to come from Marifah.net...