Islam is not a Religion of Extremism

Islam is not a Religion of Extremism
Allah says:
"...Whosoever kills an innocent human being, it shall be as if he has kille=
d all mankind, and whosoever saves the life of one, it shall be as if he ha=
d saved the life of all mankind..." Qur'an 5:32
Islam... an extreme religion?
"Islamic terrorists!" "Muslim fundamentalists!" "Extremists!" "Radical Isla=
mists!" These are just some labels that have been wrongly applied to Muslim=
s and certain Muslim groups in recent years.
The media's portrayal of Islam often misleads those whose knowledge of the =
religion is limited, into making negative assumptions about this very peace=
ful and tolerant way of life.
Peter Manning, a journalist of over 30 years, states in his book, "Us and T=
hem": "My experience tells me there's a vast gulf between the realities of =
the daily lives of Arab and Muslim Australians and how they are represented=
in our [Australian] media.
In more than 60 percent of cases [from the coverage of 2 major newspapers],=
the words 'violent', 'death', 'attack', 'kill', 'suicide' or 'gunmen' were=
in close proximity to the words 'Arab', 'Palestinian', 'Muslim' or 'Islam'=
. "
Is it then, any wonder that most people associate Islam with terrorism?
The problem of ignorance is highlighted by a survey which revealed that mor=
e than one in three Australians admit to knowing nothing about Islam and it=
s followers.
"Those with the least knowledge and personal contact with Muslims were the =
most likely to feel threatened by Islam," said Dr Dunn, who was commissione=
d by the Australia-Indonesia Institute to carry out the study.
The prevalence of media bias and ignorance regarding Islam can be countered=
by understanding Islam through its proper teachings. That means referring =
to the Qur'an (which Muslims believe to be the word of God) and the authent=
ic sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Through the proper =
understanding of these teachings, one will discover Islam to be completely =
against any form of extremism.
How the Qur'an can be misunderstood
When reading through the Qur'an or the sayings of the Prophet (peace be upo=
n him), one must understand the context in which the wording applies. The f=
ollowing verse of the Qur'an is a favourite amongst those seeking to mislea=
d people about Islam:
"And kill them wherever you find them, and expel them from where they expel=
led you, as persecuting people to sway them from God's Religion is worse th=
an killing. But do not fight them at the Sacred Mosque, unless they fight y=
ou there. But if they do fight you, then slay them; This is the recompense =
of the disbelievers." Qur'an 2:191
On occasions, this verse has been dangerously trimmed down to the following=
:
"And kill them wherever you find them..." Qur'an 2:191
The obvious question is, "Kill who?". To answer this question, one should r=
ead the verses before and after verse 2:191.
"And fight in the way of Allah those who fight with you, and do not exceed =
the limits, surely Allah does not love those who exceed the limits." Qur'an=
2:190
The above verse mentions fighting as a means of self defence (i.e. with tho=
se who fight you). The verse after 2:191 is:
"But if they cease, Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful." Qur'an 2:192
These verses were revealed at a time when the Muslims had been expelled fro=
m their homes on account of their faith. They endured more than ten years o=
f persecution and eventually had to flee to a safe land.
The above verses were referring to the Arab pagans of Mecca during the Prop=
het's time, who oppressed the Muslims and planned to attack them where the =
Muslims sought refuge.
Hence, the above verse can only be applied in such circumstances.
This example demonstrates that verses in the Qur'an should be understood in=
their proper context since verses were revealed in stages in relation to p=
articular situations, over a period of 23 years. It is also important to no=
te that the Qur'an was revealed in Arabic. Therefore, translations into dif=
ferent languages may be misleading and/or inaccurate.
Permissible Warfare/Fighting
There can be no doubt that Muslims (like anybody else) have a legitimate ri=
ght to fight against aggression or when oppressed.
Islam teaches that warfare is permitted in order to preserve the wellbeing =
of the community or to prevent oppression from spreading - this may be in t=
he context of defensive or offensive warfare depending on the particular si=
tuation. Islam, just like any 'way of life' that wants to ensure its surviv=
al, has the right to defend itself when war is declared against it. In the =
Qur'an (22:39) we read:
"To those against whom war is made, permission is given to fight, because t=
hey are wronged."
However, when the enemy ceases its hostility, Muslims are commanded to ceas=
e fighting.
"And if they incline to peace, then incline to it and trust in God; surely =
He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower." Qur'an 8:61
Abu Bakr (may God be pleased with him), Prophet Mohammad's closest friend a=
nd first successor, spoke of the Islamic approach to war by highlighting th=
e following.
In the battlefield, one should not:
commit treachery
mutilate the dead
deviate from the right path
kill a woman, child or aged man
harm or burn trees, especially the fruitful
slay the enemy's flock, except for food
harm those who devote their life to worship
As we read in verse 2:190, Allah commands Muslims not to go to extremes by =
saying, "Do not transgress the limits." A situation of war is no excuse to =
go beyond boundaries. Islam teaches the avoidance of blind retaliation.
"And let not the hatred of others make you avoid justice. Be just: that is =
nearer to righteousness." Qur'an 5:8
Terrosim in perspective
The problem with putting terrorism into perspective is that there is no agr=
eed-upon definition of what constitutes "terrorism". Also, terrorism takes =
many forms, as the following examples illustrate.
Robert Fisk, from The Independent, writes: "Israel and Israel's militia all=
ies (on 16 September 1982) started their three-day orgy of rape, knifing an=
d murder in the Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila that cost 1,=
800 lives. It followed an Israeli invasion of Lebanon designed to drive the=
PLO (Palestine Liberation Organisation) out of the country and given the g=
reen light [by the United States] which cost the lives of 17,500 Lebanese a=
nd Palestinians, almost all of them civilians."
According to Professor Noam Chomsky, "It's uncontroversial that the United =
States is a leading terrorist state. In fact, it's the only state that was =
condemned for international terrorism by the highest bodies: the Internatio=
nal Court of Justice in 1986."
Similarly, "The horrific massacre of 8,000 Muslims - some unarmed - at Sreb=
renica in 1995 never led to a stream of pieces about the violence and repre=
ssive tendencies of Christianity." - William Dalrymple, The Independent UK.
"The carnage wrought by Western, ostensibly Christian, leaders over the las=
t six decades - including a world war and a cold war, a Holocaust, two atom=
ic bombs, repression of wars of independence, the fuelling of proxy wars, n=
uclear brinksmanship, and the support of dictators and state and non-state =
terrorists - makes it spurious to view Islam as a more inherently violent r=
eligion or civilisation." - Rama Mani (Geneva Centre for Security Policy)
There are many other examples of both Jewish and Christian terrorism, howev=
er, we must never generalise and call all Christians and Jews terrorists. S=
imilarly, we should not put all Muslims on trial but only those that commit=
ted the crime should be judged.
Islam Denounces Terrorism
The act of inciting terror in the hearts of defenceless civilians, the whol=
esale destruction of buildings and properties, the bombing and maiming of i=
nnocent men, women and children are all forbidden and detestable acts accor=
ding to Islam and the Muslims. This is regardless of any type of terrorism,=
including western state-sponsored terrorism which has killed, injured and =
displaced infinitely more people than all other types of terrorism.
If an individual Muslim were to commit an act of terrorism, this person wou=
ld be guilty of violating the laws of the very religion they claim to follo=
w - Islam. Would it be fair to condemn all Muslims as a result, when the re=
ligion itself is against such acts? Muslims follow a religion of submission=
to God, peace, mercy, and forgiveness. The vast majority have nothing to d=
o with the violent events some - notably the media - have associated with M=
uslims. Islam is not a religion of extremism.
"Allah does not forbid you from showing kindness and dealing justly with th=
ose who have not fought you about religion and have not driven you out of y=
our homes. Allah loves those who are just." Qur'an 60:8


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