Response to His Name

Submitted by J Hubers (United States), Jan 14, 2008 at 08:56

Several responses: 1. I lived in Bahrain in the 90s and the 70s. It was hardly a difficult place to live. The political violence at that time was between the majority Shi'a protesting what was perceived to be the oppressive tactics of the minority Sunni government. But that's beside the point. The point is that you do as most Muslim haters do - indict all on the basis of the few. 2. Before you so easily characterize Islam try reading some serious historical treatment of the subject, such as the work of Philip Hitti or Marshall Hodgson who show just how diverse Islam has always been with no one interpretation ever being fully dominant. Edward Said is certainly correct in saying that it is better to speak not of "Islam" but of "Islams."

The great irony here is that Christians like yourself are trying to convince Muslims that the only valid way to interpret their faith is what they themselves consider to be the aberrations of al-Qaida. Great tactic . . . . .

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