blaming religion

Submitted by Lina (United Kingdom), Mar 16, 2009 at 06:21

Well to me, Margaret, there is quite a difference between the unsavoury men discussed on here, and a decent muslim man who treats people with respect. I've known good muslim men, who are neither racist, sexist nor abusive to any other living entity... whose wives and mothers are treated with utmost respect, and are encouraged to receive a good education, to respect themselves, and are queens of their household... and so, they shouldn't even be categorized with the morons mentioned on here.

It is absurd to blame the behaviour of these men on islam - if anything, islam was imposed on several nations to curb social problems. These conniving, somewhat demonic men are not good muslims, they use what should be a peaceful faith, as a crutch. Most of the men discussed on here are narrow-minded; the types that drink, smoke, lie, curse, commit adultery (for no particular reason) and so forth. And when they disregard the wellbeing of others, they also blame it on islam. "Oh, it's not my fault, my religion permits it". Really, that excuse is not good enough. Imagine if everyone used that excuse: God/G-d/Allah influenced my abusive behaviour. Some of these men like to distort the teachings of the Quran to fit their own twisted mindset.

Honestly, Margaret, you will find abusive men of every race, religion and creed. Violence and abuse can also stem from a patriarchal mentality, which is prevalent in almost all mainstream religions, including catholicism, in which there is also a high rate of abuse. It is ludicrous to blame the moronic actions of these men on islam.

Regarding the quotes from the Quran, well yes, islam, like most other religions, is a male-dominated faith. However, it would be nothing without women. Life within a muslim household is very traditional, with strong gender stereotypes, but if a woman isn't prepared for this, then why immerse herself in the lifestyle? It's common sense really. Domestic abuse amongst decent, modern muslims is actually not as common as that amongst ill-bred, uneducated communities. In my opinion, there is a real problem when disgraceful behaviour is blamed entirely on a religion, when there are in fact other underlying causes.

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