By Larry Elder, May 12, 2014
In light of the recent kidnapping of Nigerian schoolgirls and the boycott of the Beverly Hills Hotel due to the Sultan of Brunei imposing sharia law, I think it’s time to revisit my interview with Robert Spencer, author of Onward Muslim Soldiers. Here is Part I. Part II follows tomorrow.
In light of the recent kidnapping of Nigerian schoolgirls and the boycott of the Beverly Hills Hotel due to the Sultan of Brunei imposing sharia law, I think it’s time to revisit my interview with Robert Spencer, author of Onward Muslim Soldiers. Here is Part I. Part II follows tomorrow.
Islam: A Religion of Peace? Part I
by Larry Elder
A “religion of peace,” says President Bush about Islam. But
investigative journalist Robert Spencer, in his new book Onward Muslim Soldiers: How Jihad Still Threatens America and the West,
argues that what we call “Islamic extremism” stems from a straightforward
reading of the Koran and interpretative Islamic texts.
On November 10, 2003, I interviewed Spencer.
Larry Elder: Is Islam a religion of peace that’s been hijacked
by Islamic extremists, as George W. Bush says?
Robert Spencer: There are millions of peaceful Muslims…but
the fact is that radical Muslims are using core text of Islam that are deeply
rooted in Islamic theology, tradition, history, and law to justify their
actions, and those radical Muslims are able to recruit and motivate terrorists
around the world by appealing to these core Islamic texts….As far as the
radical, violent elements of the religion go, they are very deeply rooted and
we are naïve in the extreme if we don’t recognize that and try to get moderate
Muslims to acknowledge it so that real reform can take place.
Elder: Have some translations of the Koran taken out the
more extreme statements?
Spencer: The only Koran that really matters is what’s in
Arabic, because as far as traditional Islamic theology goes, Allah…was speaking
to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel, and the language is intrinsic, can’t be
separated from the message. The fact is that what’s in Arabic is very clear…but
in two opposite directions. What you have are very many verses of peace and
tolerance, and also very many verses sanctioning and mandating violence against
non-believers.
…You find many moderate Muslim spokesmen and American-Muslim
advocates in this country, who quote you the peaceful and tolerant verses, and
no reference to the violent verses….When you read Islamic theologians
themselves…you find they actually confront this problem directly….Some of the
most respected thinkers in Islamic history say that when you come upon these
kinds of disagreements—where you see peace in one place and violence in the
other—you have to go with what was revealed last, that cancels out what was
revealed before. Unfortunately, for the moderates, the violent verses were
revealed later and they cancel out the peaceful ones—but you won’t hear this
from the American Muslim advocacy groups.
…What we need to see is a forthright acknowledgement of it
and reform from moderate Muslims themselves, the same way that the Pope has
apologized for the Crusades and Christianity at large…has repudiated the
theology that gave rise to them. So we need to see…moderates on a large scale
repudiating the theology that has led to violent jihad which the radicals are using to justify their actions.
Elder: You write, “Muslims must present non-Muslims with the
three choices of Sura 9:29 of the [Koran]: conversion, submission with
second-class status under Islamic rule, or death.”
Spencer: Correct. This is a deeply rooted tradition in
Islam. Islam is unique among religions in having a developed doctrine theology
in law that mandates violence against non-believers. Not all Muslims take it
seriously, but the radicals do, and they are working to recruit and motivate
terrorists. So…whenever anybody says we want to institute Sharia Islamic law in a country, they mean these laws. They do not
provide for the equality of rights and dignity of non-Muslims in a Muslim
society…[but] mandate just the opposite—that non-Muslims are not to be given
equality of rights, but denied various jobs because they’re not allowed to hold
authority over Muslims.
They must pay a special tax called the jizya which is
referred to in the verse you mentioned….Their humiliation and inferior status
is enforced with numerous other regulations, still part of Islamic law, and
liable to be enforced by radical Muslims and who want to gain power and
institute Islamic law.…Anybody who is concerned about human rights would be
resisting and be happy to join in the War on Terror.
Larry: So, when the President says that Islam is a religion
of peace, is he saying that because it’s a politically correct way of phrasing
it so that people don’t get the impression that we are at war against a
religion?
Spencer: Your guess is as good as mine in terms of what the
President is thinking….He’s aware that radical Muslims are trying to make this
into that kind of a war…and he’s trying…to keep that from happening.…The
problem with what he’s saying is that it’s misleading. If it’s followed
through, it might hinder law enforcement efforts against radical Muslims who
are operating in the United States…and it could have very serious consequences.
Elder: What should he say?
Spencer: I think he should say nothing. As Pat Robertson
said, he wasn’t appointed the Chief Theologian of the United States…he doesn’t
have to tell Americans what Islam is all about. All he has to do is fight
against the enemies that are threatening…our freedom and our continued life in
the United States.
Related: Islam: A Religion of Peace? Part II
Related: Islam: A Religion of Peace? Part II
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