The Great Theft: Wrestling Islam From the Extremists by Khaled M. Abou el Fadl

Author:Khaled M. Abou el Fadl [Fadl, Khaled M. Abou el]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780061189036
Amazon: 0061189030
Publisher: HarperOne
Published: 2007-01-22T16:00:00+00:00

persistent in their refusal. Fed up, the father went to the Prophet and asked for permission to compel his daughters to convert to Islam, but the Prophet resolutely refused. Shortly thereafter, the Qur’anic revelation arrived declaring that truth and falsity are clear and distinct, and whoever wishes to be- lieve may do so, and whoever refuses to believe may do so— there can be no coercion in religion.6 “There is no compulsion in matters of faith,” the Qur’an proclaimed.7 Moderates con- sider this verse to be enunciating a general, overriding princi- ple that cannot be contradicted by isolated traditions attributed to the Prophet. Therefore, moderates do not believe that there is any punishment that attaches to apostasy.

Other than the issue of apostasy, puritan methodology leads to adopting various positions that moderates cannot accept, including, for instance, that the testimony of women counts as half that of men in court; that the rights of women upon di- vorce are extremely limited; that men at their absolute discre- tion may take up to four wives with or without cause; and that shockingly severe criminal penalties can be applied un- justly and without justification. The significant point is that as one observes in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan (under the Tal- iban), Nigeria, and Sudan, what is purported to be Islamic law is applied in a fashion that shocks the conscience, and that ap- pears capricious and arbitrary. What one observes is a com- plete lack of compassion, mercy, equity, or justice.

Even more disturbing is that by relying on the most tangen- tial and tenuous types of evidence, puritans force upon Mus- lims a kind of austerity that is entirely suffocating. In fact, much of what they advocate is affirmatively designed to re- move tenderness and kindness from the human heart. They eradicate art, beauty, and anything else that excites the creative imagination, and demand that Muslims become like mecha- nized robots. Furthermore, since according to puritans God has

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