interesting snippet

[waider]

Some time back I ran across an article, probably via MetaFilter, in which someone argued that there was no point in trying to figure out what wrong America had done to Islam to cause the World Trade Centre attacks. The upshot of the article was that Islam's goal was the total elimination of infidels, and thus America's mere presence was the problem in the eyes of Islam, and every other infidel was doomed, too. So quit yer bleedin'-heart bellyaching and kill them before they kill us, it rounded out.

Now, I've just found another article via Metafilter, http://www.topica.com/lists/psychohistory/read/message.html?sort=d&mid=1711891071&start=4389, in which I find this quote:

Serious Islamic leaders (e.g. the King of Jordan, the Prime Minster of Malaysia, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia) believe that the Islamic world must recapture the glory days of 12-13th C Islam. That means finding tolerance and building great education institutions and places of learning. The King was passionate on the subject. It also means freedom of movement and speech within and among the Islamic nations. And, most importantly to the WEF, it means flourishing free trade and support for entrepeneurs with minimal state regulation. (However, there were also several Middle East respresentatives who argued precisely the opposite. They believe bringing down Saddam Hussein and then pushing the Israel/Palestine issue could actually result in a Golden Age for Arab Islam.)

I note especially the word "tolerance" in there. Interesting. I'm offering this without judgement, btw. If you're interested, dig around and see what you can find.

Comments

[rimrunner.livejournal.com]

I have a raging headache this morning and thus won't be digging for anything, but I will note that this portrayal of Islam from that period is correct. While Europe was still clawing its way back from the fragmentation that followed the dissolution of the Roman Empire, the Muslim world was busy preserving Classical knowledge, exploring the world (particularly eastward), and making scientific discoveries.

If I were to draw a sweeping generalization from this, it would be that people influence their religion at least as much as religion influences people, in terms of the way that religion manifests in the world. Christianity has had its darker moments in history, too.

[tigresse.livejournal.com]

Ideally, Islam does promote tolerance. Just like Christianity promotes being Christ-like. But as the dalai lama said (in 'Imagine All The People'),"Adopting an attitude of universal responsibility is essentially a personal matter. The real test of compassion is not what we say in abstract discussions but how we conduct ourselves in daily life.". I agree with him and others who have said it before, "It is a personal matter", no matter what your religious beliefs are.