In the last two weeks, I’ve twice come across conversations where I’m either directly or indirectly encouraged toward apostasy. The first was two weeks ago, when I bumped into the fiery Nonie Darwish, and a second more sincere outcry today on Facebook from a dear lady with whom I’m in the midst of cultivating a unique friendship. She asks of moderates and reformists:

“What do you do with the truth of Islam that exists in the Quran? How can you re-interpret what it says to make yourself feel better (deceived) about Islam? No enlightenment will come to Islam. The emerging leaders will grow more militant OR leave Islam. That’s an absolute you can count on. One or the other….but, the reformists/moderates will need to make a choice sooner than later. You are not a favored or accepted category any longer. Your mantra is growing old and stale…and, no evidence of change because you are a laughing stock (sadly) to your religion/Muslim world.”

Despite looming deadlines and a toddler who’s overdue for some outdoor play, I feel compelled to respond, not out of anger or some futile need for word wars…but out of heartbreak. You see, I completely get what you’re saying here and understand where you’re coming from. I share your frustration and have my own frustration that stems from your comment. When it comes to our faith, there are three issues:

1) Some verses in the Quran have layered meanings…not two meanings, but three sometimes four. It took me ten years of study to get to that point and I’m still a novice here. I would have gotten there sooner, as would many others, if Muslims were more open to actually dissecting the Quran instead of paying blind homage to it. Personally I got to this point through pushing reform, from taking the hard path that made life a living hell for a while, that separated me from family or convenience. I know plenty of other Muslims recognizing something isn’t right but not knowing where to look or how to see.

2) There are plenty of verses in the Quran that we can’t make excuses for because there are no excuses to be had. A spade is spade. We have to recognize what’s wrong here, which brings on a greater challenge of first recognizing that the Quran is not without imperfection. There is a process and it’s in place. I’ve seen it done, I’ve done it myself, and I’ve led other people through it in conversations. I know for a fact that we can change, because I’ve lived it and seen it. The goal is getting it to a global stage…and we’re looking at 50+ years for that conservatively at this rate where reformers are vastly under-supported and worked against from all sides.

3) There’s also the issue of Muhammad, who plays a dubious and flawed role as a prophet. As Muslims, we need to recognize that  and stop treating him as some infallible demi god. Believe it or not, this is the biggest challenge, but again I’ve lived it, seen it, done it, and gotten other Muslims to realize it as well – the staunchest of the staunch. So it is possible.

Just like the Quran has many layers, the reform movement has multiple layers as well…we’ve got conflicting personalities, people interpreting reform in their own way – there’s a struggle within Islam and a struggle within the reform movement. Real religious reform already happened in Islam centuries ago and the progressives lost. This is round two and this time the climate is ripe for us to come out on top.

For anyone invested in Islam and its effect on a civilization, I say this: I applaud you. I applaud you for taking the time to learn and advocate awareness for something that isn’t your own. I was born into this, but you weren’t. That isn’t an easy undertaking and in so many ways you show more compassion, interest, and in some cases even an understanding beyond Muslims themselves. I wish more Muslims had your passion. That said, I implore you to apply the impossibility, the absolutely imperceptible reality that millions of Muslims will somehow magically abandon Islam. They will never abandon Islam. Don’t think of the moderate, the progressive, or even the fundamentalist. Think of the family in the villages remote from warfare, for whom Islam is a deeply rooted part of their identity – the family that has no access to education, no interest in politics, no part in any war. There are hundreds of thousands if not millions of such Muslims, whether they live a village with huts and dirt floors or a modern 1st world village with picket fences, play dates, and mortgages; these two still live in a village of the mind and you will never get them to abandon Islam. To impose a precept that involves leaving Islam shows a frustratingly pinhole understanding of Muslims, while at the same time completely undermining the few reformers who are essentially the only solution we have to what’s ultimately a shared concern and goal.

Give us a chance. We’re working class people who don’t get a paycheck for reform work. We do it in addition to earning a living, raising our families, and trying to live our lives with some normality while battling a Goliath of a problem. We don’t have the House of Saud, the USG, or any other entity funding our aims. We’re an army of a handful of Martin Luthers all banging on Kaaba doors in our own way.

Help us.

Related posts:

1. Reflecting on Germany’s “Day of Open Mosques”
2. What an Increasing Number of Muslim Colleges Says About the Future of Islam in the West
3. “There is no America. There is only Islam” | MANA’s Muslim American Agenda

Artwork: “Islamic World” by Nusret Colpan

This blog was sparked by a graphic that has been circulating on Facebook, asking the simple question—is coexistence possible with Islam. . .or is it a religion bent on world domination?

I read the Qur’an a number of years ago trying to establish some form of context for what I was being told about it in the days following 9/11. Taking a simple read of the translation since I don’t read Arabic–yet, combined with the notes and commentary of Abdullah Yusuf Ali, what I found was a book that could be taken to provide easy justification for war and conquest, despite some of what I had previously read having been taken out of context.

One such verse can be found in the fifth sura, often quoted without context, yet changing little when context is provided:

“On that account we ordained for the children of Israel that if any one slew a person–unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land–it would be as if he slew a whole people: and if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people. Then although there came to them our Apostles with clear signs, yet, even after the many of them continued to commit excesses in the land. The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His apostle, and strive with might and main for mischief through the land, is: execution or crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite sides, or exile from the land. That is their disgrace in this world, and a heavy punishment is theirs in the hereafter; except for those who repent before they fall into your power: in that case, know that Allah is oft-forgiving, most merciful.”

Nowhere is the conflation of religion and state found more clearly than in A. Yusuf Ali’s notes on this passage, speaking of the double crime of treason against the state and God–and the references to “spreading mischief” have frequently been interpreted to preclude freedom of conscience in Islamist countries.

Certainly the example of the Prophet himself was one of militancy, who is quoted in the hadiths of Sahih al-Bukhari as saying:

“I have been commanded to fight the people until they testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and establish the prayer, and pay the zakat. If they do that, their lives and property are protected from me except for the right of Islam, and their reckoning is up to Allah”, a saying which was expanded upon later by Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, the companion of the Prophet, who added, “By Allah! I will fight whoever differentiates between prayers and Zakat as Zakat is the right to be taken from property (according to Allah’s Orders). By Allah! If they refused to pay me even a kid they used to pay to Allah’s Apostle, I would fight with them for withholding it.”

Casting about for an interpretation to the above hadith, I find a number of websites who seem to attempt to tell me that I’m not reading what I think I’m reading (and I know many Muslims who would not believe that this was their commandment) but over the last millennium, the dominant interpretation of the Prophet’s words has been clear, whether you turn to Abu Bakr or Salah ah-Din, who proclaimed shortly before his death that, “I shall cross this sea to their islands to pursue them until there remains no one on the face of the earth who does not acknowledge Allah.”

This consistent interpretation was echoed in more recent years in statements by both the Shiite Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and the Sunni/Wahhabi Usama bin Laden.

There are, of course, sects of Islam which would disagree with this–last I checked the Sufi had never made any attempts at local, let alone world, domination. Unfortunately, the fact that Sufism has been persecuted almost since its founding by its “co-religionists”, with a couple hundred Sufis having been killed as apostates in Pakistan alone during the last eight years does not give me a great deal of hope for their interpretation of Islam becoming the dominant one.

As I walk through this life, do I find individual Muslims who desire nothing more than peace? Yes, many. Do I find those who desire peace–yet are willing to fight in the name of individual liberty and freedom of conscience against an Islamic state? Yes. . .but far fewer–and I am honored to call such people my friends, however much I may disagree with the roots of their faith or the example of their Prophet.

As to whether coexistence is possible? That will be a question for Muslims to decide.

Related posts:

1. Sufism and It’s Deep Connection with the Natural World
2. Response to National Review’s Feature Article “Uncharitable: Zakat is Not About Charity, but Jihad”
3. What Salman Taseer’s Assassination Means for the Future of Pakistan and a Moderate Islam

April Issue of Aquila Magazine

Despite being known for encouraging simplicity in life, Islam is weaved with complex layers of meaning that need to be teased through for more refined understanding of a faith that some say requires a lifetime of study to be fully appreciated. Whirling between its deeper-seated meanings are the beliefs drawn upon by Sufis, followers of the third-largest denomination of Islam. Find out what this sect believes in and why they place such an importance on connecting with natural world.

Click here to access the full article.

Related posts:

1. Sufi Muslims: Islam’s Eco Guardians
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Source: The Atlanic, by Zvika Krieger

In February 2008, I attended an New York University faculty meeting about the school’s plans to open a new campus in the tiny desert emirate of Abu Dhabi. I was there reporting for a New York magazine article about the first major U.S. research institution to open a complete liberal-arts university off American soil. Hoping to be a fly on the wall, I instead found myself seated at the head of the table, bombarded with rapid-fire questions by exasperated professors looking for any kernel of information about the new project:

“Who will do the hiring?” one professor asks.

“Will there be tenure? You can’t have academic freedom without tenure, right?”

“Where will the students come from?”

“Why Abu Dhabi?”

“What exactly is the status of Abu Dhabi’s relationship with Israel?”

“Will we become the next Guggenheim franchise?”

I quickly learned that the new initiative was being personally driven by NYU’s larger-than-life president, John Sexton — and that many faculty felt completely left out of a decision that had the potential to dramatically impact the university.

By many measures, Sexton has been one of the country’s most successful university presidents. He set national records with his recently-completed $3 billion fundraising campaign, and increased the university’s faculty by almost 20 percent. He oversaw NYU’s merger with Brooklyn’s Polytechnic University and won city approval for NYU 2031, his ambitious plan to increase the campus by six million square feet in New York City. He doubled the number of NYU students studying abroad and established new programs and partnerships across the globe. Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton praised his “vision to expand his university internationally while maintaining its reputation for excellence and academic freedom.”

Click to continue reading…

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Azi’s turns 1

Some of the more fundamental types don’t celebrate birthdays with the justification that there’s no basis in Islam for it. Yet, I know plenty of the same group who celebrate the prophet’s birthday. Regardless, just because Quran didn’t explicitly speak on the subject, doesn’t mean birthdays should be crossed off.

Anti-birthday types argue:

“Even the celebration considered most innocent (birthdays) might have pagan foundations. According to one account, in pagan cultures, people feared evil spirits – especially on their birthdays. It was a common belief that evil spirits were more dangerous to a person when he or she experienced a change in their daily life, such as turning a year older. So family and friends surrounded the person with laughter and joy on their birthdays in order to protect them from evil.

How can anyone in his right mind think that Islam would be indifferent to practices seeped in anti-Islamic ideas and beliefs? Islam came to destroy paganism in all its forms and it cannot tolerate any trace of it in the lives of its followers.”

You can add wishing on candles to that argument. There’s also:

“They [Muslims] don’t celebrate it because they come from different cultures and they have their own customs and traditions which is unique to them.”

5am wake up call for 2 cakes and 48 cupcakes.

Only had time to make ten invites. Everyone else got a photo of it. Maybe next year I can invoke the “Islam doesn’t celebrate birthdays” clause.

If you’re uneasy about it, why not celebrate by giving and doing something for others like treating other people to something special that day, donating to charity in your honor, or simply taking a moment to reflect on your life. If it’s a pagan thing, then forget about the candles and the party. If it’s a culture thing, then who cares. A lot of what we incorporate into our lives now doesn’t come from an Islamic tradition. The latter is the shallowest of excuses reserved for people who want to squeeze joy from life.

But what I really don’t understand are the parents who don’t allow their kids to celebrate their own birthdays, but then turn around and take them to other kids’ parties. What a great way to mess up your kid.

In my view it’s perfectly acceptable to celebrate birthdays. Personally, I treat birthdays as an excuse to show someone how much I love them.

The birthday party I thew for my sister.

The only birthday regret I have is forgetting to squeeze in for the cake cutting photo opp on his first birthday. I had to admit, when I saw all the photos and realized I wasn’t in it, I cried and cried for an hour. The thought that went through my head was: the only only birthday photo that matters is the cake cutting and when he looks back he’ll see I wasn’t in it and think his mommy wasn’t there. Oh God, it broke my heart.Luckily my sister was able to bandage the situation by photoshopping something together.

As Azi’s sitting here now on my lap with head in hand, determined to count the bananas on his counting app, I look at this adorable podgy loving little thing and I can’t ever imagine tell him, “no, you can’t have a birthday.”

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When Azi was born, I wanted nothing more than to create an entire world for him. I didn’t want anything in return other than the satisfaction of knowing I was giving him this thing that he might love. It doesn’t really matter if he remembers or appreciates it. All that matters is it was given to him.  I suppose that’s how God feels.

If I was asked to give any room tips, I’d say keep away from plain. Kids don’t care about style; they care about discovery. So give them lots of color, lights, textures, and other ways to keep discovering their world. My favorite part about all this has been making the tissue paper chandelier, a cloud/rain mobile from paint swatches and two sticks, using vintage flash cards as wall art, and more. I’ve also taken loads of pics to include in his photo album so as he gets older and looks back, he’s got an idea of what his environment was like too.

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A child brings many blessings, but one that isn’t really talked about that much is how a child enables us to be child-like again. I love madness, silliness, things that don’t make sense, and just having a good time doing things other people might question my sanity for. Before Azi, I didn’t really do those things anymore because I was too “grown up” – I had lost my childlike state. With him though, all that’s flooding back and better than ever.

You see, as a child, creativity wasn’t really something that was encouraged. Even though my mom, for example, is one of the most creative people I know, it’s something that culturally isn’t made a a priority. And it still isn’t for too many Muslim parents. There’s something more important than creativity, and that’s nonsense. Even when creativity (and I don’t just mean sticking the kid in an art class) is there, nonsense is almost never really tolerated. It’s an absolute shame to not encourage this critical and beautiful part of life that should be savored throughout our entire life – not just childhood. Starving creativity and outlawing nonsese damages free thinking. And maybe there you have it -free thinking isn’t something that’s looked upon as a desirable characteristic in children. Free thinkers are tougher to control.

Even though I was raised relatively progressive, free thinking wasn’t really a huge factor in my upbringing. As a mom, I’m doing everything I can to make sure my little boy feels safe to be as silly as he wants. Today, that involved buying a car full of balloons and heading to the park, where we drew in all the little Asian kids who asked if it was Azi’s birthday. It was baffling to them to see a float of balloons without there being a reason for it. And the excitement and enthusiasm in their eyes, how the “switched on” at the side of bubbly colorful balloons tangling and teasing their way, tells me their parents probably don’t encourage a lot of madness either.

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“No sooner had I cleaned my seven-week-old daughter’s poop off my lap the other day (don’t ask) than my two-year-old tried and failed to empty a jug of milk into a teacup she had perched atop a stack of art books (you have to understand what a book fetish I have to fully appreciate how traumatizing this was). Why, I tried to remember, did I decide to have kids?”

It got me reflecting on why I decided to have my little tornado who at this exact moment is setting up a battalion of dinosaurs and grunting like one. Meanwhile I look like I just crawled out of that war, staggering and defeated. The house (as usual) looks like a toy store raid, breakfast is somewhere in the kitchen half-made, I’m in “second” PJs (which are not PJs, but a version of home, but not public friendly, sweats), and I’m already about an hour behind schedule – and the battalion has just been ditched in favor of crawling under my desk to explore techie bits and bots. A wave of paranoia floods me as Reagan makes himself a little too comfortable.

So why did I do this to myself? Mark talks about kids giving people purpose and meaning in their life. In my case QC already gave me more than enough purpose. I didn’t need purpose and meaning. What I wanted was to experience life itself – the whole messy unpredictable divine thing first hand.

I had no idea, couldn’t possibly imagine, how freaking spectacular the ride is, poop, vomit, tantrums and all. Even the impossible pregnancy, a grueling C-section recovery, the 2 days of post-partum depression, and the ironically dehumanizing image of myself sitting with breast-pump attached with only the sound of a mechanical “suck and release” filling the air – even all that was worth it, a thousand times over.

Am I “less happy” as the post suggests, sure -  but that’s only when it comes to instant gratification. I have less money. I don’t always get to comb my hair. I rarely get to go out socially. I got an awful post-baby belly, wrinkles…but I also shed the last of my ego and gained a genuine smile. In a bigger picture, I’m happy because my life is filled with a love and bond beyond anything else I could ever create in this world. Everything else is just irrelevant static.

Related posts:

1. Hijab and Children: Australia’s Bullied Six Year Old Shows How Children Are Subject to Religious Indoctrination

Source: http://blogs.nyu.edu/blogs/gc69/stdin/devil_angel440x300.jpg

I was about 8 years old when I first learned about the Islamic belief in two angels on our shoulders who make note of all our thoughts and acts. Scribes, they’re called – one noting all things good, and the other all things bad.

I felt quite uncomfortable with this. I thought, “I’ve already got God watching me.  Do I really want two more sets of eyes over my shoulders?” I looked to the left, and then discerningly to the right, with Eastwood-esque squints that cried “You’re not as clever as you think. I know you’re there, you tricky little angels.” And so with a decisive flick to the right and a flick to the left, I sent my angels hurdling with their scrolls in tow.

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