Scholar Tells Senate of ISIL's 'Parallel Religion'

[rug]

Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Last Update: 12:30 PM PT
By BRITAIN EAKIN

WASHINGTON (CN) - The Islamic State group lacks religious literacy, is far removed from the teachings of Islam, and its followers are a minority, experts told members of a Senate committee.

Before extremist groups declared war on the United States, "they declared war on Islam," said Tarek Elgawhary, testifying Tuesday before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee.

A doctor of Islamic law from Princeton University, Elgawhary called the Islamic State, often abbreviated as ISIS or ISIL, an existential threat to Islam.

"They are unlettered war mongers who have in essence created a parallel religion," Elgawhary said. "Yet this parallel religion that they call to is no more Islamic than a pool with one lemon squeezed in it is lemonade."

http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/06/22/scholar-tells-senate-of-isils-parallel-religion.htm

http://www.lettertobaghdadi.com/

[MellowDem]

1. Ah yes... No true Islam...

The whole belief system is toxic, even the more moderate strains, and in-fighting is to be expected when you look at the toxic stew of texts it is based in.

The only thing keeping up the charade is that no one wants to be too honest about a belief system with over a billion people identifying with it. If it were 200 people, it would condemned for the hateful shit it is.

[Nitram]

2. The toxic elements are either political or remnants of a distant historical past.

The basic elements of Islam consist of a philosophy of self-development and harmony with the wider society in which the believer lives. You have made a toxic generalization totally unfounded on reality. Whether it is because of a hatred of all religions or just Islam, I guess only you know for sure.

[MellowDem]

4. Excuses for a bigoted belief system...

The Quran and Hadiths have plenty of hate and bigotry in them, and are definitely part of the present. That's not a generalization.

Your explanation pretends that hate and bigotry isn't there and doesn't currently inspire all sorts of negative outcomes.

You're just defending religious privilege.

[Nitram]

5. I "pretend" nothing.

I observe that both fundamentalist Christians and fundamentalist Muslims harbor obsolete views of marriage, homosexuality, birth control, sin, patriarchy, mercy, and other religions that mentally healthy believers in both religions have long ago discarded. I see fundamentalist Christians praising the murder of 49 LGBT people in Orlando - clearly sharing very similar, if not identical, views with the man committed the atrocity. I'm afraid it is your head that is firmly planted in the sand with your anti-Muslim stance.

[MellowDem]

7. You deflect...

Christianity is also a hateful and bigoted religion.

But here, an Islamic scholar is trying to distance his own belief system from its hateful beliefs. That's wrong, but all too common.

Believers in mainstream religions do this constantly, ignoring how their own texts inspire hate by pretending they have nothing to do with it. That's religious privilege, to be a nice person identifying with a hateful belief system and face no criticism for it.

[rug]

8. You have it backwards.

He's distancing acts of terrorism from the consensus of Islamic scholars.

[MellowDem]

9. I wonder what the consensus of Islamic scholars is...

on homosexuality.

If you preach hatred and bigotry about a group, you're partially to blame if that leads to violence against them. Islam explicitly does in its texts, and there is no way to distance the bigotry of Islam from the violence it inspires.

[rug]

10. Read the letter linked above.

It's a pretty orthodox exegesis. More importantly, it states what Muslims should - and should not - do based on the teachings.

[edhopper]

3. Sorry

are Islamic. A minority sect, but Islamic none the less. And i would hazard to guess they are following much more of Islam than the lemon and pool metaphor. Much of what they do can be found in other places that follow Islamic Law. Are they much different than the Taliban, the Saudi Government, parts of Pakistan...

Are Christian Scientists, Jehovah Witnesses, 7th day Adventist "parallel religions"?

[Nitram]

6. Are Christian Scientists, Jehovah Witnesses, 7th day Adventist "parallel religions"?

I would strongly argue that they are indeed parallel religions considering how widely and deeply their beliefs differ. Just as the Western Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox sects differ, the Protestants and the Catholics differ.