Islamic body seeks new role to fight "Islamophobia"

[Ordr]

Source: Reuters

Facing "Islamophobia" in the West, the world's biggest Islamic body is seeking to rebrand itself this week as a forum for settling conflicts peacefully and for redistributing wealth to the world's poorest states.

At a summit on Thursday and Friday in Senegal, the 57-nation Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) will seek to agree on a modern charter that will give it a more active, influential role as the voice of Islam in a globalised world.

OIC leaders meet in Dakar at a time when suspicion in the West about the Muslim world remains high, still colored by the September 11, 2001 attacks carried out by Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda in the name of militant Islam.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSL1184812620080311?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews

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Hopefully this will strengthen the possibility for a true reformist movement in Islam to further distance the majority of peaceful observers from the violent orthodox/fundamentalist minority.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. This should be encouraged

I'm glad to see this happening.

Right now, conservatives in this country are branding all Muslims as terrorists, saying they should be isolated, deported, or, at the very least, treated like second class citizens and never trusted. Muslims are the new "N-word" to the world, I think, especially here, where the general impression is that all Muslims are dark skinned.

[MorningGlow]

4. I agree, Ayesha

Nothing bothers me more than hearing people whisper "I hear s/he's a MUSLIM." And then the "accused" vehemently denies it. This, about a peaceful religion? It definitely needs better PR.

And don't even get me started about the whole "Hussein" business--doesn't the word mean "good" or "handsome", not "raging terrorist"?

[OhioChick]

10. A Close Friend of Mine is Muslim...

I feel for him and his family very deeply. They're always getting the "look-over" everywhere they go. On each anniversary of 9/11 they hide away in their home for the day. They're called "terrorists" amongst other choice phrases that I do not care to repeat. When all of the hoopla was all over the MSM about Obama possibly being a Muslim......He asked me "What is so wrong about being a Muslim?" We talk about our religions frequently and realize the fact that they're both peaceful religions...and we both believe nearly the same. Why does being a Muslim somehow signal that one is a terrorist?

It's a sad situation....

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

14. In southern Missouri, someone firebombed a mosque

and destroyed it. Ironic, isn't it, especially since most of the mainstream Muslims in the area are in the medical field--saving lives rather than destroying them.

[OhioChick]

16. Some Idiot Here From Parma

Ran his car into a Mosque. It was supposed to be a "revenge attack" for 9/11.

Ever see the movie "Rendition?" If not, you should. It's something that my friend always worries about. (Movie shows graphic torture and waterboarding scenes) Basic story-line.....Foreign man gets picked up by US govt officials and is a suspected terrorist suspect. I won't be a spoiler and give away any more.

[soundguy]

2. They Should Start By Cleaning Out Their Own Closet

Perhaps if the religion of peace were peaceful and granted woman equal rights people would buy the propaganda. I doubt they will ever be able to sell us a religion that personifies a pedophile and is pluralistic to the extent of allow anything. we just aren't that 12th century anymore. In America being an American is first. And NEVER EVER trust anyone who identifies themselves as a religion first. And to add a footnote: The 911 hijackers were considered quite and peaceful by those who knew them, right up until the time they killed 3000 Americans. Clean out your own house then come talk to us.

[Ordr]

3. I think that is their intent.

It seems to me that this is the beginning of a reformist movement in Islam in order to eschew the medieval aspects of the faith and effectively modernize it, much like Christianity and Judaism have done.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

6. Yes, this is the start

And one must realize that Islam is not structured like Christianity. There are many different sects, each structured in their own way. There is no equivalent to the Pope. The infamous imams who send out fatwahs are merely religious scholars, and even shaykhs and mullahs only have limited sway over their followers. In Islam, one does not have to EVER go to an imam for confession, for an imam is not a priest--he is a scholar, more like a rabbi. A Muslim doesn't have to go to a mosque to pray--prayer can be done anywhere, and there is no one who intercedes between the believer and God. And each mosque is independent, run by a board--no synods like in the Lutheran Church, for example. Sufis are even looser in their structure-the "leaders" are spiritual ones, initiating people and then training them individually on their personal spiritual path. They have no power over another-in fact, a true teacher discourages anyone from giving them this power. There is no requirement that one give a tithe to the order, though they don't mind if you donate so that the website and charities can continue.

[shadowknows69]

8. There's really no equivalent person to the Pope for non-catholics either

Christianity has its own multiple sect problem as well.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

9. True, Shadow

but in Christianity, ministers are given more power and respect than you find in many sects of Islam. And in some Protestant churches, you do have a church hierarchy-the Archbishop of Canterbury for Anglicans/ Episcopalians, the Bishops of the United Methodist Church, even the synods of Lutheran Churches and meetings of Baptists.

What I see is a lot of people assuming that Islam has the same structure and makeup as Christianity, which it simply doesn't.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

5. Ok, sound guy

guess what? I'm a Muslim-- a Sufi initiate. Sufis have Orders in which people are initiated, and these Orders are international in scope.

My order has had a WOMAN as its head-this was back in 1927, only 7 years after women in the US were given the vote. My order has had WOMEN ordained ministers since before that time. Senior teachers in this Order are women to this day.

My order welcomes people of all sexual orientation, not only as members but as ministers and teachers.

My order does not involve itself in politics, but rather in ecumenical conferences, and sponsors the Hope Project in India, which teaches women a trade and helps them become financially independent.

So please don't assume that all Muslims are misanthropic monsters, please.

Also, I think it is quite cheeky to assume that Sufis, Sunnis, and any Muslim not a fundamentalist could "clean out" the house of Saudi Arabia. What is done by this group is going to be about as much as can be done at this time, at least until such time as Saudi Arabia allows Sufis and others to practice their faith, which they don't do now. To think that Muslims who abhor and totally disagree with the actions of the 911 hijackers can somehow magically 'stop' the excesses of the Saudis makes as much sense as condemning ALL Christians for the murderous actions of anti-abortionists who have bombed clinics and murdered doctors. Wouldn't it seem silly for me to demand that folks from the United Church of Christ do something about something a Catholic did?

[onager]

11. And Sufism has produced its share of lunatics and fanatics.

Usual Disclaimers: I do not assume all Muslims are "misanthropic monsters" and would be in deep trouble if I did. I have spent about 5 years living in the Middle East, I'm still here, and I literally trust my life to Muslims every day.

Myself, I am a Militant Fundamentalist Atheist.

Just pointing out that, like used cars and pyramid schemes, any religion that sounds too good to be true probably is.

e.g., I rarely see any of these gentlemen mentioned in discussions of Sufism:

--Hassan el-Banna, the Egyptian Sufi sheikh who founded the Muslim Brotherhood in 1928. The MB was and is a terrorist organization, though it is trying to put on a happy face and take over the Egyptian government democratically. In the 2005 elections it won 88 seats in the People's Assembly, to the unalloyed horror of all Egyptian moderates, liberals and feminists.

--Ayatollah Khomeini, who seems to have patterned the Iranian Islamic Revolution on the ideas of another Sufi fanatic, Tabandeh. According to the good ol' Wikipedia: However, perhaps Khomeini's biggest influences were yet another teacher, Mirza Muhammad 'Ali Shahabadi, and a variety of historic Sufi mystics, including Mulla Sadra and Ibn Arabi.

--Osama bin-Laden is said to be very fond of an old Sufi quotation: Death is an art. Though bin-Laden otherwise considers Sufism heretical, as far as I know. That may be the influence of his second-in-command, the Egyptian Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, lifelong member of the Muslim Brotherhood.

I am writing this not too far away from a major Sufi shrine in Tanta, Egypt--the tomb of the 13th-century Sufi mystic Ahmad al-Badawi. His moulid (festival) is an annual 3-day party.

The Muslim Brotherhood hates that, which for once puts them in agreement with the official Sunni mouthpiece in Egypt, the so-called "moderates" at Al-Azhar University. (That university is, in fact, often quite immoderate, as a few minutes with Google will show.) To both the MB and Al-Azhar, such practices are idolatry and leftovers from jahaliya--the Age Of Ignorance.

Yes, that would be the same Age Of Ignorance that produced centuries of human progress. Until the Age Of Monotheism came along and put a stop to it.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

13. You don't get what "death" means

and apparently bin Laden, who is NOT a Sufi, doesn't either.

The death is that of the ego.

Oh, btw, none of those Sufis you mention are in my lineage or that of my Order, which was the order I talked about in my reply to soundman.

[onager]

17. OK, those guys are not REAL Sufis...

Gotcha! That argument seems strangely familiar.

And "ego" is just your interpretation, which is one of the major problems with religion. Fundamentalist or not. You might find it symbolic, Mr. bin-Laden might think it quite literal. And given the bizarre ways in which religion works, you would both be right, of course.

[shadowknows69]

7. First of all, and this is a pet peeve of mine

It wasn't just 3,000 Americans in those towers. "World" Trade Center. Second, congratulations on parroting just about every RW talking point about Muslims in one short paragraph. Quite a feat. Thanks also as it helps us spot you sooner. Enjoy your stay.

[kineneb]

12. half my family are followers of Islam (Shiia)- so?

They live all over the world, and some are still in Iran. They are not militant, violent, or misogynist. If one of the men of the family tried to force the women to wear a burka or such, the guys would be eating said item. They quietly go about their daily lives and practice their religion in private.

The problem is not the religion, it is fundamentalism, of whatever kind: the attitude that there is only one path and all others are wrong.

Chill. Go get an English translation of the Koran and give it a read. Then come back for a chat.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

15. Amin!

Very good advice--and from what I know of Muslim women, very accurate!