10 terms not to use with Muslims

[Hatalles]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0328/p09s01-coop.html

The Christian Science Monitor
10 terms not to use with Muslims

There's a big difference between what we say and what they hear.

By Chris Seiple
from the March 28, 2009 edition

Arlington, Va. - In the course of my travels – from the Middle East to Central Asia to Southeast Asia – it has been my great privilege to meet and become friends with many devout Muslims. These friendships are defined by frank respect as we listen to each other; understand and agree on the what, why, and how of our disagreements, political and theological; and, most of all, deepen our points of commonality as a result.

I have learned much from my Muslim friends, foremost this: Political disagreements come and go, but genuine respect for each other, rooted in our respective faith traditions, does not. If there is no respect, there is no relationship, merely a transactional encounter that serves no one in the long term.

As President Obama considers his first speech in a Muslim majority country (he visits Turkey April 6-7), and as the US national security establishment reviews its foreign policy and public diplomacy, I want to share the advice given to me from dear Muslim friends worldwide regarding words and concepts that are not useful in building relationships with them. Obviously, we are not going to throw out all of these terms, nor should we. But we do need to be very careful about how we use them, and in what context.

1. "The Clash of Civilizations." Invariably, this kind of discussion ends up with us as the good guy and them as the bad guy. There is no clash of civilizations, only a clash between those who are for civilization, and those who are against it. Civilization has many characteristics but two are foundational: 1) It has no place for those who encourage, invite, and/or commit the murder of innocent civilians; and 2) It is defined by institutions that protect and promote both the minority and the transparent rule of law.

2. "Secular." The Muslim ear tends to hear "godless" with the pronunciation of this word. And a godless society is simply inconceivable to the vast majority of Muslims worldwide. Pluralism – which encourages those with (and those without) a God-based worldview to have a welcomed and equal place in the public square – is a much better word.

3. "Assimilation." This word suggests that the minority Muslim groups in North America and Europe need to look like the majority, Christian culture. Integration, on the other hand, suggests that all views, majority and minority, deserve equal respect as long as each is willing to be civil with one another amid the public square of a shared society.

4. "Reformation." Muslims know quite well, and have an opinion about, the battle taking place within Islam and what it means to be an orthodox and devout Muslim. They don't need to be insulted by suggesting they follow the Christian example of Martin Luther. Instead, ask how Muslims understand ijtihad, or reinterpretation, within their faith traditions and cultural communities.

5. "Jihadi." The jihad is an internal struggle first, a process of improving one's spiritual self-discipline and getting closer to God. The lesser jihad is external, validating "just war" when necessary. By calling the groups we are fighting "jihadis," we confirm their own – and the worldwide Muslim public's – perception that they are religious. They are not. They are terrorists, hirabists, who consistently violate the most fundamental teachings of the Holy Koran and mainstream Islamic scholars and imams.

6. "Moderate." This ubiquitous term is meant politically but can be received theologically. If someone called me a "moderate Christian," I would be deeply offended. I believe in an Absolute who also commands me to love my neighbor. Similarly, it is not an oxymoron to be a mainstream Muslim who believes in an Absolute. A robust and civil pluralism must make room for the devout of all faiths, and none.

7. "Interfaith." This term conjures up images of watered-down, lowest common denominator statements that avoid the tough issues and are consequently irrelevant. "Multifaith" suggests that we name our deep and irreconcilable theological differences in order to work across them for practical effect – according to the very best of our faith traditions, much of which are values we share.

8. "Freedom." Unfortunately, "freedom," as expressed in American foreign policy, does not always seek to engage how the local community and culture understands it. Absent such an understanding, freedom can imply an unbound licentiousness. The balance between the freedom to something (liberty) and the freedom from something (security) is best understood in a conversation with the local context and, in particular, with the Muslims who live there. "Freedom" is best framed in the context of how they understand such things as peace, justice, honor, mercy, and compassion.

9. "Religious Freedom." Sadly, this term too often conveys the perception that American foreign policy is only worried about the freedom of Protestant evangelicals to proselytize and convert, disrupting the local culture and indigenous Christians. Although not true, I have found it better to define religious freedom as the promotion of respect and reconciliation with the other at the intersection of culture and the rule of law – sensitive to the former and consistent with the latter.

10. "Tolerance." Tolerance is not enough. Allowing for someone's existence, or behavior, doesn't build the necessary relationships of trust – across faiths and cultures – needed to tackle the complex and global challenges that our civilization faces. We need to be honest with and respect one another enough to name our differences and commonalities, according to the inherent dignity we each have as fellow creations of God called to walk together in peace and justice, mercy and compassion.

The above words and phrases will differ and change over the years, according to the cultural and ethnic context, and the (mis)perceptions that Muslims and non-Muslims have of one another. While that is to be expected, what counts most is the idea that we are earnestly trying to listen to and understand each other better; demonstrating respect as a result.



• Chris Seiple is the president of the Institute for Global Engagement, a "think tank with legs" that promotes sustainable environments for religious freedom worldwide.

[DonCoquixote]

1. Some Good, some bad

There are Good points in this article, but also some terrible ones.

I do agree on integration vs assimilation, where we do not have to force people to start acting like Joe Suburbs to be accepted. However, just like Muslim immigrants should get no less than anyone else, they must also follow the same rules, such as try to learn english, and understand that there is a separate body of law that cannot be made to defer to any one religion.

However, here is my bone to pick:

6. "Moderate." This ubiquitous term is meant politically but can be received theologically. If someone called me a "moderate Christian," I would be deeply offended. I believe in an Absolute who also commands me to love my neighbor. Similarly, it is not an oxymoron to be a mainstream Muslim who believes in an Absolute. A robust and civil pluralism must make room for the devout of all faiths, and none."

ER, sorry, but religions of all sorts, from Islam to Marxism, have an ugly habit of treating people who are not devout as lesser than you. Frankly, I do not care what absolute you believe in, your obligation to be civil and moral extends from something that is well beyond the reaches of whatever group of people you associate yourself with. If I rely on your faith as the means for you to be civil, that means that whatever religious leader can fill your head with the means to hate me, and that means I shall NOT trust you.


10. "Tolerance." Tolerance is not enough. Allowing for someone's existence, or behavior, doesn't build the necessary relationships of trust – across faiths and cultures – needed to tackle the complex and global challenges that our civilization faces. We need to be honest with and respect one another enough to name our differences and commonalities, according to the inherent dignity we each have as fellow creations of God called to walk together in peace and justice, mercy and compassion.

OK, I can agree with this. It is not enough to Tolerate each other, Tolerate implies a trap that you will get out of the second you have a chance. It should be based on inherent dignity, however, leave your creations of god out of it. I owe you dignity as a human being, not because you prefer Brand X religion.

Lastly:

"Civilization has many characteristics but two are foundational: 1) It has no place for those who encourage, invite, and/or commit the murder of innocent civilians; and 2) It is defined by institutions that protect and promote both the minority and the transparent rule of law."

Er, one problem, this sentiment goes against ALL religion. All religions encourage violence, and all of them encourage the persecution of minorties, as well as the muddying of the law.

[Cronus Protagonist]

2. It's impossible to respect fanatical nut-jobs who want to kill, maim or injure in the name of God

Impossible, at least, without becoming one yourself. I, personally, refuse to do that.

[MADem]

3. I don't agree with this list at all, and I've lived in lands where Islam dominates.

The Turks use "secular" all the time.

"Moderate" depends entirely on the context in which it is used. Same too with "religious freedom"--believe me, "religious freedom" makes life nice here in the USA. It's an important concept when that mosque is being built.

I could go on, but suffice it to say that this guy is "overthinking" some of his objections, and he's also homogenizing--Islam is a very decentralized faith, with many sects, and what's good for one isn't always good for the other. His thesis is as absurd as trying to pick out everyday terms and words (as opposed to religiously blashphemous words, of course) that all Christians, without exception, would find offensive.

My conclusion. Eh. I'm not swayed by his arguments, at least not entirely. I agree that staying away from Civilization clash, Jihad and Reformation (to say nothing of CRUSADE) is a good idea, but the rest is entirely negotiable; certainly contextual.

[Boojatta]

4. When people use their religious freedom to promote respect...

are they using their promotion of respect to promote respect?

I have found it better to define religious freedom as the promotion of respect and reconciliation with the other at the intersection of culture and the rule of law – sensitive to the former and consistent with the latter.

[salguine]

5. 11. "The United States does not torture."

[Demeter]

6. All of This Is an Exercise In Manners

do not discuss religion or politics--that's all you need to know.

[TankLV]

7. I'd like to be among the FIRST to say: BULLSHIT!!!!

TOLERANCE is RESPECT for OTHERS - and ACKNOWLEDGING that YOU don't HAVE SOLE POSSESSION of ALL the ANSWERS!

TOLERANCE is also not beheading someone for being GAY or - ADOPTING ANOTHER RELIGION OTHER THAN FUCKING ISLAM!!!

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM mean NOT SHOVING YOUR FUCKING INTOLERANT RELIGION DOWN OTHER'S THROATS!!!

INTERFAITH means finding COMMON GROUND with OTHER RELIGIONS - and SHOWING RESPECT to other persons BELIEFS, just like YOU DEMAND!!!

If they don't like the term "SECULAR" - I say TOUGH SHIT and BITE ME!!! WE will push to keep YOUR fucking RELIGION out of OUR faces, thankyouverymuch...

and finally,

ISLAM is NOT the end all and be all and answer for everything they YOU fucking INTOLERANT asshole wish...!!!

JESUSMOHAMMADFUCKINGCHRISTONAHALFSHELL...

[bertman]

12. Thank you, TankLV. I agree wholeheartedly with every word of your post.

:toast:


When these assholes stop stoning women to death for being raped, when they stop killing people for not believing in Allah, when they start treating women with respect, then I'll BEGIN to think about respecting their religion.

Right now, it ranks up there with the worst of the fundamentalist Christian sects in my book.

[Creationismsucks]

8. If I were Muslim

...I would be REALLY offended by this list. It basically reduces to "These people can't stand anything that hints that their beliefs are not the center of the universe." or "These people can't translate properly" or some other such insult. I should make a list of things never to say to an atheist, and but the first nine on the list would be anything which limits speech, like this kind of list itself does. Muslims are just human beings. We should all interpret what we hear charitably. If your interlocutor does not, no about of PC pussyfooting will help.

[The Wizard]

9. Religious fanatics of all stripes

use the "God told them to commit mayhem" excuse.
If Marx was right about anything it was his views on religion.
May almighty Zeus smote them.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

10. most people dont like to be attacked by nonfamily/outsiders/outgroup

[Daveparts]

11. I Visited My Local Mosque

I called and asked for an invitation and explained that I wanted to do a news story on local Muslims in Georgia. I also explained the purpose of the article was to teach and learn about each other.

I arrived early and spoke with several men in the congregation, some were professionals some were laborers but all were friendly and open. They understood that I was not gathering information to condemn them but only to learn.

We discussed history, religion, politics, Israel, Iraq, Bush, Cheney, 9-11 and they were open to all the words on the above list.

More than anything I learned that they were Americans who wince at extremism just as I wince when Pat Robertson or Rick Santorum says something stupid. They explained that after 9-11 local Christan Churches had offered support and security both for their Mosque and their families. They truly appreciated the spirit of the gesture and have held other meet and greet sessions.

The service was simple in its beauty, the alter humble. The congregation not different from any other.

[bertman]

13. He forgot #11. Misogynistic, patriarchal, arrogant monotheists.