Another day, another blast
The frequency of bombings around the world lately is mind boggling. There was another terrorist attack in the resort city of Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt today. Similar attacks in Iraq have occured so often that there have been times when I wasn't sure whether I was reading about the same incident or a different one. The last thing we need is to get used to such reports as a regular feature of the daily news.
I think I would dismiss any perceptions that the same central (or even decentralized) group is behind all the Islamist-extremist attacks that have happened in the past few years (9/11, the Madrid train attacks, the London bombs being referred to now as 7/7, today's blasts in Sharm el Sheikh, and more). It is more reasonable to believe that the relatively successful use of suicide attacks could likely have encouraged separate and distinct terrorist outfits in different areas of the world to use suicide bombings as a tool to accomplish their goals.
The problem still remains though that all these incidents are linked to or backed by Islamic ideology by their perpetrators. A layman or your average spectator would question if there is a side of Islam that sanctions such acts; whether there is an interpretation of Islamic teachings different from the one heralded by Muslims who condemn taking innocent/civilian lives, but equally valid and prevalent enough to influence other Muslims from different areas and cultures of the world to resort to such acts.
I can say, as many others have said and continue to say, that the answer is a resounding no, but the frequent acts of terrorism being committed in the name of Islam are scars that are visible long after such statements fade from memory.
6 comments:
If I might bring up a similar analogy - The Crusades, committed in the name of Christianity did not represent Christianity in the least. There was absolutely nothing Christian about those horrendous activities. However, the scars have been visible long after the acts have been committed; To this day people refuse to hear the Christian message on account of the stories they have heard about the Crusades. If these attacks continue in the name of Islam, I can only wonder if there will be similar consequences for Islam, even as far as a thousand years down the road.
I guess the question is what can mainstream Muslims do to minimize the damage done to Islam's image?
WHat role do Western Muslims have and what role do Muslim coutries have?
Peter, that's a question worth thinking about.
I wonder if there is any truth to the proposition that, after Christianity and Judaism, it is now Islam's turn to make its painful transition from the medieval/traditional to the modern.
It is true that since the 19th century or even earlier, the Islamic world has had this uneasy interaction with the modern West, spawning many reform movements which have included calls to literalism.
Widespread cross-cultural travel and emigration, globalization and the advent of the information age have made the Islamic world's turbulent 'adolescence' a global issue.
Hammad, the problem is not limited to cleaning up Islam's image. The real question is why are Muslims from distinct social and cultural settings around the world resorting to such acts, and what can be done to reverse this trend and at least keep it from spreading.
You have any answers?
Hammad, it would be fantastic if I had all the answers to this problem.
I did talk about some of the things that, in my opinion, need to happen if we are to tackle these issues, in an earlier post. You can look at that post and the links within if you haven't already.
Post a Comment