Unending misinformation

On November 25, 2004, the Speakers Action Group, a non-profit organization that wishes to promote a greater understanding among Canadians of events occurring in the Middle East, and the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies held a panel discussion entitled, "Global Terrorism: Inside the Mind of the Jihadist." The keynote speaker was Dr. Bruce Tefft, a former counter-terrorism expert for the CIA and a current counter-terrorism and intelligence adviser for the New York City Police Department. 

During his speech, Dr. Tefft said many things which deeply disturbed me. According to the article about his comments in the Canadian Jewish News, Dr. Tefft said, "To pretend that Islam has nothing to do with Sept. 11 is to willfully ignore the obvious and to forever misinterpret events." He said that while there may be moderate Muslims, Islam itself is immoderate: "There is no difference between Islam and Islamic fundamentalism, which is a totalitarian construct." According to Dr. Tefft, all infidels are to be converted, enslaved, or killed by Muslims. He said that the Quran must be accepted on a literal basis if a Muslim is to be a true believer. He also said that Islam views Judaism and Christianity as failed religions and itself as the only true faith. 

It is astonishing to see that such Islamophobic views are freely touted by people who claim to have expertise and knowledge about counter-terrorism and intelligence. Dr. Tefft's statement that all infidels are to be converted, enslaved, or killed is completely inaccurate. The Quran is unequivocal in its defense of religious freedom: "There is no compulsion in (matters of) religion..." (Quran 2:256). Furthermore, the Quran says that the reason Muslims may have to take up arms in a just war, as a last resort, is to defend the sanctity of all houses of worship: "If God did not defend one set of people by means of another, then monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques, in which the name of God is commemorated in abundant measure, would surely have been destroyed..." (Quran 22:40). If Islam's aim is to convert, enslave, or kill all non-Muslims, why would it put Muslim lives in danger to defend non-Muslim houses of worship? 

The Muslim faithful are not required to accept the Quran on a literal basis if they are to be true Muslims. The Quran itself says that not every verse of the Quran is to be taken literally: "He it is Who has sent down to thee the Book: In it are verses basic or fundamental (of established meaning); they are the foundation of the Book: others are allegorical" (Quran 3:7). Quite obviously, these "allegorical verses," by their very nature, are not supposed to be taken literally. In fact, the Quran mentions that "those in whose hearts is perversity follow the part thereof that is allegorical, seeking discord, and searching for its hidden meanings" (Quran 3:7). Thus, I truly do not know from where Dr. Tefft learned that Muslims must accept the Quran on a literal basis to be true Muslims. Now, It is true that there are many Muslims who take an entirely literalist approach to the Quran, but the interpretations of these Muslims cannot be projected upon the entire community of Muslim faithful. 

Islam does not see Judaism and Christianity as failed religions. It is true that the Quran calls the followers of the earlier revelation to accept the prophet-hood of Muhammad . It is true that the Quran does not accept the notion of the Jews being the "chosen people" of God in exclusion of all others. It is true that the Quran rejects the notion of the divinity of Jesus and the concept of the Trinity. The Quran does this because it sees itself as the final message from God to mankind, and thus it seeks to correct the deviations from the original messages of Moses and Jesus, respectively. 

Yet, despite these rather tough stands, the Quran does not denigrate either faith. There is no statement in the Quran that issues a blanket condemnation of Jews or Christians. None. In fact, the Quran says, "Those who believe (in the Quran), and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Christians and the Sabians,- any who believe in God and the Last Day, and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve" (Quran 2:62). 

Now, if one wants to twist various verses of the Quran and misquote them; if one wants to quote various verses of the Quran out of context; if one wants to outright mistranslate various verses of the Quran, he will find ample "evidence" of all of what Dr. Tefft said about Islam. In fact, the suicidal militants of Islam do exactly that in their justification for the murder of innocent men, women, and children throughout the world. I agree with Dr. Tefft that, "To pretend that Islam has nothing to do with Sept. 11 is to willfully ignore the obvious." Those who committed the atrocity that is September 11 have twisted Islam into a monstrous abomination that calls for the murder of the innocent. Yet, that is the whole point: it is a distortion of Islam. The "Islam" that Dr. Tefft said was inextricably linked to September 11 is the "immoderate Islam" of the terrorists, not the true Islam of the believers, not the true Islam of the Prophet Muhammad . 

In reality, the things which Dr. Tefft reportedly said about Islam are not new. They are the same tired old misconceptions about Islam that have been present for decades if not centuries. Although I was extremely saddened by the things he reportedly said about Islam, all it goes to show is that we Muslims still have a lot of work to do. A whole lot of work to do.

Hesham A. Hassaballa is a Chicago physician and writer. He is author of "Why I Love the Ten Commandments," published in the book Taking Back Islam: American Muslims Reclaim Their Faith (Rodale Press), winner of the prestigious Wilbur Award for 2003 Best Religion Book of the Year by the Religion Communicators Council.