The Pope,
the Christians and the Muslims
Let the Dialogue Begin (Part 2 of 7)
By Professor Nazeer
Ahmed
CA
That Islam was spread by the sword is a falsehood
that has been perpetrated by European writers
since the Crusades. Lately, it has become the
mantra of an Islamophobic press. Although all
religious traditions (including Islam) have been
used to further political-military agendas throughout
history, the record of Islam on this score compares
favorably with that of Christianity.
In the seventh century, as Arab armies swept across
the Eastern Roman and Persian empires, the Caliphs
in Damascus became masters of a vast realm extending
from the Amu Darya in Central Asia to the Pyrenees
in Europe. They established regional military
cantonments and imposed the jizya but otherwise
left the local populations alone. Egypt continued
to follow the Coptic Church and the Persians remained
Zoroastrian. It was some fifty years later, during
the reign of Caliph Abdel Aziz (d 719) that extensive
conversions took place in Egypt and Persia. This
was due to the abolition of the jizya and discriminatory
taxation and the ecumenical efforts of this benevolent
Caliph.
In later centuries the Turks of Central Asia,
the Indians in Malabar and the Indonesians in
the Archipelago peaceably entered the fold of
Islam and made enormous contributions to its civilization.
Despite more than five hundred years of Muslim
rule, southeastern Europe and northern India remained
predominantly non-Muslim. The historical truth
is that the sultans were more interested in tax
collection to support their lavish lifestyles
than conversion to further their faith.
As a doctrine, Islam abhors violence. The Qur’an
is unequivocal about this issue: “Do not
take life, which God has made sacred…) (17:33).
It is opposed to forced conversions: “Let
there be no compulsion in religion. Truth stands
out clear from error”. (2:256). It is true
that Muslims have not always lived up to these
commandments. But the Pope’s comments were
a thrust at Islam and the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh),
not Muslims.
The reasons for violence are political, not religious.
Violence, so endemic in nature, has become endemic
to the world of man. There is an extraordinary
amount of violence today, much of it inflicted
by states on individuals. Political correctness
prevents us from articulating names in these uncertain
times. Suffice it to state here that a vast majority
of those at the receiving end are Muslim men,
women and children. There has been group violence
too. Witness the genocide perpetrated by the “Christian”
Serbs against Bosnian Muslims (1992-94). There
is also individual violence, committed by Muslims
as well as non-Muslims. Witness the LTTE in Sri
Lanka. Unfortunately, the right wing press, in
a sustained, directed and rising barrage of propaganda
orchestrated over the last two decades, has made
it appear as if all violence is committed by Muslims.
No matter what its source, violence has no place
in a civilized encounter. It exacerbates the very
political grievances that it claims to mitigate.
It must be stopped through international cooperation.
Building up on layers of myths and misinformation,
an Islamophobic press in Europe and America has
created the impression that Islam condones violence.
The truth is exactly the opposite. The violent
acts of individual Muslims are an aberration.
Such acts may be packaged in a religious rhetoric
but they are contrary to the very essence of the
universal teachings of Islam, whose root meaning
is peace and the presence of the divine.
Whatever may have been his intent, Pope Benedict
XVI seems to have departed from the welcome ecumenical
initiatives of his predecessor Pope John Paul
II and has injected more stress along civilization
fault lines. His comments have provided ammunition
to the Islam-bashers, squeezed moderate Muslims
and reinforced the fringe groups on all sides.
The episode increases the pressure on the fragile
and young Islamic communities in Europe and America
who may be the ultimate target of the Islam-bashers.
Religion has been on the decline in Europe. People
are increasingly looking to the spirituality of
the East, including Islam, to provide them a spiritual
anchor. Add to this the substantial immigration
of Muslims from North Africa and Turkey into Europe.
The changing social scenario has raised alarm
bells among the right wing politicians and the
old establishments. The result is a burst of reactionary
anti-immigrant rhetoric and Islamophobic propaganda.
A close reading of the Pope’s lecture would
also explain why he has been opposed in the past
to the admission of Turkey in the European common
market. To Pope Benedict XVI, Europe was created
by a convergence of Biblical faith, Greek philosophical
inquiry and Roman heritage. He also asserts that
“Christianity, despite its origins and some
significant developments in the East, finally
took on its historically decisive character in
Europe.” It is not hard to see how this
position would have difficulty accommodating a
non-Christian Turkish Republic.
The Pope has articulated a vision of a Eurocentric
Christianity. By emphasizing the Greco-Roman-Christian
foundations of Europe he has thrown open the question
of Jewish and Muslim presence in that continent.
From a global perspective his position raises
questions about the accommodation of Asians and
Africans in a faith whose roots are Hellenistic
and whose heritage is Roman.
Our initial reaction to the Pope’s speech
was one of dismay. His subsequent call for a dialogue
between Christianity and Islam is a most welcome
change. Among the great religions of mankind,
Islam was the first ecumenical faith. The Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him) invited Christians
to Medina and housed them in the mosque to hold
a dialogue with them.
The Pope has laid out the Greek logos, or reason,
as the basis for dialogue across cultures. This
issue has had a checkered history in both Christianity
and Islam. Nonetheless, we can start a dialogue
on a rational basis, folding in the advances made
in recent times in the empirical-positivistic
sciences, and examine afresh the reach and limits
of reason in a divine discourse.
An ethical alliance between the Catholics and
the Muslims will create a constituency of 2.5
billion people, embracing more than a third of
humankind which can provide the engine for a peaceful
evolution of human civilization based on faith.
It is time to set aside the few doctrinal differences
that separate Christianity and Islam and focus
instead on the vast similarities between our two
Abrahamic faiths. It is time to talk. (To be continued)
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