Itching to Convert?
By Abdul-Majeed Azad
Pasadena, CA
Remember, John Walker Lindh, Jose Padilla, Adam Gadahn, Christopher Paul Kenyatta Law (US citizens), Richard Reid, DhirenBarot, Andrew Rowe (British) and, David Hicks and Musa Cerantonio (Australian)?
They all (except Adam Gadahn, aka Azzam Al-Amriki, the so-called American face and voice of Al-Qaeda) are rightfully serving long sentences either in the US or in their home countries for carrying out (or attempting to) terrorist attacks on behalf of Al-Qaeda.
Oh yes, then there was another sicko: Russell Defreitas. He and his three co-conspirators from Guyana and Trinidad had plans to blow up pipelines leading up to JFK airport.
Later, the baton changed hands and the goons became ISIS who left no stone unturned to recruit only the demented, lonely and deranged losers - such as the mentally sick Malik couple from San Bernardino and equally abhorrent guy Mateen in Orlando. In that line of freaks, earlier last week came Khalid Masood, the 52-year old butcher of London.
With the exception of the Maliks and Mateen, all these 'martyred soldiers' -as the ISIS propaganda likes to call them - have one thing in common: they are all new Muslim converts.
And this is what should be most alarming - as if the doctrine of ‘violence and terror’ is the prescribed mandate for these converts. The fantasy can’t be further from it.
Point in case is the London killer, who we now know, was all his life, a petty criminal and a drug peddler with violent behavior. One fine morning/evening he decides he wants to repent and, guess who is there to throw him the spiritual lifeline: probably one ignorant half-cooked cleric from Indian subcontinent!
Among his victims was Kurt Cochran from Utah who was in London celebrating his 25th marriage anniversary with his wife Melissa, who was also injured in the attack.The surreal circumstance of Mr Cochran's killing by this merciless psychopath has shocked the entire world.
At dark moments like these when it appears as if compassion and value for human life has left this planet, the perseverance and calm exhibited by his phenomenal parents, family and his church in Utah remind us that sanity prevails over grave calamity, no matter how horrifying it is.
Their willingness to forgive the perpetrator speaks volumes not only about the magnanimity of their hearts but also the greatness of their faith. We Muslims can certainly learn a thing or two from these amazing people.
The London killings are yet another reminder that the religion hijacked a decade-and-half ago on 9/11, is still in captivity by a bunch that wrongly calls itself Muslims.
Every true, sincere and God-fearing Muslim on this planet ought to condemn this murderer, because there is nothing Islamic about his purportedly diabolic ideology.
I pray for the great hero - a fellow American and a brother in humanity. We pray that God heals his family, comforts them and they find in their hearts to forgive us, for we Muslims didn’t do enough to avert this tragedy.
There are about 1.2 billion Muslims on this planet: good, bad and rotten. Only a tiny fraction of it is covertly defacing Islam and putting rest of us to utter shame.
Islam doesn’t need any more converts, for God’s sake! In fact, if all the converts with their deviated ideologies, corrupted beliefs and senseless atrocities against humanity in the name of Islam, were confined to the picturesque Guantanamo Bay till the Judgment Day, it wouldn’t faze Islam’s glory even by an iota!
Neither does Islam need rest of the 1.2 billion zombies who are too meek and weak to muster the courage to take a firm stand against so few who have hijacked the religion.
My faith's commandments to me are clear: strive to keep my friends and neighbors safe, protect their property, and defend their honor in the same way as I would mine. My belief also asks me to be vigilant towards those harboring ill against innocent fellow citizens and the land I call home.
I love my religion; in fact I'm passionate about its beauty and the sublime message. It is the ‘new’ followers that I have trouble with and cannot stand. So, how can we Muslims stop (as we must) the growth and menace of such extremism in our midst?
Next time someone declares his/her express desire to convert, the Muslim community should show him/her the ‘new’ 1-day/4-part crash-course manifesto:
- Exposure to intense illumination and sleep deprivation (between midnight and 6 AM)
- Blaring heavy metal rendition (between 6 AM and 12 noon)
- Flight to Gitmo and hovering over the Bay (between noon and 6 PM) and,
- Confinement to a pitch-dark room (between 6 PM and midnight)
Such a manifesto would certainly bring extreme pleasure to the far-right zealots like Wilder Geert and Marine Le Pen.
Torture? By golly, no!
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