Bearing Witness

Having been blessed to be born a Muslim (relax, I am the housebroken variety), and having no intention to ever change my religion, I can never know what it takes to embrace a new religion.  But I imagine it would be one of the most dramatic life changes one can make. I have profound admiration for those who have the courage to make that life changing decision.

I have witnessed numerous brothers and sisters take the oath of faith and revert to Islam. The term revert is preferred to the term convert because Muslims believe that every child is born in its natural state as a Muslim. It is the parents that make the choice to raise the child in a different faith. So anyone that embraces Islam, is said to be reverting back to the faith they were born into, which is Islam. So you are either a Muslim or were a Muslim....how about them apples for Muslims taking over the world! Muslims believe that we are born pure and innocent - starting life out with a clean slate. We do not require to be cleansed or forgiven of any sins - because as infants, we have not committed any. A Muslim begins to be held accountable for his or her deeds when they have attained puberty and mental maturity. Yes, Allah accepts an insanity plea!

If Islam is to be summarized in one sentence, with the understandable limitation that that entails, it is this. Islam is the worship of one God. Other faiths will argue that they too believe in one God and that say the Trinity is in fact different representations of the same God or that their different idols are all pathways to the one God. Islam is the belief in one God, with no ifs ands or buts - period. No saints, no priests, no middlemen, no idols, no images, no creatures living or dead, no natural or supernatural phenomena. Islam puts forth the ideology that no intermediary is necessary between God and his creations. No one can represent God. The Western world's misunderstandings about Islam run so deep that until recent decades, Muslims were also referred to as Mohammedans, under the mistaken assumption that Muslims worshiped Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Nothing could go more against the grain of Islamic teaching as to worship a prophet. It is the remote possibility of Muslims falling into this very fallacy, that underpins the Muslim aversion to depict or see depicted the Prophet Muhammad in any form. It is reported that the Prophet himself forbade this for fear that his followers would out of respect and reverence for him, celebrate his image and thus be distracted from what should be their piercing focus on the one God. An attempt as we say to prevent losing the forest for the trees.

Returning to the subject of bearing witness, every oath taking I am part of (shahada, as it is called in Arabic), never fails to move me. The most recent one was of Amanda and her mother Kari. Given all the negative publicity that Islam gets, if Islam were a business, it would have filed for bankruptcy. It does not cease to amaze me that Islam is still the fastest growing religion in the world and the world's second largest. The largest being Christianity, but with the caveat of including (but not limited to) the Amish, Anglicans, Armenian Apostolic, Assemblies of God, Baptists, Calvary Chapel, Catholics, Christian Science, the Community of Christ, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Coptic Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches, Ethiopian Orthodox, Evangelicals, Iglesia ni Cristo, Jehovah's Witnesses, Lutherans, Methodists, Monophysites, Nestorians, the New Apostolic Church, Pentecostals, Plymouth Brethren, Presbyterians, the Salvation Army, Seventh-Day Adventists, Shakers and many others. Many in the above list will argue that they have few similarities with the others - in effect making them different faiths. By this token Islam is the largest single faith in the world. The only major split in Islam is between Sunni's and Shiites, with Sunnis making up 90%. The split began as a political disagreement over leadership following the death of the Prophet and not as a disagreement over religious beliefs.

Whenever I witness a shahada, the verses of chapter 110 of the Quran (An-Nasr) come to mind.

An-Nasr
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

When there comes the Help of Allah, and Victory, (1) And thou sees the People enter Allah's Religion in crowds, (2) Celebrate the Praises of thy Lord, and pray for His Forgiveness: for He is Oft-Returning (in Grace and Mercy). (3) 

Witnessing a shahada serves to strengthen my own faith. It sometimes sends a small shiver down my spine. The call to prayer (adhan in Arabic) has a similar effect on me, as does hearing the Quran recited. One becomes a Muslim by intentionally and honestly stating, "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah."

A word about Allah: Allah can be said to be the loose Arabic equivalent for God. It holds some special linguistic and grammatical properties, which is why Muslims refer to God as Allah, instead of the English word god. The English word god can be made plural - as in gods, and it can be made feminine - as in goddess. Allah the Arabic word for God, holds the distinction of being neither masculine nor feminine and neither singular nor plural. Allah is therefore not a reference to a different or mystical god - simply a reference to The God. Allah in Arabic derives from the root Elaha in Biblical Aramaic. Most people have the misconception that Allah is the term used exclusively by Muslims to refer to God or that Allah is the Muslim god. Arab Jews and Christians also use the term Allah to refer to God. So Allah is an Arabic term with some unique characteristics that are lost in translation to English. Allah is not proprietorially a Muslim term.

So ponder this.....if Arabic were the only language spoken on planet earth, anyone that believed in God, regardless of their religion - Christian, Jew, Hindu, Muslim or Mormon, would be calling upon Allah.


The "amazed" Reluctant Blogger

Justice - Despotic Style

I have been quite puzzled the last few days, trying to understand the circumstances surrounding the case of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a matter I had thus far been ignorant about. What is puzzling is the lack of media attention to this matter and the lack of consensus in the reports of any of the circumstances surrounding her disappearance and her 86 year prison sentence announced today. Two of her 3 young children remain missing - the youngest was 6-8 months old at the time of her disappearance. Even seemingly mundane facts such as her educational background and nationality have been misreported. Have we really become that incompetent or is there a deliberate attempt here to misinform? Most news outlets refer to her as a "Pakistani mother involved with a sleeper cell". What the hell is a sleeper cell? Is that what we are calling a mosque these days? You are either engaged in terrorism or not. Being a Muslim does not make you a dormant terrorist!

Her association to terrorism seems to be the fact that her second husband's uncle was Kalid Sheikh Mohamed, who is being held on charges of terrorism. Is that all it takes to be guilty these days - to be related to someone charged with a crime? Some years ago, I undertook research work with a surgeon from Arizona, who was close friends with surgeon-general Richard Carmona, who was appointed by President Bush. By that line of reasoning, I am only one less degree of separation from the former president than Aafia was with Kalid Sheikh Mohamed. I could just as easily be related to terrorism. Maybe I once prayed at the same mosque as an alleged or convicted terrorist. Maybe I donated money to a charity that sent toothbrushes to Palestinian refugees. Maybe I donated money to the MLFA (Muslim Legal Fund of America), an organization that raises funds to pay for the legal defense of Muslims in America. The MLFA actually helped pay for Dr. Aafia's defense. Now that she has been found guilty and sentenced, does making a tax deductible donation to the MLFA - a LEGAL, registered, 501(c)(3) American non-profit, make one a terrorist or supporter of terrorism? Dr. Aafia has been sentenced to 86 years - a number arrived at after the judge sentenced her 3 times consecutively for one of the counts citing that "terrorism enhanced sentencing guidelines" were appropriate. She has not been found guilty of any terrorism related charges!! The 86 year sentence was imposed for her alleged attempt to flee and seize a guard's rifle. Her alleged attempts at escape did not cause any personnel any injury. She did not shoot anyone. She did not injure anyone. She however was shot twice. Is it just me or do the words cruel and unusual punishment come to mind? She has not been charged with anything that she was allegedly brought in for questioning about. An FBI agent testified at her hearing that the fingerprints on the rifle she is alleged to have seized do not match hers.

According to Wikipedia, Sheikh Mohamed was picked up in Pakistan "by Pakistani intelligence possibly in a joint action with agents of the American Diplomatic Security Service". The ADSS are the same friendly folks who showed up at my door a few years ago....reference to "men in black" in previous blog "Chewing it over". Some Americans breathe a sigh of relief in the false reassurance that the bad guys are being put away.

I am not speaking for the innocence of Dr.Aafia Siddiqui. I do not know whether she is innocent or guilty. I do not even know what she is charged with, apart from the charge of attempting to flee from detention. She was with her 3 children when she was captured. Only one of her children have been found. Both US and Pakistani governments deny abducting her in 2003. However, she appeared in US custody in 2008. The statement below is extracted from a document provided to British journalist, Yvonne Ridley.

Dr. Aafia's eldest son, Ahmed states:

"I do not remember the date but it seems a long time ago. I remember we were going to Islamabad in a car when we were stopped by different cars and high roof ones. My mother was screaming and I was screaming as they took me away. I looked around and saw my baby brother on the ground and there was blood. My mother was crying and screaming.  Then they put something on my face. And I don’t remember anything. When I woke up I was in a room. There were American soldiers in uniform and plain clothes people. They kept me in different places. If I cried or didn’t listen, they beat me and tied me and chained me. There were English speaking, Pashto and Urdu speaking. I had no courage to ask who they were. At times, for a long time, I was alone in a small room. Then I was taken to some children's prison where there were lots of other children.

The American Consular, who came to me in Kabul jail, said, 'Your name is Ahmed. You are American. Your mother’s name is Aafia Siddiqui and your younger brother is dead. After that they took me away from the kids' prison and I met the Pakistani consular, and I talked to my aunt (Fowzia Siddiqui)".

--Source (http://www.justiceforaafia.org/)

Just because someone is being put away does not mean we were successful in getting the guilty. There are innocent men and women on death row. We have a great legal system, but it is not perfect. The checks and measures that limit wrongful convictions in the conventional legal system in our country is thrown out the window when terrorism related charges are filed. Even with those checks and measures, we have numerous wrongful convictions and in the rare cases exoneration when DNA or other evidence comes to light to prove an inmate's innocence. What comes of someone charged with violations tagged with terrorism? When we throw away these checks and measures, and ignore the basic rights of a human being, we set ourselves up for a despotic system of justice, which is fueled by fear and paranoia. Muslims today. Who next? Was the founding of America not motivated by a desire to flee from religious persecution? If only we could all just sail west. If one is not concerned about the injustice being meted out to an innocent human being, one at least has to be concerned that the wrong person is sitting in jail, while the those really responsible for perpetrating heinous crimes are roaming free. Is that the kind of national security we really want?

I find this entry rather difficult to write. I find it hard to focus my thoughts and feelings. I am overwhelmed with mixed feelings of outrage, anxiety, helplessness and dread. I feel, there but for the grace of God, go I. It does not take much in today's climate for someone to be charged, arrested, indefinitely detained, & tortured. If you want freedom and justice, you have to want the same for those you hate too. It is either freedom and rights for all or freedom and rights for none. If one entity gets to impart discretionary justice - then we walk the slippery slope of despotism. The climate of fear and hatred that is breeding in this country is causing many good Americans to give up the rights they hold so dear in an oxymoronic attempt to preserve those rights. As I read on a bumper sticker somewhere.....Bombing for peace is like fucking for virginity. Sacrificing the principles upon which this nation is built, and for which men and women have fought and died for is not going to bring a better tomorrow for us or our children. I could go on and on about the outrageous elements of this particular case. I will let you read for yourself and form your own opinion.


The "sad" Reluctant Blogger



http://muslimlegalfund.org/mlfa/judge-issues-inflated-sentence-86-years-pakistani-mother
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11401865
http://www.justiceforaafia.org/index.php
http://www.freeaafia.org/
http://www.iacenter.org/actions/siddiqui092110/

Chewing It Over

I suppose a commercial has met its objective when a mundane word like "blogging" conjures up the image of candy. I cannot seem to think of the word blogging without being haunted by the lines of an irritating commercial for Twix.

So, I have entered the world of blogging. To what end, I am not sure yet. As many that know me will admit with some chagrin, I am rather opinionated (understatement alert). The recent years have seen the development of many social, political and international issues that vex me on a personal and moral level. As many individuals in similar situations will attest, sometimes we are at a loss as to how we can set right a wrong that we see. Sometimes we are afraid to speak up for fear of persecution. Sometimes we feel outnumbered and helpless. Sometimes we fear alienating or offending friends and family. Whatever our reasons maybe, we accept our state of helplessness and leave matters of importance to our elected officials and buy into the preachings of our favorite party or politician.

When we cease to be active, thinking, critical participants of the democratic process we have essentially given up the freedoms we hold so dear. I detest politics. I used to use that as an excuse to not participate in discussions of political nature or to not educate myself about such affairs. I guess, coming from a third-world democracy, I was already jaded. But I am now a member of American society (yes, my green card was approved). And I see a faint silver lining of hope for reward in participating in the social and democratic process. Unlike in many so-called democracies around the world, I still have faith in American politics. I also see the exorbitant cost of not participating or speaking up. America exerts enormous influence on global affairs affecting the lives of people all over the world. But for the most part, most Americans are oblivious of America's engagement with the outside world, until things go bad and we prepare for war. Sometimes even during a war, a good number of us are not able to point on a map to the country we are fighting. I think we owe it to ourselves, our children, our country, and humanity at large to make more informed decisions about our domestic and international affairs. America's business outside its borders should be as much concern to its citizens as its business within it.

I have had reservations about speaking up, for fear of its consequences. People that speak up have a tendency to pop on "lists". But then living in fear of exercising one's freedoms can hardly be called living in freedom. If I am going to be part of a free society, then, dammit, I am going to exercise my freedoms. One never knows when the "men in black" will show up. They already have - but that's a blog for another day.

So, I do not know to what end I am blogging. However, I do know that I do not want to do nothing. If blogging is all I do, then I suppose I have at least made the attempt to counter one voice of ignorance with one voice of reason. One must admit there is plenty of ignorance and paranoia these days. I am probably going to ramble, rant and meander my way through politics, religion, current affairs and philosophy. I appreciate your patience and understanding as I try to find my voice....and maybe together you and I can make a positive difference.

The Reluctant Blogger