This is another installment in our series, Answers to Objections. This objection seems sensible if you haven't had time to think about it, but it is meaningless — unless, of course, you've just made the blunder of overgeneralizing (saying something like, "All Muslims treat their women badly") — in which case, you should immediately correct yourself by talking about Islamic doctrine rather than talking about "Muslims."
But assuming you are making no such blunders, here is a possible answer to this objection:
"I have talked to Muslims. And I've met some very nice Muslims. They are either ignoring some of the basic, mainstream Islamic teachings (read more about that) or they are using taqiyya (read more about taqiyya here), which is the Islamic principle of "religious deception" or deception for the sake of Islam.
"But hopefully, they were simply genuinely nice people who are ignoring some of their religious principles. You see, if a Muslim is truly a friend to me (a non-Muslim), he or she is violating an important doctrine of Islam: A Muslim is forbidden to befriend a non-Muslim. I'm not making this up. It's in the Quran and it's stated very clearly. (See Quran quotes about this.)
"But either way, it doesn't change the fact that the doctrine of Islam is hazardous to non-Muslims and we should learn about it. Sixty-one percent of the Quran is about how Muslims are supposed to deal with non-Muslims. Millions of Muslims around the world are devout believers in that doctrine.
"What I'm advocating is simple public knowledge about these facts. It's amazing how little most people know about Islam, especially given how much these teachings impact current events. Anyway, please stop believing what other people tell you, including me, and just read the Quran yourself."
Read more about this approach: Push Them to Read the Quran.
For more information and possible approaches to this issue, read "My Friend is a Muslim and He's Really Nice."
I hope you can top that. Please leave your answer in the comments on this article or email it to me and I'll post it for you (anonymously if you wish): citizenwarriorgeneral@gmail.com.
I have had this question posed to me as well once. I agree with your points above and I would also add as another potential response, that yes, it is important to talk to Muslims, but I believe it is also important to talk to ex-Muslims (or read literature by them) to get their perspective. For instance, why did they leave the faith? What have their lives been like since they were declared apostates? I gave the example of Ayaan Hirsti Ali who now requires permanent bodyguards in order to survive.
ReplyDeleteIt's a funny story.
ReplyDeleteOne guy from Denmark asked me this question to try to make a point about Muslims. He was an atheist and was very tolerant. He knew Muslims and therefore defended them.
He asked me way into the debate "Do you even know any Muslims?"
My answer:
In fact I do. There are many at my school and they tell stuff like "Kill all the Jews in Israel" and that they hate Norwegian men like me, but love Norwegian women.
To that he responded that, that might not be the view of all Muslims, ignoring my argument.
Very funny. He didn't expect that at all XD
I've talked with some muslims too, both in real life and online.
ReplyDeleteReal life muslims clearly used taqiyya (one of them was pretty bad on it)
most online muslims were frank. Majority of them didn't hide their violence.
I fell to talk with that one that clearly ignores principle of islam. She seems a very nice girl, and she has several motivation to be that way (she said she's a lesbian, she had diffcult to accept this fact, but now she accepted it. She's also a feminist). I hope one day she will see the true and will leave islam, she deserve that.
Nordlys, where do you live?
ReplyDeleteItaly
ReplyDeleteBeing a Muslim I did not know about Taqiya until I came to this site. Here is my understanding of it after little research tonight
ReplyDelete1) You cannot lie about Muhammad since that is a sin itself. As prophet Muhammad said “Whoever lies about me intentionally shall take a place for himself in hell” (al-Adhkar (y102), 510-12)
2) You cannot lie about Islam for conversion purposes. It will be a lie.
3) Only case I have seen thus for is this one companion Ammar B. Yasir who got caught by nonbeliever and they physically tortured him burning him. Under life threatening conditions, they forced him to worship idols and was worried that he has lost his connection with Allah. Allah revealed the verse (3-28) to assure him that he is OK.
Though, there are other companions like Bilal who were also physically tortured with burning stones and they never gave up. There were no revelations for them.
3) Sunni Muslims do not believe in it. It is little more accepted by the Shia Muslims because they went through a tough period under few tough Sunni dynasties.
I am not sure what physical life-threatening torture a Muslim can get from you if you ask him a simple questions about Islam. So please stop reading your own interpretations and please come and talk to us. We will tell you what we know and what we don’t know!