Radical Islamism & Jihad *The Zia-ist mindset, Pakistani media and the support of the right wing <http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1291>*
My personal theory is that their (Pakistanis’) lack of grounding in politics, economics and current affairs is a direct result of the poor education they have received. Without wishing to be lofty or patronising, I can safely point to the poisonous brainwashing an entire generation has been subjected to during the Zia era. Already reeling from Bhutto’s nationalisation of education, millions of Pakistani children then had years of religious studies rammed down their throats by Zia. This was supplemented by reactionary propaganda aired by state television and radio. In those days, there were no private channels to break this monopoly of the airwaves. The current generation of Pakistanis reaching positions of authority and influence is the product of this brainwashing. Of course many have escaped its worst effects, but unquestionably, public discourse in Pakistan has moved to the right, and we now wear religion on our sleeves to a greater extent than ever before. Secularism is now a label few are willing to accept, even though many privately agree that it’s the only way Pakistan can rejoin the rest of the world. When private channels first began operating in Pakistan’s stultified environment, I had hoped it would be a liberating force, opening a window to the world for millions of Pakistanis. In reality, it has worked to serve the opposite end by reinforcing existing prejudices, rather than challenging them. Owners of channels have their own concealed agendas, and poorly educated producers and hosts do little to separate opinions from facts. -- *Irfan Husain* More...<http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1291> Islam and Sectarianism *Saudi Shiites Demand – Dignity or Secession <http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1292>* “Our dignity is more valuable than the unity of this land … If we don’t get our dignity, then we will have to consider seceding from this country.” – *Sheikh Nimr Baqir Al-Nimr*, Saudi Shia religious leader from Al-Awamiya, currently in hiding after having delivered a speech demanding an end to the oppression of Saudi Shiites. Their demand and those of Shiites in other towns and cities in Saudi Arabia is a most basic and simple one. It is a demand the government can easily grant and one they should hasten to accept. It was written on the signs of those protesting in Awamiya, was encapsulated in a single word in Sheikh Al-Nimr’s speech, and has become the newfound rallying cry of the Shia-minority in Saudi Arabia: Dignity. -- *RANNIE AMIRI* More...<http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1292> Ijtihad, Rethinking Islam *Is the idea of New Age Islam merely a restructuring of an unhealthy faith? <http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1276>* *Does New Age Islam then not become a creation of Man and no longer a theology inspired by God?* The question is that your site seems to defend Islam only on select passages of good intention, such as God creating us to get to know one another and so forth, but what of the other passages of malice? If your goal is to create a New Age Islam, does that imply that you ignore some aspects of the faith and apply others? It comes down to this: is Islam inspired by God or not? If God is perfect and the Koran is perfect, then why has Man found so much fault with it? … This isn't some attack on Islam. You call on your readers to think. Here I am thinking. -- *Scott Bowen* ------ This seems a very honest and sincere question from an avowed non-believer in any faith. Readers are invited to think and express themselves on whether we should be engaging in Ijtihad and seeking to understand the relevance and practicability of some controversial aspects of our faith in the present New Age. This brings us back to the question of those belligerent verses in the Holy Quran, asking us to kill the non-believers wherever we find them. Only the enemies of Islam and the Jihadis own them as relevant and meaningful and binding on all Muslims for all times and in all situations but the rest of us too do not want to disown them and yet we claim to be a peaceful religion fit to be allowed to live in peace and in close proximity to others. Do these verses continue to provide us guidance today in the present situation and are they binding on us today? And if that is so, is the rest of the world justified in being afraid of us? Are we encouraging Islamophobia of the world by owning bellicose verses of the Holy Quran as our guide unnecessarily today, verses which provided us necessary and appropriate guidance in a certain situation in the 7th century A D., but clearly are no longer relevant in the present situation? Should we explain to the world that the Holy Quran is not a book that was revealed in one session, but is a collection of verses that were revealed to the Prophet (PBUH) at different times over a long period to guide us to tackle both universal questions of spirituality and day to day problems facing the community in those initial days and the relevance of these latter verses in the present age has to be judged by us individually and collectively on merit in case of each verse before we come to a conclusion if they are our guides in the present situation. Setting the agenda for a New Age Islam is clearly not just about the relevance or irrelevance for us today of the bellicose verses of the Holy Quran. There is a whole host of issues that we have to rethink and reconsider in order to be able to live in peace not only in relation to other religious or non-religious communities but also with and within ourselves. But certainly the issue of clarifying our stand on these war-like verses is the most urgent. Are they still relevant or are they now obsolete as our guide in this New Age is the question that brooks no delay. – *Sultan Shahin, editor, New Age Islam* 16 Comments More.<http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1276> -- Syed M. 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