As a consequence, I extend to each of you a full invitation to share your ideas and even your vision for society here at A Deo Lumen. Wherever we disagree, we may do so civilly and respectfully with that fundamental respect of human equality as our common starting point.

Could you expand on that question?

There exist radical Islamists, and radical Christianists (William Boykin, for example, Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence until last year), and radical Jews - radical religionists of every faith, in fact.

I see radical religionists as the enemy in the war of ideas. Radical Christianists and Radical Islamists share most of the same values, including the belief that the state should impose religious values with a force of law - and similiar ideas about what those “religious values” should be.

Insofar as American conservatives are part of, or at least strongly influenced by, radical religionism - and I believe that to be the case - they are certainly as much to blame for the war of ideas as the radical Islamists. But they are all on the same side: they believe that their religious beliefs ought to be imposed on others by the state, using violence if necessary.

To your point, Jes, a lot of people that I know are unaware of the views of moderate Muslims. I have had the opportunity to hear from moderate Muslims directly, which was a big catalyst for my study on the real underlying ideas in conflict here. The radical vs. moderate Muslim conflict of ideas is a big part of the larger “war” between the West and Global Jihad.

Just curious, though, Jes, if you believe conservatives and even Christians in America are more to blame for this war than radical Islamists? Do you believe there is liberal vision of how to engage Radical Islam’s ideological differences with the West in a decisive but peaceful way? For example, do you think Barack Obama is on the right track with his plans a 16-month troop withdrawal and direct talks with Ahmedinejad? I am very interested in getting your insights on this.

Thanks!

Good grief. Are you really so completely unaware that, throughout the Muslim world, the 9/11 bombings were attacked as absolutely wrong?

I mean, post-9/11, Bush managed to destroy that worldwide sympathy and support, but that doesn’t change the fact that the attacks on civilians using Islam as a justification were condemned much more widely among Muslims than the Christian terrorist attacks on doctors and health clinics for performing abortions are condemned by Christians. Were you really so completely unaware of this and so uninterested in finding out that you didn’t even type into Google the words Muslim condemnation of September 11 to find (for example) this page?

For American citizens, I think it is critical to know where most Muslims stand in this war of ideas.

For most Muslims, it’s clear where the US government stands in this war of ideas: with the bombers, the torturers, and the fundamentalist and oppressive governments like that of Saudi Arabia. The US government has twice bombed the offices of al-Jazeer, the Muslim world’s independent news service: journalists have been killed in Iraq in far greater numbers than journalists reporting on any other conflict. Where do ordinary Americans stand? The growing anti-war movement in the US says one thing: the lack of any public will to prosecute the torturers and the murders of journalists says something else.

Dr Marcus Bucailles wrore a book called The Origin of Man. See his other work also.

Challenges are made to stregthen one’s faitn because if what you believe is the truth it cannot be refuted. That is why the great English philosopher John Stuart Mill said the truth needs to always be challenged or it will slip into falsehood. Thus we can say that much anti-Islamic rhetoric exists to challenge and strengthen Muslims.

To conclude i am not a radical nor a “moderate”. I am trying to be a Muslim. I am not perfect because i am fighting the inner Jihad of purification of the heart but i seek to one day soon become an excellent Muslim. For more about purification read Purification of the Heart by Hamza Yusuf.

In closing i’d like to say that Islam does not teach utopic ideals in this ethemeral existence. Utopia comes in the afterlife. Thus in the current world at this moment it is not possible for every human being to become a Muslim. If Allah wills it it will happen but it will not happen by killing people. Nor is it important for a Muslim to make the world one large Islamic state. On the Day of Judgement we’ll be asked primarily about how we got on worshipping Allah SWT and purifying ourselves to for his sake and to make our worship of him easier. That is what we were made for. To worship the Most High, not to convert the world to Islam.

God bless…Salaam…Peace

God bless

In response to the questions asked in your second last paragraph. Firstly, i and all Muslims i know are not in agreement with the radical vision. To understand where this radical vision has stemmed from one needs a thorough understanding of history. A movement or sect deviating from Islam known as Wahabbism was created in Arabia with the help and encouragement of the British intelligence agencies. This sect was formed to try and destroy the religion of Islam from within as the behind the scenes leaders of the secular Wes perceived Islam as an obstacle in the way of their progress. Why? Because Islam does not allow the practice of usury in finance (interest) as it leads to the oppression of the poor and allows economic inbalance and excessive financial greed to flourish which is exactly what money hungry rulers crave. As Allah (SWT) has said in the Holy Quran and as the Prophet peace be upon him,
has told us The Quran is protected and will never be destroyed or changed. Thus the Wahabbi agenda grew to destroy certain teachings of Islam and it sought to present Islam to the world as a twisted threat as opposed to the pure way of life that it is. By doing this it would create a resentment of Islam and would encourage non-Muslims to seek to eradicate it or at least detest it. The Wahabbi sect has secretly and covertly grown in the last century and particularly in the last few decades.

Al Qaeda follows Wahabbi teachings. Allah(SWT) has revealed to humanity that if the Muslims stop practicing their religion and decrease in their worship of Allah (as has happened in many cases throughout history then they will be punished). Perhaps what we are seeing now is another case of this. If the Muslims want to change our condition we need to return to the pure traditional teachings of the Quran and the example of the Prophet peace be upon him. We need to get back to the grassroots and not pick and choose what we like about the Divine code. To solve the current problem of terrorism the Orthodox Muslims need to stand up and learn their faith correctly and encourage their brothers and sisters who have strayed into diluted understandings of the faith to do the same thing with an honest heart. Non-Muslims seeking to solve the problem of terror should encourage Muslims to do the same thing as opposed to propagating war, revenge attacks or the insane calls being made by radical atheists to “ban all religions”. The problem of religious terrorism be it from Al Qaeda, the State of Israel or the Bush government is not religion but a lack of the true traditions of the religions they claim to practice. For more reading on why Wahabbism was formed see “The House of Saud” by Said K Aburish.

As for the current so called Islamic states in the Mid-East, they are puppet governments set up by America to give Islam a bad name as an excuse to go to war against thenm and to eradicate Muslims, thus they are extreme in their laws and oppress women, oppress other faith groups and even Muslim men and women. If you want to understand how a Muslim state should be run look back to the history of the four rightly guided caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them). See how Umar ibn Khattab ruled Palestine and how he protected the Jews and Christians as the Quran teaches. Please also check out “Muhummad: (pbuh) The Man & Prophet” by Adil Salahi.

Thirdly, “global jihad” is an idiotic self defeating agenda which will hopefully soon be extinguished. Allah tells humanity in the Holy Quran in Surat Al Kafirun that the Muslims and non-Muslims who can’t live together are to agree to disagree: to you your religion and to me mine.
Muslims are not required nor allowed to force people into Islam. Muslims are compelled to tell people about Islam but not to convert people. People are to be free to make their own decision regarding what faith they follow as repeatedly Allah SWT asks us humans to use reason in the Holy Quran. Ultimately, as with everything, Allah is in control. He decrees who will be and will not be a Muslim. If people choose not to be so they are doing so out of the choice that Allah has given them by this thing we call “free will”. Indeed Allah SWT is Most Wise and Merciful. As for dissent, well the Allah SWT encourages anyone to try and challenge the Quran. Many have and no one has nor ever will succeed. Many scientists have tried and ended up discovering its truth and became Muslim. One example is Dr Maurice Bucaille

Good post - enjoyed it. I also wanted to let you know that some of your links don’t work.

The idea of presence I was trying to get at is how physical presence is essentially different than non-physical presence. How we can make attempts to bridge the gap, but that the gap will always exist. We need to study not just what we gain, but what we lose in that gap, and study how various strategies increase that gap or lessen the gap. Like advances in medicine, just because we can do something doesn’t mean that we should.

I think you touched on something here that is important. The need to build a credible relationship with one another. This is my concern with some of the new media concerning the Christian faith.

I am all for podcasts, I am somewhat of a podcast junkie myself. But I am very much mistaken if I think John Piper, Mark Driscoll or CJ Mahaney are my pastors because I podcast them. They are wonderful teachers and wonderful pastors, but they are not my pastor. A pastors care is more personal and includes mutual care and rebuke if necessary.

In a way, televangelists were the pioneers of Christian ‘new media’, at least new for the time. This relationship is not much unlike the podcast. (with the content remarkably different in most cases) It might be able to teach, but it just doesn’t connect in the wide breadth of the local church and local pastor.

I am also not a video venue hater, but we have to see that while it expands our capacities in some ways, it also has a limiting effect in other ways. It is rare that any new technology has only positives. How far we try to reach with a new technology is also important.

Take the need to contextualize for example: A video venue in the same city/community can translate well in that community. But having your church and preacher in one city, while showing him on a video venue in another city? He doesn’t know the local culture, his illustrations are more likely to miss and he is less likely to be able to speak to that unique group and its needs. Video venues also help to promote the cult of personality in many churches.

As for social media, I say use it all day long to promote relationships. I am concerned though with Christian subculture alternatives. Such as GodTube, or other Christian only social sites. What I am concerned is that it is just a new media way for Christians to remove themselves, and their influence, from mainstream culture.

Concerning preaching being one-way: A good preacher will not preach one-way. It will likely be a monologue still, but if he has done his homework, the communication will be two-way in the sense that he determines their objections, their heart condition and he speaks directly to them while they engage with the speaker through their hearts and minds. In addition, the Holy Spirit is communicating with the listener which makes this two-way in that sense. But yes, many preachers only speak ‘at’ people, and that will be bad whether it is through a sermon or through new media.

These are just some thoughts on the subject though, and I got a crying baby, so I gotta run.