India's Cash-for-Fatwa Scandal

The following is from 2006, still being circulated. Since then, the Organization of Islamic countries has issued a fatwa that no fatwa be issued without discussion. Who is going to listen to them? We cannot even agree to one Eid celebration even in smaller cities.

 

There was a talk among a few Muslims to open a Fatwa Factory - whose sole purpose was to issue counter fatwas against meaningless fatwas. They wanted to issue so many of them that its significance was lost and lead Muslims to create an organization who will authenticate a fatwa on their site, if not, it will be as though some one on the street is yelling. The integrity of Muslims must be called in here to have people of different traditions and those who have the guts to speak out against before it is agreed upon. Without critic and without opposition it will be meaningless.

It may be a good idea for Shura council in the United States to assign an individual the responsibility to issue a counter fatwa against foreign fatwas that are flaunted on national televisions and radio shows.

 

Mike Ghouse

 

 

India's Cash-for-Fatwa Scandal

By ARAVIND ADIGA/NEW DELHI Thursday, Sept. 21, 2006

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1537516,00.html

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1537516,00.html#ixzz1ZSBst4Qx

Last week, many Muslims in India, like their counterparts around the world, gathered on the streets to burn effigies of the Pope and shout slogans denouncing him for his remarks on Islam and violence. Even before that fully died out, however, a new controversy erupted — one that has turned Muslim ire against some of their own local clerics.

India's "cash-for-fatwas" scandal broke out last weekend when a TV channel broadcast a sting operation that showed several Indian Muslim clerics allegedly taking, or demanding, bribes in return for issuing fatwas, or religious edicts. The bribes, some of which were as low as $60, were offered by undercover reporters wearing hidden cameras over a period of six weeks. In return for the cash, the clerics appear to hand out fatwas written in Urdu, the language used by many Muslims in Pakistan and India, on subjects requested by the reporters. Among the decrees issued by the fatwas: that Muslims are not allowed to use credit cards, double beds, or camera-equipped cell phones, and should not act in films, donate their organs, or teach their children English. One cleric issued a fatwa against watching TV; another issued a fatwa in support of watching TV.

Adding to the shock in India, home to the world's third-largest Muslim population (approximately 150 million), is that some of the clerics apparently caught in the sting operation teach at important institutions — one belongs to India's most famous Islamic seminary, the Darul Uloom at Deoband. At least two of the clerics have been suspended from their posts, but that hasn't satisfied everyone. Students at one madrassa in north India denounced the clerics, and in the city of Meerut, where a mufti, or cleric, had been caught on camera, the congregation at one mosque refused to offer prayers until he came before them, admitted to taking the money, and apologized.

The "cash-for-fatwas" scandal has also led to a renewed debate on what constitutes a fatwa, and who has legitimate authority to issue one. Fatwas — like the one passed by Iran's Ayatullah Khomeini in 1989 against the novelist Salman Rushdie, or those issued by Osama bin Laden in 1996 and 1998 against America — have come to epitomize the intolerance of Islamic fundamentalists. Yet many Muslims argue that the purpose of fatwas has been misunderstood: A fatwa is, technically speaking, a ruling on a point of Islamic law made by a recognized Muslim scholar in response to a question put to him. Since Osama bin Laden is no Islamic scholar, many deny his right to issue a fatwa. The sway that fatwas hold over Muslims is also not as great as many outsiders think.

Last year, a Muslim cleric issued a fatwa stating that it was un-Islamic for Sania Mirza, India's most famous tennis player and a Muslim, to wear sleeveless tops or short skirts on court. Mirza simply dismissed the ruling; indeed, many, if not most, urban Indian Muslims do not take fatwas seriously. However, in rural communities, a well-respected mufti's fatwa — on issues ranging from marriage to health to women's rights — can carry considerable influence. India's Muslim leaders announced that they will soon create a new body that will monitor the passing of fatwas in the country, in a bid to preserve that influence, and nip the popular anger swirling around this scandal.

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1537516,00.html#ixzz1ZSBnCqPu

Muslims condemn Blasphemy attack in Kerala

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2010/07/muslims-condemn-blasphemy-attack-in.html

Evil continues to thrive, when good people do nothing about it. Our role as Muslims is to mitigate conflicts and nurture goodwill and work towards building social cohesion, so all the humanity can co-exist in harmony.

The Muslims in India have taken the right action and the story is appended here below.

We condemn the barbaric acts of these men without any reservation.

As Muslims we render our apology to T. J. Joseph and his family and condemn this act of arrogance.

We urge the Muslims in Enarkulam district to help find these criminals and ask them to apologize and restore the damages and pay the medical expenses of the professor.We hope they make a point to pray for goodwill in the Juma prayers.

Prophet Muhammad has taught us to pray for the goodwill of the people when one is harassed. It is our responsibility to extinguish this spark before gaining any more momentum and bring peace to the communities in the area.

Jazak Allah Khair
Mike Ghouse
http://www.worldmuslimcongress.org/

~~~~
http://beta.milligazette.com/news/3-muslim-leaders-condemn-the-attack-on-kerala-academician

Press Statements
Muslim leaders condemn the attack on Kerala academician
Press Statement: They have clearly sinned and defamed Islam by committing this crime which we condemn without reservations

The Milli Gazette
Published Online: Jul 05, 2010

New Delhi (5 July 2010): We strongly condemn yesterday's violent attack and chopping off of the hand of Mr T. J. Joseph, a lecturer in Ernakulam District of Kerala by some miscreants on the pretext of taking revenge for Joseph's act of blasphemy.

We feel that law was taking its due course against the said lecturer for his misdeed and he was already suspended from his college for a year due to his insult to the Prophet of Islam by replacing the word "madman" in a quote with that of "Muhammad" while preparing an exam paper for the students of his college.

Those who attacked Joseph forgot that the Prophet of Islam, upon whom be peace, in his own life had pardoned a Jewess who used to throw garbage on him and when she did not do so one day, the Prophet enquired about her and upon being told that she is ill, went to wish her early recovery and good health. The Prophet forgave the people of Mecca after its conquest although they had pained him, expelled him from his hometown and had waged war against him for years. We find that the attack on the Kerala lecturer is against the basic tenets of Islam and the Sunnah of the Prophet which emphasis on forgiveness. Islam explicitly forbids taking law and order into one's hands in the presence of competent authorities to deal with an issue.

We hope that law will take its due course to punish the criminals who attacked the professor. They have clearly sinned and defamed Islam by committing this crime which we condemn without reservations.

Dr. Manzoor Alam,
Secretary General, All India Milli Council

Mohammad Jafar,
Naib Ameer, Jamaat e Islami Hind & Acting President, All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat

Dr. Zafarul-Islam Khan
Former President, All India Muslim Majlis e Mushawarat & Editor, The Milli Gazette

Niaz Farouqui
Secretary, Jamiat Ulama e Hind

Navaid Hamid
General Secretary, Movement for Empowerment of Muslim Indians (MOEMIN) & Member, National Integration Council

Alleging blasphemy, fanatics hack lecturer's hand
Ananthakrishnan G, TNN, Jul 5, 2010, 01.43am IST


THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a horrific instance of Talibanism, Muslim fanatics in Kerala on Sunday chopped off the right hand of a college lecturer, accusing him of setting a question paper with a derogatory reference to the Prophet.

Lecturer T J Joseph was returning home from church with his mother and sister around 8.30 am in Muvattupuzha in Ernakulam district when he was accosted by the attackers. "We had just got into our car when a van pulled up in front. Around eight people armed with swords and knives emerged and pulled out Joseph after smashing the windscreen.
They then chopped off his right hand and stabbed him in the left thigh," said Joseph's sister, Mary Stella, a nun.

"When we tried to prevent them, they attacked me and and our mother before exploding bombs and fleeing."

A police team recovered the severed hand from the compound of a house about 200m away. The 52-year-old lecturer was rushed to a private hospital where his condition is serious.

Police recovered the van in which the fanatics reached the scene. Two men, said to be activists of the Popular Front, a new incarnation of the hardline National Democratic Front, have also been taken into custody. Special police squads are searching sensitive areas in and around the town. "Personnel from this district and neighbouring places are working as a team and we'll nab the assailants soon," said IG B Sandhya.

In March this year, Islamic outfits had carried out protests against Joseph, who was a lecturer in the church-run Newman college in Thodupuzha in Idukki district over a portion in the Malayalam question paper for an internal examination for BCom students. They claimed that the question paper insulted the Prophet. The college later suspended Joseph who had set the questions and a criminal case was registered against him. The case is pending trial.

Reacting to the incident, state home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan told reporters in New Delhi that the police would probe if any communal or terrorist outfit was involved. The BJP alleged that the home department could not evade responsibility for the growth of terror outfits in Kerala. "This is a direct consequence of the soft attitude adopted by the Left and Congress towards terrorist outfits," said BJP state chief V Muraleedharan.

Stunned Passengers after Muslim bus driver pulls over

Stunned Passengers after Muslim bus driver pulls over

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2010/02/stunned-passengers-after-muslim-bus.html

This is a ridiculous act of showoff, the Muslim man stopping the bus in the middle of the journey to pray with a busload of passengers waiting anxiously and watching him pray. What was he doing? Impressing others that prayer is important? It is indeed important, but not inconveniencing others. If he was on his own, he should do that, but he was carrying the responsibility of public transportation.

A Prayer is between an individual and God and not an act to show off, unless it is a congregational prayer. Ridiculous acts like this causes the states to enact banning religious activities in Public Square. I hope our Imams speak about this in our Mosques. The religion of Islam allows flexibility to pray, he could have prayed earlier on or later on.

These anomalies happen in one fashion or the other in every segment of the society, the issue is what we make of it. The right wing media will entertain this story for weeks. As a Muslim, I'd laugh it off as entertainment by the devout and I request you to share stories of your devouts in your religious tradition, together we can laugh it off and move on with life.

Mike Ghouse is a thinker, writer, speaker, optimist and an activist of Pluralism, Interfaith, Co-existence, Peace, Islam and India. He is a frequent guest at the TV, radio and print media offering pluralistic solutions to issues of the day. His work is reflected at three websites and 22 Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/
~~~
Passengers left stunned after Muslim bus driver pulls over and begins praying in the aisle
By Daily Mail Reporter 08th February 2010
Enlarge

The driver pulled over in his No.24 bus and began to pray in front of bemused passengers
A Muslim bus driver stunned passengers by pulling over mid-route and beginning to pray in the aisle.

The driver stopped the bus without warning before removing his shoes and, using a fluorescent jacket as a prayer mat, beginning to chant in Arabic.

Passengers said they feared the driver could be preparing for a terror attack. No one was able to get on or off the vehicle during the five-minute prayer session. Passenger Gayle Griffiths complained to Transport for London about the bizarre incident on the No.24 bus in Gospel Oak, north London, this week.

Mother-of-one Miss Griffiths, 33, of Camden, north-west London, had boarded the bus a few minutes earlier on her way home from work. She says that she even feared at the time that the driver might be a fanatic planning to blow up the bus. She said: 'I have done the journey a million times before but I was in a hurry to get home to pick my little girl up from school.

'We had just picked up and let off people at a bus stop and moved off again when the driver stopped the bus very suddenly. 'He got out of his cab, leaving the engine running, and walked towards the middle exit door. 'He laid out a fluorescent jacket on the floor and I thought that somebody must have been sick and he was covering it up. 'I didn't really think much of it.
'But then he took off his shoes and began praying. I was gobsmacked and quite bewildered.'
Miss Griffiths said the bus driver didn't give the passengers any explanation as to what he was doing.

'He hadn't addressed the passengers at all,' she said. 'I didn't say anything and nor did anyone else. I thought it would all be over in 30 seconds but it went on for over five minutes.

Passenger Gayle Griffiths
'It even went through my mind that this might be some sort of terrorist attack with the bus blown up because I had heard that suicide bombers prayed before attacks. 'As the engine was running anyone could also have got in the cab and driven off with a bus full of passengers.
'He was also blocking the exit, so if something had happened we would not have been able to get off. 'Everyone was looking round in a mix of shock and amazement. It was truly bizarre, ludicrous and aggravating. 'We are delayed often enough as it is in London. 'We live in a multi-cultural society but there is a time and a place for prayer and the middle of a journey with a busload of passengers is not it.'

Transport for London said it had apologised to all the passengers for the delay to their journey and said all Muslim drivers are being reminded that they should pray during statutory rest periods rather than hold up services. A TfL spokesman said: 'A route 24 bus was delayed following a decision by the driver to stop the bus to pray. 'The bus company, London General, has had a word with the driver as this is not something that should be happening. 'TfL apologises to passengers for any inconvenience this may have caused them.

'We understand that there is some flexibility in the Muslim faith as to the times of day that drivers can pray. 'TfL and the individual bus operating companies acknowledge and value the diversity of their staff. 'As diverse employers, TfL and the bus operators provide suitable prayer or quiet rooms at garages and other key locations for staff who wish to practise their faith.'We have asked London General to remind drivers who have a requirement to pray to use these facilities during their rest periods.'

You are welcome to share your comments;

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2010/02/stunned-passengers-after-muslim-bus.html#comments

~~~

Ninth Church Vandalized in Malaysia

We appeal the Malaysian Government to reign in this immediately.

The 2nd Caliph had set and example of defending places of worship and Prophet Muhammad assured every one of his community freedom of religion. This is anti-Islamic activity and must be stopped at once. - Mike Ghouse

Ninth Church Vandalized in Malaysia as Tensions Rise
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/12/world/asia/12malaysia.html

BANGKOK — A ninth church was vandalized Monday in Malaysia in a series of arson attacks that have raised religious tensions surrounding a dispute over the use of the word “Allah” by Christians in this mostly Muslim nation.

“Allah” is the common term for God in Malay-language Bibles, but the government and many Muslim groups insist that the word should be reserved for use in Islam.

The attacks, which began on Friday, came after a court ruling on Dec. 31 that overturned a government ban on the use of “Allah” by Christians. That ruling has been stayed while the government appeals.

Only one of the churches has been seriously damaged, and some of the attacks were minor. In Monday’s attack, the Sidang Injil Borneo Church in the central state of Negeri Sembilan was slightly damaged when its door was burned, according to local reports.

Government officials condemned the violence Monday but defended their position, saying conditions are different in Malaysia from those in neighboring Indonesia or in Arab nations where “Allah” is the common term for God.

“These outrageous incidents are acts of extremism and designed to weaken our diverse communities’ shared commitment to strengthen racial unity,” The Home Ministry secretary, Gen. Mahmood Adam, told reporters after briefing foreign diplomats on the situation.

“They don’t understand the situation here,” he said of the diplomats. “They just want to know why it can be allowed in other countries and not here.”

He said he told them: “Be fair, you have to compare apples to apples, oranges to oranges. Our landscape is different from other countries. Malays here are different from other countries. The landscape here is different from Indonesia so we can’t compare.”

The violence has strained relations among Malays, who are mostly Muslim and who make up 60 percent of the population, and the Chinese and Indian minorities, who are Christian, Hindu and Buddhist.

Indonesia is less divided, with Muslims making up 90 percent of its population of 240 million.

Some Muslims in Malaysia say they fear that Christians are trying to win converts by using the word “Allah.” They say Muslim believers could be confused by the use.

On her blog last week, Marina Mahathir, a commentator and columnist, disparaged this view as a “copyright issue.”

She said a confident Muslim “will not walk into a church, hear a liturgy in Malay or Arabic where they use the word ‘Allah’ and then think that he or she is in a mosque.”

Business leaders have voiced concern that further attacks could threaten trade and investment.

The tourism minister, Ng Yen Yen, said foreign visitors could be frightened away, although the ministry had not received any information on the effects so far.

“This is the communication era, so information travels fast,” she said. “Tourists will choose not to visit a country faced with conflicts, especially religious conflicts.”

In a sign of the country’s racial and religious complexity, a leading Hindu organization said it would hold a candlelight vigil at a church in solidarity with the Christian minority.

Church officials urged their parishioners not to participate in the vigil.

“It sends the wrong message as if the non-Muslims are going against the Muslims,” Father Phillips Muthu of Assumption Church told Malaysiakini.com, an independent online news service.

Will Americans accept Islam?

Will Americans accept Islam?
A partial answer to this article is linked below.

The president has tried to tackle this issue head-on, even as polling reveals a wary public.
By Stephen Prothero

Earlier this month, at a White House dinner celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, President Obama said some things that conservative talk show hosts love to rewind and repeat. In the presence of diplomats, business executives and members of Congress, Obama described Islam as "part of America" and hailed "its commitment to justice and progress." He then called Islam "a great religion." His fellow Americans are not so sure.

According to a new Pew survey of American attitudes toward Islam, a strong majority (58%) of Americans now acknowledge that there is a lot of discrimination against Muslims. Hispanics, blacks and atheists fare better. Only gay men and lesbians are seen as worse off than Muslims, with 64% of Americans saying there is a lot of discrimination against them.

Raw Associated Press video of President Obama speaking during the Iftar dinner commemorating Ramadan.

Unfortunately, Americans don't seem either willing or able to do much about this bigotry. According to Pew, over half of Americans admit that they do not know a Muslim, and when asked two simple questions about Islam — the name Muslims use for God (Allah) and the Islamic holy book (the Quran) — only 41% got both right. If America's future with Islamic countries hangs in part on U.S. citizens and their elected representatives having some basic Islamic literacy, that future is hanging by a thread.

Who are we? One of the questions Americans have asked themselves since the Revolution concerns the religious character of the United States. Is this a secular nation, as our godless Constitution suggests? Or is it, as our citizens' religious preferences intimate, a Christian country? During much of the 19th century, the U.S. was widely perceived as a Protestant nation. After World War II, as the Cold War haunted us with the specter of atheistic communism, Jews and Catholics were welcomed into the American fold. Immediately after 9/11, this Judeo-Christian past seemed to be yielding to a Judeo-Christian-Islamic future. Today most of that Abrahamic talk has gone the way of the Latin Mass.

This new Pew poll shows that Catholics and Jews are viewed favorably among roughly two-thirds of the American public — a figure roughly equivalent to the favorable ratings enjoyed on Inauguration Day by Michelle Obama. So Catholics and Jews continue to sit comfortably alongside Protestants under America's sacred canopy. Muslims, however, are left out in the cold. Their favorable rating of only 38% (roughly President Bush's marks upon Obama's inauguration) is lower than at any time since 9/11.

With the health care showdown upon us, and multiple wars in the Middle East, President Obama has a lot on his plate. Even so, he seems determined to do something about religion, too, or more precisely about religious tolerance.

Democrats have traditionally bent over backward to avoid committing religion in public. During his 1960 presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy felt compelled to promise that he would never let his private Catholic faith affect any public decision he might make as president. And when John Kerry bid for the Oval Office in 2004, he seemed about as comfortable discussing his Catholicism as he would have been selling Tupperware products door-to-door.

After Bush's victory over Kerry in 2004, however, the Democrats got religion. While Hillary Clinton yoked her views on immigration reform to the Good Samaritan story, Obama made friends with megachurch pastors. In his inaugural address, he spoke of the United States as neither a secular nor a Christian country but a multireligious "nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-believers."

Eboo Patel, executive director of Interfaith Youth Corps and a practicing Muslim, was at the White House Ramadan dinner. He was gratified to hear Obama describe Islam as a "great religion," but Bush did the same, so in his view that is not the story. The story is that the event was not restricted to Muslims. High-ranking members of the Obama administration, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Attorney General Eric Holder, were on the guest list. So were megachurch pastor Joel Hunter and Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism. "It was great that Saperstein and Hunter were there," Patel told me. "A roomful of Muslims in the White House is an interest group. But a roomful of Muslims, Jews and Christians — that's America."

The pastor in chief President Bush was widely criticized for wearing his faith on his sleeve. But even more than Bush, in fact more than any president in recent memory, Obama has used the bully pulpit as a pulpit. In his eulogy for Ted Kennedy, where he spoke of love and faith and God, Obama looked more like America's pastor in chief than its commander in chief. In major addresses to Catholics in May and to Muslims in June, he proved that all religion is local, too, speaking of Catholic social thought at the University of Notre Dame and of the Quran in Egypt. On all these occasions, he preached a gospel of tolerance rooted not in wishy-washy liberalism but in neo-orthodox theology — the sort of faith that "admits doubt" and in the process "humble(s) us" before our Maker.

This new Pew survey gathered much useful data, but it wasted time and money in determining that roughly two-thirds of Americans see Islam as either "somewhat different" or "very different" from their own religions. The question isn't whether Christianity and Islam are similar or different. The question is whether religious (and non-religious) people can find common ground. On this point, Patel is unequivocal. "Religions are different," he says, "but they have shared values." The challenge is "to identify shared values such as mercy, compassion and service," and then to advance from there to shared projects.

In his public pronouncements on religion, Obama has repeatedly invoked the Golden Rule as common ground. But like Patel, he does not pretend that all religions are the same, and like his predecessor he does not shy away from speaking as a "committed Christian." At Notre Dame, he denounced "outworn prejudice" as "rooted in original sin." In Obama's view, there is not just something wrong but something un-Christian about discrimination against Muslims, or against any other religious (or non-religious) group.

Unfortunately, this study did not ask Americans what they think of anti-Muslim discrimination. Do those who see discrimination against Muslims want it to end? Or would they like to see more of it? According to Patel, that is the $1 million question — "not who faces bigotry, but who would stand up against it."

Stephen Prothero is a professor in the Department of Religion at Boston University and author of Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know — And Doesn't.

(Illustration by Keith Simmons, USA TODAY)

The answer to the article

Are Muslims Part of the American story?
http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2009/04/are-muslims-part-of-american-story.html

#

Adult Muslim Babies

What is wrong with 100th's of 1% of Muslims?
What is wrong with some 5 or 6 Muslims out of the 12,000+ I communicate with?

Even if you find 12 to mess around, it will be still less than 1/100 th of 1% of Muslims in this group. I can take 6 more people to attempt to tear me down.

I have nothing to gain from this work, in fact, I could make money like everyone else working, instead I have chosen this path. I am simply doing what needs to be done, none of this will benefit me. Prophet Muhammad had said (I do not use the word OUR PROPHET - because he is not ours, he belongs to the whole universe and I don't intend to reduce him to Muslim exclusive) good deed is like sowing a seed, which benefits others when it becomes a tree and bears shade or fruit, it was intended for.

Cant' the 1/100th of 1% of Muslims understand the simple word "focus".

# 1 No matter whose birthday it is, the kids want it to be theirs. It is the “me, me, me” attitude that children demand. Some adults still live in that stage.

# 2 In a large group if some one mentions ten names, the “me, me, me” adults complain that their name was not recited in the same breath.

# 3 No matter what the topic is their concern is what they are interested in. When we are talking about a certain subject, we have to remain focused on it and not talk about 50 other things, each thing must be dealt separately. Palestine issue should not be a part of one issue; it is a full time issue in itself and must be reserved for it.

# 4 If I list the atrocities, massacres and genocides of the world, can you write a 600 word article, listing all of them, and still write the article? Better, yet can you recite all of them in one breath, in one sentence? Guess what, if you miss one due to the length of your breath, some one will complain.

We need to focus, you are acting no different than the same percent of Jews who quickly jump with the "Anti-Semitism" rhetoric even if some one sneezes in Europe. That's how bad the 1/100th of 1% of Muslims are in my list of Muslims. They are significant and that is why I address them, instead of ignoring them.

Isn't this one of the reasons we cannot move forward?

We are hung up with petty stuff?

Let's look at the big picture and not get entangled with small stuff.

In all the instances mentioned above, the adult babies are hung up with their need. Now let’s take a look at the following comments that came when I wrote about the 9/11.

Here was response to a few ugly comments
a few are non-publishable
=========================================

My Commitment remains to bring a positive change, a positive contribution from Muslim Americans in uniting us, the Americans in adversity.

Finding the truth is also our responsibility and indeed, I supported an even where the videos and discussions of 9/11 were carried out whole day at a college campus in Plano.(None of these jumpers see this)

God has sent this opportunity to present ourselves in a positive light and Insha Allah, we will achieve it. The only ones I have to struggle with are Muslims, every one wants us to get on a level playing field, it is us, who hold back. Had the French been a part of the society, they would not have seen what they are seeing today.

May Allah's mercy be upon you and release you from anger and give you the
freedom from ill-will in this holy month of Ramadan.

###

These were the comments from a Muslim:

"go fuck yourself. Take me off your list. 911 was an inside job you bastard" - ztminhas
"Hey shit face, if you want to dedicate something to Why don't you work on this" - anonymous

Even my friend Dr. Jamil talks about the issue of Muslim suffering in one breath. No Dr. Jamil, it is a separate topic in itself.

Every one of us is driven by our interests - you have your own and mine is Islam and co-existence. You and I can do only so much with the given amount of time we have in a day. I know you and I both put nearly 25 hours a week for serving humanity. How many of us do that? I am not talking about doing the selfish things like praying and fasting, I am talking about doing things for the benefit of others.

The attitude of Pluralism originated in Islam and thank God more and more people are unraveling that. Prophet Muhammad was the first interfaith dialoguer that there was and that is my focus, although I have other things in my peripheral vision.

Those comments were received against the following article that went out to some 24,000 individuals around the globe of which ~12,000 are Muslims.

http://mikeghouseforamerica.blogspot.com/2009/09/mike-ghouse-dedicates-this-day-/911-to.html

The Ramadan Article:
http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2009/08/ramadans_spiritua/l_discipline.html

Thanks
Mike

In a message dated 9/12/2009 11:00:37 A.M. Central Daylight Time, TSidd writes:
Mohtram Javed Bhai, ASA

Have you please sent this mail to your dear friends like Br MikeGhouse who are blindly following the dictates of Government version without blinking their eyes. It was a preplanned TRAGEDY committed by MUSAD/CIA/Zionist agents on innocent American people to build their momentum against Muslims, Islam, capture their oil resources and kill the "probability" of emerging Islam as a political entity somewhere in the ME, specifically in Afghanistan

On the very day of this mishap I wrote an article: WHO DID IT and challenged President Bush that you are totally wrong in pointing your fingers to Osama and Afghanistan which was becoming the hub of Islamic Renaissance at that time. That paper is still available on my Website. It was published in The Muslims, NY.

It is a tragedy no doubt but we must have courage to ask the political parties of this country, the "all-powerful" Congress and UN to investigate the cause and its horrible effects of this tragedy, as rightly and la-mentally pointed out by you, through the International Court of Justice and persons like "Bush, Blare & Musharraf" responsible for this great Human tragedy must be hanged to death in front of "old" WTC otherwise the wounds will continue to bleed for centuries together and the people will commemorate the "drama" of this self-sustained tragedy till doomsday.

Shamim Siddiqi

-----Original Message-----
From: javed jamil
Subject: sept 11 programmes

If US had hunted the attackers, there was absolutely no problem. It would have been the victory of justice. But the problem is that the US first decided without any substantial investigations that a few people guided by some masterminds currently living in Afghanistan were behind the attacks. And then they began the hnting, which remains unsuccessful till now with all the major "masterminds" still alive. But in the process, more than 2 million innocent Muslims have been killed. Now what is the way to give justice to these innocent Muslims? Should they also hunt their killers in the style of the US? Should they pray to God to punish the culprits?

It is nothing wrong to commemorate the victimsof 9/11. But please also find a moment to think and pray for those 2 million Muslims killed in the aftermath. It is good to condemn those that killed the 3000 people in New York. But please also find some time to condemn those that killed the 2 millions.

Dr Javed Jamil
#

Festivities soured by race

Muslims condemn the disgusting acts of intolerance. Two reports appended below

Evil persists not necessarily because of evil men, but because good men don't do anything about it. I hope the Muslims in Malaysia condemn these extremists who displayed the most disgusting, revolting act of belligerence towards their fellow countrymen; Hindus. I hope they did not have any connivance or permission from the majority of Malaysian Muslims.

The act of carrying a head of a bull is un-acceptable and we urge the Malaysian Government to punish these loonies as criminals bent on disturbing peace of the state. They should not be cited as Muslims and their religion does not permit them to do that, they are criminals and must be cited as such.

This act should not be a reflection on the Nation of Malaysia or her Muslims. The idea is if I commit a crime, I should be the one to be thrown in the Jail, no one but me should be resonsible for my acts, not my family, not my parents, kids, nationality, race or religion.

This is how nations can check extremism by singling out bad guys and taking them out one at a time, in this case, we hope every Muslim in Malaysia will support the government for knocking these hoodlums out as criminals and nothing but criminals.

To be a Muslim is to be a peacemaker, one who seeks to mitigate conflicts and nurtures goodwill for peaceful co-existence. God wants us to live in peace and harmony with his creation; that is indeed the purpose of religion, any religion. Mission statement

www.WorldMuslimCongress.org

##
Festivities soured by race
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/SE%2BAsia/Story/STIStory_423266.html

Malaysia's National Day celebrations this week have been soured by new racial troubles as minority ethnic Chinese and Indians fear Muslim Malay nationalists are gaining power. --PHOTO: AP

KUALA LUMPUR -MALAYSIA'S National Day celebrations this week have been soured by new racial troubles as minority ethnic Chinese and Indians fear Muslim Malay nationalists are gaining power.

In a rare overt display of the tensions, dozens of Muslims paraded on Friday with the bloodied head of a cow, a sacred animal in Hinduism, to protest the proposed construction of a Hindu temple in their neighborhood.

The intolerance cast a shadow over Malaysia's nation-building efforts as it celebrates 52 years of independence from British rule on Monday.

'Increasingly after 52 years, Malaysia is at a crossroad,' James Chin, a political science professor at Monash University in Kuala Lumpur, said Sunday. 'We are heading toward an intolerant society where fundamentalists and extremists are hijacking the national agenda to become a prosperous multiracial Malaysia.'

In a recent case, a Muslim woman was sentenced to caning by an Islamic court for drinking beer in public. Authorities last week agreed to review the penalty after many Malaysians said it damaged the country's reputation as a moderate Muslim-majority nation.

Also this month, officials curbed the retail sale of liquor in a central state and barred Muslims from a concert next month by the US group the Black Eyed Peas because it is sponsored by Irish beer giant Guinness.

Although these examples involve actions by Muslims toward other Muslims, many Malaysians worry they are a reflection of the growing clout of Islamic hard-liners that will eventually effect other minorities.

The inter-religious discord is a particular concern for Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is trying to promote racial equality.

Malaysia has carefully nurtured harmony among its three main ethnic groups - Malays, Chinese and Indians who are Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Sikh - since 1969, when the country suffered its worst racial riots. But racial tensions have increased in recent years amid complaints by minorities that their rights are being eroded as the influence of Islamic hard-liners grows.

Lim Kit Siang, an opposition leader, said the cow head protest in central Selangor was a slap to Mr Najib's racial equality campaign known as '1Malaysia.'

'The cow-head sacrilege must serve as an ominous warning that Mr Najib's first National Day celebration as prime minister will go down as a black National Day if the genies of racism and religious chicanery are allowed to get out of the bottle,' Mr Lim said.

Mr Najib hasn't made any public comment so far on the protest. Human Resource Minister S. Subramaniam said the incident infuriated the prime minister, who asked the national police chief to investigate. -- AP

#

Protesters threaten bloodshed over Hindu temple

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/36272-protesters-threaten-bloodshed-over-hindu-temple

The group making their way to the Selangor secretariat building after their prayers. - Picture by Choo Choy May

By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal

SHAH ALAM, Aug 28 — A group of Malay-Muslim protesters claiming to be residents of Section 23 have threatened bloodshed unless the state government stopped the construction of a Hindu Temple.

Amid chants of "Allahuakbar," the group also left the severed head of a cow at the entrance of the State Secretariat here as a warning to Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim.

The "residents" said that the construction of a Hindu temple in a 90 per cent Malay- Muslim neighbourhood was insensitive because activities there would disrupt their lives.

They claimed that the "noise" from the temple would disturb their own praying, and that they would not be able to function properly as Muslims.

The group of 50 over protestors marched shortly after Friday prayers from the Shah Alam State mosque to the State Secretariat.

“I challenge YB Khalid, YB Rodziah and Xavier Jeyakumar to go on with the temple construction. I guarantee bloodshed and racial tension will happen if this goes on, and the state will be held responsible,” shouted Ibrahim Haji Sabri amid strong chants of “Allahu Akbar!”

Ibrahim identified himself as the Deputy Chairman of the Resident’s Committee against the building of the temple in S23 here, which is perceived by some as being a Muslim majority area.

He told the press that the state should move the temple to Section 22 as ‘originally planned’, and also labelled Khalid a “traitor to the Malay race and Islam”.

It is understood that the protest is an immediate reaction towards the Selangor MB’s visit to the Hindu temple site yesterday, an act seen by the "residents" as disrespectful to the Muslims of the community.

Mohd. Zurit Bin Ramli, who claims to be the secretary of the "Coalition of Malaysian NGOs" echoed Ibrahim’s stand on the matter, saying that it was irresponsible on the part of the state government to approve the construction as there was apparently a “90 per cent” majority Muslim population in Section 23.

“With a temple on our residential area, we cannot function properly as Muslims. The temple will disrupt our daily activities like prayers in the Surau. We cannot concentrate with the sounds coming from the temple,” stated Zurit.

When asked whether members of the protest were affiliated with any organisations or movements, Ibrahim claimed that the people present today were members of PAS, PKR as well as Umno who are “united in the name of Islam and the Malay spirit.”

The state government was also accused of lying to the people of Selangor.

The Chairman of the Residents Committee, Mahyuddin Manaf excitedly proclaimed that the committee would uncover “the lies” and find proof of the state’s misconduct.

“Khalid Ibrahim wears a mask of a Muslim, but in truth he is a liberal. PAS stands to lose out as a result. I voted for PAS as well as Khalid in the past elections,” Mahyuddin claimed.

The issue first cropped up when the Selangor government proposed that the Sri Mariamman temple be relocated from Section 19 to Section 23.

You may post your solutions by clicking this link: http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2009/08/festivities-soured-by-race.html#comments

##

Six Suggestions to Muslims

Every day, some one or the other is writing negative things about Islam, it is an industry, the uglier you write, the greater the "other" extremists flock to you and the nincompoops also fund them. Geert Wilder produced a documentary called Fitna which became an international controversy. I responded to his 14 verses from Qur'aan that he deliberately misquoted, I quoted straight from the Qur'aan, one of his sources was USC which was wrong too. Mr. Wilders has read our piece, but yet, does not have the conscience to admit to the public at large that he misinformed the public. The link is placed in one of the questions below. What do you do? I believe the good majority of all people including Muslims do not heed such non-sense, but the negative perception is growing ceaselessly.

Bilingual is a Hispanic American working in India and is writing extensively in a blog called Sulekha, where I have been writing for the last ten years. He and I did some information sharing and then he came up with this challenge and wanted me to respond to his six questions.

Mike Ghouse


RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS ON THE WEBSITE SULEKHA.COM
http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/09/six-suggestions-to-muslims.html

Dear Bilingual,

While I agree with most of what you have said, I am pleased to respond to six of your questions and I will write them in a reverse order;

6) Recognize and celebrate the role of women and their right to education and freedoms.....

The women are mistreated all over the world; all of us Men need to stand up to it. When they condemn how Indian women are burnt for dowries, I found out that more women are killed in the US by their violent spouse/boy friends, compare that to women in Islam, fewer are beaten up. All of them are wrong. That is not a solace and things have to be changed. It is the stupid, insecure dumb Men do those things. Religion is simply a scape goat.

I have made a tough call to Muslims:

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/09/remnants-of-muslim-jahilya.html

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/09/islamic-feminism-conference-in-spain.html

5) Promotes and demands a division between Religion and State (Countries)

Indian and US constitutions have laws against corruption and crimes yet all of it happens, in Texas we hang the criminals and death penalty is carried out by eloctrocuting them, yet we are a civilized society!

Islam the religion did not want monarchies, dictatorships or dynasties, yet the nations with larger Muslim populations have them. Prophet Muhammad did not appoint a successor upon his death, Ali would have been the right one but the Prophet did not want people to take it that because Ali was his cousin and son in law, he gave the keys to him. He was against dynasties or successive rulers, so the first four leaders in Islam were elected. People are people whether they are Muslims, Hindus or Christians, they want to control and run – BJP and congress are no different. The problem is not the religion, it is the people and we are making aggressive pushes to keep the state and religion separate. Does this happen in a secular democracy like US or India? No, religion still plays a major role.

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/09/sharia-laws-and-un-human-rights.html

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/08/islam-and-democracy.html


4) Issues edicts on what will not be tolerated in prayers and in mosques

Yes, at least Muslims in America do not tolerate any sermons that incite hate or anger against any one. I will speak out and thousands of fellow Muslim will speak up when we see any such insinuations or inneundos. I have suggested every Mosque to do a recording of their sermons and post it on the website. Most mosques routinely invite the public to attend the sermons. It is open to all and keeps the places of worship dedicated to invividual attainment of peace. However, you "may" find a mosque here and there where violations take place. It happens in all other faiths worship places. Go to a church and listen to the hate sermons by Robertson, Falwell, Stewart, Hagee. For Armageddon to happen they will kill the entire population in the Palestine/Israel territory, their version of God is a cruel God who will massacre every one just so Armageddon can happen. Listen to Thackery, Modi, Togadia, Advani... poison spills out of their mouths. In the Middle east there are quite a lot of Hate Sermons; fortunately in India and other democracties it is not as prevalent. No value is placed on life by these extremists in all religions, they are the counterparts of the Talibans, the Wahhabis and the Ladens.

Check this out: http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/2008/03/hate-sermons-from-pulpit.html

3) Change the curriculum of Islamic education on all levels to something that is compatible with the world’s education.

There is a need for this badly and the progress is not visible yet. One of the Mosques in Dallas, take their students both male and female to interfaith workshops and other places where they are open to dialogue. That is not enough, but the signs are there. In Bangalore one of my cousins who heads a mosque is doing something similar, I have not had the chance to keep up with more of this, just because I don’t know, it does not mean it is not there. But a lot of focus needs to be made here. The responsibility for peace should not fall on any one, each one of us has to bear the burden for a better tomorrow.


2) Provide a recognized and universally approved translation for the Qur’an

Yes, this is a major problem area and significant work is being done on this. The best translation is by Mohammad Asad, fairly represents the essence of Islam that you talked about it so eloquently. It is on one of the major sites called Islamicity.com. I am yet to get it done. However, you can see Qur’aan search at www.worldMuslimCongress on the right hand panel.

Here are three critical items in that direction; I am hoping to do a Quraan translation where a Baha’i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jain, Jew, Oloriyo, Sikh, Shinto, Toltec, Wicca and a Zoroastrian can relate with it. Believe it or not, an Atheist can relate with it as well. The third link below is a prelude to it.

http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2007/12/not-like-jews-or-christians.html

http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/03/wilders-fitna-and-muslims_30.html

http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/07/sura-kafirun-un-believers.html


1. Develop a hierarchy in both the Sunni and Shi’s branches that is universally recognized and obeyed

It will take time but it is happening gradually and I will have to make time to find those articles and work in that direction. The following article on Ramadan brings together all the divisions towards the essence of the faith.

http://www.foundationforpluralism.com/Articles/The-spirit-rituals-and-politics-of-Ramadan.asp The comments after the article are good too.

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/08/maldives-constitution-to-be-condemned.html

Peace is in your interest, my interest and every one's interest. Each one of us have to do our share of work in mitigating conflicts and nurturing good will. Those who simply point fingers, shame on them.

Mike Ghouse is a Speaker, Thinker and a Writer. He co-chairs the center for interfaith inquiry of the Memnosyne Foundation, president of the Foundation for Pluralism and is a frequent guest on talk radio and local television network discussing interfaith, political and civic issues. He is the founding president of World Muslim Congress with a simple theme: Good for Muslims and good for the world. His comments, news analysis and columns can be found on the Websites and Blogs listed at his personal website http://www.mikeghouse.net/. Mike is a Dallasite for nearly three decades and Carrollton is his home town. He can be reached at mailto:MikeGhouse@gmail.com

The Spirit, rituals and politics of Ramadan

The Spirit, rituals and politics of Ramadan
Mike Ghouse, Dallas, Texas

The Spiritual masters have captured the human gravity for rituals and have molded it with the art and science of self-discipline in their respective religion. The noble purpose of each one of them was to bring a balance in our lives and a balance with things that surround us; life and environment. Every faith is composed of a set of unique rituals to bring discipline and peace to human life. Fasting is one of the five key rituals that Muslims around the world observe.

Continued at: http://www.foundationforpluralism.com/Articles/The-spirit-rituals-and-politics-of-Ramadan.asp

Who owns the word “Allah” ?

The Malaysian Government need to learn that no one owns the word "Allah" nor does any one own "Allah". Same formula applies to the other names of God be it Yahweh, Ahura Mazda, Krishna, Allah, Ahura Mazda or any other name one can imagine to call on the creator.

As a Muslim I welcome every one to call God with his name in Arabic – "Allah" with equal devotion and honor. Quietly and peacefully this would be the response of over 99% of Muslims in the world. It is time for us not to run over by the few.

Full article at: http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2008/07/who-owns-word-allah.html

Critiquing Islamism and Maududi

Article by Yogi Sikand follows my commentary;
http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/05/critiquing-islamism-and-maududi.html

Yogi, Thanks for posting yet another piece that opens the windows to “exploring” the truth. Finding the truth is one’s own responsibility.

I am glad to see Muslims unhesitatingly critiquing the revered Muslims scholars of the past, we need to sort out the truth from the bunk and there is plenty of it, that is being unraveled now and Insha Allah, in the next decade we must be able to take out the additives by reverend Maududi, Qutub, Hilali and their likes who sought political gains through religion. Political Islam is a human endeavor to dominate, influence and control others, possibly out of fear of being run over or to cash in on the fear. It is the same story with Zionism, Hindutva and Neocons, agents of fear and war mongering.

Truthfully following the religion comes when we have the freedom to question what is given to us. When we lose that freedom, we fall into the trap of distancing ourselves from the truth. Prophet Muhammad did not assign any one to run the religion for Muslims; it was up to the individual to follow the guidelines enshrined in Qur’aan which is the only thing he left to the followers in his last speech. Respectfully the Shia version assigns an interpreter of religion and it was taken as a hereditary Imamat – it works for them and the other system works for the Sunni traditionalist. Prophet Muhammad completed the religion and no one needed to carry it forward, it was the finality of the message, there was no more delegation of religious authority.

Neither the Prophet assigned the governance of the state to any one that would have led to a monarchial form of governance. The consultative form was adopted for the political governance of the state and it was followed with the first four Leaders. Abdul Aziz Sachedina calls it the roots of democracy.

Religion is a private matter between an individual and God, as no one, not even the Prophet is responsible for one’s good and bad deeds, it is the individual responsibility, he or she alone faces the consequences on the day of Judgment, as such no state has the right to regulate one’s faith matters. As a civil society we honor the general guidelines and rules of the society, and can regulate those acts that affect others in terms of crime and punishment.

“Thus, he (Nadwi) accuses Maududi of wrongly equating the Islamic duty of 'establishing religion' with the setting up of an Islamic state with God as Sovereign and Law Maker. At Maududi's hands, he says, 'God', 'The Sustainer', 'Religion' and 'Worship' have all been reduced to political concepts.”

“Thus, he (Nadwi) argued, Maududi's insistence that to accept the commands of anyone other than God, including of an elected government, was tantamount to shirk, the crime of associating others with God, as this was allegedly akin to 'worship', was not in keeping with the teachings of Islam.”.

The above idea seem like etched in stone… it will take a lot of time and research to undo this set notions among a few Muslims, who are in-charge of running the affairs of Muslim communities, oddly the majority of Muslims will not subscribe to it in the privacy of their hearts and minds. Prophet lived in a pluralistic society, and he was sensitive to other humans that God wanted us to understand and live with, he took the initiative of Madinah pact and examples abound of his respect (not agree) for others. Where as some of the Islamic scholars did not live in such an environment and their views are certainly biased, although Maududi lived in such a society; India, perhaps he ignored Allah’s instructions given in Al-Hujurat, Surah 49:13.

“Further, Maulana Nadwi asserted that Maududi's argument that God had sent prophets to the world charged with the mission of establishing an 'Islamic state' was a misreading of the Islamic concept of prophethood.”

“In Maududi's understanding of Islam, he wrote, prayer and remembrance of God are seen as simply the means to an end, the establishment of an Islamic state, whereas, Maulana Nadwi argued, the converse is true.”.

If Maududi meant Islamic state to mean just governance, then it is fine, but if he meant suppression of those who differ and make them second class citizens, then it is dangerous and militaristic, and goes against the very grain of Islam – that is to create peaceful and just societies. We have to undo this thought.

“Maulana Nadwi's critique of radical Islamism points to the rich theological resources contained within traditional Islamic thought that can be used to fashion alternate understandings of the relationship between Islam and politics in a far more sensible way than most Islamists have articulated hitherto and which have caused untold havoc in the name of Islam.”

Yogi has concluded this very well with the above thought. Indeed that is the basis for Ijtihad. We should not settle for the opinions of scholars from yesteryears, and revisit them and re-affirm or re-evaluate in present context. Islam is for all times.

Mike Ghouse is a Speaker, Thinker, Writer and a Moderator. He is a frequent guest on talk radio and local television network discussing Pluralism, politics, Islam, Religion, Terrorism, India and civic issues. His comments, news analysis, opinions and columns can be found on the Websites and Blogs listed at his personal website www.MikeGhouse.net. He can be reached at MikeGhouse@aol.com
# # #

Maulana Nadwi has rightly criticized Maulana
Nadwi on Maududi: A Traditionalist Maulvi's Critique of Islamism

By Yoginder Sikand, TwoCircles.net

The late Sayyed Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi (or Ali Miyan as he was also known) was one of the leading Indian ulema of modern times. A noted writer, he headed the famous Nadwat ul-Ulema madrasa in Lucknow from 1961 till his death in 1999. He was associated with several other Indian as well as international Islamic organisations, a mark of the high respect that he was accorded among Muslims all over the world.

Maulana Nadwi's wrote extensively on a vast range of subjects, including on Islam and politics. On this issue, his views underwent a gradual process of change and maturation, beginning with his early association with a leading Indian Islamist formation and later making a forceful critique of some crucial aspects of its understanding of Islam. His views in this regard point to the little-known yet rich internal debate among Indian Muslim scholars about the relationship between Islam and politics, particularly on the question of what Islamists describe as an 'Islamic state'.

In 1940, Maulana Nadwi came under the influence of Sayyid Maududi, the founder of the principal Indian Islamist outfit, the Jamaat-i Islami. Maududi, along with the Egyptian Syed Qutb, may be said to be among the pioneers of contemporary Islamism. Soon after joining the Jamaat, Maulana Nadwi was put in-charge of its activities in Lucknow. This relationship proved short-lived, however, and he left the Jamaat in 1943. He later wrote that he was disillusioned by the perception that many members of the Jamaat were going to what he called 'extremes' in adoring and glorifying Maududi as almost infallible, this bordering on personality worship'. At the same time, he felt that many Jamaat activists believed that they had nothing at all to learn from any other scholars of Islam. He was also concerned with what he saw as a lack of personal piety in Maududi and some leading Jamaat activists and with their criticism of other Muslim groups.

Maulana Nadwi's opposition to the Jamaat's understanding about Islam and politics, which it shared with most other Islamist formations, comes out clearly in his Urdu book Asr-i Hazir Mai Din Ki Tahfim-o-Tashrih ('Understanding and Explaining Religion in the Contemporary Age') which he penned in 1978, and which won him, so he says in his introduction to its second edition published in 1980, fierce condemnation from leading members of the Jamaat. Here, Maulana Nadwi takes Maududi to task for having allegedly misinterpreted central Islamic beliefs in order to suit his own
political agenda, presenting Islam, he says, as little more than a political programme. Thus, he accuses Maududi of wrongly equating the Islamic duty of 'establishing religion' with the setting up of an Islamic state with God as Sovereign and Law Maker. At Maududi's hands, he says, 'God', 'The Sustainer', 'Religion' and 'Worship' have all been reduced to political concepts. In this way, Maududi, Maulana Nadwi says, sought to incorrectly suggest that Islam is simply about
political power and that the relationship between God and human beings is only that between an All-Powerful King and His subjects. However, Maulana Nadwi says, this relationship is also one of 'love' and 'realisation of the Truth', which is far more comprehensive than what Maududi envisages.

Linked to Maulana Nadwi's critique of Maududi for having allegedly reduced Islam to a mere political project was his concern that not only was such an approach a distortion of the actual import of the Quran but also that it was impractical, if not dangerous, in the Indian context. Thus, he argued, Maududi's insistence that to accept the commands of anyone other than God, including of an elected government, was tantamount to shirk, the crime of associating others with God, as this was allegedly akin to 'worship', was not in keeping with the teachings of Islam. God, Maulana Nadwi wrote, had, in His
wisdom, left several areas of life free for people to decide how they could govern them, within the broad limits set by the
Islamic law or shariah, and guided by a concern for social welfare.

Further, Maulana Nadwi asserted that Maududi's argument that God had sent prophets to the world charged with the mission of establishing an 'Islamic state' was a misreading of the Islamic concept of prophethood. The principal work of the prophets, Maulana Nadwi argued, was to preach the worship of the one God and to exhort others to do good deeds. Not all prophets were rulers. In fact, only a few of them were granted that status. Maulana Nadwi faulted

Maududi for what he said was 'debasing' the 'lofty' Islamic understanding of worship to mean simply 'training' people as willing subjects of the Islamic state. In Maududi's understanding of Islam, he wrote, prayer and remembrance of God are seen as simply the means to an end, the establishment of an Islamic state, whereas, Maulana Nadwi argued, the converse is true. The goal of the Islamic state is to ensure worship of God, and not the other way round. If at all worship
can be said to be a means, he added, it is a means for securing the 'will of God' and 'closeness to Him'.

If the 'Islamic state' should then simply a means for the 'establishment of religion' and not the 'total religion' or the 'primary objective' of Islam, it opens up the possibility of pursuing the same goals through other means. Maulana Nadwi
refers to this when he says that the objective of the 'establishment of the faith' needs to be pursued along with 'wisdom of the faith', using constructive, as opposed to destructive, means. Eschewing 'total opposition', Muslims striving for the 'establishment of the faith' should, he wrote, unhesitatingly adopt peaceful means such as 'understanding and reform', 'consultation' and 'wisdom'. Critiquing the use of uncalled for violence by some groups calling themselves 'Islamic', Maulana Nadwi stressed the need for 'obedience', 'love' and 'faith' and struggle against the 'base self' (nafs). Muslims
should, he wrote, make use of all available legitimate spaces to pursue the cause of the 'establishment of religion', such as propagating their message through literature, public discussions, training volunteers, winning others over with the force of one's own personality and establishing contacts with governments.

Maulana Nadwi's critique of radical Islamism points to the rich theological resources contained within traditional Islamic thought that can be used to fashion alternate understandings of the relationship between Islam and politics in a far more sensible way than most Islamists have articulated hitherto and which have caused untold havoc in the name of Islam.

Book Info: Sayyed Abul Hasan 'Ali Nadwi, 'Asr-i Hazir Mai Din Ki
Tahfim-o-Tashrih, Dar-ul 'Arafat, Lucknow. 1980 edition.

--

Hindu-Muslim dialogue

It reminds me of my College Professor Ramachandran and my weaver friend Fakhru Bhai; a Hindu and a Muslim respectively and I used to discuss and understand the wisdom of each aspect of religion.

As a Muslim I see great efforts on the part of Muslims to relate with Hindus, it is an effort; however, due to the complex plurality of Hindu belief system, it is much easier for a Hindu to relate with a Muslim than otherwise on a theological basis.

Muslims subtly condition themselves to relate with Hindus based on their reference to God, as one God. Although God is formless in both scriptures, subconsciously most humans give a form and insist on identifying with that One God, as though it is a physical being. Given that, the efforts of Syed Abdullah Tariq must be appreciated.

However, the common Hindus and Muslims, the ones who do not wear religious neon signs are comfortable with each other, just as they are with their own. The One God, No God or Many representations of God is not an issue to them and this is the grounding of an overwhelming majority of Muslims, Hindus or any one. Syed Abdullah Tariq will be more successful in getting the message to the majority and we need to encourage such efforts.

The idea of one God has become more of a political issue, where a few use that as the standard to judge one’s righteousness and mentally declare other practices as wrong or even sinful. We really need to review the intent or wisdom of the idea of one God. – It is a uniting element accepting the uniqueness of each creation, where we acknowledge the source of creation and cause of creation by one energy…. A conflict less system of co-existence for justice and peace.

In the long time interests of peace for every individual, each one of us have to put an effort. Any society that is built and sustained on justice takes out the fear and uncertainty from the minds of people and bring peace, allowing them to be productive and contributing members of the society.

Due to the terminal health of my wife, I have not been able to write much… but this one caught my attention. (http://mikeghouseforamerica.blogspot.com/2008/05/gods-grace-for-najma-ghouse.html )

We just had our Monthly interfaith (http://carrolltondiary.blogspot.com/2008/04/may-14-carrollton-interfaith-luncheon.html ) meeting at the Mosque in Carrollton, and It was such a joy to see every one respond positively to the inspiration from Jainism. The whole gathering repeated “Michami Dukadam” after me. During Tsunami, we were able to have a Bhajan in the Mosque in Richardson, which is a rare thing. These are positive improvements. God should be invoked with every name and every which way and it is happening.

I commend the efforts of Syed Abdullah Tariq. May more people participate in such efforts.

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net

An innovative approach to Hindu-Muslim dialogue
Posted May 16th, 2008 by Mudassir Rizwan

* Articles
* Indian Muslim

55 year-old Syed Abdullah Tariq runs an Islamic group
based in Rampur, a town in western Uttar Pradesh, that
focuses on dialogue with Hindus. An engineer by
training, he was one of the chief disciples of the
late Maulana Shams Naved Usmani, a noted Islamic
scholar who had also a deep knowledge of the Hindu
scriptures.

Tariq collected and published the thoughts and sayings
of Maulana Usmani in the form of several books in Urdu
and Hindi, the most well-known of these being 'Agar
Abhi Na Jagey To', later translated into English under
the title 'Now Or Never'. Maulana Usmani and Tariq
have been one of the pioneers of a particular Islamic
approach to dialogue with Hindus, one that is based on
the commonalities that they perceived in Islam and
Hinduism.

In a recent meeting in Rampur, Tariq related his own
story and his association with Maulana Usmani to
Yoginder Sikand, as follows:

Having finished my engineering degree from the Aligarh
Muslim University, I was not sure what I wanted to
take up as a career. In 1974, when I was in my early
twenties, I first met Maulana Shams Naved Usmani in
Rampur. I was really impressed by his teachings, his
enthusiasm for dialogue between Hindus and Muslims. I
decided to stay in his company and to take down
whatever he used to say to his disciples. Later, I had
these published in the form of several books.

Maulana Usmani, or Chacha Jan as I used to fondly call
him, was a very modest man, a Sufi. Originally from
Deoband, he was from the famous Usmani family which
had produced numerous well-known ulema, including
Maulana Shabbir Ahmad Usmani and Maulana Atiq
ur-Rahman Usmani. He did his Master's degree from
Lucknow University, taught History and Geography in a
small semi-government school in Rampur. His lifestyle
was austere. He lived in a small, two-room rented
house. I remember that he constantly had tears in his
eyes. People would come to him to ask him to do dua
for them, which he always did. Even at the height of
summer, he would use a fan only if a guest visited his
house. If he bought a fruit, he would keep a small
part of it for the lady who would come to clean his
house every day. Once, there was a dispute between two
of his relatives over some family-owned property in
Deoband. He told them to stop quarrelling and said
that they could take his share of the property if that
would satisfy him. His wife got a little upset about
this, but he sought to comfort her by composing a
poem, one line of which said, 'Oh, my life companion!
Our house is not in this world!'.

Chacha Jan did not receive a traditional education in
a madrasa, but since he came from a family of noted
ulema he learnt about Islam at home itself as a child.
Later, he learnt Sanskrit on his own. He then began
studying the various Hindu scriptures, and was
surprised to learn, or so he believed, that some of
the original Hindu texts, when shorn of later
accretions, also talk, as the Quran does, of
monotheism, oppose idolatry and polytheism and caste
inequality. This he felt might be a reconfirmation of
the Quran's announcement that God has sent messengers
to every community, and that they have all taught the
same primal and eternal religion or deen of al-Islam,
the surrender to the one God. This means, obviously,
that God must have also sent prophets to India, and it
is quite possible that some figures whom the Hindus
revere might actually have been such prophets,
although later a large number of corruptions and
accretions crept in and people began worshipping these
prophets as deities.

This was Maulana Usmani's basic contention. He argued
that the Sanskrit term sanatan dharm or 'Eternal
Religion', if understood in this manner as submission
to the one God, was the same as the deen al-qaim,
which again means 'Eternal Religion', which is what
Islam is. It was on the basis of this core similarity
that Maulana Sahib wanted Hindus and Muslims to come
together. He also claimed that the Prophet Muhammad
had been prophesied about in some of the Hindu
scriptures. This meant, he argued, that the Hindus, in
accordance with the teachings of these scriptures,
should recognize the Prophet, in addition to other
prophets of God, including those who had been sent to
India. At the same, he wanted Muslims to recognize the
validity of these scriptures insofar as they were of
divine origin and not corrupted by human hands. In
other words, what he was trying to advocate was that
Hindus and Muslims must come closer together based on
precisely what he believed their religious scriptures
said about each other's prophets and on their common
stress on the worship of the one God. This was the
crux of almost all the writings that have been
attributed to him, most of which I have compiled.

After Chacha Jan's sad demise some years ago we have
been trying to carry on with the Maulana's unique work
of inter-faith dialogue. I am often invited to address
inter-faith and dawah meetings in different parts of
India, often even by Hindu organizations. When I am in
Rampur, I and some young colleagues of mine, many of
them students and self-employed youth, meet on Fridays
in the house of Chachi Jan, the wife of the late
Maulana, where we together study a selected portion of
the Quran. After that, I generally deliver a lecture
to the Juma congregation in a mosque nearby, where I
try to discuss issues of contemporary concern, say
violence, women's right, education, the importance of
dawah and inter-faith dialogue and so on. Then, we
divide ourselves into groups and go to nearby
villages, where we meet with Hindus and Muslims and
discuss with them about religion, focusing on the
concept of tauhid, or, as it is called in Hindi and
Sanskrit, ekishwarvad, which, we point out, is common
to both Islam and what we think were the original
Hindu texts. We also talk about the predictions about
the Prophet Muhammad in some Hindu texts that Maulana
Saheb said he had discovered, and also about the
possibility that some key Hindu personages were
actually prophets of God. In this way, we are trying,
in our own very modest way, to bring Hindus and
Muslims to understand their commonalities and thereby
to come closer to each other.

To our Hindu brethren we try and convey that Islam is
not a radically new or alien religion. Rather, it is
the same religion of monotheistic submission that was
taught by all the prophets, starting from the first of
these, Hazrat Adam, whom some have identified as Shiva
in the Hindu tradition. Hence, we tell them, to
recognize the teachings of the Prophet, the core of
which is monotheism, is to actually fulfill the
teachings of their own original scriptures rather than
constituting a departure from or betrayal of them.
Some Hindus will readily recognize other religions
that had their roots in India, such as Sikhism,
Buddhism and Jainism, although their teachings might
differ, on some counts, considerably with Hinduism,
but refuse to recognize religions that are thought to
have their origins outside India. So, we tell them
that true religion is universal. It is not meant for
any one country or race alone, and we say that some
Muslim traditions have it that the first prophet of
God according to the Islam, Hazrat Adam, was actually
sent down to Sri Lanka, which is part of the imagined
Greater India.

We tell them all this, and many people's minds have
been changed as a result, but still, I believe, that
in general people are impressed and influenced not so
much by speeches and sermons as by one's personal
example, and that is something that Chacha Jan used to
exemplify. So many Hindus who met him changed their
views about Islam and Muslims as a result of this
interaction. His approach was one of seeking to find
similarities, to point out our commonalities, rather
than play on and magnify our differences. I think this
is the right approach. I also believe that people who
go around condemning other religions or mocking them
in a bid to stress the claim of the superiority of
their religion actually do their own religion a
disservice because in this way others become alienated
from and hostile to them and their religion rather
than attracted to it. And I believe that Chacha Jan's
approach to dialogue with Hindus was quite in line
with what the Quran says when it advises us to address
others with good words, gently, with love.

In this regard, while talking about the need for
inter-faith dialogue between Muslims and Hindus, I
also want to stress that some ulema as well as radical
Islamists who insist that all non-Muslims are 'enemies
of Islam' and that we must not have any relations with
them or even that we should be stern towards them and
demean them are not just incorrect from the Quranic
point of view but are also insulting Islam. They take
one small verse in the Quran completely out of its
context to insist that Muslims must not befriend
people of other faiths. But this is wholly incorrect.
You must look at the particular context in which this
verse was revealed, who exactly the people referred to
here whom Muslims are told not to befriend were. You
must also examine all the verses in the Quran that
talk about people of other faiths. That would lead one
to the conclusion, which the Quran itself states
somewhere, that God does not forbid Muslims from
befriending those non-Muslims who have not persecuted
them on account of their faith. In other words, the
Quran insists we should relate to such people with
love and good intentions. That sort of relationship is
crucial for any meaningful inter-faith dialogue.

Islam is the religion taught by all the prophets, who
have been sent to all peoples in the world, as the
Quran itself says. It is, therefore, a truly universal
faith, not tied down to one particular ethnic or
cultural group. It is meant for all peoples, and so
when some Muslims erroneously conceive of it as
indelibly linked to a particular culture, dress,
cuisine or language I feel they are really negating
its universality. This naturally makes Islam appear
culturally alien to people who have a different sort
of culture. In turn, that makes our task of
inter-faith dialogue as well as telling others about
Islam particularly difficult.

In this regard I would like to cite a particular
Hadith report that has been attributed to the Prophet,
according to which he is reported as having said that
differences (ikhtilaf) were a blessing for his
community. Some ulema have wrongly interpreted this to
mean that the Prophet was here indicating intra-Muslim
sectarian differences. Not at all! Their petty
bickering on the basis of sectarian differences has
not proved to be a blessing at all, but, rather, a
curse. Perhaps one sort of difference that the Prophet
was referring to here was actually the diversity of
cultures, food styles, dress, languages and so on.
Unfortunately, some of our ulema think in quite the
opposite way. They want to stamp out this rich
cultural diversity, which is a real blessing actually,
and impose a single culture on everyone, at the same
time as they actively seek to promote sectarian
differences by incorrectly interpreting this Hadith
report.

Cultural diversity is a blessing ordained by God, and
without it the world would have been a very drab and
boring place indeed! So, in our inter-faith dialogue
work we must recognize the validity of those things in
others' cultures that do not transgress basic human
and Islamic norms. These things are actually quite
acceptable to Muslims, who can also adopt them without
fear of having diluted their faith thereby. Likewise
in the case of others adopting some aspects of the
culture associated with different Muslim groups.

If religion and culture are considered in this
expansive way, I am quite confident that we can
overcome numerous hurdles in the path to inter-faith
understanding. Further, this would also help is in our
task of telling others about our faith, which is
something that Chacha Jan devoted his life to.

___________________________________________________________________

For a detailed account of Maulana Usmani's views and
approach to inter-faith dialogue, see my essay titled
"An Islamic 'Hinduism'?: The Inter-Faith Dialogue
Project of Acharya Maulana Shams Naved 'Usmani",
available on
http://insaf.net/pipermail/insafny_insaf.net/2005-January/000846.html

God's Grace for Najma Ghouse

God has been good to us.

After 9 months of good medical care and God's grace, Najma, my wife is now completely under God's care and surviving with Allah’s grace, your wishes and prayers.

In the foot steps of Prophet Muhammad, as a Muslim, I draw inspiration from all faiths and share this beautiful precise expressive phrase from Jainism “ Michami Dukadam”, the essence of which is, on this day, let’s forgive and ask for forgiveness and start the next breath of life with a clean slate, free from guilt, free from anxiety, free from hate, malice, anger and all those enslaving emotions. ..... The Qur'aan says that God’s favorite person is the one, who forgives and seeks forgiveness. It is also an idea central to the teachings of Jesus Christ. I want to thank every one who has participated and will participate in this heart and mind purifying process with Najma and I..Please say "Michami Dukadam", it will complete the transaction.

Click the link to continue: http://mikeghouseforamerica.blogspot.com/2008/05/gods-grace-for-najma-ghouse.html

Gentler Islam Schools

Turkish schools offer Pakistan a gentler Islam

By SABRINA TAVERNISE
Turkish educators are offering an alternative approach to religious schools that could reduce extremists' influence.

Saturday, May 3, 2008

KARACHI, Pakistan: Praying in Pakistan has not been easy for Mesut Kacmaz, a Muslim teacher from Turkey.

He tried the mosque near his house, but it had Israeli and Danish flags painted on the floor for people to step on. The mosque near where he works warned him never to return wearing a tie. Pakistanis everywhere assume he is not Muslim because he has no beard.
"Kill, fight, shoot," Kacmaz said. "This is a misinterpretation of Islam."

But that view is common in Pakistan, a frontier land for the future of Islam, where schools, nourished by Saudi and American money dating back to the 1980s, have spread Islamic radicalism through the poorest parts of society. With a literacy rate of just 50 percent and a public school system near collapse, the country is particularly vulnerable.

Kacmaz (pronounced KATCH-maz) is part of a group of Turkish educators who have come to this battleground with an entirely different vision of Islam. Theirs is moderate and flexible, comfortably coexisting with the West while remaining distinct from it. Like Muslim Peace Corps volunteers, they promote this approach in schools, which are now established in more than 80 countries, Muslim and Christian.

Their efforts are important in Pakistan, a nuclear power whose stability and whose vulnerability to fundamentalism have become main preoccupations of American foreign policy. Its tribal areas have become a refuge to the Taliban and Al Qaeda, and the battle against fundamentalism rests squarely on young people and the education they get.
At present, that education is extremely weak. The poorest Pakistanis cannot afford to send their children to public schools, which are free but require fees for books and uniforms. Some choose to send their children to madrasas, or religious schools, which, like aid organizations, offer free food and clothing. Many simply teach, but some have radical agendas. At the same time, a growing middle class is rejecting public schools, which are chaotic and poorly financed, and choosing from a new array of private schools.

The Turkish schools, which have expanded to seven cities in Pakistan since the first one opened a decade ago, cannot transform the country on their own. But they offer an alternative approach that could help reduce the influence of Islamic extremists.

They prescribe a strong Western curriculum, with courses, taught in English, from math and science to English literature and Shakespeare. They do not teach religion beyond the one class in Islamic studies that is required by the state. Unlike British-style private schools, however, they encourage Islam in their dormitories, where teachers set examples in lifestyle and prayer.

"Whatever the West has of science, let our kids have it," said Erkam Aytav, a Turk who works in the new schools. "But let our kids have their religion as well."

That approach appeals to parents in Pakistan, who want their children to be capable of competing with the West without losing their identities to it. Allahdad Niazi, a retired Urdu professor in Quetta, a frontier town near the Afghan border, took his son out of an elite military school, because it was too authoritarian and did not sufficiently encourage Islam, and put him in the Turkish school, called PakTurk.

"Private schools can't make our sons good Muslims," Niazi said, sitting on the floor in a Quetta house. "Religious schools can't give them modern education. PakTurk does both."
The model is the brainchild of a Turkish Islamic scholar, Fethullah Gulen. A preacher with millions of followers in Turkey, Gulen, 69, comes from a tradition of Sufism, an introspective, mystical strain of Islam. He has lived in exile in the United States since 2000, after getting in trouble with secular Turkish officials.

Gulen's idea, Aytav said, is that "without science, religion turns to radicalism, and without religion, science is blind and brings the world to danger."

The schools are putting into practice a Turkish Sufi philosophy that took its most modern form during the last century, after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey's founder, crushed the Islamic caliphate in the 1920s. Islamic thinkers responded by trying to bring Western science into the faith they were trying to defend. In the 1950s, while Arab Islamic intellectuals like Sayyid Qutub were firmly rejecting the West, Turkish ones like Said Nursi were seeking ways to coexist with it.

In Karachi, a sprawling city that has had its own struggles with radicalism — the American reporter Daniel Pearl was killed here, and the famed Binori madrasa here is said to have sheltered Osama bin Laden — the two approaches compete daily.

The Turkish school is in a poor neighborhood in the south of the city where residents are mostly Pashtun, a strongly tribal ethnic group whose poorer fringes have been among the most susceptible to radicalism. Kacmaz, who became principal 10 months ago, ran into trouble almost as soon as he began. The locals were suspicious of the Turks, who, with their ties and clean-shaven faces, looked like math teachers from Middle America.
"They asked me several times, 'Are they Muslim? Do they pray? Are they drinking at night?' " said Ali Showkat, a vice principal of the school, who is Pakistani.

Goats nap by piles of rubbish near the school's entrance, and Kacmaz asked a local religious leader to help get people to stop throwing their trash near the school, to no avail. Exasperated, he hung an Islamic saying on the outer wall of the school: "Cleanliness is half of faith." When he prayed at a mosque, two young men followed him out and told him not to return wearing a tie because it was un-Islamic.

"I said, 'Show me a verse in the Koran where it was forbidden,' " Kacmaz said, steering his car through tangled rush-hour traffic. The two men were wearing glasses, and he told them that scripturally, there was no difference between a tie and glasses.
"Behind their words there was no Hadith," he said, referring to a set of Islamic texts, "only misunderstanding."

That misunderstanding, along with the radicalism that follows, stalks the poorest parts of Quetta. Abdul Bari, a 31-year-old teacher of Islam from a religious family, lives in a neighborhood without electricity or running water. Two brothers from his tribe were killed on a suicide mission, leaving their mother a beggar and angering Bari, who says a Muslim's first duty is to his mother and his family.

"Our nation has no patience," said Bari, who raised his seven younger siblings, after his father died suddenly a dozen years ago. He decided that one of his brothers should be educated, and enrolled him in the Turkish school.

The Turks put the focus on academics, which pleased Bari, who said his dream was for Saadudeen, his brother, to lift the family out of poverty and expand its horizons beyond religion. Bari's title, hafiz, means he has memorized the entire Koran, though he has no formal education. Two other brothers have earned the same distinction. Their father was an imam.

His is a lonely mission in a neighborhood where nearly all the residents are illiterate and most disapprove of his choices, Bari said. He is constantly on guard against extremism. He once punished Saadudeen for flying kites with the wrong kind of boys. At the Turkish school, the teenager is supervised around the clock in a dormitory.

"They are totally against extremism," Bari said of the Turks. "They are true Muslims. They will make my brother into a true Muslim. He'll deal with people with justice and wisdom. Not with impatience."

Illiteracy is one of the roots of problems dogging the Muslim world, said Matiullah Aail, a religious scholar in Quetta who graduated from Medina University in Saudi Arabia.
In Baluchistan, Quetta's sparsely populated province, the literacy rate is less than 10 percent, said Tariq Baluch, a government official in the Pasheen district. He estimated that about half of the district's children attended madrasas.

Aail said: "Doctors and lawyers have to show their degrees. But when it comes to mullahs, no one asks them for their qualifications. They don't have knowledge, but they are influential."

That leads to a skewed interpretation of Islam, even by those schooled in it, according to Gulen and his followers.

"They've memorized the entire holy book, but they don't understand its meaning," said Kamil Ture, a Turkish administrator.

Kacmaz chimed in: "How we interpret the Koran is totally dependent on our education."
In an interview in 2004, published in a book of his writings, Gulen put it like this: "In the countries where Muslims live, some religious leaders and immature Muslims have no other weapon in hand than their fundamental interpretation of Islam. They use this to engage people in struggles that serve their own purposes."

Moderate as that sounds, some Turks say Gulen uses the schools to advance his own political agenda. Murat Belge, a prominent Turkish intellectual who has experience with the movement, said that Gulen "sincerely believes that he has been chosen by God," and described Gulen's followers as "Muslim Jesuits" who are preparing elites to run the country.
Hakan Yavuz, a Turkish professor at the University of Utah who has had extensive experience with the Gulen movement, offered a darker assessment.

"The purpose here is very much power," Yavuz said. "The model of power is the Ottoman Empire and the idea that Turks should shape the Muslim world."

But while radical Islamists seek to re-establish a seventh-century Islamic caliphate, without nations or borders, and more moderate Islamists, like Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, use secular democracy to achieve the goal of an Islamic state, Gulen is a nationalist who says he wants no more than a secular democracy where citizens are free to worship, a claim secular Turks find highly suspect.

Still, his schools are richly supported by Turkish businessmen. M. Ihsan Kalkavan, a shipping magnate who has built hotels in Nigeria, helped finance Gulen schools there, which he said had attracted the children of the Nigerian elite.

"When we take our education experiment to other countries, we introduce ourselves. We say, 'See, we're not terrorists.' When people get to know us, things change," Kalkavan said in his office in Istanbul.

He estimated the number of Gulen's followers in Turkey at three million to five million. The network itself does not provide estimates, and Gulen declined to be interviewed.
The schools, which also operate in Christian countries like Russia, are not for Muslims alone, and one of their stated aims is to promote interfaith understanding. Gulen met the previous pope, as well as Jewish and Orthodox Christian leaders, and teachers in the schools say they stress multiculturalism and universal values.

"We are all humans," said Kacmaz, the principal. "In Islam, every human being is very important."

Pakistani society is changing fast, and more Pakistanis are realizing the importance of education, in part because they have more to lose, parents said. Abrar Awan, whose son is attending the Turkish school in Quetta, said he had grown tired of the attitude of the Islamic political parties he belonged to as a student. Now a government employee with a steady job, he sees real life as more complicated than black-and-white ideology.

"America or the West was always behind every fault, every problem," he said, at a gathering of fathers in April. "Now, in my practical life, I know the faults are within us."