One Wael Ibrahim of the "Serving Islam Team (HK)" takes my letter to task in today's South China Morning Post, under the headline above.
My comments:
Ibrahim suggests that I "misrepresent, misquote and misinterpret" the meaning of "jihad". He forgets the fourth "M" -- "misunderstand", the most common obloquy hurled at those who dare to point out the more egregious elements of Islam and Jihad in its cause.
But it is not I who is guilty of the four "M's". I did not come to my views in a vacuum and do not, did not, simply state an opinion of mine. It is not simply my "belief" that Jihad is "holy war". I quoted (and not out of context, for heaven's sake!) the most authoritative source of Islamic jurisprudence, the Umdat ul-Salik, which is certified by the oldest and most respected University in Islam, the Al-Azhar University in Cairo. It is unequivocal:
So, while I thank Mr Ibrahim for allowing me the freedom to come to my own beliefs -- that's very magnanimous of him -- I repeat, it is not simply my belief that Jihad means "holy war", it is classic and authoritative Islamic canon. Moreover, we can see it in action every day, so it's clearly being "misrepresented, misquoted, misrepresented and misunderstood" by an awful lot of people on a daily basis. The muted or outright hostile reaction in so much of the Muslim world to the death of the bearded bigot from Central Casting, Mr bin Laden, only serves to confirm the vast numbers that hew to his views on "jihad" as "holy war", for he is mourned as the "holy warrior for Islam".
In any case, why does Ibrahim direct his comments and his documentary at we infidels in Hong Kong? Surely he should direct them at the many millions of Muslims engaged in Holy War, who clearly "misunderstand" Islam in exactly the same way I do?
I refer to Peter Forsythe's letter ("`Jihad' means war, no doubt about that", April 24).
The meaning of jihad has been clarified repeatedly by Muslim scholars throughout the world, and yet still some people, Muslims and non-Muslims try very hard to misrepresent, misquote and misinterpret it to mean something entirely different.
I would suggest Mr Forsythe watches the film (Jihad on Terrorism) which he has called "propaganda" to see what Fadel Soliman [*] and nine other speakers who are mostly non-Muslims had to say to Muslims and as well as other people.
However if Mr Forsythe believes, as do al-Qaeda and many terrorist organisations, that jihad equates with "holy war", violence and terrorism against civilians and innocent people, then that is totally up to him. However, Serving Islam Team (HK) together with Mr Soliman have a different understanding of the term as explained in the above film which was shown at the University of Hong Kong.
However if Mr Forsythe believes, as do al-Qaeda and many terrorist organisations, that jihad equates with "holy war", violence and terrorism against civilians and innocent people, then that is totally up to him. However, Serving Islam Team (HK) together with Mr Soliman have a different understanding of the term as explained in the above film which was shown at the University of Hong Kong.
Free copies will be distributed to the public upon request, and Mr Forsythe is not excluded. However he will need to do some "jihad" (that is, make an extra effort) in obtain his copy (info@servingislamteam.com).
Wael Ibrahim, Serving Islam Team (HK)
My comments:
Ibrahim suggests that I "misrepresent, misquote and misinterpret" the meaning of "jihad". He forgets the fourth "M" -- "misunderstand", the most common obloquy hurled at those who dare to point out the more egregious elements of Islam and Jihad in its cause.
But it is not I who is guilty of the four "M's". I did not come to my views in a vacuum and do not, did not, simply state an opinion of mine. It is not simply my "belief" that Jihad is "holy war". I quoted (and not out of context, for heaven's sake!) the most authoritative source of Islamic jurisprudence, the Umdat ul-Salik, which is certified by the oldest and most respected University in Islam, the Al-Azhar University in Cairo. It is unequivocal:
Jihad means to war against non-Muslims, and is etymologically derived from the word mujahada, signifying warfare to establish the religion.
(Amana edition, p.599 Section o9.0)In addition, the Islamic Hadith -- the sayings of Muhammad, which are held in reverence second only to the Koran -- mention Jihad as a "holy war" in over 90% of their citations, with fewer than 10% being to the Jihad that Ibrahim refers to -- making "extra effort".
So, while I thank Mr Ibrahim for allowing me the freedom to come to my own beliefs -- that's very magnanimous of him -- I repeat, it is not simply my belief that Jihad means "holy war", it is classic and authoritative Islamic canon. Moreover, we can see it in action every day, so it's clearly being "misrepresented, misquoted, misrepresented and misunderstood" by an awful lot of people on a daily basis. The muted or outright hostile reaction in so much of the Muslim world to the death of the bearded bigot from Central Casting, Mr bin Laden, only serves to confirm the vast numbers that hew to his views on "jihad" as "holy war", for he is mourned as the "holy warrior for Islam".
In any case, why does Ibrahim direct his comments and his documentary at we infidels in Hong Kong? Surely he should direct them at the many millions of Muslims engaged in Holy War, who clearly "misunderstand" Islam in exactly the same way I do?
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[*] Postscript: Fadel Soliman is a member of the "International Union of Muslim Scholars", an outfit that appears to be moribund. When it was operating, its chairman was the notorious extremist Yousef Al-Qaradawi. Here's Qaradawi praising Hitler's jew-hatred, just one example of his many odious views.
