Un-Islamic or Non-Muslim

Abstract

The reality is that the Islamic State is Islamic. Very Islamic. Yes, it has attracted psychopaths and adventure seekers, drawn largely from the disaffected populations of the Middle East and Europe. But the religion preached by its most ardent followers derives from coherent and even learned interpretations of Islam.”1 This editorial analyzes the phenomenon of violent extremism and its identification and association with Islam by analysts and critics. In my 29:1 editorial “The Stigma of Extremism on Muslims,” I suggested that the violent elements in Islam are no more than “a fraction of the 7 percent of global Muslim population considered to be ‘politically radicalized,’ including [non-violent] sympathizers” 2 and “an inescapable nuisance and … regrettable stigma [to] the larger Muslim majority.”3 I stand by these points, the iteration of which, in this current editorial, gains its prime relevance. Here, I argue further that despite the Prophet’s prohibition of labeling other self-confessed practicing Muslims as “non-Muslims”4 regardless of their actions (i.e., takfīr), extremists nevertheless use it to give themselves the license to kill other Muslims, a fact that makes their actions “un-Islamic.” I also maintain that the peace-loving Muslim majority has the moral right and intellectual prerogative to denounce this violent minority and to get their denunciation appreciated and deemed supreme.