By Sadia Dehlvi
November 11, 2008
A doctor by training and inspired by the late India-born South African evangelist Sheikh Ahmed Deedat, Naik loves to debate with Hindus on the Vedas, with Jains about vegetarianism and atheists on religion and science. In the garb of inter-faith dialogues, he not only runs down all major religions, but also rubbishes as haraam (sinful) all Muslim devotional aspects that differ from his viewpoint.
Legacy of the Sufis
In the subcontinent, Islam is the legacy of the Sufis who gave us traditions of syncretism and communal harmony. By condemning Sufi followers as “grave worshippers”, Salafi and Wahabi ideology-inspired speakers such as Naik reject an entire historical body of Islamic scholarship, jurisprudence and almost 80 per cent of Islamic literature. Naik is on record saying, “If Osama bin Laden is terrorising America or the enemies of Islam, every Muslim should become a terrorist.” Excerpts of this video are circulating on the internet, damaging the already wounded perception of Islam and its followers.
Social injustices cannot be used as a theme to create havoc and destruction in society. However, some rabid ideologues continue providing fuel to Muslim animosity by overturning the spirituality of Islam into a rationalised discourse leading to pragmatic political activism. If Muslims insist that Hindutva ideologues be quietened, we must do the same with Muslim radicals. Dialogue within the Muslim community on what form the rightful Islamic traditions should be has long been overdue. Thankfully, Muslims are now alert, identifying and rejecting intolerant elements within their own people.
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9:45 PM
Moderate Islamist here
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