Islam Is a Religion of _____

By Neil the Ethical Werewolf

Religions that are nominally unified can mean lots of different things to different people, especially at different times in their history.  You can see this in the history of Christmas.  Conservative Christians of the past -- for example, both Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans during the 1660s -- banned the celebration of Christmas as part of their general dislike of fun.  To Cromwell and the Puritans, banning Christmas celebrations didn't seem like a slight against Christianity.  It was the truly Christian thing to do.  Today's Christmas practices are those of a society where corporations spur us towards massive consumption.  The mutability of religion is also evident in all the different forms of Judaism, with their different dietary restrictions and views of appropriate behavior on the Sabbath. 

This is why I see discussions of whether Islam is a "religion of war" or a "religion of peace" as confused.  (Over at Redstate, you occasionally see people arguing the "war" side and contemplating horrific evil as a result.)  Muslims who feel peaceful will find some way to believe that peace is commanded by the Koran, and Muslims who feel warlike will find a religious justification of violence.  The character of a religion is determined mainly by what its adherents feel like doing. 

If one really wants to change the face of Islam, the solution is to change the way that the majority of Muslims feel.  Gore's old comment that "'Draining the swamp' of terrorism...must also mean draining the aquifer of anger that underlies terrorism" was exactly the way to respond to the problem.  I can see Gore following up an invasion of Afghanistan and non-bungled capture of Osama Bin Laden with a massive program to help the poor and feed the hungry throughout the world, specifically including the Muslim world.  It would've been many billions cheaper than the Iraq War, increased our credibility with Muslims on anti-terrorism issues, and helped us make peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, further neutralizing anti-American feeling in the Islamic world.  An America that the majority of Muslims saw as a friendly nation could credibly support liberal versions of Islam so as to purge antifeminist and intolerant practices from Islam.  When most foreign Muslims felt that they were at peace with the West rather than at war, they would actively oppose violent anti-Americanism in their own countries, and be firm allies against terrorism. 

What we got instead was an administration that makes it easy for Muslims -- the Sunni majority and the Shiites of Iran as well -- to see us as a nation at war with them.  Any real hopes for America to subtly guide the development of Islam were lost, and I don't know how they can be found again.