I admire Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who suffered female circumcision and escaped an arranged marriage to a much older Muslim man in Somalia. Ali fled first to the Netherlands and then to the United States. Given what she endured at the hands of her Muslim family and community, I can't blame her for becoming an atheist.
But now this atheist seems to be trying to lead an Islamic reformation. Speaking at the Sydney Writers Festival, she called on Muslims to "review the example of the prophet Muhammad. Muslims are not used to criticizing Islam, they are not used to criticizing the prophet Muhammad." Well, Buddhists are not used to criticizing the Buddha either. Jews aren't known for their denunciations of Moses. Nor do believing Christians typically criticize the founder of their religion, Christ. Attacks on the founders of religions usually come from other religions, or from the enemies of religion.
I'm not suggesting that Muhammad or Islam are beyond criticism. I'm not suggesting that Ali's call for change is wrong. I am suggesting that it will never happen in response to the agitation of people like her. An atheist's call to Muslims to change the theology and practice of the Muslim religion is unlikely to fall on receptive ears in the Muslim world. Of course it will rally critics of Islam in the West, which is really Ali's constituency.
Imagine if Luther were not a devout Christian but rather an atheist. Could he have led the Reformation? The very idea is absurd. It took an Augustinian monk in some ways more devout than the Pope to bring about the transformation of Christendom. So it is with Islam. Change, if it comes, will be wrought by devout Muslims who combat the Islamic radicals by showing fellow Muslims a better way to practice their faith.
Reader Comments ( Page 4 of 4)
46. Irfan, I read both of your well-writen articles on Hirsi Ali and, while you make some very valid points, I do think you oversell your case that her secular views are incompatable with those of the "extreme right" in the USA. Just as Hirsi Ali may paint all of Islam with the same brush as those who murdered Theo van Gogh, I think you fail to realize that there are very diverse opinions among conservatives and even religious conservatives in this the US. The Dominionist movement is actually something of a joke, even with "culture warriors" and there really has never been a serious movement to establish a Theocracy in the US be it: Christian, Islamist or otherwise. While not "jailed;" the school board in PA who had attempted to have a statement supporting Creationism read aloud in science classrooms was heavely penialized financially by a Right-Wing Republican judge and the teaching of Creationism in schools has been the subject of downright ridicule by all but a small fringe of conservatives who know very well that the place for Christianity is in churches as opposed to science classrooms. Pat Robertson and James Dobson are an embarrassment to the right and were widely blammed for costing the GOP the 1992 presidential election. I can remember when the pastor of the local crazy-born-again-tongue-talking church walked in to our local Republican Party meeting after the '92 election and he was all but asked to leave. There is no Fundamentalist-Religious political party in America and even if there were we have Constitutional safe-gaurds which would prevent such a group from ever having the kind of effect that they would desire.
Christopher at 8:44PM on Jul 31st 2007
47. Obviously, Dinesh D'Souza is not one of those
who have guts to look at their religion fairly.
Ayaan Hirsi, even thought she is a women, has
lot more guts than Dinesh D'Souza who'll never
ever have guts to criticise Christian Fundamentalists. Now i am not saying that Dinesh
can't criticize Judaism, Buddhism or Hindusm. I
only say, he can't criticize Fundamentalists of
his own Christian faith. Hats off to Ayyan Hirsi!
S.M. Eagles at 8:58PM on Aug 13th 2007