Common misconceptions about Islam

[Shadow1]

Hmm, great topic. I personally feel that the confusion surrounding Islam comes from two things-- an outside perspective at the inside (Non-Islamic Media trying to "explain Islam" in Christian/Jewish/etc values and ideas) and the fact that there is no one central authority for Muslims.

But let's be honest.

1- Belief is only obliged on the believing. Muslims don't expect non-Muslims to share the same religious views. But that's how nearly all religions are. I'm fairly certain that a Buddhist doesn't expect for me to follow their rules/laws-- but that a "practicing buddhist" will try his or her best to follow their rules/laws as best they can.

yes, christians, and muslims, and jews, can share with muslims some relegion views
just said some idk how much to say much or some

2- SHARIA IS ONLY FOR MUSLIMS. It is the code of conduct/religious values. It is an equivalent of Kosher. In fact, it is the Kosher of Muslims. Sharia describes a Muslim and explains what they ought to or ought not to do.

Now, sharia is applied through what are called "fatwa"-- AKA, legal ruling/verdict based usually on a precendent "usul." The entirety of these make up "fiqh" or laws. You will see that the Islam practiced in Pakistan is radically different than the one practiced in Saudi Arabia or Malaysia. In fact, there are competing groups within Nations that preach different forms of Islam.

Essentially, Sharia is the code for Muslims, which is explained and maintained by scholars who issue legal opinions pertaining to situations. For example-- can a Muslim eat glass that is prepared with a dash of grease? It is for the practicing Muslims to follow.



I'll add more to this later on. It's already 1 am, though!

the sharia laws, the real one, that is based on the relegion, is not applied today, and it's even more fair than the normal laws, for example, cut the hand of who steals, but,not every thief's hand, who stole because he was hungry, he had too, and etc... he don't get punished, if you kill a person, you are judged by death, inless it's in a self defence, or other exeptions, (atfer investigation)
if a woman cheats on her husband, while her husband was good to her, and very fair to her and doing right with her, she's punished (that would be decided by the court, the punishement i mean), anf if her husband was not good with her, means, it was he's fault, because he was ignoring her and etc... it's him who ger punished (also the court decide the punishement, wich is usually get hitted by whiping) also, the husband, or the wife, can just forgive ther other, and so, none get punished
if a thieft, who is a hungry person stole from you, and you beated him, you have to give donate to him, either by food or money, idk how much exactly it should be, so those are the main, things that have miss comprehension about,
also there's nothing that says that a woman must not work, or leave her home, or etc... the prophet mohamed(pbuh)'s wife, used to work in commerce, the first univercity in the world, was established by a muslim woman, from kairouan (tunisia) in morroco, the univ is called the univercity of al karawein, don't know how to spell it in english, who invented the arab esterlabe, is meriem esterlabi, she's also a muslim woman, and other examples...
however, the real sharia,the fair one, is not applied today, and i bet that it is hard to apply(so i don't say can't), esspecially in this modern time

and it have nothing to do with what is called "usul" usul means like, origine, or traditions, traditions are not always good, islam is against applying the traditions, just because, their ancestors did that, it must be reasenebal, means, don't harm or something too, the islam is not practiced differently, but, how some people manupulate it, and how in some countries, things are, messy, messed up, like in afghanistan, and the fanatical sharia law, as far as i know, and other example from different places

however, there are some groups in islam, that have nothing to do with islam, and are radical, for them, for example, it's forbidden to stare at the women, while they do, and they do nasty things, (sex? maybe?) and they have nothing based on islam, like a group called, soufia, or something, they use somehow, "holy" water, when you enter their group, and other bullshits...however, those are limited groups, and, what they do, or what's in their thinking, have nohing to do with islam,

 

[Shadow1]

.

But you'll recognize that Islamic, where it enters the legal code of an Islamic country, becomes law for everyone, including blasphemy statues and public religious observance. It would be difficult to imagine any reasonable secular more attached to such strictures. So in that sense, it is for everyone, and this is the problem.

Tunisia is a muslim country, and?

 

[Shadow1]

i would actually agree on anything you would say, on some people, with fanatical thinking, and even some groups, with fanatical acts, who do things, and assosiate it to islam, and etc.. while it have nothing to do with islam

but to start listing, things and saying islam say so, islam do so, that's very ignorant, because i don't expect you studied islam, and knowing about it for your hall life and etc...

i would agree with you, if you named a specific group or something, and not assosiate it to islam and it's teachings

 

[GeoffP]

And? This is based on sharia how?

What, are you serious? :bugeye: Enough already. Man.

I note shadow's in no confusion about the collusion of conservative stoogism.

 

[Fraggle Rocker]

Tunisia is a muslim country, and?

But sharia has not been as thoroughly institutionalized in government-enforced law in Tunisia, the way it has been in, for example, Saudi Arabia, where all the girls in a school were allowed to burn to death because the firemen were not allowed to rescue them as it would have required them to touch them.

There are many Muslim countries that are quite liberal in that regard. The world's largest Muslim country is Indonesia and they don't enforce the female dress code, for example. Pervez Musharraf, the former president of Pakistan, made a point of frequently posing for photographers with his pet dogs, making it clear to the West that dogs are not considered "unclean" in his country.

Pakistan even had a female president. Of course, she was assassinated.

 

[quadraphonics]

There are many Muslim countries that are quite liberal in that regard. The world's largest Muslim country is Indonesia

It would be nice if we had some actual definition of what "Muslim country" is supposed to mean, while we're on the topic. Sometimes it seems to be simply "any country whose population is predominantly Muslim," other times it seems to mean something having to do with Sharia or whatever.

And as to the former, I'd note that we do not tend to use that sort of labelling on other countries without some hesitation - people who call the USA a "white country" or a "Christian country" are not typically engaging in vanilla statistical descriptions, nor entitled to any such presumption of innocence. There seems to me some unaknowledged hazard in this practice of assigning huge swaths of countries to "Islam" as if such were some geographic, apolitical property.

Saudi Arabia, where all the girls in a school were allowed to burn to death because the firemen were not allowed to rescue them as it would have required them to touch them.

It was actually worse than that - not only were men not allowed to go inside to rescue the girls, the girls themselves would all have made it out safely on their own power in the first place, had they not found their exit blocked by the Morality Police, who forced (as in, with physical beatings) all of the girls to remain inside the burning building because they were not properly attired to appear in public. But then, some cleric did get fired over that one, IIRC, so let's not make it more emblematic of Saudi practice than is warranted.