More than minarets

The ridiculous referendum in Switzerland to ban minarets re-emphasises the dire need to communicate with our non-Muslim counterparts at every level. It seems to be much worse in Europe, where globalisation (leading to an influx of a variety of ethnic groups, including Muslims) is causing xenophobic reactions, reductionist populist views and a whole lot of misinformation.

"... I have been repeating for years to Muslim people that they have to be positively visible, active and proactive within their respective western societies. In Switzerland, over the past few months, Muslims have striven to remain hidden in order to avoid a clash..."

More here.

Pulp fiction

I read about the Jewel of Medina uproar earlier today.

Essentially, an American lady named Sherry Jones has written a manuscript about Aisha r.a., wife of our Beloved s.a.w. Inspired by the events of September 11, she did a lot of research on Islam and came across Aisha. Ms Jones obsessed about her and decided to write a book chronicling her life. She was disturbed after Random House suddenly rejected her manuscript after paying her an advance, but another publisher has bought it, much to her glee.

No problems with the concept of the book, but some initial reactions are telling. The manuscript was sent to an expert on Islam at the University of Texas, who slammed the book, calling it an incitement to war and described a portion of the book as “soft-core pornography”. That portion apparently describes a scene between the Prophet s.a.w. consummating his marriage to Aisha r.a.

This last portion is disturbing. I have not read the manuscript, and the book may be better than it is mentioned, but the “expert on Islam” has made some comments which are worth noting, and the action of a major publisher pulling out also indicates something.

I’m not sure if non-Muslim actually understand the spiritual relationship Muslims have with these two great personalities. The Prophet s.a.w is our Master, our role model, our life, our everything. Aisha r.a. is our Mother, a scholar and teacher to us.

To relegate their lives to a book that seems to sensationalise certain aspects of their lives does not respect our belief, and it definitely does not promote inter-faith dialogue.

On a bigger scale, such projects by non-Muslim authors says a lot about the whole world-view divide that Muslims and non-Muslims might have. We have a totally different interpretation of the Islamic figures. They were not normal men and women, historical figures for scrutiny. Yes, we can be critical and academic about their actions, but we cannot compare their lives to lives that we lead now, or to lives led by other historical greats. These lives were lived in specific times in history, where specific circumstances arose to answer unique issues.

These individuals have been put in history as exemplars of human behavior. It’s rotten to relegate them to pulp fiction, subjecting the historical account of their lives to the whims and fancies of certain writers’ obsessions and “creativity”, who themselves do not share the worldview of people who love these individuals.