Islam vs Islamism: Dismantling Political Islam

By Leslie Terebessy

The umma drifted from the Book of Allah. Under the influence of politics, the umma turned to tradition. But the prophet did not follow traditions. He followed the Book of Allah. By turning from revelation to tradition, the umma also drifted from the tradition of the prophet. Present-day Islam is a result of a politicization of revelation. Rulers required a justification for waging unlawful wars of aggression. As they could find no justification of aggression in revelation, they engaged jurists to reinterpret revelation to provide the required justification. The politicization of revelation required the reinterpretation of revelation. It required reinventing Islam as Islamism. The "reinterpretation" required a reorientation from revelation to tradition. As there is no justification for aggression in revelation, jurists turned to tradition. The turn was justified by the perception that revelation requires "explanation" and "detailing." This would be provided by tradition. But the turn to tradition required a rejection of all verses that teach that the Book of Allah is "clear," "detailed" and "coherent." It required kufr in parts of revelation. The rejection of verses according to which revelation is "clear," "detailed" and "free of contradictions" is a rejection of the perfection of revelation. Jurists provided the justification for wars of aggression by reinterpreting revelation as a "teaching of war." But the reinterpretation was a misinterpretation. For Islam is a teaching of reconciliation, not confrontation and aggression. The reinterpretation of revelation as a teaching of war is tantamount to a betrayal of Islam. What is especially troubling is that this misinterpretation resulted from efforts of persons that the umma trusts. An "interpretation" does not necessarily reflect the teaching of a text accurately. "Interpretations" are exposed to the risk of misunderstanding and misrepresentation. For all "interpretations" are affected by underlying assumptions. If the underlying presuppositions are defective, any interpretation based on them will also be unreliable. The turn from revelation to tradition engendered to "traditional Islam." Recourse to the teaching of abrogation engendered political Islam. The turn altered the way revelation would be practiced. Political Islam furnished a justification for wars of aggression. The justification was furnished by recourse to the teaching of abrogation. Recourse to the teaching of abrogation enabled the re-interpretation of Islam as a religion of war. But while revelation permits fighting in self-defense or against persecution, it does not permit wars of aggression. It is the Islam of jihad al-talab, the propagation of Islam through wars of aggression as a religious obligation. The ulama reinvented defensive jihad as aggressive jihad. But aggressive jihad entails the perpetration of war crimes. By reinventing defensive jihad as aggressive jihad, the ulama reinvented the perpetration of wars of aggression as a sixth pillar of Islam. It is the Islam of the clash between the dar al-Islam and the dar al-harb, the realm of peace vs the realm of war. It is the Islam of extremists. Islamism is the biggest threat to international security since Nazism. The war on terror requires a war on error, too. Interpretation of revelation was affected by the perception that revelation is "explained" by tradition better than by reason. The reorientation was assisted by the repression of reason. Refraining from using reason prevented the umma from understanding revelation. This plunged the umma into trauma. The reluctance to use reason corrupted the knowledge of revelation. The repression of reason alienated the umma from its religion by preventing it from understanding it. In defying the Book of Allah, the ulama reduced their profession to the rank of propaganda. Renewal requires a return to revelation, the re-engagement of reason, and the rejection of the teaching of abrogation.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0DRJMP5B4
• ISBN13: 9798304811002
• Release Date: December 2024
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 268 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"