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more converts compared to other religions and despite Western media anti-Islamic
campaigns.
I was born into ‘orthodox’ Christianity, and grew up within a god-fearing environment
where your tongue was supposed to drop out if you received the Holy Communion
without having been to confession. Indeed, the images of my parish priests, the
reverend Sisters and Brothers in their religious regalia; including the statue of Christ
on the cross in the church were synonymous with purity and heavenliness. I
comprehensively perceived the Catholic ‘church’ as the iconography of rectitude.
Any other church was an abomination. Now, the current synomisation of the Catholic
Church with pedophilia amidst diminishing congregation compared to the ever-
increasing attraction to Islamism has clearly exposed my hitherto naivety. Indeed
compared to Christian religions with missionaries at every corner of the globe to
seek followers, Islam continues to outpace all other religions combined in attracting
new followers. So what in Islamism is so seductive that even sensationalised
Western media campaign is failing to reduce its ever-increasing attraction?
Critical literature review suggests that spirituality constitutes the primary pull factor
seducing disenchanted non-Muslims into Islamism; including Christian clerics who
openly profess their admiration for the moral doctrine of Islamism. For example,
Canon Taylor, a leader of the Anglican Church, expresses the beauty revealed by
the Islamic morality in one of his speeches as follows:
“Islam brought out the fundamental dogmas of religion – the unity and greatness of
God, that He is merciful and righteous, enforcing the duties of prayer, almsgiving,
fasting and benevolence. It gave hope to the slave, brotherhood to mankind, and
recognition to the fundamental facts of human nature” Arnorld, (2001, p. 71-72)
Some opinions suggest that millions of people from diverse backgrounds embraced
Islam, “not through organised missions, but through their contact with some Muslims
who impressed them with their integrity and sound principles.”
http://www.najaf.org/english/book/9/3.html. Within this context where logical
arguments will use radicalism to counter the integrity theory, feedbacks following
9/11 and the July bombing show that, not only do many Muslim religious leaders
around the world denounce Taliban Islamic policies as aberrant, but that, the
minority radicalists like Bin Laden have hijacked Islam, using Islamic doctrine and
laws to legitimised terrorism. Indeed, Yahya, (2002, P.9) says, “Islam is a religion
that preaches peace, compassion, justice, and frowns upon suicide.” In the case of
the 7/7 suicide bombing in London, he points out that in Islam, killing oneself and
killing other people are both prohibited in the words, "Do not kill yourselves, God is
Most Merciful to you.” Qur'an, (4:29). Other school of thoughts argue that, “the
realisation that some minority who are ill-informed on orthodox Islam have
reconstructed and erroneously interpreted the Islamic scriptures to suit their
perverted agendas will actually attract people to the true faith” Armstrong, (1988, p.
25); Yahya, (2002, p. 54). Additionally, some non-practising Muslims, feel attracted
back to practicing “to reclaim their faith from those who have so violently hijacked it.”
Yahya, (2002, p. 52).
Amongst the plethora of reasons why Islamism is attractive to people, are the
augments that compared to Christianity, “its creed and code are comparatively more
rational and simple to understand and practice.” Peter, (1987, p. 8). For example
“while Christianity believes in the seemingly incomprehensible dogmas of the trinity;
three person in one God, the incarnation and resurrection; Islam simply prescribes
the belief in a single, all-just, all-merciful, all-powerful God who created the world and
man” Peter, (1987, p. 8). Indeed the simplicity of Islam is said to be summed up in
the palindrome; ‘la illaha illa Allah! - There is no God but Allah”
http://www.islamfortoday.com/compareing-christainity.htm. Similarly, compared to
Christianity which posits that we are born into original sin; Islam asserts that we are
born pure and any sin is the result of either our actions or inactions.
Under the current global-techno society where the internet, mass media like the TV
station al-Jazeeera and ease of travel are bringing the simple and rational message
of Islam into previously alienated sitting rooms, an ever-increasing population is
being exposed and seduced by Islam’s rational doctrine.
Within the context where being in tune with human needs attracts people to
Islamism, the spirit of brotherhood in Islamism is seen as creating a more egalitarian
society. For example, in a world where “poverty and diverse aspects of social
exclusions have alienated and deprived many from attaining their full potentials”
Bradshaw, (2006, p 13), Islam, unlike many other religions is said to seductively
cater for both the spiritual and material aspects of human life by providing practical
way of mitigating poverty-induced problems. Indeed where Western capitalism has
disadvantage the majority, Islamic law in its system of zakaat prescribes that “every
person who has a saving that exceeds the nisaab level (more than 85 grams of gold,
should give 2.5% of that saving every lunar year in charity). Yahya, (2002, p32). With
statistics showing that “Britain has the highest rate of child poverty in the developed
world”; Corak and Chen, (2005, p. 4); Bradshaw and Mayhew (2006), Orthodox
Islamics argue that “if every rich person in the world gave Zakaat sincerely, poverty
will be eradicated from this world. Not a single human being would die of hunger.”
Such policy of wealth sharing rather than redistribution must serve as a pull factor for
society’s poor as well as those with the affinity for communism. As evidence in
Maslow hierarchy of needs, where the achievement of higher aspiration is a factor of
first satisfying basics needs, Islamism acknowledges the necessity for food, warmth,
and shelter as a path to spiritual wellbeing. It can therefore be argued that to victims
or the marginalised of the Western social, political and economic systems, this
Kantian ethics must be seductive music to their ears.
Coercion perspective
While preceding debates might give the impression that all conversion into Islamism
is based on informed consent, media headlines in Britain suggest a culture of force
recruitment especially of students and inmates into radical Islamism. Similar policies
are documented in Christian writings that the Muslims, wherever they went forced
people to accept Islam at the point of the sword. While isolated incidences of
radicalism may become amplified and villified by the media “whose representation by
virtue of their vested interest will always be partial, motivated, conventional and
biased” Allen, (1994, p. 38); the accusations of forced recruitment and mal-treatment
conflicts with researches and history that describe “how Jews and Christians who
came under the administration of Muslim states met with enormous tolerance:
Esposito, (1998, p. 33-34). The reasoning here is that, while Islam may not be as
bad as it is repulsively painted, the “hypnotic power of the mass media deprives us of
the capacity for critical thought.” Marcuse, (1972) judge the attractiveness concept
more objectively. As the most fundamental tenets of Islam, this seductive dogma of
forgiveness and tolerance is clearly prescribed in the words “make allowance for
people” Qur’an, P. 7. 199)
Appraisal
Email: antichildtraffic@yahoo.co.uk
Bibliography
Green, A. (2006) Why Americans are increasingly drawn to Islamism. Orlando: The
Christian Science Monitor
Right, G. (2009) Why are American blacks drawn to Islam. Washington: Free
Republic
Washington, J. (2009) Blacks still drawn to Islam despite FBI raids. Washington: The
Associated Press
http://gayandright.blogspot.com/2009/10/why-are-american-blacks-drawn-to-
islam.html. Accessed: 18/10/2010
http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2009-10-30-black-muslims-N.htm.
Accessed: 16/11/2010