Tuesday, September 16, 2008

What Would You Ask a Muslim?

I just read a little story about Muslim ads in the Seattle, USA area:
Running on the sides of several Metro buses, they merely say: "Q: Islam. A: You deserve to know," with a phone number and Web site. For Bilal Aijazi, a Bellevue software developer, the ads are meant to stir conversation and steer people toward information on Islam.

As a Muslim, Aijazi sometimes fields questions about his faith. Especially during Ramadan, which began about two weeks ago, people ask Aijazi why Muslims fast during this Islamic holy month. Then there are the questions he gets other times of the year: Why some women wear head scarves; whether Muslims condone terrorism.
I think those are stupid questions, and they reveal the abject ignorance of our own population. In a way, it doesn't matter whether they condone terrorism or not. There are some Muslims who are willing to be violent; and some who are not. But they're all after the same goal: Gaining ground for Islam. I don't know which is more dangerous in the long run, the violent or the non-violent.

I would ask something like, "Do you think Shari'a law should replace (or supplement) the Constitution?" What would YOU ask a Muslim?

3 comments:

Citizen Warrior said...

Or I might ask a Muslim, "How do you justify not fighting in jihad when it says clearly in your holy book you should?" Do you "work for the good of Islam" in some other way?

Epaminondas said...

Do you really believe god authored the Quran? It's just you and me... you can tell me.

Suricou Raven said...

My local superstore sells a Ramadan advent-style calander, with a chocolate to eat each day.

I find this highly amusing.