Muslim In Name Only

Tuesday

Yesterday I heard from a woman who said she was insulted that I criticized Islam. She said she was a Muslim and her parents were Muslims and the people in her community were Muslims and none of them were terrorists.  

I told her I was criticizing Islamic doctrine, not Muslims.  

She said she felt I was insulting her family and community. I've heard these kinds of things before, of course. I've been writing about Islamic supremacism for seven years and I've heard from hundreds of Muslims who feel offended when Islam is criticized.  

In this case, however, I used to work with her and I knew she had a reputation as a promiscuous woman and a heavy drinker. I said, "Why are you taking this personally? You don't even practice Islam." And that was the end of that conversation. She never said another word about it.  

Let's look at this a moment. She considers herself a Muslim, but she's a Muslim in name only. I know several people like this. They don't pray five times a day, they don't fast during Ramadan, they've never read the Qur'an, they have no plans to visit Mecca, they don't pay their alms. In what sense are they Muslims? In name only.  

And yet, they staunchly defend Islam. They dutifully act offended when you try to tell non-Muslims about the most basic teachings of Islam if it sounds bad. 

These people need to be identified. They need to identify themselves. We are in a serious situation. We all need a way to distinguish them from practicing Muslims. We need a name for them. Their existence (and defensiveness) is, in a very real sense, preventing the free world from defending itself. 

If they didn't exist, the solution to Islam's relentless encroachment would be sublimely simple: Close the mosques and deport all devout Muslims from the free world, and stop making concessions to Islamic countries. This could easily be done because if there were no "Muslims in name only," the only Muslims left would be those who are following Mohammad's example and waging continuous warfare on non-Muslims, seeking to overthrow the legitimate Western governments and instituting Shari'a law. It would be a no-brainer to cast them out or put them in jail.  

But because there are so many Muslims in name only (let's call them MINOs) it would be indecent and unfair to deport all people who identify themselves as Muslims.  

MINOs defend Islam even though they don't practice its teachings. Why are they doing this? It reminds me of a story about Paul Rokich. When he was a child growing up in Utah, he lived near a copper smelter that poured toxic waste out onto the land and killed every living thing for miles around. The land was black and barren and smelled bad. When a visitor once said, "This place is crummy," Paul felt insulted and knocked him down. Why? The place was crummy. Anybody could see that. But it was his place. It was where he lived. He was genuinely offended. He had identified with the place.  

I believe that's what we're dealing with when MINOs defend Islam. But the pressure is going to continually increase for them because their presence and their "being offended" prevents non-Muslims from being able to protect themselves from the practicing Muslims. I think a growing number of people who are working to stop Islam's relentless encroachment on the West are coming to the realization that MINOs should either criticize Islamic teachings or follow them, and the issue will become more pronounced as time goes on. The vague, undeclared middle ground will become increasingly less tolerated. 

A Muslim living in a free country who is offended by criticism of Islam but neither practices nor criticizes Islamic teachings is either a liar or a coward. A liar because the criticism of Islam is legitimate. A knowledgeable, devout Muslim would not be offended by my saying, "Islam teaches that Muslims must wage jihad until the whole world submits to Islamic law." An Islamic supremacist may make a show of being offended because it furthers the goals of Islam, but privately he will simply be annoyed that a kafir found out about it.  

And if he is a Muslim who does not practice Islamic teachings yet feels offended when someone criticizes those teachings, he is a coward. He should join with us and criticize those teachings. Obviously, he doesn't think much of them or he would be practicing them. And beyond cowardice or lying is a much bigger issue. Whether they mean to or not, undeclared MINOs are aiding a deadly enemy of both non-practicing Muslims and non-Muslims: Islamic supremacists.  

We should change our stance with regard to "moderate" or peaceful Muslims. If you hear from a Muslim who defends Islam, ask him: "Do you abstain from alcohol? Do you pray five times a day? Do you fast during Ramadan? Do you fight in the way of Allah so that one day the whole world will submit to Islam? Have you read the Qur'an?" 

Probably his answers will be no. You can then respond, "Then you don't follow the teachings I am criticizing, so why take offense? Why don't you stop the pretense and become an apostate?" The very least a MINO could do is acknowledge the teachings — simply acknowledge that there are some passages in the Qur'an and the Hadith that should legitimately concern non-Muslims, and maybe even tell us how they justify ignoring those passages (and share their thinking with other Muslims). Short of that, they are being cowards and are part of the problem. They should not be coddled by the West. We should not try to curry their favor. They should take sides or shut up. And that's what our stance toward them should be. 

Citizen Warrior is the author of the book, Getting Through: How to Talk to Non-Muslims About the Disturbing Nature of Islam and also writes for Inquiry Into Islam, History is Fascinating, and Foundation for Coexistence. Subscribe to Citizen Warrior updates here. You can send an email to CW here

22 comments:

Anonymous 2:48 PM  

You can tell by her picture she's not a practicing Muslim: she's not covered from head to toe like a real Muslim woman.
A really good point has been made by this article and all Americans should read it and pass it on to their friends and family. The more know about Islam and hot to combat it the better!

Kafir Alalazoo 11:41 AM  

More to the point, they are being dangerously obtuse, by failing to recognize the danger they will ultimately face at the hands of Islamists.

You may term such people MINOs, but Islamists make no distinction between Muslims who fail to practice Islam "properly", and outright apostasy. To groups like the Taliban, Jamaat al-Fuqra or Shabaab al-Mujahideen, both are punishable by death.

What you call MINOs are in fact the much vaunted "moderate Muslims" we keep hearing about from the MSM and our politicians, and across the globe, they are bearing the greatest abuses at the hands of the Islamist movement.

It is for their OWN security and self-interest that these people should be speaking out in much greater numbers. Ultimately, the only hope for Islamic reform must come from within the Muslim community.

Citizen Warrior 1:15 PM  

Kafir Alalazoo,

The AFA chapter of Seattle, Washington, just sent me this: It's a video of an Islamic supremacist (Anjem Choudary) saying basically the same thing you do: That those Muslims who are not actively working to overthrow non-Muslim governments are fallen Muslims, at least in the eyes of a practicing Muslim. That makes them apostates. Check it out:

I'm Not Making This Up

Near the end of the video, Choudary says:

“Who else has an ideology like that? Honestly! An ideology and belief to overthrow any government. Nobody does! The Buddhists don’t. The Hindus, the Sihks, honestly, nobody. The Christians as well: 'Give all to Caesar what is Caesar’s…' All of this 'good' theology. Nobody has this agenda on them: To implement the Shari'a, to remove regimes; Only the Muslims. Therefore they could. In fact, if you’re a Muslim, you’re going to be arrested if you’re a PRACTICING Muslim. That’s why we say 'there are three types of Muslims: Those who are in prison, those who are on their way to prison, and those that are not practicing.' Really. If you abide by the Shari'a, brother, and in your life, you’re in one of those categories; one of the first two. Otherwise you’re doing something wrong.”

Anonymous 11:43 AM  

So true....a simple test to see who practices pure Muslim or not.
1) they can't drink alcohol
2) they cannot eat in restaurants, they make their own food.

I had a terrible meeting with a muslim. he lied to me, told me he was drunk, etc... then we went on a date. He preceded to tell me ways that he had abbused our system of welfare, through all Muslim means.

You have to understand how they work.
First--many travel to Turkey (which is a member of the g20--this should not be allowed as all of our "secrets" are passed on) and there they are able to attain not validated visa's. Turkey once had an open border to surrounding Islam countries.

Second - from Turkey (an example of course, there are probably more)they leave around 20 and attend a western school - canada or the us.

Now they have left their wifes, possible children at home, and mostly the men travel abroad. This man said he had brothers in Turkey, Cuba, brazil, Australia and himself in Canada.

They only interact with others, and all their friends marry white women...and he tried this with me...they pretend to be all nice etc...but their main goal is citizenship, then there gone. A women had three children by this man she had married..but ultimately left. Know WHY are they marrying white woman . Their religion clearly states only marry another muslim.

As well through connections, they are able to collect welfare, unemployment, while still working.

as well, all muslims work together...no matter if htey know each othe ror not...something needs to be done!!

Anonymous 8:58 PM  

I think this is an absolutely brilliant article. Thank you!

Indeed, the MINOs, as you call them, are a great part of the problem, because everybody knows or works with a MINO and thinks, Well, Hassan seems okay, and Aisha hardly seems like she'll cut my head off, so this other person here, who objects to Islam must be a biggot.

Thanks for articulating so clearly this part of the problem.

Anonymous 12:25 PM  

We are fighting both MINOs and Islamic fundamentalists. MINOs are the hardest to engage in discussions as some are not even aware of what their religion is teaching, yet they defend Islam!

There are Islamist enclaves even in my own neck of the woods. We are at a disadvantage because our laws do not allow us free entry to their enclaves, whereas they are free to traverse our communities. What can be done about this?

eloivsdiablo 12:19 AM  

A thorough and honest study of islam's totalitarian structure needs to be exposed giving fair warning to those who adhere to such teachings they will not be tolerated, the rest will take care of itself...

Citizen Warrior 11:39 PM  

In an interview, Brigitte Gabriel said:

FP: You have made statements about “practicing Muslims.” Tell us precisely what you mean in these statements.

Gabriel: When I have made statements about “practicing Muslims,” here is what I’m saying:

In any religious faith, and that includes Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, there are people who are very orthodox and very devout, and then there are others who are less so. There are Christians who read their Bibles, attend church regularly and pray every day, and there are those who don’t. The same dynamic is true in Judaism.

And the same is true in Islam. There are many, many Muslims who have never read the Koran in their own language, who don’t even know many of its teachings or closely adhere to its teachings and those of the Hadith, and who don’t pray five times a day. These are the Muslims who are often described as “moderate,” or less devout, or even “secular.”

Then there are those Muslims who take the Koran and Hadith very seriously. They follow the Islamic shariah law and they subscribe to the supremacist political ideology embedded within the Islamic holy books. They aspire to emulate Mohammed, who any honest historian will tell you spread Islam by terror and the sword. They agree with the doctrine of jihad. They believe that Islamic shariah law should reign supreme over all and that man-made laws are invalid. They agree with the Islamic command that their allegiance is to the “ummah”, the Islamic nation, rather than to any country.

It is these Muslims, who are typically referred to as practicing “radical Islam,” that I refer to when I say such Muslims cannot be trusted to be a loyal citizen to our country – or any country for that matter – and who do not acknowledge that here in America we recognize the Constitution as the “supreme law of the land.” It is these Muslims I have referred to as “practicing.”

Just look at what Imam Al-Awlaki, the American Al-Qaida leader in the Arabian Peninsula, said just last week: ”I eventually came to the conclusion that jihad against America is binding upon myself just as it is binding on every other Muslim.”

Brigitte Gabriel is the founder of the nonprofit organization ACT! for America, and one of the leading terrorism experts in the world. Her expertise is sought after by world and business leaders. She has addressed the Australian Prime Minister, members of The British Parliament/House of Commons, members of the United States Congress, The Pentagon, The Joint Forces Staff College, The US Special Operations Command, The US Asymmetric Warfare group, the FBI, and many others. She is the New York Times best selling author of Because They Hate and They Must Be Stopped: Why We Must Defeat Radical Islam and How We Can Do It.

Laura Ross 12:44 PM  

This is not a Muslim-only phenomenon. I think they are seeing themselves as a race the way non-practicing Jews see themselves as a race. And heck, there are a lot of Christians out there who never go to church, never pray, don't really believe, but by golly, you better not call them anything but Christian.

Akshar 10:20 PM  

Anyways im not as worried of muslims because even even all millions become fundamentalist, still i believe in God, in India's tolerance and gifting of saints and seers on continuois basis due to which we prefer to die but not convert.

Yes this is not the picture since last 100 years because of materialism only.

But here we believe that we are soul. Soul never dies. Like shirt or pant we wear but we are not shirt or pant. Similarly body dies and soul takes another body in another birth. Here in eastern religions the difference is that we believe in cycle of births and deaths of body and when soul gets true knowledge of God then he gets salvation. So there is not hurry to do all in one life. And one who is dedicated will ever establish to realise truth in this very birth by associating with true saint.

9/11 is just one thing. India has seen thousand fold such 9/11! more than 10000 of great temples have been destroyed. Holy scriptures burned and people killed but still people preferred to die believing soul never dies and we are on pur path and will continue in next birth.

There is rising spirituality in India currently and which is core strength of India and so even if half world is muslim fundamentalist, still there is no fear.

Ofcourse that never means inaction. As surely they affect our sense of peace and living and so fighting is key. But not with reactiveness but with proactiveness.

Your site is also a proactive way and so you would not hold a competition of mohammaed poster to attact people.

Only understanding will defeat the evil. The truth wins in true understanding only. I so believe that whatever work you are doing is also God-inspired.

And I believe that just like you are doing good work to raise awarness, I will also do my good work to raise awareness on +ve side which will raise people's confidence from Indian spirituality point of view that no matter however tough the humanity may be by waging war like muslim fundamentalist are doing, still we can always have the peace with our spirituality intact.

It does not means inaction, but having inner fortress so strong that nothing can shake us and at same time take action against immorality - one of strongest immorality today is islam.

Islam who have attacked us thousand fold more than 9/11 yet could not harm us as we rise, we rise, we rise, then what could they do more too? We will rise. I will focus on this Rise.

You focus on this website which is also contributing to this rise.

Thanks a lot.

Akshar 10:40 PM  

When saints of Lord Swaminarayan were killed, the saints in return just prayed for the welfare of one who were killing them and died chanting Lord's name.

When Akshardham monument was attacked and when later the terrorist were killed by army, Pramukh Swami Maharaj went till the place where the terrorist died and prayed that such acts of terrors does not happen and may God do good of these two terrorists too.

Indian culture's strength is gifted God-realised saints who have compassion and tolerance which is due to pure faith in God.

Tajmahal was built and whosever craftsman build it the emperor aurangzeb cut their hands so they could nevre built again!

But Pramukh Swami Maharaj who has not a penny in bank (as saints don't keep money for self and live life of non attachment and non-lust completely) did pujan (an act of respect) of all 7000 craftsmen who offered their stone carving services for Akshardham. Pramukh swami Maharaj individually placed rose on each craftsmen.

Akshar 10:44 PM  

Akshardham which would take more than 50 years to built was made in 5 years and not by king or goverment but by a saint who dedicates his life in service for all and for reestablishing Faith in hearts.

Same Akshardham now will be built in New Jersey and so even though mosques will be coming up, but such Akshardhams will too come up wherein each stone will breath story of devotion, sacrifice and will speak million fold in a very positive and divine language.

Good work continues. You are continuing and saints of pure heart will continue.

for more info of Akshardham see:
www.akshardham.com

A Muslim who offers 5 time namaz and very staunch follwer in lives in Saudi Arabia when visited Akshardham, he felt that God Himself has come on this world and made this beautiful place. This is the effect of Akshardham

Akshar 10:51 PM  

http://www.swaminarayan.org/essays/2002/0811.htm

dar alharb 10:52 AM  

You sure do use a lot more words than I. :-)

I describe the MINO phenomenon a good bit and seldom use more than three lines to do it.

Maybe it is the transitory nature of my postings that cause me to do that.

I guess it usually runs even shorter, as in: So you know some bacon-eating, beer drinking muslim and you think you know muslims and all about islam; you know a Muslim-in-name-only. -- dar

Anonymous 6:50 PM  

"More to the point, they are being dangerously obtuse, by failing to recognize the danger they will ultimately face at the hands of Islamists.

You may term such people MINOs, but Islamists make no distinction between Muslims who fail to practice Islam "properly", and outright apostasy. To groups like the Taliban, Jamaat al-Fuqra or Shabaab al-Mujahideen, both are punishable by death.

What you call MINOs are in fact the much vaunted "moderate Muslims" we keep hearing about from the MSM and our politicians, and across the globe, they are bearing the greatest abuses at the hands of the Islamist movement.

It is for their OWN security and self-interest that these people should be speaking out in much greater numbers. Ultimately, the only hope for Islamic reform must come from within the Muslim community."

There's really nothing more to say.

Anonymous 10:17 AM  

What's everyone worried about? That Islam will rule the world one day? If it is God's will then it will happen. Trust God.

Anonymous 6:32 AM  

If you followed the Hindu Scriptures,it is mentioned that a man in white riding a horse towards the end of the world.And it is said that,this man will be the one that bring destrucion of the world.And how true it is.The man in White is non other then the Muhammad.You can see for yourself the destruction,he and his followers are bringing to the world and just imagine what will happen if they are the one rule the world.

Vu Ngo 6:41 PM  

Actually hadith spoken by Mohammed say the anti Christ will appear riding a huge donkey with a forehead 40 hands wide. Dunno why you get your info from. Mohammed also said many false prophets will appear after him. Peace be upon him.

Unknown 4:27 AM  

Laura Ross, I enjoyed reading your comments.

Unknown 4:35 AM  

All Americans (north, central or south americans?) I agree that they should have more interaction with their Muslim neighbors so a greater refinement can be understood.

Unknown 4:41 AM  

P.S. I don't understand your statement RE: how she is dressed makes her a practising Muslim lady or not. All the Muslim people you know (in the USA) are dressed very conservatively? I know a Muslim university graduate (in USA)who proposed to her husband (she is very independent) and is not covered head to toe. You can see her face, her eyes, her nose, her expressions. Seems like the issue of clothing is a bit more complex than you'd have us to believe. As the saying goes the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue but that they are incomplete.

Citizen Warrior 12:49 PM  

This is why I try to always make the distinction between orthodox versus heterodox Muslims. An orthodox Muslim knows the obligations of Islam and follows them. A heterodox Muslim calls herself a Muslim but doesn't cover herself (as she is required to do if she is following the rules of Islam), so therefore you can easily tell that a woman is not orthodox if she doesn't cover herself.

So covering herself is an indication of her level of commitment to Islamic doctrine.

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