Islamic extremism summarizes the imperial legacy of the two main heresies of the Lower Empire: the denial of human freedom, the blind devotion of the faithful and a humanity that is not able to make any progress... (V. Soloviev - Russia and the Universal Church)
Few people know that if a Muslim decides to convert to another religion, they are sentenced to death. The Koran points out this feature, and 14 verses that sanction apostasy, only 1 sets out a painful punishment in the hereafter (Surah 4:89). The way to by-pass this limited action is to refer instead to the Hadith 9:57 where Muhammad states:" Whoever changes religion, kill him".
In addition to apostates there is a second category that can take an important value for flexible interpretation, valid even today: those who are convicted of injured religion, in Arabic Istikhfaf. Denial of an Islamic principle can be stated as a crime? Disapproval of a rule is a sin? Believe polygamy wrong may be considered as an offense?
If Muslims have the right of freely choosing their own religion, Islam would rapidly fall down. That's why there is no toleration; therefore without the fear, violence, and deception Islam could not exist.
The freedom is the worst enemies of any fundamentalism type in any religion. Nikolai Berdyaev, the famous Russian philosopher, clarifies: "God accepts only those that are free. Men expect from God, freedom, expects that the truth of God make them free. However God also expects freedom from man, expects its free response. Authentic liberty is what God requires to me... this deep relationship is the basis of the freedom".
Said that we can return on the existing reality and record that every three minutes a Christian is being tortured in the Muslim world; during 2009 more than 170,000 Christians will have been killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
There are surely Muslims, with right conscience, which work to save Christians or Jews from persecution. Those men have a great courage and a grand heart indeed.
In spite of this, a conversion is intended as an offense to the Islam, which defines itself as the last revealed religion for mankind. Nevertheless If Islam is a tolerant, peaceful, and loving religion, why should those who leave it have to hide in fear?
In theory the threat and imposition would appear as a best practice to leverage an effective and compliant community behavior, although facts demonstrated a deliberated deterrent message to any speculative thinkers, which are not permitted and are persecuted.
The example of the Sufism is something really remarkable and still in place because of their ability to go on the bottom line of their conscience to describe a singular relationship with God, which is deeper and more esoteric from a certain perspective.
Many Islamic theologians consider permissible to kill those who blame, criticize and give moral scores to any of their prophets.
Copyright Edoardo Rospo