Moderation, not Extremism: Monotheistic Perspective
3rd Regional Conference, August 29,2003
by Ambassador Syed Ahsani
Extremism in the form of communal strife,
regional conflict and wars has been rampant on earth in all
times-be it in Crusades, Inquisition, War of Roses, Thirty
Year War, Tartar Invasion, and more recently, WW I and II;
Korea, Vietnam; Arab- Israeli Wars; Rwanda; Congo; Bosnia;
Kosovo; Persian Gulf War; Afghanistan and Iraq.
The Concert of Europe maintained equilibrium among European
nations after Napoleon's defeat. It included former adversaries,
as well as former allies. In time, the Concert broke up as
newly democratic nations refused to cooperate with older monarchies.
The break up of the Concert led, in part, to World War I.
Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations
followed the First World War. The harsh treaty terms stirred
up unrest in Germany. Weak enforcement of the Treaty then
allowed the unrest to turn into aggression. The League requirement
for consensus in order to act made it unable to respond to
member nation's aggression. The failure of these institutions
led in part to the Second World War.
The United Nations, NATO and the Warsaw
Pact defined the international system during the Cold War.
During this time, the international system took on a bipolar
character, which inadvertently suppressed more regional or
nationalistic conflicts. The system has been effective in
preventing violent global conflict.
The aftermath of the 11 September terrorist
attacks dramatically highlighted the way in which state sovereignty
has ceased to be a sacred principle of international relations.
Compare US demands on Afghanistan with Austria-Hungary's demands
on Serbia after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
on 28 June 1914 – the incident that sparked
the First World War.In both cases, there was strong evidence
that the terrorists had come from, or been trained in, the
countries under threat. But Austria-Hungary had much better
evidence of the involvement of elements of the Serbian Government
in the plot than the US had in the case of the Taliban.
The Bosnian Serb conspirators were trained
and armed by members of the Serbian intelligence forces, who
aided them up to the point at which they crossed the border
to carry out their criminal act. Austria-Hungary presented
the evidence to Serbia, demanding that it bring those responsibleto
justice and allow Austro-Hungarian monitors.
Despite the evidence of Serbian complicity,
Austria-Hungary's ultimatum was condemned in the US, France,
Russia and Britain as merely an excuse for going to war. "The
most formidable demand ever imposed on one state by another,"
British Foreign Minister Sir Edward Grey called it. Austria-Hungary
and its backer, Germany, have thus been seen by historians
as bearing a large measure of guilt for the First World War.
The Bush administration's demands of the
Taliban were as stringent as those in 1914, but were made
without presenting any evidence to link Osama bin Laden to
the attacks of 11 September. Yet the US demands, far from
being condemned as a mere pretext for aggressive war, have
been endorsed by a wide-ranging coalition of nations.
The idea that national sovereignty can extend
to harboring terrorists builds on a notion unknown in 1914:
that there are "crimes against humanity" which no-one,
not even a sovereign government, may commit. Since terrorism
indiscriminately kills innocent people, it is a crime against
humanity. As we struggle now to envisage a world without terrorism,
and to consider what are legitimate means of achieving this
goal, we are broadening an earlier struggle to create a world
without crimes like those committed in Nazi Germany, in Cambodia,
in Bosnia, in Rwanda. What kind of institutions and structures
would we need to bring such a world about?
The moral imperative of protecting the lives
and well being of people does not depend upon national sovereignty,
which has no intrinsic moral weight. What is paramount is
respect for national sovereignty, avoiding extremism, paving
the way for moderation, regional harmony and world peace.
Also, belief in religion proves that a faith-based
civil society reflects charity, coexistence, forgiveness,
freedom of faith, good neighborliness, moderation and tolerance,
for instance, ethical Instructions are common between the
Qur'an and the Gospel.
Quran lays down commandments about all spheres
of human endeavor-be it spiritual or mundane; earthly existence
or Hereafter The Messenger lived a life according to Quran
and his Traditions form the second source of laws or Sharia.
The Torah contains laws regarding moral and
physical conduct, the whole Gospel includes the instructive
orders of Jesus Christ (A.S) that were compiled by the four
writers of the Gospels (i.e. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John).
Some examples:
Helping without Waiting to Requite and
Alms Giving in Secret
The Quran: |
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"And if ye give alms
openly (even so) it is well, and if ye hide it and
give it to the poor, it will be better still for
yourselves; and (it) will remove from you some of
your sins, and verily God is aware of all that ye
do." (Al-Baqarah, 271)
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" O' ye who believe!
Render not your charities worthless by obligation
and injury (laid on them) like one who spendeth
his wealth to be seen of men and believeth not in
God and the last Day of Judgment. …"
(Al-Baqarah, 264)
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The Gospel: |
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"Be careful not to perform
your good works publicly to be noticed by the people;
else you forfeit reward from your Father who is
in the heaven. Thus, when you give charity, do not
blow a trumpet ahead of you as the Hypocrites do
in the synagogues and in the streets to gain glory
from men.
Sure you, they have reward. But when you practice
charity, your left hand must not know what your
right is doing, so that your charity will be in
secret. And your God who sees in secret will reward
you." (Matt. 6:1-5)
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"And when you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to
pray standing in the synagogues and at the street
corners to be seen by the people ... When you fast,
do not be sad-faced like the hypocrites, for they
disfigure their faces to show others their fasting."
(Matt. 6:16)
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Fear of God; Rejection of Signs; Monotheism
The Quran: |
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"Is he therefore better who
hath laid his foundation on fear of God and (His)
good-will, or he who layeth his foundation on the
brink of a crumbling hollowed bank, so it crumbled
down with him into the fire of Hell; and God guideth
not people (who are) unjust. "(Al-Bara'at,
109)
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"Verily those who belie Our
signs and in pride turn away from them, shall not
open for them the gates of heaven nor shall they
enter the Garden (of Paradise) until the camel passeth
through the eye of the needle; thus do We recompense
the guilty." (Al-A'raf, 40)
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"O' ye people! A parable is
set forth (unto you) so listen ye unto it! Verily,
those whom ye call upon besides God can never create
(even) a fly, even though they all gather (themselves)
together for it." (Al-Hajj, 73)
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The Gospel: |
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"Everyone, then, who listens
to these sayings of Mine and puts them into practice
will be like a thoughtful man who built his house
on the rock. The rains came down, the floods rose,
the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it
never collapsed, for it was based on the rock. And
every one who hears these sayings of Mine and fails
to practice them will be like a foolish man who
built his house on the sand. The rains came down,
the floods rose, the winds blew and beat upon that
house and it collapsed. And the wreck of it was
complete." (Matt. 7:24-27)
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"... I say to you again, it
is easier for a camel to pass through a needle's
eye than for a wealthy person to enter the kingdom
of God." (Matt. 19:24)
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"... For all creatures united
together could not create a single new fly from
nothing, and this it is to create." (Barnabas
63:14)
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More than any other land, America symbolizes
the best of these virtues. Given this noble legacy of Pilgrim
Fathers, U.S has the potential to become a moral superpower,
a beacon of light for civil liberties, economic development,
tolerance, and peace at home and abroad.
In this perspective, the coming 3rd Regional
Conference by the Association of Muslim Social Scientists
on August 23 in UT Arlington at Blue Bonnet Hall assumes topical
importance.
The first conference was on Muslim Contribution to Civilization
in Midway Church, Dallas, the second at Dallas Central Mosque,
Richardson, on Role of Religion in Promoting World Peace.
For further information, contact Dr.Basheer Ahmed: 817-572-4981;E-mail:
mbahmed05@yahoo.com;or Syed Ahsani: 817-572-0648; Email: AAhsa4@aol.com
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