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On Pluralism, Intolerance, and the Quran
By Ali S. Asani [1]
“Infuse your heart with mercy, love and kindness
for your subjects…either they are your brothers
in religion or your equals in creation.”
excerpt from a letter by the Muslim Caliph Ali b. Abi Talib (d. 661)to Malik al-Ashtar on the latter’s appointment as governor of Egypt
As a Muslim involved in teaching and scholarship on the Islamic tradition, I have received many invitations over the past several weeks to speak about the role that religion and religious ideas may or may not have played in the horrific events of September 11, 2001. Non-Muslim audiences have wanted to know how Islam, a religion whose very name signifies peace to many Muslims, could be used to promote violence and hatred for America and the “West”? Why, many in these audiences, wonder are some Muslims and some governments in Muslim nations anti-American, antagonistic to America and the “West,” willing to condone or even applaud the loss of innocent American lives? For their part, Muslims I have spoken to have similar concerns. Why, many of them wonder, are some Americans and Europeans and some American and “Western” policies anti-Islamic, antagonistic to Muslim interests, and heedless to the loss of innocent Muslim lives? In an atmosphere rampant with stereotypes about the “other,” I have been engaged in providing audiences with historical and religious perspectives on the complex factors that have created such deep and profound misunderstandings among Muslims and non-Muslims alike. While I have participated in many public forums, this has also been a time of reflection for me personally as, indeed, for many Muslims who are bewildered by the bizarre and repugnant behavior of individuals who committed these acts allegedly in the name of God.
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