Shaykh Yasir Qadhi posts his thoughts on the Swiss minaret ban.
The post is interesting for the way the Shaykh uses this issue to launch into a discussion of the overarching challenges facing the Muslim community in our times in “the West” and the different general approaches the community divides into in responding to those challenges.
aziz 10:34 am on November 30, 2009 Permalink |
an excellent post. Request; would you mind adding tags “minarets” and “Switzerland” to this post though?
johnpi 10:54 am on November 30, 2009 Permalink |
Excellent. Talented communicator who has insights for both Muslims and non-Muslims. He should be writing in the MSM on op-ed pages and/or as an editorial guest writer.
thabet 2:21 am on December 1, 2009 Permalink |
I don’t agree with this at all. In fact, I think he has it the wrong way around. Swiss neutrality has nothing to do with their being ‘culturally’ neutral. And the Danes are actually fairly worldly-wise.
abunoor 7:04 am on December 1, 2009 Permalink |
Yeah, I don’t think political neutrality has a lot to do with it, but I think the Swiss are perceived to be a liberal society as well. You are right that Denmark was as well, but I think the Shaykh’s point here is that one might not be surprised to see a backlash in Denmark against the cartoons controversy but from the outside it is unclear what is motivating such a movement in Switzerland.
bingregory 8:28 am on December 1, 2009 Permalink |
They aren’t a liberal society by european standards. Swiss women didn’t get the universal right to vote till the 1970s, for example. And the WWII neutrality bit is polite cover for fairly widespread antisemitism. Basically they have a better international reputation than they deserve.
Hicham Maged 6:39 pm on December 1, 2009 Permalink |
This is one of the most insightful articles I ever read especially the ending about the challenges.