Introduction
Terrorism acts are generally considered inhumane atrocities that ought to be condemned. However, different discourses emerge when terrorists are viewed from a religious perspective. The observers, victims, and extremists all think of acts of terrorism in light of God. For example, the suicide bombers may state that they are martyrs doing the work of God by destroying the rebels. The three main religions that have been major influencers by either rebuking, explaining, or advocating for terrorism include Christianity, Islamic, and Jewish groups.
Three writings representing the sentiments of people from these religions are of interest to the current essay. Firstly, Chapter 3 of Mark Juergensmeyer’s book, Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence, presents the perspectives of different extremists in the course of the assassination of Israel’s Prime minister, terrorism, and peace talks with Palestinians. The first three Chapters of Milestones explains the introduction, spread, way of life, and commitment to the Quranic teachings. The other book that will be used is Bruce Lincoln’s Holy Terrors: Thinking About Religion After September 11, mainly focusing on the comments of Jerry Falwell. Thus, although there are varied discourses regarding the role of God and religion in terrorism, there are a few similarities in what Falwell (a conservative Christian), the Jewish extremists, and Sayyid Qutb believe.
Comparison of Discourses
The first theme that emerges across the three personalities is that there is some justification for terrorism. For instance, the extremist groups justified the 1995 assassination of prime minister Yitzhak Rabin and the 1994 attack on the Patriarchs’ Tomb (Juergensmeyer 44). Their rationale was that such terrorist acts were right according to Jewish theology, biblical examples, and historical precedents. These extremist groups were not necessarily interested in defending the political entities at the time but in retaining the vision of protecting the ancient roots of Jewish Society.
Similarly, Falwell appears to justify September 11 attack by stating that God was angry with the moral degradation in the United States. Specifically, Falwell said that people who have secularized America, including the abortionist, pagans, gays, and feminists make God mad so that he allows terror as a punishment (Lincoln 36). In other words, Falwell was comfortable blaming Americans for the atrocity. Although his remarks have been dabbed notorious, and some people also think it is an opportunistic act of getting back at his enemies, Falwell stated what he believed. He justified terrorism as a needful act in light of a society that was fast straying away from the laws of God.
The teachings of Sayyid Qutb start by stating that the people who lived (especially the students) during the era of the prophet Muhammad were distinct from the consecutive generations. After their conversion, those pupils were completely surrendered to the Quranic teachings (Qutb and Almehri 30). They demonstrate high levels of commitment to living as their teachers taught them. Moreover, they devised a strategy of memorizing ten Quran verses and practicing before moving to the next. Sayyid also believed that Islam was the only true religion and Allah the only God to be worshiped. Notably, he was strongly against the Egyptian government and advocated for a change to the Islamic state. Although he was accused of terrorism, Sayyed never relented from speaking about what he believed.
The other similarity is that all the discourses provide standards for an acceptable character in the sight of God and intolerance to people that believe otherwise. Extremists such as Yoel Lerner, the Jewish Rabi, believed in Messianic Zionism (Juergensmeyer 46). He believed that the bible points out the temple rituals that the Jews should follow because they are the chosen tribe of God. His problem was that it would be impossible to observe all the teachings outlined to them by God without a temple. Lerner believed that the whole world could only be redeemed if and when the Jews create the necessary conditions for the fulfilment of the messianic salvation.
In his consecutive interview with Robertson, Falwell stated that the secularization and sin of the people in the United States made God to withdraw His protection, making it easy for the enemies to attack (Lincoln 37). Although Falwell made an apology to the marginalized groups such as the lesbians and gays after mounting pressure from his detractors, he maintained that his points were true based on the biblical scriptures. His remarks show the high level of intolerance towards individuals that were not Christians who he thought were the reason for God allowing the attack. Thus, there are specific values and behaviors that are necessary for the people to have if they want to continue enjoying God’s favor.
Likewise, Sayyed states that God gave his prophet Mohammed the Quran in bits so that the people can memorize and do what it says before receiving the consecutive instructions. Notably, the focus is that after embracing Islam, a person is expected to completely cut themselves off from Jahiliyyah (ignorance) and step into a new life (Qutb and al-Mehri 33). He praises the first unique group because they turned to Quran not to increase knowledge or to get entertainment but because the wanted to establish what Allah prescribes for them. Once a person is converted, they should get transformation by completely leaving their former ways and adopting a new set of practices that are pleasing to God. Failure to integrate the transformation is seen as ridicule to Allah, which is punishable by being isolated and left out in everything.
Differences in the Discourses
The three do not agree on the concept of Holy war, that fighting and killing each other for the sake of spreading and enforcing God’s law. The extremists are ready and willing to commit all forms of atrocities in the name of pursuing what their biblical teachings demand. For example, after his investigations, Lerner concluded that the temple was located besides the Dome and in between the al-Aqsa mosque and the shrine. The implication is that Lerner wanted the complete demolition of the mosque (Juergensmeyer 43). Furthermore, the extremist championed the assassination of the prime minister and was completely against the peace talks with the Palestinians. The extremist believed that, according to the bible, they were the chosen tribe with some accorded benefits that the non-Jews should not share. They were ready to continue pursuing war rather than make any reconciliation with the neighboring communities. Their assumption was that they were justified in killing the leaders who were ready to work with the non-Jews because they felt betrayed.
Conversely, Falwell believes that terrorism is wrong as it amounts to breaking God’s law. Falwell regards the terrorists as the enemies of the United States whose primary intentions are to destroy innocent people (Lincoln 36). He did not endorse terrorism as a way of dealing with social deviance. In his opinion, Christians must desist from any acts of physical violence. The message of the gospel is that the best way of defeating the terrorist is repentance and turning away from sin so that God can return the veil of protection that has been removed.
The teachings of Sayyid Qutb also demonstrate intolerance to non-Muslims and the need to have all people worship Allah. Although not categorically stated in the first chapters, he sets the grounds for discussing Jihad. For example, he states that it is necessary for those in the Islamic movement to remove themselves from the Jahiliyyahh, which offers them life benefits (Qutb and al-Mehri 34). The focus is to return to the original source that is pure. He further remarks that the Muslims should be ready to establish the Quran as the constitutional and legal system in the world (Qutb and al-Mehri 34). The sentiments may appear innocent, but they set the ground for eradicating the people with a converse belief should they face resistance in implementing what they believe to be Allah’s mandate.
The other difference between the discourses is that the deity they refer to and the requirements of the believers are distinct. The extremist believes in God, who has favor on the Jews and promises to help them out of the hands of their enemy. For instance, on February 24, 1994, the Purim celebrations are said to deliver the Jews from the hands of their oppressors so that they do not get extinct (Juergensmeyer 49). In essence, the Jewish extremist have faith that they are the chosen tribe of the almighty God who love and think of them as special. However, the people of other nations are jealous of their position. Therefore, they are enemies to many and must observe everything that God commands so that they can have deliverance and victory against their pursuers.
Falwell’s notion of God is distinct from that of the Jewish extremist and Sayyid Qutb. He is a Christian who believes that God came as a mortal man to save mankind. For instance, while justifying his sentiments for United States suffering as a consequence of disobedience, he remarks that America was founded on the relationship with Christ (Lincoln 37). His faith is that Jesus should be the foundation of everything, and if people embrace secularization, they incur God’s displeasure. Therefore, Falwell believes in the deity of Jesus Christ, the incarnate God who continues to save mankind only if they believe in him.
Qutb’s idea of God is distinct as he thinks that there is only one deity that is to be worshiped by all mankind. To show man the pathways that he wants them to follow, Allah revealed his word through the prophet, who then taught his students to memorize the word and be sure to practice its teachings as their ways of life. As the Islamic believers continue to be transformed into the people that Allah wants them to become, they discover more. Specifically, the converts are expected to discover the Quran’s artistic beauty, intuitive logic, and the day of judgment (Qutb and al-Mehri 34). Allah does not condone disobedience and ridicule from his creation, and Muslims should also not contend with the non-converts. Thus, the ultimate goal in life is to become perfect in following the Precepts of Allah.
Conclusion
There is a wide range of religious discourses that are directly linked to the issue of terrorism. The Jewish extremist believes that terrorism may be necessary when pursuing the interest of God and his chosen nation. They justify the assassination of their prime minister and frown when there is an introduction of peace talks with their neighboring Palestinians. Likewise, the conservative Christians, represented by Falwell, believe that terrorism is justified because of the secularization and sin of Americans. Qutb also has similar sentiment in that sometimes elimination of people who are not following the way of life stipulated by the Quran should die. The three discourses are also similar in regards to standard characters that is acceptable to God. However, there are some distinctions on belief about who the true God is and acceptability of believers getting directly involved in terrorism.
Works Cited
Juergensmeyer, Mark. “Chapter 3: Zion Betrayed.” Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence, University of California Press, 2003
Lincoln, Bruce. Holy Terrors: Thinking About Religion After September 11. University of Chicago Press, 2003
Quṭb, Sayyid. Milestones. Edited by A. B. al-Mehri, Maktaba Book Sellers and publishers, 2006