"Muslims in general and Muslim leaders particularly have often been severely criticized for not more energetically condemning the violent acts of Muslim extremists."
You see statements like this fairly often. Maybe it’s a fair criticism, but if one compares the current turmoil in the world it is VERY similar to the turmoil that rocked through Europe in the 1500s and 1600s.
Then: The printing press sparked an information age that led to Christian Reformation, the Renaissance, and the Age of Discovery; ultimately resulting in the overthrow of the Holy Roman Empire and the emergence of the Westphalian State system. Christian populaces of northern Europe, long suppressed from achieving self-determination by Rome (through the Catholic Church) see opportunity in change to rebel. Radical Christians (known then and now as “Protestants”) used an extreme brand of Christianity to break from the Catholic Church and end Rome’s rule over northern Europe.
Now: The invention of electronic information, accelerated in recent years by the internet and cell phones sparks a new surge of science, art, exploration and political turmoil. Muslim populaces of the Middle East, long suppressed from achieving self-determination by the West (through the U.S) see opportunity in change to rebel. Radical Muslims (known now as “violent extremists”, future will judge what they will be called 400 years from now) use an extreme brand of Islam to break from U.S. Control and end the West’s rule over the Middle East.
I’m sure the good people of Rome felt betrayed as well; but I do not think that “more energetically condemning the violent acts of Christian extremists” by the Pope and his Cardinals would have accomplished much…
Bottom line is that this is about Politics, not Religion. Every insurgency must have some ideology to effectively engage the target populace, and few messages are as powerful as those wrapped in that populace's religion in a way that also attacks their frustrations.
We must compete a more successful message (not attack their message) to win this competition with Muslim extremists, and we must also modify our behavior in the Middle East. This must be a two-way street or we'll never get there.
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