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Heresies, misfits and a film called Fitna

Posted in Irshaddering Thoughts, On The Road on Mar 29, 2008

Wait! Before you send me another link to Geert Wilders’ film, Fitna, let me assure you that I get the hint. You want me to watch it. I now have. And you want me to comment on it. I soon will. Check this space over the coming days for my review.

Meanwhile, I’m in Atlanta, ground zero of America’s civil rights movement. Atlanta could also become a crucible for Islam’s burgeoning reform movement.

This weekend, Muslim misfits are convening here to participate in “A Celebration of Heresy: Critical Thinking for Islamic Reform.” Yep, we proudly deem ourselves heretics — dissidents who work from inside the traditions of Islam. As our conference’s website declares:

Any dissenting idea against the prevailing religious traditions is generally considered heresy. Jesus was accused of heresy by the Jewish high council and handed over to the occupying Romans to be executed. Abraham was thrown into a fiery furnace for heresy, but saved by God. Muhammad, who criticized “the way of their fathers” — slavery, aggression, financial exploitation, racism and xenophobia — was a dangerous heretic according to the tribal courts of Mecca… Heretical ideas have tested the tolerance of a society and in many cases have created the fuel of progress, particularly in the area of religion.

Our conference opened on Friday night. To my ears, the most powerful sentiments came from Fereydoun Taslimi, an Iranian-American who helped created the Noor Foundation. In Arabic, “noor” means “light.”

How fitting for a Muslim misfit. According to Taslimi, “dissent is an act of faith… Discussing abuses of power in Islam does not make Islam inferior to any of the other religions. On the contrary, it shows that we have a level of confidence in our beliefs that allows us to confront these issues squarely and constructively.”

To the inevitable critics, he offered this gem: The Quran tells us that you shall not accept any information unless you verify it for yourself (17:36).

This means relying on lived experience as much as on scholarly theories. Since the conference participants come from around the world — Iran, Egypt, Sudan, Turkey, the Netherlands, Canada, America, Trinidad and India — lived experiences will differ. Therefore, interpretations will too.

That’s as it should be if we’re going to replace intellectual conformity with diversity of thought in the practice of Islam. What binds us all is a rejection of religious violence and a commitment to freedom of expression.

So how would we deal with the film, Fitna? I don’t yet know, but I hope we debate such things over the weekend.

At the conference opening, a Dutch delegate reported that the debut of Wilders’ movie was “a flop.” He promised to share more with us on Saturday. You can follow the conference LIVE.

As for my own take on Fitna? Coming soon.

Read about the morally courageous intellectual who inspired this heresy conference.