Not being a Christian or Jew it’s rare that I ponder metaphysical quandaries such as whether Islam is a heretical off shoot of Christianity. As a scholar of Comparative Religion I have an opinion that I offer to other academics but I’m not personally invested in the theological debate concerning Islams status with with regards to Christian doctrine. Cult or not a cult, that is the question put forward by religious thinkers for centuries and the answer changes depending on who answers the question.
Lately though, it’s a question that hasn’t been asked at all and that concerns me. My concern isn’t based in my spiritual notions, indeed I’m more inclined to agree with De Benoist then Pat Robertson on theological questions, I’m more inclined to read the Havamal then the Old Testament. I’ve no vested interest in the question of Islamic legitimacy compared to the other Abrahamic faiths, so I don’t delve into the heretical nature of Islam in relation to Christian theology, or vice versa.
But as an American I do have a vested interest in halting Islamic imperialism both here and abroad. The questioning, by Christians specifically, has political ramifications that are desirable for those who are unwilling to live under the thumb of of a new “Ummah”, who resist the creeping Islamization of free societies. Hope sprung into my heart when Pim’s ghost, one of my favorite bloggers, asked that very question in a post recently.
Recent by my standards anyway.
My contention is simple, we are losing the war. We began losing the war when it was named the “war on terror”, and we will never win as long as we continue to embrace Islam as equal to any ideology in the western world. With all due respect to those few moderate, civilized Muslims who struggle to drag their brethren into the 21st century, I believe America must state the obvious, Islam as it exists today, caters to those who desire a world of rape, backward misogyny and slavery. As long as we cling to the idea of “interfaith” dialog and Multiculturalism, we are at a disadvantage.
But what if Christians, and society at large, viewed Islam as the middle eastern equivalent of the Branch Davidians? I would put forward that even among those who thought the government was “responsible” for the Waco disaster, few thought the Davidians didn’t bring the tragedy on themselves. Even less would argue that religious cults have the right to break laws and ignore or hamper the investigations their own behavior instigates. Certainly no sane person has argued that the Davidians were the “resistance”, or compared them to the American Revolutionaries, and Davidian propaganda videos will never be aired on CNN.
Granted Islam has a longer history then the Branch Davidians, but so what? Polytheism has a longer history then Islam, and if neo-pagans flew planes into the Twin Towers, screaming “Blessed Be!” while their friends danced in the streets I dare say that every Wiccan in America would be sitting in Gitmo, eating tofu and complaining that the guards only let them handle their athames during the Sabbats.
De-legitimizing Salahfist Islam, and the concept of Islamic imperialism, is the only way for the west to win the world war we’re fighting. Christians questioning not just the tactics of terrorism, but the theology behind the terrorists is the key to destroying the inertia of the west. A papal bull, a simple decree of faith for Christians to know that God’s representative on earth is giving them permission to reject Islam could galvanize a war effort that until now has been lackluster at best.
The Islamic world is in a state of total war with the west while we reach out to them. Christians are being massacred right this very minute, and though it is disturbing to see, Pamela at Atlas Shrugs has pictures of an Islamist atrocity smuggled to her from Indonesia. All Christians, and Americans, should view these, but be warned they are quite graphic.
For political reasons, and simple survival, I endorse the view that Islam, or Mohammedanism, is a blasphemous heresy, and I just hope Christians do the same.