Irfan Yusuf in the SMH
March 1, 2006This article in SMH doesn’t sparkle with as much wit as you’d find in his Webdiary entries. On the other hand, it is a sober reminder that not every Muslim is a bomb-carrying terrorist, and that the voice of Mainstream Australian Muslims is increasingly being sidelined by out-of-touch Muslim leaders and a disinterested media.
Some commentators present sharia as a system of medieval criminal punishments. But for Australian Muslims, sharia represents little more than ethics (honesty, enterprise) and liturgy (how to perform prayers, weddings, funerals). Costello’s comments on sharia are, in effect, an attack on liturgy that should concern followers of all faiths.
Indeed, Costello’s comments about those seeking to establish sharia in Australia do not go far enough. What he should have said was that those seeking to establish only sharia (outward liturgy) without its spirit (inner liturgy or the spirit of the law) should find another country and another religion.
A minority of Muslims seek to establish sharia without sufism across the world. They are the source of virtually all terrorist groups in the Muslim world. Their theology is regarded by mainstream Muslims as isolationist and fringe. They distort sharia by imposing it on people without the inner discipline of sufism. They are openly hostile to sufi tradition.
These people seek to destroy Islam from within. They are arguably more of a threat to Muslims than non-Muslims. Hence, the majority of their victims are Muslims. Costello would like to see such people leave Australia. Most Muslims, on the other hand, would prefer to see these people leave our planet.
Whoa! Talking about one-upping Peter Costello!
