IN THE NAME OF ISLAM

August 2005
		The July 2005 suicide bombings in London's transit system and attacks in a resort town in Egypt have stoked the debate within the Muslim community about why so many perpetrators of terrorist attacks are Muslims and what ordinary believers in Islam can do to keep people from killing in the name of their religion. Four Muslim thinkers answer your questions.

Forum Introduction Does Islam ever justify the killing of innocents? Why don't Muslims who commit terrorist acts see that violence is counterproductive? Does U.S. foreign policy take the correct approach to influencing the rise of democracy in Muslim nations? Do most young Muslims in the U.S. feel they are integrated into U.S. society? On the NewsHour, did you read from the Quran or an interpretation? How can one foster dialogue with the broader religious community? How can we stop terrorism at its source? Why do militant young Muslims obey someone with no official clerical standing, like Osama bin Laden? What literature can I read to better understand the teachings of Islam? Is there a theological authority that is recognized by all or a great majority of Muslims? What's the difference between Islam and Muslim?	Tony Freeman of Washington, D.C. asks: On Shadi Hamid's last point, is the self-perceived situation of Muslims in the U.S. qualitatively different from that of those in the UK and the Continent? Do most young Muslims in the U.S. Feel they are integrated into U.S. Society, or do they feel alienated? How extensive are the latter in the U.S.? Georgetown graduate student Shadi Hamid responds: The situation here in the U.S. is very different than in Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands. In Europe, Muslims have all too often created their own intellectual, political, and religious ghettos separate from the rest of European society. They have failed miserably at integration. America is a nation of immigrants. Then there is the power and attraction of the American dream and the American message of self-reliance and empowerment. These factors make integration a less daunting task. Nevertheless, even in this country, there will always be young, easily impressionable Muslims who will find extremist ideologies attractive. We must therefore make sure that American Muslims feel that they are part of this society and that they have a voice. National Islamic organizations and local mosques must do more to encourage political integration of young American Muslims. Most Muslims will continue to oppose the Bush administration's policies abroad, especially its unbalanced approach to the Palestinian conflict and its continued support for various Arab and Muslim autocracies. Yet, at the same time, an effort should be made to convince young, easily impressionable Muslims that the key to change lies not in a return to some idealized notion of an Islamic state, but rather in a pragmatic, nuanced approach to involvement in the American political process.   John J. Walker of Lenexa, Kan. asks: This is for Asra Nomani. If I understood what you said, the Quran is one thing and the interpretation is another. Did what you read include interpretation? I have been trying to read the Quran and find it less tolerant than many would say Islam is. Thanks. Author Asra Nomani responds: In reading the first chapter of the Quran with the added clauses that Muslims should not stray from "the straight path" like the Jews and Christians, I was reading a translation of the Quran published in Saudi Arabia. Some clerics like to argue that translations and interpretations are open to error because they aren't read in the Quran's original Arabic. But Osama bin Laden read the Quran in its original Arabic -- as would have all of the hijackers of 9/11 -- but they still read into it a mandate that allowed them to kill innocent civilians. Like all texts, literal reading of the Quran allows for the kind of disturbing readings that you are having. On the biggest issue of intolerance, regarding Jews, Christians and "polytheists," I would recommend reading Reza Aslan's book "No god But God" to understand how tribal warfare of the 7th century has been projected into literal readings of the Quran to sanction intolerance today.