Islam and Anti-Semitism
One of the greatest of the world religions through its 1500 years of existence, Islam has also been by far the most misunderstood. The Western world has undergone a complete revolution of thought in recent centuries, but its mistrust of Islam is still essentially medieval. Seven centuries on from the last Crusade, the Holy places Islam occupies are oil wells; once the Scourge of God, its forces are affront to secular liberalism. The Fundamentalist Fanatic; The Antiemetic; the oppressor of women; The Terrorist: these are the stereotypes of the new-look Islamic infidel.
Insha Allah I hope to cut through the cliché to reveal a faith which has inspired as many scholars and mystics as soldiers. Islam is such a beautiful religion but is just often misunderstood. In recent years, Muslim Anti-Semitism has emerged out of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Some claim that the Muslim hostility toward Jews isnt new, but has existed since the beginning of Islamic times. However, History tells us a different story:
Many will agree that throughout history Jews have been persecuted more than any other kind of religious group known to man. Prejudice against Jews began as early as 438, when the Code of Theodosius II of Roman Catholic Christianity as the only legal religion in the Roman Empire. Even a century later, The Justinian Code stripped Jews of any remaining rights.
Out of any world religion, Islam was the most hospitable and held the least feeling of anti-Semitism toward the Jews. The Quran insists strongly that there shall be no coercion in matters of faith, and commands Muslims to respect the beliefs of Jews and Christians, whom the Quran calls ahl-al-kitab, a phrase usually translated People of the book but is more accurately rendered: People of an earlier revelation. When Mohamed (PBUH) came to power in Yathrib he urged his followers to respect the Jewish faith, and made peace with the surrounding Jewish tribes.
Anti-Semitism reached at an all-new-high during the Medieval ages. During the times of the Black Death the Jews were used as scapegoats and were accused of poisoning the wells. Countless of massacres occurred and hundreds of Jewish communities were destroyed or exiled. For example, in 1348 nearly a thousand Jews were dragged out of their homes and burned alive in Strasbourg. Its interesting to note that during these harsh times of Jewish persecution, most of the Jewish communities fled to Muslim lands. The Jews Golden Age occurred under Muslim rule during the Moors occupation of Spain. There the Jews flourished as great merchants, financiers, traders, artisans, and official members of the royal court. After the Reconquista, the Jews Golden Age almost immediately ended when in 1482, Ferdinand II and Isabella, declared that all Jews and Muslims in their territories should either convert to Catholicism or leave the country. Most Jews converted, but between four and eight thousand Jews who had formally converted, were burnt alive by the Inquisition in Spain based on the accusation that they were still secretly practicing Judaism.
Quite frankly, anti-Semitism is a Christian vice. Hatred of the Jews became marked in the Muslim world only after the creation of the state of Israel in 1948 and the subsequent loss of Arab Palestine. It is significant that the Muslims were compelled to import anti-Jewish myths from Europe, and translate into Arabic such virulently anti-Semitic texts such as the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, because they had no such traditions of their own. Because of this new hostility towards the Jewish people, some Muslims now quote the passages in the Quran that refer to Mohameds struggle with the three rebellious Jewish tribes to justify their prejudice. By taking these verses out of context, they have distorted both the message of the Quran and the attitude of the Prophet, who himself felt no such hatred of Judaism.
One of the greatest of the world religions through its 1500 years of existence, Islam has also been by far the most misunderstood. The Western world has undergone a complete revolution of thought in recent centuries, but its mistrust of Islam is still essentially medieval. Seven centuries on from the last Crusade, the Holy places Islam occupies are oil wells; once the Scourge of God, its forces are affront to secular liberalism. The Fundamentalist Fanatic; The Antiemetic; the oppressor of women; The Terrorist: these are the stereotypes of the new-look Islamic infidel.
Insha Allah I hope to cut through the cliché to reveal a faith which has inspired as many scholars and mystics as soldiers. Islam is such a beautiful religion but is just often misunderstood. In recent years, Muslim Anti-Semitism has emerged out of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Some claim that the Muslim hostility toward Jews isnt new, but has existed since the beginning of Islamic times. However, History tells us a different story:
Many will agree that throughout history Jews have been persecuted more than any other kind of religious group known to man. Prejudice against Jews began as early as 438, when the Code of Theodosius II of Roman Catholic Christianity as the only legal religion in the Roman Empire. Even a century later, The Justinian Code stripped Jews of any remaining rights.
Out of any world religion, Islam was the most hospitable and held the least feeling of anti-Semitism toward the Jews. The Quran insists strongly that there shall be no coercion in matters of faith, and commands Muslims to respect the beliefs of Jews and Christians, whom the Quran calls ahl-al-kitab, a phrase usually translated People of the book but is more accurately rendered: People of an earlier revelation. When Mohamed (PBUH) came to power in Yathrib he urged his followers to respect the Jewish faith, and made peace with the surrounding Jewish tribes.
Anti-Semitism reached at an all-new-high during the Medieval ages. During the times of the Black Death the Jews were used as scapegoats and were accused of poisoning the wells. Countless of massacres occurred and hundreds of Jewish communities were destroyed or exiled. For example, in 1348 nearly a thousand Jews were dragged out of their homes and burned alive in Strasbourg. Its interesting to note that during these harsh times of Jewish persecution, most of the Jewish communities fled to Muslim lands. The Jews Golden Age occurred under Muslim rule during the Moors occupation of Spain. There the Jews flourished as great merchants, financiers, traders, artisans, and official members of the royal court. After the Reconquista, the Jews Golden Age almost immediately ended when in 1482, Ferdinand II and Isabella, declared that all Jews and Muslims in their territories should either convert to Catholicism or leave the country. Most Jews converted, but between four and eight thousand Jews who had formally converted, were burnt alive by the Inquisition in Spain based on the accusation that they were still secretly practicing Judaism.
Quite frankly, anti-Semitism is a Christian vice. Hatred of the Jews became marked in the Muslim world only after the creation of the state of Israel in 1948 and the subsequent loss of Arab Palestine. It is significant that the Muslims were compelled to import anti-Jewish myths from Europe, and translate into Arabic such virulently anti-Semitic texts such as the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, because they had no such traditions of their own. Because of this new hostility towards the Jewish people, some Muslims now quote the passages in the Quran that refer to Mohameds struggle with the three rebellious Jewish tribes to justify their prejudice. By taking these verses out of context, they have distorted both the message of the Quran and the attitude of the Prophet, who himself felt no such hatred of Judaism.
