Islam in some countries is simmilar to that of medieval christian Europe. In Europe, common sense has gave christianity a bit of a kicking, the same cannot be said for Islam in parts of the Middle East.Originally Posted by sycld
Islam in some countries is simmilar to that of medieval christian Europe. In Europe, common sense has gave christianity a bit of a kicking, the same cannot be said for Islam in parts of the Middle East.
Yeah, I don't buy this argument for a number of reasons.
Let me address the argument as commonly stated: "Islam is in its 'medieval' phase, just as Christianity was some 500+ years ago."
First of all, the Middle Ages are undeservedly maligned, seeing as the true roots of Western civilization came out of the Middle Ages and not any earlier period of time, and the developments of the Renaissance were just a natural off-growth of Medieval thought and not sudden and disjointed return to Classical thought whatsoever as some people have tried to revise history to reflect.
Secondly, Islam is not a new religion. It is around 1300 years old, and unlike Christianity, it did not take nearly as long for Islam to mature and gain hegemony.
Finally, humanization has been a global force and liberty has spread throughout the globe. Its adoption has not been merely national or even regional. All nations and regions have tried to resist it to larger or lesser degrees, and its influence is felt to different degrees in different places, but I would argue that you can find the strongest holdouts in terms of resisting humanization and liberalism for any other reason aside from pure greed or tyranny in Islamic nations. Even in liberal nations, and even among many (though not all) of the more educated followers, Muslims vigorously resist adoption of more moderate forms of their religion, unlike followers of any other religion. Why is this? I can't help but believe that there is something different about Islam, and again I cannot tell if it is something to do with simply its contemporary culture or if it's something intrinsic to the religion.
PANDAS
If you don't like them, then get the fuck out.
I am not saying it is in its medieval stage, I am comparing it to what european christians were like many centuries ago. You put the argument as if I was suggesting some kind of natural cycle of things, I am not. Back then christians were very, very opposed to "moderate" forms of religion, often to the extent of murder, just like some muslims in the present day. The middle east is largly backwards, like Europe used to be. I don't think there is anything especially different about Islam, freedom of thought managed to battle it out and I suppose win in Europe, such things haven't happened to the same extent in the Middle East and I don't think Islam as it is causes this soley. I think if christianity was adopted in such regions and all else remained the same, it would still be a backwards place with insane crimes being commited in gods name.
America is so good at criticising and destroying a culture that is thousands of years older than she is.
Westerners like ourselves cannot judge a culture like this which has completely different values.
Sure we think it's wrong.
Being older doesn't make it righter. Just because something is part of someone elses culture doesn't make it right, just because in another part of the world x is ok, doesn't make it right. The way rape victims are treated in some Islamic states is disgusting. I don't care what they believe about sexuality, they are fucking wrong.
I remember seeing a documentary about a 16 year old Iranian girl, who was publically hanged for crimes against chastity, after she got raped. This is a shocking way to treat people, it is wrong, and I am within my rights to comdemn those who think it is ok. Such ways of life are backwards.
stoning women for showing too much skin and for being gang raped is RIGHT?
Please be aware of how ignorant that post made you look.
It's only right if people with brown skin do it, because they don't "know any better."
PANDAS
If you don't like them, then get the fuck out.
Aren't you a self-proclaimed homophobe?
so? homosexuality is a sin WORTH killing people over, but bearing too much skin or GETTING gang raped?
Thats just fucked up.
/irony
Please read my post again.
Not once in that post did I say that I thought it was right.
I ust said that according to Islamic law it is right.
And in my opinion, western society has no right whatsoever to interfere with an outside culture.
Sure we can criticise, sure we can say it is wrong, but at the end of the day this is nothing but culture.
According to Islamic law, killing you for not being a Muslim is right.
Where's you cultural equivalence argument now?
This kind of cultural subjectivism is not only lazy, it's dangerous. If cultural relativism is the correct way to view the world, then we had no business interfering during WWII, Amnesty International is an immoral organization, and the UN ought to be disbanded.
Stoning a woman is either right or it is wrong. Saying that one nation views it as okay and another doesn't is not a worthwhile contribution to any argument. Ethical relativism tells us that our moral attitudes are only feelings instead of reasoning, that moral disagreement cannot exist (when we see every day that it does). On the contrary, if a nation is killing its own people but that nation views this as morally correct, they are right about it or they are wrong. It cannot be both, and it cannot be neither.
We may not always be morally correct in our reasoning, but that hardly means that the reasoning isn't important.
but interfering with outside cultures is a staple of my culture! how dare you take away my right to interfere!
as sole said, this cultural relativism is dangerous, but it only takes the smallest bit of thinking through to realise that it's also incoherent.
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