"Innocence of Islam"
OK. You'd think this issue has been done to death but, no. I promise you'll learn a few things here that you won't see elsewhere in spite of the vast amount of crap that's been said about this movie.
First off, WATCH the damn thing! Basically, it's "Life of Brian" without the sense of humor or production values. Muslims are going around killing people over this thing but I have yet to hear of a single one who has actually watched it. This is combined with the similar phenomenon that so many Muslims haven't really read the Koran (which is not the same as memorizing it or reciting it). The is tradition of critical analysis in Islam is very weak, leaving Muslims extremely vulnerable to opinions that slightly vary from what they are told in the mosque.
As one who HAS read the Koran and studied the history if Islam and seen the movie tailor (not sure if the actual movie is available), I can honestly say that there was noting all that shocking in the movie. It's just a send-up of a lot of issues that anybody can spot from even a casual study of the "faith" will uncover the brutality of early Islam, which is totally in keeping with the times (The Old Testament is pretty bloody and it's all sponsored by God). Mohammed's sex life is also easy to parody -- by modern standards he was a child molester. But, again, this is pretty much in keeping with the times. The problem is that Muslims are not used to stepping back and seeing their faith from a distance, which is still not a universal habit in Christianity.
In the Muslim world the outrage is all about any portrayal of Muhammed, let alone one that portrays him as a brutal war lord (which he was). There is just no room for documentary, let alone satire. We get it.
In the Western world, it's all about body counts and demonstrations.
Everybody agrees that it's a crummy and amateurish piece of cinema, which is beside the point.
Nobody looks at the issues raised by the film.
Let's unpack it the way I look at the world view of religious folks (please note that I'm thinking of the fundamentalist "mainstream" version of Islam, basically the Arab version which has currently hijacked the religion -- see http://sketpticalcrhistian.blogspot.ca/2012/03/skeptical-muslim.html)
Tradition
Mainstream Islamic tradition trumps history or analysis. From the outside at least, this seems a bit alien to the Western world, which is used to debates over historical issues.
Mythology
Mainsteam Islamic "history" is deeply mythical, full of jinns, miracles and, of course, Allah. The whole thing is overlayed with interpretation which is then encrusted with dogma and protected by fierce blasphemy laws.
Religion itself is no longer "mainstream" in the West, but, if it were taken seriously, Christianity would be equally strange, but Christians seem to park all that in a special mental space. It's been a long time since we took it seriously enough to kill people with different opinions on that magical world. Again, note that there are Muslims who think for themselves, often at great personal risk, such as Irshad Manji http://sketpticalcrhistian.blogspot.ca/2012/03/skeptical-muslim.html).
Values
The most amazing thing to me is that the "Innocence" film is bang on when it comes to the values of Muhammad as portrayed in the Koran and various official sources on the early history of Islam. Killing people who didn't submit to Islam (which literally means "submission") was routine and helpfully demonstrated by the very Muslims are are lately offended by mention of it. Torture of unbelievers was common. And God seemed to retroactively bless whatever sexual urges that seemed to posses the Prophet. To the modern non-Muslim, all this tends to make us take Islam a lot less seriously. To a Muslim, the mere discussion of these topics is completely off limits.
The fact is that many of the modern attitudes of Muslims are firmly based in traditional Islamic values that come straight from the Koran and are, in fact, parodied in the film. Killing people who don't submit to Islam, organized genocide against Jews and treating women as chattel come to mind. Of course, such attitudes were common in Christianity not too long ago and we know (or should know) how much damage they caused.
Religion itself is a value to Muslims in a way that it's hard for modern Westerners to comprehend. This value seems to stand apart from human rights and, at least for millions, trumps the rights of others to believe what they see as right or even to live. Again, this is pretty much the same as Christianity circa 1700 and earlier or more recently the Nazi version of "Christianity". This is not to say modern Muslims are Nazis, only that they think (or don't think) in a similar fashion.
In the West, the "values" issue seems to be about freedom of speech and respect for the "Great Religion" of Islam. Because we are so tolerant, nobody wants to touch the issues raised by the film with a 10 foot pole.
Intensity
The blind, murderous rage of the Muslim crowds is shocking and terrifying to the Western observer. Enough Muslims are willing to kill or be killed over matters that seem to the outsider as issues of opinion. We have seen such murderous rage more recently in the systematic destruction of 6 million Jews in WW II and (in my personal opinion) the destruction of human life in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Summary
My project is meant to "unpack" different world views and expose what is really important and what is "negotiable". It is hard to imagine a wider gap between the average Western commentator and the Muslim mob when it comes to this issue. Values are utterly different and non-negotiable. The intensity of the issue is a "10" on one side and a "1" on the other. Huge differences exist when it comes to Tradition and Mythology, but such differences rarely lead to armed conflict.The danger comes from the intensity and the dangerous "meme" that there is one truth and those who disagree must die. In the face of such beliefs and the willingness of those who hold them to kill, we see people with more tolerant views scurry for cover, fearing for their very lives. The bullies win by default. History is full of conflicts like these. They tend to last for centuries and kill innocent people by the tens of thousands.
The Muslims who riot in the streets see themselves as being at war with the "West" and desperate measures are called for. Sadly, the idiot George Bush rose to the challenge and accepted the conflict as a "war" with consequent massive loss of life.
We all need to calm down. We are not at war. We all want peace.We need to value understanding over fear. If we can't manage the love that all our religions demand of us, we need to find the moral courage to at least respect and tolerate even those who do not respect or tolerate us.
First off, WATCH the damn thing! Basically, it's "Life of Brian" without the sense of humor or production values. Muslims are going around killing people over this thing but I have yet to hear of a single one who has actually watched it. This is combined with the similar phenomenon that so many Muslims haven't really read the Koran (which is not the same as memorizing it or reciting it). The is tradition of critical analysis in Islam is very weak, leaving Muslims extremely vulnerable to opinions that slightly vary from what they are told in the mosque.
As one who HAS read the Koran and studied the history if Islam and seen the movie tailor (not sure if the actual movie is available), I can honestly say that there was noting all that shocking in the movie. It's just a send-up of a lot of issues that anybody can spot from even a casual study of the "faith" will uncover the brutality of early Islam, which is totally in keeping with the times (The Old Testament is pretty bloody and it's all sponsored by God). Mohammed's sex life is also easy to parody -- by modern standards he was a child molester. But, again, this is pretty much in keeping with the times. The problem is that Muslims are not used to stepping back and seeing their faith from a distance, which is still not a universal habit in Christianity.
In the Muslim world the outrage is all about any portrayal of Muhammed, let alone one that portrays him as a brutal war lord (which he was). There is just no room for documentary, let alone satire. We get it.
In the Western world, it's all about body counts and demonstrations.
Everybody agrees that it's a crummy and amateurish piece of cinema, which is beside the point.
Nobody looks at the issues raised by the film.
Let's unpack it the way I look at the world view of religious folks (please note that I'm thinking of the fundamentalist "mainstream" version of Islam, basically the Arab version which has currently hijacked the religion -- see http://sketpticalcrhistian.blogspot.ca/2012/03/skeptical-muslim.html)
Tradition
Mainstream Islamic tradition trumps history or analysis. From the outside at least, this seems a bit alien to the Western world, which is used to debates over historical issues.
Mythology
Mainsteam Islamic "history" is deeply mythical, full of jinns, miracles and, of course, Allah. The whole thing is overlayed with interpretation which is then encrusted with dogma and protected by fierce blasphemy laws.
Religion itself is no longer "mainstream" in the West, but, if it were taken seriously, Christianity would be equally strange, but Christians seem to park all that in a special mental space. It's been a long time since we took it seriously enough to kill people with different opinions on that magical world. Again, note that there are Muslims who think for themselves, often at great personal risk, such as Irshad Manji http://sketpticalcrhistian.blogspot.ca/2012/03/skeptical-muslim.html).
Values
The most amazing thing to me is that the "Innocence" film is bang on when it comes to the values of Muhammad as portrayed in the Koran and various official sources on the early history of Islam. Killing people who didn't submit to Islam (which literally means "submission") was routine and helpfully demonstrated by the very Muslims are are lately offended by mention of it. Torture of unbelievers was common. And God seemed to retroactively bless whatever sexual urges that seemed to posses the Prophet. To the modern non-Muslim, all this tends to make us take Islam a lot less seriously. To a Muslim, the mere discussion of these topics is completely off limits.
The fact is that many of the modern attitudes of Muslims are firmly based in traditional Islamic values that come straight from the Koran and are, in fact, parodied in the film. Killing people who don't submit to Islam, organized genocide against Jews and treating women as chattel come to mind. Of course, such attitudes were common in Christianity not too long ago and we know (or should know) how much damage they caused.
Religion itself is a value to Muslims in a way that it's hard for modern Westerners to comprehend. This value seems to stand apart from human rights and, at least for millions, trumps the rights of others to believe what they see as right or even to live. Again, this is pretty much the same as Christianity circa 1700 and earlier or more recently the Nazi version of "Christianity". This is not to say modern Muslims are Nazis, only that they think (or don't think) in a similar fashion.
In the West, the "values" issue seems to be about freedom of speech and respect for the "Great Religion" of Islam. Because we are so tolerant, nobody wants to touch the issues raised by the film with a 10 foot pole.
Intensity
The blind, murderous rage of the Muslim crowds is shocking and terrifying to the Western observer. Enough Muslims are willing to kill or be killed over matters that seem to the outsider as issues of opinion. We have seen such murderous rage more recently in the systematic destruction of 6 million Jews in WW II and (in my personal opinion) the destruction of human life in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Summary
My project is meant to "unpack" different world views and expose what is really important and what is "negotiable". It is hard to imagine a wider gap between the average Western commentator and the Muslim mob when it comes to this issue. Values are utterly different and non-negotiable. The intensity of the issue is a "10" on one side and a "1" on the other. Huge differences exist when it comes to Tradition and Mythology, but such differences rarely lead to armed conflict.The danger comes from the intensity and the dangerous "meme" that there is one truth and those who disagree must die. In the face of such beliefs and the willingness of those who hold them to kill, we see people with more tolerant views scurry for cover, fearing for their very lives. The bullies win by default. History is full of conflicts like these. They tend to last for centuries and kill innocent people by the tens of thousands.
The Muslims who riot in the streets see themselves as being at war with the "West" and desperate measures are called for. Sadly, the idiot George Bush rose to the challenge and accepted the conflict as a "war" with consequent massive loss of life.
We all need to calm down. We are not at war. We all want peace.We need to value understanding over fear. If we can't manage the love that all our religions demand of us, we need to find the moral courage to at least respect and tolerate even those who do not respect or tolerate us.
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