Katharina Voelker On Islamic Hermeneutics and PhDing

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Faziur Rahman Malik, Islam, Islamic hermeneutics, Katharina Voelker, Muhammad Arkoun, Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd, PhD, Postgrad Radio Show, Qur'an, Radio One, Rush Hour, University of Otago

Katharina Voelker, who has recently completed a PhD at the University of Otago on Islamic Hermeneutics, is on Radio One from 10:00-12:00am NZT, Wednesday 18 January. She will be discussing the highs and lows of completing her study, as well as the content of her thesis, “Hermeneutical Access: Philosophical and theological approaches to the Qur’an with reference to modern Muslim thinkers”.

Rush Hour – The Postgrad Radio Show is live streamed on the interwebs, here. A podcast of the session is to come.
Update – Listen here:
The first part of the interview with Katharina Voelker. The part focuses on her research about contemporary interpretation of the Koran.

Second part of the interview with Katharina Voelker. She talks about the ups and downs of her PhD journey, and all the unexpected challenges and little problems along the way.

Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd

The focus of this thesis is on presenting and analyzing the thought of three contemporary Muslim intellectuals on the theme of Quran interpretation and the application of Islam to Muslim societies. These three scholars are Faziur Rahman Malik, Muhammad Arkoun and Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd. Their thought will be analyzed with special regard to their understanding and treatment of historical criticism, text critique, Sachkritik, the notion of revelation and the possibility of understanding God’s will and its application …
– Katharina Voelker, Religion, University of Otago

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Brainwashed into believing in a Moral Dictator called ‘God’: Caprica

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artificial intelligence, Battlestar Galactica, Caprica, globalization, monotheism, Zoë Graystone

The Battlestar Galactica prequel series, Caprica, really started to hit its straps at about Episode 4: ‘Gravedancing’ (for more on BSG-related topics from Tyrone and Eric, visit here, here, and here).

Caprica is set on the planet of the same name, a planet possessing technology a decade or so more advanced than ours, and on the brink of developing artificial intelligence. The planet Caprica is controlled by global business and a world government, exercising effective political control over the other eleven of the twelve colonies, and wielding a  powerful law enforcement and intelligence service called the Global Defense Department (G.D.D.). The parallels to our own political situation (in descending order of power: global business, the U.S. government, and the F.B.I.) are obvious.

The only apparent threat to established power is posed by the terrorist group, Soldiers of The One, whose monorail bomb explosion in the first, pilot episode killed Zoë Graystone, daughter of artificial intelligence entrepreneur, Daniel Graystone. The dominant religious belief within the twelve colonies is polytheism, one more or less based on the ancient Greek pantheon. This polytheistic religion is practiced more nominally and with less literalism on Caprica than it is on other planets, such as the more fundamentalist Gemenon and Tauron. By contrast, the religious innovation of the Soldiers of The One (S.T.O) is monotheism, belief in one God, a belief that sets them against the secularizing and nominally polytheistic Caprican government.

This clash in worldviews – and again the parallels with life on Earth in 2010 are obvious – produces some fiery religious dialogue, punctuated with the usual half-truths, ignorance, fear, and prejudice. When the G.D.D. confronts Amanda Graystone (Zoë Graystone’s mother) and proceeds to force a search of Zoë’s possessions for evidence of her links with the S.T.O., the confrontation produces one of the best lines of the season to this point:

Amanda Graystone (Zoë’s mother): What do you think you’re going to find here?
Jordan (GDD Agent): I really don’t know. Maybe who she met with. Who brainwashed her into believing in a moral dictator called ‘God’…

The GDD agent then delivers a line which nicely captures the inevitable conflict which arises when a political power and a rival religious power each claim absolute authority – and the resulting systemic violence from the political hegemony, defended as though it were benignly protecting the existing order from unaccountable violence:

Jordan (GDD Agent): I’m sorry if we have to take your daughter’s life apart in order to put other terrorists behind bars. But if we have to, then so be it.

After Zoë’s involvement with the S.T.O. is made public, the Graystones are invited on a comedian’s talk show –  the media form in which most Caprican young people receive their news. The theme of religious conflict is further developed on the show. Amanda Graystone is asked why she didn’t report her daughter as a terrorist, and replies that she never knew:

Amanda Graystone: When was I supposed to call the cops?
Baxter Sarno: Well, I don’t know, maybe when she started worshiping the big Destructo-God-In-The-Sky, maybe?
Daniel Graystone (Zoë’s father): We didn’t know, there weren’t any signs.
Baxter Sarno: You said she was ‘troubled’.
Daniel Graystone: See… she was angry. That’s a better word. My wife’s right.
Baxter Sarno: Well, ok, ‘angry’, but I would also like to add – “morally blank”. Because the virtual world is a poor teacher and doesn’t provide boundaries…
Daniel Graystone: You know who would completely agree with that – that is Zoe. And that’s exactly how the S.T.O. [Soldiers of The One] got to her… She saw things in the virtual world – ritual sacrifices, games like New Cap City, and she felt the absence of moral guidelines, just like you do, like a lot of folks do. And into that absence steps the S.T.O., offering this marvelous ultimate moral arbiter. It’s quite appealing – for a teenage girl especially.

This exchange captures something Bruce Lincoln notes in Holy Terrors. The typical response of the U.S. to Muslim terrorism was to deny that the terrorists operated from religious motivations; to instead paint them as amoral agents acting merely for political – or even selfish – purposes. Such a slant is completely contradicted by the nature of the instructions which each of the 9/11 bombers were issued and followed before the attack – which stressed the religious rationale for their actions at almost every step of the way, and which was couched in language which emphasized their overall goals of holiness, cleansing, and purity. If any religious element was mentioned in official U.S. media reports, it was painted as a variety opposed to “true Islam” – as though the religion the 9/11 bombers practised was somehow not a valid form of religion. But while it is certainly not a valid form of Islam for the vast majority of Muslims, it does constitute “genuine” Islam for some.

Before her death, Zoë created a virtual copy of herself, the program for which becomes the prototype for artificial intelligence and the creation of the Cylons.

As the Mother of an entirely new species, her name, Zoë, takes on a special significance. It means “Life” in Greek, for which the corresponding Hebrew name is חוה (Ḥavvah): “Eve”.

Shocking News of the Day: Hollywood Makes a Decent Film About Islam

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2012, Avatar, Hollywood, Islam, Morality, Traitor, Violence

International Poster for Traitor

‘I’m a free man?  This doesn’t feel like freedom to me …’

In what is easily the most surprising piece of cinematic news I’ve heard in a while, and the most comforting (especially given that James Cameron has just won the Golden Globe for Best Picture for the racist Orientalist manifesto Avatar), I’ve just stumbled on Traitor, an American film from 2008 that treats Islam, Muslims, and political violence with sympathy and a  remarkable level of respect for moral ambiguity and religious difference.  Not only is the film a taut, decent little thriller, but it manages also to give a morally nuanced and complex portrayal of a Muslim protagonist.  This in itself is, sadly, still extremely rare, as Muslims are still dominantly represented as violent, backwards, and misogynist Arabs (though only 20% of the world’s Muslims are Arabs).

That the film manages to do this in a narrative that grapples with violence, patriotism, economic oppression, and serious questions about the ethics of sacrifice in the modern world is nothing short of revolutionary.  In the film, the viewer gets to see Islam as a part of everyday life for people in all walks of life in many parts of the world, not as a monolithic and misguided irrationalism held over from the Middle Ages (incidentally, this persistent stereotype about Islam ignores the crucial role that Muslim scholars played in helping Europe itself escape from the religious and cultural torpor of its medieval period).  More importantly, the film addresses the often-ignored fact that there are many different kinds of Islam, that not all Muslims believe the same things about their faith and what it demands of them as moral agents.

It’s a shame that the film was given a fairly modest release and limited advertising in 2008 (did this ever play in Dunedin?), as opposed to the gigantic wave of publicity that accompanies bottom-feeding dreck like 2012, but tonight I’ll take solace in the simple fact that Traitor exists in the first place.  So, cheers to writer/director Jeffrey Nachmanoff, Paramount Vantage – the short-lived ‘independent’ arm of Paramount Studios – and anyone else who got this film made.

In the film, a devout Sudanese-born American Muslim named Samir – beautifully played by Don Cheadle – plays a dangerous game with a group of Islamist extremists.  Other than that, I will say nothing else about the film so as not to spoil it.  So, strike a blow for intelligent cinema and for more reasonable representations of Islam and track down a copy of Traitor.  And while you’re down at the video shop, strike another blow for sense and steal or destroy a copy of Navy Seals, True Lies, or any of the countless Hollywood films that perpetuate anti-Arab and anti-Muslim stereotypes.

At the end of Traitor, we even get to see that Samir is wrestling with the consequences of his own actions, and wrestling with them honestly from within the structure of his own complex understanding of his faith.  As Zamir and an American FBI agent part at the very end of the film, the agent wishes Zamir salaam and Zamir delivers what is possibly the best last line in recent cinematic memory, one that many people still need to hear:

‘And you shouldstart the conversation with that’.

How do the instructions Al Qaeda gave to the 9/11 bombers compare with the Holy War instructions God gave to Israel?

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9/11, Al Qaeda, Bruce Lincoln, holy war, killing, Mohamed Atta, purity, Yahweh

Let’s compare the biblical instructions concerning Holy War in the Old Testament with the instructions given to Mohamed Atta, the leader of the  attacks of 11 September 2001. The instructions can be found in biblical passages such as Num 21:1-3; Deut 2:30-35; 3:3-7; 7:1-2; Josh 6:17-21; 10:28; 11:10-11; 1 Sam 15:1-33 and in the Observer.

There are a number of significant comparisons between the instructions Al Qaeda gave to the 9/11 bombers and the instructions Yahweh gave to Israel. Here are some of the main points of comparison which struck me as I compared the two:

1. Both Yahweh and Al Qaeda stir up their warriors by telling them that there is no need for fear, and that the only ones who should be afraid are God’s enemies:

“’The people are stronger and taller than we; the cities are large and fortified up to heaven! We actually saw there the offspring of the Anakim!'” I said to you, “Have no dread or fear of them. Yahweh your God, who goes before you, is the one who will fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your very eyes” (Deut 1:28-30)

“All of their [U.S.] equipment and gates and technology will not prevent, nor harm, except by God’s will. The believers do not fear such things. The only ones that fear it are the allies of Satan, who are the brothers of the devil.” (Al Qaeda instructions, §21)

2. Both Yahweh and Al Qaeda try to inspire their people by saying that the few can defeat the many, with the help of God:

“When Yahweh your God brings you into the land that you are about to enter and occupy, and he clears away many nations before you–the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations mightier and more numerous than you–and when Yahweh your God gives them over to you and you defeat them, then you must devote them to destruction… It was not because you were more numerous than any other people that Yahweh set his heart on you and chose you–for you were the fewest of all peoples.” (Deut 7:1-3, 7)

“Remember: How many small groups beat big groups by the will of God… If you see the enemy as strong, remember the groups that fought the prophet Muhammad. They were 10,000. Remember how God gave victory to his faithful servants.” (§§12, 37)

3. In the case of both biblical Israel and Al Qaeda, the warriors are told to prepare with acts of washing and purification – because their mass-murders have a pure religious significance:

“Camp outside the camp seven days; whoever of you has killed any person or touched a corpse, purify yourselves and your captives on the third and on the seventh day. You shall purify every garment, every article of skin, everything made of goats’ hair, and every article of wood.” (Num 31:19-20)

“Shave excess hair from the body and wear cologne. Shower.” (§3)

4. Both Yahweh and Al Qaeda advise that the warriors should be free fom sin, before their divinely sanctioned mission:

“Therefore, observe diligently the commandment–the statutes, and the ordinances–that I am commanding you today. If you heed these ordinances, by diligently observing them, Yahweh your God will maintain with you the covenant loyalty that he swore to your ancestors… You shall devour all the peoples that Yahweh your God is giving over to you, showing them no pity” (Deut 7:11-12, 16)

“Purify your soul from all unclean things. Completely forget something called ‘this world’. The time for play is over and the serious time is upon us.” (§9)

5. Both Yahweh and Al Qaeda admonish that, even though they face possible death in battle, the warriors should be happy and courageous, sure in the knowledge that they are doing God’s will, and confident of their reward:

“From the wilderness and the Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, to the Great Sea in the west shall be your territory. No one shall be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to act in accordance with all the law that my servant Moses commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, so that you may be successful wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:5-7)

“Do not seem confused or show signs of nervous tension. Be happy, optimistic, calm, because you are heading for a deed that God loves and will accept. It will be the day, God willing, you spend with the women of paradise.” (§24)

6. Both Yahweh and Al Qaeda describe the mass-murders as a higher calling. Killing is not to be done with any thought of revenge or anger – but is a rational process, done for God’s sake:

“you shall inquire and make a thorough investigation. If the charge is established that such an abhorrent thing has been done among you, you shall put the inhabitants of that town to the sword, devoting it to destruction and everything in it–even putting its livestock to the sword.” (Deut 14:15)

“Do not seek revenge for yourself. Strike for God’s sake… before you do anything, make sure your soul is prepared to do everything you do for God only.” (§32)

7. Both Yahweh and Al Qaeda warn that nobody is to be spared; no prisoners are to be taken; and no plunder is to be taken:

“No human beings who have been devoted to destruction can be ransomed; they shall be put to death.” (Lev 27:29);  “Make no covenant with them and show them no mercy.” (Deut 7:3); “keep away from the things devoted to destruction, so as not to covet and take any of the things devoted to destruction” (Josh 6:18) 

“implement the way of the prophet in taking prisoners. Take prisoners and kill them. As Almighty God said: ‘No prophet should have prisoners until he has soaked the land with blood. You want the bounties of this world in exchange for prisoners and God wants the other world for you, and God is all-powerful, all-wise.” (§33)

In both cases, the instructions were given to divinely ordained warriors, preparing them for their upcoming religious slaughters. True and genuine religious slaughters, that is. The idea that such violence is untrue to religion is an idea frequently imposed on Islam by Western liberal humanism. It is also adopted by a small minority of Western Islamic scholars, most of them operating in the West, and wishing to impose a liberal, humanistic conception of Islam on every form of Islam. It is also held by many groups of Muslims who do not share a belief in this violent type of Islam. Islam should not be characterized as either a monolithically violent or a monolithically peaceful religion. Mohammed Atta’s views cannot be generalised to “Islam”, yet also it should not be denied that his were genuinely religious and deeply held Islamic actions. Similarly, the Holy War described in the Bible – whether it in fact occurred or is a fiction – reflects genuine religious beliefs, even if they are rejected today by many Christians and many Jews.

Bruce Lincoln comments, in Holy Terrors (2003):

“It is tempting, in the face of such horror, to regard the authors of these deeds as evil incarnate: persons bereft of reason, decency or human compassion. Their motives, however—as revealed by the instructions that guided their final days—were intensely and profoundly religious.”

Al Qaeda’s beliefs are genuinely religious beliefs, and beliefs which have a precedent in the violence which is an integral part of many varieties of “true” religious practice – not least, the Holy War traditions in the Old Testament.