By James Mark William Kennedy
The Islamic State, as ISIS is now formally referred to, memorably made a name for itself last year through swift military action. Abu Bakr al-Bagdhadi, the militant group’s elusive chief, subsequently became reputed as an efficient military tactician with what he believes to be a divine mission. Sweeping through Iraq in June of 2014, Al-Bagdhadi’s fighters nimbly captured two of the nation’s largest cities: Mosul and Tikreet. This not only proves ISIS’s key commander an able general, but also a determined man of well above-average intelligence. His heightened intellect is also coupled with what must be a very thorough knowledge of Islamic holy texts, specifically the Qur’an. Al-Bagdhadi in fact acquired a degree from Sadaam University with special emphasis on Koranic recitation.
In America, Islam is generally nowhere near as well understood as Christianity is. Therefore, in order to thoroughly understand Al-Bagdhadi’s and the ISIS’s motivation, acquiring a working knowledge of Islam’s core beliefs is necessary. The supposedly prophetic founder of Islam was born in Mecca around AD 570. Muḥammad ibn `Abd Allāh led a relatively normal life until he was in his 40’s. At this point, he began to vocalize some very strong religious beliefs and finally professed revelations allegedly imparted by the Archangel Gabriel. A decade spent preaching and gathering followers was succeeded by Muhammed’s transformation into a warrior prophet. Arabia became the staging ground for wars waged in the hope of ridding the world of polytheistic religions. Now we are left with the disheartening notion that violent Islamic sentiment has been the cause of unnecessary bloodshed for nearly one-and-a-half millennia.
ISIS’s violent campaigns have made its constituents globally notorious for their sheer ruthlessness. News outlets consistently allude to the religious foundation, upon which ISIS was formed, but what exactly about their beliefs drives them to commit appalling crimes against humanity? Answers to this question should always include at least a brief overview of two commonly misunderstood Islamic concepts: “caliphate” and “jihad”. When people speak about the Islamic caliphate, they are referring to a certain purportedly governmental structure constructed within the verses of the Qur’an. ISIS presently aims to implant this caliphate throughout the world, thereby cleansing mankind of those who oppose Allah. The term jihad has taken on a Western meeting that espouses violence and bloodshed perpetrated in the name of the spread of Islamic teachings. Translated literally as “struggle,” Jihad encompasses any activity that would make someone a devout practitioner of Islam. While ISIS’s violent assaults are indeed one form of Jihad, the simple act of praying five times a day could also fall under the same heading.
As we just began to establish, ISIS’s current actions are only one link in a chain of religious aggression started by Muhammad himself. This begs an extremely difficult question: would Islam’s founder approve of Al-Bagdhadi’s actions? Many different answers might be found because in America, we see gruesome news stories about ISIS fighters beheading prisoners, raping enslaved women and murdering foreign journalists on camera. These actions are appalling to us but we must also remember that, in the eyes of an ISIS fighter, his actions are morally righteous. Misinterpretation of the Qur’an, whether intentional or not, is necessarily the reason for psychotic beliefs such as these. Surat Āl ʻImrān, the third surah in the Qur’an, contains a verse that serves as a perfect example of just how the text might be so heinously misinterpreted:
“Soon shall we cast terror into the hearts of the unbelievers, for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no authority”. (3:151)
If readers take these words out of historical context, then the verse almost seems prophetic of modern terrorist activities. In the article ISIS and Islam: The Ugly Truth, Dr. Ashraf Ezzat places the quoted words into the proper historical context, “If we are to interpret the above verse in its historical context we will learn that some Pagan tribes of the Arab Peninsula were terrified and finally defeated by the raids of Mohamed and his followers back in the early seventh century.” (par. 17)
Koranic misinterpretations have been a source of dissonance within the Islamic community for quite some time. Let us assume for a moment that Al-Bagdhadi has enough sense to know what is really meant by the verses in the Qu’ran. Based on that premise, what motive would be left as the sole possibility for this awful man’s decisions? That was a rhetorical question of course. In the opinion of this blogger, Al-Bagdhadi is currently carrying on a longstanding tradition of all world religion’s: using the concept of divine inspiration to manipulate the masses.
JMWK
Works Cited
Ezzat, Ashraf. "ISIS and Islam: The Ugly Truth.” Information Clearing House, n.d. Web. 03 Oct. 2015.
"Jihad: A Misunderstood Concept from Islam." The Islamic Supreme Council of America, n.d. Web. 03 Oct. 2015.
"The Koran." The Koran. N.p., 7 Jan. 2000. Web. 18 Oct. 2012.
McCants, William. "Who Exactly Is Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the Leader of ISIS?" Newsweek. Newsweek LLC, 06 Sept. 2015. Web. 03 Oct. 2015.
Wells, H. G., Raymond Postgate, and G. P. Wells. The Outline of History, Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1971. Print.
Wood, Graeme. "What ISIS Really Wants." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 15 Feb. 2015. Web. 03 Oct. 2015.