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Answer 1
It is the perception that Islam is the second (if not the first) religion in the world with around one quarter of the world population is following it. They believe that followers of Islam (Muslims) are spread allover the world although with different percentages.
Answer 2
One of the major problems with even putting forward a question like this today is the presence of the term "Islamophobia" which has really no definition and can be so easily applied. Any criticism of Islam or of Muslim practices just gets branded with this label, even if the words are spoken by Muslims. Therefore, I propose (in this answer) three separate words to discuss the varied feelings of Non-Muslim Westerners towards Islam:
- Anti-Mohammedan(ism) = The belief that Muslims as people are wicked or problematic. This is the Muslim rough equivalent to Anti-Semitism for Jews. The term actually existed historically, but has been "outmoded" because Muslims are no longer called Mohammedans in recognition of the fact that they do not follow Mohammed because he is their Lord and Savior, but only as a Prophet.
- Anti-Islamic(ism) = The belief that the ideology and beliefs of Islam as a religious construction and lifestyle manifesto promotes wrong-doing or are seriously problematic to a multicultural society.
- Anti-Islam(ism) = The belief that Islam as politically manifest and capable of determining actual laws promotes inequality, injustice, and moral incorrectness.
Put most simply: Muslim people are lovable, Islamic religion is salvageable, Islamic politics are insufferable.
Anti-Mohammedanism
Most Non-Muslims (contrary to Muslim assertions) are not actually Anti-Mohammedan. While there are certainly a minority of individuals who say that Muslims themselves are a cancer on society, this is a very limited opinion. Muslims of all backgrounds, like Arabs, Indians, Southeast Asians, etc. are typically warm, hospitable, and loving people. They work diligently at their jobs, aspire for their children to have better lives, and are every bit as caring and nurturing as any other citizen. The TV show "Muslims in America" was cancelled after one season because the participants in the show were "too normal". The only difference between them and non-Muslims were that some of the women wore hijabs and everyone prayed on Fridays instead of Sundays. Their ideologies and views were quintessentially American. Muslims in Dearborn, Michigan famously joined the celebrations when Osama bin Laden was killed in Pakistan, because they opposed the terror and fear that he represented.
If there may be one thing worth noting here, it is that Non-Muslim Westerners hope that Muslims can take a critical look at their past in a way that, up to this point, few of them have dared to do.
Anti-Islamicism
Many more non-Muslims are Anti-Islamic and point to a number of issues with Islamic legal practice and belief. Some of these Islamic "ideas" are incredibly frightening to many non-Muslims. The discussions about declaring Holy Wars on Unbelievers, are very frightening and scary to many who treasure the idea of Freedom of Conscience. Furthermore, Islam as a religion may promote tolerance of other religions, but certainly does not promote equality between religions. Qur'an verse 9:29 which formed the backbone Islamic legal treatment of Non-Muslims historically, says:
Fight those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day and who do not consider unlawful what Allah and His Messenger have made unlawful and who do not adopt the religion of truth from those who were given the Scripture - [fight] until they give the jizyah [tax] willingly while they are humbled.
This has led persistently negative treatment of Non-Muslims in Muslim countries. Admittedly, in the Middle Ages, it was superior to European treatment, but today the situation is reversed. Muslims in Europe live without fear that their Mosques could be destroyed or that violence will be used against them. However, Egyptian churches continue to be bombed and Egyptian Christians have no recourse. Lebanese Christians fled Lebanon in the 1920s and 1930s to escape Muslim pogroms. Jews departed from nearly every Muslim-majority country to go to Israeli internment camps because living there was better than their historical ties for centuries to the countries in which they lived. Islam has not learned from this and continues to tell Muslims that they did nothing wrong.
Additionally, Islamic Penal Law makes Westerners very scared. Some particularly problematic issues include: claiming that the rape victim is criminally liable for "getting raped", chopping off a thief's hands as punishment for theft, the execution of homosexuals, blasphemy laws in general, permission given to enslave people, and execution of apostates.
If Islamic views modernizes and its adherents show that they are willing to compete in the marketplace of ideas instead of just yell, scream, and perform violent acts until everybody listens, Islam may get a fairer shake. Until then, many see Islam as undesirable and regressive. If voices like Tawfik Hamid ring louder than those of Ayatollah Khamanei, Islam may garner many more Non-Muslim advocates or at least alienate far fewer. A link to Tawfik Hamid's "Mr. Tolerance" PDF has also been provided to get a flavor of the type of Islam that he advocates.
Anti-Islamism
The overwhelming majority of Westerners oppose (either strongly or weakly) Muslim attempts to impose Islamic Laws on a country's citizens and people. Given that many Westerners find the Islamic Penal Law outdated and horrendous and see that Islam seeks to repress religious minorities, they are not interested in a government that seeks to rule by exactly these mechanisms. This is not opposition to Muslim politicians like Keith Ellison, since he is not an Islamist, but merely a politician informed by values. An Islamist actively seeks the implementation of part or the whole of Shari'a Law, with the intent of creating an Islamic State. Many Westerners hold dearly to the idea that religion should stay out of politics in order to allow every religion the freedom to operate and discuss its views. An Islamist State would also be very restrictive to Muslims, forcing them to live in a Puritanical Way that would prevent differing local customs from informing the cultural richness that can be found in Islamic countries. Islamist regimes (like Iran) are notoriously violent to their own citizens and Non-Muslim compassion for Muslims (Anti-Anti-Mohammedanism) is greatly saddened when such regimes come to power.
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∙ 11y ago
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What is a Muslim term for a Westerner?
A Muslim is someone who practices Islam, and Islam is a religion, not a region or nationality. In other words, some Muslims are Westerners, and some Westerners are Muslim. They are not mutually exclusive. Also, Islam is not a language. Muslims live all around the globe, and thus speak many languages.
How did most westerners view their own culture compared to other cultures?
equal to non-Westerners cultures
Where do most westerners live and work in?
Cities
3 Would it be accurate or inaccurate to say that the religion of Islam teaches that it is right to commit violence to Westerners Why or Why not?
Inaccurate. It doesn't matter who the victim is; in Islam, violence is only permitted in self-defense.
Why Muslims are targetted by Westerners?
Who says Muslims are targeted by Westerners? One is a religion, the other a geographical area. The West has a significant number of Muslims, many people in the West have little knowledge of Islam/ Muslims and some people calling themselves Muslims attack Western targets....
Are most westerners ignorant of the existence of south east Asian countries like Malaysia?
Unfortunately yes, many westerners are ignorant of countries not usually covered in their mainstream media. Singapore at the southern tip of Malaysia may thought to be in China for some westerners.
What did easterners think of westerners?
that westerners were "stuck up"
What is the most common religions in Algeria?
Islam
How does the concept of jihad cause problems for westerners in the Arab world?
The concept of jihad does not affect Westerners in the Arab World. It may affect Westerners outside of the Arab World and it may affect non-Muslims within the Arab World, but Westerners within the Arab World are generallly untouched. It is worth noting that there are two types of jihad in Islam. The Greater Jihad is the internal struggle that every Muslim is supposed to go through between choosing what are moral actions and what are selfish/immoral actions. The Lesser Jihad is the struggle to make Islam the dominant religion of people in all places or, barring that, to make Islam the sovereign religion in all places. The Greater Jihad applies exclusively to Muslims since this a religious provision unique to them. Western Muslims who happen to live in the Arab World are required to perform the Greater Jihad by the same religious dictates as Arab Muslims, but it should not cause problems for either of them. The Lesser Jihad primarily applies outside of the Islamic World, in what is termed the "Dar al-Harb", since those are the areas where Islam is not the dominant religion and Islam is not the sovereign religion. As a result, the Lesser Jihad affects Westerners in their own countries, with extremist organizations like al-Muhajirun in the UK and similar organizations advocating for Islamic governance and the suppression of those critical of Islam's beliefs or practices. There is also the belief that Islam should be enshrined and have superior standing in "Dar al-Islam" or the Islamic World, which results in extremist violence against Christian, Jewish, Baha'i, the weaker sect of Islam in the country (Shiite or Sunni), and other religious minorities in the Arab World. This is because these minorities want real equality as opposed to this superior-inferior position. Since the squabble here is political and since Westerners are foreigners who have no real skin in the game, the violence and antagonism reserved for the minority religions is not visited on Westerners since it would have no purpose.
Who a famous person of Islam?
The last Prophet of Islam Hazrat Muhammad (SAW) is the most sacred, most honored, most loved, most famous, and most followed person of Islam.
The most common religion in Islam is?
Islam is a religion - therefore the answer is Islam.
In Islam what is the most popular name used?
Muhammad is the most popular name in Islam
