A Jihad by any other name…
Because the word has an Arabic origin we immediately associate Jihad and Islam. A Jihad, in Arabic definition, is a struggle. Struggles come in various sizes, large and small. Mohamed recognized the small Jihad as dealing with the societal issues, whereas the big Jihad is the internal struggle inside the individual. We don’t see this word in these terms today, we see the Jihad and the Jihadist relating only to international terrorism, Al Qaeda and Usama bin Laden. Therefore we see it only as a Moslem problem, and not a larger problem of the planet.
Karen Armstrong in her book The Battle for God performed a detailed study of fundamentalism across the three related monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Her conclusion was that, underneath the veneer of the different religions, the fundamentalists are all essentially the same. Their agenda goes far beyond religious doctrine and heads straight towards the control of society. Only to the extent that they are seen as the only authorized spokesman for the divine, they endorse a theocratic government.
Jews, Christians, and Moslems, as well as people from other faiths that feel they have a direct relationship with the divine, all have fundamentalist wings that have an inner drive for world acceptance of their view of the divine.
Being a lifelong Christian, as well as one who has made the study of theology a major personal study, I find the underbelly of fundamentalism – the willingness to hate all those who do not agree with their theology – very strange. Alan Segal, in Life After Death, clarified a bit of this question for me when he wrote:
“Social and cultural ‘deprivation’ is a common source of Messianic movements….Besides deprivation of some sort, there must be a willingness to interpret one’s lot in explicit religious terms…This is usually supplied by millenarianism.” (pg. 312)
So, we have people who are feeing like they have been somehow “left-out,” becoming associated with a movement that is expectant of an immanent coming of the divine to settle issues. Therefore, part of the underlying anger is explained. While there are many fundamentalist missionaries and people who interpret their religious duty to reach out to others in the divine’s love, others have a very different take on the call of their religion.
Segal later gives more insight into the mind of the martyr.
“…The divine would make good on he covenantal promises to reward the righteous and punish the iniquitous…And they [the martyrs] deserved to get their bodies back and live again on earth. And they deserved to be transformed into immortal and unchangeable stars, to become God’s avenging army of angels who would scourge the earth of persecutors and evildoers.” (pg. 394)
The current fundamentalist no longer wants to wait for the after-life; they want to form that avenging army now. I often hear people refer to themselves as “soldiers for the divine.” As good soldiers everywhere they are more than willing to sacrifice their lives (and yours if you get in their way) for the greater mission of the divine.
One would think that upon conversion, the conversation would go like this:
The Divine: So, I’m glad to have you in my flock.
The Believer: Yes, lord is it a wonderful thing.
The Divine: Now, I’ve been busy lately. Can you do something for me?
The Believer: Of course Lord, anything you want.
The Divine: Will you smite my enemies for me; I’m just too busy to do it myself…
The Believer: Oh yes Lord, I’d love to do that… I’ll raise an army for you…
The problem is that “the enemy” is usually defined by the prejudices carried by the new believer from his background and upbringing. So, is this the battle for The Divine, or simply the battle that the believers had from the beginning?
One individual, who was talking about the Israel-Palestine conflict, and had been part of the Jewish fundamentalist, stated a basic truth – “…you cannot out-hate a fundamentalist.” At the core of these fundamentalists is a burning hatred that they have morphed into the cause of the divine. Anyone, any secular institution, government, religious institution is a legitimate target if they do not share your particular understanding of the will of the divine.
This person seeks out the small Jihad and finds, or converts, others to their cause. This is not limited to Islamic peoples. Jews and Christians also have groups that are willing to kill, and sometimes die, for their cause. While we try to remove ourselves from those we consider a threat, we don’t see those who, although they look like “us,” are just as radical in their theological beliefs as the person we fear.
We have to start to listen to what people are actually saying, not just looking at the color of their skin, style of dress, religion, or language to determine who is the real danger to our safety.