George Careys tale i Roma denne uken reiser en mange interessante spørsmål. Det er slett ingen totalfordømmende tale, hvis man tar seg bryet med å lese referatet. Reaksjonen fra muslimsk hold i Storbritannia har vært gjennomgående negativ.

Men som Daily Telgraph sier i en leder: Hvorfor tok han ikke opp dette da han var erkesbisp av Canterbury og kunne gjøre noe med det? Da gikk Carey for å være en bisp som ikke ville tråkke noen på tærne.

Vi vil tro det samme gjelder for Den norske Kirke: Kritikken mot islam ytres privat og i krokene. Sier man det offentlig blir man stemplet som rasist.

Careys hovedpunkt var at muslimsk kultur og samfunn stivnet for 500 år siden. Nå holder terroristene på å overta islam. Noe må skje.

Carey tok opp mangelen på kildekritikk. Det finnes en sammenheng mellom dette forhold og terrorismen. Folk er låst til vante forestillinger og tør ikke tenke nye tanker:

Dr Carey said that, while Christianity and Judaism had a long history of often painful critical scholarship, Islamic theology was only now being challenged to become more open to examination.

«In the case of Islam, Mohammed, acknowledged by all in spite of his religious greatness to be an illiterate man, is said to have received God’s word direct, word by word from angels, and scribes recorded them later.

«Thus believers are told, because they have come direct from Allah, they are not to be questioned or revised.

«In the first few centuries of the Islamic era, Islamic theologians sought to meet the challenge this implied, but during the past 500 years critical scholarship has declined, leading to strong resistance to modernity.»

Dr Carey said that moderate Muslims must «resist strongly» the taking over of Islam by radical activists «and to express strongly, on behalf of the many millions of their co-religionists, their abhorrence of violence done in the name of Allah».

He said: «We look to them to condemn suicide bombers and terrorists who use Islam as a weapon to destabilise and destroy innocent lives. Sadly, apart from a few courageous examples, very few Muslim leaders condemn clearly and unconditionally the evil of suicide bombers who kill innocent people.

«We need to hear outright condemnation of theologies that state that suicide bombers are martyrs and enter a martyr’s reward.»

Hvis man virkelig brød seg om muslimer og/eller palestinere ville man si fra om at selvmordsideologien gjør uopprettelig skade på islam og muslimske samfunn.

Muslim culture has contributed little for centuries, says Carey
By Jonathan Petre, Religion Correspondent
(Filed: 26/03/2004)