Religion Must Be Part of the Solution in Afghanistan

The United States has a moral responsibility to the people of Afghanistan. It is a responsibility to help them use the basic moral underpinnings of Islam to promote a free and democratic society.

In his assessment of the war, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal makes clear that simply winning battles and killing insurgents will not produce the results we want. His number one recommendation is to "Change the operational culture to connect with the people." The vast majority of Afghans do not want the insurgents to win, he said, and they do not see us as invaders. "Our strategy cannot be focused on seizing terrain and destroying insurgent forces," he wrote. "Our objective must be the population."

Nearly all of the Afghan population believes in the basic tenets of Islam. It is the central focus of their lives.

So how can religion be part of the solution?

We must understand that Islam itself is not the enemy -- only the misguided interpretation of Islam on one hand and the incomplete application of its principles that has led to corruption and insecurity on the other.

Six objectives underlie Islamic law. It must protect life and provide security. It must promote personal dignity and justice. It must protect religion, including the freedom to choose religion. It must protect property and to help people economically by providing a safety net. It must preserve the family. And it must protect and enhance the mind through intellect and sobriety, which is counter to the narcotics trade, now Afghanistan's major income producer.

As Gen. McChrystal points out, the people of Afghanistan do not trust their own government to provide their essential needs of security, justice and basic services, which are part of the six objectives. This has created fertile ground for the insurgency. When McChrystal says he wants to change the operational culture to reach the people, this means we must engage the people at their core, which is Islam.

Our message to the Afghan people should be that we understand these six objectives of their own law, and our focus will be to help them build their government around these principles. This would win their hearts and minds. And other Muslim countries should be brought in as part of the alliance that will develop an overall political, economic, military and religious strategy.

We do have a moral responsibility -- not to mention a strategic interest -- in not abandoning the Afghan people. Now we must engage religion to be part of the solution.

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf is chairman of the Cordoba Initiative, an independent, non-partisan and multi-national project that seeks to use religion to improve Muslim-West relations. He is the author of "What's Right with Islam is What's Right With America."

 

 

Comments

[mommamia526]

12:48 PM on 10/09/2009

I can not find one word in this article with which I do not agree, except for one thing....that it is the U.S.'s responsibility to lay out the tenets of Islam to muslims. That, it seems to me, is the moral responsibility of the leaders of Islam. No one has a problem with the tenets of Islam as outlined by the writer. What we do have a problem with is, indeed, the false interpretations of the outlaws of Islam, the socalled terrorists. IF these gangs can operate anywhere wiht impunity, and also find confirmation of their acts with declarations such as that the rest of the world MUST understand their suffering, then the leadership of Islam and the muslim nations must be prepared to be the next victims of this mandated understanding. Freedom of religion is necessary. Not everyone believes exactly the same thing, nor believes in the same Deity, or rather the name of that Deity. It would be better to see what we all have in common. Our humanity. That most of us do believe in a deity, even if we use different names or different cultural practices. Most of all, the sanctity of life includes the sanctity of life of others who look different from us, have diffierent cultural and religious practices and eat different food, as long as they do not force us to follow them.

[Gma11]

09:25 AM on 10/09/2009

Absolutely!

Our ethnocentric approach has been devastating.

[duxguts]

01:30 AM on 10/09/2009

How can you talk about moral responsibility when we are firing missiles into peoples houses from drones?

[vascopyjama]

12:01 AM on 10/09/2009

I disagree. Religion has never been part of the solution anywhere.

[GrahamInCanada]

11:25 PM on 10/08/2009

It is as much the moral responsibility of the United States to use the basic moral underpinnings of Islam to help Afghanistan towards a free and democratic society as it is the moral responsibility of China to use the moral underpinnings of Chirstianity to help the United States toward a property free, communist society or of Afghanistan to use the moral underpinnings of confucianism to help China toward a tribal society.

The basic underpinnings of a free and democratic society are not based on religion; like the religious analogy goes, basing democracy on religion is to build your house on a foundation of sand.

[NCAV2]

07:28 PM on 10/08/2009

We would only have a moral responsibility if the Afghan people absolutely wanted us there , which they don't. Most Afghans and most American oppose this war, so why are we still there again?

[ajax2]

07:17 PM on 10/08/2009

" ... in not abandoning the Afghan...."

If as you claim the Afghans do not think of us as occupiers, a military withdraw would not be abandonment.

"It is a responsibility to help them use the basic moral underpinnings of Islam to promote a free and democratic society."

You and Gen. McChrystal claim it's the USA responsibility to make a new society there (nation building). I see nothing of the sort either morally or legally. And with such overwhelming support from the populace against the insurgents, your claim, one would think that military support could be reduced and replaced wit administrative support.

Nation building, a terrible idea, especially in Afghanistan.

[eileenflemingWAWA]

06:16 PM on 10/08/2009

Religion has been MISUSED for eons to divide us;

Spirituality connects us.

"What people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It's just that the translations have gone wrong…You're just left with yourself all the time, whatever you do anyway. You've got to get down to your own God in your own temple. It's all down to you, mate...All we are saying is give peace a chance...All you need is love...Imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will be as one...Reality leaves a lot to the imagination."-John Lennon

"In the Islamic tradition what you wish for your neighbor should be what you wish for yourself...the Koran says God created all tribes that we could come to know each other as brothers and sisters. Everyone matters and all are children of the one God, who loves and nurtures peace and wants us to work for peace by resisting evil with good."- Imam Yahya Hindi, Oct. 1, 2009

http://www.wearewideawake.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1447&Itemid=225

[lungfish]

04:49 PM on 10/08/2009

Social engineering is a tricky process and appealing to the highest qualities of the local belief systems is a way to move the majority forward so I agree with the Imam in this sense.
At the same time our military and our country are far more concerned with Christianity and conversion than they are with respecting the beliefs of Muslims. The war hawks in our country see themselves as "Christian soldiers". Unfortunately, many Muslims see them the same way.
I have spent a little time reading the Koran and its is confusing to me how a belief can extol the six fine qualities that you so thoughtfully offer and at the same time call for putting unbelievers to the sword. Of course there are certainly Christian comparisons that are equally as bloodthirsty and when taken literally, are disastrous for society. So it isn't really a mystery, its is simply a condition.
If we empower the society to regulate itself I am sure that it can offset extremists. We certainly have the same problem in this country but a there is a loud confrontation against extremists and while they are becoming less relevant, they are never to be underestimated in their capacity for violence.

[eileenflemingWAWA]

06:30 PM on 10/08/2009

What passes as Christianity in the USA has little to do with what Jesus was all about!

About 2,000 years ago, JC sat down under an olive tree and began to teach the people;

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven."

In other words: How comforted we will all be, when we see, we haven't got a clue, as to the depth and breadth of pure love and mercy of The Divine Mystery of The Universe.

God's name in ancient Aramaic is Abba which means Daddy as much as Mommy and He/She: The Lord has said, "My ways are not your ways. My thoughts are not yours." -Isaiah 55:8

"Blessed are the merciful, they will be shown mercy."

In other words: how comforted you will all be when you choose to return only kindness to your 'enemy.'

"For with the measure you measure against another, it will be measured back to you" Christ warns his disciples as he explains the law of karma in Luke 6:27-38.

The Rest:

http://www.wearewideawake.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=64&Itemid=195

It is Failures of Intelligence that has reaped the Militarization of Christianity:

http://www.wearewideawake.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1267&Itemid=219

[fightorleave2]

04:35 PM on 10/08/2009

I couldn't disagree more. The 3 most populous religions in the world are the problem (and thus the enemy). Yet, I agree that it is also a matter of interpretation because there are countless wonders to behold in the Old and New Testament (I can't say the same for the Koran as I have only read a very little bit and it was not so special), but that's the thing, no one can agree on any one interpretation, and it is for that reason all the present problems exist in the world. The proof is that many in America believe that Russia and Islam are the enemy based on so-called Christian prophesy. The best solution is to require all people to stop what they are doing and accept that we are all humans and to love one another, which will require all those in positions of power and wealth to renounce both. Is it a pipedream? Maybe, but it's our only chance, and, hey, its in the Bible.