Fathima Rifqa Bary, who goes by Rifqa, is a 17-year-old from Columbus, Ohio who ran away from home -- not an uncommon occurrence for 17-year-olds. But the circumstances surrounding her story have opened a host of legal, cultural and theological issues.
Her Muslim parents moved the family to the U.S. from Sri Lanka in 2000, seeking medical attention for Rifqa, who had lost her right eye playing with a toy. Rifqa, who the Columbus Dispatch reports was a cheerleader at her high school, joined a Bible study group on Facebook earlier this year and was baptized at a local church.
Last month, she hopped on a bus to Orlando to meet with Rev. Blake Lorenz, who she met through a Facebook prayer group for the couple's non-denominational Global Revolution Church.
Her parents reported their daughter missing and local news covered her disappearance for a full two weeks before police were able to trace her to Lorenz's Orlando church.
Here's what happened when Rifqa was found: Lorenz decides to remain silent and displays Rifqa to a local television news station. She launches into an emotional plea to save her life from Islam. She claims that her parents "love God more than me" and therefore have to perform an honor killing on her. She argues "it's in the Quran". No it's not, sweet little Rifqa. It's not in the Quran. Whoever told you that is either ignorant or a liar. You should look it up yourself before claiming it's in the Quran.
Rev. Lorenz is then quoted in a local television station report saying that if a Muslim leaves his religion and does not return to Islam in a couple of days, then he must be killed. He claims that someone showed him the verse. There is no such verse, Rev. Lorenz. In every faith, apostasy is shunned but ultimate judgment is left to God, not people.
Religious conflicts occur in some countries where there are volatile and tense relations between faith groups, particularly where war and ethnic conflicts occur (the Balkans, the Middle East, South Asia). The United States of America is different. Let's preserve the tradition of American religious pluralism and not fall into religious or cultural warfare.
The issue of apostasy is actually addressed in a controversial and oft-misunderstood law. Centuries ago, the apostasy law was actually a treason law, created to address what should happen when a soldier in a Muslim army converts to the other side and then fights against a Muslim country. That's the equivalent of an American working for the Soviet Union during the Cold War, or for the Nazis in World War II. Under U.S. law, treason is punishable by death.
Now, state authorities in Florida and Ohio will have to clear up the mess and determine Rifqa's residence. Her father, Mohamed Bary, has a strong endorsement by Sgt. Jerry Cupp of the Columbus Police Department. Cupp told the Associated Press that Bary "comes across to me as a loving, caring, worried father about the whereabouts and the health of his daughter."
For his part, Bary told the Associated Press: "We love her, we want her back, she is free to practice her religion, whatever she believes in, that's OK. What these people are trying to do is not right -- I don't think any religion will teach to separate the kids from their parents."
Mohamed Bary allowed his daughter to become a cheerleader and says she can practice any faith she wants -- clearly, he is not a fundamentalist.
He is a concerned father who believes his daughter was brainwashed and kidnapped. Let's see how this story unfolds.
Muhammad said "Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him,"
Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Book 84:
http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/hadith/bukhari/084.sbt.html#009.084.057
Dealing with Apostates Volume 9, Book 84, Number 57:
Narrated 'Ikrima:
Some Zanadiqa (atheists) were brought to 'Ali and he burnt them. The news of this event, reached Ibn 'Abbas who said, "If I had been in his place, I would not have burnt them, as Allah's Apostle forbade it, saying, 'Do not punish anybody with Allah's punishment (fire).' I would have killed them according to the statement of Allah's Apostle, 'Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him.'"
The rest of the obfuscations about the Koran not mandating it is pure poppycock. The Koran does not stand alone in Islam. When convenient, the accompanying Hadith and Sira are used to elaborate, when inconvenient, they apparently don't exist and the defense is that the Koran does or doesn't state...
Apostasy from Islam carries a death sentence under Shari'ah law and they have the scores of the dead to prove it. Mr. Al Marayati would be better served correcting the "misunderstnders" and begin marginalizing their voives instead of basically calling for this girl to be sent to her death.
In several hadiths considered fully reliable by the Muslim scholar mainstream, Muhammad says, "If someone changes his Islamic religion, then kill him."
That is why all the schools of Islamic law support the death penalty for apostates from Islam.
Marayati says,
"In every faith, apostasy is shunned but ultimate judgment is left to God, not people."
That is simply untrue.
Marayati says:
"Centuries ago, the apostasy law was actually a treason law, created to address what should happen when a soldier in a Muslim army converts to the other side and then fights against a Muslim country. That's the equivalent of an American working for the Soviet Union during the Cold War, or for the Nazis in World War II. Under U.S. law, treason is punishable by death."
Marayati here makes a false comparison. In Islam, to leave the religious ideology of the Islamic State was to commit treason. That's theocracy. Marayati tries to compare this to the U.S., which also has executed people for treason. But the U.S. doesn't execute people for having a particular religion or set of ideas, except in exceptional contravention of its own laws and constitution. The U.S. may execute someone for intentionally giving away state secrets to an enemy. That is utterly different from Muhammad having people executed for abandoning the Islamic creed.
Al Murayati attempts to deflect this using a moral equivalence argument: "As far as culture in other parts of the world, I cannot defend their actions just like you cannot defend the actions of your co-religionists who violate the principles of religion." So, essentially, he admits that honor killings occur "in other parts of the world" but attempts to deflect the Islamic aspects of this practice by referring to some nebulously vague actions of "your co-religionists" as somehow being just as objectionable. Well, Mr. Murayati, I don't know of widespread honor killings that occur any place in the West other than what are being imported by "your" Muslim co-religionists. Why don't you address the real problem of honor killings we're faced with, instead of deflecting the discussion off into Bukhari-land and subtle distinctions among interpretations of ahadith?
Look at Riqfa's MySpace page, it notes her last log on in 2007 in which she confirms her Christianity.
Im not sure why this story and others are trying to portray her conversion as a recent issue.
In addition to this why hasnt anyone considered the fact that child abuse is real and that these threats against her life could have substance to them. It seems like people have put Rifqa on trial accusing her of misappropriating islam when in fact she grew up in a muslim family and understands more than most of us the good and bad that exist within her community when certain expectations are not met. We have far too many examples of child and spousal abuse, it doesnt matter what the abuser claims is their rationale be it religion or plain old insanity.
The fact is we have no real objective way to determine if riqfa's claims are legitimate or not, and by sweeping the religion issue under the rug we miss the point entirely because there have been far too many so-called "honour killings" by sociopaths who do misinterpret the religion and believe they are doing the right thing.
dig a bit deeper into this story, the idea of a 17 year old being lured by a priest and the implications people are making about Christians are as short-sighted as those being made about muslims and apostasy.
You're applying the classic discredited moral equivalence argument that Christian fundamentalists are just as bad as Islamic fundamentalists because they are, well, religious fundamentalists. But you neglect the very important distinction that Christian fundamentalist parents don't kill their own children for apostasy, whereas Muslim fundamentalist parents very often do.Travel to any Muslim country and talk to the locals about this and they will admit that this is, indeed, the case and the police and judiciary wink at the practice.
We do not need honor killings in the U.S., and it is unconscionable that you would try to dissemble the issue as you have. It will only be stopped by exposing it for what it is and vigorously prosecuting parents and any family members who are accessories to this abominable practice.
Your own prophet has said to kill anyone who changes his religion FROM islam. Here is the authentic hadith
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 260: Prophet said, 'If somebody (a Muslim) discards his religion, kill him.' "
http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/hadith/bukhari/052.sbt.html#004.052.260
Your own prophet has said to kill anyone who changes his religion FROM islam. Here is the authentic hadith
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 260: Prophet said, 'If somebody (a Muslim) discards his religion, kill him.' "
http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/hadith/bukhari/052.sbt.html#004.052.260
The reality is if this was a Christian girl who ran away from home and converted to Islam with the help of an Imam via facebook it'd be a totally different story.
Youth should have the freedom and choice to practice whatever religion they choose however, it isn't fair to stigmatize these American Muslim parents because of their Islamic faith.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smppnqCi-i4&feature=related
However, the Bible has a similar law: Deuteronomy 17:2-5
Also, the Bible does indeed have a command to "separate the kids from their parents": Luke 14:26
Interpret these as you will, but there they are.
To be exact Bhukari Volume 4, Book 52, Number 260:
Prophet said, 'If somebody (a Muslim) discards his religion, kill him.' "
Every religion contains a large number of laws, beliefs and customs not found in its scripture.
Bhukari Volume 4, Book 52, Number 260:
Prophet said, 'If somebody (a Muslim) discards his religion, kill him.' "