Storm Alert Disinformation: Can A Peaceful Islamic Sect Help Save Islam’s Soul?

From The Gathering Storm

Outside of stuffy departments of religion at universities, an old and persecuted sect of Islam, and one largely ignored in today’s media, may be able to help bridge the gap between Muslim and non-Muslim and save the soul of Islam. A recent organization of this sect has been launched with the support of the British government to join its campaign to tackle what ministers describe as "radical extremism" within the country's 1.8 million community.

You would think that this new organization would be applauded by the other more traditional Muslim organizations like the very large Muslim Council of Britain (MCB). After all, isn’t this what the Muslim spokesman have claimed is the real problem with Islam - that it’s been hijacked by a ‘small minority’ of misguided fanatics who are causing distrust and suspicion of Muslims in the British population and throughout the world?

Guess again.

The MCB views the new organization of British Sufi Muslims called the Sufi Muslim Council (SMC) as a "motley crew of discredited figures" wheeled out to support the "ludicrous arguments" of a recent TV documentary about the Islamic problem in Britain. In addition, the SMC created to represent the "silent majority" of British Sufi Muslims and tackle extremism has been dismissed by the Muslim Council of Britain as unrepresentative and divisive.

Why? Because the Sufi organization had the courage to call a spade a spade. They stated that existing Muslim organizations have not done enough to tackle radical extremism within the Muslim community.

Ruth Kelly, the communities and local government minister supports the words and actions of the Sufi group.

"We must work together to protect our young people from recruitment to violence and help them reject forces that seek to destroy our wonderfully diverse society. That is why we are looking to organizations and individuals across the Muslim communities to be vocal and challenge the ideology of the extremists."

Mr Rafiq, who served on the government's Muslim taskforce, created to tackle Islamic radicalization following the 7/7 London bombings, says the SMC is seeking to fill a "vacuum" within the Muslim community.

"Unfortunately, many UK Muslim organizations lack the courage to stand up and speak forthrightly about extremism.”

The Sufi group says up to 80% of Britain's 2 million Muslims come from the Sufi tradition, which is a mystical and personal interpretation of Islam and largely apolitical. One of the SMC founders, Haras Rafiq, said:

"Up to now they [Sufis] have lacked a [representative] voice, and the intent of forming this council is to provide such a strong voice."

And what is this voice? Who are the Sufis? And what do the Muslim fundamentalists think of the Sufis? Let look at some recent examples.

• On March 19, 2005, up to 50 worshippers were left dead and twice as many wounded in a bomb blast at a shrine to the 19th-century sufi saint Pir Rakhel Shah at Gandhawa in Pakistan’s conflicted province of Baluchistan. The bomb went off as pilgrims at the shirne had lined up for a meal and were being served food. Although the shrine is at a Shi’ite mosque, it is revered by Sunnis as well. “Everyone comes here, even Hindus. There is no distinction here between a Shi’ite and a Sunni,” said the shrine’s caretaker, Syed Sadiq Shah. “God’s curse be on those who did this. They have killed innocent people.”
• On May 27, 2005, at least 25 were left dead and some 200 wounded in a suicide bombing at the Bari Imam sufi shrine at Nurpur village outside Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad. Thousands of devotees were attending the last day of a five-day festival at the time of the explosion. Worshippers had been waiting for a prominent Shi’ite cleric to address the gathering when the bomb went off. “Today was the annual festival of Bari Imam. Devotees had come from all over Pakistan. Shi’ites and Sunnis were praying together.
• On June 2, 2005, a suicide bomber blew himself up at a gathering of sufis north of Baghdad, killing 10 and injuring at least 12.

Get the picture. Aren’t you wondering why a peaceful sect like the Sufis who are trying to bridge that gap between free people and the Islamo-fascists who would seek to enslave them would be the target of so much hatred? Perhaps mainstream representative groups like the MCB are Islamists themselves who support the ends of the violent jihadists but not their means and rather use the lawful jihad of intimidation, infiltration and disinformation gathering support from the appeasers and apologists to reach their goals of an Islamic world?

And what’s their defense? The MCB says its criticism of Jewish groups in Britain and its boycott of Holocaust Memorial Day reflect the anger of British Muslims at the actions of Israel and their desire for justice for the Palestinians.

That’s right. The same of bull hockey that is paraded out in front of the TV cameras, heard on radio shows, and voiced in printed articles every single day of the week by the Islamists. It’s the Jews’ fault. Like the inscrutable Mulla Nasrudin of Sufi lore who admonished those not to react erroneously to a problem, “If your donkey allows someone to steal your coat — steal his saddle.”

Muslims need to respond to those that ‘stole’ their religion and not worry about the donkey that they rode in on. And modern Muslims should look closely at the Sufis and what they have to say. It could just save their religion form being thrown unto the trash heap of history along with their violent and insidious means to conquer the world for Allah.