Forcing Muslim groups to sign a document will not reform Islam in France. The beheading of Samuel Paty was a wakeup call, only France still hasn’t woken up.
The reaction from tens of thousands of mainstream Muslims in defense of the the murderer of Samuel Paty was telling. Murder for insulting Islam or Muhammad is often carried out by individuals, mobs, and groups. Punishment for insulting Islam is deeply entrenched in the religion. Whether, two, three etc Muslim groups agree to sign on the dotted line to uphold French laws of assimilation really makes no difference. Mainstream Muslim groups operating in Western countries have largely been found to be linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and/or foreign hostile states who defend mainstream Islam, and they abhor democratic freedoms which allow for the offense of any religion. ”
The document is intended to compel Muslim groups in France to renounce political Islam. Yet the Sharia governs all aspects of a practicing Muslim’s life, including the political. Politics is inseparable from mainstream Islam. The Sharia, which embodies mainstream Islam, is regarded as divine, immutable and above all laws on the face of the earth. The Sharia is intertwined with politics. That means that the French document amounts to a rejection of the Sharia by the Muslim groups who signed it. It is highly unlikely that they will genuinely reject the Sharia. Yet French leaders will believe that a mere signing of a document by these groups is significant. This demonstrates how clueless French authorities are in their approach to Islam.
Muhammad stated that “War is deceit” (Bukhari 52: 269). The concept of deceit and feigning compliance is based on the Quran:
Let not believers take disbelievers as allies rather than believers. And whoever [of you] does that has nothing with Allah , except when taking precaution against them in prudence. And Allah warns you of Himself, and to Allah is the [final] destination. (3:28)
Scholar and Jurist Al-Tabari (838-923) wrote in his Tafsir al-Tabari:
If you (Muslims) are under their (infidels) authority, fearing for yourselves, behave loyally to them, with your tongue, while harbouring inner animosity for them… Allah has forbidden believers from being friendly or on intimate terms with the infidels in place of believers – except when infidels are above them in authority. In such a scenario, let them act friendly towards them.
Islamic scholar and Jurist Ibn Kathir (1301-1373) also wrote similarly:
Whoever at any time or place fears their [infidels’] evil, may protect himself through outward show.
Rejecting the concept of “Islamophobia” and replacing it with “anti-Muslim bigotry,” which would make it clear that criticizing Islam is not condemned, would be a mere beginning for France. Offending Islamic sensibilities is allowed in free societies (or should be), except that appeasement has become the rule across the board, as politicians are intimidated by Islamic supremacists.
“Charter of Islam of France: After Hesitation, Three Federations Decide to Sign the Text,” translated from “Charte de L’Islam de France: Après des Réticences, Trois Fédérations Décident de Signer le Texte,” BFM TV, December 25, 2021:
While Gérald Darmanin announced the death of the French Council of Muslim Worship (CFCM), in mid-December, three federations finally decided to sign a charter desired by the government.
This Saturday, three federations announced their decision to sign the “Charter of the principles of Islam in France,” a text desired by the government and which they qualify as a “perfectible compromise.” In recent weeks, the charter already caused a rupture within the CFCM (French Council of Muslim Worship).
“By this solemn act, we invite in all fraternity all the member federations of the CFCM to come together within this unique body which is and will remain our common home, we are convinced of it,” the Turkish federations of the Coordination Committee of Turkish Muslims in France (CCMTF) and Millî Görüs as well as the Faith and Practice movement, close to the rigorist preachers of the Tabligh, indicate in a joint press release.
Disagreements with the Minister of the Interior
These three federations say they respond to comments made on December 13 by the Minister of the Interior Gerald Darmanin on the “death” of the CFCM.
They had initially refused to sign the “Charter of principles for Islam in France” demanded by the executive, which proscribes “interference” by foreign states and notably reaffirms the “compatibility” of Islam with the French Republic. or gender equality.
In January 2021, when the leaders of the CFCM announced that they had reached an agreement on this charter, the CCMTF, CIMG France and Faith and Practice for their part criticized a lack of consultation upstream of the text and its content, and considered that it risked “weakening” confidence in Muslims.
“A harmful climate of division”
The three federations had, however, remained within the CFCM, historical interlocutor of the public authorities on the Muslim religion, while four others, including the Mosque of Paris, had decided to leave the office of the CFCM and to create a “Coordination.”
The CFCM, created in 2003 and which brings together several federations of mosques, has since been plunged into turmoil.
The “divergence” expressed by the three federations was “dangerously instrumentalized to give rise to a climate of division harmful to Muslims in France,” they write to explain their initiative intended to “free themselves from a responsibility which is unfairly attributed to us.”
“Our major concern is to work for the unity of Muslims in France and for national cohesion while respecting the principles and values of the Republic, battered in breach in these difficult times,” they assure the public.
