Islamism, the West and Human Rights
by Nils A. Haug • November 8, 2024 at 5:00 am
Sharia tenets – which have views of human rights, justice, mercy and compassion that differ from those of the West -- can appear alien to Judeo-Christian precepts. Sharia, in usage, often appears to contravene the basic humanistic values of the West.
The outcome is that, in application, the moral laws of each tradition -- that of the Torah as opposed to that of Sharia -- which prescribes harsh punishments, such as amputation for theft; death for leaving Islam (apostasy) or blasphemy, or being stoned to death for adultery, which can include having been raped -- are consequences inimical to Western ideas of justice, mercy and human rights.
By practicing a different faith, those who do not subscribe to Sharia are "disbelievers" (infidels), deemed to be in breach of "The Path" and consequently subject to a penalty of conversion, subjugation or death.
This is particularly true for Jews and Christians, who were offered opportunities to accept the gift of Islam but ungratefully declined.
"Slay the infidels wherever you find them..." — Qur'an, Sura 9:5.
The concept of universal human rights might seem quite strange to Islamists.
The intent of jihadi state actors .... in their own words, appears to be the imposition of Sharia law and Islamic dominance over the world.
That is why textual originalism in the interpretation of US Constitutional law is of particular concern to jurists. Emphasis on the original intent of the writers of the US Constitution rather than the fluctuating views of a succession of lawyers is of prime importance.
Reinterpreting the US Constitution can easily become like the children's game of "telephone": after a few migrations, the original intent of the founders could well become unrecognizable.
Western leaders find it difficult to regard religiously powered radicalism with the weight it deserves. "[I]t's precisely because it's religiously grounded that such radicalism is exceptionally dangerous." — George Weigel, First Things, January 31, 2024.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, during World War II, said in the House of Commons on June 18, 1940: "If we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age."
Although Churchill's statement also applies to Western nations at this time, Israel has been largely alone in the fight to preserve the West's Judeo-Christian ideals. It would be to the West's advantage for other nations to join Israel in this noble task.
The Torah's ethical and moral laws, which became known to the world as Moses' Ten Commandments, founded the West's moral-ethical precepts on which its laws and judicial concepts such as justice and mercy are based. This development is reflected in the United States' founding documents, as well as England's Magna Carta of 1215, among others.
The opening paragraph of America's 1776 Declaration of Independence, for instance, refers to "the laws of nature" and "nature's God." From this assertion, the imperative of a sound ethical, moral and religious foundation for America's values was established. According to America's founding fathers, therefore, the laws of Moses – those moral codes collectively referred to as the natural law – underpin the value-based Western order.
