| FaRmLaNd said: That would mean that the vast majority of people that say they're of a relgion aren't. Most Christians don't follow all of the 10 commandsments or any of the more archaic laws of leviticus for example. The same goes for many Muslims I assume. The point is, when someone says they're of a religion then regardless of what you say thats what THEY consider THEMSELVES. There are so many ways to interpret holy books that its not really you're right to not call them what they say they are, because I'm sure from there perspective they wouldn't consider the less agressive members of their faith true members of the faith either. Every single sect thinks they have the correct interpretation and from my perspective I couldn't care less, since all religion relies on faith (eg no good reason to believe the things they do). You can't have the good and say the bad doesn't exist, that'd be like saying the members of the inquisition weren't Christian, they certainly were. |
I'd have to disagree with you on this sort of.
While yes I agree that if someone calls themselves a ....., then yes they believe they are regardless of anything else. However, from the perspective of their actions you as an outsider can determine if they are actually following the base ideals of that faith.
In the case of Islam its even more difficult as most muslim groups don't even pull the majority of their laws from the Quran. Especially those extremist groups like the Taliban. Instead they derive their ruleset from a collection of quotes they beleive came from the prophet. (You can read my other posts on this for more clarity or look up Sunnah, which is the Sunni collection) These quotes often contradict themselves, other groups collections, and the Quran. Its completely illogical and I for one haven't ever understood why anyone with knowledge of Islamic history would follow anything but what the Quran says. (Given their Muslim of course)
