Ali Sina (ex-Muslim)
Encyclopedia
Ali Sina is a strong critic of Islam
and the founder of Faith Freedom International
, which he describes as a grassroots movement of ex-Muslims.
Ali Sina claims that thousands of Muslims have left Islam after reading his articles and books.
, educated in Italy
and now living in Canada
, he began debating Muslims in the 1990s. What bothered him, he tells The Jerusalem Post
, was not the penchant for jihad
and intolerance that certain fanatical Muslims displayed, but the foundation for such ills in the Koran and core Islamic texts.
The Jerusalem Post writes, "Sina, who runs Faith Freedom International - an Internet forum dedicated to debunking Islam - calls himself 'probably the biggest anti-Islam person alive.' The publication of his latest book, Understanding Muhammad: A Psychobiography of Allah's Prophet, will likely cement that position. In it, Sina suggests that Islam's central figure suffered from a series of mental disorders, including narcissistic personality disorder
, temporal lobe epilepsy
and obsessive compulsive disorder. "These disorders," he says, "can explain the phenomenon known as Islam... which is nothing but one man's insanity."
Through the Faithfreedom.org Web site, Sina lists canonical references to Muhammad's actions and offers $50,000 to anyone who can disprove his charge that Islam's prophet was "a narcissist, a misogynist, a rapist, a pedophile, a lecher, a torturer, a mass murderer, a cult leader, an assassin, a terrorist, a madman and a looter".
"With violent conquest and contempt for non-believers central to the tenets of the faith," Sina argues, "attempts to forge a moderate form of Islam are doomed... The only way to reform Islam is to throw away the Koran; 90 percent of it should be thrown away. You also have to throw away the history of Islam, and you have to completely disregard the Sira" – the Arabic term used for the various traditional Muslim biographies of Muhammad, from which most historical information about his life and the early period of Islam is derived.
In his October 2010 speech during the inauguration of the Freedom Party in Germany, Geert Wilders
, leader of the third largest party in Netherlands said, “Ali Sina, an Iranian Islamic apostate who lives in Canada, points out that there is one golden rule that lies at the heart of every religion – that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. In Islam, this rule only applies to fellow believers, but not to Infidels. Ali Sina says ‘The reason I am against Islam is not because it is a religion, but because it is a political ideology of imperialism and domination in the guise of religion. Because Islam does not follow the Golden Rule
, it attracts violent people.’”
to Christianity
. "In the West, people ask whether Islam can undergo a reformation like the one that Christianity underwent. That's a poor parallel," he says. "In Christianity, it wasn't the religion that needed to be reformed, but the church; what Jesus preached was good." On the other hand, Sina continues, "In Islam, it's the religion that is bad."
Arguing that Islam can be eradicated, not by sword but by spreading what he believes to be the truth about it, Sina says, "This is the way to fight evil. I do not want to kill the enemy. I want to win them as friends and allies. That is the real victory. In this way, we win because we eliminate our enemy, and our enemy wins by eliminating his ignorance and hate. That is why I believe in my cause. That is why I think I am an instrument of peace."
compares that claim to Immanuel Kant
’s who said Judaism
is not a religion but a set of laws and rejects both. Robert Spengler continues "Ali Sina and other Muslim secularizers are just as wrong. I shall argue that Islam is both a religion and a political ideology. Religion is what makes Islamic political ideology so dangerous." He adds, "Ali Sina is wrong: Islamic expansionism arises from religious motives, that is, a holy rage against the encroachment of death upon traditional society. In the form of Islam, the West confronts a challenge quite different from communism."
.
Sina’s contention is that Islam promotes hate and disunity and as such it is an impediment to peace. According to his website, he has issued a challenge that should anyone prove him wrong he will publicly acknowledge his error and withdraw his charges against Islam, and will pay $50,000 to that person.
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and the founder of Faith Freedom International
Faith Freedom International
Faith Freedom International is a website that is critical of Islam. FFI identifies itself as "a grassroots worldwide movement of ex-Muslims and all those who are concerned about the rise of the Islamic threat"...
, which he describes as a grassroots movement of ex-Muslims.
Ali Sina claims that thousands of Muslims have left Islam after reading his articles and books.
Background
Raised in IranIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, educated in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and now living in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, he began debating Muslims in the 1990s. What bothered him, he tells The Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Post is an Israeli daily English-language broadsheet newspaper, founded on December 1, 1932 by Gershon Agron as The Palestine Post. The daily readership numbers do not approach those of the major Hebrew newspapers....
, was not the penchant for jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
and intolerance that certain fanatical Muslims displayed, but the foundation for such ills in the Koran and core Islamic texts.
The Jerusalem Post writes, "Sina, who runs Faith Freedom International - an Internet forum dedicated to debunking Islam - calls himself 'probably the biggest anti-Islam person alive.' The publication of his latest book, Understanding Muhammad: A Psychobiography of Allah's Prophet, will likely cement that position. In it, Sina suggests that Islam's central figure suffered from a series of mental disorders, including narcissistic personality disorder
Narcissistic personality disorder
Narcissistic personality disorder is a personality disorder in which the individual is described as being excessively preoccupied with issues of personal adequacy, power, prestige and vanity...
, temporal lobe epilepsy
Temporal lobe epilepsy
Temporal lobe epilepsy a.k.a. Psychomotor epilepsy, is a form of focal epilepsy, a chronic neurological condition characterized by recurrent seizures. Over 40 types of epilepsies are known. They fall into two main categories: partial-onset epilepsies and generalized-onset epilepsies...
and obsessive compulsive disorder. "These disorders," he says, "can explain the phenomenon known as Islam... which is nothing but one man's insanity."
Through the Faithfreedom.org Web site, Sina lists canonical references to Muhammad's actions and offers $50,000 to anyone who can disprove his charge that Islam's prophet was "a narcissist, a misogynist, a rapist, a pedophile, a lecher, a torturer, a mass murderer, a cult leader, an assassin, a terrorist, a madman and a looter".
"With violent conquest and contempt for non-believers central to the tenets of the faith," Sina argues, "attempts to forge a moderate form of Islam are doomed... The only way to reform Islam is to throw away the Koran; 90 percent of it should be thrown away. You also have to throw away the history of Islam, and you have to completely disregard the Sira" – the Arabic term used for the various traditional Muslim biographies of Muhammad, from which most historical information about his life and the early period of Islam is derived.
In his October 2010 speech during the inauguration of the Freedom Party in Germany, Geert Wilders
Geert Wilders
Geert Wilders is a Dutch right-wing politician and leader of the Party for Freedom , the third-largest political party in the Netherlands. He is the Parliamentary group leader of his party in the Dutch House of Representatives...
, leader of the third largest party in Netherlands said, “Ali Sina, an Iranian Islamic apostate who lives in Canada, points out that there is one golden rule that lies at the heart of every religion – that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. In Islam, this rule only applies to fellow believers, but not to Infidels. Ali Sina says ‘The reason I am against Islam is not because it is a religion, but because it is a political ideology of imperialism and domination in the guise of religion. Because Islam does not follow the Golden Rule
Golden Rule
Golden Rule may refer to:*The Golden Rule in ethics, morality, history and religion, also known as the ethic of reciprocity*Golden Rule savings rate, in economics, the savings rate which maximizes consumption in the Solow growth model...
, it attracts violent people.’”
On reforming Islam
For this reason, Sina says, Western suggestions that extremism in Islam can be eradicated if certain imams are quieted, or if Muslims are encouraged to embrace the universalist elements of their faith - but without addressing the extremism inherent in the religion's texts - are based on a mistaken comparison of IslamIslam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. "In the West, people ask whether Islam can undergo a reformation like the one that Christianity underwent. That's a poor parallel," he says. "In Christianity, it wasn't the religion that needed to be reformed, but the church; what Jesus preached was good." On the other hand, Sina continues, "In Islam, it's the religion that is bad."
Arguing that Islam can be eradicated, not by sword but by spreading what he believes to be the truth about it, Sina says, "This is the way to fight evil. I do not want to kill the enemy. I want to win them as friends and allies. That is the real victory. In this way, we win because we eliminate our enemy, and our enemy wins by eliminating his ignorance and hate. That is why I believe in my cause. That is why I think I am an instrument of peace."
Criticism
While disagreeing with Ali Sina for saying Islam is not a religion but a political ideology, Robert Spengler writing in the Asia TimesAsia Times
Asia Times was a newspaper launched in Thailand by Thai tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul in 1995. The newspaper hired talent from around the world to produce a regional English-language newspaper....
compares that claim to Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher from Königsberg , researching, lecturing and writing on philosophy and anthropology at the end of the 18th Century Enlightenment....
’s who said Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
is not a religion but a set of laws and rejects both. Robert Spengler continues "Ali Sina and other Muslim secularizers are just as wrong. I shall argue that Islam is both a religion and a political ideology. Religion is what makes Islamic political ideology so dangerous." He adds, "Ali Sina is wrong: Islamic expansionism arises from religious motives, that is, a holy rage against the encroachment of death upon traditional society. In the form of Islam, the West confronts a challenge quite different from communism."
Debates
"Ali Sina has conducted debates with Muslims, several of them prominent scholars, like Grand Ayatollah Montazeri, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, Moulana Amjal Qadri and Edip YukselEdip Yuksel
Edip Yuksel is an American intellectual considered one of the prime figures in the modern Islamic reform and Qur'an alone movements...
.
Sina’s contention is that Islam promotes hate and disunity and as such it is an impediment to peace. According to his website, he has issued a challenge that should anyone prove him wrong he will publicly acknowledge his error and withdraw his charges against Islam, and will pay $50,000 to that person.