Hiding the Truth About Islamic Apostasy
Charles Johnson
Wed Apr 19, 2006 at 6:21 pm PDT • Views: 251
Robert Spencer rips apart another deceptive article from Islamic dissembler Stephen Schwartz: Jihad Watch: Disingenuousness about apostasy law.
Islamic apologist Stephen Schwartz, who has responded with intemperate hostility in the past to my attempts to open a serious dialogue, has misrepresented Islamic apostasy law, specifically that of the Shafi’i school of Islamic jurisprudence, in a new column, “Death Lists and Dissenters.”
Why does this matter? Because any number of people will read Schwartz’s column and come away with a more sanguine view of Islamic apostasy law than is justified by the facts. This is in microcosm the same kind of misapprehension that has deformed American response to the global jihad. We cannot fight an enemy that we are afraid to name, and we cannot defeat one whom we do not understand. Inaccurate statements about Sharia by Schwartz and others have led the American government to tolerate, even to sponsor, Sharia regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq. The disastrous consequences of this were demonstrated by the Abdul Rahman case, the implications of which no one in Washington has yet faced. In the wake of that case, the last thing we need is more inaccuracy about Sharia, especially from those who preen about their access to those in influential positions.
Frank says: