The guy was a crackpot...
Reader comment on item: The California Suicide Bomber[: Ra'ed Mansour al-Banna]

Submitted by Nabil Ahmad (United States), Apr 5, 2005 at 12:02

Ra'ed Mansour al-Banna was described by his father as "not very religious" initially by his father. Perhaps this is what we need to look for. Some people have had a way of going from being "secular" to "fundamentalist" within a relatively short period of time...these are the people that may need to be looked into. I don't think most of them truly understand Islam themselves, nor took the time to reflect. To them, I would be just another West-loving "Kaffir" or "traitor" to my Muslim "brothers". Well then, so be it. God will be the ultimate judge of us all, anyway.

I was raised in a moderately religious Muslim home by my parents. I turned more seriously towards religion in my teens, but could never become a "fundamentalist"...to me, Islam and "fundamentalism" just don't go together. Many, if not all, "Muslim fundamentalists" have total disregard for the central tenets of Islam...mercy, compassion and equity towards others, love and fear of God and His Judgement, a commitment to working for peace, harmony and understanding and observing and respecting the laws of whatever land that the individual lives in. If the law of the land prevents one from being a Muslim, it would be the duty of that individual to leave that land one way or the other. If one wishes to spread Islam, he/she must first prove to others through words as well as deeds in order for Islam to have any appeal at all to non-Muslims. This was the case throughout history; Islam forbids forcing anyone to "convert" to Islam.

Suicide-bombing and other violent acts of war from within a community, "forced conversions" and other acts of persecution and oppression have no place in Islam and are considered rightfully to be acts of "terrorism". All wars in Islam (Jihad) must be waged between armed bodies of men/women with the purpose of protecting against persecution and oppression. I don't believe that any truly religious Muslim would support terrorism. Those that support terrorism while passing themselves off as "devout Muslims" are the worst curse that Islam has faced...they are destroying Islam from within. It saddens me deeply. But I also believe that in the end, God will take care of His own, and He owns everything. We shall all return to Him.

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