[Grem] egy kis iszlám teológia (angol cikk részlet)

[Emoke Greschik]

William Kilpatrick <http://www.crisismagazine.com/author/william-kilpatrick>
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/14f1747fa8af2256

".................

For a long time, Catholic leaders have contented themselves with the notion
that Islam and Catholicism have much in common. Well, yes, on a superficial
level they do. Like Catholics, Muslims believe in prayer, fasting, charity,
and pilgrimage. In addition, they revere Jesus and await his second coming.
If you don’t go any deeper than that then it’s plausible to think that
Iran’s religious leaders are no more likely to use nukes than the pope.

The trouble is, if you go deeper into the supposed similarities, you run
into disturbing dissimilarities. For example, both Catholics and Shiites
exalt martyrdom and both believe in a coming apocalypse. On the other hand,
attaining martyrdom by killing Catholics is perfectly acceptable from the
Shiite standpoint. Moreover, their idea of the apocalypse is a final battle
in which all the enemies of Allah (including Christians) will be defeated.
Indeed much of the brand of Shia Islam that now dominates in Iran revolves
around the coming apocalypse and ways to hasten its arrival.

For evidence, look at Article 5 of Chapter One of the Iranian Constitution:
<http://www.iranchamber.com/government/laws/constitution_ch01.php>

During the Occultation of the Wali al-Asr (may God hasten his
reappearance), the wilayah and leadership of the Umma devolve upon the just
(adil) and pious (muttaqi) faqih, who is fully aware of the circumstances
of his age; courageous, resourceful, and possessed of administrative
ability, will assume the responsibilities of this office in accordance with
Article 107.

The Occultation of the who? What’s that all about? And what is it doing in
a political constitution?   Here is another similarity to Christianity that
contains a major difference. It seems that, like Christians, Shiites also
believe in the coming of a savior. The Wali al-Asr (“may God hasten his
reappearance”) is one of the titles given to the Mahdi—the “Hidden Imam”
who disappeared from sight in the year 872 AD and who is expected to return
to establish a peaceful kingdom on earth. Or, more accurately, peace
preceded by war. According to MacEoin
<http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/5359/iran-nuclear-theology>, “In this
belief, the war that will bring on the “End of Days” or the Apocalypse,
will bring to earth the Mahdi, the Hidden Imam, a descendant of Muhammad.”

So as long as Wali al-Asr remains in occultation (hidden), pious leaders
can rule, but once he returns he will take over the reins of power—not just
of Iran, but of the whole world. The thing to keep in mind is that the
Mahdi’s return can only be precipitated by war and calamities. Another
thing to keep in mind is that Iranian leaders are quite anxious for his
return (“may God hasten his reappearance”).

The Iranian government seems to operate on a whole different set of
calculations than the governments of, say, Britain, France, and the U.S.
And since its calculations center around the apocalypse, is it really wise
to assume that the use of nuclear weapons doesn’t fit in to the “end of
days” calculations?

Even if secular diplomats have a hard time wrapping their heads around
theological considerations, there are some prudential reasons to think that
Iran’s atomic ambitions are not peaceful. Last year the price of a gallon
of gas in Iran was fifty cents. In short, Iran has abundant supplies of oil
(and natural gas). Yet it has spent tens of billions on the development of
nuclear power. Since Iran’s energy needs are already being met by
conventional sources of energy, inquiring minds have been wondering what
the purpose of their massive nuclear development program might be.

Unfortunately, inquiring minds are in short supply in the upper echelons of
government service in the West. Many in the Catholic leadership also suffer
from a shortage of inquisitiveness. While we can’t expect them to be
acquainted with the price of gasoline in Iran, we might expect them to
reflect seriously on the Shiite obsession with apocalypse and martyrdom,
and on the implications of such beliefs. The idea of sacrificing all for
the sake of God shouldn’t be difficult for Catholics to understand. Nor
should it be difficult to comprehend that such ideas can be easily warped.

During the 1980-1988 war between Iran and Iraq, in which some 750,000
Iranians died, a cult of martyrdom was encouraged by the Iranian leaders.
Anyone who died in the war was considered to be a martyr for Islam. One of
the ways that many young Iranians “return[ed] to God in the Hereafter” was
through “human wave” attacks. Poorly trained and poorly armed men would
attack the Iraqi front lines *en masse* in what were essentially suicide
missions. Child soldiers, some as young as twelve, were also employed in
battle and were sometimes used to clear mine fields without benefit of mine
detectors. To encourage them in their mission, they were given
silver-colored plastic “keys to paradise” to wear around their necks. By
some estimates the number of child martyrs was a high as 100,000. According
to MacEoin, “the idea was that by fighting the Iraqi army in a war between
truth and falsehood, Iranians would hasten the return of the Hidden Imam.”

The cult of martyrdom is still very much alive in Iran, as is belief in the
imminent arrival of the apocalypse. “Militant messianism,” writes MacEoin
<http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/5359/iran-nuclear-theology>, “is as
dangerous as ever today”:

Expectation of the Hidden Imam and the activist struggle to bring about his
advent are not only matters of pious belief … apocalyptic ideas have a
strong following within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and
the *Basij* militia.

He adds that such beliefs are also prevalent within the IRCG group that has
responsibility over the nuclear program.

Over the years, major Iranian politicians have made numerous genocidal
threats against Israel and America. In the light of Shiite theology and
recent Iranian history, those threats have to be taken quite seriously. A
good deal of evidence suggests that if Iranian leaders acquire nuclear
weapons they will use them. If Catholic leaders had more than a surface
knowledge of Shia Islam, they might be less sanguine about a deal that
gives Iran’s leaders everything they need to hasten the “End of Days.” "

*(Photo credit: Patrick Semansky / AP)*

Tagged as Iran <http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/iran>, nuclear
proliferation <http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/nuclear-proliferation>, Obama
Administration <http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/obama-administration>,
Radical
Islam <http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/radical-islam>, U.S. Foreign
Policy <http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/u-s-foreign-policy>, USCCB
<http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/usccb>, Vatican City State
<http://www.crisismagazine.com/tags/vatican-city-state>
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[image: William Kilpatrick]By William Kilpatrick
<http://www.crisismagazine.com/author/william-kilpatrick>

William Kilpatrick taught for many years at Boston College. He is the
author of several books about cultural and religious issues, including
*Psychological
Seduction; Why Johnny Can’t Tell Right From Wrong;* and Christianity, Islam
and Atheism: The Struggle for the Soul of the West
<http://www.amazon.com/Christianity-Islam-Atheism-Struggle-Soul/dp/158617696X>.
His articles have appeared in numerous publications, including *Catholic
World Report, National Catholic Register, Aleteia, Saint Austin Review,
Investor’s Business Daily,* and *First Things*. His work is supported in
part by the Shillman Foundation. For more on his work and writings, visit
his website, turningpointproject.com
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