021 – Abdullah Sameer and Shariq Discuss Leaving Islam
I discuss with my friend Shariq, an Exmuslim, about leaving Islam and a host of related topics: leaving Islam, UK vs Indian Muslim communities, allowing exceptions for religious believers, Secularism, humanism, democracy, pluralism, Fighting dogmatic attitudes, Importance of humour, satire, breaking taboos, Muslim as identity; identity politics in general; Why I don’t like the term Islamophobia while fighting bigotry against Muslims, racism, mocking Islam, skepticism and science, climate change, day of judgement
YouTube version for this podcast: https://youtu.be/DfH_lWtMJgY
Timestamps:
0:00 Introductions
1:40 Shariq’s background – How did he move from being a Muslim to being an atheist who is now advocating for skepticism, humanism, and secularism, The positive influence from parents and extended family allowed him space to question Islam and explore other ideas.
12:15 Does Shariq identify as an Ex-Muslim? How is the concept of apostasy treated in India? Treating Muslim as an identity and not a religion.
15:30 What is fueling the rise of the far-right and ultra-conservatism in India and around the world?
19:23 How would Shariq compare Muslims in the UK and those in India? Why are Muslim communities in the UK very insular? The left and how it is engaging in the bigotry of low expectations in the name of tolerance and how this is feeding into the far-right pushback.
28:30 The importance of secularism and fighting for secular values. Islamophobia and how it is used to shut down any criticism of Islam and Muslims. Religion VS public accommodation – should religious people be treated differently to accommodate their beliefs when they are at work. Where should we draw the line when accepting some religious practices?
44:50 Has Shariq ever encountered the Dawah people?
47:37 Humor and religion – What is Shariq’s perspective in making fun of religious dogma? How satirizing religion and other dogma help to force people to re-exam their deeply held beliefs
52:02 Breaking the taboos that surround religion using humor and satire
55:10 Shout out to John Snow. Why does the Quran seem crumpled at the end? The Sanaa manuscript.
56:14 Continuation of discussion on breaking taboos using humor and satire. Muhammad is a pedophile – is this effective?
57:40 Where did Muhammad go with the buraq? The shooting stars that are chasing Genies in space – How most of these Quranic stories do cannot be reconciled with the knowledge that we have in the modern days.
1:01:00 Is the Quran a divine work? How Islamic apologetics keep on making excuses for Allah whenever the Quran falls short.
1:04:16 How can we get religious people to take climate change seriously? Religion reinforces the idea that people should believe things in spite of the evidence and this is a very dangerous position. The eschatology of Jesus and the Mahdi.
1:10:29 Vested interests that are attacking the climate change movement and spreading misinformation – The case study of lead in gasoline and how it was banned.
1:13:00 “True Muslim” – do they even exist? Using the excuse of weak hadith as a way to weasel out of a corner when discussing Islam. The truth should not be contingent upon our identity or religious beliefs, it should be true regardless. Street epistemology.
1:19:40 The story of Ibrahim – If such a thing were to happen today Ibrahim would be locked up. How is it Muslims, Christians, and Jews venerate him for this same act? Islamic imperialism.
1:23:43 The young boys in heaven.
1:25:00 Why is Islamic heaven so hedonistic and male-oriented but Muslims’ earthly life has very stringent rules? Hadith on how most women are going to hell. What is the justification for this? how most Muslims are not reading the hadith for themselves.
1:32:15 The need to popularize academics on Islam and give exposure to rigorous analysis of some of the Islamic doctrines.
1:34:27 What is the difference between Quran.com and Quranx.com? What is Tafsir and why are they important?
1:37:40 Are we going to see an apostasy wave? Reform of Islam. Cultish atheists.
1:41:28 When is Abdullah going to debate Muhammad Hijab? Farhan’s upcoming debate with Muhammad Hijab.
1:42:10 What does cultish atheism mean? Agnosticism. The issue of labels.
1:47:24 How do the reformist reconcile being a Muslim and putting aside the Fiqh and Sharia? What if some of these scholars do not believe in Islam the way they are teaching it?
1:50:21 Islamic finance.
1:52:20 Final remarks.
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