On not interferring with a Sovereign Nation
Attention to Abdul Rahman’s case is spreading. The Germans are complaining. Even the Americans had something to say, though the description makes the protest sound rather tepid.
There is more than one theory of national sovereignty. While some might think all nations are sovereign by definition, the Rahman case in the larger context of Afghanistan illustrates that the current US leadership adheres to a different theory.
In our country, we describe our system as government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” We call it a democracy. We extrapolate from this to find sovereignty rooted in “the people.” Thus if a nation is a democracy, i.e., “of the people,” then it is a sovereign nation.
Under the Taliban, Afghanistan did not have a government “of the people.” It was not a democracy. Now that we have invaded and cast aside the Taliban (we have not yet cast them out), we have installed a democracy. Now Afghanistan has a government “of the people.” Now it is a democracy.
And that democratically elected, i.e., a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” has put a man on trial for converting from Islam to Christianity. Surely we all know that Muslims make up a majority of the Afghan population. Surely we know that death to converts is a standard practice in other allied Muslim nations (Saudi Arabia, Pakistan). Ought we to be surprised when the majority – the operative power in a democracy – follows its conscience?
The AP article hints that there may be some division of opinion in Afghanistan.
At the very least, we Christians ought not to be surprised. The bible says, “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” Just because we’ve been domesticated by a smiling Caesar, doesn’t mean the world is a safe place for Jesus people.
As Americans we ought not to be surprised either. Some of our founding fathers (James Madison comes to mind) warned us against the power of faction and absolute majorities. More recently our love for democratic theory may have been chastened by Winston Churchill, “Democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others.”
Though we may not be surprised by the trial of Abdul Rahman, do we have to keep quiet about it? Do we have to keep paying for Afghanistan – with our money and with the lives of our people? If we were a Christian nation, our approach would be different (assuming, of course, that there is such a thing as a Christian nation). But, we’re not. So we keep propping up a nation because we believe the government of a sovereign (democratically elected) nation can do what ever it wants.
UPDATE: I see that there is a transcript of an interview with a State Department official at The Corner. Unfortunately the issue seems to be framed as one of Freedom of Religion. My guess is that Mr. Rahman's persecutors will think Freedom of Religion is one thing, and Freedom of Conversion from Islam is another thing altogether. If this is so, as long as we keep the subject on Freedom of Religion, we will be missing the point.
The Bush administration issued a subdued appeal Tuesday to Afghanistan to permit Rahman to practice his faith in the predominantly Muslim country. The State Department, however, did not urge the U.S. ally in the war against terrorism to terminate the trial. Officials said the Bush administration did not want to interfere with Afghanistan's sovereignty.Ah, yes. Sovereignty. Wouldn’t want to interfere with that, now would we? Why is “interfering” with our ally’s trial of a man for conversion to Christianity a greater challenge to sovereignty than invading and overthrowing the government?
There is more than one theory of national sovereignty. While some might think all nations are sovereign by definition, the Rahman case in the larger context of Afghanistan illustrates that the current US leadership adheres to a different theory.
In our country, we describe our system as government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” We call it a democracy. We extrapolate from this to find sovereignty rooted in “the people.” Thus if a nation is a democracy, i.e., “of the people,” then it is a sovereign nation.
Under the Taliban, Afghanistan did not have a government “of the people.” It was not a democracy. Now that we have invaded and cast aside the Taliban (we have not yet cast them out), we have installed a democracy. Now Afghanistan has a government “of the people.” Now it is a democracy.
And that democratically elected, i.e., a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” has put a man on trial for converting from Islam to Christianity. Surely we all know that Muslims make up a majority of the Afghan population. Surely we know that death to converts is a standard practice in other allied Muslim nations (Saudi Arabia, Pakistan). Ought we to be surprised when the majority – the operative power in a democracy – follows its conscience?
The AP article hints that there may be some division of opinion in Afghanistan.
The trial is believed to be the first of its kind in Afghanistan and highlights a struggle between religious conservatives and reformists over what shape Islam should take there four years after the ouster of the fundamentalist Taliban regime.I’d like to see some evidence of this “struggle.” Are there voices in Afghanistan calling for Rahman’s release – and freedom to follow Jesus? The AP avoids specifics here.
At the very least, we Christians ought not to be surprised. The bible says, “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” Just because we’ve been domesticated by a smiling Caesar, doesn’t mean the world is a safe place for Jesus people.
As Americans we ought not to be surprised either. Some of our founding fathers (James Madison comes to mind) warned us against the power of faction and absolute majorities. More recently our love for democratic theory may have been chastened by Winston Churchill, “Democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others.”
Though we may not be surprised by the trial of Abdul Rahman, do we have to keep quiet about it? Do we have to keep paying for Afghanistan – with our money and with the lives of our people? If we were a Christian nation, our approach would be different (assuming, of course, that there is such a thing as a Christian nation). But, we’re not. So we keep propping up a nation because we believe the government of a sovereign (democratically elected) nation can do what ever it wants.
UPDATE: I see that there is a transcript of an interview with a State Department official at The Corner. Unfortunately the issue seems to be framed as one of Freedom of Religion. My guess is that Mr. Rahman's persecutors will think Freedom of Religion is one thing, and Freedom of Conversion from Islam is another thing altogether. If this is so, as long as we keep the subject on Freedom of Religion, we will be missing the point.
posted by Richard H at 8:01 AM
2 Comments:
Keep plugging, man! I read this AP article in the Waco Trib this morning. Page 6, but it did make the paper.
It is strange that most muslims in the world today believe that converting from islam to any other religion or the return to one's religion after conversion to Islam should be punishable by death according to the Qur'an and the Sunna (Muslim Prophet's Life).
This is, in fact, not true. Sadly, whether it is true or not means little to lots of islamic governments, and most of the population... even the ones that would be considered moderates.
Personally, I don't care if he converts from Islam to Christianity to Judaism or any other religion for that matter. He gets to deal with god at the end and I personally believe that your faith in god and morals and all that matters more than the religious label and practices.
Either way, I think the whole thing is really stupid. One cannot forget the influence the Taliban have had on Afghan society and, even more, the fact that Afghani society is and was conservative by nature (beyond and before the Taliban).
I might not agree with all what you've written, but I like the way you wrote it.
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