An Ahmadi Muslim writes a guest column in the Washington Post claiming to delineate moderate Muslim theology, but in reality, he just throws more sand in our eyes. “Will the real moderate Muslims please stand up?,” by Qasim Rashid in the Washington Post, February 2:
Critics like Robert Spencer claim Islam allows Muslims to engage in taqiyya, i.e. treachery against non-Muslims. However, the Quran unequivocally forbids lying or hiding the truth and Prophet Muhammad instructed, “It is obligatory for you to tell the truth.”
Gee, where did I get such a crazy idea? Just all in a day’s work for a greasy Islamophobe, eh? Well, let’s see. Qur’an 3:28 warns believers not to take unbelievers as “friends or helpers” (َأَوْلÙيَا — a word that means more than casual friendship, but something like alliance), “unless (it be) that ye but guard yourselves against them.” This is a foundation of the idea that believers may legitimately deceive unbelievers when under pressure. The word used for “guard” in the Arabic is tuqÄtan (تÙقَاةً), the verbal noun from taqiyyatan — hence the increasingly familiar term taqiyya.
Ibn Kathir says that the phrase Pickthall renders as “unless (it be) that ye but guard yourselves against them” means that “believers who in some areas or times fear for their safety from the disbelievers” may “show friendship to the disbelievers outwardly, but never inwardly. For instance, Al-Bukhari recorded that Abu Ad-Darda’ said, ‘We smile in the face of some people although our hearts curse them.’ Al-Bukhari said that Al-Hasan said, ‘The Tuqyah [taqiyya] is allowed until the Day of Resurrection.” While many Muslim spokesmen today maintain that taqiyya is solely a Shi’ite doctrine, shunned by Sunnis, the great Islamic scholar Ignaz Goldziher points out that while it was formulated by Shi’ites, “it is accepted as legitimate by other Muslims as well, on the authority of Qur’an 3:28.” The Sunnis of Al-Qaeda practice it today.
Also, there is Muhammad’s statement, “war is deceit.” He also allowed for lying in battle and between a husband and wife. And when he gave permission to one of his followers, Muhammad bin Maslama, to murder one of his critics, Ka’b bin al-Ashraf, he also gave Muhammad bin Maslama permission to lie to Ka’b in order to lure him close enough to be killed.
And Muhammad is the “excellent example of conduct” for Muslims (Qur’an 33:21).
So why is the Washington Post lying about lying in Islam?