Appealing to the Qur'an
It seems like we wake up every day to stories of new atrocities committed by the Islamic State.
Mark Durie examines the Islamic State’s appeal to the Qur’an to justify their deeds. Here’s what he concludes:
Persuading Muslims to take the words of Muhammad seriously is the core strategy of radicalization. This tactic works as well as it does because it appeals to a plain reading of Islam’s holy texts.
To be deradicalized, a Muslim needs to repudiate the theological authority of the teachings of Muhammad and the Qur’an. This is a hard call for pious Muslims.
