IRSHAD MANJI, you did lot of traveling but have been in the wild and seen species of obligate carnivores? Their existence disprove the existence of a just supreme being creator of all species. IRSHAD MANJI your beliefs are irrational.

i ask those questions of irshad, and hopefully she'll answer, but i invite answers from any "moderate" muslims out there.

irshad manji,
nice newsweek article. as much as i'd like to believe it's possible, i don't understand this quote from your newsweek article:

"The adolescent girls didn't need to be persuaded that Islam and human rights can be reconciled."

i don't mean to be patronizing or whatever, but how is that possible? my, admittedly recent (and "western"), reading of the koran reveals an ugly book that captured the superstition, bigotry, sexism, racism, militarism etc...of the 7th century. i really really don't understand how this text can be brought up to date (i.e., in line with modern humanist principles of equality, freedom of religion etc...) without basically ignoring half of it.

though i deplore their morals, i completely understand why the "islamists" fear modernism as the death of islam.

then i read your article, and you're muslim, and you seem reasonable - so how do you do it? i really really want to know. how do you reconcile verse 9:5, for instance, with freedom of religion?

obviously some of the problem is with "literalism" - taking the text literally instead of figuratively or metaphorically. christianity has that problem in terms of generating people who think the earth is 6000 years old, who in order to prevent their brains from exploding with contradictions have to view all of science with extreme "skepticism" and disdain.

so, irshad, my next question is what percentage of muslims are "literalists"?

(my first question is HOW do YOU "modernize" or "reconcile islam with human rights"?)

Dear Wonder Woman,

Your essay,E Pluribus Islam,for Newsweek is good.

But,by your permission,let me ask some questions;

1-If there is no Democracy and Human Rights in islam countries,whose fault is this ? Why there are no Contemporary Values in muslim lands ?
2-What should be done to bring Submission Followers(muslims) to Twentyfirst Century and set free from *Saudi-style Islam*

A gaggle of girls told you *I am so inspired.Thank you,WONDER WOMAN*
Dear Wonder Woman,
At the end of your essay,you write *The Prophet counseled going as far as China to gain Knowledge*
*Knowledge* in this sentence means Quran.
Correct interpretation *The Prophet counseled going as far as China to gain quran/islam*
Knowledge is islam,nothing else.
Justice is Sharia,nothing else.