Islam is divided and interpreted through many different lenses for many reasons. The first is the way that the Quran and Hadith were written. It was a very political process of deciding which type of verbiage to use since they essentially had to decipher the outcomes of several games of telephone to determine what was originally said. The oral tradition of the teachings made it easier to manipulate the word to your meaning. The second reason that's equally as important is the fact that the tribalism of the seventh century seeped into both the teachings and the recordings. It set the stage for Islam to avoid unity and it makes it easier for Muslims to denounce other sects of Muslims.
I also think that the status of Mohammed in the religion as a role model is problematic given how much the world has changed since then.
__________________
Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth.
|