Shafi H (former Muslim)

This is a testimony of a Muslim leaving Islam. It was originally posted at the FaithFreedom website and has been reproduced here with permission. Views contained in these testimonies are not necessarily endorsed by WikiIslam. See the Testimony Disclaimer for details.
  

Shafi H Personal information Country of origin    Withheld Gender    M Faith Information Current worldview Humanist Born or convert to Islam? Born into Islam Parents' worldview Islam

Testimony of Leaving Islam

Most Muslims when they are questioned about their faith immediately denounce us 'kafir' as if it is a very bad name per se.I want to say that this is not the case. We should be proud to call ourselves kafirs.I will give you the reasons

I call myself a kafir because:

1. I believe in Democracy (visit www.al-mujahiiroon.com)
2. I believe that women are equal to men
3. I believe in the freedom of religions.
4. I believe in respecting other faiths.
5. I believe in accepting criticism, both of me and my beliefs. If the criticism is constructive I will accept it and if not Ill ignore it (and will not pass a death sentence)
6. I believe in answering debate with debate and logic with logic and not debate with guns and logic with bombs.
7. I believe that Human life is more sacred than any idea.
8. I believe in humane, reform able, flexible though (man-made) laws and not fixed, rigid, (divine?) laws that were given by a blood -thirsty God (or maybe they arose out of the mind of a schizophrenic.
9. I believe that humanity is one family (and not separated into two hostile camps as 'momin' and 'kuffar'
10. I believe that every human being has the right to follow his own path.
11. I disbelieve in both 'The greed for heaven' and 'The fear of hell' for I know that both fear and greed are negative emotions and that two negative emotions can never lead to any positive change in me.
12. I believe that I'm not a child to be disciplined by the greed of a sweetmeat and the fear of the rod.I'm mature ,I don't commit crime, for I know that every crime hurts someone, and my basic humanity not to hurt others prevents me from evil and not my greed or fear.
13. I believe that women are not' one step lesser than men'.
14. I believe that a woman's word carries equal weight in a court of law.
15. I believe that in a rape the rapist should be punished and not the raped woman punished (death by throwing stones) for adultery.
16. I believe that no dress code should be imposed on anyone forcibly.
17. I believe in being patriotic and I love my nation in which I was born.
18. I believe in being loyal first to my nation and not to Arabia.
19. I believe that my country is not an Infidel nation (Dar ul harb-land of war)rather my country is as sacred as Arabia and cities of my country are as sacred as Mecca or Medina.
20. I believe in not hating my own country (just because the majority are infidel Christians though I may enjoy all the freedoms here)
21. I disbelieve in slavery
22. I disbelieve in invading other nations and looting them.
23. I believe that answering criticism with murder is immoral (and not an act of political genius)
24. I believe that polygamy belittles women (for a man with 4 wives each wife is effectively only one-fourth of her husband)
25. I believe in loving-kindness
26. I believe in a religion which is flexible and which welcomes science.
27. I believe in free thought.
28. I believe in allowing doubt and even welcoming doubt
29. I believe in inviting criticism
30. I believe in respecting the sacred places of other faiths and not demolishing them
31. I believe that murder is a greater crime than 'kufr' and rape a worse vice than 'shirk'
32. I disbelieve in a merciless, bloodthirsty, incompetent, impotent god.
33. I believe in a faith that's so flexible that even though injustices do creep in, there is at least a chance for reform.
34. I value a humane person more than a prayerful one...a man of good character more than a god fearing one.
35. I believe that religion should be a personal experience and voluntary and not a mass hypnosis based on a single man's revelation forced down our throats.
36. I believe that a thief should be reformed and not having his hands cut-off and therefore reducing him to a beggar rather than helping him find a reasonable livelihood.
37. I believe that adultery should be punished with divorce and not with death by stoning.
38. I believe in empathizing for the whole of humanity and not only for my religious community.
39. I believe in love and not in hate.
40. I love music and dance and consider them to be divine and uplifting.
41. I love sculpture and painting; of both human and non-human forms
42. I believe that Art shouldn't be restricted by narrow views and fatwas.
43. I believe in the separation of religion from statecraft...I don't want mullahs and Imams meddling with politics.
44. I love to have fun and be happy and see other people happy and peaceful and trembling throughout their lives with the fear of hell.

I'm a human being with a well developed brain which is questioning, curious and thinking, because I'm not a mindless robot.

So when you meet a Muslim anywhere and he asks what your religion is .reply proudly

'I'M A KAFIR'

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