Of Caliphs and the Caliphate: Setting the Record Straight

by New America Media

Wed, Mar 22, 2006 7:04PM

Religious terms sacred to Muslims have been misused by extremists and amplified by Western media, writes New America Media contributor Asma Afsaruddin. First came "jihad," then "sharia" and now "caliphate." Afsaruddin is associate professor of Islamic studies at the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind., and author of "Excellence and Precedence: Medieval Islamic Discourse on Legitimate Leadership" and the forthcoming "The First Muslims: A Short History."

SOUTH BEND, Ind.--Many Muslims watch in horror these days as some of the terms they associate most positively with their religion are appropriated by extremists and then fed back to Western media with a negative spin. "Jihad" and "sharia" were the first victims. Now "caliphate" has met the same fate.

"Jihad" has traditionally referred to the effort made by pious Muslims to better themselves and the world around them through spiritual, mental, educational and physical -- including military -- means. But the extremists today use the term only in the military sense, against anyone they arbitrarily name as the enemy, including Muslims they disagree with. Similarly, "sharia," an Arabic word meaning "the Way," refers to broad moral and legal principles from which specific laws may be created through human interpretation.

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