[afchic]

Originally Posted by Lmmsoat

As a Catholic I can say that the church changed from within and from pressure being asserted by a ever changing population. Yes it was a slow change, but the tenents of christianity allow for this to happen. Every religion has its zeolots and I do not want to label any religion as better than the other, but Islam has, at its core, certain aspects that prevent change.

Without a central caliphate to bring the islamic world together, they can't agree on anything (hence the reason they had the council I mentioned). The keepers of the religion are not the local Imams/Caliph. The keepers of the religion are the seperate schools of Islam. These schools are scattered across the globe and all teach their own flavor of the religion. In order for Islam to change they would have to come together and agree on any change. Like I said before, "The Book Is Shut". After the last council ( I wish I could remember the year) they came to the agreement that the current version of the Koran and hadiths were in the truest form. These "final drafts" of the Koran and hadiths are like the catholic churches pope. They are considered infallible. But, unlike the pope who is a living being who can make decisions and change his mind, the Books are eternal. To change the teachings of the Books means denying the validity of it's message. Debate on the tenents of the religion are considered settled. I agree, never say never. But, in order for the religion to change they first need to unite all islamic countries under one nation state. Then they could elect one leader to force the changes desired. If that would be the case I predict change for the worse (Iran, Afg., Somolia, etc. etc.).

These are my understandings not from book lernin'. They come from drinking countless cups of tea with muslims, to include religious leaders. I've had the opportunity to encounter all spectrums of the religion from hardcore to moderate, both pre and post 9/11. Islam is what it is.

If they are all practicing different forms of Islam, as you say, why would they all have to come together to agree to "open the book" for change? Obviously the Sunni don't care that they are different than the Shia and vice versa. Why would agreement have to be made?