OPINION:
The U.S. Constitution requires the separation of church and state. Religion and politics are therefore required to remain separate under the Constitution, which is the “supreme law of the land.” So what should be done in the case of Islam, where the doctrines of religion and politics have been ostensibly intertwined, so that both religious and political elements of Muslims can be treated according to U.S. law and the Constitution? What must be done to create the separation of mosque and state?
The Prophet Muhammad was both prophet and statesman of Islam, so the doctrines have been integrated and must be restructured to be separated into religious and political components if Islam is to adapt to modern American society. Otherwise, there will be societal collisions such as those that have been witnessed in Europe, where Muslim populations have grown enormously in recent decades.
America’s legal interpretation of Islamic doctrine must be separated along political and religious lines. The political elements can be defined as those composed of the conquering of territories or the subduing of foreign societies, as well as the governing of the conduct of those societies. In other words, the caliphate or Islamic State, violent jihads and Shariah law would all fall within the definition of “state activities.” Also included would be the use of the mosque for the preaching of violence, government overthrow or the undermining of the laws of the land. Separate and distinct from these political or state activities would be the religious component of Islam, which would include the Koran, prayer, teaching and other nonpolitical social purposes.
Any successful integration of Islam into the United States must provide for the separation of religion and state.
BOB JACK
North Las Vegas, Nev.
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