{"id":147,"date":"2009-07-23T12:26:12","date_gmt":"2009-07-23T12:26:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/akramsrazor\/2009\/07\/23\/the-msms-new-jihadism-vs-mcsufism-narrative\/"},"modified":"2013-05-07T18:35:06","modified_gmt":"2013-05-07T23:35:06","slug":"the-msms-new-jihadism-vs-mcsufism-narrative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/akramsrazor\/2009\/07\/the-msms-new-jihadism-vs-mcsufism-narrative\/","title":{"rendered":"The MSM’s new “Jihadism vs. McSufism” narrative"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Br. Yahya Birt<\/a>from across the pond was so kind as to\u00a0inform me of\u00a0a much better and more thought-provoking link regarding the place of Sufism in the GWOT than the article in Time<\/em> magazine that I shared earlier<\/a>, so I'm passing it on.<\/p>\n

I explained\u00a0 in the post's comments (reproduced below) why, despite my agreement with some of the Times article's underlying premises, I didn't like the piece much<\/a>. As usual in MSM discussions of Sufism, the article reduces\u00a0this\u00a0extremely complex, multi-faceted and incredibly intellectually rich\u00a0tradition to New Age clich\u00e9s about\u00a0\u00a0religious syncretism and\u00a0personal freedom that obscure what Sufism is about and what gives it its formidable power over Muslims' hearts and minds\u00a0 around the globe.<\/p>\n

For a better discussion of the geopolitical role of Sufism\u00a0in the War on Terror, take a look at these 3 pieces from World War 4 Report<\/a>, an intriguingly eclectic blog on international affairs I am just discovering now. [HT: Yahya Birt]<\/a><\/p>\n