Turkish educators try to spread moderate Islam in Pakistan by teaching young students religious tolerance and various “Western” subjects such as science, math, and English. In Pakistan, the country which refuges Al-Qaeda, Taliban, and other terrorist groups, poverty and ill-education have been the main cause of converting youngsters into Islamic Fundamentalism. Students who cannot afford private or public schooling choose local madrasas. There, they are brainwashed with violent version of Islam and often recruited by terrorist groups. This flexible Islamic education will be an alternative source although its influence in the region is infinitesimal now.
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This is an important article. It underscores many of the forces we have been discussing this semester: the growth of Muslim schools that preach an intolerant and exclusivistic form of Islam, the role of petro-dollars in the financing of such schools, and efforts by such people as the Turkish Muslims highlighted by the article to offer an alternative that encourages accommodation with the West, pluralism, and tolerance. Thanks, Jooyeon, for calling our attention to this piece.
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