Committee founded in 2005, in Paris, France, during the World Freethought Congress, for Atheism and Freethought
Met on the 4^th of June 2008 in Washington, DC, USA, during the world congress of the IHEU (International Humanist and Ethical Union)
Final meeting: 10 August 2011 in Oslo, Norway, Founding meeting of the International Association of Free Thought

French acronym: CILALP

Web site: ILCAF

An Illusion of Harmony
Science and Religion in Islam
EDIS, Taner
Keywords: creationism Islam religion science
Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY, USA
2007

This is an extremely depressing book for any secularist. Edis, born and raised in Turkey, is a physicist living and working in the USA. In this book he analyses the relationship between religion and science in the Islamic world and in Turkey in particular.

Edis is himself a secularist and materialist and he argues that Islam and modern science are essentially incompatible. But he limits his reflexions on the future of science among Muslims to a long, frustrating and ultimately unsatisfying -- even painful -- list of suggestions for how Muslims might eventually be persuaded to accept a scientific wordview without jettisoning their fundamental religious beliefs. He does not even mention the option of rejecting Islam in order to embrace a fully scientific and materialist worldview, apparently because he is convinced -- based on his extensive knowledge of his native country -- that such a development is impossible. Apparently he assumes it can never happen. Islam itself cannot be questioned!

The theory of intelligent design is completely mainstream in the Muslim world, at least in Turkey. It definitively trumps Darwinism in the minds of the vast majority of Turks and, based on Edis' analysis, that situation cannot be expected to change in the foreseeable future.

In God We Trust, But Which One?
A fresh, new look at the fatal flaws in religious belief
HAYES, Judith
Keywords: Christianity religion
Freedom from Religion Foundation
1996

infidel (n. and adj.)

an unbeliever with respect to a particular religion, especially Christianity or Islam

one who has no religious beliefs

The Influence of Natural Religion on the Temporal Happiness of Mankind
BENTHAM, Jeremy
Keywords: philosophy religion
Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY, USA
2003
Originally published in 1822, under the pseudonym Philip Beauchamp, by the great English philosopher Jeremy Bentham, originator of utilitarianism.

Natural Religion and The Despotic Deity

Following the usage of his day, Bentham uses the term "natural religion" as an approximate synonym of deism or natural theology, that is, a theology which purports to rest its case on reason instead of revelation. Bentham disregards the question of the truthfulness or falsehood of such religion; rather, he considers and criticizes its effects on the happiness of believers in the here and now.

"By the term religion is meant the belief in the existence of an almighty Being, by whom pains and pleasures will be dispensed to mankind, during an infinite and future state of existence. And religion is called natural, when there exists no written and acknowledged declaration, from which an acquaintance with the will and attributes of the almightly Being may be gathered.
My object is therefore to ascertain, whether the belief of posthumous pains and pleasures, then to be administered by an omnipotent Being, is useful to mankind—that is, productive of happiness or misery in the present life."

p. 30-31

Bentham observes that the deity in such a system must necessarily be a capricious despot, and the praise which the deity elicits from the faithful is reminiscent of the cowering obsequiousness which characterizes the behaviour of the downtrodden in the presence of a powerful tyrant.

"The first place in the esteem of the Deity will, in pursuance of this analogy, be allotted to those who disseminate his influence among men—who are most effectually employed in rendering his name dreaded and reverenced, and enforcing the necessity of perpetual subjection to him. Priests, therefore, whose lives are devoted to this object, will be regarded as the most favoured class.
The largest measure of his hate will in like manner be supposed to devolve on those, who attempt to efface these apprehensions, and to render mankind independent of him, by removing the motives for this subjection. The most decisive way of effecting this is by presuming to call in question his existence—an affront of peculiar poignancy, to which the material despot is not exposed. Atheists, therefore, will be the person whom he is imagined to view with the most signal abomination."

p. 57-58

INGERSOLL, Robert Green

Books:

Reason, Tolerance, and Christianity

Superstition and Other Essays

See also creationism.

invisible pink unicorn

an example of a divinity

The invisible pink unicorn is a divinity whose inexistence cannot be proven!

See the site www.invisiblepinkunicorn.com.

Irreligion
A Mathematician Explains Why the Arguments for God Just Don't Add Up
PAULOS, John Allen
Keywords: atheism religion science
Hill and Wang
2007

An Excerpt

"An atheist or agnostic who acts morally simply because it is the right thing to do is, in a sense, more moral than someone who is trying to avoid everlasting torment or, as is the case with martyrs, to achieve eternal bliss. He or she is making the moral choice without benefit of Pascal's divine bribe. This choice is all the more impressive when an atheist or agnostic sacrifices his or her life, for example, to rescue a drowning child, aware that there'll be no heavenly reward for this lifesaving valor. The contrast with acts motivated by calculated expected value or uncalculated unexpected fear (or, worse, fearlessness) is stark.
Still, people do often vigorously insist that religious beliefs are necessary to ensure moral behavior. Though the claim is quite clearly false of people in general, there is a sense in which it might be true if one has been brought up in a very religious environment. ...religious injunctions and rewards promised to children for being good might, if repudiated in later life, drastically reduce the time people spend playing the "being good" game. This is another reason not to base ethics on religious teachings."

pp. 140-141

Review

Gimme that Old-Time Irreligion, by Norman Levitt

A quote from the above-mentioned review:

Paulos lays out, seriatim, most of the classical philosophical arguments for the existence of a deity, and immediately refutes them as they arise. Thus we find the ontological argument, the argument from First Cause, the argument from design, the argument from the seeming existence of moral universals, and so forth, laid out one by one and just as soon demolished. It will be noted that these chapters are as brief as they are easygoing.

Some of Paulos’s critics, noting this brevity, complain that he is too brisk and thoughtless in giving such cavalier treatment to arguments so ancient and weighty, over which so many sages have wracked their brains in ages past. But this misses Paulos’s larger and more important point: The hypothesis that a deity created the universe and somehow still intervenes in it is, on the face of it, an extravagant, inelegant, and superfluous supposition. It lacks any support from our direct experience of the world, nor even from the subtle and indirect inferences of modern science. Therefore, in order to make it plausible, let alone convincing, requires arguments that are clear, direct, and compelling. An enormous burden of proof lies heavy on the proponents of theism; atheism is really the default position. Paulos finds that the classical arguments cited are at best verbally dexterous, and that typically, they head into muddy and confusing ground before they get too far. In large measure, they reduce to arguments from the deployment of pompous but vacuous terminology. Therefore, there is no reason to take them all that seriously, since they flounder early and often, and are riddled with self-contradiction when picked apart by a relentlessly logical mind.

Islam (n.)

a monotheistic religion characterized by the acceptance of the doctrine of submission to God (Allah) and to Muhammad as the chief and last prophet of God, and recognition of the Coran as the absolute truth revealed by Allah to Muhammad

the people, nations and civilisations that practice or have practiced Islam, i.e. the Muslim world

Founded in Arabia by Muhammad in the 7^th century, this religion was at its beginnings greatly influenced by Judaism and Christianity, both of which Muhammad envied. It also has some pagan elements. Islam spread rapidly by war and conquest.

Relevant Books:

An Illusion of Harmony -- EDIS, Taner

Leaving Islam -- WARRAQ, Ibn

Why I Am Not a Muslim -- WARRAQ, Ibn

Relevant Articles:

DiaHumanism Institute for Studies in Freethought

Relevant Links:

[en] The Skeptic's Annotated Quran
[en] Human Rights Coalition Against Radical Islam -- to educate the world about the dangers of Radical Islam in order to spur a united front against Radical Islamists
[fr] Collectif Tous Contre le Voile
[fr] Mouvement des Indépendants Laïques -- A French organization of arabo-muslim secularists, whose aim is to combat effectively the rising tide of fundamentalism and religious obscurantism
[en] Sharia Petition -- Sign this global petition against Sharia Law!
[en] Institute for the Secularisation of Islamic Society
[en] Apostates of Islam -- Site by and for ex-Muslims
[en] No To Political Islam/NON à l'Islam Politique -- "oppose Political Islam, its agenda of hatred and oppression, and its imposition of the most barbaric interpretation of Sharia law."
[fr] Contre l'islam
[fr] Mouvement des Maghrébins Laïques de France -- a voice for secularist north Africans in France, to dissociate themselves from the fundamentalist and islamist minority
[en] IslamistWatch.org -- A catalog of the writings, beliefs, motives, and methods of the Islamist movement
[fr] ISLAM LA, Portail des apostats de l'islam orthodoxe -- A portal for North African ex-muslims. The title "islam la" means "submission no !".
[fr] Caricatures de Mahomet : réactions très agressives dans le monde musulman -- all 12 cartoons, on atheisme.org
[fr] Caricatures de Mahomet : une affaire révélatrice -- a summary and commentary on the controversy, on fairelejour.org
[fr] Petition Mondiale, pour la liberté absolue de conscience -- Petition for liberty of conscience and liberty of the press. Initiated by agnostics and atheists from the Muslim world, but open to all. On histoiresdememoire.org
[en] Democracy in a Cartoon, Ibn Warraq -- Best-selling author and Muslim dissident Ibn Warraq argues that freedom of expression is our western heritage and we must defend it against attacks from totalitarian societies. If the west does not stand in solidarity with the Danish, he argues, then the Islamization of Europe will have begun in earnest. Formerly on spiegel.de
[en] Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain
[en] Chasing a Mirage: The Tragic Illusion of an Islamic State -- site of the book by Tarek Fatah, founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress, a secular Muslim organization dedicated to the separation of religion and state

Islamolatry (n.)

Literally, worship or adoration of Islam (not to be confused with practicing Islam through worship of "Allah" and his "prophet(s)")

Compound word formed from Islam and -latry

Giving preferential treatment to one religion, Islam, by absolving it of all criticism.

Near synonym: Islamophilia

Islamophilia (n.)

Literally, love of Islam

Compound word formed from Islam and -philia

The habit of selectively refusing to criticize, or censoring criticism of, Islam or of its variants such as Islamism, when this habit is applied only to Islam and not to any other religions such as Christianity or Hinduism or others. In other words, Islamophilia implies giving preferential treatment to one particular religion, Islam, by making it immune to all criticism.

I.e. giving preferential treatment to one religion, Islam, by absolving it of all criticism.

Near synonym: Islamolatry

Islamophobia (n.)

fear or hatred of Islam

This term is highly problematic and should be avoided, for the following reasons:

It is generally used by Islamists (and their dupes) as an accusation to censor and silence any criticism of Islam, as if such criticism were a form of "racism", which of course it is not. A religion is not a race.
The suffix "-phobia" may imply an irrational fear, whereas to fear Islam not necessarily irrational. On the contrary, to oppose Islam, at least its more fundamentalist and extremist manifestations, is both rational and necessary. A complete absence of fear of Islam would be foolish and irrational.
It is often used incorrectly to mean a prejudice against Muslims, i.e. a group of persons, whereas Islam is not a group of persons but rather a religious ideology.

"We refuse to renounce our critical faculties out of fear of encouraging “islamophobia,” an unfortunate concept which confuses criticism of Islam as a religion with stigmatization of believers."

— Manifesto of the Twelve

Articles on "Islamophobia"

Scottish councillors vote not to adopt ‘Islamophobia’ definition, National Secular Society (NSS), 2022-11-21.
"Addressing the council [Aberdeenshire, Scotland], Stephen Evans [NSS chief executive] spoke of the need to ‘separate people from ideas’, which the Islamophobia definition ‘categorically fails to do’."
"He urged the council to ‘find other ways to foster social cohesion and of tackling anti-Muslim hatred that don't conflate race with religion or the criticism of ideas with hostility against people’."
Time for an Islamophobia self-awareness month, Jack Rivington, National Secular Society (NSS), 2022-11-17.
"‘Islamophobia’ is irretrievably linked to the suppression of entirely legitimate speech and is unsalvageable as a useful term."
"The time is long overdue for those who have lent their support to the concept of Islamophobia to issue a clarification. Do they agree with the organisations behind IAM [Islamophobia Awareness Month] on what constitutes Islamophobia or not, and will they distance themselves from the term or continue to act as useful idiots?"
Why Islamophobia Is a Weasel Word, Khadija Khan, Areo, 2021-11-08.
Defining “Islamophobia”, Maryam Namazie, sister-hood, 2019-06-19.
British Secularists Reject “Islamophobia” Definition, David Rand, Atheist Freethinkers, 2019-06-07.
The gatekeepers of public debate can’t patronise away anti-Muslim bigotry — A parliamentary group's proposal that the government define 'Islamophobia' is a misguided power grab, says Chris Sloggett. If we want to end anti-Muslim bigotry, we should stop telling people what to think about Islam., Chris Sloggett, NSS UK, 2018-11-28.
To: My Fellow British Muslims, Re: Islamophobia or Anti-Muslim Hatred? — A criticism of the term “Islamophobia” from a British Muslim point of view, Noman Benotman, Quilliam International.
"When society is faced with a crisis, two factors need to be tackled: ambiguity and uncertainty, reducing them to the minimum extent possible. In this case, the term Islamophobia does the exact opposite. The term Islamophobia, instead of contributing to the understanding of the issue, i.e. the hostility towards Muslims – instead confuses individual Muslims with the religion of Islam itself. If this is unintentional. It is an unforgivable mistake."
Islamophobia: There Is No Such Thing, Bio, AFT Blog, 2018-02-24.
NO to a Day Against “Islamophobia”, David Rand, AFT Blog, 2018-01-20.
Islamophobia — What Is Really Wrong With It, Benjamin David, Topical Magazine, 2018-03-11.
"The notion of ‘Islamophobia’ is constructed out of a desire to perpetuate a siege mentality and sense of victimhood amongst Muslims, or to put an end to legitimate criticism, or to engage in lazy abuse. The important liberal principles of free speech and open enquiry are being threatened by a wily — and let’s face it, ingenious — new form of censorship. I say ‘censorship’ but many would be inclined to call it by another name: ‘blasphemy’."
'Anti-Islamophobia' motion taking more fire, Tarek Fatah, Toronto Sun, 2017-11-14.
"M103 is doing the exact opposite of its intent. Rather than quelling bigotry, it is feeding the fire because it includes the word “Islamophobia” that is not about protecting people — Muslims — it is about protecting the ideology — Islam."
Islamophobia — What Is Really Wrong With It, Accepting the notion of ‘Islamophobia’ means the end of legitimate criticism of Islam. We cannot allow de facto blasphemy to destroy our liberal values. Benjamin David, Conatus News, 2017-08-26.
Motion M-103, a Major Step Towards the Recriminalization of Blasphemy, David Rand, AFT Blog, 2017-03-03.
“Islamophobia” — the blasphemy accusation of Western liberals, Kacem El Ghazzali, 2016-12-16.
Islamophobia or Anti-Muslim Prejudice, Russell Blackford, Free Inquiry Vol. 36, No. 3, April/May 2016.
ISLAMOPHOBIA — Nonsense term & Political Hand Grenade, Hugh Harris, Atheist Republic, 2015-06-08.
"It’s nonsense to claim that a person hates or is prejudiced toward a set of ideas. This is a category mistake since, by definition, we do not owe competing ‘ideas’ any sense of fair play or equity."
The Phobia of Being Called Islamophobic, Ali A. Rizvi, Huffington Post, 2014-06-28. A quote:
"the term “Islamophobia” seeks to shield Islam itself (an ideology) from criticism. It’s as if every time you said smoking was a filthy habit, you were perceived to be calling all smokers filthy people."
The Kufrophobia, Abbas Syed, Atheist Republic, 2014-06-01. Two quotes:
"...it seems that Muslims have some sort of built-in grudge and hatred for the kuffar (infidels) and the worst title that they can give to someone is kafir (infidel)."
"There is no such thing as Islamophobia in real; there is only Kufrophobia..."
Islamophobia: An Oxymoron to Intimidate the Critics of Islam, Armin Navabi, Atheist Republic, 2013-05-07. A quote:
"The very term Islamophobia is itself misleading. A phobia is an irrational fear of something. In the case of Islam, however, it often makes practical sense to be afraid. As a former Muslim myself, I have genuine fears about a religion that advocates the murder of its apostates and victimizes its own members, especially innocent women and children."
Charges of offence and Islamophobia are secular fatwas, Maryam Namazie, speech at Blasphemy Conference in London, England, 2012-01-28. A quote:
"Islamophobia is another bogus and political term used to scaremonger people into silence by attributing human qualities to Islam and Islamism in order to rule out and deem racist any opposition or criticism. But criticism, mockery, opposition to and even hatred of a belief is not racism. In my opinion, concepts such as offence, respect, and Islamophobia are not there to protect Muslims from bigotry but to protect Islam. Which is why Islamists insist on blurring the distinction between Muslims and Islam or Islamism so they can feign representation and also ensure that Islam is off-limits."
Rethinking “Islamophobia”, Jackson Doughart and Faisal Saeed al-Mutar, AFT Blog.
Treacherous Words, David Rand, AFT Blog.

"Islamophobia:
A word created by FASCISTS and used by COWARDS to manipulate MORONS."

— Andrew Cummins

Videos about "Islamophobia"

The word "Islamophobia" exploits the pain of genuine victims of anti-Muslim bigotry, Ali A. Rizvi (@aliamjadrizvi), twitter.com, 2017-06-29.
What is Islamophobia? Sharia Law in Canada - Motion 103 - Islamic Muslim State , The Third Degree, 2017-02-14.
This video makes some valid points. However, be aware that its authors have a Christian agenda. As always, view with caution.
I cannot find any way that preaching hate helps achieve peace, says Penn Jillette., Big Think, 2017-01-31.
Discussion of the word "Islamophobia" at about 5 minutes.
Australia Bans Criticism of Islam, #RegressiveNews, 2016-08-09.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali rips apart Avi Lewis on Islamophobia, Indian News And Views, 2016-07-06.
My true story, Zineb El Rhazoui, TEDxKalamata, 2015.
"This Islamophobia, actually, it is an intellectual imposture which was invented, created by the Iranian mullahs to shut our mouths..."

Salman Rushdie on “Islamophobia”

Islam is not a race.
Criticising Islam is NOT RACIST.

The Repertory I

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