.... Such is also the case, I would argue, with Sharia. A Conservative Jew is not anti-democratic for keeping kosher, just as a Muslim may follow halal dietary laws without threatening the republic.
The key question is NOT do they follow their religious law; it’s WHAT INTERPRETATION of religious law do they follow, and what is its relationship to secular law? The more their vision accepts a democratic, pluralistic society, the better.
If these proposed laws acted equally to restrict the influence of all religious law on government, I might agree – then I wouldn’t have to grapple with a government-promoted National Day of Prayer every May. But I suspect that most Sharia ban proponents would not accept that friendly amendment.
[COMMENT] .... Back in 2004, Muslims in the province of Ontario also used the existence of long-standing provincial Catholic and Jewish arbitration tribunals to campaign for the establishment of Sharia courts.
When some expressed concern, Sharia supporters accused their critics of “Islamophobia” and paranoia. Undaunted, one intrepid reporter took the time to visit the website of the pro-Sharia Canadian Society of Muslims. What he found there was chilling. [Chicago Tribune] Read more [via National Secular Society]
