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of Political Violence
Author(s): ADAM L. SILVERMAN
Source: Journal of Church and State, Vol. 44, No. 1 (WINTER 2002), pp. 73-92
Published by: Oxford University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23919701
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to Journal of Church and State
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Just War, Jihad, and Terrorism:
A Comparison of Western and
Islamic Norms for the Use
of Political Violence
ADAM L. SILVERMAN
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74 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
Methods
1. "Profiling Terrorists," National Public Radio, 9/18/01; Martin Kramer, "The Moral Logic
of Hizballah," in Origins of Terrorism: Psychologies, Ideologies, Theologies, States of Mind,
ed. Walter Reich (Cambridge, Mass.: Cambridge University Press, 1990), 131-60.
2. Joel Best, "But Seriously Folks: The Limitations of the Strict Contructivist Interpreta
tion of Social Problems," in Constructionist Controversies: Issues in Social Problems Theory,
eds. Gale Miller and James A. Holstein (New York: Aldine de Gruyter, 1993), 109-27.
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 75
3. Nathan Katz, "Understanding Religion in Diaspora: The Case of the Jews of Cochin,"
Religious Studies and Theology 15 (June 1996): 7-8.
4. There are numerous variations on just war, just revolution, and crusade in the Western
tradition. Among them are Aristotle's, Cicero's, Augustine's, Thomas of Aquinas's, and
Bernard of Clairvaux's. The one presented here is a composite of Augustinian, Aquinine,
Aristotelian, and other traditions.
5. Jean Bethke Elshtain, "Reflections on War and Political Discourse: Realism, Just War,
and Feminism in a Nuclear Age," in Perspectives on World Politics: A Reader, eds. Richard
Little and Michael Smith (London: Routledge, 1991), 460-61.
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76 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 77
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78 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
Verses 39-40, the oldest verses revealed regarding jihad, establish how,
when, and why jihad may be waged. In order for one to engage in
jihad, one must be defending oneself and attempting to redress an un
just action. These verses address two of the criteria for just war: 1) the
criterion of right intention, and 2) the criteria of proportionality. They
indicate that one can only act in order to right a wrong and in defense.
It is also important to understand the historical context in which
these verses were revealed. Abdullah Yusuf Ali, a translator of and
commentator on the Qur'an, indicates that these ayat were revealed
during the Medinan period. It was at this time that the Prophet and
his followers were no longer able to avoid violence with the Meccans,17
avoidance that had taken the form of two types of self imposed exile, to
Ethiopia and to Medina. In other words, these verses were revealed on
the first occasion when violence was not only necessary for defense of
the Muslim community, but also unavoidable.
15. I have chosen to focus on these two normative Islamic concepts in creating my
comparative analysis. There are, however, other Islamic concepts, that while related to
jihad and shahadat, are outside of the scope of this essay. The most conspicuous of these is
fitnah. Fitnah has been interpreted to mean everything from the oppression of Muslims by
Polytheists to anarchical civil behavior to seditious speech. In terms of Islamic history, it
refers to two specific civil insurgencies against the caliphate of 'Ali.
16. Q 22: 39-40.
17. The Holy Quran: Text, Translation, and Commentary, trans. Abdullah Yusuf Ali (New
York: Thrike Tarsile Qur'an Inc., 1988), 861.
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 79
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80 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
23. Q 9: 29.
24. Arthur Goldschraidt, Jr., A Concise History of the Middle East (Boulder, Colo.: West
view Press, 1988), 55-57.
25. Bernard Lewis, The Political Language (Chicago, 111.: The University of Chicago Press,
1991), 85.
26. Ibid., 73.
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 81
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82 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
Shahadat
33. Murtada Mutahhari, "Jihad in the Quran," in Jihad and Shahadat: Struggle and Mar
tyrdom in Islam, eds. Mehdi Abedi and Gary Legenhausen (Houston, Tex.: Institute for
Research and Islamic Studies, 1986), 89.
34. Ibid., 93.
35. Ibid., 96.
36. Ibid., 104-05.
37. Q 3: 169.
38. Q 22: 58-59.
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 83
39. Ahmad Ibn Naqib al-Misri, The Reliance of the Traveler: A Classic Manual of Islamic
Sacred Law (Evanston, 111.: Sunna Books, 1991), 718, sect. Q2.4(4).
40. "The Great Ghazwa of Badr," in A Reader on Islam: Passages from Standard Arabic
Writings Illustrative of the Beliefs and Practices of Muslims, ed. Arthur Jeffery ('S
Gravenhage: Mouton and Company, 1962), 290-300.
41. Ali Shariati, "A Discussion of Shahid," in Jihad and Shahadat: Struggle and Martyr
dom in Islam, eds. Mehdi Abedi and Gary Legenhausen (Houston, Tex.: Institute for Re
search and Islamic Studies, 1996), 234-35 and 240.
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84 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
Terrorism
42. Alex P. Schmid and Albert J. Jongman, Political Terrorism: A New Guide to Actors,
Authors, Concepts, Databases, Theories, and Literature (Amsterdam: North Holland Pub
lishing Company, 1988), 37.
43. Ronald L. Akers, Deviant Behavior: A Social Learning Approach (Belmont, Calif.:
Wadsworth, 1985).
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 85
44. Micheal Barkun, Religion and the Racist Right (Chapel Hill, N.C.: Th
North Carolina Press, 1994), 103-20.
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86 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
45. Thomas Halpern and Brian Levin, The Limits of Dissent: The Constitutional Status of
Civilian Militias (Amherst, N.Y.: Alethia Press), 1996, 83-86.
46. From the Hamas Charter, article 13.
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 87
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88 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 89
50. Fareed Zakaria, "The Allies Who Made Our Foes," Newsweek, 1 October 2001, 34.
51. Fouad Ajami, The Arab Predicament: Arab Political Thought Since 1967 (New York:
Cambridge University Press, 1989), 177-81.
52. Zakaria, "The Allies Who Made Our Foes," 34.
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90 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
Conclusion
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JUST WAR, JIHAD, AND TERRORISM 91
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92 JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE
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