Thursday, June 26, 2008

Agnostic Muslim

Is that a little hard to swallow? An Agnostic Muslim. Sounds like a textbook example of an oxymoron, doesn't it? But it's the best way to classify myself.

Living in Karachi all my life, submerged in its uber-Muslim society, I was always aware of my agnosticism. But it was only when I went abroad for college that I became aware of the Muslim part of the phrase. I found myself defending Muslims again and again and discovered that I care deeply about the Muslim community.

Of course I disagree with mainstream Muslims on almost everything from religion to politics to social and cultural norms. But I am an Agnostic Muslim rather than just an agnostic because, while I have no allegiance to the tenets of Islam I do have a very strong allegiance to the Muslim community.

I know a lot of people who identify as various kinds of Muslims, as atheists, agnostics or just don't give a damn one way or the other. But what I want to know is whether there are more people out there who identify as Agnostic Muslims. Leave a comment if you do. Maybe we can start a Facebook group or a book club or something :)