Question: What can Americans do to better understand the Middle East?
Vali Nasr: Well I think actually Americans can understand Middle Easterners much more than they think.
Europeans don’t believe in religion in that sense. Religion is not a big part of European politics. It’s a big part of American politics. I think we’ve come in the past years to try to explain everything through Islam too much. Islam does matter, but so does Christianity in America.
But you cannot explain everything in America – even in the South, even among religious groups – by just a religious explanation. You definitely cannot say, “Well that’s what the Bible says.” Or, “The Bible makes them that way.”
It is too much, I think, in public discussion in America; a deliberate lack of sophistication in trying to understand and analyze the Muslim world; trying to reduce everything into the language of religion; trying to say well everything is about religion.
And I think that’s an imbalance that hurts us, because it’s very easy to gloss over real issues; and then you end up in these culture explanations that to all of us appear to be unbridgeable. And then it makes Americans basically to throw up their arms and say, “We just don’t get it. We don’t understand.” But I think they do.
And it’s the same problem in the Muslim world. I think Muslims would understand Americans a lot better if they didn’t also look through a cultural, civilization lens; and they looked at Americans and American policy in terms of interest and aspiration that also drives them all the time.
When you talk about dialogue, it’s not really about, “Let me understand your religion and you should understand mine. I pray five times a day, you go to church, but we both believe in the same God.” That’s not the useful dialogue. Dialogue really means trying to understand the other sides interests and behaviors in terms of how you would have operated in a political arena as an individual.
Recorded on: Dec 3, 2007
Discuss
Tristan Heindl on February 6, 2008, 11:36 AM
First of all they should LEARN who in the entire history of the United Stated we sold weapons to in multi-billion dollar deals. Such as arming Hussein with inferrior weapons them blowing the shit out em. Our involvement in the middle east since the 50s has cost MILLIONS of middle easterners their lives!!!! Do some research on how our CIA overthrew Mosedek, an DEMOCRADICLY ELECTED LEADER! Then maybe how the UN commited Genocide in Haiti and overthrew another democratic revolution much like the movement with Gahndi! US foreign aid CREATES POVERTY!!!!!!! RESEARCH!!! thems is pimpin the poe!!!
Tristan Heindl on February 6, 2008, 4:36 PM
First of all they should LEARN who in the entire history of the United Stated we sold weapons to in multi-billion dollar deals. Such as arming Hussein with inferrior weapons them blowing the shit out em. Our involvement in the middle east since the 50s has cost MILLIONS of middle easterners their lives!!!! Do some research on how our CIA overthrew Mosedek, an DEMOCRADICLY ELECTED LEADER! Then maybe how the UN commited Genocide in Haiti and overthrew another democratic revolution much like the movement with Gahndi! US foreign aid CREATES POVERTY!!!!!!! RESEARCH!!! thems is pimpin the poe!!!
Jaime Alberto Galarza on April 6, 2008, 8:35 PM
Mr. Nasr is not clear at all when he says that Americans can understand Middle Easterners much more than they think. What does he mean by that? His view is full of common places. Can anybody have a deliberate lack of sophistication? Americans do not understand the Middle East for a number of reasons, one of them being religion precisely. Christianity as well as Islam have exclusive religious beliefs. This "competition" led to a number of conflicts, and it was the West the aggressor and invader (first Crusade in 1095).
Jaime Alberto Galarza on April 7, 2008, 12:35 AM
Mr. Nasr is not clear at all when he says that Americans can understand Middle Easterners much more than they think. What does he mean by that? His view is full of common places. Can anybody have a deliberate lack of sophistication? Americans do not understand the Middle East for a number of reasons, one of them being religion precisely. Christianity as well as Islam have exclusive religious beliefs. This “competition” led to a number of conflicts, and it was the West the aggressor and invader (first Crusade in 1095).
eileen fleming on May 5, 2008, 11:44 AM
The Bible wasn't FAXED in and Jesus was not a neo-con or republican.
The Bible was written down after centuries [Hebrew Scriptures] or decades [New Testament]of people telling their stories of struggling with God.
Speaking as a Christian of The Beatitudes [meaning a lover and follower of Jesus who always tries to DO what he taught] I think it better to UNDERSTAND rather that be understood.
What I understand from my Muslim and Jewish friends is that we can agree that if we LOVE God first, we will love all beings.
No religion owns God and no church owns Jesus.
St. Paul warned the follower's of JC NOT to judge the nonbeliever, but to provoke the believer onto good works; and that one must forgive to be forgiven, to love all and do good towards one's enemies.
Fundamentalism runs through every faith path and a fundie is one who has quit thinking and adheres to what they have been told, rather than struggle individually with God.
The first mention of Israel in the Bible is when Jacob was renamed Israel; meaning one who struggles with The Divine.
Seems to me, that all who struggle with the Ultimate Mystery of the Universe, is also Israel.
Eileen Fleming, Reporter and Editor WAWA:
http://www.wearewideawake.org/
Author "Keep Hope Alive" and "Memoirs of a Nice Irish American 'Girl's' Life in Occupied Territory"
Producer "30 Minutes With Vanunu" and "13 Minutes with Vanunu"
eileen fleming on May 5, 2008, 3:44 PM
The Bible wasn’t FAXED in and Jesus was not a neo-con or republican.
The Bible was written down after centuries [Hebrew Scriptures] or decades [New Testament]of people telling their stories of struggling with God.
Speaking as a Christian of The Beatitudes [meaning a lover and follower of Jesus who always tries to DO what he taught] I think it better to UNDERSTAND rather that be understood.
What I understand from my Muslim and Jewish friends is that we can agree that if we LOVE God first, we will love all beings.
No religion owns God and no church owns Jesus.
St. Paul warned the follower’s of JC NOT to judge the nonbeliever, but to provoke the believer onto good works; and that one must forgive to be forgiven, to love all and do good towards one’s enemies.
Fundamentalism runs through every faith path and a fundie is one who has quit thinking and adheres to what they have been told, rather than struggle individually with God.
The first mention of Israel in the Bible is when Jacob was renamed Israel; meaning one who struggles with The Divine.
Seems to me, that all who struggle with the Ultimate Mystery of the Universe, is also Israel.
Eileen Fleming, Reporter and Editor WAWA:
http://www.wearewideawake.org/
Author “Keep Hope Alive” and “Memoirs of a Nice Irish American ’Girl’s’ Life in Occupied Territory”
Producer “30 Minutes With Vanunu” and “13 Minutes with Vanunu”
Hessam Parzivand on July 4, 2008, 12:04 PM
As a Middle-Eastern American, I feel I have one foot in each civilization. I think there is no substitute for visiting the region. While there, I did numerous interviews with average people on the issues the region faces. I learned a great deal about the region through those interviews.
If you can't visit, there are still a few things you can do. Knowing the history of the region is very important. I personally recommend the book A History of the Modern Middle East by William L. Cleveland. You can also diversify the range of news sources you get your news from. Add the BBC and Al-Jazeera's English site to your daily line up. Contrast articles on one news event from CNN or Fox with those from Al-Jazeera. It will tell you a great deal about how the region sees the issues it faces.
Hessam Parzivand
Author: Winning Middle Eastern Hearts and Minds
Hessam Parzivand on July 4, 2008, 4:04 PM
As a Middle-Eastern American, I feel I have one foot in each civilization. I think there is no substitute for visiting the region. While there, I did numerous interviews with average people on the issues the region faces. I learned a great deal about the region through those interviews.
If you can’t visit, there are still a few things you can do. Knowing the history of the region is very important. I personally recommend the book A History of the Modern Middle East by William L. Cleveland. You can also diversify the range of news sources you get your news from. Add the BBC and Al-Jazeera’s English site to your daily line up. Contrast articles on one news event from CNN or Fox with those from Al-Jazeera. It will tell you a great deal about how the region sees the issues it faces.
Hessam Parzivand
Author: Winning Middle Eastern Hearts and Minds
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