How to handle RW NJ's in your family

[no_hypocrisy]

My brother was getting married. He waited until the last minute to tell our parents that he had converted to Sufiism (mystical Islam).

Our father had a fit at the rehearsal dinner and tried to turn the family against our brother. Mom was resentful. Our sister went along with our father b/c she was afraid of him.

I didn't have a problem b/c it was none of my business except when it came to attacking my brother.

Here is the dialogue between me and my father:

Dad: Did you see what your brother is wearing?
Me: Yeah, it's a necklace with an amulet.
Dad: What language is that?
Me: Arabic.
Dad: Do you know what it says?
Me: Yeah. It says "Allah".
Dad: (ill-disguised slow burn). And did you see that photograph in the foyer?
Me: Yeah.
Dad: Do you know what it is?
Me: Yeah, it's Mecca at night during the Haj.
Dad: Don't you think it's terrible?
Me: No, I don't.
Dad: Why not?
Me: Because you only have to go to the Haj once in your life. If you had to go every year, it would be "terrible".

New Topic
Dad: Don't you understand why I'm so upset?
Me: No. (I didn't want to get into it with our father . . . . )
Dad: What would you think of me if I joined the American Nazi Party?
Me: (thoughtfully) Gee Dad, I don't think they take Jews . . . . .
Dad: Never mind. What would you think of me if I joined the Ku Klux Klan?
Me: Three things: One, I'll always be your daughter. Two (big sigh . . . . ) You'll always be my father. And Three (get ready for it) Don't come looking for me to help you burn a cross.

And with that, Dad moved to the other side of the table.

Epilogue: My brother is married 22 years now. Dad is dead and to show that he loved us all the same, he disinherited all of us.

[Diamond_Dog]

1. Holy cow .... What a story, no_hypocrisy!

I’m sorry your dad couldn’t find it in his heart to unconditionally love all his kids. His loss.

Your answers were perfect.

[brush]

2. Thanks for the post. You can't really go against anyone's religion...

unless of course they're crazy, violent, racist, anti-semitic christofascists...or some other violent sect.

And aren't the Sufis peaceful mistics who study and contemplate how to get closer to Allah? They don't eff with anyone.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. Yes, Sufis are so peaceful that they are viewed as apostates by the fundamentalist Muslims.

Example: If a Wahabi had a gun with just one bullet and had a Sufi and a Jew as prisoners, he'd kill the Sufi and let the Jew live.

[brush]

4. God! They're really disliked that much?

[no_hypocrisy]

5. I've warned my brother that his life is more in danger from other Muslims than

from RW NJ's.

[grantcart]

12. Note Wahabis not all Muslims.

Sufis aren't really organized into a sect but have a wide influence because of their beautiful poetry.

[drmeow]

6. Not all Wahabis

I know quite a few peaceful (feminist) Wahabis who are actively fighting against extremism in their own religion.

An Islamic extremist - who is more likely to be Wahabi - is not the same as all Wahabis are extremists.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

7. Why belong to a religion when you have to fight your own religion?

The problem with organized religion is that it is organized.
Like the problem with organized crime is that it is organized.

[drmeow]

8. I'm sorry you missed my point nt

[Bernardo de La Paz]

10. If I get your point?: Not all wahabis are extremists or violent. I don't doubt it or your example.nt

[Maraya1969]

9. Rumi was a Sufi. But here it says he was also Muslim so maybe he was both

Rumi is often described as the best-selling poet in the United States. He is typically referred to as a mystic, a saint, a Sufi, an enlightened man. Curiously, however, although he was a lifelong scholar of the Koran and Islam, he is less frequently described as a Muslim.Jan 5, 2017

The Erasure of Islam from the Poetry of Rumi | The New Yorker

"Sufism is a mystical form of Islam, a school of practice that emphasizes the inward search for God and shuns materialism. It has produced some of the world's most beloved literature, like the love poems of the 13th century Iranian jurist Rumi."

[grantcart]

13. Most Sufis are Sunni Muslims but some Shia are too.

[zanana1]

11. Gee dad, I don't think they take Jews.

My stomach hurts!