The Rationalizer: A Refutation By Hafiz Chuck Connors

If you happen to be a regular on internet apologetics you must have at one point in time come across "The Rationalizer". He has an entire channel and blog dedicated to providing "evidences that disprove Islam" as the ultimate truth. He cites sources and does his best to conjure up arguments against the faith, with unreserved ostentation. Online Muslim apologists have waited for someone to come along and debunk the pretentious charlatan, and the wait, is finally over. A Hafiz, or one who has committed the entire Qur'an to memory, and astrophysicist  by the name of Chuck Connors has recently published a video that sheds lights on The Rationalizer's fallacies and ignorance:

Is Tarek Fatah a "Secular Muslim" or an "Ex-Muslim Secularist"?

Do Canadians ever wonder why Canadian Muslims are so averse to Tarek Fatah's thinly veiled diatribes against Islam? Is the Muslim Canadian Congress (MCC) really a group devoted to protecting the social fabric of Canada against the non-existent threat of "Islamism"? The answer to these questions are not difficult and really require one to simply look at the evidence. Tarek Fatah claims to be a Muslim, all the while being a secularist, despite showing lucid contempt for Islam. As one tweeter recently noted on the 24th of August, 2013:

Tweeter Doug Janack does make a good point "I don't think I've read a single thing by you that doesn't support Dawkins' sneering contempt for Islam." It's not a difficult statement for a Muslim to understand because all Tarek Fatah has done in the last decade is demean and vilify the vast Canadian Muslim public (let alone Islam) while pretending to be an expert on Islam. On the same day which the above tweet was taken, Tarek Fatah displayed some of his anti-Islamic bigotry. In the first tweet a tweet by the name of O.J. rightfully claims that Tarek Fatah is not an authority on Islam. In response Tarek Fatah tweets back in his usual banal and derogatory language -- hardly fit for a so-called "real Muslim".  Tarek Fatah tweets "Yeah right, I'm just not ugly enough to be considered a real Muslim by Islamists in black shrink wraps." Firstly, Tarek Fatah alleges that like the majority of Muslims, he's not "ugly" enough, to be considered one, especially by scholars in "black shrink wraps". 

In another tweet Tarek Fatah alleges that only "bearded Islamic scholars can come up with with the science of flying horses and moon splitting". In this tweet Tarek Fatah's belief in Islam comes under attack as he employs sarcasm to mock 1) bearded men and the "science" of 2) flying horses, and 3) moon splitting -- all three ideas core to Islam. Firstly, it is incumbent on Muslim men to grow the beard. Secondly, the baraq* (not horse) upon which the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) rode on into the 7 heavens is an essential belief in Islam. Thirdly, the miracle performed by the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in which he split the moon is mentioned in the Quran, Surah 55, The Moon, Verses 1-2. 

Whether Tarek Fatah is really a Muslim is up to the reader's discretion. One can only wonder how an alleged "Muslim" such as Tarek Fatah agrees with the following tweet by Richard Dawkins.

Muslims are honestly left speechless. What is Tarek Fatah really? A "secular Muslim" or an "ex-Muslim secularist"? It wouldn't be far-fetched to assert that Tarek Fatah is really an "ex-Muslim secularist" robbing people of their hard-earned money whilst pretending to be an authority on Islam.

More on Tarek Fatah:

• For Tarek Fatah's errors in his book "Chasing A Mirage" click here. 

Historically Speaking, Muslims Were Never Opposed To Science

When religion and science are mentioned together one imagines opposing forces, systems of thought that are anathema of each other, there being no sign of reconciliation between the two. One classic historical example is Galileo's indictment by the Catholic Church for supporting the idea that Earth was not the center of the universe (and even stationary), an idea that verged on heresy and demanded immediate reprehension. However, upon researching Islam's history, one does not come across a situation where Islam and science were diametrically opposed to each other. In fact, classical Muslim orthodoxy adopted science as a tool in both realms of academia and daily life. In 1987, Islam studies specialist and historian A.I. Sabra submitted a ground-breaking paper that described the three stages in which Muslims adopted the scientific tradition. David C. Lindberg, author of The Beginnings of Western Science, informs the reader about the conclusion of Sabra's research:

"A. I. Sabra proposed three stages in the fortunes of the classical tradition in Islam. In the first stage, he argued, 'Greek science entered the world of Islam, not as an invading force...but as an invited guest'--a guest, moreover, whose Hellenistic worldview experienced 'an almost immediate and almost unreserved adoption...by Muslim members of the household.' In the second stage,the guest, now a comfortable member of the community, was the source and inspiration for remarkable scientific achievements by outstanding scholars, who accepted the fundamental assumptions of the classical tradition, took up its unresolved problems, and corrected, refined, and extended its conclusions. This was not the beginning of a new scientific tradition, as some have argued, but a continuation of the Greek classical tradition on Islamic soil and with an Islamic voice. Finally, by the time the third stage made its appearance, the pioneers of Hellenistic science had passed away, to be replaced by a generation of scholars, almost every one of whom 'had undergone a thorough Muslim education' and 'were imbued with Muslim learning and tradition.' The result was the integration of Greek disciplines with traditional learning and Islamic culture more generally. Thus logic became incorporated into theology and law; astronomy became an indispensable tool for the muwwaqqit, who was responsible for determining the times of daily prayer in his locale; and mathematics became essential for a wide variety of commercial, legal, and scientific purposes. In this stage, which Sabra calls 'naturalization', the classical tradition had become fully assimilated and put to use. The guest had become a member of the household in the role of handmaiden [1]."

This information is easily summarized in three succinct points:

1. Greek science entered Islamic world as an invited guest within the Muslim household.

2. As a member of the community, served as source of scientific inspiration & innovation.

3. The final result was that the guest had become a member of household as handmaiden.

Atheists, especially the bulldog of Atheism, Richard Dawkins, considers religiosity a brazen affront to empirical observation and rationale. The only problem with this thesis is that Muslims played a major role in shaping science for centuries to come before the torch was passed on to Europeans, who then further refined the ideals of science during the Renaissance. However, how much thought and consideration should medieval Muslims be given for the extent of their scientific achievements? David C. Lindberg writes,

"The scientific movement in Islam was distinguished and of long duration. Translation of Greek works into Arabic began in the second half of the eighth century; by end of the ninth century translation activity had crested, and serious scholarship was under way. From the middle of the ninth century until well into the fourteenth, we find impressive scientific work in major branches of Greek science, carried forward in widely scattered cities of the Islamic world. If we concentrate our attention on mathematics and astronomy, where many of Islam's greatest achievements lay, we find serious research by capable mathematicians and astronomers as late as the first half of the sixteenth century. This period of Islamic preeminence in the mathematical sciences lasted well over half a millennium -- a longer period than the interval between Copernicus and ourselves [2]."

Furthermore, the pioneer of the scientific method, the very intellectual bastion of empiricism, is none other than Ibn al-Haytham (ca. 965 - ca. 1039), a Muslim known for his outstanding accomplishments in the realm of mathematics and astronomy [3] [4]. This is a stark reminder to atheists who proudly contend that science is purely secular endeavor. 

Works Cited  

[1] Lindberg, D. C. (2007). Islamic Reception and Appropriation of Greek Science. The beginnings of western science: the European scientific tradition in philosophical, religious, and institutional context, prehistory to A.D. 1450 (2nd ed., p. 174). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
[2] Ibid, pg. 189
[3] Ibid, pg. 179
[4] Heinen, A. M., & Biruni International Congress. (1973). Al-Biruni and ibn al-Haytham: A comparative study of scientific method. Pakistan.

Ron Banerjee & The Canadian Hindu Advocacy

One could say that Ron Banerjee and The Canadian Hindu Advocacy are completely synonymous. After all, The Canadian Hindu Advocacy is essentially comprised of one lone member -- it's founder! -- Ron Banerjee himself. Indeed, actions speak louder than words, so it would be prudent for the reader to watch this YouTube clip (below). In the following video a news reporter from City News asks Ron Banerjee at one of his hate-filled rallies where the rest of his members of the Canadian Hindu Advocacy are. Ron Banerjee asserts him that his members are present at the rally before he sets out to bring a few of them out for the camera. To the reporter's nonchalance -- as it was already expected -- Ron Banerjee returned with absolutely no one:

What Ron Banerjee and The Canadian Hindu Advocacy are well known for are their Islamophobic sentiments towards Canadian Muslims. In fact, Ron Banerjee was recorded on video at a neo-conservative Jewish conference in which he expresses that "Islam -- the Islamic civilization -- has invented, and contributed less to human advancement than a pack of donkeys. That's the truth." The mere diction and his choice of words, mainly derogatory (e.g. pack of donkeys), clearly suggest that the man hates not only the faith of Islam, but it's people, considering that he makes mention of "the Islamic civilization" in particular to drive his point home. To reinforce this idea, one cannot compare the "achievements" of faith, a religion, a system of thought, to animals. It becomes increasingly clear that a distinction is made between faith itself and people who believe it. His statement can be viewed in the YouTube clip below:

One may argue that this does not alone confirm Ron Banerjee's bigotry as his allusion to history may have been to point out that Islam was responsible for the degenerate thinking of human beings (a ludicrous idea). This being beside the point (and will be dealt later); it is important to note that Ron Banerjee has made it explicitly transparent that he believes himself, as a Hindu, to be superior to Muslims. One should ask, why does this question even arise in his mind? What has provoked him to come out and state this so clearly in the light of day? Some have proposed that Ron Banerjee, as a first generation Canadian (his parents being immigrants, this being entirely speculative), has brought over some of his anti-Muslim sentiments from India where clashes between Hindus and Muslims are not unheard of.  Again, the following YouTube video makes it unequivocal,  without a shadow of a doubt, that Ron Banerjee belongs to the same group of Islamophobes that include personalities such as Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller, and Daniel Pipes:

Canadians, including the nation's conservatives, need to think twice before giving this Islamophobe a platform to spur his incendiary vitriol. It's hurtful towards Canadian Muslims, and seeks to rupture the social fabric of Canada. Canada prides itself as a nation where, in the face of civil rights and law, one is not discriminated based on race, ethnicity, religion, or system of thought. Together we can stop hate crimes being committed in the name of conservative notion of secular equity.