The separation of mosque and state

Some of the cartoon anger being lobbed the way of European countries stems from a radically different concept of the state. Take for instance Iran, which has actually cut all ties with Denmark. The angry argument is made that Denmark itself should apologize. But the question that this begs is, for what? Denmark itself has not done anything. One of its newspapers, the Jyllands-Posten did. The state of Denmark neither had any advance knowledge of this, nor any state control over what images can be published or not.

In the Islamic world, it is as though this simply cannot be comprehended. While not all Muslims states weld the religion of Islam completely to the engines of state, the idea that religion is separate from state is alien. Almost all muslim-majority countries have not only anti-blasphemy laws, but even anti-apostasy laws. Countries with large religious minorities, like Egypt, with millions of Copts, do not protect these minorities from religious harassment. It is perfectly legitimate for the state to legally enshrine Islam as the superior religion.

It is surprising however, that the muslim world appears incapable of understand our own reluctance to do so. The west has a tradition of tolerating the most uncouth of anti-religious diatribe. And while religious individuals may use their collective people power to shut down the influence of those who offend the religious (witness how the show 'Daniel' got shut down in the United States), it is inconceivable to imagine the United States or Canada cutting off diplomatic ties over a cartoon version of Moses, Vishnu, or Jesus.

Countries are not a religious collective, in our hemisphere. We are jurisdictions of people who have agreed on common judicial and governmental infrastructures, and people and businesses are left to do what they will, within the law. That does not mean all a government does is approved by the people. Nor does it mean that all the people do is somehow the work of the government. The buck stops with whoever dropped it.

In the case of the Jyllands-Posten cartoons, the buck should always have stopped with that newspaper, and the papers who reprinted it. It is unconcscionable that anyone would cut ties with France or Denmark, because of the actions of newspapers within those countries.