Here are some interesting excerpts from an interview with an Egyptian-German political scientist named Hamed Abdel-Samad in the German newsmagazine Der Spiegel. Abdel-Samad is the author of the book Der Untergang der Islamischen Welt (The Downfall of the Islamic World).
Asked why he thinks Islam is in decline, Abdel-Samad answers, "There are 1.4 billion Muslims. So what? The important thing is that in almost all countries with a Muslim majority, we see the decline of civilization and a stagnation of all forms of life. Islam has no convincing answers to the challenges of the 21st century. It is in intellectual, moral and cultural decline -- a doomed religion, without self-awareness and without any options to act."
He continues, "In a sense, Islam is like a drug, like alcohol. A small amount can have a healing and inspiring effect, but when the believer reaches for the bottle of dogmatic faith in every situation, it gets dangerous. This high-proof form of Islam is what I'm talking about. It harms the individual and damages society. It inhibits integration, because this Islam divides the world into friends and enemies, into the faithful and the infidels."
On the reform movement within islam: "Most so-called reformers of Islam remind me of the band on the Titanic, which kept on playing even as the ship was sinking, so as to give the passengers the illusion of normalcy. The underlying problems are not addressed."
And on the term "Islamophobia:" "I don't like that expression. A person who has a phobia is someone who harbors fantasies. But the dangers posed by Islamists are real, and many Muslims' unwillingness to integrate in Germany is a serious problem. It isn't my problem when other critics exaggerate and their rhetoric gets out of hand. I can only speak for myself."
Abdel-Samad says his dream is "an enlightened Islam, without Sharia law and without jihad, without gender apartheid, proselytizing and the mentality of entitlement. A religion that is open to criticism and questions."