策劃、編譯■李威撰、謝雯伃

中東抗議運動方酣之際，記者穆斯塔夫．阿卡育（Mustafa Akyol）出版新書，

試圖在伊斯蘭的神學框架中提出所謂的「穆斯林自由主義」（Musilim liberalism）。

當大多數人認為這是矛盾的綜合體時，阿卡育試圖替現代伊斯蘭國家找尋解決之道，

避免政府陷於惡性循環，擺盪於世俗威權主義及宗教威權主義這兩種極端之間。

▲外交關係協會於2008年3月25日在美國紐約舉辦「宗教與開放社會」（Religion and the Open Society）研討會，阿卡育是與談人之一。（圖文／路透）

8歲的阿卡育正在祖父的圖書館中讀書，當他閱讀到某本書時，看見一個令他相當吃驚的段落，這段文字建議父母責打不虔誠的子女。

Eight year-old Mustafa Akyol was looking at a book in his grandfather's library when he saw something that shocked him: a passage advising parents to beat impious （1）children.

現在，長大成人的阿卡育在土耳其擔任新聞記者。他期待阿拉伯之春能夠展現伊斯蘭文化的另一個層面，也就是在伊斯蘭教義和政治自由之間並無衝突。

Now, Akyol is a journalist in Turkey, and he hopes the Arab Spring shows a different side of Islam: one where there is no conflict between Islam and political freedom.

他的新書《沒有極端的伊斯蘭教：追求自由的穆斯林案例》於18日出版，這本書旨在告訴讀者，在伊斯蘭世界中，追求自由的歷史源遠流長。

His new book, "Islam Without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty," which is being released in the United States on July 18, aims to tell people that there is a long history of freedom in the Islamic world.

「許多阿拉伯國家均由獨裁者所統治的事實助長了迷思，以為這些國家只會出現這種政府形態。」阿卡育向《路透》表示。「日前發生的一樁樁起義事件已顯示這是錯誤的想法。」

"The fact that so many Arab countries have been run by dictators fostered the myth that it's the only type of government that those countries can produce," Akyol told Reuters. "The current uprisings are showing that this is wrong."

一般新聞中，中東彷彿是個由自殺炸彈客、暴力和暴君所主宰的世界。阿卡育擔心，世人很容易就對他所信奉的伊斯蘭教有錯誤的認知。

With news of the Middle East dominated by suicide bombers, violence and despotic leaders, Akyol worries that it's easy to get the wrong idea about his religion.

在書中，他提到伊斯蘭文化事實上擁有支持自由和容忍的豐富歷史。回溯至穆斯林比歐洲基督徒還要開放的年代，他強調伊斯蘭的歷史中，能舉出許多進步思潮的例子。

In his book, he argues that Islam has a rich history of supporting freedom and tolerance. Harkening back to a time when Muslims were more open than European Christians, he highlights many examples of progressive thought from Islamic history.

阿卡育講述到，在穆斯林統治下，早有宗教寬容的紀錄，他追溯這項傳統大約在先知時期便已立下。舉例來說，在7世紀的麥地那，猶太人就被允許在穆斯林統治者的保護之下公開進行宗教儀式。

Recounting a record of religious tolerance （2）under Muslim rule, Akyol traces this tradition to the time of the Prophet （3）. In 7th century Medina, for instance, Jews were allowed to openly practice their religion with the protection of their Muslim rulers.

阿卡育表示，今日在敘利亞、葉門和其他國家中推動民主運動的人們能夠從歷史中找尋啟發。他認為，廣受尊敬的10世紀穆斯林思想家法拉比的政府理念，就與現代社會的民主社會幾乎雷同。

People in Syria, Yemen and other countries who are campaigning for democracy today, can look to history for inspiration, Akyol said. He offers up the notion that the governmental ideas of one respected 10th century Muslim thinker, Al-Farabi, sound almost identical to modern democracy.

阿卡育認為，他的祖國土耳其就是民主可以在穆斯林世界蓬勃發展的良證。土耳其在1950年代將政體和平轉移成多黨民主制，阿卡育相信土耳其的成功可以激勵全球的穆斯林。

Akyol offers Turkey -- his home country -- as proof that democracy can thrive in the Muslim world. The nation made a peaceful transition to multi-party democracy in the 1950s, and Akyol believes that Turkey can inspire Muslims around the world.

這名作者認為，土耳其之所以成功的訣竅，就在於採用了經過穆斯林價值觀調和過後的自由經濟。「土耳其政府公開重視穆斯林傳統。」他表示。「經濟進步同樣也很重要。這是土耳其蛻變的引擎所在。」

The author argues that the recipe for Turkey's success is a liberal economy tempered by Muslim values. "The government here openly values Muslim tradition," he said. "Economic progress is also important. It was the engine of change in Turkey."

伊斯蘭教可能不是近來阿拉伯民主運動的驅動力，不過許多旁觀者仍舊對伊斯蘭教在民主運動中扮演的角色感到好奇。

The Islamic religion may not have been the driving force behind the recent Arab uprisings, but many onlookers （4）remain curious about the role it may play.

阿卡育希望，在面對迅速襲捲阿拉伯世界的民主浪潮時，關於伊斯蘭教的老派思想不會挺身阻撓。「有很長一段時間，許多穆斯林知識份子斷然拒絕民主，不過現在情況已經在改變了。」他說。「現在大眾越來越了解，民主可以與伊斯蘭價值共存。」

Akyol hopes that old-school ideas about Islam won't hold up in the face of democratic trends that are rapidly moving through the region. "For a long time, democracy was flatly rejected by many Muslim intellectuals, but that is changing," he said. "Now there's more understanding that democracy can be consistent with Islamic values as well."

阿卡育這本替伊斯蘭式民主背書的著作出版的時機，正值埃及政府尚未穩定、利比亞戰火猛烈、葉門的戰爭和敘利亞動盪之時。西方國家仍擔憂，宗教激進份子會劫持阿拉伯之春的成果。不過，他提出了充份理由說明了，現在的伊斯蘭主義較無威脅性。

The publication of Akyol's Islamic endorsement of democracy is well-timed with the still unsettled government in Egypt, the war raging in Libya, fighting in Yemen and unrest in Syria. Western nations remain concerned that religious radicals could hijack the Arab Spring, but Akyol makes a case for a brand of Islam that is less menacing.

「我希望透過這本書，讓全世界的自由派穆斯林得到依據，去證明伊斯蘭教不是極權主義，反倒支持個人自由。」他說。

"With this book, I want to give ammunition to liberal Muslims around the world to argue for an Islam that supports individual freedom instead of totalitarianism （5）," he said.

（路透Reuters）

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