In case you missed it, Islamic State has clearly and definitively explained why they continue to fight against the free west, in the form of a relatively tightly-written magazine-style listicle:
https://twitter.com/kmcdev2/status/760172121247014912
Maajid Nawaz has pointed out that grievances over American and European foreign policy—while salient—cannot be seen as the primary motivation of jihadists:
https://twitter.com/MaajidNawaz/status/760574346167476225
For those of us who do not believe in any gods, IS has a specific message:
In the case of the atheist fringe, we hate you and wage war against you because you disbelieve in the existence of your Lord and Creator. You witness the extraordinarily complex makeup of created beings, and the astonishing and inexplicably precise physical laws that govern the entire universe, but insist that they all came about through randomness and that one should be faulted, mocked, and ostracized for recognizing that the astonishing signs we witness day after day are the creation of the Wise, All-Knowing Creator and not the result of accidental occurrence. “Or were they created by nothing, or were they the creators [of themselves]?” (At-Tur 35). Your disbelief in your Creator further leads you to deny the Day of Judgment, claiming that “you only live once.” “Those who disbelieve have claimed that they will never be resurrected. Say, ‘Yes, by my Lord, you will surely be resurrected; then you will surely be informed of what you did. And that, for Allah, is easy’” (At-Taghabun 7).
These arguments will sound familiar to those versed in Christian apologetics, of course, although it is difficult to find any modern sects dedicated to furthering the Christian gospel at the edge of a sword. Thank God.
Sam Harris has committed the entire statement by Islamic State to audio (with a certain amount of inline editorializing) in his most recent podcast:
https://twitter.com/SamHarrisOrg/status/765947303211376640
Sam’s reading of the jihadist manifesto begins around 19:43 into the episode.
Share and enjoy.
