“Now you’re on, finally!” Ismael typed. “Before the ground opens up and swallows you? When everyone interprets a holy book differently it’s not so holy.”
“I feel sorry for you, you’re so arrogant and think you have all the answers,” Ayan wrote, adding, “Where’s our dad? Answer me that.”
Again he was reticent when it came to their father. He wanted to be neither a spokesperson nor a messenger for their parents.
“You’re the one who thinks you’ve found the truth,” he answered.
“Islam is the truth,” came the response from Raqqa.
“You accept so many things I never thought you would. How can you believe it’s morally correct to force people to convert or pay a tax because they see things a different way?”
Ismael was referring to the system of jizya, a tax historically levied by Islamic states on non-Muslim subjects residing in their land.
“People in Norway are made to pay taxes as well. The unbelievers have to pay tax just as Muslims do, we pay zakat aka tax and they pay jizya aka tax. It’s fair and is just a tax by other names; I mean if Muslims have to pay taxes, why shouldn’t they pay too? How much tax do you pay in Norway at the moment? You pay approximately 36%, almost half of what you earn, you’re a slave without being aware of it, especially with all the oil Norway has.”
“Do you know where your taxes are going?”
“Yes, but think about how much you pay compared to how little we pay here. Do you know I get money from the state here?”
“Not working and being given money is not exactly something to brag about.”
“I don’t lift a finger and I get everything I need, money, doctors, medicine, a house, water, electricity, the lot!!!”
“You’re boasting about being handed everything on a silver platter. That’s Somali logic. ‘I’m on welfare in Norway.’ Hard to beat free money.”
“I have a right to what I’m given, we’re not demanding more than we’re entitled to. We are given our share of the money coming into the state.”
“You’re entitled to get things for free?”
“I’m entitled to have a share in the wealth of the Islamic State, yes. A proper welfare state.”
“You sound pretty spoiled if you ask me (nice to talk to you by the way).”
“Do you mean that or are you being sarcastic?”
“I mean it. Are you still married?”
“Yes, I’m still married hehe.”
“Same guy?”
“Yep. He’s still alive. In case you were wondering.”
“All you hyper-religious types think life is an action film starring you in the main roles on a mission to accomplish what God wants.”
“Life is not a Facebook like or a movie, it’s about what you choose to prioritize. You can view it in two ways, either live until you’re 80 before you die and then nothing. Or live until you die and after that life begins.”
“That’s so sweet,” Ismael replied.
“How was everything created? How did it all begin?” Ayan asked.
“That’s the beauty of it. I don’t believe the world was created for us but that we adapted to it. Let’s drop this ☺. Do you think it’s morally defensible to cut the hands off someone for stealing?”
Ayan suddenly disappeared, prompting a disappointed Ismael to ask, “Do you not want to talk anymore?”
She turned up again a half hour later. “Had to buy more internet access.”
Ismael repeated his question: “Well?”
“I think so, yeah, because when people see what the punishment is for stealing they won’t steal. We asked Syrians what they thought about life here now compared to before and they told us they feel safer. Crime has nosedived. Entire cities where drug use was endemic have become well-functioning societies. There are very few people here being punished now, I can promise you that,” she wrote, adding, “shock therapy.”
“So you don’t believe a person can change?”
“Of course they can change and you have no idea just how few people receive that punishment. What happens to people who break the law in Norway?”
“They’re punished in a humane way.”
“Yes, they receive a sentence; actions here have consequences. In any case, these questions have nothing to do with the existence of God.”
“They have to do with sharia/Koran so I regard them as relevant. Can you walk around town on your own?”
“Yep. I often go shopping actually.”
“And do you have to be home by a specific time?”
“That depends on where my husband draws the line and has nothing to do with the state. All the women here can walk the streets ALONE.”
“So you can’t do anything your husband doesn’t want?”
“Of course I can.”
“Seeing as how you were created from his rib. Eh? You can?”
“Yes.”
“Are you punished? Can he strike you?”
“No and no! You know that my husband is from Norway, right?”
“Sure, but if it was written in sharia you would probably have accepted it, since you’re going to heaven anyway ☺ right? Have women as many rights as men?”
“Yes.”
“Why don’t men have to cover themselves?”
“They do. They have to cover parts of their bodies as well.”
“Their faces*. It seems very strange if you ask me. I find it offensive to men that women have to cover themselves up because men can’t exercise self-control. What a load of bull.”
“It’s for the sake of our honor, everyone shouldn’t be made to look at my body. What good has it brought the world that people walk around half-naked?”
“Joy! But on a serious note, I think it’s disrespectful to assume that I’m going to rape a girl just because she’s half-naked.”
“Nobody assumes that.”
“Religion is so regional. People are born into the ‘right’ religion and indoctrinated not to listen to what other people have to say.”
“Do I not know more about Christianity than many Christians? Eh … Don’t I know a good deal about Judaism and the other world religions? Why did I choose Islam?”
“Because from the time you were small, innocent, and ignorant you were forced to believe in Islam. Right up until you liked it.”
“I was never forced.”
“You
