You bumped a two year old thread for this? Could have just posted it there. Anyway, I don't agree at all. Over the years, as a response to the relentless stream of criticism directed at Islam and Muslims from all corners especially since the beginning of the 21st century, we have developed this coping mechanism where the no true scotsman fallacy is our go to response for any and all criticism. Declaring anyone whose actions or lifestyle we don't agree with not a true Muslim/real Muslim has become something of an easy way out and I don't buy that for a single moment, particularly since I have gone through that phase of declaring undesirable Muslims 'not real Muslims' myself when I was having trouble reconciling my faith with the world around me.
Ultimately, as far as I'm concerned, anyone who considers himself a Muslim i.e. proclaims his belief in Allah and the prophet, and lives lives mostly within the framework of Islam is a practicing Muslim. I don't believe in splitting hairs because that's a slippery slope with no end. If we start calling an otherwise normal Muslim who is corrupt, or doesn't pray five times or has any other imperfections not a true Muslim then where does this stop? Muslims with flawed characters are still Muslims as long as they don't openly denounce their faith. If everyone starts using their own definition of what constitutes a true/real/practicing Muslim based on what is convenient for them to make their point, there would be about five true Muslims out of the 108 billion people who have lived on this earth in the 200'000 odd years since human beings have existed.
My own transition from believer to non believer was very linear in that it was characterized by transitions between clearly defined stages, from practicing Muslim to non practicing one to agnostic to simply not believing, period. Until around the age of 17 I was deeply religious, 5 waqt ka namazi, read the quran with translation, hardly ever lied or violated any other major tenets. Between 17 and 23-24 I was what passes for non practicing Muslim in my book and 99% of Pakistanis are nowhere near what I was during my non-practicing stage with the majority, from what I've observed, actually closer to my practicing Muslim stage so as far as I'm concerned, the majority are practicing Muslims even if deeply flawed ones but then that's human nature and doesn't necessarily make one less of a Muslim.
Moin Akhtar is repeating the same cliches we've heard over and over again from the local cleric to the likes of Imran Khan who thinks Brits and Swedes would become better Muslims than Pakistanis simply by reciting the kalma. In my view that is absolutely not true and simply a way to account for the failure of Muslim societies without pointing a finger at the belief system itself. In other words, a way to make themselves feel better without indulging in too much introspection.
There are scholars who classify those who don't pray 5 times a day as kaffirs not that I'd one to be labelled one
If I read that I'd have goosebumps.
