Rifqa Bary Apostasy

Rifqa Bary has made lots of news after running away from her Muslim family and moving in with a Christian Reverend, claiming her parents wanted to kill her according to what she says are their Muslim laws for apostasy. But the parents claim this is not the case, and there's been widespread debate and uncertainty about whom to believe and what to make out of this very delicate issue.

Some have reported that Bary was "outed" by a local mosque that is known to be extremist, and that she could really be in serious danger, but others say this is all based on misunderstandings and distortion of Muslim law, and the parents are being falsely accused. According to this expert on Islam in the huffington post, the apostasy law Rifqa Bary claims her parents want to enforce on her is not actually meant to work that way, and the law was made in reference specifically to Muslim soldiers:

"The issue of apostasy is actually addressed in a controversial and oft-misunderstood law. Centuries ago, the apostasy law was actually a treason law, created to address what should happen when a soldier in a Muslim army converts to the other side and then fights against a Muslim country. That's the equivalent of an American working for the Soviet Union during the Cold War, or for the Nazis in World War II. Under U.S. law, treason is punishable by death."

I am by no means an expert on these issues and will not presume to take sides, but I hope a safe and healthy resolution can be found for the girl and her family, one way or another.

Rifqa Bary Apostasy
huff post

Fathima Rifqa Bary, who goes by Rifqa, is a 17-year-old from Columbus, Ohio who ran away from home -- not an uncommon occurrence for 17-year-olds. But the circumstances surrounding her story have opened a host of legal, cultural and theological issues.

Rifqa Bary Apostasy