Originally Posted by
sefrimutro
I won't be apologizing or justifying what any fellow Muslim says. They're responsible for themselves.
I will however, mention that there are contexts in which people respond in specific ways provided some cues. I'm not a fan of lapidation for instance, but /if/ it's prescribed by our God, I'd agree with it. The issue is that we're human, and don't always understand what Allah wants. Or in western terms: religion is man-made. It eventually comes down to how literally one takes the scriptures, and that needs contextualization: I do agree with many metaphorical punishments provided the sins are also metaphorical; once we get down to implementation in the real, modern world, not so much.
Yes, some gatherings are a hotbed for radicalization. Some others aren't. But I'm happy that these happen in the open, and can be debated. Granted I'm the minority that thinks Islam should relinquish any claim to state managing, but such is the story of religions: Christianity is considered mild today because it was domesticated, not eradicated.