media terminology

A bit confused, can brothers and sisters share with me what they understand what is meant by the following terms that the media use when instead of describing a person the following terms are used to describe a muslim,

RADICAL

EXTREMIST

ISLAMIST

FUNDAMENTALIST

MODERATE - THINK THIS IS THE ONLY ONE I UNDERSTAND

1st four are for those people who PRACTICALLY implement the TOTAL deen/shariah (as commanded by Allah SWT and revealed to Mohammed SAW and as practiced by him and his noble companions RAD and as understood from their lives by our ulama of ahle sunnah wal jamaat) in their FULL lives or at least try or aspire to it or agree with it.

Last one is for those that have no intention of doing the above or try to themselves cut out the sunnah, the sunnah/lives of sahabah and ulama and try to interpret deen/shariah (i.e Quran and Hadith) using modern thoughts/philosophys.

EXTREMIST = Muslim

ISLAMIST = Muslim

FUNDAMENTALIST = Muslim

MODERATE - Kaafir (usually have to change your beliefs to fit in with the description)

The description of a 'moderate' Muslim as painted by the Media is often, of that of a Kaafir. I am not suggesting any particular person but the underlying beliefs.

For example, a 'moderate' muslim would have to hold beliefs against the Quran and Sunnah.

So I am not labelling but suggesting that the western view of a moderate muslim is at odds with the basic tenets of Islam.

i think the media's ideaI musIim is one who beIives onIy but does not practice but even that is quite risky from their point of view as if the beIief (roots) are there then practice in most cases is not far behind inshaIIah

The moderate Muslim wishes to change the religion so that it fits with his life. This is no longer Islam. For example, to not pray Salaat, is a sin. However to believe Salaat is not required of a Muslim, would be Kufr.

we hear many times where a person who has lived a life of complete sin goes on to accept Islam and recites the kalimah at the throes of death, as vice versa many a times a person who has led a whole life of piety rejects Islam and the ability to recite the kalimah is taken away fromm such a person at the time of death. May Allah swt protect and guide all of us the believers and non-believers.

from my understanding, a moderate muslim is someone who sits on the fence enjoying the view of his/her own garden and the next door neighbours, neither does this person want to get off the fence to either sit in his/her own garden or sit in the neighbours garden (which wouldnt make sense to do). one who does such a thing is living in fear and is not strong enough in faith to make a firm decision, no matter what, at the end of the day every individual knows right from wrong, the time has gone to be just sitting on the fence watching the world go by. I have met many moderate thinking people and from my understanding which isnt all that, is that such people lack knowledge and understanding of deen, it is only knowledge that can give us the ability to practice the deen in its entirety.

with respect to the above comment re lifestyle, this is not a question about beliefs but practice. not living according to quran and sunnah is one thing but to deny its authencity is another thing completely.

in essence, my grieviance is with the term, since all muslims are fundamentalists, since we all must accept the fundamentals of the quran and sunnah. the only difference is that some are practicing and some are not (but do not deny that they are sinful). the media would not regard these muslims as moderate, since they do not accept homosexuality etc.

increasingly their idea of a 'moderate' would be someone who is willing to conform to western thinking and believes that Islam should also change.

....and all this time i thought the media got it wrong.