By actually reading what Muslims say about their beliefs you might learn why Muslims "bother with the ancient benighted belief system". If you're not interested in that, then you're not interested.
But I already know why they bother with it. They bother with it because they were born into it and were indoctrinated at an early age.
I quoted Mark6 so that your words would have context. He didn't use 'jihad' -- you used that word. Mark6 used: 'war against infidels'.
I'm sure that's very, very significant to you, in a way that only you can comprehend.
Do you deny that militant Muslims use the term 'jihad' in reference to war against infidels?
Then you replied:
"The call for jihad is the centerpiece of the religion. If the majority of Muslims disagree, then why do they even bother with the ancient benighted belief system? Are they afraid their Muslim brothers will murder them if they renounce Islam?"
Which is very important to you, because you are currently engaged in a dishonest "jihad" to pretend that "holy war against indfidels" is not one of the contextual meanings of "jihad". You won't fool many with that ploy, but those you do fool will believe I am totally ignorant of the meaning of 'jihad'.
Perhaps the authors of the online dictionary are also totally ignorant:
ji·had also je·had (j-häd)
n.
1. Islam An individual's striving for spiritual self-perfection.
2. Islam A Muslim holy war or spiritual struggle against infidels.
3. A crusade or struggle: "The war against smoking is turning into a jihad against people who smoke" (Fortune).
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And the authors of the American Heritage® Dictionary:
jihad, jehad [dʒɪˈhæd]
n
1. (Non-Christian Religions / Islam) Islam a holy war against infidels undertaken by Muslims in defence of the Islamic faith
2. (Non-Christian Religions / Islam) Islam the personal struggle of the individual believer against evil and persecution
3. Rare a crusade in support of a cause
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And thereby miss out on WHY educated people say the things they do.
And you, no doubt, count yourself among the "educated", knowing a lot of tedious details about Muslim religious beliefs. But IMV, that just means you've wasted a lot of time learning all the tedious little details of a false belief system, when you could have simply looked up anything you actually needed to know.
Tediously aquired knowledge which you now clearly have no use for, or you wouldn't be wasting even more of your time busting my balls about it, trying to make it all appear quite meaningful and portentious.
Bottom line: Stop kidding yourself. I know exactly why pseudo-intellectual progressives say the things they do.