Whenever Sufism comes up in an article it is always stressed that it is the "tolerant" branch of the religion of peace. I have never heard the word Sufism not prefaced with the word "tolerant." Apparently it's tolerance is part of what really makes it stick out. It seems almost unthinkingly applied. It's a cliche. The "mystical, tolerant Sufis." How tolerant are they, really? Just tolerant compared to all the other Muslims? What do these other Muslims think about the monopoly on tolerance Sufis seem to have? And does "tolerance" in this case, just mean "won't kill you?"
I don't know the answers to these questions. I see no reason to accept or reject that Sufis are, on the whole, tolerant. But the constant repition of the "tolerant Sufi" trope leads me to believe that there is a tacit admission that the rest of Islam is not all that tolerant. Why else are they always distinguished in this way?
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