A good point, and one at the heart of the matter.
Here are a bunch of suidical Jihdists claiming they are obeying the command of Allah to kill the infidels.
Here is a major religion without any centralized authority.
What is a good Muslim to do? Condemn wanton murder and perhaps
run afoul of Allah? Or speak out on a moral level and be sneared to death by other Muslims. Most major religions put a limit on their extreme elements.
It seems the Prophet left out an important piece of control. How to correct heresy within Islam.
We need more Muslims with conscience.
I don't think it was "left out", it was purposely omitted. By actively forbidding any sort of public critique or debate over doctrine, any religion can sow the seeds of its own destruction. A good example is the pre-Reformation Catholic church, which punished anyone who actively questioned the pronouncements coming from Rome. Luckily for all of us, the Catholic hierarchy has kind of caught on over the years.
Quite a few Protestant denominations have no central church hierarchy. They do, however, have voluntary organizations which police their member congregations.
A hierarchy is not necessary. The police function absolutely is. AND a healthy debate over doctrine and Kuran interpretation will also help in policing "heresy".
No intention to insult any Catholics here, but from the standpoint of openness and toleration of debate, Islam is where the Catholics were pre-Reformation. Islam needs a reformation.