PhillyKevin,

You are the dumb ass, an ignorant dumb ass who is either a muslim or a liberal who have no idea what Islam is all about and also clearly don't know our history.

Answer these:

1. Why do you think muslims are busy terrorizing and killing people all over the world?

2. Why do you think in every country, once the muslim population gets to 4% or more, they start demanding to be allowed to start using Islamic law called sharia law?

3. What will happen in our country when muslims start asking for sharia law here?

For the sake of our country's future, we must find a way to ban Islam here. If we have to amend our constitution to ban Islam, then that's what we need to do. Islam is evil and does not belong in any civilized society.

Phillykevin, I notice you did not answer the questions. Islam is indefensible. And if you think you can defend the indefensible, then answer the questions. I will restate them and add two more:

Answer these:

1. Why do you think muslims are busy terrorizing and killing people all over the world?

2. Why do you think in every country, once the muslim population gets to 4% or more, they start demanding to be allowed to start using Islamic law called sharia law?

3. What will happen in our country when muslims start asking for sharia law here?

4. In Egypt, muslims are free to repair their mosques and build new mosques whenever they want, but currently repairs to churches or construction of new churches is not allowed?

5. When we travelled to Saudi Arabia, they did not allow us to bring our Bibles into the country. Why do you think in Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia, it is a crime to have a Bible?

I'll answer you stupid speech moron.

Terrorism is universal and not just islamic. What about your christian fellows in Ireland or the japanese groups that detonated chemical weapons in a tokyo subway ? What about the Timorese ? You must really be stupid to actually think you can psuedo organize your thought sinto bullet points that others will believe.

I'll put this forth and ask you to answer it? WHO was it that CRUSADED into the middle east with bibles and swords and crucified anyone that didn't believe their religion ? CHRISTIANS.

Who is that helps jews STEAL Palestinian land then sends heavy weponry and earth moving machines to keep Palestinians prisoners? CHRISTIANS.

Who is that purvey hate and phobia in the west against what is actually a peaceful religion practiced by the majority of the world? CHRISTIANS.

WHO was it that dropped NUCLEAR WEAPONS on an entire country claiming it would save more lives ? (more american lives) CHRISTIANS

Who was it that murdered a MILLION Iraqi children in a war over oil and zionist beliefs ? CHRISTIANS.

AND YES, I AM A CHRISTIAN but that doesn't make us right automatically.

I see my own religion as having been hijacked by sex starved priests preying on little boys no less.

I see my religion as a TOOL used b y zionists the world over to rile people over then to join the army and go kill civilians in other countries.

I see my religion as having been stupidified and dumbed down to the most basic commercial technices on TV. Are you saying that people like jimmy swaggart are any better than the bearded mullas in Iran ? I don't think so. At least they don't screw hookers then get back on the pulpit.

A TRUE CHRISTIAN behaves well and treats people with respect no matter where they come from but most of you are not Christians. Most of you are americans with a zeal for hate and murder ... STOP using my religion for HATE and KILLING @!$%#s.

Pleaseeeee. don't claim to be a Christian Your IGNORANCE is astounding. do you really believe the left wing propaganda about a million Iraqi children being killed by America. PROVE IT.

If they would only teach REAL history in the schools instead of LIBERAL indoctrinated revisionist history we would all be better off.

Now here's a point you might deeply consider: The neologism "Islamophobia" did not simply emerge ex nihilo. It was invented, deliberately, by a Muslim Brotherhood front organization, the International Institute for Islamic Thought, which is based in Northern Virginia. If that name dimly rings a bell, it should: I've mentioned it before, and it's particularly important because it was co-founded by Anwar Ibrahim--the hero of Moderate Islam who is now trotting around the globe comparing his plight to that of Aung San Suu Kyi.

Abdur-Rahman Muhammad, a former member of the IIIT who has renounced the group in disgust, was an eyewitness to the creation of the word. "This loathsome term," he writes,

is nothing more than a thought-terminating cliche conceived in the bowels of Muslim think tanks for the purpose of beating down critics.

In another article concerning the many moderate Muslims whose voices have been drowned out by Saudi-financed Muslim Brotherhood front groups, Muhammad describes the strategy behind the word's invention:

In an effort to silence critics of political Islam, advocates needed to come up with terminology that would enable them to portray themselves as victims. Muhammad said he was present when his then-allies, meeting at the offices of the International Institute for Islamic Thought (IIIT) in Northern Virginia years ago, coined the term "Islamophobia."

Muhammad said the Islamists decided to emulate the homosexual activists who used the term "homophobia" to silence critics. He said the group meeting at IIIT saw "Islamophobia" as a way to "beat up their critics."

Really imagine that scene: a bunch of Islamists admiring how astutely the queers--people who in their ideal world would be served with the lash or hanged--had portrayed their critics as mentally disturbed. Brilliant. Let's take a leaf from them and then kill them. The association of anti-Islamism--the noblest form of liberal anti-totalitarianism--with gay-bashing rednecks in the grip of a psychosexual panic was not just one of those linguistic accidents of history, in other words. These guys were sitting there in Virginia and really thinking about the best way to exploit the weaknesses of the Western psyche. They came up with this word--and admit it, it's clever; I challenge you to find a better one if you want to yank the West's chain--and they marketed it with petrodollars, and now it truly does drive public discourse and policy the world over. I was asked when I was recently on a Turkish television news show whether the Tea Party was "Islamophobic." That's what they're hearing here in Turkey, thanks to the IIIT. It's not an indigenous Turkish concept, I assure you....

Muslim 682 The Prophet said: "Do not stone the adulteress who is pregnant until she has had her child. After the birth she was put into a ditch up to her chest and the Prophet commanded them to stone her. Khalid came forward with a stone which he threw at her head, and there spurted blood on the face of Khalid and he cursed her"

I'm thinking if the founder of the ideology who is admired as the perfect example for all could justify stoning to death for adultery that makes honor killing justified by islam.

Dictums of Quran and Hadiths which may dictate/incite honor killing:

Quran- 4:15 "If any of your women are guilty of lewdness, take the evidence of four (reliable) witness from amongst you against them; if they testify, confine them to houses until death do claim them. Or God ordain for them some (other) way."

Quran-24:2 "The woman and the man guilty of adultery or fornication—flog each of them with hundred stripes: Let no compassion move you in their case, in a matter prescribed by God, if ye believe in God and the last day."

Quran-17:32 " Nor come nigh to adultery: for it is a shameful (deed) and an evil, opening the road (to other evils).

Quran-33:33 "stay quietly in your houses, and make not a dazzling display."

Now some sahih hadiths:

Bukhari: Volume 7, Book 63, Number 196:
Narrated Abu Huraira: A man from Bani Aslam came to Allah's Apostle while he was in the mosque and called (the Prophet ) saying, "O Allah's Apostle! I have committed illegal sexual intercourse." On that the Prophet turned his face from him to the other side, whereupon the man moved to the side towards which the Prophet had turned his face, and said, "O Allah's Apostle! I have committed illegal sexual intercourse." The Prophet turned his face (from him) to the other side whereupon the man moved to the side towards which the Prophet had turned his face, and repeated his statement. The Prophet turned his face (from him) to the other side again. The man moved again (and repeated his statement) for the fourth time. So when the man had given witness four times against himself, the Prophet called him and said, "Are you insane?" He replied, "No." The Prophet then said (to his companions), "Go and stone him to death." The man was a married one. Jabir bin 'Abdullah Al-Ansari said: I was one of those who stoned him. We stoned him at the Musalla ('Id praying place) in Medina. When the stones hit him with their sharp edges, he fled, but we caught him at Al-Harra and stoned him till he died.
(See also Bukhari: Volume 7, Book 63, Number 195.)

Sahi Bukhari: 8:6814:
Narrated Jabir bin Abdullah al-Ansari: "A man from the tribe of Bani Aslam came to Allah's Messenger [Muhammad] and informed him that he had committed illegal sexual intercourse; and he bore witness four times against himself. Allah's Messenger ordered him to be stoned to death as he was a married person."

Sahi Muslim No. 4206:
"A woman came to the prophet and asked for purification by seeking punishment. He told her to go away and seek God's forgiveness. She persisted four times and admitted she was pregnant. He told her to wait until she had given birth. Then he said that the Muslim community should wait until she had weaned her child. When the day arrived for the child to take solid food, Muhammad handed the child over to the community. And when he had given command over her and she was put in a hole up to her breast, he ordered the people to stone her. Khalid b. al-Walid came forward with a stone which he threw at her head, and when the blood spurted on her face he cursed her."

Sahih Al-Bukhari Vol 2. pg 1009; and Sahih Muslim Vol 2. pg 65:
Hadhrat Abdullah ibne Abbaas (Radiallahu Anhu) narrates the lecture that Hadhrat Umar (Radiallaahu Anhu) delivered whilst sitting on the pulpit of Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wa Sallam). Hadhrat Umar (Radiallahu Anhu) said, "Verily, Allah sent Muhammad (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) with the truth, and revealed the Quran upon him. The verse regarding the stoning of the adulterer/ess was from amongst the verse revealed (in the Quraan). We read it, secured it and understood it. Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) stoned and we stoned after him. I fear that with the passage of time a person might say, 'We do not find mention of stoning in the Book of Allah and thereby go astray by leaving out an obligation revealed by Allah. Verily, the stoning of a adulterer/ress is found in the Quraan and is the truth, if the witnesses are met or there is a pregnancy or confession."

Al-Bukhari:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Whoever guarantees me that he will guard his chastity, I will guarantee him Paradise".

Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, An-Nisa'i and others:
Abu Hurayrah reports that the Messenger of Allah said, "No one commits adultery while still remaining a believer, for faith is more precious unto Allah than such an evil act!" In another version, it is stated, "When a person commits adultery he casts away from his neck the bond that ties him to Islam; if, however, he repents, Allah will accept his repentance".

Al-Bayhaqi:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "O mankind! Beware of fornication/adultery for it entails six dire consequences: three of them relating to this world and three to the next world. As for the three that are related to this world, they are the following: it removes the glow of one's face, brings poverty, and reduces the life-span. As for its dire consequences in the next world they are: it brings down the wrath of Allah upon the person, subjects him to terrible reckoning, and finally casts him in hell-fire."

Strangled: Banaz Mahmood Banaz Mahmood's executioners - her father and her uncle

The above Quranic verses and authentic sahih hadiths clearly demonstrate beyond doubt that Prophet Muhammad, under Allah's direction, stoned adulterers to death and flogged fornicators. Allah's decree/choice of death for fornicators (Quran: 4:15) and flogging adulteress 100 times with no mercy (Quran: 24:2, which also could lead to certain death) has clearly sanctioned/dictated dreadful punishment for sexual intercourse outside marriage. It is from these scriptural divine spirits Iranian fundamentalist Islamic government practices stoning and flogging adulterers even today. The Iranian Supreme Court sanctioned that an adulteress should be buried up to her chest and stoned to death. Mullahs of Iran know the hadiths quite well. This august body is closely following Allah's prophet. It is also quite prudent to consider that Muslim parents those who are practicing honor killing are directly motivated, or influenced by the above scriptural and historical (Hadiths) support; hence they are able to commit heinous crime called 'honor killing' with (almost) impunity, exultantly and with ample satisfaction that they are following the strict Islamic ethical code to guard chastity, as the holy Prophet repeatedly cautioned Muslims so seriously to guard their women's chastity.

Islamic ethics for adultery:

The Arabic word 'Zina' means all extramarital sexual intercourse between a man and a woman. According to Islam "Zina" constituted social suicide—an entire society commits suicide over time if it allows fornication and adultery to go unpunished in the Islamic style. As per Islamic justice—unmarried fornicators receive a hundred stripes, but married adulterers must die by stoning, as described in the sahih hadiths.

Opinion of some famous Islamists about Zina

The Saudi Ambassador to London, Ghazi al-Qusaibi, says that stoning may seem irrational to the western mind, but it is "at the core of the Islamic faith." An intellectual, the Saudi ambassador to London asserted that stoning adulterers to death is a legitimate punishment for society. He also says that Westerners should respect Muslin culture on this matter.

Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:
"Adultery in Islam is one of the most heinous and deadliest of sins. Its enormity can be gauged from the fact that it has often been conjoined in the Qur'an with the gravest of all sins: shirk or associating partners with Allah."

Hani Ramadan head of the Islamic Center in Geneva (Hani Ramadan is the elder brother of famed Swiss Muslim intellectual Tarek Ramadan, who are both the grandsons of Hassan Al-Banna, the founder of Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.) stated,
"Islam has taken a firm and decisive stance against Zina (fornication or adultery). Allah, the Almighty, commands in explicit and unequivocal words: "And come not near unto adultery. Lo! it is an abomination and an evil way." (Al-Isra': 32)."

Mufti Muhammad Aashiq Illahi Muhajir Madani (Illuminating Discourses on the Noble Qur'an, Karachi, Pakistan, Zam Zam, 2003) also follows this tactic of describing society that does not undergo Islamic punishments for the two sexual crimes. Families fall into ruin, which means society also is ruined. Sexual sins also cause widespread disease (vol. 6, pp. 360-66).

Al Skudsi bin Hookah , (roving reporter and foreign correspondent for The Gaza Gajeera.):
"I am very unhappy. Our way of life is under attack. And we are not fighting back. Deep down, we know that when a woman has disgraced her family, nothing will restore honor except by killing her. This is understood in Jordan, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Egypt, the Gaza strip and the West Bank. So why are we Arabs telling the Western press that honor killing is cultural, that it is not really part of Islam? Our way of life is based on maintaining our honor. And make no mistake about it: a woman does tarnish her family's honor by engaging in pre-marital sex, or by getting herself raped, when she seeks divorce and when she marries against her family's wishes. And keeping our women pure is a big part of our honor. So there's no point saying honor killing isn't really part of our religion. Honor and Islam are inextricably bound; they are what give our life meaning. A strong religion demands we choose to maintain our honor."

Bassam al-Hadid, (A Jordanian with an American doctorate who spent 12 years as a hospital administrator in the United States): "I would do what I have to do," said, when asked whether he would kill a daughter who had sex outside marriage."

Status of Women in Muslim society:

According to Islamic tradition the woman is an object owned by the man who assumes responsibility for her behavior and her life. The social and religious traditions lead to the isolation of the woman in her home. She is required to cover her entire body in order to maintain the honor of the man. In Qur'an, prophetic tradition and law, one finds a very strong presumption of women's chastity along with numerous safeguards to prevent any imputation of un-chastity A Muslim feminist sexual ethics must help create the conditions for the Qur'anic and traditional values of modesty and chastity to be lived by Muslim women and men in ways that are faithfully chosen and equitably maintained.

Social Status of Women in Muslim Society

A woman who is either raped or commits adultery becomes the source of shame to her family. People will not marry her because she has been spoiled; she and her family becomes the object of gossip of everyone in the society; hence the entire family can lose prestige. No one would give a daughter to the brothers of that girl in marriage and no one would marry her sisters. The family and even the extended family are maligned and become outcasts. This can only stop if the family cleanses that stain with blood. The woman thus defiled must be killed even if she is a victim of rape.

Role of Misogynistic attitude in Islam:

Islam is dreadfully anti-women. This statement can be proven with 100% guarantee by the well known and established fact that—women folks in every Muslim country in general, and in every Islamic paradise (country where Islamic Shariaat is enforced) in particular, are severely subjugated, oppressed, and considered less than second class citizen. Women in Islam are considered half human and in the Quran women have half the rights of men, sister has half the rights of brother, and women are considered deficient in intelligence.

Practically and Literally Islam consider women as the sources of great shame. Prophet Muhammad said women are awrah which can be translated as object of shame. What is awrah? The Encyclopedia of Islam defines 'awrah'as pudendum, which is the external genitals, especially of the female. The word Pudendum derives from the Latin pudor which means sense of shame and modesty. Therefore, awrah signify an object of shame that needs to be covered.

Interestingly, in the Indian sub-continent (Bangladesh-India-Pakistan)—women have another alternative name calling, in spite of having their usual name for the English word woman in the respective language. And this famous name calling is "Auraat" and common in all the three countries of the Indian sub-continent. Obviously this common word "Auraat" for women came from the Arabic word Awrah. This common word "Auraat" is usually used as the synonym for woman with empathy, hatred, mercy and shame.

According to the following Hadiths, women not only have ten 'awrah, but the woman herself is perceived as 'awrah: "The woman is 'awrah. When she goes outside (the house), the devil welcomes her" (Ihy'a 'Uloum ed-Din by Ghazali, Dar al-Kotob al-'Elmeyah, Beirut , Vol II, Kitab Adab al-Nikah, p. 65. Reported by Tirmizi as a true and good Ahadith).

Hazrat Ali (rightly guided Caliph) reported the Prophet saying:
"Women have ten ('awrah). When she gets married, the husband covers one, and when she dies the grave covers the ten." ( Kanz-el-'Ummal, Vol. 22, Hadith No. 858. See also Ihy'a).

In most fanatical Islamic nations when a woman loses her awrah by e.g. through rape, she becomes the object of shame for her entire family, and also for the society. Only way to remove that shame and restore the honor is to remove that defiled woman. It is practiced in most Islamic countries with a regular pattern. The more religious is a country, the more is widespread the honor killing. As for example, Pakistan a Muslim majority nation did not have practice of honor killing until the fanatic and despotic Military dictator General Ziaul Hoq came to power. This despotic ruler by his decade long dictatorship turned Pakistan into an Islamic Sharia country. Along with intense acceleration of making Pakistan into a hub of Talibans, and Islamic terrorist's country, citizens of Pakistan also started vigorous practicing of honor killing on a regular basis.

Conclusion:

Judging everything I have described in this essay, one can very genuinely lead to the conclusion that 'honor killing' is indeed the vice of Islam. Islam has much to do with honor killing practices which only do exist amongst the Muslims of the world. Had it been un-Islamic practice, we would have seen some Muslim nations prohibiting such cruel practice by Sharia law. We have not seen any Muslim country did enact any such law to curve honor killing. We have seen innumerable cases of fatwas by Mullahs to prohibit alcohol drinking, pork eating or listening western music; but never ever heard any such fatwa against honor killing. Rather, honor killing has silent support from the devout Islamists of all kinds. Islamists condone honor killing silently! No wonder that the Al Skudsi bin Hookah (reported of Gazagejeera) so passionately said: "So there's no point saying honor killing isn't really part of our religion. Honor and Islam are inextricably bound; they are what give our life meaning. A strong religion demands we choose to maintain our honor."

One may argue that Quran does not say clearly about honor killing! Fact is there are plenty of things Muslims practice that are also not mentioned in the Quran. Stoning death also not available in the Quran. Yet Iranian Islamic government does practice stoning death by the decree of Islamic court. Afghan Taliban government did routinely practice stoning and flogging of adulterers. Most importantly, Quran did not create any scriptural instruction to ban the so called Arab tribal practice of "honor killing" either! Besides, if the honor killing was simply a tribal practice—then it would have been prevailed amongst the Arabs of all religions. There is no evidence to support that a Christian or Jewish family of Jordan or Palestine did practice honor killing.

Muslims who are stunningly devout and laden with Islamic superstitious beliefs do commit crime of Honor killing to fulfill their obligation of preserving Islamic ethics, and women chastity. The more a country gets fanatically religious the more frequent are honor killings (Pakistan is a perfect example). Islam has incorporated many pre-Islamic practices of Arab pagans (stoning deaths, flogging the fornicators, slavery, war booty, beheading the criminals, cutting hands and foots of thieves, many rituals of animal sacrifice, annual pilgrimage to Mecca etc.) and readily called them Islamic or Allah's laws. Honor killing is one such pre-Islamic practice of Arab pagans which has been practicing by some devout Muslim families of many good Islamic nations of the world.

Because of the fact that the "honor killings" do have silent support from Islam, the killers are given light sentences, sometimes with little or no jail time at all. The killers are primarily influenced by Islamic ethics, and mainly defend their act of murder by referring to the Koran and Islam. They usually justify their evil deeds by the directives set down in the Islamic ethical beliefs and principles. Koran is very strict and belligerent regarding how to control women's sexuality, and Islamic Law; Sharia, rules harsh punishments including lashing and stoning to death for women's voluntary sexual activities. And it is because of these Islamic elements of support, no Islamic government dares to enact any criminal law to ban this barbaric slaughtering of innocent family girls. Even then some Islamists will still say that "honor killing" has nothing to do with Islam; just the way they say "Islamic terrorism" has nothing to do with the so called peaceful Islam. Their hypocritical denial is utter nonsense and stupendously deceptive. I urge those Islamists to tell us why this "honor killing" never happens among the non-Muslim Arab families? They must also tell us—why no Arab and non-Arab Muslim government dare to make any strict law to ban honor killings in their land?

Denying the truth is tantamount to committing this heinous crime to humanity, and denying will never solve this chronic problem of Islamic nations. Only way honor killing can be stopped is to admit the truth (real cause), and stop controlling public lives by the draconian laws (Sharia) of Islam. Let there be a strict separation of 'Mosque and State' in every Muslim majority nation of the world. Honor killing will definitely cease to exist.
References:

1. Honor killing-maintaining family honor: by Al Skudsi bin Hookah, roving reporter and foreign correspondent for The Gaza Gajeera. Jan 20, 2003

2. The Seattle Times: 'Honor killing' shakes up Sweden after man slays daughter who wouldn't wed: By Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times Link.

3. Culture of death? Palestinian girl's murder highlights growing number of 'honor killings'. Link

4. Honor Killing: By Ali Sina Link

5. The Holy Qur'an, Translated by A. Yousuf Ali, Published by Amana Corporation, Brentwood, Maryland, 1983

6. Buchari Sharif, Bengali Translation by Maulana Muhammad Mustafizur Rahman, Sulemani Printers and Publishers, Dhaka, Second edition-1999.

7. "Crimes of Honour" Women's Tragedy under Islam & Tribal Customs By Azam Kamiguian.

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Syed Kamran Mirza is the author of Roots of Terrorism in Islam. He has also contributed in

Very well stated.....Spot on.

then why are you here reading the comments?

Yes, Liz...Pamela Geller is so crazy, she imagines that a Muslim immigrant recently drove his car over his daughter until she was dying and then tried to flee back to his native country, only to be arrested at the airport. Honor killings do exist and we must have zero tolerance for them.

And as for that "islamophobic" thing...I read that a Muslim leader adopted the term from the "homophobic" label, which is rather ironical, considering that the Muslims have zero tolerance for gays.

From Islam....

Question:

Does the Quran really contain dozens of verses promoting
violence?

Summary Answer:

The Quran contains at least 109 verses that call Muslims to war with
nonbelievers for the sake of Islamic rule. Some are quite graphic, with
commands to chop off heads and fingers and kill infidels wherever they may be
hiding. Muslims who do not join the fight are called
'hypocrites' and warned that Allah will send them to Hell if they do not join
the slaughter.

Unlike nearly all of the Old
Testament verses of violence, the verses of violence in the Quran are mostly
open-ended, meaning that they are not restrained by the historical context of
the surrounding text. They are part of the eternal, unchanging word of Allah,
and just as relevant or subjective as anything else in the Quran.

Most of today's Muslims exercise a personal choice to interpret their holy
book's many calls to violence according to what their own moral preconceptions
find justificable. Apologists cater to their preferences with tenuous arguments
that gloss over historical fact and generally do not stand up to scrutiny.
Still, it is important to note that the problem is not bad people,
but bad ideology.

Unfortunately, there are very few verses of tolerance and peace to abrogate
or even balance out the many that call for nonbelievers to be fought and subdued
until they either accept humiliation, convert to Islam, or are killed.
Muhammad's own martial legacy - and that of his companions - along with the
remarkable stress on violence found in the Quran have produced a trail of blood
and tears across world history.

The Quran:

Quran
(2:191-193) - "And slay them wherever ye find them, and drive them out of
the places whence they drove you out, for persecution [of
Muslims] is worse than slaughter [of non-believers]... but if they
desist, then lo! Allah is forgiving and merciful. And fight them until
persecution is no more, and religion is for Allah." The historical
context of this passage is not defensive warfare, since Muhammad and
his Muslims had just relocated to Medina and were not under attack by
their Meccan adversaries. In fact, the verses urge offensive warfare, in
that Muslims are to drive Meccans out of their own city (which they later
did). The use of the word "persecution" by some Muslim translators is thus disingenuous (the actual Muslim words for persecution - "idtihad" - and oppression - a variation of "z-l-m" - do not appear in the verse). The actual Arabic comes from "fitna" which can mean disbelief, or the disorder that results from unbelief or temptation. Taken as a whole, the context makes clear that violence is being authorized until "religion is for Allah" - ie.
unbelievers desist in their unbelief.

Quran
(2:244) - "Then fight in the cause of Allah, and know that Allah Heareth
and knoweth all things."

Quran
(2:216) - "Fighting is prescribed
for you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which
is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah
knoweth, and ye know not." Not only does this verse establish that violence
can be virtuous, but it also contradicts the myth that fighting is intended only
in self-defense, since the audience was obviously not under attack at the time.
From the Hadith, we know that this verse was narrated at a time that Muhammad
was actually trying to motivate his people into raiding
merchant caravans for loot.

Quran
(3:56) - "As to those who reject faith, I will punish them with terrible
agony in this world and in the Hereafter, nor will they have anyone to
help."

Quran
(3:151) - "Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers,
for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no
authority". This speaks directly of polytheists, yet it also includes
Christians, since they believe in the Trinity (ie. what Muhammad incorrectly
believed to be 'joining companions to Allah').

Quran
(4:74) - "Let those fight in the way of Allah who sell the life of this
world for the other. Whoso fighteth in the way of Allah, be he slain or be he
victorious, on him We shall bestow a vast reward." The martyrs of Islam are
unlike the early Christians, led meekly to the slaughter. These Muslims are
killed in battle, as they attempt to inflict death and destruction for the cause
of Allah. Here is the theological basis for today's suicide bombers.

Quran
(4:76) - "Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah…"

Quran
(4:89) - "They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus
be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until
they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn
renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case)
take no friends or helpers from their ranks."

Quran
(4:95) - "Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and receive no
hurt, and those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah with their goods and
their persons. Allah hath granted a grade higher to those who strive and fight
with their goods and persons than to those who sit (at home). Unto all (in
Faith) Hath Allah promised good: But those who strive and fight Hath He
distinguished above those who sit (at home) by a special reward,-" This
passage criticizes "peaceful" Muslims who do not join in the violence, letting
them know that they are less worthy in Allah's eyes. It also demolishes the
modern myth that "Jihad" doesn't mean holy war in the Quran, but rather a
spiritual struggle. Not only is the Arabic word used in this passage, but it is
clearly not referring to anything spiritual, since the physically
disabled are given exemption. (The Hadith reveals the context of the passage to
be in response to a blind man's protest that he is unable to engage in Jihad and
this is reflected in other translations of the verse).

Quran
(4:104) - "And be not weak hearted in pursuit of the enemy; if you suffer
pain, then surely they (too) suffer pain as you suffer pain..." Is pursuing
an injured and retreating enemy really an act of self-defense?

Quran
(5:33) - "The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His
messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should
be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on
opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for
them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous
chastisement"

Quran
(8:12) - "I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve.
Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them" No
reasonable person would interpret this to mean a spiritual struggle.

Quran
(8:15) - "O ye who believe! When ye meet those who disbelieve in battle,
turn not your backs to them. (16)Whoso on that day turneth his back to them,
unless maneuvering for battle or intent to join a company, he truly hath
incurred wrath from Allah, and his habitation will be hell, a hapless journey's
end."

Quran
(8:39) - "And fight with them until there is no more fitna (disorder,
unbelief) and religion should be only for Allah" Some translations
interpret "fitna" as "persecution", but the traditional understanding of this
word is not supported by the historical context (See notes for 2:293, also).
The Meccans were simply refusing Muhammad access to their city during Haj.
Other Muslims were allowed to travel there - just not as an armed group, since
Muhammad had declared war on Mecca prior to his eviction. The Meccans were also
acting in defense of their religion, since it was Muhammad's intention to
destroy their idols and establish Islam by force (which he later did). Hence
the critical part of this verse is to fight until "religion is only for
Allah", meaning that the true justification of violence was the unbelief of
the opposition. According to the Sira (Ibn Ishaq/Hisham 324) Muhammad further
explains that "Allah must have no rivals."

Quran
(8:57) - "If thou comest on them in the war, deal with them so as to
strike fear in those who are behind them, that haply they may remember."

Quran
(8:59-60) - "And let not those who disbelieve suppose that they can
outstrip (Allah's Purpose). Lo! they cannot escape. Make ready for them all
thou canst of (armed) force and of horses tethered, that thereby ye may dismay
the enemy of Allah and your enemy."

Quran
(8:65) - "O Prophet, exhort the believers to fight..."

Quran
(9:5) - "So when the sacred months have passed away, then slay the
idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captives and besiege them and
lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and
pay the poor-rate, leave their way free to them." According to this verse,
the best way of staying safe from Muslim violence is to convert to Islam.
Prayer (salat) and the poor tax (zakat) are among the religion's
Five Pillars.

Quran
(9:14) - "Fight them, Allah will punish them by your hands and bring them
to disgrace..."

Quran
(9:20) - "Those who believe, and have left their homes and striven with
their wealth and their lives in Allah's way are of much greater worth in Allah's
sight. These are they who are triumphant." The "striving" spoken of here is
Jihad (Arabic).

Quran
(9:29) - "Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold
that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor
acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book,
until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued."
"People of the Book" refers to Christians and Jews. This was one of the
final "revelations" from Allah and it set in motion the tenacious military
expansion, in which Muhammad's companions managed to conquer two-thirds of the
Christian world in the next 100 years. Islam is intended to dominate all other
people and faiths.

Quran
(9:30) - "And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah; and the Christians
say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they
imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how
they are turned away!"

Quran
(9:38-39) - "O ye who believe! what is the matter with you, that, when ye
are asked to go forth in the cause of Allah, ye cling heavily to the earth? Do
ye prefer the life of this world to the Hereafter? But little is the comfort of
this life, as compared with the Hereafter. Unless ye go forth, He will punish
you with a grievous penalty, and put others in your place." This is a
warning to those who refuse to fight, that they will be punished with Hell.

Quran
(9:41) - "Go forth, light-armed and heavy-armed, and strive with your
wealth and your lives in the way of Allah! That is best for you if ye but
knew." See also the verse that follows (9:42)
- "If there had been immediate gain (in sight), and the journey easy, they would
(all) without doubt have followed thee, but the distance was long, (and weighed)
on them" This contradicts the myth that Muslims are to fight only in
self-defense, since the wording implies that battle will be waged a long
distance from home (in another country and on Christian soil, in this case,
according to the historians).

Quran
(9:73) - "O Prophet! strive hard against the unbelievers and the
hypocrites and be unyielding to them; and their abode is hell, and evil is the
destination." Dehumanizing those who reject Islam, by reminding Muslims
that they are merely firewood for Hell, makes it easier to justify slaughter.
It also explains why today's devout Muslims have little regard for those outside
the faith.

Quran
(9:88) - "But the Messenger, and those who believe with him, strive and
fight with their wealth and their persons: for them are (all) good things: and
it is they who will prosper."

Quran
(9:111) - "Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their
goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His
cause, and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the
Law, the Gospel, and the Quran: and who is more faithful to his covenant than
Allah? then rejoice in the bargain which ye have concluded: that is the
achievement supreme."

Quran
(9:123) - "O you who believe! fight those of the unbelievers who are near
to you and let them find in you hardness."

Quran
(17:16) - "And when We wish to destroy a town, We send Our commandment to
the people of it who lead easy lives, but they transgress therein; thus the word
proves true against it, so We destroy it with utter destruction." Note that
the crime is moral transgression, and the punishment is "utter destruction."
(Before ordering the 9/11 attacks, Osama bin Laden first issued Americans an
invitation to Islam).

Quran
(18:65-81) - This parable lays the theological groundwork for honor
killings, in which a family member is murdered because they brought shame to the
family, either through apostasy or perceived moral indiscretion. The story
(which is not found in any Jewish or Christian source) tells of Moses
encountering a man with "special knowledge" who does things which don't seem to
make sense on the surface, but are then justified according to later
explanation. One such action is to murder a youth for no apparent reason (74).
However, the wise man later explains that it was feared that the boy would
"grieve" his parents by "disobedience and ingratitude." He was killed so that
Allah could provide them a 'better' son. (Note: This is one reason why honor
killing is sanctioned by Sharia. Reliance of the Traveler (Umdat al-Saliq) says
that punishment for murder is not applicable when a parent or grandparent kills
their offspring (o.1.1-2).)

Quran
(21:44) - "We gave the good things of this life to these men and their
fathers until the period grew long for them; See they not that We gradually
reduce the land (in their control) from its outlying borders? Is it then they
who will win?"

Quran
(25:52) - "Therefore listen not to the Unbelievers, but strive against
them with the utmost strenuousness..." "Strive against" is Jihad -
obviously not in the personal context. It's also significant to point out that
this is a Meccan verse.

Quran
(33:60-62) - "If the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is a disease,
and the alarmists in the city do not cease, We verily shall urge thee on against
them, then they will be your neighbors in it but a little while. Accursed, they
will be seized wherever found and slain with a (fierce) slaughter." This
passage sanctions the slaughter (rendered "merciless" and "horrible murder" in
other translations) against three groups: Hypocrites (Muslims who refuse to
"fight in the way of Allah" (3:167)
and hence don't act as Muslims should), those with "diseased hearts" (which
include Jews and Christians 5:51-52),
and "alarmists" or "agitators who include those who merely speak out against
Islam, according to Muhammad's biographers. It is worth noting that the victims
are to be sought out by Muslims, which is what today's terrorists do. If this
passage is meant merely to apply to the city of Medina, then it is unclear why
it is included in Allah's eternal word to Muslim generations.

Quran
(47:3-4) - "Those who reject Allah follow vanities, while those who
believe follow the truth from their lord. Thus does Allah set forth form men
their lessons by similitude. Therefore when you meet in battle those who
disbelieve, then smite the necks until when you have overcome them, then make
(them) prisoners," Those who reject Allah are to be subdued in battle. The
verse goes on to say the only reason Allah doesn't do the dirty work himself is
in order to to test the faithfulness of Muslims. Those who kill pass the test.
"But if it had been Allah's Will, He could certainly have exacted retribution
from them (Himself); but (He lets you fight) in order to test you, some with
others. But those who are slain in the Way of Allah,- He will never let their
deeds be lost."

Quran
(47:35) - "Be not weary and faint-hearted, crying for peace, when ye
should be uppermost (Shakir: "have the upper hand") for Allah is with
you,"

Quran
(48:17) - "There is no blame for the blind, nor is there blame for the
lame, nor is there blame for the sick (that they go not forth to war). And whoso
obeyeth Allah and His messenger, He will make him enter Gardens underneath which
rivers flow; and whoso turneth back, him will He punish with a painful doom."
Contemporary apologists sometimes claim that Jihad means 'spiritual
struggle.' Is so, then why are the blind, lame and sick exempted?

Quran
(48:29) - "Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. And those with him are
hard (ruthless) against the disbelievers and merciful among themselves"
Islam is not about treating everyone equally. There are two
very distinct standards that are applied based on religious status.

Quran
(61:4) - "Surely Allah loves those who fight in His way" Religion of
Peace, indeed! This is followed by (61:9):
"He it is who has sent His Messenger (Mohammed) with guidance and the
religion of truth (Islam) to make it victorious over all religions even
though the infidels may resist."

Quran
(61:10-12) - "O ye who believe! Shall I lead you to a bargain that will
save you from a grievous Penalty?- That ye believe in Allah and His Messenger,
and that ye strive (your utmost) in the Cause of Allah, with your property and
your persons: That will be best for you, if ye but knew! He will forgive you
your sins, and admit you to Gardens beneath which Rivers flow, and to beautiful
mansions in Gardens of Eternity." This verse was given in battle. It uses
the Arabic word, Jihad.

Quran
(66:9) - "O Prophet! Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites,
and be stern with them. Hell will be their home, a hapless journey's end."
The root word of "Jihad" is used again here. The context is clearly holy
war, and the scope of violence is broadened to include "hypocrites" - those who
call themselves Muslims but do not act as such.

From the Hadith:

Bukhari
(52:177) - Allah's Apostle said, "The Hour will not be established until
you fight with the Jews, and the stone behind which a Jew will be hiding will
say. "O Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, so kill him."

Bukhari
(52:256) - The Prophet... was asked whether it was permissible to attack
the pagan warriors at night with the probability of exposing their women and
children to danger. The Prophet replied, "They (i.e. women and children) are
from them (i.e. pagans)." In this command, Muhammad establishes that it is
permissible to kill non-combatants in the process of killing a perceived enemy.
This provides justification for the many Islamic terror bombings.

Bukhari
(52:220) - Allah's Apostle said... 'I have been made victorious with
terror'

Abu
Dawud (14:2526) - The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: Three things are
the roots of faith: to refrain from (killing) a person who utters, "There is no
god but Allah" and not to declare him unbeliever whatever sin he commits, and
not to excommunicate him from Islam for his any action; and jihad will be
performed continuously since the day Allah sent me as a prophet until the day
the last member of my community will fight with the Dajjal (Antichrist)

Abu
Dawud (14:2527) - The Prophet said: Striving in the path of Allah (jihad)
is incumbent on you along with every ruler, whether
he is pious or impious

Muslim
(1:33) - the Messenger of Allah said: I have been commanded to fight
against people till they testify that there is no god but Allah, that Muhammad
is the messenger of Allah

Bukhari
(8:387) - Allah's Apostle said, "I have been ordered to fight the people
till they say: 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah'. And if they say
so, pray like our prayers, face our Qibla and slaughter as we slaughter, then
their blood and property will be sacred to us and we will not interfere with
them except legally."

Muslim
(1:30) - "The Messenger of Allah said: I have been commanded to fight
against people so long as they do not declare that there is no god but
Allah."

Muslim
(1:149) - "Abu Dharr reported: I said: Messenger of Allah, which of the
deeds is the best? He (the Holy Prophet) replied: Belief in Allah and Jihad in
His cause..."

Muslim
(20:4645) - "...He (the Messenger of Allah) did that and said: There is
another act which elevates the position of a man in Paradise to a grade one
hundred (higher), and the elevation between one grade and the other is equal to
the height of the heaven from the earth. He (Abu Sa'id) said: What is that act?
He replied: Jihad in the way of Allah! Jihad in the way of Allah!"

Muslim
(20:4696) - "the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: 'One
who died but did not fight in the way of Allah nor did he express any desire (or
determination) for Jihid died the death of a hypocrite.'"

Muslim
(19:4321-4323) - Three separate hadith in which Muhammad shrugs over the
news that innocent children were killed in a raid by his men against
unbelievers. His response: "They are of them (meaning the enemy)."

Muslim
(19:4294) - "When the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) appointed
anyone as leader of an army or detachment he would especially exhort him... He
would say: Fight in the name of Allah and in the way of Allah. Fight against
those who disbelieve in Allah. Make a holy war... When you meet your enemies
who are polytheists, invite them to three courses of action. If they respond to
any one of these, you also accept it and withhold yourself from doing them any
harm. Invite them to (accept) Islam; if they respond to you, accept it from them
and desist from fighting against them... If they refuse to accept Islam, demand
from them the Jizya. If they agree to pay, accept it from them and hold off your
hands. If they refuse to pay the tax, seek Allah's help and fight them.

Tabari 7:97 The morning after the murder of Ashraf, the Prophet
declared, "Kill any Jew who falls under your power." Ashraf was a poet,
killed by Muhammad's men because he insulted Islam. Here, Muhammad widens the
scope of his orders to kill. An innocent Jewish businessman was then slain by
his Muslim partner, merely for being non-Muslim.

Tabari 9:69 "Killing Unbelievers is a small matter to us" The
words of Muhammad, prophet of Islam.

Tabari 17:187 "'By God, our religion (din) from which we have
departed is better and more correct than that which these people follow. Their
religion does not stop them from shedding blood, terrifying the roads, and
seizing properties.' And they returned to their former religion." The words
of a group of Christians who had converted to Islam, but realized their error
after being shocked by the violence and looting committed in the name of Allah.
The price of their decision to return to a religion of peace was that the men
were beheaded and the woman and children enslaved by the caliph Ali.

Ibn Ishaq/Hisham
327: - “Allah said, ‘A
prophet must slaughter before collecting captives. A slaughtered enemy is driven
from the land. Muhammad, you craved the desires of this world, its goods and the
ransom captives would bring. But Allah desires killing them to manifest the
religion.’”

Ibn Ishaq/Hisham
990: - Lest anyone think that
cutting off someone's head while screaming 'Allah Akbar!' is a modern creation,
here is an account of that very practice under Muhammad, who seems to
approve.

Ibn Ishaq/Hisham 992:
- "Fight everyone in the way
of Allah and kill those who disbelieve in Allah." Muhammad's instructions
to his men prior to a military raid.

Additional Notes:

Other than the fact that Muslims haven't killed every
non-Muslim under their domain, there is very little else that they can point to
as proof that theirs is a peaceful, tolerant religion. Where Islam is dominant
(as in the Middle East and Pakistan) religious minorities suffer brutal
persecution with little resistance. Where Islam is in the minority (as in
Thailand, the Philippines and Europe) there is the threat of violence if Muslim
demands are not met. Either situation seems to provide a justification for
religious terrorism, which is persistent and endemic to Islamic
fundamentalism.

The reasons are obvious and begin with the Quran. Few verses
of Islam's most sacred text can be construed to fit the contemporary virtues of
religious tolerance and universal brotherhood. Those that do are earlier
"Meccan" verses which are obviously abrogated by later ones. This is why Muslim
apologists speak of the "risks" of trying to interpret the Quran without their
"assistance" - even while claiming that it is a perfect book.

Far from being mere history or theological construct, the
violent verses of the Quran have played a key role in very real massacre and
genocide. This includes the brutal slaughter of tens of millions of Hindus for
five centuries beginning around 1000 AD with Mahmud of Ghazni's bloody
conquest. Both he and the later Tamerlane (Islam's Genghis Khan) slaughtered an
untold number merely for defending their temples from destruction. Buddhism was
very nearly wiped off the Indian subcontinent. Judaism and Christianity met the
same fate (albeit more slowly) in areas conquered by Muslim armies, including
the Middle East, North Africa and parts of Europe, including today's Turkey.
Zoroastrianism, the ancient religion of a proud Persian people is despised by
Muslims and barely survives in modern Iran.

So ingrained is violence in the religion that Islam has never
really stopped being at war, either with other religions or with itself.

Muhammad was a military leader, laying siege to towns, massacring
the men, raping
their women, enslaving their children, and taking the property of others as his
own. On several occasions he rejected offers of surrender from the besieged
inhabitants and even butchered captives.
He actually inspired his followers to battle when they did not feel it was right
to fight, promising them slaves and booty if they did and threatening them with
Hell if they did not. Muhammad allowed his men to rape traumatized women
captured in battle, usually on the very day their husbands and family members
were slaughtered.

It is important to emphasize that, for the most part, Muslim
armies waged aggressive campaigns, and the religion's most dramatic
military conquests were made by the actual companions of Muhammad in the decades
following his death. The early Islamic principle of warfare was that the
civilian population of a town was to be destroyed (ie. men executed, women and
children taken as slaves) if they defended themselves. Although modern
apologists often claim that Muslims are only supposed to attack in self-defense,
this is an oxymoron that is flatly
contradicted by the accounts of Islamic historians and others that go back
to the time of Muhammad.

Consider the example of the Qurayza Jews, who were completely
obliterated only five years after Muhammad arrived in Medina. Their leader
opted to stay neutral when their town was besieged by a Meccan army that was
sent to take revenge for Muhammad's deadly caravan raids. The tribe killed no
one from either side and even surrendered peacefully to Muhammad after the
Meccans had been turned back. Yet the prophet of Islam had every male member of
the Qurayza beheaded, and every woman and child enslaved, even raping one of the
captives himself (what Muslim apologists might refer to as "same day
marriage").

One of Islam's most revered modern scholars, Sheikh Yusuf
al-Qaradawi, openly sanctions offensive Jihad: "In the Jihad which you are
seeking, you look for the enemy and invade him. This type of Jihad takes place only when the Islamic state is invading other
[countries] in order to spread the word of
Islam and to remove obstacles standing in its way." Elsewhere, he
notes: "Islam has the right to take the initiative…this is God’s religion and
it is for the whole world. It has the right to destroy all obstacles in the form
of institutions and traditions … it attacks institutions and traditions to
release human beings from their poisonous influences, which distort human nature
and curtail human freedom. Those who say that Islamic Jihad was merely for the
defense of the 'homeland of Islam' diminish the greatness of the Islamic way of
life."

Muhammad's failure to leave a clear line of succession
resulted in perpetual internal war following his death. Those who knew him best
first fought to keep remote tribes from leaving Islam and reverting to their
preferred religion (the Ridda or 'Apostasy wars'). Then, within the closer
community, early Meccan converts battled later ones. Hostility developed
between those immigrants who had traveled with Muhammad to Mecca and the Ansar
at Medina who had helped them settle in. Finally there was a violent struggle
within Muhammad's own family between his favorite wife and favorite daughter - a
jagged schism that has left Shias and Sunnis at each others' throats to this
day.

The strangest and most untrue thing that can be said about
Islam is that it is a Religion of Peace. If every standard by which the West is
judged and condemned (slavery, imperialism, intolerance, misogyny, sexual
repression, warfare...) were applied equally to Islam, the verdict would be
devastating. Islam never gives up what it conquers, be it religion, culture,
language or life. Neither does it make apologies or any real effort at moral
progress. It is the least open to dialogue and the most self-absorbed. It is
convinced of its own perfection, yet brutally shuns self-examination and
represses criticism.

This is what makes the Quran's verses of violence so
dangerous. They are given the weight of divine command. While Muslim
terrorists take them as literally as anything else in their holy book, and
understand that Islam is incomplete without Jihad, moderates offer little to
contradict them - outside of opinion. Indeed, what do they have? Speaking of
peace and love may win over the ignorant, but when every twelfth verse of
Islam's holiest book either speaks to Allah's hatred for non-Muslims or calls
for their death, forced conversion, or subjugation, it's little wonder that
sympathy for terrorism runs as deeply as it does in the
broader community - even if most Muslims personally prefer not to interpret
their religion in this way.

Although scholars like Ibn Khaldun, one of Islam's most
respected philosophers, understood that "the holy war is a religious duty,
because of the universalism of the Muslim mission and (the obligation to)
convert everybody to Islam either by persuasion or by force", many other
Muslims are either unaware or willfully ignorant of the Quran's near absence of
verses that preach universal non-violence. Their understanding of Islam comes
from what they are taught by others. In the West, it is typical for believers
to think that their religion must be like Christianity - preaching the New
Testament virtues of peace, love, and tolerance - because Muslims are taught
that Islam is supposed to be superior in
every way. They are somewhat surprised and embarrassed to learn that the
evidence of the Quran and the bloody history of Islam are very much in
contradiction to this.

Others simply accept the violence. In 1991, a Palestinian
couple in America was convicted of stabbing their daughter to death for being
too Westernized. A family friend came to their defense, excoriating the jury
for not understanding the "culture", claiming that the father was merely
following "the religion" and saying that the couple had to "discipline their
daughter or lose respect." (source).
In 2011, unrepentant Palestinian terrorists, responsible for the brutal murders
of civilians, women and children explicitly in
the name of Allah were treated to a luxurious "holy pilgrimage" to Mecca by the
Saudi king - without a single Muslim voice raised in protest.

For their part, Western liberals would do well not to
sacrifice critical thinking to the god of political correctness, or look for
reasons to bring other religion down to the level of Islam merely to avoid the
existential truth that this it is both different and dangerous.

There are just too many Muslims who take the Quran
literally... and too many others who couldn't care less about the violence done
in the name of Islam.

so...do you support the Islamization of America?

You can tell someone's religion by their name? You must be a god. Or just a flaming ignorant bigot. Which?

Conrad, you can't stop a Jew from criticizing Muslims or the other way around. Hey, we can't even stop a bigot like you from attacking either group. It's called Freedom of Speech.

I think this idiot jewish woman should be prohibited from speaking against islam.

what about Islam has she said that wasn''t true?

People support all sorts of stupid things. As long as they don't break the law, it's none of my business.

Nice try. Did you know that there plenty of churches and syngogues in Muslim countries and especially in Iran. Look for yourself and you will see, you seem to be educated enough to google search that. You chose Mecca as example for your convenience. It's like me telling you, look at the Vatican, there is not ONE mosque in there. I rest my case.

Stop trying to divide America, Unite fool...

Nice try. Did you know that there plenty of churches and syngogues in Muslim countries and especially in Iran. Look for yourself and you will see, you seem to be educated enough to google search that. You chose Mecca as example for your convenience. It's like me telling you, look at the Vatican, there is not ONE mosque in there. I rest my case.

Maybe you should follow your own advice...it is true that the Vatican does not allow other religions there...but just how big is the Vatican? a couple of hundred acres at best...In Saudia Arabia churches are not allowe at all:

Saudi Arabia allows Roman Catholics and Christians of other denominations to enter the country as foreign workers for temporary work, but does not allow them to practise their faith openly, and as a result Roman Catholics and Christians of other denominations generally only worship in secret within private homes[1]. Items and articles belonging to religions other than Islam are prohibited[2]. These include Bibles, crucifixes, statues, carvings, items with religious symbols, and others, although the Government's stated policy was that such items were allowed for private religious purposes.

And in Iran there are currently 73 registered churches, mostly in name only...the Christians are not pemitted to pray openly, sing loudly, or display religious ornaments or icons....They are not pemitted to restore or rebuild old dilapidated churches and they are not allowed to build new ones....The Christians face unbelieveable restrictions and intimidations...At the current rate of Christians leaving Iran....Iran will be free of Christians in the very near future..

All together, there are not a lot of churches and synagogues in either Iran or Saudia Arabia...

You hear some verses taken out of context on foxlyingnews or from a so called friend who has no clue just because they heard it from a third hating party and now you are an EXPERT. what a bunch of biggots...

Which verses would that be? and how are the taken out of context?

Remind obama of this division.

How do you unite with a religion which teaches its believers to murder non-believers?

You would judge a religion by its extremists? Whatever religion or not religion you have, I am sure that you would not want your actions judged by the most extreme of your religion.

Muslim extremists are supported by Muslim governments and most Muslim organizations such as CAIR, MSA, and many others...Muslim leaders and leading Muslim clerics routinely spout off with radical hatred rants and support for terrorist groups...They also honor those terrorists who get killed while in the process of killing Infidels...It would appear the religion of Islam supports its terrorists...

If there were 150 million religious extremists in any religion willing to die killing a non-believer, I would condemn it.

"Whatever religion or not religion you have, I am sure that you would not want your actions judged by the most extreme of your religion."

Honestly, the most "extreme" of MY religion was Jesus Christ, and I don't have a problem with people judging my religion by his actions...in fact, I highly recommend it.

I'd qualify that by saying if it is a cult, it's is by far the world's biggest cult ever.

BTW, these Muslims are citizens too, they could just as appropriately tell you to go back to Europe or wherever your family emigrated from.

Mary-

If Islam is a cult, then so is Christianity or Judaism.

If they ever take over, liberals will be the first to go.

If they ever take over, liberals will be the first to go.

Liberals are their biggest non-Muslim supporters...

Dude, you guys are being so ridiculous. There are 1.5 BILLION Muslims, at least, in this world - The world's second largest religion. Just like with Christianity (like 2.2 billion Christians), there are varying "degrees of faith"... But the reality is that both the Bible and the Koran can be similarly used to justify the persecution of others, but mostly prescribers to their faith use it to connect with themselves, eachother and their "god", and it's relatively harmless.

But the reality is that both the Bible and the Koran can be similarly used to justify the persecution of others, but mostly prescribers to their faith use it to connect with themselves, eachother and their "god", and it's relatively harmless.

Hey lil anomie...is that what you really think?

Christianity and Islam:
A Side by Side Comparison*

* It is not the purpose of this site to promote any particular religion, including Christianity.
However, we do enjoy refuting nonsense, such as the claim that Muhammad
and Jesus preached a morally equivalent message, or that all religion is the same.

"Allah:"
"I will cast terror into the hearts of those who
disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads
and strike off every fingertip of them."
(Qur'an 8:12)

Muhammad:
"Fight everyone in the way of Allah and
kill those who disbelieve in Allah."
(Ibn Ishaq 992)

Jesus:
"Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."
(Matthew 5:14)

Each year, thousands of Christian homes and churches are torched or bombed by Muslim mobs, and hundreds of Christians, including dozens of priests, pastors, nuns and other church workers are murdered at the hands of Islamic extremists. The so-called justification varies, from charges of apostasy or evangelism, to purported "blasphemy" or "insulting" Islam. Innocent people have even been hacked to death by devout Muslims over cartoons.

Yet, there is little if any violent retaliation from religious Christians to the discrimination, kidnapping, rape, torture, mutilation and murder that is routinely reported from nations with Muslim majorities. Neither is there is any significant deadly terrorism in the name of Jesus, as there is in the stated cause of Allah each and every day. Muslim clerics in the West do not fear for their safety as do their Christian counterparts.

The "Christian world" and the Islamic world contrast sharply in other ways as well, from the disparate condition of human rights and civil liberties to economic status. An astonishing 70% of the world's refugees are Muslims - usually seeking to live in Christian-based countries.

While Western societies take seriously "scandals" such as Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo (where no one has actually been killed), Muslims routinely turn a blind eye to their own horrible atrocities, even those committed explicitly in the name of Allah. The Muslim world has yet to offer a single apology for the tens of millions of lives consumed by centuries of relentless Jihad and slavery.

These sharp differences are almost certainly rooted in the underlying religions, which begin with the disparate teachings of Jesus and Muhammad...

Differences Between Muhammad and Jesus

Muhammad...
Jesus...

Said Allah hates those who don't accept Islam.
(Qur'an 30:4, 3:32, 22:38) Said God loves everyone.
(John 3:16)
"I have been commanded to fight
against people till they testify that there
is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad
is the messenger of Allah"
(Muslim 1:33) "He who lives by the sword
will die by the sword."
(Matthew 26:52)
Stoned women for adultery.
(Muslim 4206) "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."
(John 8:7)
Permitted stealing from unbelievers.
(Bukhari 44:668, Ibn Ishaq 764) "Thou shalt not steal."
(Matthew 19:18)
Permitted lying.
(Sahih Muslim 6303, Bukhari 49:857) "Thou shalt not bear false witness."
(Matthew 19:18)
Owned and traded slaves.
(Sahih Muslim 3901) Neither owned nor traded slaves.
Beheaded 800 Jewish men and boys.
(Sahih Muslim 4390) Beheaded no one.
Murdered those who insulted him.
(Bukhari 56:369, 4:241) Preached forgiveness.
(Matthew 18:21-22, 5:38)
"If then anyone transgresses
the prohibition against you,
Transgress ye likewise against him"
(Qur'an 2:194) "If someone strikes you on the right
cheek, turn to him the other also."
(Matthew 5:39)
Jihad in the way of Allah elevates one's position in Paradise by a hundred fold.
(Muslim 4645) "Blessed are the peacemakers, for
they will be called Sons of God"
(Matthew 5:9)
Married 13 wives and kept sex slaves.
(Bukhari 5:268, Qur'an 33:50) Was celibate.
Slept with a 9-year-old child.
(Sahih Muslim 3309, Bukhari 58:236) Did not have sex with children.
Ordered the murder of women.
(Ibn Ishaq 819, 995) Never harmed a woman.
"O you who believe! Fight those of the
unbelievers who are near to you
and let them find in you hardness."
(Qur'an 9:123) "Blessed are the meek, for
they shall inherit the earth."
(Matthew 5:5)
Ordered 65 military campaigns
and raids in his last 10 years.
(Ibn Ishaq ) Ordered no military campaigns, nor
offered any approval of war or violence.

Killed captives taken in battle.
(Ibn Ishaq 451) Never took captives.
Never killed anyone.
Encouraged his men to rape enslaved women.
(Abu Dawood 2150, Qur'an 4:24) Never encouraged rape.
Never enslaved women.
Demanded captured slaves and
a fifth of all other loot taken in war.
(Qur'an 8:41) "The Son of Man came not
to be served, but to serve."
(Matthew 20:28)
Was never tortured, but tortured others.
(Muslim 4131, Ibn Ishaq 436, 595, 734, 764) Suffered torture, but never tortured anyone.
"And fight them until there is no more persecution and religion is only for Allah"
(Qur'an 8:39) "Love your enemies and pray
for those who persecute you"
(Matthew 5:44)
Blessed the brutal murder of a half-blind man
(al-Tabari 1440) Healed a blind man
(Mark 8:28)
Ordered a slave to build the very pulpit
from which he preached Islam.
(Bukhari 47:743) Washed his disciples feet.
(John 13:5)
What are the Greatest Commandments?
"Belief in Allah and Jihad in His cause"
(Muslim 1:149) What are the Greatest Commandments?
"Love God and love thy neighbor as thyself."
(Matthew 22:34-40)
Demanded the protection of armed bodyguards, even in a house of worship
(Qur'an 4:102) Chastised anyone attempting
to defend him with force.
(John 18:10-12)
Died fat and wealthy from what was
taken from others in war or
demanded from others in tribute. Demanded nothing for himself.
Died without possessions.
Advocated crucifying others.
(Qur'an 5:33, Muslim 16:4131) Was crucified himself.
According to his followers:
Had others give their lives for him.
(Sahih Muslim 4413) According to his followers:
Gave his life for others.
(John 18:11 and elsewhere)

Differences Between
Early Muslims and Early Christians

Muhammad's Companions...
Jesus' Disciples...

Lived as warriors. Lived like harmless hippies.
Slew and persecuted religious minorities. Were slain and persecuted
as a religious minority.
Emphasis on Jihad (the way of Muhammad)

"He who fights that Allah's word should
be superior fights in Allah's cause"
(Bukhari 53:355) Emphasis on Evangelism (the way of Jesus)

"Go ye into all the world and preach
the gospel to every creature"
(Matthew 15:16)
Attacked and conquered the populations in
parts of 28 modern countries in just the first
three decades following Muhammad's death.
Did not resort to violence of any sort,
despite tremendous persecution.

Declared holy war on the people of five
major world religions in just the first
100 years following Muhammad's death.
Went centuries without declaring 'holy war'.

Plundered and lived off the wealth of others. Gave away their possessions to those in need.
(Acts 2:44-45)
Captured and enslaved non-Muslim people. Considered themselves to be slaves of others.
Waged war to keep members from leaving
the religion. Put apostates to death.
No record of aggression toward apostates.

Muhammad's own family members quickly
fell into armed warfare against each other.
Jesus' disciples never resorted to violence
against one another (or anyone else).

First 240 Years:
11 of the first 32 caliphs were
murdered by fellow Muslims.
First 240 Years:
14 of the first 25 popes were martyred by
pagans (none by fellow Christians).

Caliphs were polygamous and maintained harems of hundreds of captured sex slaves. Popes were expected to be celibate.
Islamic mosques sustained by taxes forced from subjugated non-Muslims (the jizya). Christian churches sustained
by voluntary tithes from Christians.

Differences Between
Islamic Teaching and Christianity

The Qur'an
The Bible

External sources (the Hadith and Sira) necessary for translating the Qur'an Historical context contained
within the text of the Bible
Must know Arabic in order to "fully understand" the Qur'an (according to Muslim apologists) Universal. Can be translated into other languages without excessive commentary.
Chronological progression of the
Quran is from peace to violence. Chronological progression of the
Bible is from violence to peace.
The words 'torture' and 'punishment' appear six
times more often than in the New Testament. The word 'love' appears five times more often
in the New Testament than in the Qur'an,
Contains not a single original moral value. The 'Sermon on the Mount' and others.
Suffering is an excuse for violent revenge
and establishment of Islam by force
"And slay them wherever ye find them, and drive them out of the places whence they drove you out, for persecution [of Muslims] is worse than slaughter [of non-believers]...and fight them until persecution is no more, and religion is for Allah."
(Qur'an 2:191)
Suffering builds character
"We also rejoice in our sufferings,
because we know that suffering
produces perseverance; perseverance,
character; and character, hope"
(Romans 5:4)

Emphasis on this World
"And Allah has made you heirs to their land
and their dwellings and their property"
(Qur'an 33:27)
Emphasis on the Next
"Mine is not a kingdom of this world"
(John 18:36, see also Luke 14:33)

Kill, convert or subjugate Christians and Jews.
(Qur'an 9:29) Share one's faith with gentleness and respect.
(1 Peter 3:15)
Martyrs as Killers

"Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain"
(Qur'an 9:111) Martyrs as Martyrs

"As it is written, For thy sake we are
killed all the day long; we are
counted as sheep for the slaughter"
(Romans 8:36)
Killing Apostates

"They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them"
(Qur'an 4:89, also Bukhari 52:260, 83:37...) Letting God Judge Apostates

"For we know Him that has said,
'Vengeance belongs unto me, I will
recompense,' says the Lord. And again,
'The Lord shall judge his people'"
(Hebrews 10:25-30)
Punishment
"Let not compassion move you
from carrying out God's law..."
(Qur'an 24:2)
Mercy
"Love is patient. Love is kind...
It keeps no record of wrongs"
(1 Corinthians 13:4-5)

Charity and Non-Believers
Mercy toward fellow Muslims - ruthlessness toward unbelievers. Muslims are warned not to befriend those outside the faith. They must even ensure that their charity tithe (zakat) does not go toward the needy of other religions.
(Qur'an 48:29, 3:28, Sharia)
Charity and Non-Believers
Christians are specifically told that even
those who hate them are entitled to
kindness and charity. They should be loved
and cared for as surely as any fellow believer.
(Mark 10:25-37)

The Qur'an does not command husbands
to love their wives, but it does give men
permission to beat disobedient women.
(Qur'an 4:34, Sahih Muslim 2127) "Husbands, love your wives and
do not be harsh with them."
(No permission to beat women)
(Colossians 3:19)

Explicitly allows Muslim men to rape their female slaves, even those already married.
(Qur'an 4:24, 70:29-30, 23:5-6...) Tells masters and slaves to serve
each other as if serving God.
(Ephesians 6:7-9)
Muhammad is the messenger
of Allah. And those who are with him
are ruthless to the unbelievers"
(Qur'an 48:29) "Do good to them that hate you"
(Luke 6:27)
Allah wills those that stray and are lost
(Qur'an 16:93) God wants all people saved
(1 Timothy 2:4)
Warns Against Questioning Faith.
(Qur'an 5:101-102) Welcomes Intellectual Challenge.
(1 Peter 3:15)
Violence as Virtue
"Fighting is prescribed for you, and ye
dislike it. But it is possible that ye
dislike a thing which is good for you, and
that ye love a thing which is bad for you.
But Allah knoweth, and ye know not."
(Qur'an 2:216)
Violence as Sin
"Do not take revenge, my friends, but
leave room for God's wrath, for it is written:
'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord. On the contrary: 'If your enemy
is hungry, feed him... '"
(Romans 12:19-20)

Hell for unbelief.
Good deeds count for naught
(Qur'an 18:102-107) Hell for bad deeds and the
failure to do what is right
(Romans 2:6-8, Matthew 16:27, Matthew 25:41-45)
Judging
"Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites! Be harsh with them..."
(Qur'an 9:73)
Judge Not
"For when you pass judgment on another person, you condemn yourself..."
(Romans 2:1)

Taking wealth from others
"Allah promiseth you much
booty that ye will capture..."
(Qur'an 48:20)
Working for and giving wealth to others
"The thief must no longer steal but must
work hard and do what is good with his
own hands, so that he might have
something to give to the needy."
(Ephesians 4:28)

Calls down Allah's curse on Christians
and those of other religions.
(Qur'an 9:30) Calls down God's blessing on
those who curse Christians.
(Matthew 5:44)
Arrogance & Privilege

"Ye are the best of peoples,
evolved for mankind"
(Qur'an 3:110)
Humility & Servitude
"If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all."
(Mark 9:35)

"O you who believe! do not take My
enemy and your enemy for friends:
Would you offer them love while they deny what has come to you of the truth?
(Qur'an 60:1) "Love your enemies..."
(Luke 6:27)

Differences Between the Islamic
and Christian-Based Worlds

Muslim Legacy
Christian Legacy

Countries that Muslims want to escape from. Countries that Muslims want to escape to.
Madrassahs that indoctrinate Muslim
children with bigotry and terror. Mission schools that teach reading and
writing to Christians and Muslims alike.
Suicide bombings for Allah No suicide bombings for Jesus
International terror organizations. International charities.
No formal charities for non-Muslims. Leading provider of disaster relief to Muslims.
Murder of aid workers. Supply of aid workers.
Christians in jail for apostasy or blasphemy. Religious freedom.
Modern-day slavery in the name of Islam. Abolition in the name of Christianity.
Muslim clerics who engage
in or condone terrorism. Christian clerics murdered each year by
terror groups rife with Muslim clerics.
Daily religious violence against Hindus. None.
Daily religious violence against Jews. None.
Daily religious violence against Buddhists. None.
Daily religious violence against Muslims. None.
Religion Technology & Medicine
Censorship Freedom of speech
Intolerance for criticism of Islam. Tolerance for religious dissent.
Restricting other religions from preaching faith. Allowing all religions the
same right to evangelize.
Conversions allowed to Islam only. Freedom of conscience.
Converts to Christianity beheaded. No dead converts to Islam.
Most famous Muslim: Osama bin Laden. Most famous Christian: The Pope.

Whether true or not, everything that secular critics say they don't like about Christianity, from women's issues to slavery, is not only a tangible part of Islam, but usually magnified.
While the Catholic church is demonized for not allowing female priests, the fundamentalists of Islam force women into burqas and blow up schools that educate girls. Even activists known for championing women's rights in the Muslim world still rationalize keeping captured women as sex slaves, since it is explicitly permitted in the Qur'an. And, while Christians might object to extra-marital sex, only Islamic purists plant consenting adults in the ground and stone them to death.

Theocracy (in the form of Sharia) really is the the explicit goal of Islamic teaching, whereas Christianity leaves room for the separation of religion and government (Mark 12:17, John 18:36). Terrorism really is an expression of devotion to Allah (here's an example) - and not just criminal activity or warfare by disinterested parties with a nominal religious identification (ie. "born a Catholic").

If threatening people with eternal damnation is considered distasteful, then Christianity has far less to be ashamed of than Islam, which not only mentions the terrible fate awaiting unbelievers on nearly every other page, but also includes vivid descriptions of torture at the hands of a sociopath known as Allah.

The two religions contrast sharply even in their positive aspects. The morality of the Qur'an is amateurish and frustratingly obscure for those who try to compare it to what is contained in the Bible. Most of Islam's holiest book is devoted toward distinguishing and heaping abuse on unbelievers. There are no verses that promote universal love and brotherhood. The few verses that are sometimes held up as examples of tolerance and peace generally require separation from textual and historical context.

The difference between Christianity and Islam starts at the top:

Muslims are told that Muhammad - a slave-owner, sexual glutton, thief and killer - is the most "beautiful pattern of conduct" and "example" for mankind to follow (Qur'an 33:21), as well as the "exalted standard of character" (Qur'an 68:4).

Christians are told to emulate Jesus - a pacifist and servant - and "walk, even as he walked" (1 John 2:6). Unlike Muhammad, who ordered military assaults against Christians, for example, Jesus told his followers not to resort to violence and to pray for one's enemies.

These two men could hardly have been more different in how they lived or in what they taught others. Why should we not then expect starkly contrasting legacies - from the conduct of their closest companions to the livability of modern-day countries influenced by the predominance of one founder's teachings over the other?

As Wafa Sultan (who describes herself as a Muslim who does not adhere to Islam) puts it: "The problem with Christians is they aren't as good as Jesus. But thank God most Muslims are better than Muhammad."

@Pulsar182

Well said - I think people tend to pull verses from the Old Testament in an attempt to prove that Christians are working from the same set of rules as Islam. They don't have the understanding of the 'new covenant' and completely miss the fact that we are called 'CHRISTians' because we follow the example set by Jesus Christ, who came to fulfill the law and put us on a path to righteousness and salvation.