Islam, A Religion of Peace?
It's been awhile, I know. I needed a break. I needed to recuperate and truly evaluate whether or not I wanted to keep doing this blog. I mean, I don't receive many compliments for what I have to say here. ;) It takes a lot out of a person to be hated the way I am sometimes. Without further ado, I give you what is possibly one of my most contriversial posts yet.....
"Islam is the name of a way of life which the Creator wants us to follow. We avoid the word religion because in many non-Islamic societies, there is a separation of "religion and state." This separation is not recognized at all in Islam: the Creator is very much concerned with all that we do, including the political, social, economic, and other aspects of our society. Hence, Islam is a complete way of life." (source)
Sounds good, right? As a Christian, I would love nothing more than to live in a society that recognizes my "religion" as a legitimate contender in the political arena. The fact is that it doesn't, but that doesn't mean that the Eastern part of the world doesn't view it in that way.
Some background info; my husband spent twelve years of his life in Pakistan. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan, that is. He is very familiar with the people, the culture, and their misconceptions of the American people. The "Western World" is viewed as a Christian society to these people. Not just the people of Pakistan, but the large majority of the middle east. It is this fact that allows for the Islamic jihad, or holy war.
"5:51 O YOU who have attained to faith! Do not take the Jews and the christians for your allies: they are but allies of one another
Asad(5,72)
[72] and whoever of you allies himself with them becomes, verily, one of them; behold, God does not guide such evildoers.
Asad(5,73)"
"4:76 those who have attained to faith fight in the cause of God, whereas those who are bent on denying the truth fight in the cause of the powers of evil. Fight, then, against those friends of Satan: verily, Satan's guile is weak indeed!
Asad(4,90)"
"8:12 Lo! Thy Sustainer inspired the angels [to convey this His message to the believers]: "I am with you !"
Asad(8,13)
[13] [And He commanded the angels:] "And, give firmness unto those who have attained to faith [with these words from Me]:
Asad(8,14)
[14] `I shall cast terror into the hearts of those who are bent on denying the truth; strike, then, their necks, [O believers,] and strike off every one of their finger-tips!" (source)
I think the point that is missed by many who are ill-informed, or rather, many who just don't care to know, is the point that these "radical Muslims" are in fact only doing what they're told to do. They're not radical, they are THE religion of Islam. Those who don't take on this mentality and yet consider themselves part of the Muslim way of life are in fact, denying the calling of their Creator.
What's my point? You ask. Well, to put it plainly, we're not fighting a government, nor are we fighting a Dictator. Saddam's death sentence isn't going to end this war we're in because it's not a war like World War II or even Vietnam. It's a war of ideals. It's a war of religion. It's a holy war.
Iraq is just the starting point. The insurgency is everywhere. Those Americans that believe that we can just "fix" Iraq and then pull out are severely ignorant to the cause that these "radicals" have taken on. They're not just in Iraq or Afghanistan. They're in Iran and Lebanon and, dare I say it, on our own turf. They hate us not because George Bush is our President, or because we have great technology, or because we are a priveledged country.
They hate us simply because we are (in there eyes, and in the past) a Christian country who has rejected their way of life. We will never truly be a safe country because of their distaste for our "rejection" of their God.
"Persist in an action or policy; remain with a plan despite criticism or setbacks."
I so hope we do.
"Islam is the name of a way of life which the Creator wants us to follow. We avoid the word religion because in many non-Islamic societies, there is a separation of "religion and state." This separation is not recognized at all in Islam: the Creator is very much concerned with all that we do, including the political, social, economic, and other aspects of our society. Hence, Islam is a complete way of life." (source)
Sounds good, right? As a Christian, I would love nothing more than to live in a society that recognizes my "religion" as a legitimate contender in the political arena. The fact is that it doesn't, but that doesn't mean that the Eastern part of the world doesn't view it in that way.
Some background info; my husband spent twelve years of his life in Pakistan. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan, that is. He is very familiar with the people, the culture, and their misconceptions of the American people. The "Western World" is viewed as a Christian society to these people. Not just the people of Pakistan, but the large majority of the middle east. It is this fact that allows for the Islamic jihad, or holy war.
"5:51 O YOU who have attained to faith! Do not take the Jews and the christians for your allies: they are but allies of one another
Asad(5,72)
[72] and whoever of you allies himself with them becomes, verily, one of them; behold, God does not guide such evildoers.
Asad(5,73)"
"4:76 those who have attained to faith fight in the cause of God, whereas those who are bent on denying the truth fight in the cause of the powers of evil. Fight, then, against those friends of Satan: verily, Satan's guile is weak indeed!
Asad(4,90)"
"8:12 Lo! Thy Sustainer inspired the angels [to convey this His message to the believers]: "I am with you !"
Asad(8,13)
[13] [And He commanded the angels:] "And, give firmness unto those who have attained to faith [with these words from Me]:
Asad(8,14)
[14] `I shall cast terror into the hearts of those who are bent on denying the truth; strike, then, their necks, [O believers,] and strike off every one of their finger-tips!" (source)
I think the point that is missed by many who are ill-informed, or rather, many who just don't care to know, is the point that these "radical Muslims" are in fact only doing what they're told to do. They're not radical, they are THE religion of Islam. Those who don't take on this mentality and yet consider themselves part of the Muslim way of life are in fact, denying the calling of their Creator.
What's my point? You ask. Well, to put it plainly, we're not fighting a government, nor are we fighting a Dictator. Saddam's death sentence isn't going to end this war we're in because it's not a war like World War II or even Vietnam. It's a war of ideals. It's a war of religion. It's a holy war.
Iraq is just the starting point. The insurgency is everywhere. Those Americans that believe that we can just "fix" Iraq and then pull out are severely ignorant to the cause that these "radicals" have taken on. They're not just in Iraq or Afghanistan. They're in Iran and Lebanon and, dare I say it, on our own turf. They hate us not because George Bush is our President, or because we have great technology, or because we are a priveledged country.
They hate us simply because we are (in there eyes, and in the past) a Christian country who has rejected their way of life. We will never truly be a safe country because of their distaste for our "rejection" of their God.
"Persist in an action or policy; remain with a plan despite criticism or setbacks."
I so hope we do.
posted by LauraS | 11:21 AM
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4 comments
