Islam And Psychology.

From : www.islam-world.net

Psychology has provided us with a useful body of knowledge regarding personality formation, its function and dysfunction. Psychotherapy has provided us with the means to better understand psychological problems and the tools to alleviate dysfunction and cope with life in a more effective way. However, psychology inherently contains certain limitations as it does not and cannot fully address the reality of an expanded consciousness or the spiritual connection in the journey of life. Therefore, psychology (as it is generally practiced), only represents a part of the whole.
Islamic psychology on the other hand, is a well detailed and holistic process that enables the person to better understand the structure of its self and its soul and the connection of its soul to God. It embraces psychology, traditional spirituality, metaphysics and ontology and it is grounded in the teachings of the Quran and Hadith, using the outer as well as inner meanings. The prophet of Islam (pbuh) has said that the Quran contains an external meaning and seven layers of internal meanings. These inner meanings form the light that can be shone upon the true structures of man's personality/ego, exposing a profound reality that extends beyond our mere perception of it.
Generally speaking, the various schools of psychology have one goal and purpose in mind: to help a psychologically unhealthy individual become more functional and better adjusted according to the norms of a given society. It is assumed that the completion of this process will result in 'happiness'. From a spiritual perspective, even a well adjusted person still perceives his personality to be 'real' and often remains unconscious to his soul and spirit. This apparent reality causes inner turmoil and anxiety since it is not the true reality. Sufi psychology, which existed long before the onset of modern psychology, goes beyond the treatment of neuroses and dysfunctions and also addresses the psychological and spiritual health of people and moves them to the point where a state of higher consciousness is possible. It is only in the state of higher consciousness and/or God consciousness that an individual can move out of conflicts of ego personality and experience inner balance, harmony and peace. Therefore, Islamic psychology also directs itself to society as a whole such that dealing with the sickness and inner turmoil of the individual can provide an arena for going beyond and into what is called in Sufi terminology the perfection which every organism (both individual and society) is capable of reaching.
In both psychology and spirituality, the first step requires the recognition that one is unhealthy. For example, a person could be quite neurotic without acknowledging it, and therefore continue his neurotic thought patterns and behaviors whilst believing that he is alright, and that it is other people who have a problem. Similarly, a person may be totally out of touch with Reality, perceiving this life to be the only reality, with no connection with his spiritual aspect, and existing in complete self/ego absorption, unaware of the fact that he is what is often called a 'lost soul'. Islamic psychology addresses the psychological as well as spiritual issues and facilitates the ultimate goal in which the individual can proceed down a path of self realization and spiritual enfoldment. Islamic psychology provides the means to discover who we are, where we are going and what the purpose of our life's journey is.
Spiritual psychology in general, and Islamic psychology in particular, are concerned not only with this life and the function of the self within it, but also in the hereafter. They are concerned with both the descending and ascending journey of the soul, and evoke continuing knowledge of before and after the ego development, and methods of achieving the ultimate state of higher consciousness that human being is capable of achieving. This is after all, what real self-transformation is all about - the journey from the self to the Ultimate Self which is the doorway to God-Consciousness.

If You Are A Muslim Preacher You Have All The Future.

One of the best jobs you could over have is a Muslims preacher or Imam. My father who was a lawyer in Egypt was a part time Imam. I had always admired his preparation before his preaching. It took him about 3 years (weekly one hour in Friday) to explain Quran to the prayers. To be an Imam is quite demanding same like to be a Priest or a Rabbi you have to have the characters and morals besides being good at your job. Characters and morals are assets to any job but for religious leaders it is a must. No one can be 100% all time but it is quite demanding. Imam has very powerful message that affect people lives and the after-life. He has a very rich material to preach from: The Quran, The Hadith and all the sciences that built on Quran and Hadith. If you are an Imam you can have a lot to preach from:
1- Explanation of the Quran Sura by Sura (114 sura or chapter).
2- Explanation of Hadith (thousands of them).
3- You preach by subject (over 100): honesty, kindness,......
4- You preach by age and sex: Islam and women, Islam and raising children....
5- You can tackle all scientific miracles in the Quran.
6- You can tackle at the touch of Islam to most branches of knowledge.
7- Comparative religions particularly with Christianity and Judaism.
8- The prophets on light of Quran, Hadith, Old testament and gospels.
9- The history of Islamic religion 23 years of Prophet Muhammad life and 30 years of the Khalif's.....
10- Great Muslim personalities.
11- Linguistic miracles with uncountable examples.
12- Computer search that is the most recent approach to preach. You write the word you looking for say O Mankind, Justice, Jesus... and see what the verses of Quran said and you can have a nice a article that you can preach from. One of the best site for this search is http://www.islamicity.com/ To sum up Imam is a great profession that give you the love of God and people and make you win both your eternity and your here-now life. It is even getting greater future as Islam is spreading fast and knowing English is quite an asset. Priest and Rabbi who are convert to Islam will have the best prestige and respect since they have the double knowledge and double believability.

O Mankind.

From: www.quranicteachings.co.uk

O mankind! Verily there has come to you a convincing proof from your Guardian-Lord: For We have sent unto you a light (that is) manifest. [4:174]

O Mankind! The Messenger has come to you in truth from Allah. Believe in him: It is best for you. But if you reject Faith, to Allah belong all things in the heavens and on earth: And Allah is All-knowing, All-wise. [4:170]

O mankind! There has come to you a direction from your Lord and a prescription for the minds,- a guidance and a beneficence for those who believe. [10:57]

O mankind! Serve your Guardian-Lord [by living a life according to His guidance], who created you and those who came before you, so that you may journey through life with safety and security. [2:21]

O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other (not that you may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). [49:13]

O mankind! Call to mind the grace of Allah unto you! Is there a creator, other than Allah, to give you sustenance from heaven or earth? There is no god but He: how then are you deluded away from the Truth? [35:3]

O mankind! Guard yourself [against the inevitable consequences of violating the laws] of your Guardian-Lord [by observing carefully His guidance], who created you from a single life-cell, and created from it, its mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women;- Observe carefully the guidance of Allah, through whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (reverence) the wombs (That bore you): for Allah ever watches over you. [4:1]

O mankind! Guard yourself [against the inevitable consequences of violating the laws] of your Guardian-Lord [by observing carefully His guidance], and fear (the coming of) a Day when no father can avail aught for his son, nor a son avail aught for his father. Verily, the promise of Allah is true: let not then this present life deceive you, nor let the chief Deceiver deceive you about Allah. [31:33]

O mankind Guard yourself [against the inevitable consequences of violating the laws] of your Guardian-Lord [by observing carefully His guidance], for the convulsion of the Hour (of Judgment) will be a thing terrible! [22:1]

…O mankind! your insolence is against your own souls,- an enjoyment of the life of the present: in the end, to Us is your return, and We shall show you the truth of all that you did. [10:23]
O mankind! Certainly the promise of Allah is true. Let not then this present life deceive you, nor let the Chief Deceiver deceive you about Allah.[ 35:5 ]

O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes, then (foster you) that ye may reach your age of full strength; and some of you are called to die, and some are sent back to the feeblest old age, so that they know nothing after having known (much), and (further), you see the earth barren and lifeless, but when We pour down rain on it, it is stirred (to life), it swells, and it puts forth every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs). [22:5]

O mankind! Here is a parable set forth! Listen to it! Those on whom, besides Allah, you call, cannot create (even) a fly, if they all met together for the purpose! And if the fly should snatch away anything from them, they would have no power to release it from the fly. Feeble are those who petition and those whom they petition! [22:73]

O mankind! It is you that have need of Allah. But Allah is the One Free of all wants, worthy of all praise.[35:15]

O mankind! Eat of what is on earth, Lawful and is of your liking; and do not follow the footsteps of the evil one, for he is to you an avowed enemy. [2:168]

Why The Quran Is Very Enjoyable.

One thing was making me feel missing when we go the afterlife: the Quran. I was wrong I found out recently from Hadith to the prophet that we will recite it in heaven (hopefully). This enjoyment is related to the following:
1- The human history and wisdom of creation.
2- The enjoyable stories of the prophets.
3- The great understanding in human psychology.
4- The glory of a God talking to us.
5- The universe above us that look as it is in the grip of God.
6- The feeling that good win over evil either now or the afterlife.
7- The strength you feel when you read it and feeling fear, lonely, weak or injustice. For sinners it takes their hands, forgive their sins and heal their hearts.
8- The scientific miracle of Quran.
9- The linguistic miracle.
10- The beautiful music of Quran.
11- The recitation by different people who have the best voices in Islamic world. It is like you love a song and you hear it by the best singers that you enjoy their voices.
12- A song will give you good meanings and enjoyment of music and voice. The Quran will give you all of the above plus spirituality and high marks from God.
13- Even after translation you still enjoy most of the above. Remember 15% of all Muslims are Arabs and are likely to be less than 5% in the future.

Satan Let Me Shake Your Hand.

By: Maged Taman

Life is an irony. We joke in our worst of days and our eyes tear when we laugh from our hearts. We look sometimes at Satan, despite his hate to us, with admiration. He is the princes no doubt about it. He put hates in our hearts so we all be enemies:
1- The poor against the rich and vice versa.
2- Races against each other.
3- Countries and nations against each other.
4- Muslims against Muslims.
5- Christians against Christians.
6- Jews against Jews.
7- Then all of the three major religions against one another.
8- West against East.
9- Men against Women and vice versa.
10- Husband against wife and vice versa.
11- Other members of families against one another.
The things that create these hates are lack of understanding and the presence of injustices. Satan tempts people to do so and rationalize it to them.
So to abolish hate and have longstanding peace Jews, Christians and Muslims believed there would be an extraordinary man that is guided by God that he would be able to do so. It is clear from human history that humans could not achieve that on their own. Jews and Muslims to a large part thinks this man would inspire people to achieve that. It is their determination and faith that will lead them to do that. His main task is to get all of people to get more righteous including himself (morality is a group act). Christians or say many of them thinks it is not by action but faith in Jesus Christ we will have our salvation. God would send him again for our salvation. Muslims believe in his second coming but they believe he would be the gift for our own salvation. In order to understand the plan of God for Salvation you have to reconsult God's revelation: the Quran, old testament and Gospels. Until we can conquer the little Satan inside each of us we have to give the great Satan the credit and shake his hand. When we win our salvation he will fall down and no one will give him a hand.

Who is Jesus: Consult The Old Testament, The Gospels and The Quran.

By: Maged Taman

For Muslims Jesus is a great prophet. He was born with a miraculous birth. He is not son of God. He was raised to God and was not crucified. In his second coming he will come with glory and redeem the world and the world will be one religion Islam. In his second coming he will be the king and people will enjoy a Messianic era that was proclaimed by the three major religions and interestingly was prophesied also by most world religions. I will explain below the evidences of each of the above statements:1- Perfect God proof: I will let you read this story to Rabbi David Wolpe to understand this point: Growing up in Philadelphia, I attended Akiba Hebrew Academy, a private Jewish school. In 11th grade, a Southern Baptist preacher came to speak to our class. He looked around the room, and with a kindly smile said, "You seem like nice boys and girls. But I must tell you that unless you change your ways, you are all going to hell."I admired his honesty, but not his theology. I spent the next hour trying to think of a question that would stump him. As the class was ending, I raised my hand."Is Jesus perfect?" I asked."Yes," he answered."Is the Father perfect?" I asked."Yes," he said again."And is the Holy Ghost perfect?" Once again, he answered affirmatively."Well then," I said, "two of the three are superfluous. Perfection does not need anything. That is why it's perfect. Since by definition, you can't add anything to perfection, the idea makes no sense."He paused for a minute, and said, "That is the mystery of the Trinity."Since that time, I have been intrigued by the deep division between Jews and Christians over the question of Jesus. It has always seemed as crystal clear to me that Jesus was nothing more than a human being, as it has seemed crystal clear to many of my Christian friends that he was the Son of God. This was the story by the Rabbi at a young age he came with simple logic: why a perfect God will need to prefect himself with the Trinity.2- No Man Can Be a G-d Proof: I quote Rabbi Eliezer Gevirtz The Torah makes it clear that there is only one omnipotent, indivisible G-d: "The L-rd He is G-d; there is none else besides him" (Deuteronomy 4:35)." G-d is unique unto Himself, and does not consist of a trinity: "The L-rd He is G-d in heaven above and upon the earth below; there is none else" (Deuteronomy 4:39). JC himself accepted G-d's uniqueness: "And he (JC) said unto him, 'Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, G-d." (Matthew 19:17). How, then, could a mortal man-one who was born and who died on a cross-be a segment of an immortal, indivisible G-d? There is no concept of infinity possible if G-d is a man or a Trinity. The Torah states clearly: "G-d is not a man" (Numbers 23:19).3- No Jesus son of God in old testament proof: Why God all of sudden after about 4000 years would declare that he has a son. Why he did not let the prophets know particularly Abraham who take him as a close friend and Moses whom he talked to several times.4-Old Testament usage of the term Son of God Proof: The term “son of God” is used in two main ways in the Old Testament. Neither way denotes any physical relation to God. Rather, the references deal with those who under divine obedience to the call of God. It is used of Israel as a nation through the Exodus. Hosea 11:1 says, “When Israel was a youth I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.”1 It is also used in reference to angels. Job 1:6 says, "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.” Also, in Job 38:7 it says, "When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" These are in reference to angels who are created beings and in now way implies literal dependency from God.5- "My Father and your Father" Proof: Apostle John, in his Gospel records that when Jesus appeared before Mary Magdalene, outside of the empty tomb, she tried to cling him. There upon Jesus told Mary not to hold him because he had yet to ascend to the Father. Jesus then instructed Mary to go and tell his disciples: "I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." Mary Magdalene went and conveyed that Message to the disciples. (John 20: 16-18). This conclusively proves that the term "My Father" used by Jesus simply meant that the Almighty God was the Father of him as well as that of his disciples. In other words, this unequivocally recorded verbatim authenticates that the relationship of Jesus with "his Father" and "his God" were akin to the relationship his disciples had with the Heavenly Father and God.6- No worship of Jesus proof: When Jesus was alive was not worshiped by his apostle or the Christians at that time if he is a son of God you would have expected them to do so. He was pleading to them to follow the father and not the human son. The father of all of us if we follow his path.7- No one is atoned for another one proof: Every one of us will be judged in day of judgment according to the good and evil he does. No one dies or crucified for other one sin. This is well stated in both the old testament and Quran. There is some support to us from the prophets, good people and even family members to ask God for forgiveness or better place in heaven. However, nothing is guarantee except our balance of good and evil deeds. In Islam there is no despair of God compassion or strong assurance of having God acceptance. One has to feel assured but with some degree of uncertainty enough to make you do more and not to give up.8-Son of Man in Gospel proof: The title "son of man" which is a self-designation of Jesus and occurs 81 times in the gospels is the clearest description and emphasis by Jesus on his humanity. The classical interpretation given to this title by Christians is that it is used to emphasize the human side of Jesus. Easily understandable is he is a real son of man and not son of God. The father was given also to other worshipers like Jesus. Jesus himself only mentioned son of God twice in the John Gospel much less than son of man. He did not ask his apostles to worship him. " Who loves me follow the father commandments". The first commandment: you shall love the lord.... He did not mention and the Son too.9- Where is the Son before birth proof: So before Jesus was born he was supposedly existing. Where he was (heaven?) and who was the initial mother (Goddess). This is actually a deviation to the teachings of all prophets. Their center message of God that no God but him (El Hasheem, God, Allah). In Islam he has actually 99 names. All are for one and the same God.10- Easier deceiving proof: What is more easier for Satan to do: to deceive people that a son of God a word also was used with other prophets to make people believe he is a real son of God given the miraculous birth or to come up after about 560 years later with a revelation to Muhammad (PBUH) for 23 years to strongly dispute that. The first is easier to do just a little twist as Jesus a real son of God. The second is much harder for Satan to do.11- Counterfeit Proof: Second Coming of Jesus in Islam and Christianity prophesied in both religions. This suggested to Christians that Islam is a counterfeit deceive by Satan to Christianity. Which is right if you can prove that the Quran was inspired by Satan. For Muslims they consider the failure of Christians to understand Islam made them live falsely with this counterfeit theory. Superficially it is easy to see Islam as religion of war and his prophet married many women. But these do not answer this simple questions why 1.3 billion Muslims in the globe and followers are increasing and they can take a lot of sufferings for their religion. Muslims follow Jesus teaching more than Christians. HIV is rare in Muslim countries compared by Christian countries. The great tribulation was described as God's wrath to those who do not follow his commandments and Jesus said: "And if those days had not been shortened, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect they will be shortened". The matter is just to serious particularly for people who attack Islam and do not do their homework and study it. If you read Islam you find that Christ is a great prophet and the closest To Islam in both his first and second coming. Abu Hurairah reported Allah's Messenger (PBUH) as saying, "I am the nearest of kin to Jesus, son of Mary, in this world and the next. The prophets are brothers, sons of one father by co-wives. Their mothers are different but their religion is one. There has been no prophet between us". (Bukhari and Muslim).· Abu Hurairah reported Allah's Messenger(PBUH) as saying,"By Him in whose hand my soul is, the son of Mary will soon descend among you as a just judge. He will break crosses, kill swine and abolish the jizya (a tax payable by a community which accepts the protection of a Muslim ruler but whose members do not embrace Islam), and wealth will pour forth to such an extent that no one will accept it, and one sajda (the position in Muslim’s prayer where the forehead is placed on the ground), will be better than the world and what it contains". (Bukahri and Muslim). Thus Islam can be a counterfeit deceive by Satan or Christianity became the counterfeit for failure to accept Islam. So if still believe God can have a on despite all points mentioned above. He has to read Islam and prove it is from Satan. Please read Muhammad (PBUH) prophet from God Proofs in my blog. http://www.commonsensemessiah.blogspot.com/12- Freedom of Worship proof: Unlike Christians who persecuted and killed Jews to convert them to Christianity, in Islam free creed is essential. Muslims believe that Jews voluntarily will accept Jesus as a great prophet and the Messiah before his second coming. In Islam any arguments particularly that of religion should be dissent. I do the same except I feel angry about the saving of Christians by blood. I have been discriminated against and oppressed by many Christians in America because they are saved. For honesty I met very good Christians and very bad Muslims. In Islam the the infidels are those who are fighting and oppressing Muslims regardless of their religion. That is why America is trying to reverse its policy now. Even atheists like communists fought the rich and oppressors in Russia 1917 revolution. Again most Muslims are Bin Lade-non who would like not to see any terror but know that desperate people can do desperate things. If Satan had sent revelation to Muhammad (PBUH) he would have Muslims hate Christ not to love him and wait eagerly for his second coming. A lot of Muslims follow his teachings more than many Christians since they believe they are saved by his message and not his blood. The later would be very convenient to Satan he would just corrupt the world and make us deserve God's wrath. Muhammad (PBUH) did not order to kill for creed but to defend religion and release the captives. His worst enemies were actually the hypocrites who were pretending to be Muslims and meantime conspire with his enemies. He knew them and did not kill them. Actually their leader Abd-Allah Bin Aby asked Muhammad to pray for him when he was dying and the messenger did though he was his worst enemy.13- Adam Proof: The Qur’an recognizes the fact that Jesus had no human father but this does not make him the son of God or God Himself. By this criterion Adam would have been more entitled to be the son of God because he had neither a father nor a mother. So the Qur'an draws attention to the miraculous creation of both in the following verse:Truly the likeness of Jesus, in God's sight, is as Adam's likeness; He created him of dust. then said He unto him, "Be", and he was. (3:59)14- Birth of Jesus in Quran proof: Before you read to Dr. Maneh Al-Johani the birth of Jesus in Quran put three possible things in the back of your mind as you read: 1-The Quran is a revelation from God. 2-Satan has deceived Muhammad with the revelation. 3- Muhammad came up with the revelation on his own for one reason or another. That is what he wrote: When Mary became a woman, the Holy Spirit (the Archangel Gabriel) appeared to her as a man bringing her the news of a son. We read the following duologue in the Qur'an between Mary and the angels:When the angels said, 'Mary. God gives you good tidings of a Word from Him whose name is Messiah Jesus, son of Mary; high honored shall he be in this world and the next, near stationed to God. He shall speak to men in the cradle, and of age, and righteous she shall be.' 'Lord', said Mary, 'how shall I have a son seeing no mortal has touched me? 'Even so' he said, 'God creates what He will.' When He decrees a thing He does but say to it, "Be", and it is.' (3:45-7)Mary conceived the child miraculously and retired to a distant place where she awaited her delivery. The Qur'an in a chapter entitled 'Mary’ tells us how Mary felt and what the Jews told her when she brought the child home:She conceived him and withdrew with him to a distant place. And the birth-pangs surprised her by the trunk of the palm-tree. She said, 'would I had died before this. and become a thing forgotten.' The one from below her called to her, 'Do not grieve; see, your Lord has set below you a rivulet. Shake also toward you the palm-trunk. and there shall come tumbling upon you dates fresh and ripe. Eat therefore, and drink, and be comforted; and if you should see any mortal, say. "I have vowed to the All-Merciful a fast, and today I will not speak to any man." Then she brought the child to her folk carrying him; and they said, ‘Mary, you have surely committed a monstrous thing. Sister of Aaron, your father was not a wicked man, nor was your mother a woman unchaste.' Mary pointed to the child. but they said, 'How shall we speak to one who is still in the cradle, a little child?' He said, 'Lo, I am God's servant; God has given me the Book and made me a Prophet. Blessed he has made me, wherever I may be; and he has enjoined me to pray. and to give the alms, so long as I live, and likewise to cherish my mother; he has not made me arrogant or wicked. Peace be upon me, the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive.' (19:22-23)In the same chapter, following the above quotation, God assured Muhammad and the whole world that what was mentioned above is the truth about Jesus although the Christians might not believe it. Jesus is not the son of God. He was, obviously enough, the son of Mary. The verses continue:That is Jesus, son of Mary, in word of truth, concerning which they are doubting. It is not for God to take a son unto Him. Glory be to Him! When He decrees a thing. He but says to it "Be". and it is. (19:34-5)After this strong statement about the nature of Jesus, God directed Muhammad to call the Christians to a fair deal: to worship the one God:Surely God is my Lord, and your Lord, so serve Him. This is the straight path. (19:38).The rejection of the idea of God having a son is reported later in the same chapter with even stronger words:And they say, 'The All-merciful has taken unto Himself a son.' You have indeed advanced something hideous. The heavens are well nigh rent of it and the earth split asunder, and the mountains well nigh fall down crashing for that they have attributed to the All-merciful a son; and it behooves not the All-merciful to take a son. None is there in the heavens and earth but he comes to the All-merciful as a servant. (19:88-93)The Qur'an rejects the concept of the Trinity as strongly as it rejects the Son-ship of Jesus. This is because God is One. This is the essence of all monotheistic revelations. Three, by reason and by simple arithmetic, are not one. The Qur'an addresses the Christians in the following verses in the chapter entitled "Women".People of the Book, go not beyond the bounds in your religion, and say not as to God but the Truth. The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was only the Messenger of God, and His Word that He committed to Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in God and His Messengers, and say not, 'Three'. Refrain. better is it for you. God is only One God. Glory be to Him — that He should have a son! To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and in the earth, God suffices for a guardian.The Messiah will not disdain to be a servant of God, neither the angels who are close to Him. Whosoever disdains to serve Him and waxes proud. He will assuredly muster them to Him, all of them.As for the believers, who do deeds of righteousness, He will pay them their rewards in full, and He will give them more, of His bounty; as for them who disdain and wax proud, them He will punish with a severe punishment, and they shall not find for them, apart from God, a friend or helper. (4:171-3)15- Traditions proof: the author continues and explaining by verses of Quran how people can be wrongly inherited the wrong interpretation from their parents and adhere to them blindly. Read what he says: The verses continue to draw the attention of people, all people, to the proof which Muhammad brought. God knows that people frequently inherit certain ideas and beliefs which include, among other things, the mistakes and interpretations of previous generations. They have no way of discovering such mistakes for themselves. Thus God presents the Qur’an as a proof to such people. He says:O men, a manifest proof has now come to you from your Lord; we have sent down to you a clear light. As for those who believe in God, and hold fast to Him, He will surely admit them to mercy from Him, and bounty, and will guide them to Him on a straight path. (4:173-5)The denial of Jesus' divinity (and for that matter Mary's divinity) is presented in the Qur’an as a topic of dialogue at the Day of Judgment between God Almighty and Jesus. All the messengers and the nations will be gathered in front of God and He will ask the messengers how they were received by their peoples and what they said to them. Among those who are going to be questioned is Jesus:And when God said, 'O Jesus son of Mary, did you say unto men, "Take me and my mother as gods. apart from God?” He said, 'To you be glory! It is not mine to say what I have no right to. If I indeed said it, you knew it, knowing what is within my soul, and I do not know what is within your soul. you know the things unseen. I only said to them what you did command me: "serve God, my Lord and your Lord." And I was a witness over them, while I remained among them; but when you did take me to yourself, you were yourself the watcher over them; you are the witness of everything. If you punish them, they are your servants, if you forgive them, you are the Almighty, the All-wise.' God said, ‘This is the day the truthful shall be profited by their truthfulness. For them await gardens underneath which rivers flow therein dwelling forever, God being well-pleased with them end they well-pleased with Him; That is the mighty triumph'.16- God's Anger proof: If people read the old testament as well Quran you find how comes the most important and first commandment of God is monotheism. This comes first to God and he can forgive all sins except for that. See how this angered God that they claim Jesus a son to him: And they say, 'The All-merciful has taken unto Himself a son.' You have indeed advanced something hideous. The heavens are well nigh rent of it and the earth split asunder, and the mountains well nigh fall down crashing for that they have attributed to the All-merciful a son; and it behooves not the All-merciful to take a son. None is there in the heavens and earth but he comes to the All-merciful as a servant. (19:88-93). The anger is not particularly for thinking of a blasphemous act but the idea as a whole is terribly wrong, Imagine that someone claimed that a person is your son and you know very well that he is not your son. God had this miraculous birth of Jesus followed by a lot of miracles to support Jesus during his message. Many Christians unfortunately fell in the trap of Satan they took from the message the opposite: they made Jesus is a son of God to worship and neglected most of his teachings thinking when Jesus crucified and they are saved by his blood". It is very logical that the next message after Christianity to correct this error has to come from same source God. This is in itself is a proof of the message. You may ask so why God would let Satan deceive a lot of us. The same question was going on Muhammad (PBUH) mind when he was eager to have people to convert to Islam God told him: you do not guide whom you like but God guides whom he wishes. As we understand more now that God plan was to have people convert to one message as one nation in the last millennium. He planned to guide us for this purpose but this may stand against the interest of a lot of people. However, God is very able to execute his plans. People may be surprised as he does with history and his revelations how God deals with us macroscopically (meaning we get different revelations over history at certain points) while at personal level he deals with us microscopically (every atom of sin or good recorded to us). You may ask why he deals with us macroscopically. The answer is simple he is God and by definition his wisdom many times is beyond our understanding. The more obvious is what happens when he send us a messenger we fight them like dogs and cats. About 124,000 messengers were sent and millions of righteous people to carry his message. See what happen people are rarely righteous like prophets want them to, despite this is being of interest of every one. People deserved God's wrath when they despised and rejected his messengers.17- Mission of Jesus proof in Quran: Now one might ask: If the Qur'an denies the Trinity and the Son-ship of Jesus, what was the real mission of Jesus according to the Qur'an?Jesus was a link in a long chain of prophets and messengers sent by God to various societies and nations whenever they needed guidance or deviated from the teachings of God. Jesus was especially prepared by God to be sent to the Jews who had deviated from the teachings of Moses and other Messengers. As he was miraculously supported by God in conception, birth and childhood, he was also supported by numerous miracles to prove that he was a messenger from God. The Qur'an tells us about Jesus' mission in the following verses which are a continuation of the verses quoted earlier in which the glad tiding was brought to Mary:And He will teach him the Book, the wisdom, the Torah, the Gospel and make him a Messenger to the children of Israel saying, “I have come to you with a sign from your Lord. I will create for you out of clay as the likeness of a bird; then I will breathe into It, and it will be a bird, by the power of God. I will also heal the blind and the leper and bring to life the dead, by the power of God. I will inform you too of the things you eat, and what you treasure up in your houses. Surely in that is a sign for you if you are believers. Likewise I will confirm the truth of the Torah that is before me, and to make lawful to you certain things that before were forbidden unto you. I have come to you with a sign from your Lord; so fear God, and obey me. Surely God is my Lord and your Lord; so serve Him. This is a straight path". (3:45-51)In another verse of the Qur’an, Jesus confirmed the validity of the Torah which was revealed to Moses and he also brought the glad tidings of the coming of a final messenger after him. This is clearly indicated in the following verse:And when Jesus son of Mary said. 'children of Israel. I am indeed the Messenger to you, confirming the Torah that is before me, and giving good tidings of a Messenger who shall come after me, whose name shall be the praised one (note that this is translation of Ahmad which is Prophet Muhammad’s name). (61:6)The messenger of whom Jesus gave glad tidings is referred to in both the old and new testaments of the Bible.18- Muhammad (PBUH) in the Bible proof: If we prove that Muhammad is a real messenger of God the argument is over, since his message is the last revelation from God and Quran was very well preserved with no change of one letter. So I always prefer in religious arguments for people to try disprove Islam first if they fail then his revelation is the best judge to Who Jesus is. The old testament contains several prophecies that apply only to the Prophet Muhammad. I quote only one of those which applies to none except Prophet Muhammad. This prophecy which was addressed to Moses said that God will send among the 'brethren' of the Israelites, a prophet like Moses who will be a founder, a leader, and an exemplar of a community of believers. We read this in the following verses of Deut. Ch. 18:I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brethren; and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And whoever will not give heed to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him. (Deut. 18:18-20)Any one who is familiar with Prophet Muhammad's life, can easily see that no one fits the above description better than Prophet Muhammad. It was Prophet Muhammad, not Jesus, who like Moses was born from ordinary parents, got married, founded a faithful community, established a great law and died a natural death.Careful study of the New Testament shows that this same prophet is referred to by Jesus in John 14:16,17:And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth.Later in John specific description of this Spirit of Truth and his role is given as we read in John 16:13,14.:When the Spirit of Truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify Me...The terms of the prophecy do not warrant the conclusion usually attributed to this prophecy, namely that it refers to the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost explanation is excluded by a previous verse in John which reads:Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantages that I go away, for if I do not go away, the counselor will not come to you.It is clear from the Bible that the Holy Ghost used to visit men before and during the life-time of Jesus. John was filled with the Holy Ghost before he was born and Jesus himself received the Holy Ghost in the shape of a dove.The characteristics of this counselor, as can be derived from the prophecy,are the following:1. He will not come until Jesus leaves.2. He will stay forever, with the believers.3. He will glorify Jesus.4. He will speak what he hears from God.These characteristics are applicable only to Prophet Muhammad, as thefollowing brief remarks show:Prophet Muhammad was the only messenger that came after Jesus. There was a period of six centuries between them. Jesus' mission was limited to the "lost sheep of the children of Israel”, but Muhammad's was a universal message. This explains the second characteristic.Only Prophet Muhammad's message was intended by God to be a universal and everlasting message. This agrees with the statement that the counselor will stay forever with the faithful.No other prophet glorified Jesus as much as Prophet Muhammad did. Prophet Muhammad considered Jesus as great Prophet and the “Word of God". The Qur'an attributed to him miracles that are not mentioned in the Bible. Mary is considered the most chaste woman and the best of all women in paradise. Thus did Muhammad really glorify Jesus.The fourth characteristic also applies neatly to Prophet Muhammad. The Qur’an was revealed to Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel. When the angel finished reciting the Qur’an, Prophet Muhammad used to convey verbatim to his companions what he heard from the angel without adding, changing or forgetting anything. The Qur'an also describes Prophet Muhammad saying “He does not speak out of his own fancy. He utters what is revealed to him." (53:4,5). If we compare this with, "He will not speak on his own authority", we see the striking similarity between the characteristics of the counselor and those of Prophet Muhammad. These and other prophecies in the old and new testaments predict in unequivocal terms the advent of Prophet Muhammad who is rejected by the Jews and Christians on the basis of misunderstanding and bias rather than on the basis of careful study of the Bible, the Qur'an and modern findings in the field of comparative religion.JESUS RAISED TO HEAVENIt is a sad fact of history that not many follow "the straight path", to which people were called by Jesus. He was followed by a few disciples who were inspired by God to support him. Not only that, but the non-believers plotted (as they did to Muhammad six centuries later) to kill Jesus, but God had a better plan for him and his followers as the Qur'an tells us in the following verses:And when Jesus perceived their unbelief, he said, 'who will be my helpers in the cause of God? The Apostles said, 'we will be helpers of God.' We believe in God; be witness of our submission. Lord, we believe in that you have sent down, and we follow the Messenger. Inscribe us therefore with those who bear witness.' And they devised, and God devised, and God is the best of devisers. When God said, 'Jesus, I will take you to me and will raise you to Me, and I will purify you of those who do not believe. I will set your followers above the unbelievers till the Resurrection Day. Then unto Me shall you return, and I will decide between you, as to what you were at variance on. As for the unbelievers, I will punish them with a terrible punishment in this world and the next; they shall have no helpers.' (3:52-6)As the above verses indicate, Jesus was raised to heaven before he died.This means that according to the Qur'an he was not crucified. It was the plan ofthe enemies of Jesus to put him to death on the cross, but God saved him andsomebody else was crucified. This plot and the false accusation of Mary areconsidered by the Qur'an to be some of the sins of the non-believing Jews. Allthis is clear in the following quotation:And for their unbelief, and their uttering against Mary a mighty calumny, and for their saying, ‘We slew the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of God'... yet they did not slay him, neither crucified him, only a likeness of that was shown to them. Those who are at variance concerning him surely are in doubt regarding him, they have no knowledge of him, except the following of surmise; and they did not slay him of certainty... no indeed; God raised him up to Him; God is Almighty, All-wise. There is not one of the people of the Book but will assuredly believe in him before his death, and on the Resurrection Day he will be a witness against them. (4:156-9).Who was the person crucified instead of Jesus? The Qur'an does not elaborate on this point nor does it give any answer to this question. The interpreters of the Qur'an have suggested a few names. But all these are individual guesses not supported by the Qur'an or the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad.This means that Jesus will come back before the Day of Judgment. Again the Second Coming is not clearly mentioned in the Qur'an. However, the explanatory of the Qur'an understood the last verse of the above quotation: there is not one of the people of the Book but will assuredly believe in him before his death, and on the Resurrection Day he will be a witness against them, to mean that Jesus will come back and all the Christians and the Jews will believe in him before he dies. This understanding is supported by authentic sayings of the Prophet Muhammad.So if we can get smart and examine the bible and Quran as well end of time prophecies we will be able to match things with current world affairs.Maged Taman.FURTHER READINGS ON ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITYM. M. Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'an T. B.Irving, et al., The Qur'an: Basic TeachingsHammed Abdulati, Islam in FocusM. Qutb, /slam: The Misunderstood ReligionB. A. Bawany, Islam: The First and Final ReligionMaurice Bucaille, The Bible, The Qur'an and ScienceMaurice Bucaille, The Origin of ManLordsale and Laura Ragg, The Gospel of BarnabasMuhammad Ata-ur-Rahman, Jesus: A Prophet of IslamRudolf Augustein, Jesus Son of ManJohn Hick (ed), The Myth of God IncarnateS. S. Mufassir, Jesus in the Qur'an.Some of these books and others about Islam can be obtained from:World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY)P. O. Box 10845Tel. (01)4641663Riyadh 11443, Saudi ArabiaOr the nearest Islamic Center in your part of the world.

The Importance to The Faithful of The Honored Sunnah

From: www.mediamonitors.net

by Harun Yahya
(Thursday July 07 2005)
"...it must not be forgotten that the Sunnah of our Prophet (saas) and the path to which he called the faithful is a path that will give life to believers."
“I have left among you two things; you will never go astray as long as you hold fast to them: the Book of Allah and my Sunnah.”
-- (Al-Hakim)
As our Lord has revealed in the verse “Today I have perfected your religion for you and completed My blessing upon you and I am pleased with Islam as a religion for you” (Surat al-Ma’ida, 3), Islam is the final divine religion. Prophet Muhammad (saas) is “the messenger of Allah and the Final Seal of the Prophets” (Surat al-Ahzab, 40). The faithful learn the kind of moral values they need to display in order to attain the approval, compassion and paradise of Allah; what they must avoid and what they must abide by; what is lawful and what is forbidden; in short, all the details regarding the kind of life that will be pleasing to Allah from the Qur’an. Another mercy and blessing of our Lord for believers is the Sunnah of our Prophet (saas).
Our Prophet (saas) is a blessed individual, whom Allah has sent as a role model for all people with his moral values, as is revealed in the verse “You have an excellent model in the messenger of Allah, for all who put their hope in Allah and the Last Day and remember Allah much” (Surat al-Ahzab, 21). He is a role model for everyone with his faith, godliness, knowledge and superior moral values. With his patience, trust in Allah, courage, devotion and closeness to Allah, justice, compassion, love and affection for believers, and foresight he possessed moral values that are greatly admired by the faithful. All believers strongly desire and strive to possess these features. That is because possessing superior moral values similar to those of our Prophet (saas) means abiding by the moral values of the Qur’an. For all these reasons, therefore, all words, decisions, recommendations, advice and life – the Sunnah in other words – of our Prophet (saas) is a most valuable guide for all those who wish to understand and live by the Qur’an.
Allah has revealed the importance of obeying the prophet and adhering to his path in many verses of the Qur’an. One of these reads:
Whoever obeys the messenger has obeyed Allah. If anyone turns away, We did not send you to them as their keeper. -- (Surat an-Nisa’, 80)
One of the most important signs that someone obeys and has submitted to Allah is that person’s obedience and devotion to the prophet. That is because Allah sent the prophets to show people the way, by His leave, to the true path. If a person wishes to become someone who abides by Allah’s path and of whom Allah will approve, he must obey our Prophet (saas) and fully adhere to his path. Our Lord informs us of this fact in the verse, “For this We sent a messenger to you from among you to recite Our signs to you and purify you and teach you the Book and Wisdom and teach you things you did not know before” (Surat al-Baqara, 151). Islamic scholars are unanimously agreed that the expression “Wisdom” in this verse means “the Sunnah of our Prophet (saas).”
Believers have been commanded to take the Qur’an and the honored Sunnah of our Prophet (saas) as their guides on matters over which they disagree. In the Qur’an our Lord states:
No, by your Lord, they are not believers until they make you their judge in the disputes that break out between them, and then find no resistance within themselves to what you decide and submit themselves completely. -- (Surat an-Nisa’, 65)
As is clearly set out in this verse, the practices of our Prophet (saas) are an obligation for believers. That is because the Sunnah is the interpretation and explanation of and commentary on the Qur’an. Therefore, no believer, neither man nor woman, has any right of rejection with regard to the honored Sunnah of our Prophet (saas). This is revealed in these terms in the Qur’an:
When Allah and His messenger have decided something it is not for any man or woman of the believers to have a choice about it. Anyone who disobeys Allah and His messenger is clearly misguided. -- (Surat al-Ahzab, 36)
… Whatever the messenger gives you you should accept and whatever he forbids you you should forgo. Have fear [and respect] of Allah – Allah is severe in retribution. -- (Surat al-Hashr, 7)
The reply of the believers when they are summoned to Allah and His messenger so that he can judge between them, is to say, “We hear and we obey.” They are ones who are successful. -- (Surat an-Nur, 51)
A person’s submission to our Prophet (saas) and complete compliance with his stipulations is a sign that that person acts with a devout consciousness. If a person sincerely adheres to our Prophet (saas) and feels not the slightest doubt in his heart about the stipulations issued by him, that person is aware that he is actually abiding by the commandments of Allah. In the words “nor does he speak from whim. It is nothing but Revelation revealed” (Surat an-Najm, 3-4), our Lord reveals that our Prophet (saas) spoke solely through His revelation and that his words are under His protection. Indeed, in the Hadith our Prophet (saas) has stated the importance of adhering to his path, and that subsequent generations in particular need to be most sensitive to this matter:
… those of you who live after me will see great disagreement. You must then follow my sunnah and that of the rightly-guided caliphs. Hold to it and stick fast to it. Avoid novelties, for every novelty is an innovation, and every innovation is an error. -- (Abu Dawud, Narrated Irbad ibn Sariyah)
The best word is the Word of Allah and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. -- (Sunan Ibn Maajah, Muqaddima, 7)
In addition, it must not be forgotten that the Sunnah of our Prophet (saas) and the path to which he called the faithful is a path that will give life to believers. In one verse Allah states:
You who believe! Respond to Allah and to the messenger when He calls you to what will bring you to life! Know that Allah intervenes between a man and his heart and that you will be gathered to Him. -- (Surat al-Anfal, 24)
What devout believers must do is to adhere to the path of our Prophet (saas) and to take his Sunnah as their guide, in the knowledge that he has called them to a path that will give them life. Someone who wishes to attain the mercy and paradise of Allah must build his house on solid foundations right from the outset. Someone who has taken the Qur’an as his guide and the moral values of our Prophet (saas) as a role model is someone who adheres to the true path. In the Qur’an, Allah refers to people who build on solid foundations right from the outset thus:
Who is better: someone who founds his building on fear [and awareness] of Allah and His good pleasure, or someone who founds his building on the brink of a crumbling precipice so that it collapses with him into the fire of Hell? Allah does not love wrongdoers. -- (Surat at-Tawba, 109)
Anyone who acts out of a fear of Allah and strives to gain His approval is a loyal follower of our Prophet (saas), and seeks to resemble him in faith and moral values. Resembling our Prophet (saas), however, is only possible by adhering to the Qur’an and never departing from the honored Sunnah.
Source:
by courtesy & © 2005 Harun Yahya

The Morals of Muhammad (PBUH)

God the Almighty says: "And verily, you [O Muhammad] are on an exalted [standard of] character." (68:4) His wife Asha had said " his moral is the Quran". That is to mean he was the first to apply his message. All morals that God stressed on Muslims to have it Muhammad had exemplified them. I will mention down his most well know characters:

1- The honest and trustworthy: these made people to take him very seriously. Particularly believe in the unseen in religion which is quite appalling: a God, angels, demons, heaven and hell you need someone that you do not have on him a tiny suspicion. Particularly they would have to endure, be oppressed or get killed for their religion.
2- He had a smiling face and was to start in saluting people.
3- Patience: it unbelievable how much he suffered from his enemies who would spread everywhere that he is a liar or crazy despite his miraculous Quran and his great wisdom.
4- He was kind to all people, except those who hurt Muslims.
5- He would smile but he would rarely joke.
6- What he says was always the truth.
7- He would not retaliate to himself.
8- His wars were to spread his religion particularly when Muslims were oppressed.
9- He would ask his followers to pray in their way to fight for not meeting the enemies and would tell them "to guide someone to Islam is better for you than the world and all it contains".
10- When his enemies would convert to Islam they become his best friends. The main leaders of his armies were the same who were fighting him at one time before they became Muslims.
11- He was very humble you do not know who is Muhammad from his friends. He would not examine people with his eyes. He gets shy and his face turn red like a virgin.
12- He never sinned, he had few minor errors, people do not even consider them sins. Muslims love to say he has zero error which contradicts the Quran. He had very few errors.
13- He was compassionate and merciful.
14- He always accepted God's orders and the hardship that he had to go through with strong faith and acceptance.
15- His love and praise to the other prophets particularly Jesus was great.
16- He would help his wives at home. He was very civilized in dealing with women and they can argue with him in a polite way. He never made them feel inferior.
17- He does not criticize people and his servant for long years mentioned that he never told him for something he did why he did or why he did not do. His servant refused to go to his family when they came to take him and insisted to live with Muhammad. He was dealing with his servant like he is his own son.
18- Muhammad was living like poor Muslims. He would sleep in the ground. He would eat only few dates for most of his days.
19- His faith in God and his message was very strong and that eliminated any doubts in the heart of his believers except for the few times that they thought that they are going to be exterminated like happened with the Jews and prophet Moses.
20- He never used foul language and he would not talk one inappropriate word. He was teaching his followers that man's tongue is the one to lead him to hell. With man tongue he can hurt others feelings, he can create hate and wars between people.
21- Living holly like the prophet and with followers around him in thousands doing every thing the right way and the angel Gabriel bringing down the Quran over 23 years you feel that they were connected with creator and the universe. Muhammad however praised most those who will come after his death and not see him and believe him.
22- Fear of God and knowing his glory made the Muslims at the time of Muhammad to live with great manners. There were no jealousy in between and they lived like real brothers.Muslims now live a material life and left in most part the spiritual life. They are very different from the early Muslims and much less happy.

Pope Talks About His ‘Respect’ For Islam

Source ::: REUTERS

VATICAN CITY • Pope Benedict underlined in a message to Turkey yesterday his respect for the Islamic faith, which many Muslims believe he portrayed as violent in a speech last year, and called on all religions to denounce violence.
The pontiff, welcoming Turkey's new ambassador to the Vatican and recalling his fence-mending trip there last year, hailed Turkey as a "bridge" between East and West but stopped short of backing its aspirations to European Union membership.
"During my memorable journey I showed repeatedly the respect the Catholic Church has for Islam and the esteem in which the Pope and the faithful hold Muslim believers, especially on my visit to Istanbul's Blue Mosque," he said in a speech.
" ... Believers of different religions should try to work together for peace, starting by condemning violence, which has been used too often in the past under the pretext of religious motivation ... ," the German-born Pope said.
During the Turkish tour late last year, the Pope even prayed facing the holy city of Mecca in his efforts at conciliation with Muslims, many of whom found offence in a speech in Germany last September that included a medieval quote about Islam being spread by violence.
The Pope distanced himself from the quote itself but did not cede to Muslim calls for a full apology. However, the visit to Turkey was welcomed by many Muslims as a sensitive gesture.

Defending Islam. From: www.thetruecall.com

Question: Do Muslims worship a different God?

Answer: Many non-Muslims have come to incorrectly believe that Allah is the ‘God of Muslims’ – A deity somehow different from the God of the other faiths. It should be emphasized that the term “Allah” has no implied meaning at all of an Arabian god, a Moon god or even a Muslim god. Muslims are not claiming any exclusiveness when they say "Allah". However Allah is simply the Arabic Name of the one Almighty God; the same name by which Arabic-speaking Jews and Christians, refer to God. The Allah comes from the term ‘al-ilaah’. Al is the definite article in Arabic, equivalent to ‘the’ in English, while ilaah means ‘a deity or god’. So Allah means The God.
Islam teaches that God is Merciful, Loving and Compassionate and that He has no need to become man (nor do humans need for Him to). One of the unique aspects of Islam is that it teaches that man can have a personal and fulfilling relationship with Almighty God without compromising the transcendence of God. In Islam there is no ambiguity in Divinity, God is God and man is man. Muslims believe that God is the “Most Merciful”, and that he deals directly with human-beings without the need of any intermediary. Actually, the phrase “In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful” is one of the most repeated verses in the Holy Qur’an.
Additionally, the pure and straightforward teachings of Islam demand that Almighty God be approached directly and without intermediaries. This is because Muslims believe that God is completely in control of everything and that He can bestow His Grace and Mercy on His creatures as He pleases - no Atonement, Incarnation or blood sacrifice is necessary. In summary, Islam calls people to submit to the One True God and to worship Him alone without any partners.

Question: Does The Qur'an command the killing of Disbelievers, Non Muslims, Polytheists etc.

Answer: Most of the critics of Islam and some sites which are promoting false propaganda against Islam quote the Verse
Kill the Mushrikoon (polytheists) where ever you find them , The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 9, Verse 5
to show that Qur'an Commands the killing of Disbelievers
This is quotation taken completely out of context. If you read the chapter(Surah At-Taubah) from the beginning the first verse talks about the treaty between the Muslims and the Mushriks (Pagans) of Mecca.
Freedom from obligation (is proclaimed) from Allah and His messenger toward those of the idolaters with whom ye made a treaty , The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 9, Verse 1
In the next verse The Meccans are given four months time to set things right otherwise a declaration of War and coming to verse [9:5], the complete verse is
But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practice regular charity, then open the way for them: for Allah is oft-forgiving, Most merciful." The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 9, Verse 5
Hence if you read this in context we know that this statement was made in the battle field. Critics often fail to quote with context. Infact in the battle the Qur'an Commands that a person who seeks asylum should be escorted to a place of security.
If one amongst the pagans ask thee for asylum, grant it to him, so that he may hear the word of Allah; and then escort him to where he can be secure that is because they are men without knowledge." The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 9, Verse 6
The Qur'an explicitly forbids killing
Whosoever kills a human being for other than Murder or Creating Mischief in the Land, it is as if he had killed the whole of Human Kind and whoso saved the life of one as if he has saved the life of all Mankind The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 5, Verse 12

Question: Was Islam spread by the sword?

Many non-Muslims, when they think about Islam, picture religious fanatics on camels with a sword in one hand and a Qur’an in the other.
This myth, which was made popular in Europe during the Crusades, is totally baseless.
First of all, the Holy Qur’an clearly says "Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trust worthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things." The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 2, Verse 256.
In addition to this, Islam teaches that a person’s faith must be pure and sincere, so it is certainly not something that can be forced on someone. In debunking the myth that Islam was “spread by the sword”, the (non-Muslim) historian De Lacy O’ Leary wrote: “History makes it clear, however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islaam at the point of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myths that historians have ever accepted.” (Islam at the Crossroads, London, 1923, p. 8.).
Mark Glenn a Christian Activist says Christians and Muslims were not “converted by the sword” as is commonly taught and believed. Christians and Jews were allowed to keep and practice their religion within those areas where the Muslims had gained hegemony. (Junk History)
It should also be known that Muslims ruled Spain for roughly 800 years. During this time, and up to when they were finally forced out, the non-Muslims there were alive and flourishing. Additionally, Christian and Jewish minorities have survived in the Muslim lands of the Middle East for centuries. Countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan all have Christian and/or Jewish populations. If Islam taught that all people are supposed to be killed or forced to become Muslims, how did all of these non-Muslims survive for so long in the middle of the Islamic Empire?
Additionally, if one considers the small number of Muslims who initially spread Islam from Spain and Morocco in the West to India and China in the East, one would realise that they were far too few to force people to become converts of a religion against their will. Additionally, the great empire and civilisation established by the Muslims had great staying power, its citizens were proud to be part of it.
The spread of Islam stands in contrast to the actions of the followers of Christianity, who since the time of the Emperor Constantine have made liberal use of the sword - often basing their conduct on Biblical verses. This was especially true of the colonisation of South America and Africa, where native peoples were systematically wiped-out or forced to convert. It is also interesting to note that when the Mongols invaded and conquered large portions of the Islamic Empire, instead of destroying the religion, they adopted it. This is a unique occurrence in history - the conquerors adopting the religion of the conquered! Since they were the victors, they certainly could not have been forced to become Muslims! Ask any of the over one billion Muslims alive in the world today whether they were forced! The largest Muslim country in the world today is Indonesia — and there were never any battles fought there! So where was the sword? How could someone be forced to adhere to a spiritually rewarding and demanding religion like Islam?

Question: Are women inferior to men in Islam?

Answer: Widely held misconception:In Islam, women are inferior to men because:
a Man can marry up to 4 Wives, a Woman can marry only one Man,a Man's share of inheritance is bigger than a Woman's,a Man can marry a non-Muslim, a woman cannot women must wear veil.
This widely held misconception does not remotely follow from the reasons given. The first and most important observation to make about the popular question
"Are men and women equal?"
Is that it is a badly-formed, unanswerable question. The problem which many people conveniently ignore is that "equal" is not defined. This is a very critical point: the equality must be specified with respect to some measurable property. For example, women on average are superior to men if we ask who is shorter in height than the other ("Growth and Development", Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1992). Women are also superior on average if we ask whom do children bond to deeper, mothers or fathers. Women are also superior on average if we ask who has a tendency to socialize more. On the other hand, men are superior on average if we ask who is taller in height than the other.
And so on: every question can be turned around, and more importantly these are properties which are irrelevant.
What then, is the really important property which we are worried about in terms of gender equality? Naturally, from the point of view of the Qur'an and Sunnah, the obvious important property is who is dearer to Allah, men or women? This question is emphatically answered in the Qur'an (translation),
If any do deeds of righteousness - be they male or female, and have faith, they will enter Paradise, and not the least injustice will be done to them. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 4, Verse 124.
For Muslim men and women, for believing men and women, for devout men and women, for truthful men and women, for men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in charity, for men and women who fast, for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah's praise, for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 33, Verse 35.
The Qur'an and Sunnah repeat over and over again that Allah only favors one person over another based on that person's awareness, consciousness, fear, love, and hope of Allah (the Arabic word is difficult to translate: Taqwa). All other criteria are excluded: gender, ethnic group, country, ancestry, etc.
Given that Allah does not favor one gender over the other in His attention to us (and it helps to remember that Allah is neither male nor female), we can now address the differences between the genders in Islam. First, men and women are not the same as we know. The Creator states in the Qur'an (translation),
...and the male is not like the female. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 3, Verse 36
Men and women are different in their composition, and in their responsibilities under Islam. However, both are bound by obligations to one another, especially the following important one which must be understood in any discussion on men and women.From the Qur'an (translation),And marry those among you who are single and those who are fit among your male slaves and your female slaves; if they are needy, Allah will make them free from want out of His grace; and Allah is Ample-giving, Knowing. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 24, Verse 32.
In this verse, the Creator emphasizes that marriage is to be vigorously pursued by the Muslims: the state of being single is not to be maintained. With this in mind, we can begin to understand the four reasons cited above for the nonetheless erroneous conclusion. Men and women are different in their responsibilities towards the families that they are strongly encouraged to set up. Women are not obligated to work, whereas men are obligated. The man must provide for the family, but the woman does not have to spend out of her money for it, though she gets a reward for doing so. Allah says in the Qur'an (translation),
Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High, Exalted, Great. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 4, Verse 34.
[2:24:545] From the Sunnah, specifically in the study of the Sunnah called Sahih Bukhari, we find:Narrated `Amr bin Al-Harith: Zainab, the wife of `Abdullah said, "I was in the Mosque and saw the Prophet (pbuh) saying, `O women ! Give alms even from your ornaments.' " Zainab used to provide for `Abdullah and those orphans who were under her protection. So she said to `Abdullah, "Will you ask Allah's Apostle whether it will be sufficient for me to spend part of the Zakat on you and the orphans who are under my protection?" He replied "Will you yourself ask Allah's Apostle ?" (Zainab added): So I went to the Prophet and I saw there an Ansari woman who was standing at the door (of the Prophet ) with a similar problem as mine. Bilal passed by us and we asked him, `Ask the Prophet whether it is permissible for me to spend (the Zakat) on my husband and the orphans under my protection.' And we requested Bilal not to inform the Prophet about us. So Bilal went inside and asked the Prophet regarding our problem. The Prophet (p.b.u.h) asked, "Who are those two?" Bilal replied that she was Zainab. The Prophet said, "Which Zainab?" Bilal said, "The wife of `Adullah (bin Masud)." The Prophet said, "Yes, (it is sufficient for her) and she will receive a double rewards (for that): One for helping relatives, and the other for giving Zakat."
Given that husbands are obligated to provide for wives, and that marriage is a highly recommended goal of Islam, it is easy to see why women's inheritance share is half that of men. We note also that men are obligated to provide a suitable dowry to women on marriage. In fact, it is preferable at this point to speak in terms of husbands and wives instead of men and women. Allah says in the Qur'an (translation),
And give women their dowries as a free gift, but if they of themselves be pleased to give up to you a portion of it, then eat it with enjoyment and with wholesome result. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 4, Verse 4.
Allah says in the Qur'an (translation),...And they (women) have rights similar to those (of men) over them in kindness, and men are a degree above them... The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 2, Verse 228.
This one degree in no way affects the position of the Creator in which He has stated that He does not hold women dearer to him than men, or vice versa. Rather it is simply a way of partitioning responsibilities in a household of two adults: someone must make the final decision on daily matters. As will be shown below in a section on a different misconception, though the final decision rests with the husband, it is through mutual consultation that decisions are best reached at.
While men are allowed to marry up to four wives, they are also commanded to meet the preconditions of being able to financially support them. They must also deal with each wife justly and fairly with respect to marital and economic obligations. Allah says in the Qur'an (translation),If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess, that will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 4, Verse 3.
Moreover, women are allowed to reject any marriage proposal made to her by prospective suitors, thus if she does not feel she can abide by the rules of the Qur'an and Sunnah if she marries a certain person, she can reject his proposal. While it is irrelevant to Islam, it is worthwhile to note that both Judaism and Christianity allow polygamy. The idea is not as foreign to the non-Muslims as is often claimed.
Finally, the wearing of the veil by women is also an illogical premise to claim that women are inferior to men. It is more appropriate to indict a society of female exploitation if it tolerates pornography rather than if it enforces the veil. Given that Allah is neither male nor female, given that He does not endear people to Himself based on their gender, given that the Creator cares about all of us male or female, given that the sexual and violent drive of men is stronger than that of women, given all this, it is illogical to cast a negative light on the following injunctions contained in the Qur'an (translation),O Prophet, tell your wives and daughters and the believing women to draw their outer garments around them (when they go out or are among men). That is better in order that they may be known (to be Muslims) and not be annoyed. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 33, Verse 59.
Say to the believing man that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; and Allah is well acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; and that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what must ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands. The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 24, Verses 30-31.
On this misconception, there is a great deal more to write, most of it showing how current practices in many Muslim lands go against what the Qur'an and Sunnah have ordained, lands in which women are treated as property (unIslamic), are not educated (unIslamic), are forbidden their economic rights (unIslamic), and more. On this point in particular, we encourage everyone to consult the Qur'an and Sunnah before incriminating Islam. Always remember that Islam is a complete way of life from the Creator, and that Muslims are people who claim to follow that way of life. A Muslim may claim to follow Islam, but be wrong.

Guidelines for Christian-Muslim Dialog

From: www.fountainmagazine.com

By Dr. CRACKNELL, Kenneth

1. Dialogue invites us to come together as people, not as belief systems. It acknowledges that each religious tradition is pluralistic within itself, and realizes that each dialogue partner speaks from a particular religious perspective that cannot - and does not - represent all adherents of that faith. Dialogue also recognizes that each participant is located within a particular cultural, political, and economic perspective and inevitably brings particular loyalties, commitments, and preconceptions to the relationship. Through dialogue, we get to know one another as individuals.

2. Dialogue, which is characterized by courtesy and respect, is most productive when its participants are considerate, open-minded, and genuine in their desire to learn from the other partners. Each tradition's scripture, beliefs, and practices deserve our respect for having brought countless diverse people into a relationship with God.

3. Dialogue is enhanced if participants have engaged in a preliminary investigation of the other faith tradition, as well as in an informed and self-critical reflection upon their own faith identity. We must come prepared to the best of our ability, for dialogue enjoins us to listen with and speak from the heart as much as the head, to be open, vulnerable, honest, and sensitive to feelings of frustration or offense.

4. Dialogue enables us to confront inherited preconceptions. It asks us to remember that Christians and Muslims share a history of both fruitful exchange and peace as well as of misunderstanding and fierce conflict. In dialogue, we are mindful that ambiguous situations sometimes can be misinterpreted or misrepresented. Dialogue deliberately seeks to identify and dispel common stereotypes and inherited misconceptions based on misinformation.

5. Dialogue recognizes that in order to reach a clear understanding, we must pay attention to vocabulary. Some words have specialized meaning within a religious system; the meaning of others varies over time or within certain contexts or between cultures. Dialogue entails a careful clarification of our use of language.

6. Dialogue asks us first to understand, and only then to be understood. In dialogue, we listen in order to understand the other's point of view and seek to understand each person as they understand themselves. We seek to understand each religious system "from within" or on its own terms, while temporarily setting aside our own critical presuppositions.

7. Dialogue is enhanced by each participant's strong faith convictions. In a context of courteous listening and mutual trust, we can offer an authentic expression of our own personal faith. Dialogue involves a humble and sincere exchange of information about each participant's faith journey and sustaining religious tradition.

8. Dialogue seeks to share, challenge, and be challenged. Insisting one’s own religious tradition's superiority inevitably undermines productive dialogue. We can be truly respectful of the integrity of our dialogue partner's religious identity only if we avoid all attempts at proselytizing.

9. Dialogue can occur on many levels besides that of theological discussion. For example, it is enriched through interactions of friendship and hospitality, working together in community projects and celebrations, and making common cause to solve social problems. Dialogue is most vital and effective when we pray together, open our homes to each other, and actually share our lives together.

10. Dialogue should be transformative, opening the windows of the mind and spirit to a broader vision of God's presence in the world.Dialogue in practiceHere are some practical suggestions for interfaith dialogue meetings.
1. Fair and thoughtful planning, done together and well in advance, can help ensure that both Christians and Muslims feel comfortable and welcome at meetings. A skillful and knowledgeable moderator, as well as a neutral environment, may smooth initial encounters, for it is important to encourage real discussion and interaction among participants. Dialogue is enriched by wide-ranging participation, including persons of various ages, socioeconomic levels, types of spirituality, and cultures.
2. Anticipating that we will encounter both similarities and differences, dialogue recognizes that mutual acceptance and understanding, not absolute agreement, is the main goal. Initially, dialogue should focus on common features and similarities, without minimizing differences, while working to build the trust that will allow candid discussion of those differences. Issues for early discussions might include the five pillars of Islam and their Christian counterparts or concerns related to social justice, ecology, or the challenges of secularism. A host of other issues will raise themselves in the early meetings.
3. We should have realistic expectations about our meetings. Dialogue is a long-term and ongoing process of building community, not a few shared encounters. Still, the journey can be taken only one step at a time. All participants should be encouraged to make an active and steadfast commitment to walking together toward understanding and peace.

Muslim writer says Mary may help bring religions together -03/07/06

From www.ekklesia.co.uk

Muslim writer says Mary may help bring religions together -03/07/06

In a move which may surprise people of all faiths and none, an Egyptian Muslim who is also a senior figure on a prominent Italian newspaper has suggested that Mary, the mother of Jesus, could be a figure to bring Christians and Muslims closer together. Magdi Allam of Il Corriere della Sera has appealed to fellow Muslims through the pages of the national daily – suggesting that they should visit Marian shrines (something that many Protestants would struggle to do).Explains Allam: “Mary is a figure present in the Holy Qur’an, which dedicates an entire chapter to her and mentions her some thirty times. In Muslim countries there are Marian shrines that are the object of veneration and pilgrimage by Christian and Muslim faithful alike.”He continues: [I]f this happens in Muslim countries, why can it not happen in a Christian country, especially in this historical phase in which we need to define symbols, values and figures that unite religions, spiritualities and cultures?”In Mr Allam's opinion, “the Marian pilgrimage of Loreto – Italy’s National Shrine - could represent a moment of meeting and spiritual gathering between Muslims and Catholics, around Mary, a religious figure that is venerated by both religions.”While Islam rejects the Christian beliefs in Jesus’ unique filial relation to God, the crucifixion, and the Trinity (which it sees as undermining monotheism), it holds Jesus in high regard as a prophet, shares different versions of many biblical texts which are foundational in Christianity, and has respect for Mary.Just under two years ago [September 2004, at al-Azhar al-Sharif, Cairo], Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams delivered a widely praised paper to Muslim scholars in Egypt, giving an account of basic Christian beliefs and seeking to correct misunderstandings about them – not least over Trinitarian thought. Ironically, there is perhaps a greater difference between some Christians about Mary (who Catholics and Orthodox see as ‘the mother of God’ and strong Protestants as simply a human agent) than between some Catholics and Muslims. Inter-faith practitioners often recommend religious communities visiting each other’s holy sites, while continuing to recognise the real differences (as well as common ground) between their beliefs.But there are strong forces within all faith communities who are suspicious or hostile towards attempts to build such understanding, fearing that it will lead to ‘syncretism’ and a dilution of their own messages and identities.But key figures such as Hans Kung, the dissenting Catholic theologian who has worked with world leaders on global ethics, says that “without peace among the religions, there can be no peace among the nations” and that inter-religious cooperation and conversation is an ethical imperative.The World Council of Churches has argued that there is no barrier between open-ended dialogue and ‘authentic witness’, pointing out that they are mutually required. In order to give an account of ourselves we need to speak the truth as we understand it, and to hear what the other says in response. This is how bridges are built and good news shared, say WCC sponsored guidelines on inter-faith dialogue.

Guidelines for Christian-Muslim Dialogue

From John Mark Ministries
http://www.ird-renew.org/site/apps/nl/content2.
20 Apr 2005
Alan Wisdom

The Institute on Religion and Democracy offers the following guidelines to individuals, churches, and Christian organizations, particularly in the West, that aspire to interact with Muslims. Suggestions, feedback, and reports regarding efforts at dialogue are welcome.
_________________________
1. Seek to understand Islam and Muslim peoples. Most U.S. churchgoers know little about Islam. If our churches are to show Christ's love effectively to our Muslim neighbors (near and far), we must clear away misconceptions and gain accurate insights into Muslim beliefs and practices.
2. Open ourselves to talk with all varieties and stations of Muslims. Of course, we recognize that some Muslims will decline the invitation to dialogue. But we must let them make that choice, rather than screening our potential interlocutors for their presumed compatibility with our own perspectives.
3. Give testimony to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because it is our duty to do so. Ultimately, Christ himself is the greatest blessing that we could offer to our Muslim interlocutors. The 2002 Oxford Consultation on the Future of Anglicanism noted helpfully: "Saint Paul uses dialogue and Saint Luke uses dialogomai to describe evangelism. It may involve arguing, explaining, proving, proclaiming and persuading (Acts 17:1-4, 17)" (see http://www.wycliffe.ox.ac.uk/ for the consultation reports). It is our hope that numbers of Muslims would be persuaded by the testimony of Christians whom they encounter.
4. Make sure that the Christians entering into dialogue with Muslims have a firm grasp of an orthodox faith in the mainstream of the Christian tradition. Since their faith may be challenged and stretched in the dialogue, the Christian participants must know where the heart of that faith lies and where its boundaries are. Churches do no favor to the Muslims by sending out Christian "representatives" whose own faith is uncertain, confused, self-contradictory, and unable to distinguish between confessional essentials and their own idiosyncratic views.
5. Endeavor to have the Christian side of the dialogue represent not just the U.S. churches, but also the global Christian community. It would be preferable to have persons in attendance who could address Islam from an African or Asian Christian perspective-particularly Christians who have lived as a minority group within predominantly Muslim nations. If the presence of such persons is not possible, some means must be found to keep their perspectives in mind. What cannot be permitted is a situation that reduces Christian-Muslim dialogue to another "North-South" confrontation, as if Christianity were equivalent to the "North" and Islam to the "South." In fact, we know that a growing proportion of the world's Christians live in the "South," and millions of Muslims are living in "North." For this same reason, the Muslim side of any global dialogue ought to include not only Muslims from predominantly Islamic developing nations, but also Muslims who live as minorities in non-Muslim nations.
6. Affirm some points of theology and morality that Islam and Christianity have in common. These illustrate the "natural law" or "common grace" that is revealed to all, as Paul argues in Romans 1-2. This affirmation is particularly strategic, as secularists in western societies often mischaracterize natural law principles as narrowly Christian doctrines that do not belong in the public square.
7. Address the deep differences between Islam and Christianity. Most basically, these relate to the person of Jesus Christ, who is at the center of our Christian faith. Muslims do not believe that he was God incarnate, that he truly and willingly died on the cross, that his death was the one atonement for all human sin, and that he was truly raised from the dead for our eternal life. In addressing these differences, Christians show themselves wiser and more winsome when they place their emphasis on positive affirmations of their own Christian faith. Negative judgments about Islamic beliefs and practices-although these are sometimes necessary and are often implicit in the affirmations-should not be the principal theme of the Christian participants in the dialogue.
8. Work together with some Muslims on certain public issues in which we and they may have similar concerns (for instance, free exercise of religion in the United States, opposition to abortion, and promotion of refugee resettlement). We do so for the same reason that Christians are prepared to work with Jews, Mormons, and even atheists where we share common convictions about what justice requires.
9. Find ways in which our churches might practically show the love of Christ by being of service to our Muslim neighbors, here in the U.S. and internationally. We need to ask our Muslim interlocutors about the needs in their communities.
10. Discuss concepts of democracy, human rights, and religious freedom, as promulgated in international covenants to which most Muslim nations have subscribed. U.S. Christians should discuss how we find these concepts in accord with our Christian faith, how western societies developed these concepts historically, and the benefits that they have brought our societies. We should encourage our Muslim interlocutors to consider these concepts in the context of Islam, its history, and their own personal experiences.'
11. Allow the open expression of concerns, fears, and grievances regarding the other party in the dialogue. A dialogue cannot advance very far unless it addresses the problems that each side perceives in the other. U.S. Christians must expect to hear Muslim complaints about the medieval crusades, modern western imperialism, and contemporary American society. It is fair to acknowledge that some of those complaints have validity. But it is neither historically accurate nor helpful for the Christians to accept the notion that the West is to be blamed for most of the ills in the Muslim world. Muslims must take primary responsibility for their own societies, as the historian Bernard Lewis argues.
12. Intercede for fellow Christians (and other religious minorities) who suffer persecution or restriction in predominantly Muslim nations. Particular concerns relate to bans on religious proselytism or conversion, state attempts to restrict or control religious activities, attempts to subject Christians to Islamic sharia, and other legal and political structures that treat Christians as second-class dhimmi. Christians should appeal to their Muslim interlocutors on the basis of reciprocity. Christians in Muslim nations ought to enjoy the same freedoms that Muslims do in the West. And as Christians commit themselves to safeguard the liberties of Muslims in America, so we must challenge Muslims to ensure religious freedom for Christians and other minorities in Muslim nations.
1. Attempt to meld Christianity and Islam, pretending that they have the same basic teachings and that the differences between the two are merely trivial points of theology.
2. Aim to establish inter-faith organizations that embody a new "macro-ecumenism," joining Christians and Muslims in a unity analogous to the unity of the Body of Christ. If Christians do participate in inter-faith organizations, these should be merely forums for dialogue and channels of limited cooperation - not bodies that pretend to a false unity where none exists.
3. Try to formulate and celebrate common acts of worship. As Christians who worship God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as instructed by our Lord Jesus, we find any worship that omits those names and concepts of God (offensive to Muslims) to be impoverished rather than enriched. We do not wish to strip our worship down to the point that Muslims would find it acceptable, nor do we require Muslims to reduce their worship to a point that would be acceptable to Christians. It is better to worship alongside Muslims, with them practicing what they consider to be proper worship while we Christians observe, and vice versa, rather than trying to have a common worship.
4. Expect that all blame for Christian-Muslim conflicts can be assigned to parties in the dialogue. The conflicts are too complicated and longstanding, and the dialogue too incomplete, for this assumption to hold. As Paul Marshall observes, "The Muslims who actually participate in dialogue are not usually the ones engaged in murder, kidnapping, or the rape of Christian women" (Their Blood Cries Out, p. 220). Likewise, an Eastern Orthodox or African Christian may not feel personally culpable for the crusades or Western European imperialism. Of course, Christians may express regret for abuses that other Christians have committed against Muslims, as God convicts us of those abuses. But we must not demand apologies from our Muslim interlocutors as the price for dialogue, nor must they require apologies from the Christian participants in the dialogue. We must not imagine that the differences between Islam and Christianity can be reduced to particular clashes.
5. Speak of the world as if it were neatly divided into spheres of influence, Muslim and Christian (and other), with no overlap or movement between the spheres. As noted above, there are millions of Christians in predominantly Muslim nations, and vice versa. In a free society Christians can convert to Islam, and vice versa. We cannot accept the notion that there is an "Islamic world" in which western Christians have no right to "meddle." And, of course, Muslims have every right to be interested and involved in what goes on in western nations.
6. Talk only to elite Muslim scholars and religious officials who present a "textbook version" of Islam. It may be even more important to know the "popular Islam" as it is practiced on the street. We may learn more, and have a more fruitful conversation, by going to the local Muslim grocer than by going to the imam at the mosque.
7. Play political games inside the Muslim community, elevating leaders that we Christians favor and ignoring those that we dislike. It is not our place as Christians to determine who is and who is not an authentic leader in the Muslim community. We should simply talk and cooperate with all who will talk and cooperate. Naturally, some Muslims will be more willing to talk and cooperate than others. It is likely that our Muslim interlocutors will be more "moderate," more tolerant, more interested in democracy, human rights, and good relations with the West. And it is undeniable that we would prefer to have such persons exercise more influence within the Muslim community, for the sake of the values just named. But our ability to boost them inside their own religious community is, and should be, quite limited.
8. Assume that dialogue, in itself, is the solution to the theological and political issues between Christians and Muslims. Dialogue may clarify the real issues and remove some imagined issues. It may enable Christians and Muslims to work together more readily on matters where cooperation is possible. Mutual ignorance is a problem between Christians and Muslims; however, it is not the deepest problem. As Paul Marshall remarks, "The [extreme Islamist] people engaged in persecution are neither stupid nor uneducated.. We will not understand persecution if we think it is a mere misunderstanding to be resolved through more education and chatty conferences" (Their Blood Cries Out, p. 220).