Why the fear of Islam?
Written by Michael Vass
With all the emphasis in the years since 2001 on Islam I wondered what most Americans actually know about the religion. My questions have become more prominent as emails lying about the faith of Senator Barack Obama have circulated the internet since November 2007 (at the latest) and influenced some in the Democratic nomination process.
I am not a Muslim, so my understanding is limited. I do not intend to insult any Muslims, and if my ignorance leads me to an incorrect statement I apologize. But with the results of exit polls from the West Virginia Democratic Primary revealing that some chose not to vote for Senator Obama because they feared he was Muslim, I thought something should be found out.
Islam, the name of the religion, started in the 7th century with the prophet Muhammad. The word Islam comes from Arabic and means submission or to submit to God. A Muslim, or follower of Islam, means one who submits to God. So we can see immediately that Muslims are not much different from Christians, Jews, or any other major religious group in the world today. They have a firm and devout belief in a single God.
Islam is not a fringe religion. While not as populous in America as some places in the world, Islam is the 2nd largest religion in the world today. There are reports that also state it is the fastest growing religion and will in the near future have more members than found in any religion. I take from that the fact that obviously many intelligent, respected, and normal people across the globe have found this religion to be the spiritual answer they sought. These are the same people that provide healthcare for the ill, research new technologies, transport people and goods in planes and ships, farm, and generally do most any job that any person in America might do.
I want to take a moment to look at a couple of practices of Muslims that some seem to fear. One of the most well known outside of Islam may be the 5 prayers that must be performed each day. All Muslims are required to pray facing Mecca 5 times a day, at specific times, unless it is impossible to do so. Thus doing surgery or fighting a fire would not be impeded by the need to pray, but watching American Idol would be (no loss there). This is no different that the high holy days among most religions, or actions observed by orthodox believers. Going to accept ashes on the forehead on Ash Wednesday or being home by sundown, or even going to mass on Sundays. The fact that it occurs individually – say at O’Hare Airport – is little different than those that wear a yamika or cross to me. It is following a faith and expressing that faiths belief in God. Some may be embarrassed or upset with such an expression, but that would be a personal problem of the viewer and not the Muslim.
Another practice that some cannot understand is the fasting during Ramadan. This one seems simple enough to me. It seems similar to Lent, except that it is done by all practioners and is organized as opposed to the individual sacrifices made by Catholics during this time. Again it’s an expression of faith that is not unusual or scary as some believe.
One precept of this faith is the requirement to give to the poor and needy. Again this is a requirement of all that can afford to do it and based on individual wealth. Where this is unlike the collection plates in Sunday mass, or the tithing some provide their religious institutions this is done directly by the individual Muslim as I understand it. Thus there is no centralized religious organization that has all the wealth of parishioners which is distributed at the choosing of that organization like say the Roman Catholic Church or such (which is not necessarily bad either).
A different aspect of Islam than some other religions is the Sharia laws. Many are unfamiliar with this aspect of Islam, including myself. What I can say about that is that since many Muslim nations and cities interact with the international markets and business every day it can’t be as demonized as some reports make it out to be. There is always the exception of fanatical beliefs, but I will get to that in a moment. Essentially the laws are different than our own, but so are those in England, France, Russia, Japan, and so on. Each nation has its own cultural based laws that some in America would dispute or dislike. Sharia on its surface is no different.
Of course there is the concept of Jihad. It may be one of the most misunderstood concepts for those outside of the Islamic faith. It has been made the brunt of jokes, and the point of great hate. But what is it?
I cannot say exactly what it is or what it entails beyond what I have read. That said it entail more than just a military aspect. It involves the spiritual self-perfection of a Muslim as well as exertion against non-Muslims. It can be a personal effort, or one done by certain individuals on behalf of others. In its most military aspect it might be equated with the motivations for the Crusades or the Spanish Inquisition. But I don’t begin to say that this is its only interpretation.
All of these things are neither new to the world nor a danger in them. Long before the 20th Century Muslims have existed and interacted with the world. And had not fanatics attacked America, this nation wouldn’t care. But fanatics did.
Like in any faith there are fanatics. Those that have the most extreme views that the majority in their religion do not agree with. In the Christian faith here in America there are those that believe killing doctors that perform abortions is ok. Yet they ignore the commandment that Thou Shalt Not Murder. And this is just one example. Every religion has them. Even some would call the actions of Buddhist monks setting themselves on fire a fanatical act.
Given that there are always extremists in the world, and that some will always justify a vile and despicable personal action with their belief in a particular religion, we have seen this with Islam.
So I have to wonder, given all the similarities and non-threatening aspects of Islam, why so many in America are terrified by it. Why does this one religion cause some to refuse to vote for a candidate of that perceived religion? What causes such anger?
Acts by a small group of fanatics that do not share the same belief as the majority in a religion is the answer. No different than throughout history, just this time it happened to us. It’s important to realize this, because it obscures a hard and fanatical edge of our own. Instead of fearing and hating a religion most never heard of 9 years ago, I suggest a bit more research. Because nothing is more powerful and destructive than hate fueled by ignorance.
I hope that this has helped, and opened a path for more communication.
May 25th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Excellent … keep up the good job .. well done !!!
December 18th, 2008 at 8:59 pm
The WHY??? of Terrorism in Islam – And WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT!
I am an American living in Asia. I am not Moslem, but I am a writer and historian. I would like to share some information with you: information concerning Moslem violence and terrorism, and why the United States and its military allies throughout Europe and Asia must continue to be vigilant, and when appropriate, respond to individual acts of violent Islamic terrorism with relentless, overwhelming, and deadly force.
This information may help you understand what is going on not only in India, Pakistan, and China, as well as other parts of Asia, but also the Middle East, as well as Africa, Europe, and even the United States. In the not too distant future, Moslem extremists hope to involve you and your loved ones, as well as a vast number of other innocent victims in a man-made catastrophe: an organized and violent calamity of biblical proportions that is based on teachings that were added to the Koran, decades after the faith was founded.
Disregarding the social, economic, and political factors that serve as underpinnings for Islamic terrorism, I will address the more fundamental issue: the religious teachings that sanction violence against non-Moslems and AGAINST ALL WOMEN. Here are seven verses from the Koran. These scriptures have been translated into modern English.
…murder, crucify, or cut off the hands and feet of non-Moslems…Chapter 5 Verse 33 - The Koran
…create terror in the hearts of non-Moslems …cut off their heads…Chapter 8 Verse 12 - The Koran
…and fight non-Moslems until Allah’s religion is the only one…Chapter 8 Verse 39 - The Koran
…of all the loot you plunder from non-Moslems, 20% belongs to Allah and to Mohammed. Chapter 8 Verse 41- The Koran (Author’s note: Loot included kidnapped female sex-slaves.)
…Take as many as four wives from the women you are sexually attracted to … Chapter 4 Verse 3 - The Koran
…God has made men superior to women… Virtuous women are obedient. If a woman becomes disobedient, beat her. Chapter 4 Verse 34 - The Koran
…When it comes to marriage, Allah makes it legal for you to take as wives, women whom your right hand possesses. Chapter 33 Verse 50 - The Koran (Author’s note: This verse talks about the “loot” non-Moslems call… kidnapped female sex-slaves.)
Most people in the western world have never heard of these astonishing scriptures, but they are in the Koran … along with a relatively short list of others, just like them. This is important because not all Moslems are the same; there are two very different types. Militant Moslems view these verses as commandments from their god – a primitive desert god, from an ancient land of heat, sand, scorpions, and death. Militant Moslems think these teachings apply to life in the Twenty-first Century and they try to use them, regardless of the suffering and mayhem they create, whereas moderate Moslems ignore such verses because they were uttered a long time ago, when the Arabian peninsula, from whence Islam came, was a wild and savage place.
Historians tell us these terrorist teachings are part of a cluster of ferocious beliefs that were deliberately added to one specific part of the formerly peaceful and tolerant Koran. These startling changes were made, decades after Islam was first founded in the Arabian city of Mecca. By the time of these changes, the original (and real) prophet of Islam was dead. Thereafter the religious headquarters was uprooted and moved to the city of Medina. Islam began changing; under new leadership it turned cruel and predatory.
In fact, historians also tell us Islam didn’t simply fall from the sky as a full-blown religion, but rather evolved from a persecuted sect of Jewish-Christians. The first Moslems in the city of Mecca were actually part of a larger group of Jesus’ followers called the Ebionites.
Ebionites were peace-loving disciples of Christ, who shared their wealth with fellow believers, and taught that a man should marry only one wife.
In fact, women were much more independent in the Ebionite Jewish-Christian days of Islam. They were more influential too. I say this because my research has determined that the first prophet of Islam may have been someone other than Mohammed: I believe the first prophet was a very special Arabian princess named Khadija the Pure. Khadija was Mohammed’s first and only wife for twenty-four years. Khadija was fifteen years older than Mohammed. She was considered to be fabulously wealthy, and she was Mohammed’s employer, before she became his wife.
Mohammed on the other hand, before he became Khadija’s employee, was an impoverished youth who had been raised as an orphan. Ultimately Mohammed worked his way up to a position as Khadija’s business manager. With time, Khadija grew fond of Mohammed. She even married him. However, Khadija was a liberated woman. In fact, Khadija was the one who initiated the marriage proposal to Mohammed! And after their wedding, she never allowed Mohammed to have other women in her house.
Throughout her lifetime, even though Khadija had already converted to Christianity, Mohammed’s first and only wife for twenty-four years remained an influential Arabian princess in the ruling family that controlled worship in the Kabba Temple, with it’s pantheon of more than three hundred pagan gods and goddesses. Clearly, in the early days of Islam, Khadija was a person of great influence in Arabian society: and clearly Mohammed, her husband… was not. http://www.TheMoslemInstitute.com
After Khadija’s untimely death from a terrible illness, Islam was hijacked by a cartel of corrupt men, headed by Mohammed himself. The faith was abruptly relocated to the city of Medina and new beliefs were added to the Koran; at the same time, old beliefs were deleted or relegated to unimportance, and the religion was changed beyond recognition. In the end, Islam abandoned many of its Ebionite Jewish-Christian teachings. Women suffered the most: they became the focus of repression, scorn, and violence.
Today, although moderate Moslems are loath to admit these ideas, and many of them are terrified to voice criticism of their militant Islamic brothers, because of fear that violence will come to them and their families, the fact remains that these added teachings are not the original beliefs of Islam; they are amendments: They are the terrorist teachings of Islam.
In the near future, militant Moslems hope to unleash a Jihad: a Moslem holy war upon the non-Moslem world; not only the United States and Western Europe, but also throughout parts of Asia, including India and maybe even China, and Japan. Because the terrorist teachings of Islam sanction treaty breaking, deception, and war, as well as looting, murder, kidnapping, terrorism, and human slavery (including sexual slavery), so long as these crimes are directed against non-Moslems, there is no limit to the things these fanatics can do. But the scariest part: Militant Moslems will do everything… in the name of their primitive desert god.
Once victory is attained in this violent holy war, these fanatics believe Allah will bless them with harems of kidnapped sex slaves taken from destroyed cities and nations, as well as enormous fortunes of loot plundered from the non-Moslem world. They believe this because of the terrorist teachings that were added to the Koran. These terrorist teachings even say ransoms paid to Moslem terrorists, to redeem stolen property (like hijacked oil tankers and cargo ships) as well as kidnapped men, women, and children, are part of the Islamic loot these vicious criminals are entitled to receive.
These same terrorist teachings even allow Moslem men to force their kidnapped female sex slaves to marry them in Moslem wedding ceremonies, and bear children for them: whether the women want to or not. Terrorist Moslem teachings mandate only two requirements: The women must come from Christian or Jewish backgrounds, and secondly, if the unfortunate women resist, these same terrorist teachings say the Moslem husbands must beat them, and imprison them in their own homes.
As an eternal reward for their cruel deeds, if the Moslem fanatics die while committing these crimes against humanity, Islamic extremists believe their fierce desert god will admit them to paradise and bless them with luxurious palaces filled with riches and populated by seventy-two virgin brides, who are exquisitely beautiful, yet modest enough to struggle to control their unbridled lust to have sexual intercourse with a dead Moslem terrorist.
With these stinging indictments against terrorist Islamic doctrines entered into the record, it is important to remember that the majority of Moslems are moderate, decent people, who love God and practice acts of charity and kindness to their neighbors, both Moslem and non-Moslem. Such moderate Moslems recognize these violent teachings as obsolete and out of place in the Twenty-first Century. In the author’s opinion, in spite of enormous cultural and ideological differences that exist between the non-Moslem world and the followers of Islam, it is with this moderate Moslem majority that any long-term resolution to the Islamic terrorism issue will ultimately be negotiated.
However, given the massive population increases taking place in the Moslem world, at a time when poverty, chaos, criminality, and religious fanaticism are burgeoning, the numbers of Moslems worldwide who declare themselves militant is increasing; the influence their growing networks of terror cells exert on Islamic governments throughout the world has reached crisis levels. Because of the terrorist teachings of Islam, modern civilization faces a nightmarish future; the attacks on Mumbai, India, the World Trade Center in New York, and the subway bombings in Spain and London are simply previews of things to come. In this ferocious Jihad, nuclear and biological weapons are almost certain to come into play.
To paraphrase Winston Churchill: The road before us will be long and dangerous and terrifying; the United States and Europe and Asia must be resolute… and take courage. We must work together to neutralize militant Islamic movements… and if necessary… wage war against the governments that sustain them. At the same time, the non-Moslem world must also nurture moderate Islamic states and establish strong alliances with them. The very survival of our civilization, and even mankind itself, depends on it.
Are you are interested in learning more about an array of Islamic topics including:
1. Who are The Seventy-two Virgins of Islam and how did they become part of Moslem dogma?
2. What role did the Ebionites and Khadija the Pure play, in founding the original religion of Islam?
3. What role does militant Islam play in modern human slavery?
Visit The Moslem Institute website: http://www.TheMoslemInstitute.com
Regards,
Dane Dahl
Author and Historian