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Followers are called Muslims. There are two major divisions of the
Islamic faith. There are the Shi'ites and the Sunnis.
The Shi'ites are an authority oriented sect. They see religious
and political authority as being invested in these leaders. These
leaders are referred to as Ayatollahs. The decision of the entire group of Ayatollahs carries the
weight for these Muslims similar to that of the Pope for Catholics.
Shi'ites believe that religious leadership should exercise religious and
political authority. They also believe that the leadership of their
faith should be one chosen from the bloodline of Mohammad. An
example of this sect would be the Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran. The
Shi'ites take the Koran and it's verses about Jihad literally and
seriously. The
Sunnis differ in that they believe that the leadership of their faith
should be chosen from any Islamic believer. In addition to the Koran,
the also accept the Sunna which is basically, tradition concerning the
sayings of Mohammad. They also believe that there should be a
separation of civil and religious authority in a nation. Egypt is
an example of a nation which is mainly Sunni. There
are other factions such as the Sufis which are into a type of
mysticism, the Alawites, the Ahmadiyas and the Wahhabis. Sadam Hussein
is a Sufi.
Muslims attend mosque for prayers, sermons, counsel. Holy efforts to
spread Islam (jihad).
Muslims
center their lives around the Five Pillars of
Faith:
-
The
acceptance of the confession of faith. 'There is no god but the
true God (Allah) and Muhammad is his prophet.
- Prayer, 5 times in every 24 hours,
facing Mecca.
- Almsgiving.
- Observe the sacred month of Ramadan
by fasting from dawn to sunset.
- A pilgrimage to Mecca, at least once
in his lifetime.
Some have said that there is a Sixth Pillar and that
is Jihad. Holy War. We are told by the media that this means struggle
and that Islamic people see this as a spiritual struggle only. This is
not the case. Those scholars who are familiar with the Koran and the
Arabic language maintain that the English translations of the
Koran are mild and watered down in places. The liberal media and
Islamic sympathizers portray Islam as a peaceful
religion and ignore the many acts terrorism that it's proponents back
and commit. Letting the Koran speak for itself, it does not describe it as a peaceful religion.
Read the following verses and remember that world class scholars say
that the translation into English has been watered down to take the
sharp edger off of it.
I feel that we need to bring a couple of points into
perspective. There are those critics of Christianity which point out
passages in the Bible that also instruct that a people be killed by
the armies of Israel therefore Christianity is also a violent
religion. The following points need to be taken into consideration:
First, these commands were issued during the time
when Israel was a nation and that the instances were cited are
connected with war and or national defense.
Second, these were specific commands to a specific
people at a specific time in history.
Third, these are Old testament Scriptures that do
not apply to the Christian religion as moral or doctrinal guidelines.
These are records of what God told Israel to do at a specific time in
a specific instance. Even Orthodox Jews view these passages as
inspired history and not verses tom live by.
Forth, the New Testament does not contain anything
like the verses cited below from the Koran. Christians do not
live in in an Old Testament relationship with God but a New Testament
covenant with God. The New Testament commands love and peace, but
recognizes the volatility if it's message and the consequences that it
may bring.
Fifth, the words of war and destruction in the Koran
are universal. They are aimed at everyone who is not a Muslim.
Sixth, the verses being considered are still valid
for all Muslims today. They are a part of the Koran which must be
obeyed.
There is a huge difference between the instances of
war in the Old Testament and the commands for wholesale murder in the
Koran.
.....kill the disbelievers
wherever we find them. Sura 2:191
fight and slay
the Pagans, seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them
in every stratagem. Sura 9:5 murder them and treat
them harshly. Sura 9:123 Instill terror into the hearts
of the unbelievers; smite above their necks and smite
all their finger-tips off them. Sura 8:12 slay or crucify or cut the hands and feet
of the unbelievers, that they be expelled from the land with
disgrace....." Sura 5:34 When
ye encounter the infidels, strike off their heads till you have made a
great slaughter among them ..... Sura 47:4
The Jihad or Holy War is mandatory for
the Islamic believer.
Unless we go forth, He will punish us with a
terrible penalty, and put others
in our place. Sura 9:39Fighting
is good for us even
if we dislike it. Sura 2:216 Believers, when you encounter
the armies of the infidels do not turn your backs to them in
flight. If anyone on that day turns his back to them, except it be
for tactical reasons, or to join another band he shall incur the
wrath of Allah and Hell shall be his home, a most evil fate. Sura
8:12
The present day coverage of Islam by
the liberal media is giving the impression that Islam is a very
peaceful religion. Click
here to see an article prepared by a good friend of the
Christian Arsenal.
We are well aware that there are
peaceful Muslims in the world and not all Muslims are evil people
looking to kill non-Muslims at a moments notice. This article is
not intended to cast that type of definition on them. This article is
to draw your attention to what the Koran says and that there are many
countries and groups that support this hard-line interpretation of the
Koran. There are many countries under Islamic control that you can be
arrested and executed for telling someone about Jesus.
For some
excellent information on Islam see the following sites:
www.answering-islam.org
www.rim.org/muslim/islam.htm
www.equip.org/free/DI200-1.htm
www.equip.org/free/DI200-2.htm
www.equip.org/free/DI200-3.htm
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