|
Salaam (Peace) Sir,
Thank you for your sincere question. Allow me to try to talk it over with you as I see it.
If you want to find negative statements in any book you will. If you want to understand the words in the Qur’an referring to jihad (struggle including fighting) as allowing Muslims to retaliate when attacked, you will do so. If you want to say: “No ... these are the main principles of Islam”, you will say that as well!
Read for example: And why should ye not fight in the cause of God and of those who, being weak, are ill-treated (and oppressed)?- Men, women, and children, whose cry is: "Our Lord! Rescue us from this town, whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from thee one who will protect; and raise for us from thee one who will help!" Surah 4 Verse 75
This is a call of Islam to help and rescue ANY oppressed people, not only Muslims. This is where jihad is a tool of liberating the oppressed, without even asking them to convert to Islam. For example, this is what Islam did in Egypt, where we have here a substantial Coptic minority. No Holocaust erased them and nobody forced them to convert. On the other hand, Muslims were thrown out of Andalusia (Spain) along with Jews, to keep Europe "Christian".
In the old testament you can find very odd verses reflecting the behavior of prophets, as well as words of God that illustrate Him in conflict with man!
Here, the question is how one reads the text, any text and in what context it is put. "Knowledge and power" as the French postmodern philosopher Foucault said!
Please, allow me to ask – for I have just sent back a reply to a Zionist Christian who believes that Palestinians should be killed and then the Jews will endure torture and killing, so that Christ would come back and the Kingdom of God would return/
Is Islam really the religion that advocates hatred? Sir, where in the Qur’an do you find that Muslims are the “chosen” people? Where in the Qur’an are they allowed to kill innocent people?
Actually the call for jihad is basically what is called now "humanitarian intervention" or the retaliation vis a vis aggression. Even if it is mentioned that some Jews and Christians will not accept the message of Islam it nevertheless stated that "among them are true believers".
Well, did Qur’an say lies about Christians? Please check history books about the crusades and you can tell that there was aggression in the name of Jesus indeed!
Yet again, we do not hate Christians or Jews. We simply hate injustice when committed by anyone, who ever he is. In the Qur’an it is also said that Muslims might sometimes fight Muslims and it is stated what should be done in such case.
Qur’an is not a book of Utopia. It is a book of life, real life, real politics, real society and real people. It deals with real human nature, whether good or bad. Simultaneously, it tries to change people to become more morally responsible and ethically conscious. In Islam, especially in the tradition of the prophet, you can find values and ethics that are very much like Christian ethics, preached by Jesus - peace be upon him.
See for example: Michael Hart's book that rated the most 100 influential people in world history ranking Muhammad as No. 1:The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in HistoryI hope this answers your question.
Please feel free to contact us any time, with any question you have. As you can simply notice, this section is called: "Ask About Islam" to allow more readers to ASK. In Islam, dear sir, "even angels ask!"
Thank you again for your question, and please, do keep in touch.
Salaam.
|
