There are inherent characteristics built into the nature of Islam that define the religion. We’re seeing this played out in more ISIS beheadings and now threats again of the use of airliners as terror weapons. Islam is prisoner to its defining character. So let’s look at both the nature of both Mohammed and the faith he founded, – portraying both only as described in the Muslim scriptures, the Koran and the commentary called the Hadith.
THE TRUE NATURE OF THE FAITH
“He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers. (Genesis 16:12)
The Bible is speaking here about Ishmael, Abraham’s son through the servant girl, Hagar, – and in the process describing the origin of the Arab nation, the founding race and chief purveyors of Islam. In fact, Jew and Arab alike, both agree that Ishmael is the starting point for the Arab line. That may be where agreement stops. Both Arab and Islamic thought have set themselves up in opposition to both the Jewish people and the two great religions founded on the Bible. So this ancient Biblical passage remains somehow a very apt description of the current relations between “The Religion of Peace” and both its Semitic Jewish brothers as well as the rest of the world. In the comparison that follows we will show how Islam is both a reflection of and a catalyst for the character of its adherents as demonstrated in their devotion to the notion of ‘unending Jihad’.
According to Marvin Yakos, author of Jesus vs Jihad: Terror is the true nature of Islam. The ideology that pervades that faith “stems from a deadly and fervent spiritual war with ancient roots and eternal implications.” To Yakov, Islam has one overriding purpose, “to darken the world and remove any link to its Savior, Jesus Christ.” Any reading of the Koran reveals Islam’s true goal: The submission of the world to Allah. To that end, the literal adherents to the Koran may employ a rich panoply of theological tools including Dhimmitude (legal superiority), the Hudna (a false truce), and of course, the ever-popular Jihad.
This has led practitioners to jealously guard their religion against any perceived impurities; – against any who would dare to leave this Religion of Peace. Take this story that occurred not in the Middle Ages, – but in the Fall of 2008. Consider this horrifying account of the Somali Mansur Mohammed who converted from Islam to Christianity back in 2005. He was working as an aid worker for the World Food Program when he was captured by the al Shabab group of Muslim extremists back in September. Five masked men armed with guns and swords brought him to the square where they had gathered the villagers, telling them there would be a feast. Instead they proclaimed him an apostate, and a spy and recited from the Koran. Then with cries of “Allah Akbar” growing in volume they twisted his neck and sliced off his head, – showing it to the villagers once they had done so. A cell phone video documented the execution. Elsewhere in Somalia, reports were surfacing that anyone found with a Bible was being killed.[i]
At around the same time in Mogadishu, Somalia a 13 year old girl named Aisha was raped. She was then charged with adultery and taken to a stadium and stoned to death by a mob of 50 in front of an audience of about 1,000 men.[ii] In Afghanistan a Christian aid worker was murdered by the Taliban in Kabul.[iii] Jump forward to today and we see the mass murder of prisoners and decapitation of children by ISIS; all in the name of Allah. So the beat goes on, with Islamic rage targeting the Christian faith. However persecution is not only an unofficial activity but often has the imprimatur of the government.
In Afghanistan a journalism student was convicted of “insulting Islam,” and sentenced to death. He purportedly questioned the tenets of Islam by downloading and distributing information that questioned the Islamic view of women’s rights. The student told an appeals court that he confessed only under torture. The appeals court reduced his sentence to 20 years. The lenience of this decision caused grumbling among observers, one of which said that the judge “should be hanged,” for his mercy.[iv]
The concept of Jihad is the driving force behind the terror that now afflicts the world. It is the theological justification for the murder and mayhem perpetrated against innocent populations. Referring to unbelievers Sura 4:89 reads, “Seize them and slay them wherever you find them.” The Koranic blessing for this can be found in the pronouncement of Sura 4:102. “For the unbelievers, Allah has prepared humiliating punishment.” And he has done so because, “Allah is an enemy of those who reject faith”. (Sura 2:98) This is the point of one of the great contrasts with the message delivered by Jesus. Paul tells us in Romans 5:8 that “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Mr. Yakos points out that Islamic Jihadist terror is driven by “wicked spiritual devices.” It plays upon the emptiness of souls without God, offering them spiritual status and importance in return for their all-sacrificing act of blood worship. It promises the would-be-martyr, rich carnal rewards, forbidden in this life, in exchange for the sacrifice of their own lives in service to this god which demands lethal satisfaction.[v] It is interesting that Jihadist’ rewards promised in the Koran, are based almost entirely on the fulfillment of sexual desire. Christ promised the “peace that passes understanding”, for His followers. In contrast, Allah offers a smorgasboard of sensual delights: coveys of virgins and young boys, cohabitation with “demure virgins,” “carnal playmates,” and “full breasted maidens” are among the promised martyr’s rewards. The Islamic paradise resembles more playground of debauched Roman emperors rather than the Heaven described in Scripture.
Blended with a theologically based message of hate that is pounded into the heads of young Muslims by Koran- quoting holy men, and already cognizant of the material and cultural gap between Middle Eastern societies and those in the West, the addition of this sexual fuel makes for a toxically potent mix. Just as Hitler and the great dictators of the last century bred and harnessed the hate of the masses, so too, do the promoters of a literal and radically fundamentalist Islam. We see the contrast with Christianity when we consider Jesus’ message of radical peace: “But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also”, (Matthew 5:39) – “Blessed are the peacemakers” (Matthew 5:8) – and Christ’s words from the Cross, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do”. (Luke 23:34) Instead, fundamental Islam offers encouragements to “slay the unbelievers” and the authoritative intoning of Imams calling on believers to act out on that hate. Grant Jeffrey, in his book War Against Terrorism, quotes an Official Palestinian Authority Broadcast that followed a bloody suicide bombing in 2001. “Blessed is he who fights in the name of Allah, ….who raids in the name of Allah, blessed is he who dons a vest of explosives on himself or on his children and goes in to the depths of the Jews.” But this is just typical fare for the regular Friday night sermons, broadcast from mosques throughout the region on official government radio and TV stations.[vi]
Driven by this repetitive message of hate, Islam has become genocidal in nature, calling for the complete eradication of Israel and the Jews. It is Homicidal in nature, in that it will openly justify murder in the name of Allah. Yet many Muslims will object to that characterization, saying they are called on by the Koran to strive for peace. But that peace is only deemed possible, if it is established under Islamic rule. On another level, Islam is a religion of intolerance, of unending Jihad. That is why one sees no tolerance in Islamic societies. Peace is only possible when Islam has triumphed. The Koran states in Sura 9:29, “Fight against those to whom the Scriptures were given…and do not embrace the true Faith, until they pay tribute out of hand and are utterly subdued.” This is the nature of the Religion of Peace. – And it has led to something practiced in all Islamic Countries called Dhimmitude.
The concept of Dhimmitude is why we see Christians suppressed and persecuted in Islamic dominated countries. It is the institutional legal discrimination against non-believers. In some countries such as Saudi Arabia the penalties for practicing another religion are severe and can be fatal. It is not uncommon for apostates to be put to death. In others it manifests itself through legal inequality: Discrimination, no legal standing in the courts, permission needed to establish a business or take part in various religious activities. This is the nature of the faith. The mindset has led to the systematic maiming of Christians in the Sudan and the torture of Christian converts in Bangla Desh. In fact, throughout the Muslim world, whether coming from official or un-official channels, conversion to a belief in Christ as personal savior is met with beatings, torture and even death. Yet remember, those who practice Jihad, and the forceful conversion and submission of unbelievers are only following the expressed, literal commands of the Koran.
Islam is a religion born of violence, and spread by violence. This is reflected in the Muslim holy books, the Koran and the Hadith (commentaries), as well as in the nature of its’ founder, Mohammed. It would be helpful to look at some of the stark contrasts between Mohammed and Jesus, between Islam and Christianity. Islam tells us that Mohammed received the Koran through another-earthly visitation that he at first believed was demonic in nature. Jesus was never uncertain of His relationship with the Father.
- Islam is militaristic in nature. Mohammed led 83 military expeditions, – That would be about 83 more military operations than Jesus led.[vii] Of course, Jesus will lead one at the end. And it won’t be pretty….for His enemies. John the Revelator gives the details. “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him wascalled Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyeswere like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. 13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharpsword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” (Rev 19:11-15)
- In Islam the ends justify the means. Mohammed taught that it was permissible to set up a Hudna or ‘False Peace’. History records that he signed a treaty he had no intention of keeping. Later he broke the truce when he had become the stronger party, slaughtering his enemies in the process. Modern day Imams routinely interpret the Koran to justify hostage taking and the murder of civilians, – so long as it advances the cause of Islam.[viii]
- The rewards that Muslims will find in paradise are carnal in nature. Martyrs are promised 72 virgins and an unending supply of wine. Yet both practices are forbidden here on earth.
- Islam is not a religion of compassion. The Hadith tells us that Mohammed too, had a woman caught in adultery brought to him, much as Jesus did in the Gospels. She repented and much like Jesus, he forgave her. He sent her off until the baby was weaned, after which he ordered her buried and stoned to death. So says the Islamic holy book, the Hadith.[ix]
- Islam tells us that Allah hates the sinner. The Bible tells us that God sent His only Son Jesus to die for us while we were yet sinners.
- Islam teaches that separation from God is normal. The Bible tells us that God is seeking a relationship with us. He wants to be our Father. In Islam, there is no concept of God as Father.
In their respective scriptures and in practice, the two faiths reflect the characters of their founders. Their very natures are different. It should be no surprise then that the nature of Islam when practiced should reflect the nature of its founder and the circumstances of its founding.
[i] Somalia: Christian Aid Worker Beheaded For Converting From Islam, Compass Direct News, October 27, 2008
[ii] Somalia Militants Stone Raped Girl To Death For “Adultery”, BOS News Life, November 3, 2008
[iii] Afghanistan – Taliban Kills Christian Aid Worker, Persecution.com, VOM, November, 2008
[iv] Afghan journalism student sentenced to 20 years for insulting Islam, London Times, November 3, 2008
[v] Interview with Marvin Yakos, Islam: What You Need to Know About This Religion, Connection Magazine, March 2002
[vi] Grant Jeffrey, War Against Terrorism, 2002
[vii] Les Kinsolving, Mohammed’s child wife, World Net Daily, June 18, 2002
[viii] Chechens: Islam justifies killing prisoners, World Net Daily, October 25, 2002
[ix] Hadith Abu Dawud, #4428
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