Muslims and non-Muslims who live in nations where Islam is not the law of the land talk a lot about how Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance. Christians who live in Islamic nations tell a different story. I picked this up from Ron Dreher’s blog, who writes: “If you want to know what it’s really like to live under persecution for your Christian faith and culture, listen to this presentation by Bishop Thomas, a Copt who serves in Assiut, an area of intense Islamic persecution of Christians. I met him once, and the man is so luminous, and peaceful. It’s almost humiliating to be an American Christian, with such an easy life despite it all, and to hear what life is like for Christians in Egypt and elsewhere. If you don’t have time to watch the whole nine minute video, start at about 2:45:
December 30th, 2009 | 12:55 pm | #1
[...] [via Evangel] [...]
December 30th, 2009 | 2:02 pm | #2
People also fail to understand that Islam, and therefore Muslims, reject any distinction between the Mosque and the State. It is a Totalitarian world view that wants to impose Shariah Law on a global scale. Also, the Liberal appeasement of Islam is a danger to Democracy. When feminists defend the wearing of the burka, something has gone terribly wrong.
December 30th, 2009 | 3:58 pm | #3
I think this might be an apt comparison: Islam is to tolerance what Christianity is to violence. You can squeeze it out of their central texts (people certainly have historically), but you have to work to do it, and it never lasts long or ends well…
December 30th, 2009 | 7:19 pm | #4
There’s not much in the actions of Jesus that are inherently violent.
Does God use violence in Christian belief? Yes. Did God ever call His followers to go to war? Only in the context of the covenant of Genesis 12. Unless it’s the conquest of Canaan, it’s not valid. That holy war was a unique event not to be repeated as a “tradition.” The “tradition” stopped in Judges 2.
December 30th, 2009 | 11:01 pm | #5
I think it’s a stretch to say that “holy war” stopped being legitimate at Judges 2, but certainly it’s out of bounds since God stopped telling us what to do on a given day.
I like what Coyle said. It really boils down to the fact that in Christianity, it’s those who are truly being (or trying to be) faithful to Scripture who repudiate violence as a means of advancing the Kingdom. In Islam, it’s those who are trying to be faithful to their “Scripture” who embrace violence as a (primary) means of advancing their kingdom.
January 1st, 2010 | 4:30 pm | #6
I would recommend the Hudson Institute’s monogram entitled,
http://www.currenttrends.org/docLib/20091110_IntheShadowsoftheKoran.pdf
In the Shadows
of the Koran: Said
Qutb’s Views on
Jews and Christians
as Reflected in his
Koran Commentary
by MICHAEL EBSTEIN
Michael Ebstein says that Said Qutb’s influence among Islamic fundamentalist movements of the modern era is profound and so this is well worth a read. The role of “dhimma” is particularly enlightening in the context of this blog article.For those interested the address is above but I am also reviewing it slowly on my blog and it can be found in my section under the label “Islam” on the right.
What I am particularly interested in is what can be done about all this that is constructive and helpful for the cause of peace, or can there be any peace?
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