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November 21, 2005

islam : the just, the peace-loving

the British historian Karen Armstrong, a former nun and an expert on Middle East history, in her book "Holy War", which examines the history of the three divine religions, she makes the following comments:
"...The word 'Islam' comes from the same Arabic root as the word 'peace' and the Qur'an condemns war as an abnormal state of affairs opposed to God's will... Islam does not justify a total aggressive war of extermination… Islam recognises that war is inevitable and sometimes a positive duty in order to end oppression and suffering. The Qur'an teaches that war must be limited and be conducted in as humane a way as possible. Mohammad had to fight not only the Meccans but also the Jewish tribes in the area and Christian tribes in Syria who planned on offensive against him in alliance with the Jews. Yet this did not make Mohammad denounce the People of the Book. His Muslims were forced to defend themselves but they were not fighting a 'holy war' against the religion of their enemies. When Mohammad sent his freedman Zaid against the Christians at the head of a Muslim army, he told them to fight in the cause of God bravely but humanely. They must not molest priests, monks and nuns nor the weak and helpless people who were unable to fight. There must be no massacre of civilians nor should they cut down a single tree nor pull down any building..."

in "The Genuine Islam", Sir George Bernard Shaw described Prophet Mohammad's superior traits:
"I have always held the religion of Mohammad in high estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion which appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity to the changing phase of existence which can make itself appeal to every age. I have studied him... he must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it the much needed peace and happiness..."

since the Prophet Mohammad, true Muslims have always brought with them an atmosphere of freedom and tolerance wherever they have gone. they have enabled people whose religions, languages and cultures are completely different from one another to live together in peace and harmony under one roof, and provided peace and harmony for its own members. within this multinational structure, all ethnic and religious groups have been free to live according to their own religions, and their own rules.

barbarism and radicalism in the name of religion, that is so preoccupying the world at present, is the work of ignorant and fanatical people, completely estranged from Qur'anic morality, and who have absolutely nothing to do with religion. the solution to these people and groups who try to carry out their savagery under the mask of religion is the teaching of true Qur'anic morality.

Islam and Qur'anic morality are solutions to the scourge of bigotry, barbarism and terrorism; not supporters of it.

November 18, 2005

islam denounces terrorism

the meaning of the concept of "jihad"

one concept that deserves clarification is that of 'jihad'.

the exact meaning of 'jihad' is 'effort'. thus, in Islam, 'to carry out jihad' is 'to show effort, to struggle'. the Prophet Muhammad explained that 'the greatest jihad is the one a person carries out against his lower soul'. what is meant by 'lower soul' here is selfish desires and ambitions.

assessed from the Qur'anic point of view, the word 'jihad' can also mean a struggle carried out on intellectual grounds against those who oppress people, treat them unjustly, subject them to torture and cruelty and violate legitimate human rights. the purpose of this struggle is to bring about justice, peace and equality.

apart from these ideological and spiritual meanings, struggle in the physical sense is also considered as 'jihad'. however, as explained above, this has to be a struggle carried out solely for defensive purposes. the use of the concept of 'jihad' for acts of aggression against innocent people, that is for terror, would be unjust and a great distortion of the true meaning of the term.

killing oneself (committing suicide) is forbidden in the Qur'an

another important matter that arose in the wake of terrorist assaults is that of suicide attacks. some people who are ill-informed on Islam have made utterly erroneous statements to the effect that this religion of peace allows suicide attacks, whereas in Islam killing oneself and killing other people are both prohibited. in the words, "Do not kill yourselves" [QS an-Nisaa 29], God has declared suicide to be a sin. in Islam it is forbidden for anyone to kill himself or herself, for no matter what reason.

the Prophet reveals suicide to be a sin in a parable, when he says that those who commit suicide will be punished:
"Indeed, whoever (intentionally) kills himself, then certainly he will be punished in the Fire of Hell, wherein he shall dwell forever." [Bukhari and Muslim Hadith]

as this makes clear, committing suicide, and thus carrying out suicide attacks, and causing the deaths of many innocent people while doing so, is a total violation of Islamic morality. God says in the Qur'an that it is a sin to put an end to one's own life. for that reason, it is quite impossible for someone who believes in God and says he abides by the Qur'an to do such a thing. the only people who can do such things are those who have a very mistaken perception of religion, have no idea of true Qur'anic morality, fail to use their reason and conscience, are under the influence of atheist ideologies, and who have been brainwashed with feelings of hatred and revenge. everybody must oppose such actions.

uniting against terrorism

according to the Qur'an, it is a great sin to kill an innocent person, and anyone who does so will suffer great torment in the Hereafter:
...If someone kills another person—unless it is in retaliation for someone else or for causing corruption in the earth—it is as if he had murdered all mankind. And if anyone gives life to another person, it is as if he had given life to all mankind. Our Messengers came to them with Clear Signs, but even after that, many of them committed outrages in the earth. [QS al-Ma'idah 32]

the ideological fight against terrorism, therefore, must be started with great urgency. this fight will be fought on the level of ideas—between people who believe in God, who are loving, forgiving, compassionate and in full possession of their conscience; and those who draw their strength from ignorance and violence. in one verse, our Lord reveals, "Why were there not people with good sense among the generations of those who came before you, who forbade corruption in the earth..." [QS Hud 116]. believers should possess the virtue that God describes in that verse. while terrorists hope to achieve their aims by violence, believers know that true success can be achieved only by clinging tightly to the religion of God, and acting accordingly.

terrorist ideology is built on sand. its foundations can easily be swept away by mobilizing a proper education campaign. sincere believers in all parts of the world can help end the ignorance that breeds terrorism by searching for solutions, writing books and articles, promoting educational activities and disseminating their own cultural heritage. the prevalence of tolerance, peace and security on the Earth, as commanded by God, will make terrorism disappear into the pages of history forever. adopting a defeatist, pessimistic attitude in the face of terror is unacceptable. our hope is that this suffering will not be repeated, and that all measures will be adopted to that end.

may God have mercy on those who died in many hateful attacks, and may He heal the injured. our sincere condolences to all mankind.