Concerned Reader has commented on A Common Word Between Us and You: Deception! at Go Burn With Muhammad. Due to the length of the comment and the issues raised therein, which make it a target rich environment, I am responding to the comment in this post. The comment is block quoted paragraph by paragraph with my comments and supporting evidence between the paragraphs.
This is an interesting perspective. I definitely did not get the same picture from the Common Word document that you did.
I read claims by Muslims in the light of Islam's canon of scripture,
tradition, law & commentary.
I actually saw it as laying a foundation for dialog between people of the two faiths. The document was actually showing that Christianity has as its roots, monotheism, even if some within Christianity have erred into bi or tri-theism.
Islam has a monologue, not a dialog. Since Islam declares itself
to be superior, the only true religion, and denigrates all others,
it only speaks, it does not listen except for whimpers of surrender.
I also saw within the document, the most hopeful part I might add, an statement to the effect that Christians and Jews who remain within monotheism and obey the two Commandments–love God and love your neighbor do not need to convert to Islam to be of the faithful.
Both Judaism & Christianity are monotheistic. Educated Christians
know that the trinity is three manifestations of one deity, not
three deities. Muslims play selective word games against us.
- 2:62. Verily! Those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day and do righteous good deeds shall have their reward with their Lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve . [The Meaning of Mu’min, or Believer]
- 3:119. Lo! You are the ones who love them but they love you not, and you believe in all the Scriptures [i.e. you believe in the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel), while they disbelieve in your Book, the Qur’an]. And when they meet you, they say, “We believe”. But when they are alone, they bite the tips of their fingers at you in rage. Say: “Perish in your rage. Certainly, Allah knows what is in the breasts (all the secrets).”
- 9:29. Fight against those who (1) believe not in Allah, (2) nor in the Last Day, (3) nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger (4) and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth (i.e. Islam) among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.
- 9:30. And the Jews say: ‘Uzair (Ezra) is the son of Allah, and the Christians say: Messiah is the son of Allah. That is a saying from their mouths. They imitate the saying of the disbelievers of old. Allah’s Curse be on them, how they are deluded away from the truth!
Read Ibn Kathir’s Tafsir of 2:62, linked after the verse above. That tafsir quotes 3:85, an extremely lucid expression of Islam’s intolerance. Allah cursed us and declared perpetual war upon us, which is reflected in Sharia.
The Reliance of the Traveller. Version 1.06 – By Ahmad Ibn Naqib Al-Misri
BOOK O: JUSTICE >> Chapter O-9.0: Jihad
O-9.8: The Objectives of Jihad
The caliph (o-25) makes war upon Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians (N: provided he has first invited them to enter Islam in faith and practice, and if they will not, then invited them to enter the social order of Islam by paying the non-Muslim poll tax (jizya, def: o-11.4) -which is the significance of their paying it, not the money itself-while remaining in their ancestral religions) (O: and the war continues) until they become Muslim or else pay the non-Muslim poll tax (O: in accordance with the word of Allah Most High,
“Fight those who do not believe in Allah and the Last Day and who forbid not what Allah and His messenger have forbidden-who do not practice the religion of truth, being of those who have been given the Book-until they pay the poll tax out of hand and are humbled” (Koran 9.29)…
A genuine, sincerely professed peace overture would violate Allah’s ordinance, subjecting the Ulema to eternal damnation.
I would say that this is highly significant. This is actually setting a precedent for monotheistic pluralism. Although, yes, Christians and Muslims have much to talk about in regards to our understanding of Jesus and his nature. True biblical faith Christians should have no doubts about their monotheism and thus, we can move forward in sharing from the Scriptures about some of our differences in understanding regarding other shared terms, such as the Gospel (Injil), the Word of God (Kalimatullah), and Messiah (al-Masih).
Islam's 'understanding' of Jesus is documented in
The Defamation of Jesus Christ. The Qur'an claims that it
confirms the earlier scriptures. Allah also asserts that Satan
corrupted Christ's teaching by throwing in falsehood.
Lastly, Islam and its use of Jihad found in the Qur’an is purely of a defensive nature, similar to Augustine’s just war. Many of the Scriptures being used by jihadis are taken out of their historical and even Qur’anic context. One ayat or verse is used, but all you have to do is read one verse before or after and you will discover that there are conditions being drawn both for when you are allowed to attack and when you are compelled to cease fighting.
Purely defensive?
- 2:190. And fight in the Way of Allâh those who fight you, but transgress not the limits. Truly, Allâh likes not the transgressors.
- 2:191. And kill them wherever you find them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out. And Al-Fitnah is worse than killing. And fight not with them at Al-Masjid-al-Harâm (the sanctuary at Makkah), unless they (first) fight you there. But if they attack you, then kill them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers.
- 22:39. Permission to fight is given to those (i.e. believers against disbelievers), who are fighting them, (and) because they (believers) have been wronged, and surely, Allâh is Able to give them (believers) victory
Those three ayat are obviously related to defensive warfare, but 9:29, quoted above and cited in Sharia as the basis for annual military expeditions against Kuffar, is clearly aggressive in nature. Why take my word for this? See what Ibn Kathir wrote about it.
- The Order to fight People of the Scriptures until They give the Jizyah
- This honorable Ayah was revealed with the order to fight the People of the Book, after the pagans were defeated, the people entered Allah’s religion in large numbers, and the Arabian Peninsula was secured under the Muslims’ control. Allah commanded His Messenger to fight the People of the Scriptures, Jews and Christians, on the ninth year of Hijrah, and he prepared his army to fight the Romans and called the people to Jihad announcing his intent and destination
That ain’t defensive warfare! Moe himself confirms this fact.
- Sahih Bukhari Volume 1, Book 8, Number 387:
Narrated Anas bin Malik:
Allah’s Apostle said, “I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: ‘None has the right to be worshipped but Allah.’ And if they say so, pray like our prayers, face our Qibla and slaughter as we slaughter, then their blood and property will be sacred to us and we will not interfere with them except legally and their reckoning will be with Allah.” Narrated Maimun ibn Siyah that he asked Anas bin Malik, “O Abu Hamza! What makes the life and property of a person sacred?” He replied, “Whoever says, ‘None has the right to be worshipped but Allah’, faces our Qibla during the prayers, prays like us and eats our slaughtered animal, then he is a Muslim, and has got the same rights and obligations as other Muslims have.”
Moe was ordered to fight until his victims recite Shehada and do things his way. When they comply their blood and property is sacred to Muslims. That means that until we submit to Islam, its open season on us.! By submitting, we protect ourselves from Moe, saving our lives & property.
Lets look a little deeper into Reliance of the Traveler.
@O9.1: The Obligatory Character of Jihad…
As for subsequent times, there are two possible states in respect to non-Muslims.
The first is when they are in their own countries, in which case jihad (def: o9.8) is a communal obligation, and this is what our author is speaking of when he says, “Jihad is a communal obligation,” meaning upon the Muslims each year.
The second state is when non-Muslims invade a Muslim country or near to one, in which case jihad is personally obligatory (def: c3.2) upon the inhabitants of that country, who must repel the non-Muslims with whatever they can).
The first listed condition, when we are in our own countries, is clearly offensive, not defensive. Note that it must be performed annually. This quote from the Hidaya, cited in a Swedish forum, confirms the blindingly obvious.
The destruction of the sword is incurred by infidels, although they be not the first aggressors, as appears from various passages in the traditions which are generally received to this effect. […] When the Muslims enter the enemy’s country and besiege the cities or strongholds of the infidels, it is necessary to invite them to embrace the faith, because Ibn Abbas relates of the Prophet that he never destroyed any without previously inviting them to embrace the faith. If, therefore, they embrace the faith, it is unnecessary to war with them, because that which was the design of the war is then obtained without war. […] If the infidels, upon receiving the call, neither consent to it nor agree to pay capitation tax, it is then incumbent on the Muslims to call upon God for assistance, and to make war upon them […]
“Those passages in the traditions” are fully documented with commentary in Riyud-us-Saliheen, Book 11, Chapter 234.
I wonder if part of the Common Word document mentioning war and defense has to do with the fact that our own president has used very religious vocabulary, even using the word “crusade”, in my opinion rather flippantly, esp. in this day and age. Considering some of the religious Right’s vocabulary on top of this, and what seems like a War on Terror becomes a war against Muslims, i.e. the statement by a Christian religious leader that Muhammad (saw) was a terrorist. If Muhammad (saw) was a terrorist, then would not those who follow the religion of Islam be the recipients of Bush’ war against terror?
Was World War II war against Panzers & Kamikazis or was it fought
against National Socialists & Imperial Japan? Terrorism is a
tactic, not an enemy. The enemy is an institution whose canon of
scripture & tradition sanctifies & mandates casting terror as a
battle tactic.
President Bush's vocabulary has been lacking in truth,
moral clarity & consistency. War on Muslims? No, it is a war by
Islam against Kuffar. Moe was a terrorist, and bragged about it.
Sahih Bukhari Volume 1, Book 7, Number 331
…Allah made me victorious by
awe, (by His frightening my enemies) for a distance of one month’sjourney. …
Sahih Bukhari Volume 4, Book 52, Number 220:
Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah’s Apostle said, “I have been sent with the shortest expressions bearing
the widest meanings, and I have been made
victorious with terror (cast in the hearts of the enemy), …
I don’t really want to argue politics, but I think the Common Word Document is not seeking Christians converting to Islam. The document actually is encouraging Christians to return (if they’ve left) to monotheism. Secondly, that monotheistic Christians and Jews actually do not have to accept Islam, but can remain faithful within their own religions. I think this is highly significant–I guess it’s a glass half empty vs. half full kinda thing eh?
Blessings, Concerned Reader
The Ulema’s missive is obviously an example of dawa, a summons to submission, which is a condition precedent to mounting an attack. Its tone is condescending and its content is deceptive, as I clearly documented in A Common Word Between Us and You: Deception! The claim that we can remain faithful to Christianity and be accepted by Islam is demonstrably false, as I proved by ample evidence above. We are accused of Kufr in the form of Shirk: associating partners with Allah. Christianity and Islam are clearly contradictory and incompatible. Islam is clearly the sworn enemy of Jews & Christians.