They are a cunning people.
Yeah—taqqiya. I don’t believe it, either.
"Worshippers offered prayers for Drummer Rigby and his family and expressed solidarity against extremism".
Offered prayers? Which prayers would those be? Since the prayers are recited in Arabic, few non-Muslims (and many Muslims) realize how anti-Semitic and anti-Christian the Muslim prayers actually are. However, most Muslims are aware of that du'a for non-Muslims (mushrik, infidel, ) is inappropriate :
"Quran: {The infidels are your sworn enemies Sura 4:101} ... they would have considered him a "mushrik"that is, an idolater (polytheist) or simply, an infidel."God says in the Quran: {It is not for the Prophet and those who have believed to ask forgiveness for the polytheists, even if they were relatives, after it has become clear to them that they are companions of Hellfire.}(at-Tawba, 9:113)
So what exactly would these 'thousands' of devout Muslims pray to benefit community cohesion and Drummer Rigby? My bet it a recording of that service would be quite revealing, and I look forward to such a disclosure and followup discussion.
Some info about Muslim prayers:
"Muslim prayers, on the other hand, follow a very elaborate, seventeen-part formula. The full cycle of a prayer is called a raka, and it includes bowing, kneeling, and reciting certain phrases and statements in a specified sequence.These prayers are repeated five times a day, and each prayer includes multiple rakas. While there is room for a spontaneous supplication in the dawn prayer, the rest of the prayers stick to a strict formula.
The guidelines for prayer cover 118 pages in Reliance of the Traveler, 166 pages in The Guidance (Al-Hidayah), and 273 pages in Fiqh us-Sunnah. . ."
So, what do Muslims actually pray for?The only supplication in the raka is the recitation of Al-Fatihah (Surah 1 of the Quran).
This is what they pray for:
- Guide us to the straight path,
- the path of those whom You have favored,
- Not of those who have incurred your wrath,
- nor of those who have gone astray.
The phrase those who have incurred your wrath comes from Surah 2:61 which says,
Shame and misery were stamped upon [the Israelites] and they incurred the wrath of Allah; because they disbelieved Allahs signs and slew His prophets unjustly; because they were rebels and transgressors.
The phrase those who have gone astray comes from Surah 4:44 which says,
Consider those to whom a portion of the Scriptures was given [i.e., Christians]. They purchase error for themselves and wish to see you go astray.So the only supplication in the standard Muslim prayer is asking Allah to keep the Muslim from the path of the Jews and Christians. This prayer is recited seventeen times a day by devout Muslims.
The Friday prayer is even more offensive to Jews and Christians, as it requires not only two recitations of Al-Fatihah, but also
- Surah 62 The Friday Congregation and
- Surah 63 The Hypocrites.
Surah 62 specifically condemns Gentiles as being in gross error, and Jews are compared with a donkey laden with books. Surah 63 condemns hypocrites, those who have renounced their Muslim faith. They are the enemy. Guard yourself against them.
There is nothing arbitrary about the daily or the Friday prayers. The requirements were established in Reliance of the Traveler, paragraphs F8.17 and F18.12, over 600 years ago.
The Quran urges Muslims to keep up prayer forty-four times. (Examples: Surahs 2:43, 6:72, 11:114, and 31:17).
But the question that Muslims might ask of themselves is whether these prayers are actually communication with the Creator or just a ritualistic exercise contrived to have them continually swallow the poison-pill of anti-Kaffir hatred and bigotry."
With regard to funerals:
"The service starts with the takbir (saying Allahu Akbar - aka allah is greatest), with the pronouncement of which hands are raised to the ears and placed in the same position as in prayer. After the takbir, istiftah (see p. 11) and the Fatiha are recited in a low voice by the lmam as well as those who follow. Then follows a second takbir without raising the hands to the ears, and the dhikr known as as-sala `ala Nabiyy recited in a low voice. The third takbir is then pronounced in a manner similar to the second takbir, and a prayer for the forgiveness of the deceased is addressed to God. Different forms of this prayer are reported as having been offered by the Holy Prophet, and it seems that prayer in any form is permissible."