Posted on 08/30/2006 8:45:43 PM PDT by Stoat
Journalists' Forced Conversion Not Contrary to Islam
by Robert Spencer
Posted Aug 30, 2006 The most bizarre element of the two weeks of captivity suffered by Fox News reporter Steve Centanni and photographer Olaf Wiig was the video that surfaced depicting their conversion to Islam. Even before the journalists revealed that their conversions had been coerced, there were indications that they were not acting freely. While reading a statement he himself had ostensibly written, Centanni stumbled over words, appeared to puzzle over the handwriting, and seemed to grimace after pronouncing the words “peace be upon him” after the name of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
Most jarring was the video editor’s invocation of the favorite Koran verse of Western analysts of Islam and terrorism, “There is no compulsion in religion” (2:256). The irony of featuring this verse in a video depicting two forced conversions has been widely noted. In fact, however, the juxtaposition of this verse with the video of Centanni and Wiig was probably not simply transparent deception, as strange as that may seem.
Islamic law forbids forced conversion, but as Andrew Bostom documented earlier this week, this is a law that throughout Islamic history has all too often been honored in the breach. Nor is this yet another case of a “twisting” or “hijacking” of Islam; in fact, Islamic law regarding the presentation of Islam to non-Muslims manifests a different understanding of what constitutes freedom from coercion and freedom of conscience from that which prevails among non-Muslims.
Muhammad instructed his followers to call people to Islam before waging war against them—the warfare would follow from their refusal to accept Islam or to enter the Islamic social order as inferiors, required to pay a special tax (Sahih Muslim 4294). There is therefore a threat in this “invitation” to accept Islam. Would one who converted to Islam under the threat of war be considered to have converted under duress? No; from the standpoint of traditional schools of Islamic jurisprudence, such a conversion would have resulted from “no compulsion.”
Muhammad reinforced these instructions many times during his prophetic career. Late in his career, he wrote to Heraclius, the Eastern Roman Emperor in Constantinople: “Embrace Islam and you will be safe” (Bukhari, 4.52.191). Heraclius did not accept Islam, and soon the Byzantines would know well that the warriors of jihad indeed granted no safety to those who rejected their “invitation.”
After being freed, Centanni said: “We were forced to convert to Islam at gunpoint. Don’t get me wrong here. I have the highest respect for Islam, and I learned a lot of good things about it, but it was something we felt we had to do because they had the guns, and we didn’t know what … was going on.”
Indeed, few in the West know what’s going on regarding the example of Muhammad and the stance of traditional Islam on conversion. The human rights should have the courage to recognize and denounce this conversion-or-else directive, and to recognize the plight of those who even today suffer from its scourge. Moreover, with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad operating according to Muhammad’s instructions, this now has geopolitical implications. In his letter to President Bush, Ahmadinejad invited him to accept Islam, and then echoed the Prophet of Islam in delivering a threat to Bush through Mike Wallace: “We are all free to choose. But please give him this message, sir: Those who refuse to accept an invitation will not have a good ending or fate.”
Ahmadinejad’s threat, as well as the ordeal of Centanni and Wiig, epitomizes the threat that the global jihad represents to the freedom of conscience. Analysts are increasingly beginning to note that the conflict has ideological dimensions, but these dimensions are still imperfectly understood in the public sphere. Were Western leaders courageous enough to speak forthrightly about the threat we face as an Islamic jihad, they could use the “conversions” of Centanni and Wiig to illustrate one of the elements of Western civilization that is being challenged and that we are resolved to defend. Unfortunately, mired as they are in denial about the nature of the “terror” threat itself, they have made as yet no such resolution.
One word: Jizyah.
To escape this tax, you convert. Forced.
Hehehe!
:^)
"According to Islam and Muslims, he is considered to be a Muslim forever.
Steve Centanni is a Muslim. ...shocking, isn't it."
By your thinking if you are a Muslim it's not ... if you're not, he's not.
Agreed. Iran will attack, it's just a matter of time. People who are friendly with one another do not go out of their way to make another person feel uncomfortable and threatened. Iran is going out of it's way to make us feel uncomfortable and threatened....this is not friendly. We need to act before they do. I have no desire to hear news reports about how Dallas has just been hit by a truck-mounted nuke that came across the Mexican border, with Venezuela the port of entry and Iran the originating country.
"No, no. After conversion they must be baptized . . . "
Oh ... OK ... some sects think a human ritual is involved - forgot that
( but is that AFTER conversion ? or are you just not considered converted before it ? ... are you in a kind of "conversion limbo" at some point ? )
They are animals, and they want to kill us because they know that they are animals and can never achieve what we have. That's why they are fixated on blowing up airplanes....they are 500 developmental years behind the point at which they could even think about building a glider, much less a 747.
We need to defend ourselves against them much as one defends against a rabid dog.
"I hope that this never scares a single journalist away from coming to Gaza to cover the story because the Palestinian people are very beautiful and kindhearted," said Steve Centanni, a 60-year-old American reporter who was released along with cameraman Olaf Wiig, 36, of New Zealand. "The world needs to know more about them."
Wait until these "new" muslims have to pray 5 times a day, and give up their decadent western lifestyle. I don't think the typical liberal refrain of "...but, but, but we're special...those rules don't apply to us..." will get them very far.
To clarify, since the Steve and Olaf were releaased did they say that their conversion was forced and therefore invalid, so they remain Christian.?
Oh, I think the world knows just about as much as it needs to know about them, Steve.
I wonder if Greta or any of Rupert's other Foxies will be working in Gaza. ...wonder if we might later be referring to them as "those Fox News Muslims." [Grin. Yeah, I know...bad one.]
"The world needs to know more about them."
Not me. I know all about them I really need to know. Heard and seen everything about the 'beautiful and kindhearted Palestinians' after the video was shown of them celebrating September 11, not to mention all of the suicide bombings, car bombingss, and mortar attacks on innocent Israelis. Wow...what beautiful and kindhearted people indeed.
I think he meant the full deal: 6 minute immersion baptism, immediately after conversion.
No chance to backslide. :)
Yikes! Me neither since I live about 30 minutes from Dallas and I was born and raised there. Anyway...Here's a quote from a NY Sun editorial:
"President Ahmadinejad's letter [html, pdf] to President Bush, widely interpreted as a peaceful overture, is in fact a declaration of war. The key sentence in the letter is the closing salutation. In an eight-page text of the letter being circulated by the Council on Foreign Relations, it is left untranslated and rendered as "Vasalam Ala Man Ataba'al hoda." What this means is "Peace only unto those who follow the true path."
It is a phrase with historical significance in Islam, for, according to Islamic tradition, in year six of the Hejira -- the late 620s -- the prophet Mohammad sent letters to the Byzantine emperor and the Sassanid emperor telling them to convert to the true faith of Islam or be conquered. The letters included the same phrase that President Ahmadinejad used to conclude his letter to Mr. Bush.
It certainly appears to be, as documented in the article as well as by the actions of these Islamonazis. They are a cancer upon the earth and they need to be exterminated, preferably before they exterminate us, which is obviously their goal.
Don't you think that Bush has been told what the implications in the letter are?
Ridiculous.
I do hope that you're right and that it will be a continuing trend.
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