She must be a democrat....
Posted on 02/05/2008 6:46:37 AM PST by 2banana
November 10, 2007
Muslim Issues
AMERICAN ISLAMIC FELLOWSHIP
By Melissa Robinson
ATLANTA -- Four years ago, while studying French, Italian and women’s studies as an undergraduate at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, I accepted Islam by taking “shahada,” or the declaration of faith, during Ramadan, proclaiming that there is one God and Mohammad was a prophet of God. I had spent three years studying various religions and belief systems before taking this important step in my spiritual journey. I was moved by Sufi poets and the beauty of a faith that allowed for pluralism. I enjoyed the sense of unity that came with performing rituals alongside other Muslims. I was thrilled to discover a belief system that was not at odds with scientific knowledge. The Islam I came to know allowed for diversity in interpretation and encouraged the pursuit of knowledge and critical thinking. I have grown so much in my faith since that time and am proud to call myself Muslim.
Earlier this year, I moved to Atlanta with my husband and was excited to visit the various mosques in the area. I had hoped to find a supportive and open-minded community in which I would feel at home. However, like everywhere else, it seemed the extremists were always the loudest and carried most of the weight. It did not bode well that every mosque I visited practiced strict gender segregation. As a feminist with a minor in women’s studies, I have never found this sort of restriction necessary or beneficial. During a study circle called a ‘halaqa’, at a mosque in north Atlanta I was told music was ‘haram,’ or forbidden. As a fan of bluegrass, classic rock, reggae, hip-hop, jazz, folk, pop, opera and just about any other musical style, I found this edict impossible to swallow.
I was also told that because Arabic is not my native language, I was not qualified to interpret religious text. Finally, on one of the holiest days of the Islamic calendar, Eid al-Fitr, the day celebrating the end of the month-long fast during Ramadan, my good friend, Kelly Wentworth attended the congregational prayer at of one of the largest mosques in Atlanta. The sermon vilified the ‘West.’ The imam, or religious leader, told the congregation that Islam is incompatible with ‘Western’ values, and the ‘West’ is a corruption. My friend returned home that night incensed. After all, she and I are the 'West' and were inspired by our 'Western' ideas to choose Islam. In all of my studies, Islam was the one faith most compatible with so-called ‘Western’ thought. It is because I live in the ‘West’ that I have the freedom to practice Islam. I do not feel the need to choose between my spiritual path and 'Western' values. Both Islam and the 'West' are integral parts of who I am. Needless to say, I was disappointed and frustrated.
I am very sorry that your parents did not fill your heart with the love and joy of Jesus Christ. Please remember, that no matter what, he stills loves you and accepts you and just asks for your heart to be open for Him.
You have entered a faith that I hope you study in depth and in detail. The Quran teaches that only Islam is the true religion, and unbelievers have three options: 1) convert to Islam; 2) remain an infidel, and submit to humiliating subordinate status under Islamic (Sharia) law, including paying a hefty poll tax; or 3) wage war with, or be killed by, Muslims.
Keep in mind that in Islam it is “good works” (good vs. bad deeds on the scale of life) that you DO that may get you into heaven. Somehow you must win Allah’s favor. If you fall just .0001% short on the scale, you will be cast down into Hell.
But the problem is you never know when you have done enough. It is like being a salesperson who must meet a quota but never being told what that quota is. You can never be sure you have actually done enough (except dying in Jihad fighting infidels – but I don’t know if that is for you though).
Worse yet, the Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that we can never do enough. We will always fall short of God’s holy and perfect standard.
But be thankful – for there is hope. Jesus has DONE something for us that we could have never done for ourselves. Christ lived the perfect life that we could never live and He willingly died on the Cross to pay the penalty we owed for the wrongs we have done.
To become a Christian (a follower of Christ) means to humbly receive God’s gift of forgiveness and commit to His following and His leadership. When we do that, He adopts us into his family and begins to change us from the inside out.
Also consider - If you ever want to leave Islam, it will be considered an act of apostasy, which carries the death sentence in much of the Islamic world.
Best Regards,
2banana
PS – I spent a year in Afghanistan; living, eating, sleeping, talking, praying, fighting and dying with Muslims.
A true classic. She converted not to the real Islam, but to a phantom Islam that exists only in her mind.
To be fair, some Sufi groups are similar to the Islam she describes. But most Muslims, and all the extremists, consider these Sufis to be apostates, and therefore to be killed in preference to even unbelievers.
She must be a democrat....
All her studies...sheesh. Useless lefty professors and confused didactics. Didn't she know that she wasn't supposed to take all that nonsense too seriously?
I keep seeing the same thing connected with these (so-called) religion of peace. I keep reading that those who did believe and now don’t should be killed; those who don’t believe should be killed,,,,etc and etc should be killed.
Does anyone else get this?
The idiocy of human beings never ceases to amaze me. What did she think was going to happen. . .that she was going to become a Muslim and set all those burka- wearing women free?
There's something wrong with her studies, then. Islam is antithetical to Western Civilisation. "The West" is derived from Judaic and Christian faith, and Graeco-Roman government and social organization.
Islam is a radical rejection of them.
Four years ago, while studying French, Italian and women’s studies as an undergraduate at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville,
That right there is as far into The Madness as the rational part of my brain is willing to let me go.
Great response.
HAHAHA. Jokes on you lady. Also it’s a one way street. The penalty for apostasy is death. Have a nice day.
“I was thrilled to discover a belief system that was not at odds with scientific knowledge.”
Which its adherents have to steal from other cultures, since the religion is detrimental to any novel or scientific ideas about the world.
If that's what she got out of her studies then she needs to demand a refund.
That was beautiful.
Thank you, and the Lord bless you.
This is your Islam right here.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080204125017.uba91jgn&show_article=1
Derisively,
ishabibble
p.s. You are an idiot.
How can this possibly be a surprise to the feminist? A couple things that I admire about Islam are their family orientation, and their roles for men and women. While they take it to an unacceptable extreme, they have clear mutually supportive roles for the genders, much like we once had forty years ago, when most mothers were stay at home moms. How has our culture improved since feminists took over?
I am far from an expert in Islam, but the things I mentioned are common knowledge, especially the supportive role of women.
Was that a four year program, honey ?
The sooner people wake up to the ralization that “islam” is a wacko death cult the better.
It has gone on too long unchecked and we are paying from it.
Thanks again for your heroic service and your posts on this forum.
You remind me that not all is lost. That there is still hope.
Thank you
In many respects, mohammed's religion is a drastic Christian heresy (going all the way to apostasy), reduced to absurdity. "Sufi" is considered by many mohammedans to be heretical, bordering on apostasy. Perhaps that brings it back closer to the West ...
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