Posted on 11/29/2001 10:30:57 AM PST by EclipseVI
Myself included, there are over one billion humans on earth who call God by his Arabic name, Allah. Out of that billion, over seven million of us call America our home. Many of us are born as Americans, study in American institutions and go on to work and pay American dollars to our tax system. Like everyone else, we eventually find our better half, have chubby babies, go to zoos, get season tickets to the Chicago Bulls, go on our childrens' field trips and fix the leak in our roofs. With all the growing pains in the life that we lead as normal Americans, everyday we turn our face to Mecca to pray to what our Christian brothers call God, our Jewish sisters call Yahweh and whom we call Allah.
Islam, Christianity and Judaism have exactly the same origin. We each believe in the monotheistic deity of Abraham, who was the father of all three of these noble religions. Islam's moral and ethical standards are equivalent, if not more stringent, than those of modern day Christianity and Judaism. We, as Muslims, believe in every prophet of both Judaism and Christianity. We believe the world began with Adam and Eve and great prophets, namely Moses, Aaron, Jacob, Joseph and Jesus (peace be upon all of them) were all divinely inspired by God.
We revere Jesus as a great prophet and the messiah of God. He is mentioned by name in the Quran 33 times. We equally revere the Virgin Mary as the mother of the Messiah. She is the only woman mentioned by name in the Quran and she is mentioned 34 times. Anyone who says Muslims don't respect women, read the entire chapter dedicated to Mary (peace be upon her). How many times was our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) mentioned by name in the Quran? Five.
In Islam, a woman receives a monetary dowry from her husband, of which he has no legal claim. A woman is not obligated to change her maiden name. CNN happily broadcasts women being oppressed by the Taliban regime. Islam abhors the oppression of women. The Taliban says women are not allowed to work, yet the Prophet Muhammad's wife, Khadijah, was one of the most successful merchants in all of Arabia. Should we base our belief on a bunch of tribal warlords or the teachings of our Prophet?
In Islam, both men and women have to dress modestly. One aspect of this modest dress for women is the hijab (head covering). This is a religious mandate, but whether a woman decides to wear it or not, is an issue between her and Allah, because as the Quran categorically states, "there is no compulsion in religion." The hijab symbolizes empowerment, not oppression of women. It allows women to be judged on the content of their character, rather than the physical features that we men today objectify onto them. When we see a nun covered from head to toe in her habit, we commend her on her devotion to God. But when we see a Muslim woman wearing hijab, she is oppressed. In how many likenesses of the Virgin Mary, sculptures or paintings, is her hair not covered? Not one. Was she oppressed? Hardly.
Muslim American is not a paradox. As Muslim Americans we currently live in a diaspora having to deal with an attack on our, yes, our, country. We also have a dual anxiety because our way of life, which is not far different from our Christian and Jewish counterparts, is under attack.
I am a law student. I study international human rights. I have been to U2, Sarah Maclachlan, Dido and Outkast concerts. I have been a ball boy for the Chicago Bulls. I have owned a Ford Mustang. I pray for peace and have read Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech ninety-six times. I may be a dreamer, but I promise you, I am not the only one.
I am a Muslim and I am an American. I am proud of both and will compromise neither.
Didn't know we were playing tag or something; does this mean I'm IT, now?
No
Our laws deal with our KKK , Aran Nation and every other group of zealots, here at home- Neither the Nation or Christians, have any desire to support, defend, or export the ideals of such terrorists to other nations. Nothing in America can be fairly compared to the atrocities committed by the fanatics of Muslim nations, with the full support of said governments. Only in countries totally ruled by a biased and supportive press, can Muslim terrorist atrocities be justified. Just like our own African Americans, no one abuses them more than their own kind.
I appreciate what Packistan is doing in this war, but I wonder where the 95% majority is hiding, while the world media pretends that the protesters are the majority? This is not just America's war, it is the war of the entire world. Civilization cannot co-exist with terrorism. Trust is the most essential ingredient for a free and prosperous world. Let the other Muslim nations follow Pakistan's lead, or prepare to die with the terrorist they admire.
bzzzt...oops...wrong answer...thanks for playing though...we have some lovely parting gifts for you.
Have the communists of the Soviet Union prosecuted anyone for descent? Of course not. These people where German or American spies, mentally ill, etc.
Have Nazis killed Jews because they were Jews? Of course not. The Jews were conspirators to enslave the world.
You are correct. A true Muslem will never prosecute someone becasue he is a non-Muslim.
Of course not. He will call them "Zionists" or "CIA pigs." Now, where is the rope and a tall tree?
http://www.al-islam.org/encyclopedia/chapter6a/7.html
Larry Flynt and Hefner and Bill Clinton could make wonderful Muslims.
Couldn't say. The true application of Islam is best reflected by and through the individual's submission to God, not a State's conformance to God. Therefore, I don't think one can get a true picture of Islam by observing the actions of a State; it is best to consider the actions of individuals as they interact with each other. Also, one must be careful to separate that which is culture from that which is religion. Much of what people associate with Islam in regards the treatment of women is actually cultural rather than Islam.
I believe that Muslims all over the world have condemed the actions of the fanatics on 911. As for me, I will stand up and be an American and I will stand up an be a Muslim. I will not stand up and be a suspect. You may think I'm quilty, but I can assure you I am not and I will not behave as if I am guilty just to satifsy other's need for revenge.
I take no more responsibility for 911 than Christians do for the actions of Tim McVeigh, the idiots that blow up abortion clinics, the IRA, Hitler, the Bathe Separatists, Slovodan Milosovich, the Unabomber, the KKK, the Aryan Nation, the American kids that blow up their schools and shoot and kill their teachers and class mates and other "terrorists" and "potential terrorists" among us.
Sorry, EclipseVI. I am not aiming this at you! Just ranting.
McVeigh was an agnostic.
Most people who rant and rave on these threads (yourself included) can't seem to fathom that someone can abhor religious bigotry FROM anyone TOWARD anyone. There always has to be a partisan agenda somewhere.
I repeat: ALL religious bigotry is wrong. It is wrong to condemn ALL ISLAM (as you yourself have done on many occasions) because of the actions of a relative handful of evil men. It's WRONG to spin fanciful yarns about Jewish conspiracies, etc.
It's WRONG to target someone for vile language based solely on their beliefs' differing from yours.
It really isn't that complicated.
Your use of example to clarify the differences between Islam and Christianity kept me following along, nodding in agreement as I read. Most impressive. Please post often!
Gee, you're right, there is a pattern forming here.
Couldn't have anything to do with the fact that FR is devoted to discussion of social and political issues could it?
In the previous sections, we explained the difference between the Mut'a and the long-term marriage (conventional), and one can see that there is not much differences between them. Also as I mentioned, one may marry permanently and then divorces his wife after one day. So what will be the difference?
Moreover, Allah (SWT) did not consider it prostitution when He revealed the verse, but you do!? All Muslims agree that the Prophet (PBUH&HF) has legislated Mut'a at some point, and we as Muslims believe that the Prophet does not speak from his own desires (La Yantiqu Anil Hawa), so God has permitted it at some point of time. This very fact differentiates between temporary marriage and adultery, because God and His Prophet do NOT legitimize adultery. No prophet of God ever did that.
A simple answer for your question is that one is legal and the other one is illegal. Let me give you an example:
Suppose a foreigner who may be very experienced in driving car back home, when going to another country he may need to apply for a driver license to be able to drive. Now if he drives without driver license, then what is the difference between him and a person who drives with license but may not be as experienced as the former? The answer simply is that the act of the former is illegal while the latter is legal.
The partners may have sex in the three cases of prostitution, temporary marriage, and permanent marriage. Quran declares the first one illegal but has made the latter two legal. The other difference, of course, is that the prostitute has another contract one hour later, but in both temporary and permanent marriage it is the duty of woman to wait for a couple of months before entering another contract. As I mentioned according to ALL of the Shia scholars the "Iddah" for the Mut'a is two menstrual cycles (or at least 45 days if the woman is of menstruating age but for some reason does not menstruate). This would provide less than 8 customers a year for a prostitute!!! I think any prostitution agency would go bankrupt in the first year if it wants to follow the regulations of Mut'a. And there are many more differences between prostitution and temporary marriage. May Allah guide those who unknowingly ridicule His religion and His Prophet.
So where is the stringent morality???? You Muslims can fornicate if you call it something else. Just like adultery isn't what Christians call adultery.
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