Arab Nations Defend Islam's Image

Arab Nations Defend Islam's Image
By ADNAN MALIK
Associated Press Writer
October 24, 2001, 3:30 AM EDT

MANAMA, Bahrain -- Six Persian Gulf nations agreed Wednesday to launch a media campaign to combat the spasm of anti-Arab sentiment that has followed the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States.

The oil-rich group proposed setting up an English-language satellite television channel promoting a better image of Islam and Arabs to viewers in the West.

"We are putting our efforts together as ministers to reach all media in the Western world to explain our position that all Muslims and all Arabs are against terrorism," Bahraini Information Minister Nabil al-Hamer said after chairing a closed-door meeting of information ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Some Muslims complain they have been the victims of a backlash in the West since the Sept. 11 suicide jet attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The hijackers identified by authorities are all Arabs, and the United States blames Osama bin Laden of masterminding the assault through a global terrorist network that recruits Islamic militants to attack U.S. targets around the world.

Violence since Sept. 11 has been blamed for hundreds of reported attacks in the United States on Muslims and Arab-Americans.

Hamad Ali al-Sulayti, assistant secretary-general of political affairs for the Gulf Cooperation Council, accused Western media of connecting Islam with terrorism.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a loose political and economic alliance of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Abdulrahman al-Attiyah, Qatar's undersecretary for foreign affairs, praised his country's Al-Jazeera satellite television station, which has emerged as a key opinion maker because of its independent editorial policy -- a rarity in the region.

It also has become known for airing taped statements by bin Laden, and by the spokesman for bin Laden's organization, al-Qaida.

#114: "The "fruit" of Christianity? The USA and all of western civilization."

"The "fruit" of Islam? Hellholes like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran."

"Yes, you truly will know them by their "fruit"."

BTTT!!!

Other than the Christian worldview ... ALL other worldviews are man-centered "political/religious" worldviews which require tyrants/dictators in place to take away people's God-given rights and freedoms in order to enforce "utopia" on them.

The United States of America is the ONLY country on the face of the earth that has a constitution (and other founding documents) based upon the Christian Worldview. America's Founding Fathers knew that the God of Scripture only recognizes one human form of government as legitimate: It must be limited, and govern according to the rule of law. It must recognize that ALL men's rights and freedoms are God-given (inalieable), and therefore must be defended and protected ... by .... punishing evil-doers (the lawless).

America, and our form of government (a Republic) presents a THREAT to tyrants, not just because we advocate and promote freedom and human rights around the world ... but because we are a super power which is economically and militarily able to back it up and thwart the political designs of power hungry dictators everywhere. Tyrants cannot dictate anything (including their various, relativistic brands of utopia) with a limited government in place.

Naive, easily conned useful idiots who want to believe otherwise aside, that is WHY they hate us. End of story

The Inquisition was not born in Spain or in France. Many would be surprised to find out that Moses might have been the first Inquisitor and that the victims were several times more than those that had been falsely attributed to the Spanish Inquisition during its 300 years existence.

Moses established the essentials (although considerably more rigorous) of the Thirteen Century Inquisition according to historian William Thomas Walsh in his book “Characters of the Inquisition”: “If any are suspected of offenses against the revealed truth of God, and Inquiry (Inquisition) is to be set in motion; witchcraft, spiritualism, and superstition, in general are to be included: a conviction may be reached if the testimony of two witnesses is accepted and the death penalty may be inflicted, and in the case of the Hebrews is mandatory.”

Moses dealt with all offenses against the Almighty with great force. Of magicians and soothsayers, of spiritualists, he said: “Dying let them die: they shall stone them; their blood be upon them and if the daughter of a priest was taken in whoredom, she was to be burned to death.” This form of capital punishment was not invented in the Middle Ages. For Moses the only good idolaters were dead idolaters.

In Spain the Inquisition covered only religious crimes or heresies committed by Catholics, regardless if they were Catholics by birth or by conversion. Jews and Muslims were not under the jurisdiction of the Inquisition. The civil authorities would apply the penalties decreed by the Inquisitors. Ordinary state courts handled the civil and criminal cases.

Like Moses and Pope Gregory IX, the Spanish Inquisitor Tomas de Torquemada insisted that at least two witnesses of good repute and apparent sincerity must depose against a person, before a “pesquisa,” or secret preliminary investigation could be set in motion. The complaints had to be in writing, and signed (later on, under oath before a notary). No anonymous complaints were accepted. False accusations were severely punished. One of Torquemada’s courts imposed the death sentence on some Jews who had denounced certain “Conversos” in a spirit of revenge, for offenses of which they were proved to be innocent.”

“A person denounced by two witnesses was then investigated, usually without his knowledge; his past, his reputation, his ancestry, his business affairs, his associates. If “indicios” were found against him that were “clear, certain and specific” (all three were necessary) a process was begun, and he was either summoned before a court, or, if his flight seemed likely, arrested. He could be kept in prison only (1) if five witnesses, with satisfactory proofs, testified against him; (2) with the agreement of the Bishop, the Inquisitors and the fiscal, after the “calificadores” had decided that the statements involved were heretical; (3) by a decree of the Bishop, under certain conditions. In any case, the approval of the Supreme Council had to be had before a man could be imprisoned. Finally, two doctors examined him, as to his mental condition.

The prisoner must have a hearing within three days after his arrest. He appeared before he judges, swore to tell the truth, was informed of the charges against him and the grounds for it, and urged to confess and be reconciled. If he refused, he had another hearing after ten days. A third session was granted if he was still obstinate. After that the interrogatory began.

Torquemada’s instructions were that in this “interrogatory” the Inquisitors were to be “cautious, circumspect and charitable,” and to seek nothing but the truth. During the questioning, there must be present, as defenders of the accused, two ecclesiastical persons, and not members of the court. After four days his statement was read to him. He could make any corrections he desired, and has as many hearings as he requested.

When the questioning concluded, the Fiscal presented his proofs to the Inquisitors, and asked for judgement according to the law. The accusation, from beginning to end, was then read again to the accused, with a pause after each article for his reply, while the notary wrote down what he said.

The accused was allowed counsel and the Holy Office had to pay the cost, if the defendant was poor. If he named none, the Court appointed a learned man of good reputation, who took an oath to defend him with zeal, loyalty, Impartiality and good faith. The attorney for the defense had access to the minutes of the trial, could rebut the accusations of the Fiscal, disqualify witnesses, ask for new information or hearings, and a full access to the accused, who also could see copies of the process, although the names of the witnesses were withheld from him. He could, however, mention all his enemies, and all that had a motive to injure him, and the Inquisitors must take this into consideration.

Unfortunately, torture, a staple of the times, was used, and ironically, Torquemada, in spite of all the falsehoods raised against him, tried to limit and mitigate it. He made clear that it was not to be used as a means of punishment but to obtain absolute proof of was already established beyond a reasonable doubt; that is to say, there must already be proof “semiplena” against the accused; he must have contradicted himself in serious matters, his bad faith must be evident, or there must be an overwhelming preponderance of witnesses against him. In order to recur to torture it was necessary a decree of the Fiscal and the “consultores” and the approval of the bishop of the diocese and the visa of the Supreme Council.

If all these citizens agreed that the accused should be subjected to torture, physicians to make sure that his physical condition would permit examined him. A doctor must be present when the torture was applied, and at his command it must be stopped.

In those times Catholics were dismembered roped to the legs of four horses during Elizabeth I and James I of England rule without any kind of legal advise or protection. Those were barbaric time when the English monarchs were granted the privilege to divorce by beheading their wives.

Meanwhile, the Islamic sword was menacing the very survival of Christian Europe. Christians were slain or kept under slavery by the Islamic Crescent by the tens of thousands.

We are witnessing in some parts of the Islamic world today the worst traits of the Middle Ages. In most of the Islamic countries those accused of preaching the Gospels are summarily condemned to death. Women were better treated by the cave men that under the fundamentalist Islamic regimes. You cannot equate the moral and civilization standards of the XXI century with those prevailing on the XV and XVI centuries. Unfortunately the Islamic fundamentalists want to take the world back to the Middle Ages by the use of terror. In fact, the Spanish Inquisition could be considered enlightened if compared with the Islamic justice as applied in some Muslim countries today.

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