Free Republic

The religious and philosophical justifications for promoting Jihad –which means holy war - around the world, is found in the Quran, says Dr. Hussein Shehata, a professor at al-Azhar University in Cairo. According to Dr. Shehata, the following terms in the Quran combine to justify the spreading of Jihad: in Arabic- Al-Jihad bi-al-Lisan – which means - Jihad of the Tongue, and al-Jihad bi-al-Qalam – Jihad of the Pen. Both combine for preaching and writing to promote Jihad. This command is complemented by Al-Jihad bi-al-Mal - the Financial Jihad; namely, raising money for needy Muslims and supporting the Jihad warriors...

In a remarkable example of truth in advertising, Lt. General John R. Vines, the new U.S. ground commander in Iraq, has included on a booklist for his senior staff officers the deathless classic Islam for Dummies — among other books that minimize or explain away any connection between Islam and violence. Unfortunately for the General, word of his reading list hadn’t been out long when Freedom House, a human rights group in Washington, released a report on Saudi hate literature in American mosques that made his list look Pollyannaish. In a Baltimore Sun interview after Vines’ list was made public,...