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Messages - Isa27James

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106
GENERAL TOPICS | BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS / Return of Isa ???????
« on: September 02, 2014, 04:02:10 PM »
Assalam  alykam    did the sahaba expect Isa return in their time
This hadith says  soon Isa will decened amongst you  does that mean  he is coming to them in their time please explain this hadith   Abu-Hurariah said that the prophet Muhammad  said,

"By him in whose hands my soul rests, surely Jesus, Son, of Mary will soon descend amongst you and will judge mankind judiciously, by the law of the Quran, as an honest ruler. He will break the cross, kill the pigs and abolish jizya. Money will abound in such excess that no one will wish to accept it. A single prostration to Allah, in prayer, will be better that the whole world and all it contains."      Also Jews believe   that the Messish will bring back the sacrifical system        The last place appointed by G-d for this purpose was the Temple in Jerusalem, but the Temple has been destroyed and a mosque has been erected in the place where it stood. Until G-d provides us with another place, we cannot offer sacrifices. There was at one time an opinion that in the absence of an assigned place, we could offer sacrifices anywhere. Based on that opinion, certain communities made their own sacrificial places. However, the majority ultimately ruled against this practice, and all sacrifice ceased.

Orthodox Jews believe that when the messiah comes, a place will be provided for sacrificial purposes.

107
It was about A promise God made  and he said Jesus full filled this  i said Islam is the universal covernant

108
Assalam alykam here is what i said Isa James Islam Poet
'If the Jesus of Christianity had been slain (shed his blood) by King Herod as an infant, there would have been totally no need for the New Testament with all its theological mysteries; the Hebrew / Christian version of God’s need of blood sacrifice would have been eternally but quietly satisfied. Then all humanity could have forgotten this finished Judeo-Christian religion forever! The fact the crucifixion must be continually re-enacted and preached on really proves this whole theological story never happened and is condemned by its own core theology as a hypocritical lie.

When considering the continuing value of the Bible, it is best summed up a by Jesus himself: “It is finished!”'
4 hours ago
     
HE REPLEYED
CL Edwards
That would not have happen since that is not what was decreed to happen. The need for the New Testament was decreed before Jesus was even incarnated, the purpose of the Old Testament was to set the stage for the New, for example see the two promise made by God in Jeremiah 33:14-26 and Jeremiah 31::31-37 ...God's promises can not be broken and that is what we know Islam is not true.





HOW DO I RESPOND TO HIS POINTS

109
GENERAL TOPICS | BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS / I need a good refutation to this
« on: August 10, 2014, 08:29:23 PM »
   Assalam alykam a christian posted this     Why was the Quran not compiled at the time of Muhammed?

In the Quran, the Quran is mentioned
numerous time as the book
It is He who has sent down to you, [O
Muhammad], the Book; (3:7)

In the last sermon of Muhammed, he
said
I leave behind me two things, the QUR'AN
and my example, the SUNNAH and if you
follow these you will never go astray.
But Quran was never compiled as book in the life
of Muhammad.
Why was it left out of the
book form when the Quran itself refer to it as a book?

The Quran claims that Allah has sent Warners to
every nation. In fact, some of these verses imply
that even prior to the coming of Muhammad,
Allah had sent Warners to the Arabs:
To every people (was sent) a
messenger : when their messenger comes
(before them), the matter will be judged
between them with justice, and they will not
be wronged. S. 10:47

'For We assuredly sent
amongst every People a messenger,
(with the Command) , "Serve Allah, and
eschew Evil": of the People were some
whom Allah guided, and some on whom
error became inevitably (established)'. S.
16:35-36

To every people did We appoint rites
(of sacrifice) , that they might celebrate the
name of Allah over the sustenance He gave
them from animals (fit for food). But your
god is One God: submit then your wills to
Him (in Islam): and give thou the good news
to those who humble themselves,- S. 22:34

To every People have We appointed
rites and ceremonies which they must
follow : let them not then dispute with thee
on the matter, but do thou invite (them) to
thy Lord: for thou art assuredly on the Right
Way. S. 22:67

Verily We have sent thee in truth, as a bearer
of glad tidings, and as a warner: and there
never was a people, without a warner
having lived among them (in the past).
S. 35:24

The conclusions outlined above lead to several
contradictions since the next verses claim that no
warner was sent to the Arabs, and no book was
given to them, until Muhammad’s time:

Nor wast thou at the side of (the Mountain
of) Tur when we called (to Moses). Yet (art
thou sent) as Mercy from thy Lord, to give
warning to a people to whom no warner
had come before thee: in order that they
may receive admonition. S. 28:46

Or do they say, "He has forged it"? Nay, it is
the Truth from thy Lord, that thou mayest
admonish a people to whom no warner
has come before thee: in order that they
may receive guidance. S. 32:3

They swore their strongest oaths by Allah
that if a warner came to them, they
would follow his guidance better than
any (other) of the Peoples : But when a
warner came to them, it has only increased
their flight (from righteousness),- S. 35:42

By the Wise Koran, thou art truly among the
Envoys on a straight path; the sending down
of the All-mighty, the All-wise, that thou
mayest warn a people WHOSE FATHERS
WERE NEVER WARNED, so they are
heedless. S. 36:2-6 Arberry

And this is a Book which We have revealed
as a blessing: so follow it and be righteous,
that ye may receive mercy: Lest ye should
say: "The Book was sent down to two
Peoples before us, and for our part, we
remained unacquainted with all that
they learned by assiduous study :" Or lest
ye should say: "If the Book had only been
sent down to us, we should have followed
its guidance better than they." Now then
hath come unto you a clear (sign) from your
Lord,- and a guide and a mercy: then who
could do more wrong than one who
rejecteth Allah's signs, and turneth away
therefrom? In good time shall We requite
those who turn away from Our signs, with
a dreadful penalty, for their turning away. S.
6:155-157

But We had not given them Books which
they could study, nor sent messengers to
them before thee as Warners. S. 34:44

What! have We given them a Book before
this, to which they are holding fast? S. 43:21

In light of the preceding, what do we say about
Ishmael, Salih, and Hud who were sent to Arab
nations as messengers, which is in direct
contradiction with Sura 34:44? Furthermore,
Ishmael is explicitly said to have received the
Book (S. 6:89), but S. 34:44 states that the Arabs
had not received any book before Muhammad's
time.

110
Assalam alykam   what is the complexion of Isa ? Muhammad pbuh says he is redish white complexion  and others people have dreams he is dark or brown    and when they ask Muhammad who this is  he says its Isa Son of mary             can some please explain

111
Jazak'Allah khair brother

112
GENERAL TOPICS | BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS / christian thoughts
« on: July 30, 2014, 12:23:04 AM »
Assalam. Alykam  in christian books  like revelation.     Mention a one  world religion which is a harliot aka a false religion   now Islam.says its the one and only religion.    Christians try to say Islam is the one prophsied.  How do we answer this.   Isnt it christainty that is the false religion and it is the one religion.   Is the religion of the dajjal going ti br this false religion that will arise in the end of times

113
Assalam  alykam  alot of anti Islamic people use this hadith  to say Muhammad pbuh took suggestions  from umar   what i want to know  did revelation come first or did the advice of umar come first      Volume 6, Book 60, Number 10:
Narrated Anas:

Umar said, "I agreed with Allah in three things," or said, "My Lord agreed with me in three things. I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Would that you took the station of Abraham as a place of prayer.' I also said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Good and bad persons visit you! Would that you ordered the Mothers of the believers to cover themselves with veils.' So the Divine Verses of Al-Hijab (i.e. veiling of the women) were revealed. I came to know that the Prophet had blamed some of his wives so I entered upon them and said, 'You should either stop (troubling the Prophet ) or else Allah will give His Apostle better wives than you.' When I came to one of his wives, she said to me, 'O 'Umar! Does Allah's Apostle haven't what he could advise his wives with, that you try to advise them?' " Thereupon Allah revealed:--

"It may be, if he divorced you (all) his Lord will give him instead of you, wives better than you Muslims (who submit to Allah).." (66.5)

114
GENERAL TOPICS | BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS / Re: some one refute this
« on: July 15, 2014, 10:19:04 AM »
Brothers i did not post this personaly some  christian posted it to me  i just need it personaly

115
GENERAL TOPICS | BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS / some one refute this
« on: July 11, 2014, 04:41:29 AM »
This was sent to me  Really? Son of God means the King of Heaven my friend... But muhammed didn't understand it very well.

Muhammed claims to be in the following line of prophets: Abraham > Moses > Jesus > Muhammed right?

Muhammed also tells us that he and Jesus are close to each other and that muhammed is the seal to all the prophets...

SO we need to examine if Muhammed is a real prophet or NOT or is lying about his above claim. This is our to subject to study... BECAUSE OUR SOULS is on the line: we go to HEAVEN or HELL.. right? This is a very dangerous problem..

But we find a VERY BIG SERIOUS PROBLEM that islam/muslims CANNOT back up:

-> Muhammed is NOT from bloodline of ALL THE TRUE prophets(It starts with ABRAHAM and his Son ISAAC). This is a very big problem for islam.. God clearly made a covenant with ISAAC and NOT ismael(he is out of the picture, He was cast out with his mother Hagar to Egypt in the Old Testament), but muslim simply deny the Old Testament covenant that came from GOD Himself....

islam has a MAJOR problem here... Who is muhammed, where is his prophetic bloodline from ISAAC as covenant from God? =)
So NOW tell me: how can momo say "I AM A PROPHET" while his Body does NOT carry the "prohpetic" blood of ISAAC!!!!!??

Muhammed DOES NOT carry this prophetic blood of Isaac in his bloodvains.. = islam has problems and this contradicts everything about your prophet momo..

We know islam tells us that muhammed comes fromt he bloodline of ismael. But God did NOT make the covenant with ismael :/ ISAAC is main ONE where it all begun with, it started with Him and it end with Jesus Christ...!

Do you research then debate. Go study NOT only from quran but from earlier scriptures too(Torah and Enjeel), Don't just copy/paste like all muslims do. You just showed me those are NOT your own studies but some jihadi website. Do it Like I am doing to find the hidden truth about islam.... i study: OT, NT and quran and hadith by myself. That is how it works... And I discovered that muhammed is really a false deceiving guy that gave you his own man made words: quran and gave you allah the moon-idol that excisted before islam was born...

allah the moon idol, his wive and his 3 daughters: allaat maanaat and el uzza that were in the early kaaba made by the pagans, worshipped by muhammed before he became "muslim".

Every prophet is protected by God don't we agree? except momo..! Satan controlled him, even for some seconds as your say above, but we know muhhammed was under spell for a very long period. He imagined having sexual intercourse with his wives, while that did NOT happen.. But still Satan had momo under control, so this PROBLEM stays.. This is ALSO why he is false prophet... NO other prophet was completely under magic spell except this false guy! islam = evil = made by momo..

116
Asslam alykam christians try to use prophercies from zachriah and other books to go against the arabs like in the book of zachriah    where it talks about war heads from the east and that the israleies  Gods people will be attacked    here is a web site regarding zacahriah visions    http://www.wwyd.org/Prophecy/Rood_ZechScrolls.htm   i have read the end of time prophecies section. I just need more answers regarding todays events  they are trying to say look at what ISIS are doing this is what the bible predicted they say       how do todays events connect with these bb
Ooks?  Have these events already past

117
Assalam alykam

christians always quote


Jesus saying  my kingdom is not of this world


implies he is the king of heaven or something

what does he mean but this??

did he really say this or just another fabrication???

can you please help me understand what he means when he said this

119
Assalam alykam i am bit confused regarding the return of Jesus and the Anti christ   both christian and Muslim narartions sound simalar and looks like they are talking about each other

CHRISTIANS TRY TO SAY THAT THE GREAT LEADER WHO IS A GREAT SPEAKER AND TALKER BUT LIAR IN THE CHRISTIAN NARRATIVE  IS THE IMAM MAHDI

HERE IS THE CHRISTIAN NARRATIVE


The Beast:  The Rise of Satan's Antichrist . . .
 
So, the world will soon get the leader it seems to be longing and waiting for.  A powerful leader who will be popular, attractive, charismatic, and a great talker whose many words will not be chosen for truth, but for lies and deception.  A leader who will kill many Christians and Jews  . . .
 
             "Then I stood on the sand of the sea.
              And I saw a beast (Satan’s Antichrist)
              rising up out of the sea,
              having seven heads and ten horns,
              and on his horns ten crowns,
              (The book of Daniel explains these represent 10 nations he will rule)
              and on his heads a blasphemous name . . .
              The dragon (Satan) gave him his power,
              his throne, and great authority."
              (Revelation 13:1,2)
 
             "The coming of the lawless one (the coming 'Antichrist')
               is according to the working of Satan,
              with all power, signs (miracles), and lying wonders"
              (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10)
 
             "It was granted to him to make war with the saints
              and to overcome them (he will slaughter millions).
              And authority was given him
              over every tribe, tongue, and nation."
              (This "leader" will dominate "World" governments)
              (Revelation 13:7)
 
             "Then the king (Antichrist) shall do according to his own will:
               he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god,
               shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods,
               and shall prosper until the Wrath (God's wrath) has been accomplished;
               for what has been determined SHALL be done.   (The coming "Apocalypse"...)
               He shall regard neither the God of his fathers
               NOR the desire of women,   (he may aggressively promote the "homosexual" agenda ...)
               nor regard any god;
               for he shall exalt himself above them all."
               (Daniel 11:36-37)
 
             "Woe to the worthless shepherd,
              who leaves the flock!  (Jewish? Christian?)
              A sword shall be against his arm and against his right eye;
              his (the Antichrist’s) arm shall completely wither,
              and his right eye shall be totally blinded."
              (This may happen when he receives his mortal "head wound")
              (Zechariah 11:17)
This man whom we call the Antichrist has been given many different titles in the Bible.  The most well known term "Antichrist" is unfortunate, because it is misleading.  Misleading because, although this man will be against Christ (the Messiah), the world will see him as a "pseudo-christ."  This man will not be ugly or scary looking.  This future world leader will be Satan’s counterfeit Christ (Messiah.)  This coming leader will be very, very popular in the eyes of the world.  The world will love him.  The world will see him as a great leader, a man of "peace," and as a "messiah."   While God sees this man as a lying, evil, vicious, and bloodthirsty . . . "Beast."

We are told quite a bit about this coming world leader, Satan’s counterfeit messiah, who will someday soon rise in power . . .
 
      -  He will be indwelt and empowered by Satan
      -  He will rise to power first over 3 and then 10 nations (from the old Roman Empire ... Europe?!)
      -  He will somehow be 'diverse from the rest' so we are not certain he will be European
      -  He will bring 'peace', yet conquer through treaties and war
      -  He will be very, very popular around the world
      -  He will speak blasphemies against the God of gods
      -  He will not regard "the desire of women"
      -  He will be a great talker and speech maker
      -  He will likely be charismatic and physically attractive ... like King Saul
      -  He will receive what appears to be a fatal wound to the head
      -  He will appear to be resurrected from the dead
      -  His right eye may be blinded and his arm completely withered
      -  He will enforce a "peace" plan or resolution (covenant) upon nation Israel
         (It doesn’t say he signs this treaty, but he enforces some coming 'peace plan' or resolution)
      -  He may help to get the new Jewish Temple built in Jerusalem
      -  He will appear to perform miracles ("lying signs and wonders")
      -  He will require that everybody on Earth receive a mark or identification on their
           forehead or hand and nobody will legally be able to buy or sell without it 
      -  He will stand in a new Jewish Temple in Jerusalem and declare he is "God"
      -  Unspeakable terror and war will then engulf Earth for exactly 3½ years (1260 days)
      -  He will direct the slaughter of millions of Christians and Jews who come to know the Lord
      -  He will lead the armies of the world into Israel . . . Armageddon.
 
 
A SECOND Beast will Rise.
The coming Antichrist will have a religious partner . . .
 
             "Then I saw ANOTHER beast coming up out of the Earth,
              and he had two horns like a lamb
              and spoke like a dragon.
              And he exercises all the authority
              of the first beast (the Antichrist) in his presence,
              and causes the Earth and those who dwell in it
              to worship the first beast (the Antichrist),
              whose deadly (head) wound was healed."
              (Revelation 13:11-12)       (The Antichrist will appear to be resurrected from a wound)
The coming Antichrist will not be alone.  Another man, also empowered by Satan, will rule with the Antichrist.  This powerful religious leader or "beast" (as God sees him) will rise to power with the Antichrist.  In this prophecy God reveals some important information and details concerning this coming "religious" man of power ...

"Two horns like a lamb," tells us he will emerge with Christian credentials or doctrine, but "spoke like a dragon" tells us he will be controlled and directed by Satan.  There are hints this man might even have Jewish blood.  This person, along with the coming "one-world" (global) religious system he will lead, is referred to as "The Woman Who Rides the Beast" in the book of Revelation.  This evil, blood-thirsty "one-world" religion appears to rise out of Rome.

HERE IS REGARDING THE BREATH  OF CHRIST BY PAUL 
  "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work;
              only He who now restrains (the Holy Spirit)
              will do so UNTIL He is taken out of the way.
              And THEN the lawless one (Antichrist) will be revealed,
              whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth
              and destroy with the brightness of His coming.
              The coming of the lawless one (Antichrist)
              is according to the working of Satan,
              with all power, signs (miracles), and lying wonders"
              (2 Thessalonians 2:7-9)
HERE IS THE MUSLIM NARRATIVE   WE ALSO BELIEVE THIS

Dajjal shall perish even as the breath of Isa (Jesus - peeace be upon him) touches them. The breath of Isa (Jesus - peeace be upon him) shall proceed him as far as the eye can see. Dajjal will be captured at Lydda. The Dark Messiah shall begin to melt, as lead melts in fire. The spear of Isa (Jesus - peace be upon him) shall plunge into Dajjal’s chest, ending his dreaded reign. The followers of Dajjal will be rooted out, for even the trees and rocks will speak out against them. Then all battles shall cease and the world will know an age of peace. Then truly the sheep will lie in the shadow of the wolf without fear. The rule of Jesus will be just and all shall flock to him to enter the folds of the one true religion, Islam.



SO WHO IS CORRECT???  THEY ALL SOUND THE SAME BUT ONE IS CONTRADICTING THE OTHER??? AND ONE APPOSES THE OTHER

120
Christianity as the Pathway to Refinement for a Muslim

By: Timothy Abraham (Ibrahim Arafat)

[Arabic]

Ever since I was a little Muslim boy, I heard everybody around me admonishing each other to go after “refinement”. A mother would admonish her son who acted embarrassingly, “khalīk Rā`ī خليك راقي”, which is: Be refined! As Arabs, we have always admired Western countries for their phenomenal achievement in technology, liberty, democracy and definitely their “ruqyy-ee  رقيّ” (refinement). We have always hoped for something better than what was already the norm, frustrated terribly by the marginalization of the individual. In classic Egyptian movies, we have been charmed by their “refined” habits of etiquette and how a lot of families spoke French even at home, in order to cultivate higher standards of refined living. On the other hand, there was the screaming shouting of the Muslim call to prayer and people yelling at one another, which is an every day occurrence in the Muslim world.

Jesus Christ has come to bring refinement and elevate us as Arabs to a refined humane behavior. He is described in the prophecy of Isaiah 42 in these words,

“He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” (Verses 2-3)

He also identified himself as “gentle and humble in heart” (Matt. 11:29) and such was his living as people witnessed his going about doing good to all without differentiation (Acts 10:38). While some people are greedy for power in this world, Jesus simply declares that “my kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). He is not coming to set up a theocracy of Christian ideology but rather reigns by His redeeming love over human hearts, thus cleansing them. Muhammad, on the other hand, came to rule and dominate, for he was hungry for power. Scholars of “modern” Islam run up against a wall as they reduce Islam to a mere spirituality as those of Buddhism and Christianity. But Islam is both dogma and ideology, a Quran and a sword, faith and politics, faith and Shari’ah  شريعة. Islam without the Islamic law الشريعة الإسلامية would be a mutilated religion, not the real thing; a pathetic, gutted, emaciated form of religion that has nothing to do with the real Islam that is explicitly stated in the Quran. The modern movement to attempt to modernize Islam, to bring it up to the level of other faiths, forces the stripping of the core of the teachings of the Quran, leaving Islam bared. Islam’s basis and foundation is not about the spiritual relationship with Allah, but that of an agenda, an ideology and a political movement. The embellishment on the part of Western academic institutions has been but a futile attempt to civilize it.

Even if we concede Islam to be a form of spirituality amongst all these religions of the world, I venture as a former preacher of Islam to confidently state that Islam is the most degenerate form of spiritualities. When we are terrified into obedience out of fear and intimidation by Hellfire, where Allah is bribed with prayer, fasting and austere practices, what is that compared to a God we meet in Christ who gently knocks at the door and simply says, “If you will let me in, I will enter”? (Revelation 3:20) If we shut the door in God’s face in the Bible, He will not fume with anger. He will simply move on in sadness (Luke 4:30) as the loss will be only ours, left behind.

While Jesus came to offer “life”, Islam came to offer “death”. Jesus spoke extensively about this rich term “life” that is almost another name for God Almighty. To believe in Him guarantees us “eternal life”, i.e. life that flows directly from God and is as eternal as God is. It is “life” that has the adjective “eternal” for coming with it. In Jesus’ statement of purpose, he defines for us the reason of his coming, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). As a Muslim, I did everything out of terror of Allah and for the sake of the Hereafter with no certainty or security about anything. But now that I am a Christian, I know that my present matters a great deal to God and I don’t have to do everything in the hope of a “prize” in the end but the present as it is matters immensely to my Lord. Christ wants to make my present life so meaningful; he wants me to live life to the full and not just pay my dues so that I might have a “cushioned seat” in a fancy train. He wants me to enjoy life and to be “fully alive” by having my life joined to His life, as we become “flesh of his flesh and bone of his bones” (Ephesians 5:32- 33). Everything in Christianity is about life and how to live it with enjoyment to the full and in the presence of God. He wants us to have life in relationship with him, not in fear of him.

In Islam, on the other hand, this life is to be despised since الدنيا لا تساوي عند الله جناح بعوضة i.e. “Life for Allah is not even worth the wing of a mosquito”. Khalid Ibn Al Walid, chiefly commanding the army of Mohammad, acknowledged death as the driving force for practicing Islam. One of his famous statements calling on the infidels to convert to Islam is this:

 “Submit to Islam and be safe. Or agree to the payment of the Jizya, and you and your people will be under our protection, else you will have only yourself to blame for the consequences, for I bring the men who desire death as ardently as you desire life.”1

No wonder, then, when a Muslim becomes so devout in his Islamic belief, he would desire death as ardently as we, Christians, would desire life. This has been true of Islam throughout the centuries since its ominous inception. As Samuel Zwemer eloquently put it, “From the outset it [i.e. Islam] had in it the germs of death – a neither the character of the Koran nor of its Prophet have in them the promise or potency of life that will endure.”2 Is it any surprise, then, that the more religious a Muslim becomes, the more somber and gloomy he looks? Muslims will achieve this “ruqyy-ee  رقيّ” (refinement) progress and civilization as they value the present for its worth, as a gift of God to receive from the hands of Christ, Giver of life, in that each day is a gift of the Lord and we do not have to wait till the end of life in order to realize the purposes of God.  Because Muslims believe in the here and the now, believe in the sanctity of life and the autonomy of the individual instead of utilitarianism, then we can, indeed, hope for a better life in the Muslim world. To force our values on others produces nothing but hypocrites. In the parable of the Prodigal Son, as the son is on his way out of the door, we do not see the Father getting in his way and trying to force Him to do what is right. In Christ, our Maker respects our free will and He allows us to make the choice. Even when He created man in the beginning, he knew fully well that this man would some day oppose His will and fight against His design. Nevertheless, He went ahead and created man. Let us make man in our image, He said.

The first time I got the gospel of Luke in the mail from my American pen friend, it didn’t have the word “Bible” on the cover. Rather, the cover had this interesting title “Joyous News of the Greek Physician Luke” الأخبار المفرحة للطبيب اليوناني لوقا. I could not help but wonder, “Who in the world is this Luke? And why would a Greek physician take interest in me as a person?” And what type of “joyous news” would he have to share with me, Ibrahim Arafat? Finally it dawned on me, the coming of Jesus Christ into the world, the coming of God in person in Christ, is, indeed, this joyous news. That is why the apostle of the heart set free, Paul, would make it a commandment, even an order to “rejoice” always as he says in Philippians 4:4.

As a Muslim, I have often wondered to myself why most of the “pious” Muslims came out of the mosque with frowning, gloomy looks while everything I encountered in Christianity was always about joy. I got jealous and wanted to be like them and have what those Christians have. Their Savior, in His most excruciating moments on the Cross, lifts His eyes towards the Father and intercedes in prayer for them, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). This was the manifesto for the civilization of forgiveness, founded not by fanciful, dreamy, all-too-platonic mottos, but it cost Christ His own redeeming, saving, atoning blood. He practiced first what would be preached later on. It is Christ who is the actual standard for Christianity, not Caesar or Prince Charles or President Bush, for Christianity is only Christ, the person in all He said and did.

As a Muslim, I have always longed to live as a refined human being, like those we would see in Western media. But how can that ever be when Islam is all about oppression? Refined people have responsible freedom as their starting point, not oppression or fear. Allah in Islam is all about subjugation. To be a Christian happens by willingly and joyfully submitting to Christ. Allah in Islam, however, subjugates people to follow Islam. One American brother who converted to Sufi Islam and found his “niche” there told me over the phone that Allah says in the Quran “وَلَهُ أَسْلَمَ مَنْ فِي السَّماواتِ وَالأَْرْضِ طَوْعاً وَكَرْهاً” i.e. All creatures in heaven and on earth were subjugated to Him, whether they like it or hate it (Family of Imran 3:83). I once said to a dear friend of mine, a former Muslim who was groomed to be a Muslim scholar, that I resent mostly in Islam that aspect of subjugation and oppression, to which he replied, “يا أخي والله محمد أجبرنا على الإسلام وما لنا من خيار وأجبرنا على دخول الجنة مكبلين بالسلاسل دون اختيار منا لذلك” i.e. “Oh brother, Mohammad forced Islam upon us and we had no choice; he forced us to enter paradise shackled in chains and we had no choice in the matter”. Actually, there is a famous hadith (tradition) narrated by Mohammad that states that, “عجبت لأقوام يساقون إلى الجنة بالسلاسل وهم كارهون‏” i.e. “I have marveled at people who are led to Paradise shackled in chains while they resent it”. People thrive better as they operate out of freedom, not oppression. How can we dream of a civilized Muslim world when people are stripped of the simplest of things, to choose their own actions without being stoned for it? While I love purity of heart as through it I get to “see” the Lord (Matthew 5:8), I don’t want anybody to “make” me pure; I don’t want it to be the pressure of religion or society but I would rather have it develop as the fruit of the longing of my heart for the Lord whom I love and wanted to be united with. It has to come from within. In Matthew 23:25, Jesus denounced that false “show” of external morality, “You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed.”

How can we hope for a civilized Muslim world when the woman is permitted to be beaten in the Quran (Women 4:34)? In surat Sād 38:44 in the Quran, Job is ordered by God to beat his wife, “‘Take in thy hand a bundle of rushes, and strike [your wife] therewith, and do not fail in thy oath.’ We found him a steadfast man. How excellent a servant he was! He was a penitent.” As usual, Allah is invoked in the Quran too many times to gratify the wishes of the male, even if this is to reduce the female to such a demeaning position. One has to just look in Western Medieval art and see how woman is portrayed in all of her beauty without any insecurity on the part of the male. Societies thrive as man securely allows the woman to be empowered and achieve her highest potential, fully acknowledging her individuality as a human being. Christianity has made this possible as in Christ there is no male or female but Christ is all in all (Galatians 3:28).

It is only when the dignity of the human being is fully honored, regardless how sinful and filthy this human might be, that we can, then, hope for a civilized, progressive society. Every time Mohammad was brought a woman who committed adultery, he ordered that she be stoned. Jesus, on the other hand, would look with full compassion on the woman who was caught in the act of adultery and confront her enemies, “Which of you is without sin, let him stone her first.” Then, he gently looks at the woman and says, “Go and sin no more.” Christianity keeps human dignity and elevates it while Islam in the Islamic law reduces the individual to a fly or a mosquito or a despicable nothing. As we are clothed with Christ, we look at sinners in all walks of life with deep compassion. This sinner is I. Sin is residing in all of our hearts and that is why the Blood of Christ cleanses us. The difference between me and the worst sinners is not that I am “better” or “holier” than them but that this “other” person had the chance to act out their sins while I am just guarded by and carried along by the grace of Christ. Christianity teaches me to escape this self-righteous attitude of Islam towards sinners and gently put myself in their shoes. Those “others”, unpleasant and sinful as they may be, are actually I. Arthur Rimbaud puts it beautifully, “Je est un autre” i.e. “I am the other”, the other is I. Christ fulfilled this when He, the Word of God, took on our human flesh and shared our humanity to the fullest degree, except for sin of course, and permitted us to receive his own “life” and take part in His divine nature. This is only to say that the greatness of Christianity lies in the fact that God who made man is actually fully siding with man, for man, and it delights Him that man be fully alive, not a crushed maggot or a slave as it is the case in Islam. St. Irenaeus eloquently expresses that, “Vivens homo gloria Dei; vita hominis, visio Dei.” i.e. “The glory of God is the living man and the life of man is the manifestation of God.” When we say that we want to give glory to God, in Islam this means that man is a negligible thing while in Christianity this means God’s longing for man/ woman to be alive, actually fully alive. His ego in Islam is inflated by crushing man while in Christ God experiences Kenosis, i.e. self-emptiness, that is, He Almighty actually empties Himself of glory and takes on the form of a servant and dies for man on the cross. This is the ultimate expression of His divine solidarity with humans. He comes down all the way to their level and manifests Himself as the All-Humble God (Philippians 2:7), as much as He is the Almighty, all-powerful God. People don’t have to work too hard to earn His approval but they are loved as they are, and His atoning love is all they have to receive, live by and enjoy forever.       

My friends, please, I would be delighted to hear from you.

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