23-09-2006




Since the days when Roman Emperors threw Christians to the lions, the relations between the emperors and the heads of the church have undergone many changes.




Constantine the Great, who became Emperor in the year 306 - exactly 1700 years ago - encouraged the practice of Christianity in the empire, which included Palestine. Centuries later, the church split into an Eastern (Orthodox) and a Western (Catholic) part. In the West, the Bishop of Rome, who acquired the title of Pope, demanded that the Emperor accept his superiority.




The struggle between the Emperors and the Popes played a central role in European history and divided the peoples. It knew ups and downs. Some Emperors dismissed or expelled a Pope, some Popes dismissed or excommunicated an Emperor. One of the Emperors, Henry IV, "walked to Canossa", standing for three days barefoot in the snow in front of the Pope's castle, until the Pope deigned to annul his excommunication.




But there were times when Emperors and Popes lived in peace with each other. We are witnessing such a period today. Between the present Pope, Benedict XVI, and the present Emperor, George Bush II, there exists a wonderful harmony. Last week's speech by the Pope, which aroused a world-wide storm, went well with Bush's crusade against "Islamofascism", in the context of the "Clash of Civilizations".




IN HIS lecture at a German university, the 265th Pope described what he sees as a huge difference between Christianity and Islam: while Christianity is based on reason, Islam denies it. While Christians see the logic of God's actions, Muslims deny that there is any such logic in the actions of Allah.




As a Jewish atheist, I do not intend to enter the fray of this debate. It is much beyond my humble abilities to understand the logic of the Pope. But I cannot overlook one passage, which concerns me too, as an Israeli living near the fault-line of this "war of civilizations".




In order to prove the lack of reason in Islam, the Pope asserts that the prophet Muhammad ordered his followers to spread their religion by the sword. According to the Pope, that is unreasonable, because faith is born of the soul, not of the body. How can the sword influence the soul?




To support his case, the Pope quoted - of all people - a Byzantine Emperor, who belonged, of course, to the competing Eastern Church. At the end of the 14th century, the Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus told of a debate he had - or so he said (its occurrence is in doubt) - with an unnamed Persian Muslim scholar. In the heat of the argument, the Emperor (according to himself) flung the following words at his adversary:




"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached".




These words give rise to three questions: (a) Why did the Emperor say them? (B) Are they true? © Why did the present Pope quote them?




WHEN MANUEL II wrote his treatise, he was the head of a dying empire. He assumed power in 1391, when only a few provinces of the once illustrious empire remained. These, too, were already under Turkish threat.




At that point in time, the Ottoman Turks had reached the banks of the Danube. They had conquered Bulgaria and the north of Greece, and had twice defeated relieving armies sent by Europe to save the Eastern Empire. On May 29, 1453, only a few years after Manuel's death, his capital, Constantinople (the present Istanbul) fell to the Turks, putting an end to the Empire that had lasted for more than a thousand years.




During his reign, Manuel made the rounds of the capitals of Europe in an attempt to drum up support. He promised to reunite the church. There is no doubt that he wrote his religious treatise in order to incite the Christian countries against the Turks and convince them to start a new crusade. The aim was practical, theology was serving politics.




In this sense, the quote serves exactly the requirements of the present Emperor, George Bush II. He, too, wants to unite the Christian world against the mainly Muslim "Axis of Evil". Moreover, the Turks are again knocking on the doors of Europe, this time peacefully. It is well known that the Pope supports the forces that object to the entry of Turkey into the European Union.




IS THERE any truth in Manuel's argument?




The pope himself threw in a word of caution. As a serious and renowned theologian, he could not afford to falsify written texts. Therefore, he admitted that the Qur'an specifically forbade the spreading of the faith by force. He quoted the second Sura, verse 256 (strangely fallible, for a pope, he meant verse 257) which says: "There must be no coercion in matters of faith".




How can one ignore such an unequivocal statement? The Pope simply argues that this commandment was laid down by the prophet when he was at the beginning of his career, still weak and powerless, but that later on he ordered the use of the sword in the service of the faith. Such an order does not exist in the Qur'an. True, Muhammad called for the use of the sword in his war against opposing tribes - Christian, Jewish and others - in Arabia, when he was building his state. But that was a political act, not a religious one; basically a fight for territory, not for the spreading of the faith.




Jesus said: "You will recognize them by their fruits." The treatment of other religions by Islam must be judged by a simple test: How did the Muslim rulers behave for more than a thousand years, when they had the power to "spread the faith by the sword"?




Well, they just did not.




For many centuries, the Muslims ruled Greece. Did the Greeks become Muslims? Did anyone even try to Islamize them? On the contrary, Christian Greeks held the highest positions in the Ottoman administration. The Bulgarians, Serbs, Romanians, Hungarians and other European nations lived at one time or another under Ottoman rule and clung to their Christian faith. Nobody compelled them to become Muslims and all of them remained devoutly Christian.




True, the Albanians did convert to Islam, and so did the Bosniaks. But nobody argues that they did this under duress. They adopted Islam in order to become favorites of the government and enjoy the fruits.




In 1099, the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem and massacred its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants indiscriminately, in the name of the gentle Jesus. At that time, 400 years into the occupation of Palestine by the Muslims, Christians were still the majority in the country. Throughout this long period, no effort was made to impose Islam on them. Only after the expulsion of the Crusaders from the country, did the majority of the inhabitants start to adopt the Arabic language and the Muslim faith - and they were the forefathers of most of today's Palestinians.




THERE IS no evidence whatsoever of any attempt to impose Islam on the Jews. As is well known, under Muslim rule the Jews of Spain enjoyed a bloom the like of which the Jews did not enjoy anywhere else until almost our time. Poets like Yehuda Halevy wrote in Arabic, as did the great Maimonides. In Muslim Spain, Jews were ministers, poets, scientists. In Muslim Toledo, Christian, Jewish and Muslim scholars worked together and translated the ancient Greek philosophical and scientific texts. That was, indeed, the Golden Age. How would this have been possible, had the Prophet decreed the "spreading of the faith by the sword"?




What happened afterwards is even more telling. When the Catholics re-conquered Spain from the Muslims, they instituted a reign of religious terror. The Jews and the Muslims were presented with a cruel choice: to become Christians, to be massacred or to leave. And where did the hundreds of thousand of Jews, who refused to abandon their faith, escape? Almost all of them were received with open arms in the Muslim countries. The Sephardi ("Spanish") Jews settled all over the Muslim world, from Morocco in the west to Iraq in the east, from Bulgaria (then part of the Ottoman Empire) in the north to Sudan in the south. Nowhere were they persecuted. They knew nothing like the tortures of the Inquisition, the flames of the auto-da-fe, the pogroms, the terrible mass-expulsions that took place in almost all Christian countries, up to the Holocaust.




WHY? Because Islam expressly prohibited any persecution of the "peoples of the book". In Islamic society, a special place was reserved for Jews and Christians. They did not enjoy completely equal rights, but almost. They had to pay a special poll-tax, but were exempted from military service - a trade-off that was quite welcome to many Jews. It has been said that Muslim rulers frowned upon any attempt to convert Jews to Islam even by gentle persuasion - because it entailed the loss of taxes.




Every honest Jew who knows the history of his people cannot but feel a deep sense of gratitude to Islam, which has protected the Jews for fifty generations, while the Christian world persecuted the Jews and tried many times "by the sword" to get them to abandon their faith.




THE STORY about "spreading the faith by the sword" is an evil legend, one of the myths that grew up in Europe during the great wars against the Muslims - the reconquista of Spain by the Christians, the Crusades and the repulsion of the Turks, who almost conquered Vienna. I suspect that the German Pope, too, honestly believes in these fables. That means that the leader of the Catholic world, who is a Christian theologian in his own right, did not make the effort to study the history of other religions.




Why did he utter these words in public? And why now?




There is no escape from viewing them against the background of the new Crusade of Bush and his evangelist supporters, with his slogans of "Islamofascism" and the "Global War on Terrorism" - when "terrorism" has become a synonym for Muslims. For Bush's handlers, this is a cynical attempt to justify the domination of the world's oil resources. Not for the first time in history, a religious robe is spread to cover the nakedness of economic interests; not for the first time, a robbers' expedition becomes a Crusade.




The speech of the Pope blends into this effort. Who can foretell the dire consequences?




http://www.avnery-news.co.il/english/




 


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<b>Islam and Menses </b>


As you are no doubt aware by now, there are certain rules and exceptions for women in Islam, and one of them pertains to her monthly cycle. Try your best not to think of it as a limitation, but as a reprieve.


<b>A woman who is in her monthly cycle cannot: </b>


1. Perform the five prescribed prayers (Salat al Fard) (prayers missed due to menstruation do not have to be made up)



2. Touch the Qur'an,


3. Make ta'waf around the Kaba,


4. Fast (Days of fasting missed during Ramadan may be made up within the next lunar year)


5. Engage in sexual intercourse with her husband (kissing, hugging, and other intimate touching outside of the genital area is okay).


6. It is better for her not to be in the musallah (area where prayers are performed) in the masjid or Islamic centre.


<b>A woman who is in her monthly cycle can: </b>


1. Make du'a,



2. Listen to a recitation of the Qur'an, or silently recite it to herself


3. Celebrate the praises of Allah ta'ala,


4. Study Islamic texts, including hadith,


5. Attend Eid celebrations.


<b>When your menses is finished:</b> <i>ghusl </i>


When your cycle is ended, then you must perform the ritual purification bath, called ghusl. It includes washing your entire body, including the head. If your hair is so tightly braided that water would not reach your scalp underneath, then you are obliged to undo your hair. Otherwise, you do not need to undo your style, but only run some water over it.


<b>Advice </b>


<b>It is often difficult for new Muslimas to understand why they are suddenly unable to make salat for five days or so. Many may feel that it is a limitation on them due to their gender. Others may misunderstand this, and think that they can not engage in any Islamic activities for the duration of their menses. This is simply not so. Many women suffer from extreme cramps, heavy bleeding, nausea, headaches, and other maladies during their cycle. It is truly a sign of the Mercy of Allah ta'ala that we are excused from prayer during this time. I know more than one sister who would be unable to perform the physical duties of the prayer during her cycle.</b>



Islam does not ask you to give up your spirituality or pursuit of Islamic knowledge during this time either. While it is true that you can't read the Qur'an physically, you aren't prohibited from listening to tapes of the Qur'an, or from listening to someone else recite it. You may even recite the verses to yourself silently. You can still pray, through Du'a, and you can still celebrate the praises of Allah ta'ala during this time as well. There is nothing to stop you from reading Islamic texts outside of the Qur'an, including hadith.

Bismillah:


Assalamo Alikum my dear brothers and sisters in Islam,


Please make Du’a for sister <b>Muslimah</b> who is going for arm surgery this coming Saturday. May Allah always keep her safe. Ameen.


Salam


Wael.

I wanted to share that I received my very own Quran. It is very nice with Arabic and the translation beside it. I work with a Muslim who unfortunately (because of his religion) is not always treated with respect.


Here in the USA many associate Islam with terrorism, that is what is force feed through the media. I know this to be untrue with true Islam. There will always be extremists in any religion or philosophy, however that does mean that is the true representation of the organization.


I am in management where I work, I have had many discussions with one of my employees Mosi Shakur. He is Muslim and we hit it off immediately. He knows I am atheist but yet we are friends who share intimate things.


He presented me with a gift today, a Quran of my own. I have read the Quran online but do not own a copy. He gave it too me when I gave him a ride home from work. I thought this very kind of him and thanked him.


Just thought I would share some information here!


Peace to all


Voice of Reason

Hello all!


I had a brief question about the spelling of an Arabic name. The name is question is, the female name "Rahma", which if I'm not mistaken, means "mercy" in Arabic. I'm curious if this is the most common spelling of the name in the Latin alphabet. I know that often times, Arabic names are spelled many different ways in in the Latina alphabet, somethimes with apostrophes replacing the letter H. So, long question short, are there other ways of spelling the name Rahma using the romance alphabet?


Thanks for your help!

"Those (Muslim rulers) who, if We give them power in the land, (they) order for the [five compulsory, congregational] prayers, to pay the Zakat and they enjoin the good, and forbid evil. And with Allah rests the end of (all) matters (of creatures)." (Quran 22:41)


Sobhan Allah, the power in the land as per this Ayah, is not restricted only on physical land. But when Allah Gives power in any given domain, field, area, a Muslim must be up to the trust. Must establish prayer, and pay Zakat. And establishing prayer entails more than just the performing our salat on time. Paying zakat invloves close observance of the source of income, looking for the eligible category etc. The last duty with which one is charged, is to enjoin good and forbid evil. This duty strechtes beyond merely what is commonly percieved. It includes even helping others to learn, gain knowledge, improve. It invovles more than merely admonishing one another. It invovles helping one another for instance to overcome egoistic inspiration.


sobhan Allah, this verse moved me so much and I felt i must share it with all of u here.

I was just curious would you say your a planner:


Do you plan things like interviews, the future, events, etc...


This poll excludes the fact that you rely on Allah (swt), if you misunderstand i mean apart from relying on Allah (swt) as many of you will state, do you or would you plan ahead for things such as interviews, event or conferences, things that are important... or just see how each day goes by...


Why am I asking ... well I have a mate who never plans and everytime he has to go work, interviews, etc he always does everythign last minute and most cases hes either late, unorganised or just plain cant be bothered whereas me I'm always well planned though i pray to Allah (swt) also I always plan and to this day I've never had a debt only been late a few times and never had issues of not planning...


What do you think is it worth planning? Do you plan and why? Or do you leave everything to Allah (swt) and just sit there hoping for the best...!


I hope I didnt misunderstand you guys ... as I always do!?


PLEASE VOTE and then explain

This is a NEW statistics boards which has been provided so please make your poll votes now and see what the majority feel about cousin marriages as this will help the outcome and understanding of what people think of this sensitive topic...


PLEASE VOTE ...


[This is a research conducted on my behalf so please be honest and dont lie just so you could defeat the whole point of this thread!]


As its a controversial topic, you have dicuss this generally or in regards to first cousins? Viote then post why you chose the above and the reasons behind it.


Islam does allow tribal marriages as it happened during the Prophet (pbuh) time but personally how would you feel marrying your own cousin you were either raised with or a distant relation?


Also your opinions on marrying inter racial families i.e. Indian, Pakistani, Bengaldeshi etc... and also marriage outside your religon... this information would be useful...


Ma'asalaama

THE PAST..., would you like to know...!?


Its important so lets see what your thoughts are on this:


THE PAST... would you like to know your future spouses PAST before or after you marry them and why would you think its important for this or do you feel its not important as the past is forgotten and we should just concentrate on the future!?


I hope to hear some nice detailed arguments for your decisions ... thanks...


my thought well I’m kind of lost you see I like sharing past stories because its nice to know but if you have something to hide well then I don’t know. I mean would you like to hide you troubles and move on... or share your secret past to the person your about to spend the rest of you life with!


I mean you heard about 'the past may be back to haunt you'? But then again i would like to start a new fresh life with my partner so maybe we should forget the past and just see where the new world takes us...


So I really don’t know, I would be unsure about marrying someone who’s been on dates and clubbing in the past, or drugs and been arrested! People may change for the better but make sure they don’t have a record with it that could haunt them in the future! Do you agree?

<b>Name your future kids</b>


I’m praying to Allah (swt) if I ever marry with 2 kids (boy and girl). I may name them (Arabic names only):


Girls:


<b>Aliyah</b> - Exaulted, elevated, highest social standing


<b>Aminah</b> - Trustworthy, faithful, secure; name of the mother of the Prophet


<b>Fatima</b> - Accustom; daughter of the Prophet


<b>Farah</b> - Joy, cheerfulness


<b>Maryam</b> - Arabic form of "Mary"; Mother of Jesus


<b>Rabi'ah</b> - Garden, springtime


<b>Zaynab</b> - an ornamented tree; name of the daughter of the Prophet


Boys:


<b>Abdul-Rahman</b> - Servant of the Beneficent


<b>Adam</b>


<b>Dawud</b> - Beloved; a Prophet's name (David)


<b>Farooq Junior</b> - One who distinguishes truth from falsehood


<b>Abdullah</b> - Servant of God


<b>Isma'il</b> - A Prophet's name (Ishmael)


<b>Ibrahim</b> - Father of a multitude; a Prophet's name (Abraham)


<b>Ilias</b> - A Prophet's name (Elijah)


<b>Mustafa</b> - Chosen; one of the Prophet's names


<b>Zakariyya</b> - A Prophet's name (Zakaria)


Id give my future wife the decision too but only arabic names lol not typical south asian names!!!! The names will be chosen by me or my wife not my parents or grandparents, then depending on my wife i may send my kids to an islamic school!