Is Islam really a religion of peace?

[Hibo]

When Muslims refer to Islam as a religion of peace, it should be pointed out that the 'peace' in question is peace between the (Muslim) believer and Allah, not peace between Muslims and who they consider infidels. I'm trying to learn as much as I can about Islam, but it's hard to find detailed, objective explanations of the religion. Having said that, the fact that Muslims are currently engaged in bloody fighting with Hindus in India, Jews in the Middle east, Russians in eastern Europe, and Americans and Europeans everywhere, makes one wonder how peaceful a religion it is.

 

LeftC

USA

Marine Scientist

 

[This message has been edited by LeftC (edited 03-20-2002).]

[Hibo]

Thank you very much, Mr. LeftC for your enquiry about islam.

I am very pleased to tell you something about ISLAM, (despite my little knowldege about the details of sharia) but as a muslim person i will try to explain some facts about the ISLAM.

 

First of all, as you mentioned in your enquiry letter ISLAM is a religion of PEACE and one of our ALLAH'S 99 names is ASSALAAM which means PEACE, our greeting is a PEACE BE UPON YOU and the pradise in islam called DARESSALAAM menas HOME OF PEACE, my be in the future i (or someone else) will reveal you many examples from the QURAN and SUNNAH how the ISLAM committed to the PEACE.

Meanwhile, many non muslims always asking same question as yours, why muslims are involving many bloody wars if their religion really is a PEACE religion? to answer this question you have to go back to the history and have a look how the muslims were behaving even with their enemies when there were good muslim rulers and the people were applying fully (or at least mostly) what the islam orders them.

 

After the European colonalization everything went wrong, and muslim people became a victim of different conflicts, take an example Afghanistan after the british colonialisation they become a victim of the cold war between US & USSR, and today the So-called war on terrorisim.

All the places you mentioned in your enquiry are same, in Palestine who's to blame what is going on in palestine the occuppier or freedom fighters, in india who's to blame the violince, the majority and ruling hindoes or minority, powerless muslims whose mosque was destroyed in front of the the indian security forces, in chechniya all the human rights organisations witnesed the genocide of russian army in chechniya, so what else could these people do other than the defending themselves.

 

However i am not ruling out that some muslims can involve some faults, which the islam itself prohibited, but the blame is on the these particular muslims not ISLAM as a religion.

So, there is difference between muslim (who can do something wrong, such as what happening in our country, SOMALIA, i.e fighting each other) and ISLAM which is inocent all the accusations from its opponents.

 

I hope this will be the beginning of long dicussion between you (and any other intrested person) and muslims using this miracle website.

 

[Hibo]

LeftC, nice topic..great initiative!

However, the bloody fighting Muslims engage as you mentioned; is due to a struggle between those who have with those who do not have, or between those who are oppressed with those who are oppressors. Take Palestine as an example, they'r fighting for their freedom and are called terrorists, but not the armed Israeli settlers. Its all about misconception of the religion.

 

A verse in the Qur’an says, that "anyone who saves one life, it is as if he has saved the whole of mankind and anyone who has killed another person (except in lieu of murder or mischief on earth) it is as if he has killed the whole of mankind."

No Doubt, Islam is a religion of peace, you can tell by why our main greeting is PEACE BE UPON YOU.

The real issue here is: the powerful want to continue dominating the powerless, manipulating facts to influence public opinion, hence maintaining the status quo.

 

God Bless.

 

 

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Live today to the fullest because tomorrow is not promised".

[Hibo]

Muraad, well said bro.

 

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Live today to the fullest because tomorrow is not promised".

[Hibo]

muraad maashaa_alaah you said it well, we need people like you.

leftC judge the islam on what is in its content, not what its followers are doing.

[Hibo]

muraad maashaa_alaah you said it well, we need people like you.

leftC judge the islam on what is in its content, not what its followers are doing.

[ONKOD]

Hello LeftC very interesting question. It is a question that separates between an average person and an intelligent human being. You need to go back to history and find out why all of those muslim communities are still fighting?

 

Why are all of those muslim countries are fighting: *for their freedom, that their land is occupied by others, that their brothers,sons and fathers are killed everyday, that their sisters,daughters and mothers are raped on a daily basis, that they are harrassed and beaten up by foreign police officers in the streets of their cities everyday and much more.

 

The sad thing is that these atrocities are not seen in any of the news media around the western world and are not considered as an act of terrorism. Much more they are supported by any means neccessary in lots of western countries. Go figure!

 

Let us get back to your question. Islam is a peaceful religion at the same time if your human dignity is violated Islam teaches you to stand up for your rights.

 

I am not here to argue that all Muslim people are peace loving humans. You need to know the difference between teachings of Islam and a muslim person or people, they are completely different. As you may know Timothy McVeigh was dealt as an individual not as Christian. There was never a question about Christianity after Oklahoma bombing.

 

Learn more about the truth of what is going around the globe then we have something to talk about, till then let us not insult our intelligence.

 

Peace!!

 

 

[Abdinuur]

ISLAM is derived from the Arabic root "SALEMA": peace, purity, submission and obedience. In the religious sense, Islam means submission to the will of God and obedience to His law.

 

Everything and every phenomenon in the world, other than man is administered TOTALLY by God-made laws i.e. they are obedient to God and submissive to His laws i.e. they are in the STATE OF ISLAM. Man possesses the quality of intelligence and choice, thus he is invited to submit to the good will of God and obey His law ie. become a Muslim. Submission to the good will of God, together with obedience to His beneficial law, i.e. becoming a Muslim is the best safeguard for man`s peace and harmony. Islam dates back to the edge of Adam and its message has been conveyed to man by God`s Prophets and Messengers including Abrahim, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. Islam`s message has been restored and enforced in the last stage of the religious evolution by God`s last Prophet and Messenger Muhammad. The word Allah in the Arabic language means God, or more accurately The One and Only Eternal God, Creator of the Universe, Lord of all lords, King of all kings, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful.

 

 

The Purpose of Life:

A Muslim, like myself, believes that the purpose of life is to worship Allah. Worshipping Allah does not mean we spend our entire lives in constant seclusion and absolute meditation. To worship Allah is to live life according to His commands, not to run away from it. To worship Allah is to know Him, to love Him, to obey His commands, to enforce His laws in every aspect of life, to serve His cause by doing right and shunning evil and to be just to Him, <b>to ourselves and to our fellow human beings.</b>

[Abdinuur]

You see LeftC, Islam is like a big house. And every house has to be build with pillars and the foundation. And you have to build the house with RULES. The Pillars are the rules and when you build your house, you must follow the rules. The five rules of Islam is:

1). To Uphold the code of strict Monotheism. Not to accept any partners with God, Not to Worship anything along with God, not to say anything about God that you have no right to say, Not to say He has a father, a son, a daughter, a mother, a uncle, a aunt, a board of trustees; To bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Almighty God.

2). To observe the prescribed prayers.

3). To pay the prescribed charity

4). To Fast the month of Ramadan.

5). To perform the Pilgrimage.

 

One may ask the question, Isnt this difficult? But it is not difficult, not to those who open their minds and open their hearts and ACCEPT the truth. I put the matter before so you sentence yourself. You take the sentence that you want. You sentence yourself to PEACE and PARADISE or you sentence yourself to CONFUSION, FRUSTRATION, AND HELLFIRE and punishment.

 

You ask yourself, Do I bear witness that there is only One God? And if you ask yourself that question, you say YES I BEAR WITNESS. Do I witness that if Muhammad is who has been explained that he is the messenger of Almighty God, YES I DO BEAR WITNESS. If you bear witness to that, then all of us are Muslims.

 

 

AND PLEASE DONT RELY ON THE MEDIA B/C ARE SOMETIMES MISLEADING AND INACCURATE. GO BACK TO HISTORY AND LEARN ABOUT THIS BEAUTIFUL RELIGION. FIND OUT WHY THESE BLOODY PEOPLE THAT YOU'RE MENTIONING ARE BEHAVING THE WAY THEY ARE. FIND OUT THE EFFECTS B/C EVERY CAUSE HAS AN EFFECT. am i right wrong?

 

[Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar]

Salaan...

 

Mr. Lefty:

 

Read the Holy Qur'aan. Completely. And now, get back to us, and once more ask us this question if it is a religion of 'peace' or not.

 

And ironically, I said salaam to my brothers and sisters in here at the beginning. That itself means no other than 'peace'. Peace of inner feelings. Peace of wishing others--mostly, the believers--good. Peace of protecting your brothers and sisters. Peace of oneself. Peace to everything. Whether you call it nature or not.

 

Now, I beg you to read the Holy Qur'aan. Thoroughly. And fully. Then get back to us.

_______________

 

Macsalaama!! {This also means peace with sweet once more }

 

[This message has been edited by Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar (edited 03-20-2002).]

[Bachelor]

Hello Nomad's glad to find my people after all...hope you guys will be a good a poor bachelor guy.

peace

[Deeq A.]

I am probably the first African American to post here. Excuse me Somaliyes.

 

LeftC, Let's do a quick bodycount through history, and I think you'll find that Christians have a LOT more blood on their hands than Muslims. Nowhere in the Koran does God hold back the sun to allow a massacre to continue as he does in the bible. Also, Not to mention the fact that it was CHRISTIANS who first sacked Constantinople, the great Christian bulwark that protected Europe from the middle east for so long, all to pay off those "great" Christians, the Venetians. "Kill them all, God will know his own" Was the response given during one of the European (Albeginsian I think?) Crusades when a knight asked priest how to tell the "good" christians from the "bad" christians.

 

LeftC, Any religion can be hijacked if the hater is charismatic enough.

[ONKOD]

Farakhan WELCOME brother;.......Great Input Bless your heart.

Peace!

[Hibo]

Islam, a religion of mercy, does not permit terrorism. In the Quran, ALLAH has said:

 

Allah does not forbid you from showing kindness and dealing justly with those who have not fought you about religion and have not driven you out of your homes. Allah loves just dealers. (Quran, 60:8)

 

The Prophet Muhammad used to prohibit soldiers from killing women and children,1 and he would advise them: {...Do not betray, do not be excessive, do not kill a newborn child.}2 And he also said: {Whoever has killed a person having a treaty with the Muslims shall not smell the fragrance of Paradise, though its fragrance is found for a span of forty years.}3

 

Also, the Prophet Muhammad has forbidden punishment with fire.4

 

He once listed murder as the second of the major sins,5 and he even warned that on the Day of Judgment, {The first cases to be adjudicated between people on the Day of Judgment will be those of bloodshed.6}7

 

Muslims are even encouraged to be kind to animals and are forbidden to hurt them. Once the Prophet Muhammad said: {A woman was punished because she imprisoned a cat until it died. On account of this, she was doomed to Hell. While she imprisoned it, she did not give the cat food or drink, nor did she free it to eat the insects of the earth.}8

Jazakumllah Khayran. I really appreciate your effort. I've actually not read this message in a rush. I believe we really need to move ahead. Every Muslim indeed has a responsibility.

 

He also said that a man gave a very thirsty dog a drink, so aLLAH forgave his sins for this action. The Prophet was asked, “Messenger of Allah, are we rewarded for kindness towards animals?” He said: {There is a reward for kindness to every living animal or human.}9

 

Additionally, while taking the life of an animal for food, Muslims are commanded to do so in a manner that causes the least amount of fright and suffering possible. The Prophet Muhammad said: {When you slaughter an animal, do so in the best way. One should sharpen his knife to reduce the suffering of the animal.}10

 

In light of these and other Islamic texts, the act of inciting terror in the hearts of defenseless civilians, the wholesale destruction of buildings and properties, the bombing and maiming of innocent men, women, and children are all forbidden and detestable acts according to Islam and the Muslims. Muslims follow a religion of peace, mercy, and forgiveness, and the vast majority have nothing to do with the violent events some have associated with Muslims. If an individual Muslim were to commit an act of terrorism, this person would be guilty of violating the laws of Islam.

 

oNe LOVE mean loving your country from heart not just mouth

A SOMALIA The TREUE SOMALIAN

Say No to Qabil becouse-QABIL AND QAXOTI ARE BROTHERS

[Hibo]

Thanks Somalistar and all brothers and sisters who contripute this subject, when i was replying to Mr. Left i was confident that many brothers in Somalia Online will explain ISLAM better than me, and ALXAMDULILAAH that hppened, thanks to all again and JAZAAKUMULAAHU KHAYARAN.