.

.
Library of Professor Richard A. Macksey in Baltimore

POSTS BY SUBJECT

Labels

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Islamic Law & its Challenge To Western Civilization


http://www.muhammadanism.org/Government/government_sharia_ideology.htm

Islamic Law & its Challenge
To Western Civilization




  • Introduction
  • Sovereign King
  • Sovereign Representative
  • Qur'an
  • Sunnah
  • Islam Supremacy
  • Prior Jurisprudence
  • Allegiance and obedience
  • Muslim Evolution
  • Religion and Nations
  • Ideological Conflict
  • Shari'a is key to understanding Islam
  • Conclusion




Introduction
Most people in the West believe that Islam is a religion in the traditional sense of the word. However, this is a fateful misconception. Islam is not just a religion. It is much more than a religion. Muslims themselves describe their faith by saying, Islam is a Complete Way of Life. This is certainly a more apt description, because Islam is a religious, social, economic, educational, health, political, and philosophic way of life. In fact, Islam is an all-embracing socio-politico-religious utopian ideology that encompasses every field of human endeavor.
The Western view of religion is that a religion is a narrow aspect of life. It does not encompass all human affairs. Religion stands beside culture, economic, politics, and other human institutions. Westerners may differ on matters of religious faith, but they can work together in social, state, and economic affairs. The reason for this is that their respective religions don't claim divine authority over the institutions of governance and economics. Their faiths may differ regarding the salvation of the soul, life after death, and religious rituals, but they don't claim to have divine insight into the institutions of human government and its particular laws. As good citizens, they strive to have a just and equitable society.
Islam is different from other religions in that it is not limited to the spiritual aspects of life. It engulfs all aspects of life from the cradle to the grave. Islam claims to have a divine mandate over everyone, and this includes non-Muslims too. While non-Muslims may not be required to observe the religious rituals of Islam, they must recognize the supremacy of Islamic rule over them. As an ideology, Islam promises an economic, political, social, and religious utopia when the world finally submits to Allah and the rule of Shari'a law. The Islamic objective is to have all aspects of a nation's culture and institutions undergo gradual Islamization to yield an Islamic state patterned after Shari'a Law.
The aim of the Islamic movement is to bring about somewhere in the world a new society wholeheartedly committed to the teachings of Islam in their totality and striving to abide by those teachings in its government, political, economic and social organizations, its relation with other states, its educational system and moral values and all other aspects of its way of life.1

Sovereign King
From an Islamic legal perspective, there is no King but Allah, and He is the supreme ruler and legislator of the world. This is significant; because, since Allah is King, no earthly ruler has sufficient authority to legislate law. The reason for this is that sovereign authority belongs to Allah and His laws, and those laws were revealed to Muhammad in the seventh century. Muslims believe that the Qur'an and Sunnah are Allah's final legislation for the world. Hence, according to true Islam, Shari'a law is the only law with divine approval and authority for the nations of the world.
The Qur'an states that Allah is the sovereign King of Mankind.
Therefore exalted be Allah, the King, the Reality: there is no god but He, the Lord of the Throne of Honour! Sura 23:116 (Yusuf Ali's Translation)
فَتَعَالَى اللَّهُ الْمَلِكُ الْحَقُّ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ رَبُّ الْعَرْشِ الْكَرِيمِ.
 سورة المؤمنون ٢٣: ١١٦
Say: I seek refuge with the Lord and Cherisher of Mankind,
The King (or Ruler) of Mankind,
The god (or judge) of Mankind,- Sura 114:1-3 (Yusuf Ali's Translation)
قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ
مَلِكِ النَّاسِ
إِلَهِ النَّاسِ
 سورة الناس
١١٤: ١-٣

Sovereign Representative
Under the kingship of Allah, a Muslim khalif or vicegerent enforces the law of Allah on the earth. The khalif is not like a king who has authority to create laws, because the laws of an Islamic state pre-exist in the Qur'an and Sunnah. As a result, Islamic rulers are not at liberty to create any law that would conflict with the principles of the Qur'an or Sunnah. The subordinate role of the khalif (amir or viceroy) is to serve under the authority of Allah as revealed by Muhammad.
Behold, thy Lord said to the angels: "I will create a vicegerent on earth." They said: "Wilt Thou place therein one who will make mischief therein and shed blood?- whilst we do celebrate Thy praises and glorify Thy holy (name)?" He said: "I know what ye know not." Sura 2:30 (Yusuf Ali's Translation)
And when your Lord said to the angels, I am going to place in the earth a khalif, they said: What! wilt Thou place in it such as shall make mischief in it and shed blood, and we celebrate Thy praise and extol Thy holiness? He said: Surely I know what you do not know. Sura 2:30 (Shakir's translation)
وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلاَئِكَةِ إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً قَالُواْ أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَن يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا وَيَسْفِكُ الدِّمَاء وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ قَالَ إِنِّي أَعْلَمُ مَا لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ. سورة البقرة
٢: ٣٠
According to Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, a "vicegerent is a person appointed by a ruler or head of state to act as an administrative deputy. Having or exercising delegated power; acting by substitution, or in the place of another." Thus, we see that an Islamic khalif is subordinate to the laws of Muhammad.
The Islamic State, like the whole of what one might call Islamic political psychology, views the Dar al-Islam (Abode of Islam) as one vast homogeneous commonwealth of people who have a common goal and a common destiny and who are guided by a common ideology in all matters both spiritual and temporal. The entire Muslim Ummah lives under the Shari'ah to which every member has to submit, with sovereignty belong to Allah.
Every Muslim who is capable and qualified to give a sound opinion on matters of Shari'ah, is entitled to interpret the law of Allah when such interpretation becomes necessary. In this sense Islamic policy is a democracy. But where an explicit command of Allah or his Prophet already exists, no Muslim leader or legislature, or any religious scholar can form an independent judgement; not even all the Muslims of the world put together have any right to make the least alteration in it. 2

Qur'an
The primary source of Shari'a law is the Qur'an itself. 3 This statement is supported in the text of the Qur'an, where we read that Allah sent down the Book of Truth (Qur'an) that it should judge between men. This means that the Qur'an is a source of judicial law to judge between men. And, according to the Qur'an, if anyone does not judge by this revelation, he is a wrong doer. The proscribed judgments in the Qur'an cannot be doubted, since they are supra-rationale and have to be accepted by faith. 
We have sent down to thee the Book in truth, that thou mightest judge between men, as guided by Allah: so be not (used) as an advocate by those who betray their trust; Sura 4:105 (Yusuf Ali's Translation)
إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ بِالْحَقِّ لِتَحْكُمَ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ بِمَا أَرَاكَ اللّهُ وَلاَ تَكُن لِّلْخَآئِنِينَ خَصِيمًا. سورة النساء
٤: ١٠٥
...And if any fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are (No better than) wrong-doers. Sura 5:45 (Yusuf Ali's Translation)
وَكَتَبْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ فِيهَا أَنَّ النَّفْسَ بِالنَّفْسِ وَالْعَيْنَ بِالْعَيْنِ وَالأَنفَ بِالأَنفِ وَالأُذُنَ بِالأُذُنِ وَالسِّنَّ بِالسِّنِّ وَالْجُرُوحَ قِصَاصٌ فَمَن تَصَدَّقَ بِهِ فَهُوَ كَفَّارَةٌ لَّهُ وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَا أنزَلَ اللّهُ فَأ ُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ. سورة المائدة
٥: ٤٥
Say: "Shall I seek for judge other than Allah? - when He it is Who hath sent unto you the Book [Qur'an], explained in detail." They know full well, to whom We have given the Book, that it hath been sent down from thy Lord in truth. Never be then of those who doubt. Sura 6:114 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
أَفَغَيْرَ اللّهِ أَبْتَغِي حَكَمًا وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَنَزَلَ إِلَيْكُمُ الْكِتَابَ مُفَصَّلاً وَالَّذِينَ آتَيْنَاهُمُ الْكِتَابَ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُ مُنَزَّلٌ مِّن رَّبِّكَ بِالْحَقِّ فَلاَ تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْمُمْتَرِينَ. سورة الأنعام
٦: ١١٤
According to Islamic doctrine, Muhammad is the Seal of the Prophets, meaning that he is the last prophet as well as the final revelation of Allah to humankind. Since Muhammad is the Seal of the Prophets, there can be no further development in any judicial matters where the Qur'an and Sunnah provide guidance. Consequently, the Qur'an enshrines the tribal governance of 7th century Arabia into all law for all nations for all time.
Sunnah
The second source of Shari'a law is the Sunnah of Muhammad. The Sunnah is the rule of law that is found in the ancient traditions of Muhammad's sayings and behavior. Sunnah means "a normative way of acting, conduct, practice, usage, rule, course, institution and behaviour."4 The hadith (plural, ahadith) is a written record of the Sunnah of Muhammad. Ahmad Hasan wrote,
In fact hadith is the narration of the sayings, doings, and tacit approvals of the Prophet (peace be on him), while sunnah is the rule of law conveyed through the hadithHadith is a vehicle which conveys the sunnah of the Prophet. Hence one hadith may contain many sunnahs. Here sunnah means rule of law, practice, or model conduct of the Prophet (peace be on him), which is contained in a hadith.5
The six major hadith collections are Sahih Al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Sunan Abu Dawud, Sunan At-Tirmidhi, Sunan An-Nisa'i, and Sunan Ibn Majah. These collections are extensive works that preserve the details of the conduct and sayings of Muhammad. It can be rightly said that the ahadith contribute more to Islamic ideology than the Qur'an itself. So, they are vital sources to understand Islam.
The Qur'an states that Muhammad is "a beautiful pattern (of conduct)." As a result, Muslims believe that Muhammad is the ideal prototype of a perfect man, and Muslims look to his sayings and behavior for guidance in their day-to-day lives. Muslims believe that all hope in Allah and the Final day finds its answer in Muhammad. For a Muslim, Muhammad's sayings and conduct sweep aside the light of reason, conscience, and nature as guides for human conduct.
Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of Allah. Sura Al-Ahzab 33:21 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَسُولِ اللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو اللَّهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الْآخِرَ وَذَكَرَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرًا. سورة الأحزاب
٣٣: ٢١
Since the hadithic literature records the life and sayings of Muhammad, it provides the foundation for Shari'a law and Islamic ideology. Without a study of the ahadith, it is impossible to have an accurate understanding of Islam and its laws. This later thought can hardly be overstated. Too often, when Westerners want to learn about Islam, they only study the Qur'an, and they ignore the more informative ahadith.
Islam Supremacy
Muhammad proclaimed that the "Religion of Truth" (Islam) is supreme over all other religions and that it is a guide to every people. In other words, Islam has a divine mandate to be supreme over the world's religions. In addition, it is a guide to everyone in all human affairs. This broad mandate is to be enforced, even though it is detested by pagans.
Muslims believe that all the true prophets of Allah, such as, Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, and Jesus, were Muslims who taught the religion of Islam. They further believe that Muhammad's mission was to re-establish the original religion of Islam, because it had been corrupted by Jews and Christians. So, from a Muslim's perspective, there was no need for Jews and Christians to detest Islam, because it was allegedly the religion of their own prophets. By contrast, pagan religions were always considered false, so they would naturally detest Islam.
In Sura 9:33-34 we read that Muhammad was Allah's Messenger with guidance and the "Religion of Truth" (Islam). It notes that pagans would detest Islam, and the verse continues its argument by alleging that the Jewish rabbis and Christian monks engaged in corrupt practices. The inference is that, if Jews and Christians would not accept Islam, their rejection came because they preferred their corrupt practices. Muhammad believed that, just as the Jews of the Old Testament disobeyed their ancient prophets, the Arabian Jews would naturally rejected his prophethood too. Consequently, Muhammad warned the Jewish and Christian leaders that they would face a painful doom during the Judgment of the Last Day.
It is He Who hath sent His Messenger with guidance and the Religion of Truth, to proclaim it over all religion, even though the Pagans may detest (it). Sura 9:33 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
O ye who believe! Lo! many of the (Jewish) rabbis and the (Christian) monks devour the wealth of mankind wantonly and debar (men) from the way of Allah. They who hoard up gold and silver and spend it not in the way of Allah, unto them give tidings (O Muhammad) of a painful doom, Sura 9:34 (Pickthal's translation)
هُوَ الَّذِي أَرْسَلَ رَسُولَهُ بِالْهُدَى وَدِينِ الْحَقِّ لِيُظْهِرَهُ عَلَى الدِّينِ كُلِّهِ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْمُشْرِكُونَ
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ إِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ الأَحْبَارِ وَالرُّهْبَانِ لَيَأْكُلُونَ أَمْوَالَ النَّاسِ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَيَصُدُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ اللّهِ وَالَّذِينَ يَكْنِزُونَ الذَّهَبَ وَالْفِضَّةَ وَلاَ يُنفِقُونَهَا فِي سَبِيلِ اللّهِ فَبَشِّرْهُم بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ.
 سورة التوبة
٩: ٣٣-٣٤
And the Unbelievers say: "Why is not a sign sent down to him from his Lord?" But thou art truly a warner, and to every people a guide. Sura 13:7 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
وَيَقُولُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ لَوْلآ أُنزِلَ عَلَيْهِ آيَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِ إِنَّمَا أَنتَ مُنذِرٌ وَلِكُلِّ قَوْمٍ هَادٍ. سورة الرعد
١٣: ٧

Prior Jurisprudence
The Qur'an disposes of all jurisprudence outside the Qur'an and the Sunnah. The days of ignorance (jaahiliyyah) refer to the times before Muhammad. Some Muslims argued that the verse negates all laws that were legislated on the basis of non-Islamic principles. The result is that no one can appeal to judicial precedence outside of the Qur'an and the Sunnah. From a Muslim's perspective, Allah revealed his divine law in the Qur'an and in the life of Muhammad. As a result of this divine revelation, the so-called human laws of the nations have been abrogated by Muhammad's revelation. In fact, it is rebellion against Allah's supremacy to submit to a human law after Allah has issued afresh the divine code of conduct for humankind.
Do they then seek after a judgment of (the days of) ignorance? But who, for a people whose faith is assured, can give better judgment than Allah? Sura 5:50 (Yusuf Ali's Translation)
أَفَحُكْمَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ يَبْغُونَ وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ مِنَ اللّهِ حُكْمًا لِّقَوْمٍ يُوقِنُونَ. سورة المائدة
٥: ٥٠
In addition, the Qur'an asserts that those who say they believe in the revelations that came before Muhammad wish to resort to the judgments of the Evil One, Satan, who seeks to lead humankind astray. The important revelations that came before Muhammad were the Old and New Testaments, and those who believed in these revelations were the Jews and Christians. Now notice Muhammad's next move. Essentially, Muhammad said that religious hypocrites appeal to the Evil One when they seek the judgments of prior revelations.
Hast thou not turned Thy vision to those who declare that they believe in the revelations that have come to thee and to those before thee? Their (real) wish is to resort together for judgment (in their disputes) to the Evil One, though they were ordered to reject him. But Satan's wish is to lead them astray far away (from the right). Sura 4:60 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ يَزْعُمُونَ أَنَّهُمْ آمَنُواْ بِمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَا أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ يُرِيدُونَ أَن يَتَحَاكَمُواْ إِلَى الطَّاغُوتِ وَقَدْ أُمِرُواْ أَن يَكْفُرُواْ بِهِ وَيُرِيدُ الشَّيْطَانُ أَن يُضِلَّهُمْ ضَلاَلاً بَعِيدًا. سورة النساء
٤: ٦٠
Hence, Muhammad abrogated all the prior prophets of Allah. And, the Qur'an teaches that resorting to the judgments of prior revelations was resorting to Satan's judgments and wishes. Muslims believe that the only divine message that is valid for today was given by the Muhammad. So, Muslims believe the choice is between the rule of Allah or the rule of Satan. And, it is turning to Satan to appeal to revelations that came before the Qur'an. The Qur'an and Sunnah must be the exclusive foundation of law.

Allegiance and obedience
A Muslim owes his first allegiance to Allah and Muhammad, and it important to note that obedience to Muhammad is the same as obedience to Allah. Secondarily, a Muslim is charged with obeying those who have authority within the Ummah. If any question arise, the question needs to be referred to Allah and His Messenger for a final determination. And, if a khalif issues an order that contradicts a basic tenet of Islam, every Muslim must obey Allah instead of the khalif.
He who obeys the Messenger, obeys Allah. Sura 4:80 Yusuf Ali's translation)
مَّنْ يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللّهَ وَمَن تَوَلَّى فَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ عَلَيْهِمْ حَفِيظًا. سورة النساء
٤: ٨٠
O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you. If ye differ in anything among yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe in Allah and the Last Day: That is best, and most suitable for final determination. Sura 5:59 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
قُلْ يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ هَلْ تَنقِمُونَ مِنَّا إِلاَّ أَنْ آمَنَّا بِاللّهِ وَمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْنَا وَمَا أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلُ وَأَنَّ أَكْثَرَكُمْ فَاسِقُونَ. سورة المائدة
٥: ٥٩
If a Muslim does not implicitly trust the Sunnah of Muhammad, he does not have real faith in Islam. There can to be no inner psychological resistance to Islamic ideology. The danger of inner resistance to Muhammad's guidance in any of life's affairs is the danger of landing in the fires of Hell. This is a powerful psychological force to submit blindly to Shari'a law.
But no, by the Lord, they can have no (real) Faith, until they make thee judge in all disputes between them, and find in their souls no resistance against Thy decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction. Sura 4:65 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
فِيمَا شَجَرَ بَيْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ لاَ يَجِدُواْ فِي أَنفُسِهِمْ حَرَجًا مِّمَّا قَضَيْتَ وَيُسَلِّمُواْ تَسْلِيمًا.  سورة النساء ٤‏: ٦٥
If anyone contends with the Messenger even after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, and follows a path other than that becoming to men of Faith, We shall leave him in the path he has chosen, and land him in Hell,- what an evil refuge! Sura 4:115 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
وَمَن يُشَاقِقِ الرَّسُولَ مِن بَعْدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ الْهُدَى وَيَتَّبِعْ غَيْرَ سَبِيلِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ نُوَلِّهِ مَا تَوَلَّى وَنُصْلِهِ جَهَنَّمَ وَسَاءتْ مَصِيرًا. سورة النساء ٤‏: ١١٥
It is not fitting for a Believer, man or woman, when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Messenger to have any option about their decision: if any one disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he is indeed on a clearly wrong Path. Sura 33:36 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلَا مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْرًا أَن يَكُونَ لَهُمُ الْخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ وَمَن يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَالًا مُّبِينًا. سورة الأحزاب
٣٣: ٣٦

Muslim Evolution
Islamic ideology asserts that Muslims are the most highly evolved specimens of humanity. Their advanced evolutionary state places them on a higher plane than everyone else, and it burdens them with the special duty of enjoining humanity to a attain a divine standard of morality. 
In their task of enjoining Islam upon the world, the People [Jews and Christians] of the Book [Bible] will be the people who make their task most difficult, because most Jews and Christians, according to the Qur'an, are perverted transgressors. So, while Muslims seek to promote the right and forbid the wrong, Muhammad believed that the People of the Book would confront the Islamic message with perversions and falsehoods. He felt that Jews and Christians would be the ones who would prove to be the most opposed to an Islamic government with its Qur'anic constitution and Shari'a legal system.
Ye are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah. If only the People of the Book had faith, it were best for them: among them are some who have faith, but most of them are perverted transgressors. Sura 3:111 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
لَن يَضُرُّوكُمْ إِلاَّ أَذًى وَإِن يُقَاتِلُوكُمْ يُوَلُّوكُمُ الأَدُبَارَ ثُمَّ لاَ يُنصَرُونَ. سورة آل عمران
٣: ١١١
Essentially, Muslims believe that a democratic system of government is an evil legal system, because its fundamental principle is that man is sovereign over his affairs. This principle conflicts with the principle that Allah is sovereign King of the worlds. Orthodox Muslims argue that only Islam recognizes Allah's divine right to rule. 
If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to Allah), never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter He will be in the ranks of those who have lost (All spiritual good). Sura 3:85 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
وَمَن يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ الإِسْلاَمِ دِينًا فَلَن يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ وَهُوَ فِي الآخِرَةِ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ. سورة آل عمران
٣: ٨٥

Religion and Nations
Westerners think mistakenly that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are similar religions that hold slightly different doctrines about salvation and God's nature. This is a profound mistake. The sacred texts of these religions make very different statements about government, economics, and nations.
Judaism. In the Old Testament, Yahweh [Jehovah] gave the people of Israel the land of Canaan, which is a very small portion of land between the River Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea. He gave them the land of Canaan in a covenant forever. Even when Israel was driven from their land because of their unfaithfulness and was occupied by others, the land still remained theirs by covenant. In fact, Yahweh promised to bring them back to their promised land in the Last Days.
The Torah of Moses contains the laws of Yahweh that are just for the people of Israel.
He remembers his covenant forever, the word he commanded, for a thousand generations,
the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac.
He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant:
"To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you will inherit." 1 Chronicles 16:15-18 (NIV)
اذكروا الى الابد عهده. الكلمة التي اوصى بها الى الف جيل.
الذي قطعه مع ابراهيم. وقسمه لاسحق.
وقد اقامه ليعقوب فريضة ولاسرائيل عهدا ابديا.
قائلا لك اعطي ارض كنعان حبل ميراثكم.
أخبار الأيام الأول ١٦: ١٥-١٨
And say to them, This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. Ezekiel 37:21 (NIV)
وقل لهم. هكذا قال السيد الرب. هانذا آخذ بني اسرائيل من بين الامم التي ذهبوا اليها واجمعهم من كل ناحية وآتي بهم الى ارضهم. حزقيال ٣٧: ٢١
And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: "The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins." Romans 11:26-27 (NIV)
وهكذا سيخلص جميع اسرائيل. كما هو مكتوب سيخرج من صهيون المنقذ ويرد الفجور عن يعقوب. وهذا هو العهد من قبلي لهم متى نزعت خطاياهم. رومية ١١: ٢٦-٢٧
Christianity. In the New Testament, God did not give the Christian church a special land, a national government, or an economic system. Although Christians, as national citizens, may participate in human governments, they have no special privileges. The New Testament instructs Christians to obey their national government, except when a government legislates in purely spiritual matters. Consequently, religion and politics are separated.
Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Romans 13:1 (NIV)
لتخضع كل نفس للسلاطين الفائقة. لانه ليس سلطان الا من الله والسلاطين الكائنة هي مرتبة من الله. رومية ١٣: ١
... Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." Matthew 22:21 (NIV)
Islam. The Qur'an and Sunnah of Muhammad claim Islam's supremacy over the world in all of its affairs: — Islam is a Complete Way of Life. This includes government, economics, religion, dietary laws, and social norms. Since Muslims believe the prophethood of Muhammad is universal, the objective of Islam is to have the entire world live in submission to Shari'a law.
Judaism's territorial claim is land of Canaan that is less than 13,000 square miles, while Saudi Arabia is a vast 865,000 square miles. For comparison purposes, San Bernadino County in California is over 20,000 square miles and is much larger than the nation of Israel itself. Muslims will never tell you the Qur'an says that Allah assigned the Holy Land of Palestine to Israel.
Remember Moses said to his people: "O my people! Call in remembrance the favour of Allah unto you, when He produced prophets among you, made you kings, and gave you what He had not given to any other among the peoples. "O my people! Enter the holy land which Allah hath assigned unto you, and turn not back ignominiously, for then will ye be overthrown, to your own ruin." Sura 5:20-21 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَى لِقَوْمِهِ يَا قَوْمِ اذْكُرُواْ نِعْمَةَ اللّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ جَعَلَ فِيكُمْ أَنبِيَاء وَجَعَلَكُم مُّلُوكًا وَآتَاكُم مَّا لَمْ يُؤْتِ أَحَدًا مِّن الْعَالَمِينَ
يَا قَوْمِ ادْخُلُوا الأَرْضَ المُقَدَّسَةَ الَّتِي كَتَبَ اللّهُ لَكُمْ وَلاَ تَرْتَدُّوا عَلَى أَدْبَارِكُمْ فَتَنقَلِبُوا خَاسِرِينَ.
 سورة المائدة
٥: ٢٠-٢١
Thus, the millions of Muslims who do not support Israel's re-occupation of its own covenantal land oppose the Qur'an as well as the Old and New Testament scriptures.
Some Muslims argue that the Vatican in Rome is a full-fledged Christian nation. However, it is simply the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church. Its size is 0.4 square miles or about the size of a large shopping mall. So, it is ridiculous to think that the Vatican is a nation in the traditional sense of the word. The New Testament provides no theological basis for a Christian national territory.
It is vital to note that Islam is the only monotheistic religion that seeks to become a socio-politico-religious world dominating power. Judaism and Christianity have no scriptural basis to impose their religious laws upon the governments of the world.

Ideological conflict
Islam is an ideology that claims divine authority in all religious, economic, and political affairs of life. So, naturally it follows that Islam would be in direct conflict with democracy, capitalism, liberalism, socialism, and all the other non-Islamic systems of government, jurisprudence, and economics.
The greatest threat to Islam is not Christianity, per se. Islam's target is the entire Western world and its legal system. Those who live in Western societies don't understand why Islamic fundamentalists are so opposed to the West. Perhaps, they have studied the five pillars of Islam and viewed a colorful video of the Hajj. This type of study would never give them an accurate picture of Islam's global objectives. Westerners ought to realize that Islamic ideology is in direct conflict with the Western system of thought and ideals. 
From an Islamic perspective, the very fact that Western nations have greater freedom, wealth, and military power increases their criticism of Western societies. Islamic fundamentalists go to great length to prove that Western societies are evil, decadent, immoral, corrupt, brutal, violent, oppressive, etc. While there is immoral behavior in Western societies, they feel obliged to prove that the West is the source of all the world's evils. This virulent criticism of the West is motivated by the desire to make Islam appear virtuous while blaming their own faults upon Western alleged oppression. The West becomes a convenient excuse for their own poverty, nepotism, bribery, corruption, immorality, lack of social progress, tyrannical and corrupt leaders, and failed Islamic ideology. Their strident criticism is an important psychological tool to keep young Muslim thinkers from evaluating objectively the faults of Muhammad's teachings and the resultant Islamic ideology.  In its own right, Shari'a law is a backward, oppressive, and discriminatory legal system.

Shari'a is key to understanding Islam
Shari'a law 6,7 is the key to understanding Islamic ideology, government, economics, and social institutions. It is the basis for Islamic fundamentalism's disagreement with Western thought, and it encapsulates the ideology of Islam that is found in the Qur'an and Sunnah. Shari'a brings Islamic theology down to a person's everyday life. The objective of Islamic ideology is to have everyone in the world governed by Shari'a law. Muslims believe this law expresses the universal will of Allah for humankind. They think they have an holy obligation to impose it upon all the nations of the world.
We believe that Shariah should be used as a standard of test of validity of all positive laws. The essence of advocating for the application of Shariah is its ethics, once these can be incorporated to any system of law, such law is Islamic law. So the Shariah ethic should be set up as a standard of values to which all law must be compiled with. Any law that is inconsistent or in conflict with this value should be null and void. This is the only way in my view that Shariah can be use today. No only be the Muslim, but by all humanity. The earlier the Muslim can be thinking of this line, the sooner they can be able to contribute to the shaping of the 21st century of the Christian era.8
Following on from Islam's conceptual dissolution of the 'spiritual' and 'material' domains, is the salient reality that Islam is an inherently political doctrine. Sheikh Nabahanni, the famous jurist and political thinker of our age, quite aptly described the Shahada as a simultaneously spiritual and political doctrine. It is spiritual for the obvious reason that it is firmly rooted in the belief in Allah, but of equal political significance because Allah alone is the sovereign law maker. Politics is therefore not part of Islam, for this denotes that in origin it is a distinctly separate sphere of existence which is then eventually amalgamated with Islam; politics is the inherent core of the Islamic imperative of Allah's sovereignty - Islam thus cannot be described except in political terms.9

Conclusion
In order for Western peoples to understand Islam, they have to realize that Islam is more than a spiritual belief system. It is an all-encompassing ideology that seeks to regulate the world's political affairs according to Shari'a law. Islam conflicts with Western ideals of government and social order; and, because of the West's freedom, education, wealth, and military power, Islamic fundamentalism sees the West as its greatest obstacle to world leadership. Islamic fundamentalists find the West hindering its objectives in Africa, Southeast Asia, Palestine, and other parts of the world. Until the West understands the full scope and intent of Islamic political ideology, they will not understand Islamic fundamentalism's objectives. Typically, Western leaders think Islam is a just a competitor of Judaism and Christianity. However, Shari'a law gives a clear insight into Islam's objectives for the world's political and social order. Islam challenges Western civilization itself, because it is a Complete Way of Life 10 — and its Shari'a Law is not compatible with Western ideals and civilization.

1 Idris, Ja'far Sheikh, The Process of Islamization, The Muslim Students' Association of the US and Canada, 1977 (4th 1983), Part 1.
2 Doi, A. Rahman I., Shari'ah: The Islamic Law, A.S. Noordeen, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 4th printing, 1998, p. 5
3 Hasan, Ahmad, The Qur'an: The Primary Source of Fiqh. Islamic Studies, 1999, 38(4):475-502.
4 Hasan, Ahmad, Sunnah as a Source of Fiqh. Islamic Studies, 2000, 39(1):3.
5 ibid., p. 10-11.
6 Malik, ibn Anas (Imam), Al-Muwatta: The First Formulation of Islamic Law, Translated by Aisha A. Bewley, Madinah Press Granada, Spain, 1989, pp. 465.
7 Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri, Reliance of the Traveller: A Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law, Translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, Amana Publications, Beltsville, MD, 1997 Revised Edition, pp. 1232.
8 Ajijola, Alhaji, What is Shariah? Adam Publishers & Distributors, Delhi, India, 1998, pp. 303.
9 ISLAM - The supreme ideology, p. 3.
10 Complete Way of Life Islam typed into the Google search box yields more than 700,00 search results. This illustrates the fact the Muslims themselves view Islam as more than a spiritual belief system. Islam is a governmental system that controls all aspects of a Muslim's life including laws to govern the the lives of all non-Muslims.


The Mind of an Islamic Terrorist

http://www.muhammadanism.org/Terrorism/Terrorist_Mind.htm

The Mind of an Islamic Terrorist

"The gates of Paradise are under the shadows of the swords."

The mind of an Islamic terrorist is difficult for a Western person to comprehend. What could lead a person to cause his or her own violent death is a question that is frequently raised. It is contrary to every human emotion that we have. Yet, we know there are hundreds of Islamic fundamentalists who are willing to kill and be killed for Allah.
An important reason is the promise that the gates of Paradise are under the shadows of the swords. During Muhammad's life, like today, there were many individuals who eagerly anticipated killing and dying in the Cause of Allah. The following is an account from the ancient classic Islamic text by Imam Muslim.
The tradition has been narrated on the authority of 'Abdullah b. Qais. He heard it from his father who, while facing the enemy, reported that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Surely, the gates of Paradise are under the shadows of the swords. A man in a shabby condition got up and said; Abu Musa, did you hear the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) say this? He said: Yes. (The narrator said): He returned to his friends and said: I greet you (a farewell greeting). Then he broke the sheath of his sword, threw it away, advanced with his (naked) sword towards the enemy and fought (them) with it until he was slain. Sahih Muslim Book 020, Number 4681
This quotation from the Sahih Muslim hadith afford us a look into the mindset of a person who desired his own death in Allah's Cause.
  1. He trusted the words of Muhammad implicitly.
  2. He was motivated by a promise of an eternal heavenly Paradise.
  3. He reassured himself that he heard correctly by asking Abu Musa. We see that he was very careful not to make a mistake, since his own life and eternal destiny were at risk. He wanted to make sure that Paradise would be achieved.
  4. He said his final farewell greeting to his friends. He did not rush to death, because he had no friends.  He had friends who understood his motivation. 
  5. He unsheathed his sword and threw the sheath away, because he was resolved not to return from the battle alive.  He chose to die in battle as a martyr in Allah's Cause. Casting aside his sword's sheath strengthened his resolve to bring about his own martyrdom. 
  6. He fought the enemy fearlessly until he was slain. 
  7. Finally, we see that Muhammad's objectives were achieved, because his followers were utterly fearless with their lives in Allah's Cause. This fearlessness struck terror in the hearts of those they attacked. 
Muhammad taught that the gates of Heaven were under the shadow of the swords, meaning that death for Allah’s sake assures entry into Paradise. The revulsion of the bloody sword of death is in juxtaposition to the blessedness of the gates of eternal joy. So, if a Muslim were to approach directly Paradise’s gate of eternal delight, then he must know that it is found under the shadows of the sharp, glistening swords of a martyr’s death in Allah’s Jihad against unbelievers.
Personally, spiritually, politically, intellectually and emotionally, the questions that an Islamic fundamentalist faces are stark indeed. Personally, he asks himself if he loves Allah more than his own life? Spiritually, he asks whether or not he is willing to sacrifice himself in Allah's Cause against Shaytan's power and the infidel's military forces? Politically, he divides the nations of the world into two warring camps. The nations under Islamic rule are termed, the Land of Peace (dar al-Islam) while the remaining nations are called, the Land of War (dar al-Harb). He asks himself if he should participate in bringing Allah's rule over the infidels and hypocrites. Intellectually, the answers to those questions are crystal clear to him. Emotionally, his only hurdle to overcome is the fear of death. Once this emotional fear is conquered, the person joyfully takes up the sword to kill and be killed in Allah's Cause, anticipating his entrance into the gates of heavenly Paradise.
Martyrdom is the only assured path to Paradise. Other pathways don’t guarantee acceptance into the gardens of sensual delights. A person may do many kind deeds during his life, but he may only hope that his deeds will be sufficient to merit entry into heaven, but they don’t guarantee success like martyrdom in the Cause of Allah. The Qur’an notes that one who strives in Allah’s cause belongs to the highest rank, and they are assured salvation.
Those who believe, and suffer exile and strive with might and main, in Allah's cause, with their goods and their persons, have the highest rank in the sight of Allah: they are the people who will achieve (salvation). al-Tawbah 9:20 (Yusuf Ali's translation)
The Sahih al-Bukhari states,
Narrated Abu Huraira: I heard Allah's Apostle saying, "The example of a Mujahid in Allah's Cause—and Allah knows better who really strives in His Cause—is like a person who fasts and prays continuously. Allah guarantees that He will admit the Mujahid in His Cause into Paradise if he is killed, otherwise He will return him to his home safely with rewards and war booty." Volume 4, Book 52, Number 46
On the other hand, the Qur’an teaches that a Muslim’s good deeds are put into a balance (scale) to be weighed against his evil deeds. They must await the final day of Judgment to learn the outcome of their encounter with Allah’s balance.
Then those whose balance (of good deeds) is heavy,- they will attain salvation: But those whose balance is light, will be those who have lost their souls, in Hell will they abide. 23:102-102 (Yusuf Ali’s translation) Also, see Sura 101:6-8.
We shall set up scales of justice for the Day of Judgment, so that not a soul will be dealt with unjustly in the least, and if there be (no more than) the weight of a mustard seed, We will bring it (to account): and enough are We to take account. Sura 21:47
Hence, martyrdom makes sense from an Islamic fundamentalist’s perspective. They know that death is the common lot of humanity. It is inescapable. So, rather than desperately clinging to life, they view martyrdom as an ultimate expression of their submission to Allah and Allah’s cause. They sacrifice their lives, because they love Allah, Muhammad, and eternal Paradise more than a few additional years on earth. They believe that martyrdom is the highest expression of their faith in Islam.  Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran expressed it accurately when he said, "The purest joy in Islam is to kill and be killed for Allah." 
They brandish their swords, intent upon murdering the enemies of Allah and dying while embracing the Apostle of Islam's pledge, "the gates of Paradise are under the shadows of the swords." 
Muhammad invoked Allah's name to encourage his followers to murder those who did not submit to his claims.  Yet today, Western Muslims claim that Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance. This was not the Islam of Muhammad.
Allah's Apostle said, "... I have been made victorious with terror ... 
al-Bukhari Vol. 4, Bk 52, No. 220.

Islam, Apostasy, and Abdul Rahman


Islam, Apostasy, and Abdul Rahman
www.muhammadanism.org
Abdul Rahman

1. Background
2. Only Muslims Have Human Rights
3. Who is insane?
4. Insufficient Evidence
5. Islamic Tolerance
6. The Bible
7. Islamic Constitutional Law
8. The State Department of the United States
9. Democracy or Human Rights
10. The Muslim-Islam Fallacy

1. Background
Afghan prosecutors requested the death penalty for Abdul Rahman who had converted to Christianity about 15 years ago while working with a Christian aid group helping refugees. After his conversion, his wife divorced him, and their two children were raised by their grandparents. After a time in Pakistan, he returned to Afghanistan in 2002 to regain custody of his two daughters. His relatives reported his conversion to Kabul authorities, and on March 16, 2006, Abdul Rahman told the Afghan Judge Ansarullah Mawlavazada that he had converted fromIslam to
Christianity and believed in the Trinity. The Prosecutor Abdul Wasi charged that Abdul Rahman is a traitor, a scum to society, and an apostate who deserved execution according to Shari’a law.

2. Only Muslims Have Human Rights
The Afghan court denied Abdul Rahman’s human rights as a person, since the court rejected his natural right to choose his own religious beliefs. Furthermore, it denied his natural human rights as a father, since he was not able to gain custody of his own children. The Afghan judge told The Times of London,
“In this country we have the perfect constitution, it is Islamic law and it is illegal to be a Christian and it should be punished.” The prosecutor, Abdul Wasi, has said that he would drop charges if Mr Rahman converted back to Islam, but he has so far refused to do so. “He would be forgiven if he changed back, but he said he was a Christian and would always remain one . . . We are Muslims and becoming a Christian is against our laws. He must get the death penalty.”1
Shari’a law is fundamentally opposed to the natural justice of human beings because it calls for the execution of any Muslim who converts to another religion. Furthermore, many Muslim countries use their judicial and political power to intimidate, threaten, and persecute non- Muslims. Recently, the Algerian parliament approved a law targeting non-Muslim believers. Why do the Western nations lack the moral courage to expose and to challenge the injustice of this Algerian law against fundamental human rights?
The Algerian parliament has approved a law banning the call to embrace other religions than Islam. ... The ratified law stated to sentence imprisonment for two to five years and a fee between 5 to 10 thousands EURO against "anyone urging or forcing or tempting, to convert a Muslim to another religion." The same penalty applies to every person, manufacturer, store or circulate publications or audio-visual or other means aiming at destabilizing attachment to Islam. The law also bans practicing any religion "except Islam" "outside buildings allocated for that, and links specialized buildings aimed at practice of religion by a prior licensing." 2
Imagine for a moment if Western governments had laws requiring the execution of every convert to Islam in Europe and North America. Muslims around the world would be horrified at such an injustice, never reflecting that this is exactly parallel to the injustice of their own Shari’a law. Also, almost no one would be willing to consider the faith of Islam, because it could lead to his or her death. Furthermore, consider the terrorizing effect upon Muslims who already live in the West, if the West were to fine and imprisoned Muslims for two to five years for promoting their faith or being involved in any aspect of producing, storing, or distributing Islamic literature. Yet, this is precisely the situation for Christians who are targeted for persecution in some Muslim countries.
Western leaders and diplomats lose their voices when it comes to Islamic intolerance and persecution. Perhaps, they have advocated the notion; Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance, for so long they have difficulty criticizing Shari’a law and its fundamental injustices. Politically, Western leaders hope their pro-Islamic statements have three effects. 1. Win the votes of the Muslims who live in their respective countries. 2. Negate the warnings of Christians and secularists who see the rapid and fearful rise of Islamic fundamentalism within their own nations. 3. Charm the Muslim populations around the world, so they will not join in militant Jihad against the West. Pragmatism is a poor substitute for speaking the truth. Western leaders quote abrogated verses in the Qur’an, as if these verses were an enduring feature of Islam. After promoting the wonders of the democratic process in Afghanistan, the apostasy charges against Abdul Rahman dashed the notion that Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance for any clear thinking and rational person.
Muslims need to recognize that human rights are a two-way street.3 If they believe any person has the right to become a Muslim, they need to grant that any person has the right to become a non-Muslim. If they demand that an Islamic government execute any Muslim who converts to Christianity, they should demand that a non-Muslim government execute any Christian who converts to Islam too. If a person is not able to practice freely a religion in a Muslim country, then a Muslim should not be able to practice Islam within a Christian, Hindu, or secular country. A major reason the West is losing the ideological battle with Islam is that it tolerates the Muslim’s view that human rights are a one-way street.
Jesus Christ said, So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 7:12
While Islam claims to honor the Prophet Jesus Christ, they hate those who follow His teachings. This is why they threatened to execute a follower of Jesus. Furthermore, they despise the teachings of the prophets and Jesus Christ when they hold up a Holy Bible as if it were a criminal offense to have a book with the teachings of Noah (Nuh), David (Dawud), Solomon (Suleiman), Jonah (Yunus) and the Lord Jesus Christ (Isa). Islam gives honor to the names of the prophets; but, in reality, it is the religion most diametrically opposed to the teachings of the prophets of God.
-----------
1 Anger over Christian convert in Kabul who faces death, The Times of London, March 21, 2006.
2 Algeria bans Muslims from learning about Christianity, Arabic News, March 21, 2006.
3 Irfan Husain, One-way traffic, Dawn.com, April 1, 2006.
=======================

3. Who is insane?
The Afghan judge suggested that Abdul Rahman may escape the death penalty because he appears to be mentally unfit. ABC news has a report entitled, “Afghan Convert May Be Unfit to Stand Trial: Afghan Man Who Converted to Christianity May Be Mentally Unfit to Stand Trial”.1 Yet, we wonder who is really insane? Is a judge mentally fit when he displays a Bible as evidence of a capital crime? Are Muslim clerics sane when they deliver their fiery Friday sermons demanding the execution of Abdul Rahman? Are the hysterical Afghan demonstrators acting rationally while screaming death to Abdul Rahman and the West? Are the Muslim clerics and judge intelligent when they do not have the mental facilities to understand the most basic principles of natural justice and human rights?
During the Soviet Russian era, Communists charged many dissidents and Christians with insanity and sent them to psychiatric prisons in Siberia. The constitution of Soviet Russia guaranteed religious freedom to its citizens. As a result, the Soviet judiciary could not bring charges against them based on religion. The insanity charge was a convenient excuse to send dissidents and Christians to Siberia for incarceration. It provided a legal maneuver for the Soviets to promote their ideals of religious tolerance to the West while still terrorizing the Russian Christians inside their country.
In a parallel fashion, the Afghan legal system appears to be looking for a way to maintain its Islamic apostasy laws as the supreme law of the land while seeking to rid itself of Abdul Rahman’s case because of international pressure. According to Shari’a law a person cannot be charged with apostasy if the person were insane.2 The Afghan prosecutor said that Abdul Rahman might be mentally unfit to stand trial for leaving Islam. As a result, Afghanistan would retain its inhumane apostasy laws and be able to threaten any future converts to Christianity. More importantly, by ridding itself of Abdul Rahman’s case, Western financial aid will continue to flow into the country.
Using the insanity ploy fools the West into thinking they were tough with the Afghan judicial system on the principles of human rights. In fact, nothing has changed in the laws or constitution of Afghanistan. Its apostasy laws still require the execution of anyone who leaves the faith of Islam. The West cried out loudly against the injustice, so the Muslims stopped the West’s crying without really giving them anything. It is rather like putting a pacifier into a hungry baby’s mouth to stop its crying. The crying baby is fooled into thinking it is being fed. The Shari’a law of Afghanistan has given up nothing to the West, and it continues to persecute Christians and Muslim apostates in Afghanistan.
----------------------
1 Afghan Convert May Be Unfit to Stand Trial, ABC News, March 22, 2006.
2 ... someone totally oblivious is as if insane, and is not held legally responsible, for these latter do not entail unbelief; Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri, Reliance of the Traveller: A Classic Manual of Islamic
===========================

4. Insufficient Evidence
Essentially, the insufficient evidence and insanity claims are similar in that both claims maintain their Islamic apostasy laws intact while still satisfying the West’s concern about the life of Abdul Rahman. The Afghan government depends upon receiving billions of dollars from the West. Consequently, it is willing to use an exception in Shari’a law even though the exception should not apply in Abdul Rahman’s case. In spite of clear testimony to his conversion to Christianity, the Afghan court said there is insufficient evidence of apostasy, so they must release him. In effect, the Afghan court shielded its apostasy laws from erosion, and the nation continues to benefit from the flow of Western financial aid.
A Supreme Court spokesman, Abdul Wakil Omeri, said the case had been dismissed because of "problems with the prosecutors' evidence." He said several of Mr. Rahman's relatives testified he is mentally unstable and prosecutors have to "decide if he is mentally fit to stand trial." Another Afghan official involved with the case said the court ruled there was insufficient evidence and returned the case to prosecutors for further investigation. But he said Mr. Rahman would be released in the meantime. 1

5. Islamic Tolerance
Like most Muslims, the Afghan judge said, “Islam is a religion of mercy, kindness and tolerance.” This deceptive assurance comforts liberal Westerners, blinding them to the harsh realities of Islamic law. The Afghan judge made the above statement on Islamic tolerance, then he went on immediately to say, "if he doesn't revert back to Islam, he's going to receive the death penalty, according to the law".[Sacred Law, Translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, Amana Publications, Beltsville, MD, 1997 Revised Edition, p. 597.] Executing a person because you cannot tolerate his religious beliefs is fanatical intolerance by any normal definition of the word. This statement shows what true Islamic mercy, kindness, and tolerance mean! A Muslim government has the legal right to execute every convert to Christianity, if he does not repent and return to Islam. Where is the tolerance? The vocabulary may be the same, but, in Islam, mercy and tolerance do not correlate with any Western understanding of these words. These pleasant sounding words of muffle the cries of those persecuted in Muslim lands.
The judge handling the case, Ansarullah Mawlavizada, said the courts were trying to find a "good solution" which could include persuading Rahman to revert to Islam. "This is a sensitive issue -- we are trying our best to handle it quickly," he told AFP. "Since Islam is a religion of mercy, kindness and tolerance, we will try to find a good solution. We are trying our best to persuade the man to convert back to Islam." On Wednesday Mawlavizada said that "if he doesn't revert back to Islam, he's going to receive the death penalty, according to the law". 1 Afghan News Network March 23, 2006. (Bold emphasis added.)
The West lost because it did not challenge the government of Afghanistan to remove the root of the problem, which is Shari’a law abrogating the basic human rights of non-Muslim citizens. The Afghan court won, because it was able to shield the Shari’a law provisions of its nation’s constitution from erosion. As a result, the Afghan judiciary is able to continue prosecuting and punishing Christian converts, since most of them never receive any international attention. 2 They suffer without anyone knowing or being able to speak in their defense. Isaiah 42:7, 22-23; 61:1, Matthew 25:36, 39-40.
----------------------
1 Afghan man saved from execution, Washington Times, March 27, 2006.
========================

6. The Bible
This picture shows an Afghan Supreme Court judge, Ansarullah Mawlavizada, holding up the evidence of Abdul Rahman’s crime —a Bible! 3

Muslims despise the book of the prophets of God.
In effect, this means that the Afghan people believe it is a crime to follow the teachings of the prophets of God. Across Afghanistan Muslim clerics have demanded the death of Abdul Rahman, because he has submitted to God and His message. Of all religions, Muslims boast the most that they follow the teachings of the prophets. However, exactly the opposite is the case. Islam is
the religion that is most opposed to the prophets of God. Saudi Arabia bans the writings of the divine prophets; such is their hatred of the true message of God.
Imagine for a moment, if a U.S. Supreme Court judge were to hold up a Qur’an as if it were evidence that a person had converted to Islam and was worthy of execution. Likewise, imagine if Christian leaders all across America were to agitate their congregations to demonstrate in the streets demanding that the U.S. government execute any Muslim who had left Christianity. Finally, imagine Christian clerics calling for the Muslim’s murder if the government were not willing itself to execute the apostate. This is rather like the state of affairs in Afghanistan for Christian converts. The Taliban were overthrown, and these are the so-called moderate Muslims who have replaced them!---------
----------------------
1 Afghanistan seeks solution on convert amid Western uproar, Afghan News Network, March 23, 2006.
2 More Christians Arrested In Wake Of ‘Apostasy’: Two other converts from Islam in custody; another hospitalized after beating. Compass Direct, March 22, 2006.
3 Ansarullah Mawlavizada holds copy of Bible, Yahoo News, March 26, 2006.
====================================

7. Islamic Constitutional Law
The Afghanistan Constitution in Preamble 5 affirms the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations.1 Preamble 8 states that the purpose of the constitution is to create a civil society free of oppression and to assure the fundamental rights and the freedoms of its people. However, State Chapter 1, Article 3 abrogates these assurances of human rights and freedoms by subordinating them to the prior tenets of Islamic law. Furthermore, as noted in Amendments Chapter 10, Article 1, the Afghan Constitution does not permit any constitutional amendment to curtail t he supreme role that Shari’ a law has over the constitutional powers of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Since the Afghan people cannot amend its constitution to remove its Shari’a law’s supremacy, it would require an entirely new constitution for Afghanistan to make its constitution not subservient to Shari’a law.
Preamble 5. Observing the United Nations Charter and respecting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
Preamble 8. For creation of a civil society free of oppression, atrocity, discrimination, and violence and based on the rule of law, social justice, protection of human rights, and dignity, and ensuring the fundamental rights and freedoms of the people,
State Chapter 1, Article 3. In Afghanistan, no law can be contrary to the beliefs and provisions of the sacred religion of Islam.
Amendments Chapter 10, Article 1. The provisions of adherence to the fundamentals of the sacred religion of Islam and the regime of the Islamic Republic cannot be amended.2
On the one hand, the Afghan officials can show the Western leaders its constitutional protections of the religious rights of its citizens; and, on the other hand, the elected officials can show the Afghan clerics that Shari’a law is the supreme law of the land. The supremacy of Shari’a law in the Afghan Constitution subordinates the human rights of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations to its Islamic jurisprudence. As a result, an Afghan’s religious rights vanish under Shari’a law, and the Afghan judiciary has the legal apparatus to sentence a Muslim apostate to death.
Shari’a law is clear and unambiguous. Shari’a law states that a Muslim who changes his religion from Islam is executed. This is the punishment prescribed by all four traditional schools of Islamic jurisprudence. (For a more extensive treatment of Islamic scholarship on apostasy, see an article entitled, Apostasy: Part I. What does Islamic Scholarship say? 3 The article provides quotations from twelve different Muslim scholars.)
-------------------------
1 Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Article 18. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.
2 The Constitution of Afghanistan.
3 Apostasy: Part I. What does Islamic Scholarship say? [………..] It is reported by Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.) said: "Whosoever changes his religion (from Islam to anything else), bring end to his life.''
-------------------------------
Professor Abdur Rahman Doi states the following in his book entitled, Sharī’ah Law: The Islamic Law,
The punishment for apostacy is prescribed in the following Hadith of the Prophet:
The punishment by death in the case of apostacy has been unanimously agreed upon by all the four schools of Islamic jurisprudence.1
The Universal Islamic Declaration of Human Rights (September 19, 1981) 2 is a duplicitous declaration in that it declares explicitly the right to freedom of religion, but then it removes this freedom, making it subservient to Shari’a law. See the Explanatory Note 1 in the following quotation.
Preamble. WHEREAS Allah (God) has given mankind through His revelations in the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah of His Blessed Prophet Muhammad an abiding legal and moral framework within which to establish and regulate human institutions and relationships;
XIII Right to Freedom of Religion. Every person has the right to freedom of conscience and worship in accordance with his religious beliefs.
Explanatory Notes. 1. In the above formulation of Human Rights, unless the context provides otherwise:
a) the term 'person' refers to both the male and female sexes.
b) the term 'Law' denotes the Shari'ah, i.e. the totality of ordinances derived from the Qur'an and the Sunnah and any other laws that are deduced from these two sources by methods considered valid in Islamic jurisprudence. (Bold emphasis added.)
Normally, a nation’s constitution is the supreme law of the land. However, from an Islamic viewpoint, Shari’a law abrogates the constitution in any jurisprudence where Shari’a law and the constitution conflict with one another.
The Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam (August 5, 1990) 3 is another Islamic statement on human rights. Again, it presents proudly its human rights credentials, but it is like a scorpion where the sting is in the tail. The sting of Shari’a law is in the very last Article of the Declaration, and it paralyzes the vigor of the Declaration’s assurances of religious freedoms. This is why the guarantee of religious human rights in Islamic constitutions is not a true legal safeguard for non-Muslims, rather it is legal cosmetic to put a kinder and gentler face on Islam without exposing its poison.
ARTICLE 10: Islam is the religion of true unspoiled nature. It is prohibited to exercise any form of pressure on man or to exploit his poverty or ignorance in order to force him to change his religion to another religion or to atheism.
ARTICLE 24: All the rights and freedoms stipulated in this Declaration are subject to the Islamic Shari'ah.
------------------------------
1 Doi, ‘Abdur Rahman I., Sharī'ah: The Islamic Law, A.S. Noordeen, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 4th printing, 1998, p. 266.
2 Universal Islamic Declaration of Human Rights
3 Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam
-------------------------------
ARTICLE 25: The Islamic Shari'ah is the only source of reference for the explanation or clarification of any of the articles of this Declaration.
===========================================

8. The State Department of the United States
The statements of Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns and department spokesman Sean McCormack said they hoped that the trial would be held in “a transparent way.”
We did discuss the case of Mr. Abdul Rahman. And I said on behalf of our government that we hope very much the judicial case, which we understand is now underway, would be held in a transparent way. 1
Firstly, the Afghan prosecutor should never have brought the case to trial, because the Afghan constitution guarantees religious freedom, and it is a universal human right too. Secondly, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns lacked moral clarity when he seemed to say the trial was acceptable as long as they conducted it “in a transparent way.” If the Afghan court convicted Abdul Rahman of being an apostate, would it have been acceptable if the government executed him as long as the judge conducted the trial “in a transparent way”?
U.S. Department of State likes to think there is a difference between the Taliban and the Karzi government on the issue of apostasy and Shari’a law. Both governments would torture and execute Muslim apostates if it were not for international considerations. Is there a single church building in Afghanistan? What happens to a Christian convert who does not make the headlines of international news? Why has the U.S. government spent billions of dollars establishing an intolerant theocratic Islamic state following Shari’a law?
State Department spokesman McCormack contrasted the government in Kabul with its fundamentalist predecessor. "Under the Taliban, anybody considered an apostate was subject to torture and death," he said. "Right now, you have a legal proceeding that is under way in Afghanistan." McCormack said the administration underscored to Abdullah "that we believe tolerance and freedom of worship are important elements of any democracy. 2
-------------------
1 On-The-Record Briefing on U.S.-Afghanistan Strategic Partnership, U.S. Department of State, March 21, 2006.
2 U.S. Backs Afghan Man Who Converted to Christianity, Fox News, March 22, 2006.
===================================

9. Democracy or Human Rights
Contrary to what many think, democracy does not equal a government that respects human rights. Democracy is simply a government ruling according to the will of the majority of the people. 3
1 a : government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections. 2 : a political unit that has a democratic government —dem·o·crat·ic /"de-m&-'kra- tik/ adjective —dem·o·crat·i·cal·ly adverb1
-------------------
3 Democracy in the Arab World, a U.S. Goal, Falters, New York Times, NY, April 10, 2006.
-------------------
There is nothing inherent in democracy to protect the human rights of minorities. In fact, minority rights are often opposed to the will of the democratic majority. Thus, it is a false assumption to argue that the spread of democracy across the Muslim world will bring a better human rights record. For example, if the majority of the Afghan people were to decide the case of Abdul Rahman, the overwhelming democratic majority would have had him executed. Natural human rights were his only legal safeguard against the democratic majority and the sword of Shari’a law.
The Middle East needs universal human rights far more than democratic governments. Currently, the democratic process is fueling the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East,2 because, in contrast to Christianity, Islam lacks a moral foundation in natural law and human rights. What Muslim countries need specifically are the following.
1. Their governments need to remove the Shari’a law articles from their constitutions.
2. Their educational systems need to teach the value of universal human rights.
3. Their legal authorities need to enforce vigorously violations of human rights.
4. Their governments need to promote and encourage the freedom of non-Muslims to propagate their religious ideologies without intimidation in the same way Muslims propagate Islam in Western countries.
5. Their governments need to curtail the influence of Islamic clerics who foment hatred and bigotry in the masses.
6. Saudi Arabia needs to stop funding Islamic schools, constructing mosques, and printing Islamic literature in the West until it allows this type of funding and propagation within its own borders by non-Muslims.
==================================

10. The Muslim-Islam Fallacy
Many people argue that most Muslims are wonderful, hard-working, family-oriented, and hospitable people. Therefore, they conclude it must follow logically that Islam is a good religion. The first assertion is granted. However, the conclusion is fallacious and not deducible from the initial premise. The life of Muhammad, the Qur’an, and the Sunnah (ahadith) of Muhammad define the religion of Islam, and we must evaluate Islam based upon the teachings and behavior of Muhammad.
For example, during the Soviet Russian era, most Russians were wonderful, hard-working and hospitable people too. While this is a true statement, it does not follow that the ideology of Marxism and Leninism is a good model upon which to base a national government. We must evaluate atheistic communism by the teachings of Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. Some people act good and other people act badly in all religions and ideologies. The Muslim-Islam fallacy is not a valid or sound argument to evaluate Islam. The teachings and life of Muhammad must be the basis of a critique or defense of Islam.
===================

AFTER (FROM WIKI)
Abdul Rahman (Arabic: عبدالرحمن‎) (born 1965) was an Afghan citizen who was arrested in February 2006 and threatened with the death penalty for converting to Christianity.[ On March 26, 2006, under heavy pressure from foreign governments, the court returned his case to prosecutors, citing "investigative gaps". He was released from prison to his family on the night of March 27. [ they gave insanity as the reason for his conversion] On March 29, Abdul Rahman arrived in Italy after the Italian government offered him asylum.
Abdul Rahman's arrest and trial brought international attention to an apparent contradiction in the Constitution of Afghanistan, which recognizes both a limited form of freedom of religion and the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence, which mandates the death penalty for apostasy from Islam. The case attracted widespread international condemnation, notably from the United Kingdom and the United States, both of whom led the campaign to remove the fundamentalist Taliban regime in 2001 and are the main donors to Afghanistan.
========================