Islam and Christianity

After Sept. 11 th , when it was learned that all of the attackers were Muslims, the President and all kinds of American leaders suddenly became ‘experts’ on Islam. They began telling the American people that the Muslims who attacked us were not really Muslims, and that Islam is a religion of peace. They said, as a matter of fact, that Islam means ‘peace.’ Not true.  The root letters of Muslim , Islam , and Salaam are:  S    L    M    (Mu sl i m , I sl a m , S a l aa m ) Islam means “submission to the will of Allah” and Salaam means peace. Salaam is what is promised to those who submit their will to Allah. In other words, if you are obedient to the will of Allah, you will attain peace and you will be a Muslim. It is this definition of Islam that leads Muslims to believe, and teach, that Abraham was a Muslim, Moses was a Muslim and Jesus was a Muslim. They were all people who submitted their will to the will of Allah, or God. And this is what A...

From the writings of A.A. Maududi, Towards Understanding Islam DEFENSE OF ISLAM      “The defense of Islam is not a fundamental belief but its importance has been repeatedly emphasized in the Qur’an and Sunnah. It is essentially a test of our sincerity as believers in Islam. If we do not defend a friend of ours against plots or assaults from his enemies, nor care for his needs, we are indeed false pretenders of friendship. In the same way, if we profess belief in Islam, we must jealously guard and uphold the prestige of Islam. Our sole guide for our conduct must be the interests of Muslims at large and the service of Islam in the face of which all our personal considerations must sink low.” JIHAD      “Jihad is a part of this overall defense of Islam. Jihad means to struggle to the utmost of one’s capacity. A man who exerts himself physically or mentally or spends his wealth in the cause of God is indeed engaged in jihad. But in the language o...

Matthew 1:18-25 (New International Version, ©2010) Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine $49.99$32.99 You Save $17 (34%) Matthew 1:18-25 (New International Version, ©2010)   18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.   20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”   22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet...

     Although there is a great diversity of beliefs within Islam, just as there is within Christianity, there is one confession, or Shahada, that makes a Muslim a Muslim. If a person can speak the words of the Shahada with conviction, then he or she is a Muslim. Here it is: La ilaha il Allah, Muhammad-ur-Rasool-Allah (There are no gods but God, and Muhammad is His prophet.)      The Shahada functions for Muslims as the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds function for Christians. It defines, or makes public, the most fundamental beliefs of the religion.      Though it contains far fewer words than any of the major Christian creeds, the Shahada contains at least as many meanings. You might say that although it contains few words, those few words make all the difference in the world. When a Muslim says that Muhammad is the prophet of God, he or she is saying that Muhammad is the final and authoritative prophet of God. They are saying tha...

From http://www.answering-christianity.com     by Osama Abdallah “Most of the following was gathered from the foot notes of the Holy Quran that I have.  It is translated and documented by Minister Abdullah Yusuf Ali.” Osama Abdallah What does the Holy Quran say about Jesus (peace be upon him): Muslims believe that Jesus peace be upon him according to the Holy Qur’an is a wonderful, humble, generous messenger of God who came down and revealed God's words to his people, the people of Israel.  Muslims do not believe that Jesus is God, nor they believe that God ever chose to come down to earth in a form of a man to die for our sins to purify us and forgive us.   According to Islam, Jesus never died on the cross, nor ever wanted to die on the cross, nor ever was born to die on the cross.  Muslims believe that Jesus was sentenced to death, and people thought that he got executed on the cross.  The Holy Quran rejects this idea, and claims that it is ...

A Shi'ite Encyclopedia       Chapter 6.b       Version 1.5     ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TAQIYA Taqiya, or not showing their faith openly by means of pretense, dissimulation, or concealment, is a special type of Lying which is used by Shi'a Muslims . "Taqiya" (or taqiyyah) is related to the terms "taqwa'" and "taqi'" - all have the root meaning of "guarding" something, in this case, the Islamic faith. This practice, along with the practice of Kithman , or concealing their faith from non-Shi'as, were, and are many places today, a method of self-preservation for the Shi'a community. Historically, the Shiites have been in the minority and have been persecuted by Sunni Muslims who considered them heretics. Shi'as are often persecuted today in Pakistan and Afghanistan and Sunni-Shi'a violence is fairly common. Sunnis would often attempt to force Shi'as to curse the House of Ali - believing that no devout Shiite could co...