Please read this entire post before you get angry. This is an e-mail I received today:
"Subject: Allah or The Lord Jesus Christ?
"This is very interesting and even more alarming . The Muslim religion is the fastest growing religion per capita in the United States , especially in the minority races!!! Allah or The Lord Jesus Christ? ... By Rick Mathes
[I guess they are quoting Mathes from here. This was all one paragraph in the e-mail, but I paragraph for easier reading.]
"Last month I attended my annual training session that's required for maintaining my state prison security clearance. During the training session there was a presentation by three speakers representing the Roman Catholic, Protestant and Muslim faiths, who explained each of their beliefs. [Roman Catholic and Protestant are NOT faiths. They are divisions of the Christian faith.]
"I was particularly interested in what the Islamic Imam had to say. The Imam gave a great presentation of the basics of Islam, complete with a video. After the presentations, time was provided for questions and answers.
"When it was my turn, I directed my question to the Imam and asked: 'Please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that most Imams and clerics of Islam have declared a holy jihad (Holy war) against the infidels of the world and, that by killing an infidel, (which is a command to all Muslims) they are assured of a place in heaven. If that's the case, can you give me the definition of an infidel?'
"There was no disagreement with my statements and, without hesitation, he replied, 'Non-believers!' I responded, 'So, let me make sure I have this straight. All followers of Allah have been commanded to kill everyone who is not of your faith so they can have a place in heaven. Is that correct?'
"The expression on his face changed from one of authority and command to that of 'a little boy who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.' He sheepishly replied, 'Yes.'
"I then stated, 'Well, sir, I have a real problem trying to imagine Pope John Paul commanding all Catholics to kill those of your faith or Dr. Stanley ordering all Protestants to do the same in order to guarantee them a place in heaven!'
"The Imam was speechless! I continued, 'I also have problem with being your 'friend' when you and your brother clerics are telling your followers to kill me! Let me ask you a question. Would you rather have your Allah, who tells you to kill me in order for you to go to heaven, or my Jesus who tells me to love you because I am going to heaven and He wants you to be there with me?'
"You could have heard a pin drop as the Imam hung his head in shame. Needless to say, the organizers and/or promoters of the 'Diversification' training seminar were Not happy with Rick's way of dealing with the Islamic Imam and exposing the truth about the Muslims' beliefs. In twenty years there will be enough Muslim voters in the U.S. to elect the President! I think everyone in the U.S. should be required to read this, but with the Liberal justice system, liberal media and the ACLU, there is no way this will be widely publicized. Please pass this on to all your e-mail contacts. This is a true story and the author, Rick Mathes, is a well-known leader in prison ministry. The Man who walks with God always gets to his destination. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Now you can either delete it or pass it on. No wishes, or promises or threats - just a choice."
[Mimi answers: I shall do neither. I shall publish this trash on the Internet for all to see and rebut it. Anyone who reads this is invited to leave a comment.
First of all Allah is the Arabic word for the English word, God. Funny, I never see anything like this directed to Yahweh, the Hebrew word for the English word, God. Allah, God, Yahweh, all in one!
Who is this Dr. Stanley? What, or who, gives him authority to speak for anyone?
Who is this Rick Mathes? Why should he or this Dr. Stanley be authorities about God, Jesus, or anything about religion? What is the name of the Imam who "hung his head," and with what Mosque, located where, is he associated?
That said, I have read most of the Koran, and I know of at least one passage in it that does order Muslim believers to slay the infidels. But, more than once the Bible, especially the Old Testament, has ordered the Jews (Israelites) to take up arms against non-Jews. I don't see, "Yahweh or Jesus Christ?" in any e-mails. What about the horrendous death toll throughout the centuries in the name of Jesus Christ, such as the Crusades in the 11th century because "God wills it." Then, there is Iraq in our own lifetime, but I'll go there another day.
The teachings of Jesus are in the Koran. Whenever a Muslim utters the name of Abraham, Moses, Mohammed, or Jesus, they always say immediately afterward, "Peace (or blessings) be upon his name."
Muslims revere, and try to follow, the teachings of Jesus that are incorporated into the Koran. However, they revere him as a prophet, and consider Mohammed the greater prophet, and they do not buy the "fantastic" that Jesus was the Son of God.
Jews and Muslims are descendents of Abraham. Literally. Christians? No. Most Christians come from a Gentile, pagan background. The Europeans, Anglo-Saxons, Greeks, Romans, Irish, etc. If any of these are Christians now, they have been converted from paganism, or non-belief, at some point in history. The Christian legacy is only 500 years more than the Muslim legacy. The Jewish legacy is 2,000 years more than the Christian legacy.
Emperor Constantine ordered the New Testament re-written about 300 A.D., mainly to attract the pagans. The goal was to give them a God that could promise them something none of their Gods did -- eternal life.
Many Biblical scholars suspect all the fantastic (virgin birth, wise men, resurrection, and, perhaps, some of the supposed words of Jesus) were incorporated into the New Testament during the rewrite to align Christianity closer to the pagan gods. Constantine ordered all of his subjects (pagans) to convert to Christianity. It certainly worked. The Christian community took off. Up until that time, it has been a very minor sect.
For all you good Christians out there who believe that homosexuality, and / or bisexuality, is a sin, be advised that King James I of England (James IV of Scotland), who supervised the translation of both the Old and New Testaments into English, was an open homosexual. His subjects would often exclaim, "Long live Queen James!" I am referring, of course, to The King James Version of the Bible.
After James' coronation as James I, he dutifully married Princess Anne of Denmark, which points to him being bisexual. After she produced three children, two boys (an heir and a spare) and a girl, she was banished from the royal court to Hampton Court Palace where she died in 1619. Their son, Henry, Prince of Wales, died at age 18 in 1612. However, she lived to see her second son Charles ascend to the throne as King Charles I. Good thing they had the heir and spare.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, "Throughout his life, however, James exhibited little interest in the opposite sex. It seems that he never had a mistress and was interested in women only as the wives and mothers of his male friends."
James supposedly said, in 1617, when he addressed the venerable Privy Council with an official affirmation of his right to love men:
"I, James, am neither a god nor an angel, but a man like any other. Therefore I act like a man and confess to loving those dear to me more than other men. You may be sure that I love the Earl of Buckingham [known as James' "wife"] more than anyone else, and more than you who are here assembled. I wish to speak in my own behalf and not to have it thought to be a defect, for Jesus Christ did the same, and therefore I cannot be blamed. Christ had John, and I have George."
I bring this up to shake a finger at so many, "I'm better than you" Christians. There are some scholars who believe Jesus was a homosexual because he loved his "beloved" John, and that Jesus was crucified because of his homosexuality, not because of his religious beliefs. Constantine probably took care of the question of Jesus' sexuality with the rewrite.
Also, there are some who believe that Saul of Tarsus (who became known as Paul the Apostle, although he never knew Jesus in person) was likewise, because he had his "beloved" Timothy, and other young men who were his constant companions. As far as we know, Jesus never married and as a Palestinian Jew, he would have been obligated to have been married by the age of about 18. Saul, as a former Rabbi was reqired to be married before he was strangely drawn to the Christians, and "saw the light" on the road to Damascus.
Finally, a Muslim as president? Well, congressman Keith Ellison, the first black congressman from Minnesota, and a Democrat, was sworn in using a Koran from the Library of Congress, published in London in 1764, and owned by President Thomas Jefferson. So there, ye of little minds!
Go ahead, all you "I am better than you Christians," who live in a tiny pod of this world, cast your stones at all those who do not believe as you, but before you do it again, please read some actual history books. The Bible is not history. It does not contain all you need to know to be considered knowledgeable in this life.
The Bible is a book of stories and allegories, written by men and only men, in their attempt to explain the human existence, and to control the behavior of others, especially that of women. The same is true of the Koran. As to either being inspired by God? That I cannot challenge, because I would never presume to know the mind of God, Allah, Yahweh.]
LINKS RELEVANT:
King James & homosexuality: Rictor Norton, "Queen James and His Courtiers," The Great Queens of History, 8 January 2000, updated 16 February 2006
Anne of Denmark / King James I of England
Congressman Ellison and the Koran
Blood shed in the name of Jesus Christ
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