To Shaji (peace be upon him)

Submitted by Lactantius Jr (United Kingdom), Apr 27, 2009 at 13:22

To Shaji (upon whom be peace)

I greet you in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ and I wish you His peace, that peace which the world cannot give, that peace which passes all human understanding, and I repeat that He, author and distributor of peace that He is, doesn't need peace invoking on Him, believing it to be very telling that Muhammad, self-evidently from accounts of his life in the Sirat literature, wasn't at peace, and in the centuries since his death, despite the billions (trillions??) of times Muslims have invoked peace on him, continuing to do so billions of times daily, ask whether he is at peace now, wondering whether he ever will be, saying himself that he didn't know what Allah would do with him.

"Say: 'I am not an innovation among the Messengers, and I know not what shall be done with me or with you. I only follow what is revealed to me; I am only a clear warner.' "

Surah 46:9

Narrated 'Um al-'Ala:
An Ansari woman who gave the pledge of allegiance to the Prophet that the Ansar drew lots concerning the dwelling of the Emigrants. 'Uthman bin Maz'un was decided to dwell with them (i.e. Um al-'Ala's family), 'Uthman fell ill and I nursed him till he died, and we covered him with his clothes. Then the Prophet came to us and I (addressing the dead body) said, "O Abu As-Sa'ib, may Allah's Mercy be on you! I bear witness that Allah has honored you." On that the Prophet said, "How do you know that Allah has honored him?" I replied, "I do not know. May my father and my mother be sacrificed for you, O Allah's Apostle! But who else is worthy of it (if not 'Uthman)?" He said, "As to him, by Allah, death has overtaken him, and I hope the best for him. By Allah, though I am the Apostle of Allah, yet I do not know what Allah will do to me," By Allah, I will never assert the piety of anyone after him. That made me sad, and when I slept I saw in a dream a flowing stream for 'Uthman bin Maz'un. I went to Allah's Apostle and told him of it. He remarked, "That symbolizes his (good) deeds." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 5, Book 58, Number 266)

I thank you again for the manner in which you write, and whilst I write hard-hitting critique of Islam, I thank you for acknowledging that I am not among "the slandering propagandists." In all my interactions with you and other Muslims I seek to be obedient to my Scriptures which instruct me to,

"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behaviour in Christ may be ashamed of their slander."

1 Peter 3:15:16

and by the grace of the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, that is how I shall continue. You and I have now generated 58,111 words in our previous interactions with one another, and by concentrating on what I believe to be the most important issues between us, I have tried not to add too many more, aided in this by citing several Internet publications rather than setting out supporting arguments and evidences myself, but even so, have still used another 2,357 words.

The most important personal matter we have to deal with Shaji, is how we are to get the very best out of the rest of our lives, and where we will find forgiveness of sins and assurance of salvation, the answer I ask you to consider is the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible, all of which is about Him, being available online at http://www.biblegateway.com/ and should you wish to consult the Bible in Arabic, please go to, http://www.arabicbible.com/bible/inter.htm

and Jesus said, "You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to Me!

John 5:39

"Then Jesus said, 'When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about Me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.' Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. And He said, 'Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of His name to all the nations,^] beginning in Jerusalem: 'There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.' You are witnesses of all these things."

Luke 24:44-48

and your Qur'an commends the Bible and its message of life in Jesus' Name to you.

Firstly, Allah is said to be the source of the Bible Surah 3:3, the Qur'an saying there is no distinction between the Bible and the Qur'an 2:136; 3:3 and that none can change Allah's words Surah 6:34; 10:64 Muslims are told to ask Christians any questions they have Surah 21:7 with even Muhammad being told to ask the Christians if he didn't understand Surah 10:94 Muslims are told to believe in the Bible, with those who disbelieve having "wandered far astray" 4:136 Muslims are told not to argue with Christians, but to believe in what was revealed to them Surah 29:46 there being "guidance and light" in the gospel, with people of the gospel being commanded to judge by it Surah 5:46-47

I do judge by it Shaji, standing fast by what I read there, having no guidance without standing fast on it Surah 5:68

All around the world, Christians recently commemorated Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection from the dead to eternal life, I commend Him to you Shaji as the sinners all-sufficient saviour, Who, when accepted as your personal saviour, will deal with your past, work in your present and guarantee your future, the Bible saying,

"As the Scriptures tell us, 'Anyone who trusts in Him will never be disgraced.' Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, Who gives generously to all who call on Him. For 'Everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved.' But how can they call on Him to save them unless they believe in Him? And how can they believe in Him if they have never heard about Him? And how can they hear about Him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say,'How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!' "

Romans 10:11-15

The primary source of reliable information about the Lord Jesus Christ are the New Testament documents, the Arabic word Injeel being the Arabic rendering of the Greek word evangel, which means good, good news, or news which brings joy, the good news being that the Triune God doesn't want anybody to perish,

"For He wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth."

1 Timothy 2:4

"The Lord isn't slow about keeping His promises, as some people think He is. In fact, God is patient, because He wants everyone to turn from sin and no one to be lost."

2 Peter 3:9

and that He has done everything necessary to ensure that no one need perish

"This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, His one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in Him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn't go to all the trouble of sending His Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in Him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust Him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person's failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to Him.

John 3:16-18

Although the Lord Jesus Christ Himself tells us that many more will perish than are saved,

"Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate that leads to destruction is wide, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate that leads to life is narrow, and the way is hard, and those who find it are few.

Matthew 7:13-14

The Lord Jesus Christ Himself telling us that He is the way, the truth and the life. Please note Shaji, THE, THE, THE not one way among many, the definite article, the real McCoy, the real deal.

"Jesus told him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.' "

John 14:6

I have again outlined the good, good news of the gospel to you Shaji, and I can do no other than commend the Lord Jesus Christ to you as the sinners all-sufficient saviour, you're not worth it Shaji, you don't deserve it and you can't earn it, but once accepted you can't lose it, He'll give you the very best out of the rest of your life, and when you die, He'll take you all the way to heaven to be with Him for ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and……………………………………. How long's all that Shaji?

"For God says, 'At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.' Indeed, the 'right time' is now. Today is the day of salvation."

2 Corinthians 6:2

One of the Lord Jesus Christ's early followers was Luke, "Dear Doctor Luke" Colossians 4:14 and Doctor Luke introduces his biography of Jesus with words which demonstrate that then, as now, medical doctors were trained to be careful observers,

"Many people have tried to tell the story of what God has done among us. They wrote what we had been told by the ones who were there in the beginning and saw what happened. So I made a careful study of everything and then decided to write and tell you exactly what took place. Honorable Theophilus, I have done this to let you know the truth about what you have heard."

Luke 1:1-4

There is an online film based on Luke's biography of Jesus, available at,

http://www.jesusfilm.org/film-and-media/watch-the-film

and at 27^th.April, the soundtrack is available in 1,049 languages, Modern Standard Arabic being one of the 11 Arabic variants available, or should you wish to listen in English, you may do so. You're going to live forever Shaji, please choose your address.

Islamic Violence

Unlike Muhammad, who had swords made out of steel, and who wielded them often in battle, the Lord Jesus Christ didn't have a sword, and most certainly never wielded one in battle, nor, unlike Muhammad, ever commanded His followers to do so, and I again refer you and others to Internet publications which demonstrate the difference between the sword of Muhammad and the sword of the Lord Jesus Christ,

Jesus, Pacifism and the Sword

http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/pacifism1.htm

Pacifism and the sword in the Gospels

http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/pacifism2.htm

The sword of Jesus and the sword of Muhammad

A comparative study of Quran 8:12 and Luke 22:36

http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/sword2.htm

I maintain that violence was foundational to Islam and remains deeply embedded in it, violence being commanded of Muslims by the Qur'an and other Islamic "title-deeds" and modelled for them to emulate by the example of their prophet, who carried and wielded a sword in the many battles he was engaged in.

The following Internet publications thoroughly document Islamic violence and its theological underpinnings,

The Verse of the Sword: Surah 9:5 and Jihad

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/swordverse.htm

Muhammad, Islam and Terrorism

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/terrorism.htm

Was Muhammad a Terrorist?

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/terrorist.htm

What the Qur'an Really Says About Violence:Part One

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/hassaballa_violence1.htm

What the Qur'an Really Says About Violence:Part Two

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/hassaballa_violence2.htm

Islam's Royal Family:Aisha and Ali

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/rf4_ali_aisha.htm

Islam's Royal Family: Ali and Mu'Awiyah The Family Feud Continues

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/rf5_ali_muawiya.htm

Islam's Royal Family: Husayn and Yazid Abu Sufyan Defeats Muhammad

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/rf6_yazid_husayn.htm

Islam's Royal Family:The Fruit Of Islam Judged

http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/rf7_fruit_judged.htm

The Cart Before The Horse: Terrorism and Violence In Islam

http://www.answering-islam.org/Terrorism/cart_before_horse.htm

Islamic Martyrdom: What A Bargain! The Economy Of Death In The Qur'an

http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/death_economy.htm

Islam And Violence

http://www.answering-islam.org/Terrorism/islam_and_violence.html

Kill Those Who Associate Partners (Mushrikun) Wherever You Find Them

A Historical And Contextual Exegesis of Q.9:5 and 29

http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/shamoun/q9_5_29.html

Violence In The Bible And The Qur'an: A Christian Perspective

http://www.answering-islam.org/Terrorism/index.html

I leave the last word on Islam and violence to Ahmad Hasan az-Zayat, a scholar of Al-Azhar University, Cairo, the oldest and most prestigious university in the Muslim world. Writing the most telling assessment of the issue, in the opening article of Al-Azhar magazine, August 1959, az-Zayat confirmed the centrality of the sword in Islam, saying, "Holy war (jihad) is an Arabic virtue, and a divine obligation: the Muslim is always mindful that his religion is a Qur'an and a sword……..the Muslim then is forever a warrior."

Should you want to contest az-Zayat's assessment of Islam and violence, I suggest you email Al-Azhar at Azhar@azhar.eun.eg but please be aware Shaji, they may declare you an apostate, and you will know what the punishment for apostates from Islam is, it being self-evident that Islam is the easiest religion in the world to get into, but the hardest in the world to get out of – alive!!

As a deeply committed follower of Him Who is "The Way, the truth and the life" I am confident I am not deceived Shaji, and compare and contrast this confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ, with the uncertainty displayed by Muhammad about who the spirit appearing to him in the cave on Mount Hira really was, Muhammad's initial belief that it was Satan, a belief in which I believe him to have been correct, and I refer to an internet posting examining the Islamic evidences for Muhammad being deceived,

Examining Some More Evidences For Muhammad Being Deceived

http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/possessed.htm

I wish you well Shaji

Lactantius Jr

---

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".