Christianity and Islam: Islam's False Claims

This article is the second in a multipart series that will appear in this space. Other installments focus on the failure of Islam in society, Mohammed the first Islamic terrorist, and why Muslims are the enemies of Christians.

"But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed... again... let him be accursed."                          -- Galatians 1:8-9


Beast in the Beauty

The movie Shrek spins a Beauty-and-the-Beast yarn in which the beautiful princess is transformed on the outside into what she always was inside, a creature as ugly as the title character. With a twist of the postmodernism now in vogue in cultural circles, she decides she is satisfied with being ugly.

Muhammad Ali and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. On the outside, they are accomplished athletes, and heroes to many. On the inside, they are Black Muslims, associates of black racists such as Malcolm X and Louis Farrakhan. They have dedicated their lives to the overthrow of "the white beast" (by killing all white people) in the name of Allah. Role models? Poster children for the Islam of "love and peace"? Hardly. Articles and movies that glorify these individuals propagate the untruth that Islam is just another world religion.

Although Black Muslims (adherents of the American sect known as the Nation of Islam) represent a small minority of Muslims worldwide, they demonstrate the logical consequences of the teachings of Islam. A comprehensive treatment of the subject would require volumes. In this brief space, I shall review some common Islamic terms and outline the Islamic belief system.

Terms

Allah - Islamic name for God; but Muslims agree that it does not
     directly translate as "God"; thus, Allah is not the same as God
Ayatollah - a spiritual leader of Islam (lower than a caliph)
Caliph - one of the main leaders of Islam, especially, an immediate
     successor of Mohammad
Hadith - collection of Muslim traditions
Hajj - pilgrimage to Mecca
Islam - "submission"
Jihad - "the duty to engage in holy war against unbelievers
     or enemies of Islam if called upon to do so. It is one of the
     basic requirements of Muslim faith. Allah promises a
     heavenly reward to all who die in holy war." ¹
Mohammad - "the one who is praised" - founder of Islam,
     A.D. 570-632
Muslim - "one who submits"
Quran (Koran) - "the recitation" - revelations supposedly given to
     Mohammad by an angel; Islamic holy book; where a conflict
     occurs, it supersedes the Bible; the only authorized version is
     the Arabic version.
Shahada - Muslim statement of faith, "There is no god but Allah,
     and Mohammad is the prophet of Allah."
Surah - one of 114 divisions, or chapters, within the Koran

Beliefs

Walter Martin does not define Islam as a cult, but includes it with the "normative expressions of religion in our total culture." (ibid., p. 11). I disagree that Islam is normative, which Webster defines as "of or pertaining to a norm, esp. an assumed norm regarded as the standard of correctness in behavior, speech, writing, etc." Islam cannot be regarded as correct with regard to its beliefs or practices. Further, it exhibits the other common characteristics of a cult, namely, denying the Trinity and the divinity of Christ, extra-biblical sources that override the Bible, salvation by works, and a charismatic founder who demands strict obedience.

Like other cults, such as Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormonism, and Christian Science, Islam sloughs off inconvenient Bible teachings by declaring that the Bible has been corrupted, and that God has revealed to their founder the correct version. Those who believe the Bible is corrupted ignore the evidence provided by the Dead Sea Scrolls, which demonstrate the accurate transmission of the Bible over the centuries.

Islam teaches that Jesus Christ was a prophet (but Mohammad was a greater prophet), that Jesus did not die, that He was not the Son of God, and that it is blasphemy to describe God as our heavenly Father. All of these beliefs are totally inconsistent with clear biblical teachings. The Bible is replete with passages detailing the Christian beliefs on these issues. [Upon request I will provide scriptural references]

The Five Pillars of the Islamic Faith are:
     - daily recitation of the shahada
     - daily prayer toward Mecca
     - almsgiving (some Muslim nations tax their citizens 2.5%
             for this purpose)
     - daytime fasting during Ramadan
     - a pilgrimage to Mecca

Through the Pillars, Muslims seek a salvation by works, the reward for which is "an earthly paradise of gluttony and sexual gratification" (ibid., p. 366). The Day or Judgment will not come until "Jesus Christ returns to earth, breaks the cross and converts everyone to Islam, and until Muslims start attacking Jews... Muslims will fight and kill Jews, who will hide behind trees that say: 'Oh Muslim, oh servant of God, here is a Jew hiding behind me. Come here and kill him." ²

Such teachings are taught not only in Muslim-controlled nations, but also in Muslim schools in America such as the Islamic Saudi Academy in Northern Virginia. At such schools, teachers tell students it is OK for them to hurt or steal from non-Muslims.² Further, in some California public schools, students are required "to learn the tenets of Islam, study the important figures of the faith, wear a robe, adopt a Muslim name and stage their own Jihad." ³

Teaching at that Saudi Academy is not unique. "The persecution or elimination of non-Muslims has been a cornerstone of Islamic conquests and rule for centuries," writes Franklin Graham. "The Koran provides ample evidence that Islam encourages violence in order to win converts and to reach the ultimate goal of an Islamic world. Conversions from Islam to any other faith are often punishable by death." ⁴

Conclusion

Islam is a religion of hatred and violence. The tenets of Islam have nothing to do with love and peace, but encourage hostility and bloodshed against others, especially Jews.

America is a land of religious freedom. Yet in light of recent societal trends in our nation against hate speech and hate crimes, it seems appropriate to withdraw the veil of politically correct protection from Muslims. They must be held accountable, as other Americans are, for their hate speech, so rampant in their schools and in the public arena, and for any crimes that may result from it.

How should a Christian respond to a Muslim? Jesus taught that people will know that God has sent His Son into the world, only by our love. Arguing with Muslims, who are indoctrinated from childhood, is pointless. The most powerful and effective witness of Jesus is to live as He lived, showing love to our Muslim neighbors, who need Jesus as much as Christians do.


¹ Walter Martin, The Kingdom of the Cults, Bethany House Publishers, (1996), p. 367.

² Valerie Strauss and Emily Wax, Washington Post, Feb. 25, 2002, p. A1

³ See http://www.aclj.org/news/studentrights/020111_islam_in_schools.asp

⁴ Franklin Graham, "My View of Islam," The Wall Street Journal, Dec. 3, 2001.  

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