Islam and the Prophet of the Sword

On September 11th 2001, I was the Director of the Media Center of the State University of New York. Since we run both an NPR affiliated radio station and a Student & Public Access television station, we monitor the airwaves constantly, as well as having an AP newswire. All morning we were observing in real-time the events of that fateful day.

Later that afternoon, a number of MSA (Muslim Student Association) students came to my office and asked if we could put together a radio show the next evening highlighting peace and understanding. We racked everything into high gear and on Wednesday night (9-12) at eight we aired a two-hour special which included a panel of the following: a local imam, a rabbi from the nearby synagogue, a parish priest, and a Lutheran pastor. It was a very ecumenical panel which discussed the previous day’s events. In fact, we later won a college radio award for the show’s timeliness and content.

It was this discussion that involved me in the study of Islam. The MSA students and the imam were constantly stating that Islam is the faith of peace and that the name Islam means peace...that it was just a derivation of the word salam (shalom in Hebrew).

The next day, I went down to the university bookstore and bought my first book on Islam. Over fifteen books and a number of seminars later (including reading two authorized versions of the Qur’an), I can state definitively, Islam does not mean peace or is it the religion of peace. On the contrary, Islam is a faith of subversion and conflict. The Qur’an states that Allah as being the “best deceiver” (kheir ol makarein, suras 8:30; 10:22.) and that Allah is the “most deceitful” (suras 3:54 and 30:8). In sura 10:21, Allah is referred to be the “fastest in deceit.” Some politically correct translations use a form of the word “plan” instead of the original, “deceive” (thus, deceiver becomes planner). This sets the stage for the commands in Islam’s other most holy book, the Hadith (the sayings of Muhammad).

The most accepted hadith volume is the al Bukhari which states that it is perfectly acceptable to tell lies in order to get a temporary peace (in order to regroup). It states, “He who makes peace between people by inventing good (advantageous) information or saying good (advantageous) things, is not a liar (vol. 3.857).”

Muhammad even ordered mob-type hits and they are documented in the hadiths. In the al Bukhari (vol. 4.271), Allah’s Apostle says, “Who would kill Ka’b bin Al-Asharf (a local Jew) as has harmed Allah and His Apostle (with the words of a poem)? Immediately four of his followers, including one Muhammad bin Maslama, stood up and stated they would! They later returned with Ka’b’s head (sound familiar?).

There is no such thing as a “fundamentalist” Muslim in relation to a moderate Muslim. If one believes the words of the Qur’an and the Hadiths, as well as the Sunnah (the deeds or way of Muhammad), one is a Muslim, and by definition, all practicing Muslims are fundamentalists. I have yet to meet a Muslim who has backed away from anything stated in the Qur’an.

Another important aspect of Islam is the principle of abrogation. In earlier parts of the Qur’an, Muhammad entreats his followers to pray towards Jerusalem, the most holy of cities. He also said “people of the book” (the Bible - Christians and Jews) are esteemed people as well as being saved. This was stated, however, when he was trying to convert them to Islam. After being spurned by both Christians and Jews, a new revelation was proglumated which stated that they should be treated as any other kafir (unbeliever) and be converted or killed, or, because they are people of the book, be subjected to dhimma status (extreme tax paying second class people). After the rejection, a new revelation pointed Muhammad towards Mecca, the home of the Ka’ba, as the direction of daily prayers. Muhammad later exterminated all the remaining Jews (adult males; the women and children were sold into slavery) in his adopted town of Medina...the same people who had invited him in when he was in trouble.

Don’t just take my word for it...please study, investigate, read, research...and above all, do not permit the “allowable deceptions” of Islam to fool you. As a matter of fact, Islam does not mean, “to surrender and be content,” as Garza’s article states. It really means, “submit (and thus live)” or as one Islamic scholar put it, “Yes, it means peace...but by subjugation.” Remember, in Islam, Muhammad is referred to as “the prophet of the sword.”

Indeed, Islam breaks the world down to two parts, or “houses.” There is the “Dar’ al Islam” (the House of Submission) and the “Dar’ al Harb” (the House of War). If you are not a Muslim, guess which house you are in?

Greg Gulbrandsen
Director (Retired)
The Media Center
State University of New York
Bend, OR