Muslim Xenophobia
Two British teens were harmed "beyond imagination" in a Tanzania acid attack, apparently, one of them had been singing during Ramadan and, the day before, had been hit by a Muslim woman on account of it; but evidently, additional retaliation was needed.
I pray that Muslims will one day learn--as we Christians have--that Allah does not need to be defended against heathens, and neither does a religion need defense if Allah wants it to succeed. In the Old Testament--and Muslims also hold it sacred--we often see God punishing his people for not following his dictates after he had answered their prayers for one thing or another. There were admonitions not to follow other deities but we never see any direct orders from God (via OT or NT) asking that so-and-so group be eliminated strictly for their beliefs. God helps his believers in their struggle for survival even, it is said, helping out their armies but, again, no orders to attack the infidel come from God. Now, interestingly--and this may be the origin of certain Mohammedan beliefs--God does take revenge on ex-believers that were once helped and who then abandon Him for other gods but this principle does not apply to present hostilities because the Christian God, the Jewish God, and Muslim God are all one and the same.
For some reason, certain Muslims seem to think that their religion cannot survive on its own merits and must be adhered to even by non-believers in their country. While a predominantly Muslim country has a right to restrict Western influence, it can't have its cake and eat it too. If it is to continue taking in tourists' money and outright help from Christian governments, it must be more tolerant of us. This is where democracy comes in. If the majority feel that Islam is so fragile that it must be segregated from all Western influence, then fine, I would lobby for their right to do so.
Sometimes, I think that the absence of any central authority is to blame. What Islam needs to co-exist among other non-Muslim nations is a top Imam. They could also use a minor change in the Koran which says that Christians laymen are not to be trusted. That may have had validity in Mohammed's time, but today the Christian layman is more observant of his religion. It is, IMHO, no longer applicable and only serves to encourage attacks by Muslims on Christians.
Christians have had time to realize that the crusades and the Spanish Inquisition were wrong in using the name of God to inflict harm on fellow humans even if it took us centuries to learn. The need for that kind of retrospection in today's age carries with it a degree of earnestness and impatience that mankind has never experienced. It's easy for me to say, I know, but dirty bombs and other forms of possible terrorism mean that Muslim xenophobia needs expeditious resolution.
I pray that Muslims will one day learn--as we Christians have--that Allah does not need to be defended against heathens, and neither does a religion need defense if Allah wants it to succeed. In the Old Testament--and Muslims also hold it sacred--we often see God punishing his people for not following his dictates after he had answered their prayers for one thing or another. There were admonitions not to follow other deities but we never see any direct orders from God (via OT or NT) asking that so-and-so group be eliminated strictly for their beliefs. God helps his believers in their struggle for survival even, it is said, helping out their armies but, again, no orders to attack the infidel come from God. Now, interestingly--and this may be the origin of certain Mohammedan beliefs--God does take revenge on ex-believers that were once helped and who then abandon Him for other gods but this principle does not apply to present hostilities because the Christian God, the Jewish God, and Muslim God are all one and the same.
For some reason, certain Muslims seem to think that their religion cannot survive on its own merits and must be adhered to even by non-believers in their country. While a predominantly Muslim country has a right to restrict Western influence, it can't have its cake and eat it too. If it is to continue taking in tourists' money and outright help from Christian governments, it must be more tolerant of us. This is where democracy comes in. If the majority feel that Islam is so fragile that it must be segregated from all Western influence, then fine, I would lobby for their right to do so.
Sometimes, I think that the absence of any central authority is to blame. What Islam needs to co-exist among other non-Muslim nations is a top Imam. They could also use a minor change in the Koran which says that Christians laymen are not to be trusted. That may have had validity in Mohammed's time, but today the Christian layman is more observant of his religion. It is, IMHO, no longer applicable and only serves to encourage attacks by Muslims on Christians.
Christians have had time to realize that the crusades and the Spanish Inquisition were wrong in using the name of God to inflict harm on fellow humans even if it took us centuries to learn. The need for that kind of retrospection in today's age carries with it a degree of earnestness and impatience that mankind has never experienced. It's easy for me to say, I know, but dirty bombs and other forms of possible terrorism mean that Muslim xenophobia needs expeditious resolution.
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