I've spent the better part of my life studying various religions, Christianity, Judaism and Islam being the ones I've spent the most time on. I think a course in comparative religions should be a required course in school, because it is the study of human societal history and of human nature. Those who are especially devout to a particular religion won't like that idea at all, because it opens the minds of impressionable children to new and different ideas, something that religion is scared to death of.
Someone said it, we all know or should know who, that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. The fear of the unknown, the fear of something you don't understand, is the biggest fear we have. Why do you think religion was invented in the first place? It certainly wasn't to save our eternal souls. It was to explain the things we do not understand, everything from volcanos to earthquakes to comets to what happens when we die, which then gives us peace of mind.
This isn't to say there is no God. I'm not arrogant enough to say there is no God, anymore than I'm arrogant enough to say there is. God isn't the problem, religion is. It's a set of beliefs and rules used mainly to control the masses, and those who do not believe or think the same way you do, are either flat out wrong or are pure evil. Scare tactics are used to convince others to think the same way, if you don't believe the same as me then you will burn in Hеll for longer than forever. Some take it even further for more immediate results, where if you don't think like I want you to, or if you don't do things like I say, then I'll kill you. Christians are thinking, "Ah, hah! Muslims." And they'd be right. But they are forgetting that Christians do the same thing, just on a difference scale and with different methods.
Muslims consider Muhammad not to be a god or the inventor of a new religion, but rather the restorer of the original, uncorrupted monotheistic faith of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and others. Muhammad was a merchant and trader, but at the age of 40 he began receiving revelations from God. Actually had long conversations with God. The contents of these revelations and conversations were memorized and recorded by his Sahaba (kind of like the Apostles). Thus, Muslims believe the Qur'an is the verbatim word of God, or Allah. Many Christians believe the same about the Bible. Clearly, they both can't be right, since the text is wildly different.
In short order, Muhammad became not only a spiritual and religious leader, but a political and military leader, as well. He spent 12 years preaching to the people of Mecca, converting as many as he could, but the established Meccan authorities finally kicked him out, and he and his followers packed up and moved to Medina, where he continued his conversions. Very quickly, he exiled, enslaved or killed the Jewish clans of Medina, and his religious, political and military authority became well established. Within a couple of years he and his Muslim army had fought many battles, two big ones against Meccan forces, one of which he won and the other was a draw. But he set out to conquer all of the land and peoples surrounding Mecca, and succeeded, and he then simply cut Mecca off from anything in or out, zero trade, and it didn't take long for him to conquer Mecca with little or no blood spilled. By the time he died, Muhammad controlled the entire Arabian Peninsula.
These are the modest beginnings of Islam, and his successors followed in his military, political and religious footsteps to the point where they controlled an awful lot of land and people. Christians point to this as the reason to hate all Muslims. Yet Christians have had their fair share of the same stuff, and have been at it 600 years longer than Muslims.
Even though the similarities between Islam and Christianity are striking, they are incompatible religions. It is because of the similarities that cause Christians and Muslims to not play well and get along with each other. They never have. That's the perspective, that's what it all means. And until people realize the true meaning of religion, that of being controlled and wanting to control others, these two religions will continue to fight each on various scales, forever.
So, the people who are afraid we'll all be converted to Islam within 6 months, fear not. They've been trying to convert or kill non-Muslims since Muhammad, and non-Muslims, especially Christians, have been trying to do the same to Muslims, and many others. I don't see them winning any time soon.
Hey POORBOY...what you want to bet this is another 1 for me!!!
