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ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY: CLASH OF CIVILAZATIONS

1. Ancient History of Islam

2. Beliefs of Islam

3. Differences in Islam

4. Middle and Modern History of Islam

5. Doctrines of Islam

6. Sons of Abraham

7. Woman�s Life Under Islam

8. Observations Concerning Islam

9. The Spirit of Islam

10. America Under Attack

11. Causes for the Current State of Islamic Societies

12. What Do I Need to Know About Islam?

13. Insights Into What Islam Teaches

14. Contemporary Islam: Monolithic But Diverse

15. Clash of Civilizations Copyright May, 2002

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ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY�CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS by Steve Plaster Session 1: Ancient History of Islam Islam is the most recent of the worldwide religions. Islam�s founder was Muhammed, born in Mecca about 570 A.D. He was orphaned and raised by an uncle named Abu Talib. By vocation, in his early years, he was a trader on camel caravans between Mecca, Saudi Arabia and Damascus, Syria. At about age 25 he married a widow named Khadijah. Although she had two other husbands before Muhammed, he had only the one wife at that time. He finally had a total of twelve wives throughout his life. He had six children. Of these, only four daughters survived. His religious ministry lasted about 20 years until his death in 632 A.D. His revelations and utterances were gathered by followers and published within three years of his death. The revelations recorded in the Koran were purportedly delivered in a dream by the angel Gabriel. This is revealed in the Koran � Sura 96 vs. 1-5: �Recite in the name of thy Lord Who created man of a clot of blood. Recite thy Lord is most gracious Who taught by means of the son. Taught man what he knew not.� Muhammed�s first missionary efforts were to the city of Medina. In Saudi Arabia at that time there existed three religious beliefs: Judaism, Christianity, and paganism. Islam�s political goals at the time were to end blood feuds between tribes and clans by offering security through arbitration by the prophet himself based upon his revelations from God (known as Allah). The theme of Islam is: �There is no god but Allah�. This cornerstone of religious belief is in conflict with the Christian concept of the trinity where Christ is a co-equal of the triune God rather than a prophet such as Moses and as Muhammed claims to be. The Koran consists of 114 chapters known as �SURA�s�. The Koran is not organized chronologically nor by subjects, but the writings are grouped loosely along the major events of the earthly life of Mohammed. Muhammed viewed Islam as a later and more perfect revelation of God that began with Judaism and Christianity. By the end of Mohammed�s life, Islam had become the national religion of the Arabs with a vision of a national theocratic state.

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After Arabia was fully converted to Islam in 632 A.D., the caliphs sought to expand the influence of Islam in other countries by wars of aggression-- to conquer nations and spread the religion of Islam by imposition. Yemen was conquered in 633 A.D. Syria was conquered in 635 A.D. Iraq was conquered in 637 A.D. Egypt was conquered in 640 A.D. Iran was conquered in 642 A.D.

There are at present 1.2 billion Muslims in the world. The Koran, which is based upon revelation, is complemented by the Sunna, which is a collection of writings based upon tradition. Neither the KORAN nor the SUNNA contain Moslem law. There are four schools of law and jurisprudence which form the laws of nations influenced in matters of law by one of the four: 1. that of Turkey and Sunni Muslims 2. that of Egypt and North Africa 3. that of Arabia and parts of India

4. that of Syria and Iran Shiite Muslims These systems of law were formulated and codified between 767 and 855 A.D. In Islam there is no concept of natural law. Every event is an arbitrary act of God where nothing is constant and nothing is impossible. The Koran contains some 6000 verses and about 78,000 words� making it just under the size of the New Testament. The Koran is a series of sayings liberally scattered with military conquests.

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Muhammed�s first successor was Ali, his cousin and son-in-law. Those who follow Ali claim that only a descendant of Mohammed should be the leader of the Muslim religion. His title and that of his successors is �Iman�, which means �faith�, but in practice means successor to the prophet. The Iman is recognized by Muslims as infallible in spiritual authority and is endowed with sinless perfection. Finally, the claims are made that Ali did not die, but is in concealment, waiting to return to this world as the �Mahdi� (the one who is guided) to establish peace and righteousness. The concept of �Fana� is the pious belief in losing self and individuality and becoming one with God, i.e. to be in union with God. More so than other outward practices which differ from the West, this belief is central to the rejection by the modern Islamic world of the western concept of �individual rights� as defined in the U.S. Constitution, and �enlightened self-interest� as outlined in Adam Smith�s Wealth of Nations as the key principle of free market capitalism. The Arabic term �Allah� is not an oriental deity but rather is the equivalent Arabic word for the English word �God�. In Islam, God has no gender, no character, no personality, and no nature. This is why Muslims make no attempt to define God or to know God. The concept of Allah was borrowed from the astral god of the pagan Bedouin Arabs. In the simplest terms, a Muslim�s central belief is to know and do the will of God. Islam is a legalistic system of �do�s� and �don�t�s� to guide the individual to do the will of God. In Islam, you die for Allah. In Christianity, God dies for you! Since the will of God is an ideal, it is never fully attainable by a Muslim, but the effort is to be made. The Islamic community looked at as an ideal belief system is unifying but is diverse in applying how to do the will of God.

The creed of Islam consists of five obligations:

1. the profession of faith 2. daily prayer 3. giving of alms 4. the feasting of Ramadan 5. a pilgrimage to Mecca

Muslims do revere past spiritual leaders as �saints�, which are prayed to for intercession with Allah on behalf of the petitioner.

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Very few relics have been designated for religious importance in Islam. Mosques (places of public prayer) are generally empty, i.e. no chairs, no tables, no pictures, no altar, etc. Probably the most visible relic in the Muslim world is the Ka�aba in Mecca. The Ka�aba is an empty room except for a black stone purported to have been placed by Abraham while on his search for Hagar and Ishmael, who had ventured to Arabia and the nearby well of Zamzam for water.

In Islam, God is one who predestines both good and evil in the world. In Islam, there is no assurance of eternal security, but those condemned to hell are expiated (freed) so that in the end all true Muslims will be saved.

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In Islam, your fate is determined by Allah�s will. Allah is the creator and cause of all man�s deeds. Therefore, man is not �individually (apart from Allah) responsible� for his actions. This belief is the cause of the terrorist�s attitude that:

1. He is acting in God�s will. 2. He is not individually responsible for his violent activities.

This belief system is �determinism� at its worst. The Christian concepts of common sense applied to morality and conscience applied to right and wrong are different, moral, and just.

In a Moslem state, obedience to rulers is expected. This is the political essence of any fundamentalist Moslem state where the Iman is the divinely ordained authority of church and state. This system is predominant in Iran. In family life the following rules are practiced:

1. Men may have up to four wives at one time. 2. Divorce is a simple act. 3. Women do not pray with men in the mosques. 4. Women form an inferior class below men. 5. Gambling is forbidden. 6. Drinking is forbidden. 7. Women must be veiled.

In historical terms, Islam has incorporated parts of Christianity and Judaism into its beliefs and practices, and then claimed them for its own as beliefs and practices. Two sites in present day Israel are considered important as holy places to Muslims. These are Jerusalem, which is believed to be the place where Muhammed ascended to heaven, and Hebron, believed by Christians, Jews, and Muslims to be the burial place of the patriarch Abraham.

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Session 2: The Beliefs of Islam Of the 1.2 billion Muslims, it is estimated that 5% are fundamentalists and less than 1% are terrorists. There are six million Muslims in the U.S. What is the name given to a person the most frequently in the world? Muhammed About 25% of African slaves� which numbered 10 million people between 1619 and 1863� brought to America were Muslims, including Kunta Kinte of Roots. The first major division in Islam is between Shi�ite and Sunni. Ten percent of all Muslims are Shi�ite while ninety percent are Sunni. Both Shi�ite and Sunni believe the following:

1. the five pillars 2. the Koran 3. the prophet Muhammed

They differ in that Shi�ites follow the traditions and teachings of Muhammed�s cousin and son-in-law, Ali. Shi�ites are dominant in Iran and southern Iraq. A third smaller sect of Islam is known as Ismaili Muslims, led by the Aga Khan who, it is claimed, is a descendent of Mohammed and claims, through heredity, the right of spiritual leadership and interpretation of the Koran to be the true Islam. There are in the U.S. 2000 mosques, 200 Islamic schools, and 200,000 owner/operated Muslim companies. Islam, in practice, differs in each country due to the country�s native culture and its local clerics� and scholars� views and teachings. Islam, along with Christianity and Judaism, is monotheistic, rather than polytheistic, believing in one God. Muslims believe in the virgin birth of Jesus, but that he was created, like Adam, and is a prophet, not the Son of God. Koran�Sura 3 vs. 42-47 Islam, in my view, will grow in America for these reasons:

1. Our constitutional freedoms will permit, not inhibit, it. 2. Former culture barriers in each Islamic country do not exist. 3. Local scholars and clerics do exist (study of the Koran is open).

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Muslims believe in an end of world catastrophe headed by their version of the devil known as DAJJAL. He is defeated by a returning Jesus, who is then defeated by the angel of death known as AZRAIL while praying at the Dome of the Rock. Gender inequality is a Muslim cultural oppression rather than an Islamic religious system. The issues involve: pre-arrangement of marriage, male polygamy, veiling, easy divorce, severe punishment for adultery, reduced property rights, prohibitions to schooling and working, and gender segregation in public gatherings (purdan). Historical beliefs: The creation� �Your Lord is Allah, who in six days created the heavens and the earth and then ascended His throne�7-54. (Gen. 1) The birth of Jesus� �The angels said to Mary: Allah bids you rejoice in a Word from Him. His name is the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary. He shall be noble in this world and the next, and shall be favored by Allah.� 3:45 (Luke 1:28-36) Cain and Abel� �Recount to them in all truth the story of Adam�s two sons; how they each made an offering, and how the offering of the one was accepted while that of the other was not.� 5:30 (Gen. 4:1-16) The Flood� �Long before them, the people of Noah denied our signs. They disbelieved our servant and called him a madman�We opened the gates of heaven with pouring rain and caused the earth to burst with gushing springs, so that the waters met for a predestined end�� 54:8-13 (Genesis 6-9) It is recorded that Muhammed was illiterate (could not read or write) but that he was well acquainted with the O.T. of Judaism and the N.T. of Christianity. His incorporation of Biblical accounts from these sources is due, not to his own verbal inspiration, but by his re-affirmation of writings as he said from the Koran. �Be courteous when you argue with People of the Book (Bible)� We believe in that which is revealed to us and which was revealed to you�� 39:45 The Priesthood� Islam is devoid of a priesthood and a sacrificial system. There is no altar. �You have no patron or intercessor other than Him.� 32:4 This is quite different from the Levitical system of Judaism and the Roman Catholic system of Christianity. (Exodus 28:3)

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Judgment Day� �On that day the trumpet shall be sounded and all who dwell in heaven and earth be seized with fear, except those whom Allah will be pleased to save�Those who have done good shall be rewarded with what is better, and shall be secure from the terrors of that day. But those that have done evil shall be hurled headlong into the fire.� 27:87-91 (Rev. 20:7-15) Heaven and Hell� �As for those that have faith and do good works, Allah will admit them to gardens watered by running streams.� 22:23 (I Thess. 4:14-17) �The damned shall be cast into the fire of Hell where, groaning and wailing, they shall abide as long as the heavens and earth endure, unless your Lord ordains otherwise.� 11:106 War� �To fight for Allah and be slain is to receive a vast reward.� 4:74 The spreading of Islam is like a series of military missionary outreaches. The Sunni Muslim belief in jihad (holy war) is generally defined as an internal struggle between good and evil. The Shi�ite Muslim belief in jihad is generally defined as military revolution-style war. (Iran and Iraq) The underpinnings to jihad are: 1. An eye for an eye retribution through war 2. Good and evil are clearly and easily distinguishable. 3. God is on our side. 4. War is justified to kill infidels.

Muhammed, unlike Christ, performed no attested miracles and made no claim to divinity. Islam is a religion of works, but with a fatalistic outlook toward meaning and purpose. The words of Omar Khayyam in the Rubaiyat are illustrative of this: �Ah, my beloved, fill the cup that clears Today of past regrets and future fears. Tomorrow�Why tomorrow I may be Myself with yesterday�s seven thousand years.�

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Session 3 Differences in Islam The Shi�ites are the Muslim followers of Ali who claim that Ali, cousin and son-in-law to Muhammed, and his descendents are the rightful successors to Islam�s leadership. The successors to Muhammed through his family are called Imans. There were twelve Imans between 610 and 941 A.D. All twelve were assassinated by political rivals. The last Iman is to be the Mahdi (one guided by God) who returns to usher in the final judgment. In the meantime Shi�ites are led by Mullahs, who are theological scholars trained in Koranic law and tradition. The Sunnis are the Muslim followers who, following Muhammed�s death, recognize a succession of caliphs (political rulers) of an Islamic region. The Sunnis are more accepting of diversity in cultural and political areas, whereas the Shi�ites are intolerant. In Shi�ite Islam, the leading Iman is sinless and infallible in spiritual matters. The first most-important concept in Islam is the oneness of a sovereign God and the forbidding of idols representing other deities. �Despite this, they take in preference to Him, other gods, who create nothing, themselves having been created.� 25:2 The concept of the oneness of God is known as TAWHID and co-opted the Judaic YAHWEH and the Christian God as Father, while displacing all the animist deities of nature as well as the astral deities above nature. Today the leading Shi�ite nation is Iran. Iran as Persia was a monarchy dating back to 559 B.C. under Cyrus. The monarchy ended in 1979 with the fall of the Shah. Today in Iran there are two leaders: Khamenei the religious leader and Khatami the political leader. Concerning the ethnic make-up of the population: 51% are Persian, 24% are Azerbaijanis, 7% are Kurds, 3% are Arabs, and 15% are tribal groups. There are 64 million in the population. 90% are Shi�ites. Iran produces 9% of the world�s oil supply. After this, its other two main exports are carpets and pistachio nuts. Iranian men wear the black head turban which signifies they are Shi�ites.

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In the Koran, the account of Abraham�s obedience to sacrifice his son on an altar but is allowed to substitute a ram is recorded as in Biblical Genesis 22:13 except that Ishmael (Ismail) rather than Isaac was the son offered. Matters of law and policy are decided by Imans in Shi�ite countries, whereas by consensus of the people (unless prevented by a totalitarian regime) in Sunni countries. Shi�ite leadership is hereditary, whereas Sunni leadership is based upon clan and tribal power and interests. To understand Islamic moral, ethical, and legal belief, it is necessary to bring together three factors. These factors are: 1. the Koran 2. knowledge of the Arabic language 3. the tradition of local customs These three factors constitute moral, ethical, and legal beliefs, rules, and practices. The problem with this is threefold: First, both the Koran and oral tradition are subject to interpretation. Second, there is disagreement as to who is responsible for the interpretation. In Shi�ite belief it is the hereditary Iman, whereas in Sunni belief, it is the religious scholars known as the ulema. Third, the incorporation of local customs and traditions is very diverse� many cultures, myths, and philosophies. These are rooted in clan and tribal heredity and do not source from or reflect any national boundaries.

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Islamic allegiances are to clan and tribe foremost and in a broad way to Islam. The bonds are in order of importance:

(1) ethnicity�clan and tribe (2) religion�Islamic sect: Shi�ite, Sunni, Ishmael, Alawi (3) political�nations of Syria, Iraq, etc.

Race plays no part in allegiances. Hence, the appeal to those for whom this matters, and the lack of race as a barrier to inclusion. Finally, language, being universally Arabic, causes no divisions among Islamic peoples. In non-Arabic countries (Turkey), though Arabic is a second language. There is very limited allegiance to any given Islamic nation as a nation or a government except for economic gain. There are no Islamic democracies (except Turkey) but rather four types of political governments. These are: 1. royal monarchies�Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Jordan 2. religious totalitarian regimes--Iran 3. dictatorial regimes�Libya, Iraq, and Syria 4. constitutional monarchies�Morroco The family of the Prophet Mohammed was part of the clan of Hasem. Today, the kings of Jordan and Saudi Arabia claim their thrones, as Hashemites, descended from the clan of the Prophet. There are three principal legal systems in the world: the Roman, the English, and the Muslim. Roman law is principaled on theory and is humanistic. Roman law dominates in most Catholic nations in Europe. South America is comprised of formerly Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese colonies. The English system is practical, based on experience known as case law, has a Biblical base, and is rooted in the concept of natural rights. English law dominates in North America, Canada, Great Britain and in formerly British colonies. Islamic law exists in all Muslim countries and may co-exist with English law in some. In Islam, the bulk of the Koran concerns how to do the will of God. These precepts are extracted as duties of do�s and don�t�s, as to how the Muslim believer is to behave. There is a hierarchy of precepts and of duties linked together as belief and action for the individual, which yields the Islamic law. These are not commandments, nor laws as in Biblical law.

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In Islamic law, most civil matters are resolved before a judge, known as a qadi, who considers evidence and testimony to administer the law. Questions of law, its meaning and intent, are decided by a judge, who, being a legal specialist is known as a mufti. His treatises on the law are known as fatwas. The guardians of religious learning and shared beliefs, values, and practices form a class in society known as the ulema. These persons are: prayer leaders in mosques, leaders at the shrines, and teachers at religious schools. The legal system is known as the sharia. Cultural values guided by the sharia include:

1. Slavery is permitted but only for non-Muslims. 2. Muslim women forbidden from marrying a non-Muslim man 3. Conversion of a Muslim to any other religion is forbidden. 4. Women may be pledged and given in marriage without their consent 5. A man may divorce his wife without a reason and with no legal, religious, or administrative proceedings. 6. Custody of children (at various ages) goes automatically to the man. 7. Men are permitted up to four wives at a time. 8. rules of inheritance of property�wives restricted to 1/3 and daughters to ½ of what sons receive 9. The testimony of a woman is only worth ½ that of a man.

An Islamic scholar has said about the legal system that, �Custom provides the substance and the sharia the form (of the law).� Within Islam there are several traditions, which represent the approach to interpretation of the Koran. First, there is the Ashari, which is the tradition of the defense of the theology of the Koran through logic, deduction, and logical reasoning. Second, there is imamate which is the tradition whereby the Imans, by divine authority, interpret the Koran based upon secret knowledge given to them by Muhammed and require absolute obedience from Shi�ite Muslims. There was within the developing years of Islamic conquest the formation of three different cultures. These are pre-dominant today but additional cultures have been grafted into Islam. The first culture was that of the Arab which centered on Arabia and spread to include Iraq and Iran. Later, the Arabian culture would align with the second culture of Egypt and Syria. Finally, the third culture called the Maghrib extended west to include North Africa and Spain. Typical of the culture of Baghdad are the stories told in Arabian Nights collected between the tenth and twelfth centuries.

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Third, there is the tradition of the Sunna which is the practice of the lifestyle of the Prophet and the first Islamic community. The Sunna provides guidance regarding applying to life the duties and obligations of the Koran. These writings are not claimed to be divinely authoritative, but are informally authoritative as lifestyle guidelines. The need for a sharia as a code of law was developed between about 632 A.D.and 1100 A.D. The law and administration of justice was needed to regulate new lands being conquered as well as administer justice within Arabic Muslim countries where conflicts over leadership occurred. The ulema were formed to codify the sharia based upon the delegation of informal authority to perform this function. There are four schools of religious thought in Islam dating back to the 9th century. These are the Malikite, the Shafi�ite, Hanbalite, and the Hanifite schools. The differences are not significant to a non-muslim. All four schools make up the Sunni Muslim belief. The key link is that each is based upon reasoning by analogy. The second link is the process of consensus of ulema rulings with the wider Muslim community which they serve.

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Session 4�Middle and Modern History of Islam Between the 15th and 18th centuries, the Muslim world was dominated by the Ottoman Empire with headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey. The Ottoman dynasty consisted of Turks and central Asian Mongols. Its early leaders were Osman and Tamerlane. The road to power was due to the following:

1. weakening of other former dynasties due to the effects of the black plague 2. conquering the Byzantine empire of Greece 3. effective use of arms with guns and gunpowder brought along the Silk Trade route from China 4. the attention rival Spain paid toward the New World

The founder of the Ottoman empire was Osman. His heirs ruled for four hundred years and in some cases nearly 600 years until 1917. His leading political authority was known as the grand �vizir�. A council of leaders known as the �divan� administered the affairs of government. The royal family ruler was known as the Sultan. Those members of the ruling elite were an aristocratic class known as the �asker�. All others were of the commoner�s class known as �reaya�. Asker means soldier. Reaya means the flock. The capital of the Ottoman empire located at Istanbul was administered by the royal family from the Topkapi palace which still stands as a museum today. The building of minarets, the structure for the call to prayer by the muezzin, was an architecture devised by the Ottomans. By the 18th century the Ottoman empire was in decline and the Muslim world in moral decay. The military and economic might was growing in European nations, which in turn began to colonize in Muslim dominated areas of the Ottoman empire. European powers ascended over Ottoman powers due to the following:

1. advances in medicine yielding population growth 2. worldwide navigation yielding trade in the East and wealth from the West (the New World) 3. exploitation of minerals and natural resources from worldwide colonies 4. development of manufacturing practices in factory systems 5. accumulation of capital wealth in trading companies 6. the decline in importance of the land-based trade route in Asia to move goods 7. improved communications (telegraph) and transportation (railroads) in Europe 8. rise of foreign empires as nations defeating in battle and colonizing Muslims in different areas (Great Britain, France, Russia) By 1917 all Muslim countries were under the control of one of these three countries.

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Between 1860 and 1914 Europeans controlled all Muslim countries. Land ownership migrated from public to private ownership (from the ruling families to those locals wealthy enough to buy land) accounting for 2/3 of all Muslim lands. In addition, 1/3 of all Muslim lands were owned by European investors. The rise in poverty in Muslim countries began in this period. Due to the breakdown of the ruling classes from governmental and administrative control and the loss of land ownership to concentrated ownership both domestic and foreign, fewer resources were available to claim and competition to succeed left the individual without a way to succeed economically. You can see this condition today in two ways. Some will dress in western style clothing and some in traditional tribal dress. Also the city lifestyle will be either modern western style architecture or ancient village-market (suq or bazaar) style. When I traveled to Morocco last year, I toured Fez, Rabat, and Meknes which has not changed in 500 years. Whereas, Casablanca is completely modern western style, and Marakesh has both an old city and a modern city component. Our images of Muslims were first formed by myth, legend, and poetry. First, in Arabian Nights with Sinbad, Aladdin, Ali Baba, and Bluebeard came the legends of wealth, magic, and the harem. Second, widely read Sir Walter Scott contrasted the chivalrous knight of Europe in Ivanhoe vs. the ruthless, military conqueror Saladin in The Talisman. Third, the German philosopher Hegel expounded upon the natural passing into history of Muslim rule by fulfilling its purpose in history from greatness to decline. Fourth, the Darwinian theory of evolution was used to explain the inferiority of Asian and African people of color and served as the basis for the superior Aryan race ideology over that of Semitic peoples prevalent in Germany. Finally, Rudyard Kipling wrote extensively of adventures in the Orient, contrasting British western culture with Indian Muslim and Hindu culture in books like Kim. These always depict British might and right and Arab and Indian cunning and ruthlessness, arguing that the two can never be reconciled in his phrase: �East is East and West is West and never the twain shall meet.� Catholic nun�s schools flourished from 1860 until 1962 in Muslim countries because mothers wanted to provide their daughters with the French or English language, good manners, female appropriate accomplishments, and protection.

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From 1917 until 1939, the strongest new force in the Muslim world was the rising spirit of nationalism. The immediate cause of WWI was the conflict in the Balkans between Russian backed Serbia and Austrian backed provinces south and west containing Muslim dominated regions which were also backed by Turkey. After 1917 Austria, Germany, and Turkey, as losers in WWI, ended the Ottoman empire. During the 1920�s Lawrence of Arabia helped the Arab peoples fight the last vestiges of Turkish control in the middle-East while leading the Arabs. From the 1920�s until 1962, some Muslim countries were formed as nation-states independent of British and French control. These included: Jordan in 1921 under Abdullah Husayn Syria in 1925 under Faysal Husayn Iraq in 1925 also under the same Faysal Husayn Lebanon in 1925 Turkey under Mustafa Kemal in 1938 Saudi Arabia under Abdal Aziz in 1953 When WWII ended, changes in the Muslim countries were inevitable due to the decline of influence of Great Britain, France, and to a lesser degree of Germany and Italy. New influences would be exerted by the emergence of two superpowers, formerly with little influence, the United States and the Soviet Union. Following the war, seven Arab nations saw it in their interest to form an Arab League of Nations in 1945 and this included Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. In 1948 Israel declared itself a nation. Sudan declared independence in 1955. Algiers and Morocco declared independence in 1956. Changes in Arab countries beginning in 1950 include:

1. population increases 2. shifting from rural to urban centers of much of the populace 3. increased building of roads, rail, communications and waterway infrastructures 4. increased exploration, drilling, and exportation of oil based upon foreign demand of industrialized nations 5. land ownership began to amass in many nations in members of the royal families 6. governments began to nationalize utilities, communications, transportation, and banking industries into public control 7. all countries assumed a centrally planned economic model 8. the political model followed one of these models� royal monarchy, military dictator, or dominant national party by force

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By the 1960�s the character of Arab nations could be described as: 1. movement toward Arab unity (OPEC formed in 1960) 2. embrace of socialist ideology 3. social reform 4. military and religious revolutions seeking control

In 1967 Egypt, Syria, and Jordan fought Israel and lost militarily and as well lost land occupied by Palestine. Between 1968 and 1970, three military dictators seized power: in Iraq--Saddam Hussein, in Syria--Hafiz Asad, and in Libya-- Muammar Qadhafi. Again in 1973, Egypt and Syria attacked Israel and once again lost the war. In 1973 OPEC raised oil prices significantly, causing a crisis and oil supply shortage in the West. In the 1970�s and 1980�s, Lebanon was destroyed by civil war. In the decade of the 1980�s, Iran became a theocracy and engaged in a fruitless war with Iraq. There continue to be forces of disunity within and between Muslim countries which include: 1. religious differences (Shi�ite vs. Sunni)

2 economic differences (rich vs. poor) 3. vocational differences (urban vs. rural jobs) 4. family practices (working women vs. domestic women) 5. gender inequality 6. social morality (dress and entertainment) 7. western ideals of change, individuality, freedoms vs. tradition, community, authoritarian controls.

In the decade of the 1980�s, the Soviet Union pulled out of Afghanistan after a decade-long war, then later dissolved as a superpower in 1989. In 1990 Iraq invaded Kuwait and was defeated in war in 1991 by the U.S. and a western coalition of nations. In 1993, 1998, 2000, and 2001 the force of terrorism against the U.S. struck in NYC, two embassies in Africa, on a U.S. ship, and again in NYC and Washington, DC. Today Muslim countries are devoid of democratic regimes and elections with only Turkey allowing the democratic voting process. Today there are 30 wars being engaged in the world. All but that in Afghanistan are local or regional in scope. Of the 30, 28 involve Muslim governments or communities. Two thirds of the world�s political prisoners are held in Muslim countries representing only 20% of the world�s population. Further, 80% of the worlds� executions are carried out in Muslim countries. In some Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran, no activity of Christian or Jewish religion is permitted except in a military base of the U.S. Oppression, torture, and death are practiced against Christians in Afghanistan and Indonesia.

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Session 5 The Doctrines of Islam

The main doctrines of Islam are the Five Pillars of Faith.

1. The Creed: �There is no God but Allah and Muhammed is His Prophet.� This is said 17 times each day by over 1 billion Muslims. The Islamic concept of God is as an impersonal, unknowable Person. He is a God of judgment, not of grace. He is the author of both good and evil. This is done to bear witness to the faith. 2. Prayer: five times each day facing Mecca

Prayer is repetitious praising Allah on a non-personal basis. There are no intercessors aiding prayer as with the Holy Spirit. This is done to ask for forgiveness.

3. Alms: Giving to the poor. Voluntary and non-voluntary giving of 1/40th of income This has an effect in that not enough is provided for social needs.

4. Fasting: 9th month for 30 days� Refrain from eating during daylight for a month. Celebrates the date of the first revelation of the Koran to Mohammed.

5. Pilgrimage: Once in a lifetime trip to Mecca� performance of rituals to be a necessary part to salvation. This is done to commemorate the plight of Ishmael at the well of Zam Zam. (Circle the Kaabah seven times. Throw stones at a pillar representing Satan)

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Articles of faith in Islamic belief include the following:

1. Death during jihad guarantees eternal life. 2. Marriage is required for every Muslim. 3. God is not the Father and Jesus is not the Son. 4. Sura 4:171 �Jesus was only a messenger of Allah�

Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that He should have a son.� 5. The crucifixion is denied.

Sura 4:157 �They slew him not nor crucified, but it appeared so unto them.� 6. Man is sinful only by his actions not by his nature since sin is lack of obedience to Allah. 7. Salvation must be earned by obedience to Allah and works of faith. 8. There is no redemptive act out of love on Allah�s part to himself redeem sinners. 9. There are four inspired works, (Torah, Psalms, Gospel, and the Koran) but the former three books have been corrupted by Christians and Jews. 10. There are six great prophets (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammed).

The last and greatest is Muhammed. (28 prophets, 313 messengers) 11. In the final days of resurrection and judgment, all will be assigned to heaven or

hell based upon the balance of good deeds outweighing bad deeds. Each will be judged and assigned, but no true Muslim will remain,

if so consigned, in hell forever. 12. There is a strong belief in predestination understood as all good and evil proceeds from divine will. This is the doctrine of fate or Kismet. It produces a fatalistic ideology. 13. Angels are good not evil. Their primary task is to record the good and evil deeds of man for evaluation at the last judgment.

The major difference between Christianity and Islam though is a living Savior and a dead prophet.

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Session 6 Sons of Abraham No one can deny the importance of Abraham to the three great monotheistic faiths. Why does everyone want to belong to the family of Abraham? Because of Abraham�s call in Genesis 12:1-3, everyone will be either blessed or cursed depending on how they relate to Abraham. Further, God promised the land of Canaan to the descendents of Abraham. Finally, as we are told in Genesis 18, God promises an heir which will produce many nations. To whom are these promises of blessing, land, and nations directed? The promises were spoken to Abraham and his seed (singular). This seed is not plural and finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. This is made clear in Galatians 3:16 �Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, and to seeds as of many; but as of one, and to thy seed which is Christ.� Therefore the inheritance is through a person, Jesus Christ, and not through the law nor through a physical genealogy. Many would like to claim that we are all�Christians, Jews, Muslims alike� part of one big happy �family of Abraham�. However, this connection is little more than saying we are all part of the human race through Adam and Noah. The crucial point of inclusion is not physical but spiritual. The stumbling block is belief in the person of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Jews reject Christ outright and the Muslims deny His deity, incarnation, atonement, resurrection, and the trinity. One of the often forgotten prophecies of Scripture is the proper name given to individuals by God which are pre-indicative of their lives. In naming the second born Isaac, which means �laughter�, God prefigures the parents� joy and disbelief in Sarah�s bearing a son while in old age. In naming Ishmael, the first born, which means �God hears�. God beforehand declares his compassion for Hagar some 15 years later during her distress. (Genesis 16:11) The family of Abraham was divided and included strife, selfishness, and division. These are directly apparent from the record in Genesis 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 25. There was rivalry for prominence between Sarah and Hagar and between Isaac and Ishmael. Muhammed, as a descendent of Ishmael, has perpetuated the spirit of rivalry. The present-day alienation of Muslims goes directly back to the tragedy of the events of the break-up of Abraham�s family. Muslims today lament the shame of Ishmael�s early expulsion from the tents of Abraham. How prophetic it is to witness the outworking of Genesis 16:12! �He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone�s hand (will be) against his, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.� Muslim families, tribes, clans, and nations slaughter each other. Their only commonality is the false religion of Islam.

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Looking at the character of Ishmael is also informative. As Hagar bore Ishmael, she experienced fear, anger, and hostility. As the years progressed, Ishmael grew up at Abraham�s side, believing, as firstborn, he would be the heir. Along comes Isaac, born of the free woman, Sarah, who pre-empted Ishmael�s place as heir. Ishmael�s hostility to Isaac and propensity to violence were rooted in the sin of jealousy of Isaac. Today Muslims consciously and some unconsciously embrace and act out in violence this age-old rivalry seeking the reward of the blessings promised to Isaac. Remembering the profile of Ishmael stated in Genesis 16:12 there is more regarding the character of a wild donkey which typifies Ishmael. In Job 39:5-8 �Who let the wild donkey go free? Who untied his ropes? I gave him the wasteland as his home, and the salt flats as his habitat. He laughs at the commotion in the town; he does not hear a driver�s shout. He ranges the hills from his pasture and searches for any green thing.� Ishmael, too, was strong, wild, and free. He would probably be difficult, hold others in contempt, despise city life, guard well his freedom, and not get along with kin or strangers. We are told in Genesis 25:16: �These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their towns, and by their encampments, twelve princes according to their nations.� These names recorded in Genesis 25:13-15 are: Nebojoth�prophecies; Kedar�darkness; Adbul�chastened of God; Mibsam�fragrant; Mishma�a hearing; Dumah�silence; Massa�burden; Hadad�noisy; Tema�southern, Jetur�he will encircle; Naphish�refreshing; and Kedemah�eastern. The tragedy of Hagar�s life begins as she is born in slavery in Egypt, through a divisive family life with Abraham, to finally being cast out. It is apparent from Scripture that both Abraham and Sarah were willing that Hagar perish. However, God loved her and intervened to save and protect both her and Ishmael. God is love and He is not willing that any perish. God provided a well with water to give them life. Today Muslims re-enact Hagar�s desperate search for water as they run between the hills of Safa and Marwa while on their pilgrimage to Mecca. The event is climaxed by reaching the well of Zamzam and drinking from the well in memory of God�s mercy to Hagar. (Genesis 16:7) (Genesis 21:14 and 21) Finally, as to Ishmael, most Christians believe that God cursed him but in fact, He blessed Ishmael. Genesis 21:18 says to Hagar in the wilderness. �Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation�. And in verse 20, �God was with the boy as he grew up.� God loves him and so, too, Christians should love Muslims.

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One of the legacies of the blessings brought through the descendents of Ishmael concerns the contributions made in science and the arts between the 9th and 12th centuries. First, contributions in the area of astronomy gave us the concepts of azimuth, zenith, and nadir. Second, in the area of mathematics, Muslims gave us the Arabic numbering system, and the concept of zero; also in algebra, the concept of root and power; in geometry, the concept of cubes; and in trigonometry the concept of tangents. Third, in medicine, came the discovery and use of the chemicals of alcohol, alkali (alkaselzer), and ammonia; also, the study of anatomy in animals was developed.

The key thing to remember concerning the promises by God to Isaac vs. Ishmael is that Isaac�s heirs were promised a land, a king, and a kingdom, whereas Ishmael�s heirs are promised a nation. There is a spiritual future attached to Isaac, but only an earthly national status attached to Ishmael. Although Arabs are descendents of Shem and are Semites as are the Jews, the peoples of North Africa such as the Berbers and the Tuaregs are descendents of Ham.

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Session 7 The Woman�s Life Under Islam There is an increase in the number of Muslims seeking Christian and even Jewish wives. There are two reasons for this phenomenon:

1. Islam teaches that Allah will be pleased and love the man more if an unbeliever is converted to Islam. 2. During the marriage ceremony, the unbeliever is made, knowingly or not, a convert in Islamic law.

Islamic men are not always truthful when marrying an unbeliever. First, Muslim men are taught in the hadith that �Allah loves those who outwit (lie) the best.� Second, marriage entitles the non-citizen Muslim male to a green card for U.S. citizenship if the woman is a U.S. citizen. Male chauvenism is the way of life in Islam. �And women shall have rights similar to the rights against them�but men have a degree (superiority) over them.� Sura 2:228 Treatment of the wife by the Muslim husband is not always based upon love, sharing, partnership, or rights. First, the wife is viewed as a sex object. I am ashamed to read to you from the Koran, and I have only selected one disgusting passage out of many. Sura 2:223 says, �your wives are as a field to be plowed unto you. So approach your field when or how you will.� Second, the wife is subject to male abuse of whatever kind and any kind. Sura 4:34 says �As to those women on whose part you feel disloyalty and ill conduct, admonish them,�beat them��. Muslim families are patriarchal because of the authority of the husband, but this authority is supported by several legal and cultural advantages.

1. Polygamy is as old as recorded time and as recent as Mormon practice. In Islam �A man may marry up to four wives at one time.� Sura 4:3 2. Children must be raised according to their Muslim father�s religion. If the couple

divorces, the husband receives custody of the children. Neither is adoption of children permitted. The sharia states that �in mixed marriages, the children

will follow the better of the two religions of their parents.� Sura 3:19 3. Regarding inheritance at the husband�s death, the unbelieving wife gets nothing or for the Muslim wife a limited maximum percentage only. �In what you leave their wives� share is a fourth if you leave no children, but if you leave a child, the wife gets an eighth after payment of legacies and debts.� Sura 4:12 4. Divorce is permitted by the husband only and is simple and legal. This is accomplished by saying, �I divorce you� three times face to face. Sura 2:229-230 5. Finally, women can only attain heaven through their husbands.

�I was shown hell fire and the majority of its dwellers were women.� Hadith

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Islam has been a closed religion to the western world because: 1. The Koran was translated from the Arabic only in the 1960�s. 2. There is only one Christian missionary per one million Muslims. 3. The wife is the man�s possession and is not permitted to travel alone.

The Koranic obligation for women is to present themselves with public modesty. This instruction is based upon Sura 24 and the dress code of the Prophet�s family recorded in the Sunna. The practice is known as veiling and is carried out in different styles of head covering in different societies. In Iran a chador is used, in Pakistan and Morocco a Niqab is used, in Syria a Hijab is used, and in Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan a burka is used. Muslims do not believe modest dress code is to subordinate women but rather is their means to have freedom of movement in society. In Egypt, veiling by women is a voluntary act, whereas in Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan, it is mandatory under law. In Christianity, a woman�s head covering is a sign of Christian order I Cor 11:5-11 says, �But every woman that prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head (husband)�� �For this cause ought the woman to have authority (covering) on her head because of the angels.� Interestingly, the practice is the same in both Christian and Muslim teaching but the reasons are different and the actual practice is different.

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Session 8 Observations Concerning Islam A Christian will say, �Love the sinner, hate the sin.� Similarly, we need to love the Muslim (who is not a terrorist) and understand Islam for what it is. Islam is a religion which incorporates culture into its dogma. Its theology is at odds with Christianity as has been discussed. Denial of Christ while learning about Him and then rejecting Him as God and pursuing worldwide Islamic domination is a threat to the American way of life and Christian foundation. In America, freedom of speech and freedom of religion permit and protect Islam as a religion and allow Muslims to practice and proselytize freely. However, the reverse is not true in Islamic countries. Christianity is not permitted in most Islamic countries. Teaching, preaching, and proselytizing by Christians are punishable from coercion to death depending on the country. Think about all of the cultural beliefs and practices we have discussed. Now take these practices and incorporate them into U.S. constitutional, civil, and criminal laws, and the result will be a loss of our liberties and a legalistic cultural system that very few Americans could endure after having lived in freedom. Every Islamic country has a partial theocracy for a political system. There is no separation of church and state anywhere within Islamic nations. Clerics have the most political influence in Iran and the least in Turkey. It�s interesting that only one Islamic country has a modicum of democracy and that is Turkey. The political goal of Islam is to conquer the world by military means when necessary. The Koran states this, the history of conquests demonstrates this, and the current rhetoric of many clerics, religious schools, some political leaders and militant organizations proves this. This is a system seeking world domination. In the war between Serbia and Bosnia, what country came to the defense of the Muslims in Bosnia? Not one Muslim country did so, but the U.S. did. Why then does not any Muslim nation tell their people that the U.S. should be applauded and supported for supporting the freedom and rights of the Muslim peoples in Bosnia? Ask yourself, �Why should a Christian examine the teachings and doctrines of Islam? I Thess. 5:21 tells us, �Test all things, hold fast what is good.� If a Christian wants to convince Muslims of the inadequacy of Islam, he should be able to identify and contradict the inadequacies of their religion. Muhammed attributes his revelation to the angel Gabriel (Sura 2:97-98) but Paul warns in Galatians 1:8, �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.�

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Jews and Christians do not need Muhammed�s revelation as salvation is available through the Scriptures. Some claim that Islam is an inclusive religion because of the references to Christianity and Judaism in some cases in a positive and supportive manner. But Sura 3:85 clearly denies this claim: �If anyone desires a religion other than Islam �in the hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost all spiritual good.� Islam through the Koran contradicts the Bible in many and key important areas. Since in order to become a new religion, Islam must by definition contradict, conflict, and differ from the Bible and Judaism and Christianity or this new religion would not be necessary. Muhammed has the same problem as Joseph Smith in Mormonism, which claims to be inspired yet claims to be different from the original due to later revelations. If God sends prophets after the writing of Revelation in about 100 A.D. then what is revealed must coincide with what he has said earlier in the Bible. Paul tells us in I Cor 14:33 �For God is not the author of confusion but of peace�� and in I Cor. 1:10 �Now I plead with you brethren� that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you.� Finally, Amos 3:3 tells us �Can two walk together unless they are agreed?� The problem for any later prophet like Muhammed or Joseph Smith is to reconcile the claim to continuity from the Bible with the explanation of departure from and addition to the Judeo-Christian Scripture which they require to establish a new religion. As to the authenticity of the Koran through Muhammed consider these differences with Christ and the Scripture:

1. Muhammed performed no miracles. 2. Muhammed uttered no fulfilled prophecies. 3. The Koran incorporates pagan legends. 4. The Koran incorporates descriptions of beliefs based upon Gnostic heresy. 5. The Koran explains biblical persons and events based upon the apocryphal gospels.

The big question is always, �Why do the militant Muslims hate the West and in particular the U.S.?� First, the personal liberties guaranteed in our Bill of Rights and the materialism made possible because of our free enterprise economic system are a mortal threat to the power of the clerics and militants who rule in Islamic societies. The religious theocracy is intolerant of any free expression and the socialist and monarchial political systems have produced rich vs. poor economic societies. Second, Islamic leaders realize that submission to the political and economic ideals of Western democracies will be the death of Islamic societies unless they destroy the West.

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Third, war, to Islamic militants, is fought for the cause of Allah. Therefore, any means, including terror, are justified and righteous. There is no sense of right and wrong because anything done in the cause of Allah trumps the values of life and death. Since Islamic countries cannot match the military and scientific abilities of the West, they confront their enemies with terrorism. Fourth, the U.S. is the guarantor of Israel�s right to exist. Muslims, historically, feel a sense of shame for being kicked out of the family of Abraham and jealousy toward Isaac and all Jews who descend from him. In addition Islamic belief teaches that once a land is conquered for Islam, such as Palestine, it must, if lost to believers, be re-conquered. Finally, it should be remembered that militant Muslims such as in Indonesia and Sudan kill Christians including especially missionaries. Israel is once again cast as David with six million persons compared to the Goliath of Muslim peoples numbering 1.2 billion. It�s interesting to note that Islamic cultures produced the Arabic numbering system, astronomy, invented chess, and excel in poetry and architecture. Yet with all this intellectual success, their societies are languishing in a fifteenth century world and their cities when modernized, except for their architecture, have borrowed from the science and technology of the West. Why? Because the clerics teach theology in their schools and universities and prohibit the study of liberal arts and sciences as decadent. This is a closed system that is backward looking which cannot compete in an open society. Its ideals and practices are bankrupt. One of the problems for America is the reluctance so far to recognize the religious nature of Islam to spread itself by war. Muslim militants march under the black flag of death. In Islam there is no separation of church and state. One Islamic cleric has said, �Thanks to your democratic laws, we will invade you; thanks to your religious laws, we will dominate you.� History teaches that determined minorities will seek to impose their will upon reluctant and silent majorities. On September 11, 1683, the Ottoman Empire had invaded Europe and was stopped at the gates of Vienna. Multiculturalism, diversity, and political correctness prohibit discussion of the questions of culture and religion in America. Can the two great religions live in peace with Islam? Will God permit Islam to thrive?

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Session 9 The Spirit of Islam Ayatollah Khomeini came to power in Iran in 1979. He was viewed by the Muslim world as the �savior� of Islam. Algerian president Ahmed Ben Bella declared, �A brilliant light appeared in Iran which illuminated the whole Muslim world.� Khomeini, upon assuming power, declared, �The government of the world should know that Islam cannot be defeated. Islam will be victorious in all countries of the world, and Islam and the teachings of the Koran will prevail all over the world.� Throughout history, false religions sponsored by Satan, have had a religious spirit. Cain�s spirit toward God was to approach Him through an offering of his own will, design, work, and ritual. No faith, love, or obedience was behind the offering. As a result, Cain was filled with rage and hatred toward Abel, and so rose against his brother and killed him. The Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus� time persecuted Christians in the name of God. They sought to maintain and propagate a legalistic system which kept them in power while enslaving their followers in a false religious system. I John 4:1 tells us, �Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirit, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.� False religions are usually inspired by and led by one or more false prophets. Usually the false prophet claims inspiration by an angel of light (e.g.Moroni). I Cor. 14:29 warns, �Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge.� The Bible warns us to test the spirits because Satan can appear as an angel of light. The test of the truth of any spirit and any revelation is� �How does it explain the deity, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ?� Because Islam denies the shed blood of Christ, the redemption of Christ, and the forgiveness of sins through Christ, it is therefore, a false religion and Muhammed is a false prophet. The spirit of Islam has three objectives:

1. To challenge and deny Christ, His Word, and His Church 2. To hinder and oppose the end time revival 3. To oppose and annihilate the Jews and take control of their homeland

Islam may be an ideology of revolution, a religion of strict ethical and moral laws, a political system opposing both capitalism and socialism, but it definitely is a spiritual force opposing the plan of God as expressed in the Judeo-Christian Bible.

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Islam is a totalitarian system which demands total submission. To become a Muslim is to become a slave of Allah. Sura 49:14 declares, �You have not believed until you say, we have submitted ourselves.� The goal of Islam is to create a theocracy under Allah with no democracy, no free will, and no freedom of person, religion, or expression. When Islam takes over a home, family, country, or society, it controls everything. The laws legislate and enforce all areas of life: ethical, moral, social, political, economic, and religious. The god, Allah, predates Islam. He was worshipped in Mecca prior to Muhammed as one of many gods. In pre-Islamic times, the god Allah was associated with the worship of Baal and represented the moon god, hence the symbol of Islam is the crescent moon. The Bible says, �by their fruits you shall know them�. The historical experience of Islam has been based upon hatred, bloodshed, revenge, and retaliation. The Hadith says, �One must wash with blood�. Khomeini echoed this belief in the modern era when he said, �Our nation is no longer ready to submit to humiliation and subjection; it prefers a bloody death to a life of shame. We are ready to be killed�� The true Spirit of Islam is militant and violent. Why do I say this? Because the only sure way to eternity that is taught is through martyrdom. Fear and terror is the strategy employed to control people holding them in bondage to fear. Leaders like Khomeini, Saddam, Quadafi, Idi Amin, and Sheik Omar are not loved, they are feared. The force of fear holds them in power. The spread of Islam is through either coercion or conquest, not grace and peace. Therefore, since Islam is spreading so rapidly now, it is due to an increase in violence and fear at this time. What about the Black Muslim movement in America? This religion teaches that black people were the original people of the earth. They were subjugated by white men who were created by an experiment as a race of devils to rule the earth for 6000 years. At the end of these 6000 years, the black people would be resurrected from their sleep and converted to Islam where they would destroy the white devils and transform earth into a black paradise. Christianity is seen by Black Muslims as weak and naïve. Christianity teaches �turning the other cheek to the offender�. Islam in contrast teaches, �And those believers who, when an oppressive wrong is inflicted on them, must defend themselves.� Surah 42:39 Returning to the theme of fear in Islam, the Koran records 24 times that �Allah does not love sinners� Surah 2:190, but rather only �those who fear him�. Surah 3:76 The Bible however, says in I John 4:18, �that perfect love casts out fear�. Also in II Tim. 1:7 �For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind�. Islam has the power of conversion to a religion, but not the power of conviction of the heart because of the absence of the person and work of a Holy Spirit. The God of Christ does not love us by chance. He loves us by choice.

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God has a plan for the world which includes roles for three people groups. These are: 1. the church 2. the Gentile nations 3. the Jewish people

The role of the church is outlined in Revelation; the role of the Gentile nations is outlined in Isaiah; the role of the Jewish people is outlined in Daniel. The church is God�s chosen tool to bear the gospel message to the Gentile nations. When they have been reached, God will return to fulfill His promise to the Jewish people. Muslims, interestingly, do not strive to read the Koran. Since it is a recital, they believe the approach is to hear the words recited. This is what takes place in the mosques. Further, Muslims believe the Koran must be heard in Arabic and that heard or read in any other language is not a translation but is an interpretation, which would be subject to error. The Koran is organized into two parts. The first part concerns how an Arabic community should live to work toward doing God�s will. These revelations were given in Medina from 622-632 A.D. The second part concerns who God is and comprises short verses warning of God�s wrath and judgment. These revelations were given in Mecca from 610-622 A.D. The order as purportedly revealed is reversed in the order collected in the Koran. There is no chronology of events. The revelations were given progressively over a 22 year period. The nature of God giving the revelations progressively is explained that God did not want to reveal more than this first fledgling community could absorb. The lack of chronology is explained that the messages were given at a moment in time of God�s choosing when the message was needed and that the message is appropriate for all people for all times. In the Muslim world, man cannot know God but can only learn what is revealed in the Koran about his attributes. The spirit of Islam functions only in hearing about God, never in knowing him. A Muslim stands alone before god on his own responsibility to know and do what is spoken in the Koran. There is no help for illumination by a Holy Spirit, nor is there any intercessor, nor priesthood to guide, nor is there any redeemer Christ to deliver you. The era of the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries brought the great conflict of Islam with the forces of the Crusaders of Europe. The Crusades were not successful for Christendom except in Spain, the Maghrib. At the same time the Islamic world was threatened in the 12th and 13th centuries by the invasion of the Mongols of Central Asia. However, even though the Mongols conquered the Arab empires, they themselves converted to Islamic belief.

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In the 8th and 9th centuries Al Ghazali, a scholar incorporated the ancient Greek philosophy into Islam to understand the universe. This incorporation was to embrace logic, deduction, and human reasoning of Plato and Aristotle to understand the Koran. In the 7th an 8th centuries Sufi�ism emerged as a mystical belief system based upon revelation of the nature of God and to attain a better understanding of him. The practice of this system is based upon meditation and repetitive recitation. Sufi masters, through the power of emotion, sought to get closer to God. The most visible of the Surfi�s were the �whirling dervishes�. The Surfi orders are known as Tariqas. These two approaches, i.e. human reasoning and emotion, conflict with the literal approach to Islam espoused by the Shi�ite believers. Many Muslims view the Western civilization as positive for its modern technology and its expression of liberty, but at the same time secular, without reverence for God, morally corrupt, materialistic, militaristic, and crime-ridden. These issues are a key part of the conflict between Western and Muslim civilizations. The growth of Islam is due to four factors:

1. population growth in the Islamic world 2. the superiority of a monotheistic deity over a polytheistic deity 3. the appeal to ethnic diversity and appeals to the poor 4. the militant and cultural control of populations through military, economic,

political, and religious institutions, organizations, and governments. In contrast, the reluctance of Islamic countries to be influenced by Judeo-Christian, Western values takes the following forms:

1. resistance and rebellion 2. borrowing the technology but rejecting the values 3. assimilation of certain values 4. adopting the political structure to organize civil life such as under nationalism, socialism, or communism.

The Ba�ath political parties are examples of socialist ideologies in Syria and Iraq. The least supported regimes in the macro-Islamic world are Syria and Iraq because the Ba�ath ideology of socialism is not viewed as Islamic in nature. Secondarily, Assad and Saddam are viewed as tyrannical dictators. The most universal Islamic movement is that of fundamentalism, which is the attitude of returning to the first principles of Koran and Sunna. This is a renewal and a return to the ideals of the original Muslim community of 630 A.D. to 700 A.D. This is the growing Islamic response to the threats to Islam from Western values. First, we see the response of Saudi Arabia to return to traditional values and practices of the Wahabi. Second is the response of Egypt to liberal reformism to change by incorporating modern concepts while retaining Islamic beliefs and values by accommodating these modern concepts. Third is the response of Iran, known as neo-traditionalism, which literally attempts to return to the original Muslim community rejecting all concepts of the West.

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Session 10 America Under Attack There has been a steady progression of extremism in the Islamic world involving 70 nations with significant Muslim populations over the past three decades. One significant factor was the Iranian revolution of 1979 sparked by Ayatollah Khomeini. His statements include the following: �The more people who die for our cause, the stronger we shall become.� Also, �We shall export our revolution to the whole world.� Finally, �Weapons in our hands are used to realize divine and Islamic aspirations.� Khomeini also argued that suicide and martyrdom was a ticket to heaven and terrorism a tool in the war against the great Satan (i.e. the U.S.). Our word �assassin� comes from the Arabic word Hashashin,which is traced to the year 1090 A.D. and a band of killers in Iran under the leadership of Hasan al Sabbah, the Old Man of the Mountain. Another argument of Khomeini was that present-day regimes in Islamic-populated nations are ruled by corrupt and privileged monarchs or dictators who have not elevated the economic status of their people. Therefore, only Islamic rule can usher in justice and economic security. Islam is not a religion but a way of life. Foreign ideologies and value systems were not inherited from colonial powers with Western goals of: personal prosperity, industrial development, technological advancement, sophisticated arms, and liberal morals of dress and behavior. These goals were minimally incorporated into the pan-Arab nationalism of Egypt under Nasser and in the socialist Baath systems in Syria under Assad and Iraq under Saddam Hussein. These systems were viewed by most Muslims as repressive and unsuccessful following the losses in the wars with Israel in 1967 and 1973 and with the U.S. in the Gulf War of 1991. Another boost to the rise of Islam was the clout and profits derived from oil wealth beginning in 1973. The wealth gained, however, did not trickle down to the populations of oil rich nations, but rather was used for building airports, palaces, mosques, armaments, and enriching the lifestyles of the rulers. The reaction of Islamic theocrats and militants was to attempt to overthrow these leaders and to rid Muslim countries of western influence and power through kidnappings, terrorism, and assassinations; by the forming of militant political and military organizations such as: Hizbollah (the Party of God) in Iran, Islamic Jihad in Egypt, and Hamas in Jordan. The response of Islamic militants to the charge of terrorism is that �one nation�s terrorists are another�s freedom fighters.�

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When militant Islam is directed inward toward Muslim nations, the Islamic movement does not recognize monarchies or hereditary succession. The Koran says, �Kings despoil a country when they enter it and make the noblest of its people its meanest.� When militant Islam is directed outward toward non-Muslim nations, its hatred is based upon four reasons:

1. European powers were responsible for deciding and supporting the boundaries and borders of secular states, which were dismembered from the Islamic Empire.

2. The West is responsible for creating and sustaining Israel in Arab lands at the expense of the Palestinians. 3. The West has controlled and used the oil resource of Gulf Arab nations while returning little of value to Muslims 4. The West has imposed modernization, which is decadent to Islamic root values.

Militant Islam ratcheted up the ideology of terror when Osama Bin Laden declared, �The judgment to kill and fight Americans and their allies, whether civilian or military, is an obligation for every Muslim.� Bin laden, a Saudi Wahhabi, of the Sunni sect had three primary goals:

1. to cleanse Muslim society and restore its original purity 2. to remove infidels from Muslim lands 3. to expand Islamic rule to a worldwide empire (Newsweek, p. 56)

A portent of the continual conflict between nations East and West is stated in both the Koran and the Bible as follows: �Their promise is written in the blood of the moon.� Sura 9:112. And, �There was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood�� Rev. 6:12 Understanding the future is perhaps best approached by understanding the past. First, history shows that no nation has ever peacefully converted to Islam. Second, conversion to Islam is simple and the salvation that it seeks to offer is attainable by human effort through works. There is no guilt from the Fall and hence, no need for a substitutionary Savior which is central to Christianity. Third, enmity toward Christians and Jews is embedded in the original teachings. Hadith 9:4 says, �Wherever you find the infidels, kill them, for whoever kills them shall have reward in the Day of Resurrection.� Fourth, where unity is found in the Islamic nations, it is based upon hatred of a common enemy. Anton Chekhov said, �Love, friendship, and respect do not unite people as much as a common hatred for something.� And the well-known Arab proverb states that �the enemy of my enemy is my friend�.

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Fifth, many Islamic nations hearken back to regional empires won by warfare and their desire to regain their former glory. These include Iraq�s Babylonian heritage where Saddan Hussein sees himself as a re-incarnated Nebuchadnezzar; Hafez Assad�s ambitions as heir of Sennacherib and Shalmaneser linking Syria�s ambitions with its Assyrian heritage; Iran�s heritage where Ayatollah Khomeini praised the greatness of Xerxes and the Persian empire; Afganistan�s Taliban reverence for the victories of Genghis Khan and Tamerlane, according to Mullah Muhammed Omar. Sixth, Islam as a religion usurps and incorporates beliefs, ideologies, and practices from other religions. Egyptian Sunni�s adopted methods from Jewish Kabbalists, the Sufi�s of Iraq have incorporated aspects of Zoroasterian philosophy; Syrian Alawites borrowed from Hindu beliefs; Kuwaiti Takfirs subscribe to elements of the anti-Christian Nestorians, and the Saudi Wahhabi�s adopted elements of Monophysite philosophy. Seventh, peace has never characterized Muslim lands in relation to the West. The relationship has always been rejection and resistance to conquest, colonialism, containment, or appeasement propagated respectively by France, Great Britain, Russia, and the United States. From the early time of Nimrod�s scheme to replace God by building the Tower of Babel, mankind has continued to replace God (i.e. the God of the Bible) to institute a utopian age and a new world order. God calls us to righteousness and acceptance of our sins and guilt wherein we are in need of a Savior sent by God to redeem us. Apart from this righteousness offered by God on His terms, no people can aspire to liberty, justice, and peace. As George Washington said, �It is the first duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and to humbly implore His protection and favor in holy fear.� What a difference between the Christian worldview producing freedom, prosperity, and tolerance vs. the Islamic worldview, which has produced terror, tyranny, and poverty. The cry of Israel is for security and since September 11, 2001, security in America is now a primary concern. Our open society is an open target for terrorism. The 1990 Immigration Act says, �merely advocating terrorism or even belonging to a group that engages in terrorism, could not be used as grounds for denying a U.S. visa�. The U.S. grants 250,000 visas annually to Middle Eastern persons. The U.S. Census Bureau, following the year 2000, announced the presence of 8 million illegal aliens in the U.S. Changes to our immigration policies, procedures, and enforcement are vitally needed to improve our security at home.

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Returning to the problem of the reality of terrorism, one should ask, �What should be the Christians� response? First, we must realize that this is an �ism� with an ideology and which uses threat and force. Religious terrorism is the communism of the 21st century. Just as communism lasted 70 years before falling, terrorism will probably last for decades before it, too, is eradicated as a system. Today there are 56 known worldwide terrorist groups, which must be confronted and rooted out. Second, we need to realize that one of the claims of angry terrorists is against the secular nature of western society with its immorality and materialism. What we stand for should be understood to be spiritual morality, personal freedom, economic prosperity, and compassionate tolerance for others� rights. Third, we should understand that the ultimate goal of holy war (jihad) is to establish Islamic rule throughout the Middle East and eventually across the world. Therefore, we, as Christians, should support the following:

1. The Islamic ideology is wrong and is a false religion to the Christians and to the biblical God of Jews and Christians. 2. There is plenty of Scripture for the military response to root out terrorism and to defeat the enemies of God. (Ps. 18:37, 38) 3. Peacemaking and seeking peace must be accompanied by justice , as both peace and justice are biblical principles to be sought by Christians.

This is not the first time in history that America has faced terrorism on its citizens and property. Between 1793 and 1805 the Muslim pirates off the Barbary coast of North Africa raided shipping lanes, seizing and plundering ships of European nations and America. The policies of European governments were to pay tribute for protection, and ransom for hostages. President Thomas Jefferson took the battle to the naval corsairs and sent the Marines to Tripoli to root out the pirates and killers. This was the beginning of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marines. From early civilization, the symbol and tool of war has been the sword. Further, the sword is used literally and metaphorically in both the Bible and the Koran. The Bible says to smite with the sword the enemies of God and to put on the armor of God, including the �sword of the Spirit�. (Eph. 6:17) The Koran is full of verses promoting violence and death in war, but it goes further in extolling the virtues of war. Sura 9:5 �Fight and slay the infidels wherever you find them�� To the Christian, the broadsword is fashioned in the shape of the cross and is used to defend against harm. To the Muslim, the scimitar is designed in the shape of the crescent moon and is used to advance the religion of Islam. And so, we are finally faced with a choice between the cross of Christ or the crescent moon of Satan.

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Session 11 Causes for the Current State of Islamic Societies The entrepreneurial spirit in Islamic countries is largely about and is limited to the ancient concept of trade and mercantilism. Also, Islamic countries have generally failed to build strong economic and social systems to meet the needs of the people. As a result, Islamic leaders have constantly blamed outsiders for their dilemma rather than accepting the challenge to modify their own values and seek to redress internal causes. There are in Islamic ideology three visions of Islam, which are: orthodoxy, modernism, and fundamentalism. The mainstream is orthodoxy, which seeks to safeguard Islamic practice without change. The ulema, Islamic jurists, are the chief purveyors of orthodoxy as the status quo. Modernists are Islamists who have some form of experience or education with Western culture and who seek to borrow from Western culture, to apply reasoning and scientific analysis to ideology, and to accommodate with the West. Fundamentalists want to restore Islam to the 7th century purity believed to exist in the days of the Prophet. Few Islamic scholars have subjected their faith to scrutiny as have Western scholars to Christianity and Judaism. No ideal society has ever emerged in the entire history of Islam. One of the key stumbling blocks to Islamic success has been the non-applicability of sharia law to modern times. Another is the fatal integration of religion and politics, where a single religion is imposed on governments and the people. A third principal is the use of a shura to insure popular participation. The process is not representative of people and lacks clearcut rules for decision making relying on consensus. Fourth, there is no tradition of peaceful protest. Islamic rulers equate criticism of the government or its policies as forbidden criticism of the Koran or the Prophet. Hence, freedom of speech is ultimately denied to dissenting voices. Fifth, Muslims are encouraged to have large families and birth control is not permitted. This causes an economic burden where families are strained to support their children in an improved lifestyle. Sixth, in Islamic rule there is no prescribed, orderly transition of power. The royal monarchies and military rulers� ascension to power is outside Islamic worldview and they maintain their hold on power by heredity or military strength. Authority on the other hand is held by religious clerics based upon their hold on the status quo and support from political leaders seeking internal stability and authentication of their own rule.

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Muslims are not commanded to contemplate God but rather to obey the law. Islamic law is expressed through adherence to the Koran and to the traditions and sayings of the Prophet. When the sharia was codified 1000 years ago, it was pronounced both complete and divine. Therefore, sharia law is not changeable, or subject to criticism. Since sharia law is claimed to be divine, the political state is denied the authority to make law. There is no clearcut concept of separation of powers, nor checks and balances. The concept and use of imprisonment is to bring repentance to the offender rather than to punish the offender or to protect society. The difference in outlook of a given Islamic society will also depend upon its majority as a Shi�ite or Sunni community. If it is Shi�ite as in Iran and southern Iraq, it will be oriented toward the future due to the influence of belief in the return of the mahdi. If it is Sunni, it will be oriented toward the past due to the influence of the belief to return to the golden days of the times of the Prophet. Shi�ites will allow human reasoning and free will into the thought process, whereas Sunni will be close-minded and follow the instinct of predestination. Islamic society has not resolved three fundamental questions:

1. Where do women fit in? 2. What is the goal of education? 3. How much freedom to dissent should be granted to the people and the media?

Unlike the United States, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and equal rights are not granted by law or by tradition. One of the primary complaints of the Islamic states regarding the West is that we have a secular society. Muslim�s admire our science, technology, economic standards, and education, but they believe western society lacks a spiritual content, is morally depraved, and is materialistic in the extreme. They long for our freedoms for themselves, but not for the whole of society. Further, they seek prosperity for themselves, but not the system that produces it. It is estimated that only 10-15 % of Muslims practice their faith on a regular basis. There is no reason to assume that Muslims are any more active in practicing their faith in larger percentages than is the case in either Christianity or Judaism. What Muslims do in large numbers, as a percentage , is to identify with their culture ritually. As regards the law, Muslims will be in conflict when they attempt to live in any western secular society because when they attempt to impose sharia law, this legal system cannot coexist with secular law. Yet, a reality is that western countries are facing increasing Muslim immigration. France is an experiment with an influx of five million Muslims and is a tinderbox of violence and conflict.

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The Muslim world sees itself as under threat. It is not unified, but rather fragmented, but it does blame Western globalization as the source of its problems. Islam has never learned to live as a minority, because its history is sourced in a quest for power. Where we in the West live in a pluralistic society, our tradition is to co-exist and to evangelize other peoples. Islam is intolerant of attempts at conversion by the West. Therefore, in our pluralistic society, the uniqueness of Christianity will be challenged to be accepting of Islam, while denying the exclusivity claims of Christianity. Several items to remember about Islam are:

1. There has been no Renaissance, Reformation, or scientific revolution within Islam which brought about separation of state from church in the West.

2. There was no exploration of the New World providing economic gains. 3. Their idea is that knowledge is to be stored and not developed or grown. 4. There was no industrial revolution leading to economies of scale, automation, and productivity. 5. Bureaucratic administration is by favor and patronage, rather than merit. 6. The concept of identity and allegiance is by blood rather than by patriotism or nationalism.

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Session 12 What Do I Need to Know About Islam? In the U.S., citizens are guaranteed freedom of religion and freedom from religion. In most Islamic countries, there is no freedom of religion nor freedom from the religion of Islam. By Islamic law, a person cannot criticize the Koran or the Prophet. In a few Islamic countries, leading a Muslim away from Islamic religion is punishable by death. In the U.S., authority has been vested in secular government and law ,whereas the authority of the moral and spiritual has been vested in the sacred institutions. Each is influenced by the other and the spiritual aspect of the citizen is expected, through conscience and belief, to guide the laws and impact the decisions of persons in government. In the U.S., culture evolves. In Islamic countries, cultural values hearken back to 7th century Arab Islamic culture. Many adopted beliefs are not divine but cultural in origin. The once in a lifetime pilgrimage to Mecca was adopted from a pagan Arab ritual to worship the gods represented in the Kabah and support the trade with Meccan merchants. Matters of diet, dress, and family lifestyles are only vaguely referenced in the Koran, but vigorously taught and enforced from a 7th century model to a 21st century Islamic society. Nearly all societies have a history of violence and barbarism. When Muhammed wrote the Koran in the 7th century, indirectly, of course, he incorporated many of the punishments prevalent in Arab tribal rivalries. U.S. law is based upon the morality of the Bible and the secular principles evolved from 18th century English common law. Many of the ritually oriented practices mentioned in the Koran are pagan in origin. These include: the black stone in the Kabah, which was venerated by pre-Muslim society; the orientation of fasting of Ramadan from the crescent moon lunar cycle; and daily prayer oriented toward the astral position of the moon, both originating in the Sabean astral religion. The term Allah is a pre-Islamic Arabic name for god, believed to have originated in Babylon, and referring to the ancient pagan god, known as Baal. This was the moon god in real terms. Allah, therefore, has no connection to the God of Judaism and Christianity. In simple terms, the God of the Bible and the Allah of the Koran are vastly different. These differences include: knowable vs. unknowable, personal vs. impersonal, spiritual vs. non-spiritual, trinitarian vs.unitarian, feeling vs. non-feeling, positive attributes vs. no attributes, and grace vs. merit. Merely believing in one God does not mean it is the right God nor the same God.

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Muhammed was forced to flee Mecca because he sought to appease pagan family members by accepting the idea of praying to the three daughters of the moon god, Allah. This is referenced in Sura 53:19, and popularly known as the satanic verses. Several deficiencies in the person of Muhammed reflect the true status of this person. These include: no previous prophecy of his coming, no supernatural birth, no sinless life (Suras 18:110, 40:55, 48:1-2), no miracles performed, no divinity claimed, engaged in taking property and lives of others, not a mediator or intercessor between God and mankind, and has no future role in the resurrection of the dead or final judgment. Muslims do not allow research, criticism or corroboration of the Koran, but insist on it for the Bible. There are numerous historical errors in the Koran. These include: claiming both six and eight days for creation, one of Noah�s sons died in the flood, numerous errors about Abraham and Moses mixing persons of different countries and different times together erroneously, fictional speeches attributed to Biblical characters, events which don�t conform to known secular history, conflicting contradictions within its own text. Some accounts are borrowed from pre-Islamic Arab legends, Jewish folklore, Christian heretical sources, Sabean sources, Eastern mysticism sources. The Koran contradicts the person of Christ, mistranslates the concept of the Trinity, and shows a worldly view of heaven more fitting to a carnal 7th century male than to a holy God. Archaeological finds in Arabia suggest that the dominant pagan worship prior to Muhammed was of the moon god known as Allah. The concept of Allah sources from paganism rather than Judaism or Christianity. It is astral idol worship at its source. Errors in the Koran are as follows: (100 in all) 1. Noah�s ark came to rest on Mt. Judi. (Sura 11:44) Ararat 2. Abraham�s father was Azar. (Sura 6:74) Terah 3. Abraham sought to sacrifice Ishmael. (Sura 37:100-112) Isaac 4. Pharaoh�s wife adopted Moses. (Sura 28:8-9) Daughter 5. Noah�s flood occurred in the time of Moses. (Sura 7:136) 1000 years earlier 6. Mary gave birth to Jesus under a palm tree. (Sura 19:22) stable 7. The Jews returned to Egypt after the Exodus. (Sura 2:56-57) remained 8. Zechariah was speechless for three days. (Sura 3:41) 9 months 9. God took eight days to create the world. (Sura 41:9-12) 6 days 10. Abraham was cast into the fire by Nimrod. (Sura 21:68-69) Daniel�s 3 friends 11. The Egyptian Aziz bought Joseph. (Sura 12:21) Potaphar 12. Haman was Pharaoh�s minister. (Sura 27:4-6) Ashaheuras 13. Test of water-drinking by lapping of Saul�s army. (Sura 2:24) Gideon

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Session 13 Insights Into What Islam Teaches Islam�s teaching about angels is that all angels are good and were created for service. Some are named and given specific authority over their assigned responsibilities. Jibail (Gabriel) delivers revelations to the prophets; Azrail presides over death; Mika�il (Michael) controls the weather; and Israfil trumpets the end of the world. Evil entered the world through the created beings called �jinns�. The chief jinn, who is Shaytan (Satan), seeks to turn us away from God. Jinns are not fallen, but rather were created evil by Allah. Islam teaches that representing God in any form is idolatry. But it goes further in forbidding the realistic representation of both humans and animals, as this might lead to the worship of false gods. Islam teaches that Allah is the same God of the Jews and the Christians, but disclaims the role of Jews as God�s chosen people and disclaims the concept of the trinity. In this latter point, Jesus is but a created prophet and the Holy Spirit does not exist. Rather the �Comforter� is none other than the prophet Muhammed. Islam teaches that there is no original sin. Every person as an individual must fear God�s judgment alone based upon his own merit. The sin of Adam and Eve, it is claimed, was forgiven by God and not passed along to the human race. The Koran. in most instances, reads, when god is referring to himself, as �we� or �us�. This should not be suggested to show the plurality of God as in the trinity concept in the Bible. It is suggestive of the �royal we� where a king would say, �We decree that such and such should occur.� The king is expressing himself as in, �My power and I are decreeing such and such.� Islam teaches that God is not created and has no gender. Further, he has no physical form, so the only way to know him is through the qualities of his names and attributes. There are 99 names given in the Koran for God. Islam teaches that life begins at conception. Their belief is that there are four stages of life:

1. life in the womb 2. life in the world 3. life in the grave 4. the next life

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Islamic law states that the fetus has rights and, therefore, abortion is forbidden except to save the threatened life of the mother. Regarding the fetus, Islamic belief is that an angel comes to the fetus after 120 days in the womb and breathes a soul into it. The death of any child before the age of accountability ushers the child automatically into heaven. Contraceptives are allowed as long as they are used to prevent fertilization and not destruction of life. Both euthanasia and suicide are equated with murder and forbidden by Islamic law. Upon physical death, the body and soul remain in the grave awaiting the future judgment at the Day of Resurrection. On the Day of Resurrection all living beings will die including humanity, angels, jinns, and all matter will be destroyed. All souls will be resurrected for judgment. On the Day of Judgment, which will last 50,000 years, each person�s life record of good and bad deeds will be weighed. Based upon the weight tilting for good or evil, a person will proceed to dwell in paradise or in the fire. There are seven levels of reward in paradise and seven levels of punishment in the fire. For those proceeding to heaven, life will be a paradise. Those in paradise will have new healthy bodies of age 30. Husbands and wives will be reunited. Tenure in heaven is secure for eternity. Those in the fire may be purified and eventually, be granted admittance to heaven. Islam teaches that God is the Creator of the universe. Earth was created in a Big Bang and the universe is continually expanding. The time of creation is believed to be billions of years ago. Mankind does not evolve but plants and animals do evolve. Man was created with a soul, free will, intelligence, reason, and an inner nature to seek God. Islam teaches an end times consisting of the following: Muslim nations fractured into competing claimants, extremes of wealth and poverty, immorality rampant, family strife, a false prophet known as Dajjal carrying a mark with claims to restoring life. Jesus will return to lead an army to defeat Dajjal and his army near Tel Aviv. (Lydda). On a day-to-day basis, the unifying element in an Islamic community is the mosque. The activities occurring within the mosque include: ritual prayer, religious teaching, marriages, funerals, family counseling, and children�s classes. Each mosque is led by an Iman, who is hired by the mosque�s board of directors, serves at the pleasure of the board and the mosque membership, is salaried by the mosque, and is credentialed by completing studies at an Islamic college.

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From this environment, the ceremonies of life are performed. Dating is not permitted. Couples get acquainted only when chaperoned. In many instances of arranged marriage, they don�t get acquainted at all. Marriage is a civil contract and not a religious act or sacrament as in Christianity. The woman sets the price of the dowry to be paid to her by the husband or his family. Male babies are circumcised for health purposes with no religious significance as in Judaism. Upon death the body is to be buried within three days. Tombstones arising above gravesite level are forbidden. There are dietary restrictions in Islam which are similar to Kosher in Judaism. These include ritualistic slaughter of the animal for food, pork products are forbidden, blood is forbidden, animals with fangs and carrion are forbidden. Muslims consider the perfect form of government to be one caliph and a representative council, the ulema, chosen by consent of the people, to be installed. During the 30 years from 632 A.D. to 661 A.D., four caliphs ruled Islam in succession. This is the government model that fundamentalist Muslims wish to return to. The recognition of caliphs by the representative council was to be based upon merit and not upon hereditary claims of birth. The end times as taught in Islam is preceded by the following ten signs of the hour: 1. Abundant oil will be discovered under the Euphrates in Iraq. 2. Children will cease to obey their parents. 3. Poor nations will build tall buildings in their cities. 4. It will be hard to tell men and women apart. 5. Women will outnumber men. 6.The knowledge of religion will decrease. 7.Wealth will be widespread and corruption rampant. 8.Music, female singers, and alcohol use will be prevalent. 9.The worst people will be chosen as leaders. 10.There will be family turmoil in every household. Timetable of end time events taught in Islam:

1. The Mahdi will unite all Muslims to vanquish infidels. 2. Thirty false prophets will arise to stir unrest. 3. Dajjal will come forth claiming to be God on earth. 4. Dajjal will have a mark on his forehead, and one eye. He will cure disease and

resurrect the dead. He will capture Palestine and reign 40 days. 5. Jesus will return to lead the Muslims to defeat Dajjal�s army in Damascus. Jesus will kill Dajjal near Tel Aviv. 6. Jesus will embrace Islam and reign as leader for 40 years until his death. 7. During his life, Jesus will defeat the armies of the East: Gog and Magog

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Session 14 Contemporary Islam: Monolithic But Diverse Many of the current national boundaries in the Middle East were created after the defeat of the Ottoman empire following WW I. Potential for conflicts arises over the rights to oil and water resources Before Islam, in Arab society, the code of values included: bravery in battle, patience in misfortune, persistence in revenge, protection of the weak, defiance of the strong, loyalty to the tribe, and hospitality to the guest. As Islamic countries began to gain independence following WW I, any resource wealth was invested primarily on military assets and ruling family personal wealth. As a result, the two most frequent forms of government to develop were military dictatorships and royal family monarchies. Very few became Islamic republics (although many claim to be) and fewer still are democracies. This is further compounded by the fact that there are no legal and legitimate succession procedures. A nation is defined as a population based upon historic territory. A state is a political creation exercising monopolistic control over a specific territory. Dependency between nations is based upon inequality between a developed and an undeveloped nation. Cliency is a strategic relationship between a major power seeking a controlled base and a lesser state. Nations� two primary rights are:

1. self-determination and self-protection 2. territorial sovereignty.

In general, 60% of the population in Muslim countries live in urban areas. In general, the average unemployment rate is 15% in Muslim countries. The poverty rate, in general, is 33% in Muslim countries. In Muslim countries, kinship, ethnicity, and religion precede nationality in importance. The paternal blood relationship, establishing, expanding, and preserving kinship is the primary allegiance in Muslim societies.The second allegiance in importance is that of ethnicity based upon racial and cultural identity. The third grouping of interests is that of social class, which is based upon economic and political common interests. The fourth relationship is the patron-client ties, which establish a relationship between the rich and powerful and the dependent and dispossessed in a subordinate position. Secularism, individualism, democracy, and rationalism are worldviews originating in ancient Greece and shaped by the European Renaissance, Enlightenment, and Protestant Reformation. These worldviews are not the experience within Islamic societies. When introduced by either imperialism or colonialism of Europe or the West, the effects of these worldviews have not assimilated except in Turkey.

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In Islamic societies, religion and politics are fused together in all institutions of society, including family, tribe, clan, government, mosque, and judiciary. Most governments in Muslim countries are plagued by illegitimacy, authoritarianism, failing economics, unequal distribution of wealth, corruption, nepotism, and human rights abuses. Prospects which may threaten progress and peace include the following:

1. the recognition of a nation-state for the Kurds 2. lack of industrialization and manufacturing 3. environmental pollution 4. the effect of replacing oil with a different source of energy 5. the lack of a system of governance to meet the needs of people as they become aware of the benefits and successes of the West, which the Islamic worldview has not provided A key concept in Islam is that of jihad. This is sometimes viewed as the sixth pillar of Islam. If, as it is claimed, jihad means �inner struggle�, then why are the military warriors called mujahideen, which means strugglers for God, but in reality, is a holy war of men? Those who can authorize a jihad include either an Islamic government or a worldwide leader of Islam. Jihad as an armed struggle can only be declared for the following reasons: 1. to defend your community or nation from armed aggression 2. to liberate people living under oppressive regimes 3. to remove any government not allowing free practice of Islam within its borders

The rules of engagement forbid the killing of non-combatants and committing suicide while engaged in war. Tell that to the victims of 9-11 and the victims of Tel Aviv. Muslims see military setbacks and defeats as a sign of God�s punishment of their own spiritual lack. The Muslim worldview is that the U.S. has replaced both Europe and the Soviet Union, due to its economic and military might, and is now the sole oppressor of Islamic growth, revival, and influence. Secondly, Muslims believe that Israel under a 1948 U.N. mandate, has unjustly removed Palestinian Arabs from their land, and occupies by oppression the land, the people, and the holy site of the two mosques. What Muslims are seeking for, on a worldwide basis is as follows:

1. redress for wrongs done to them by outsiders 2. revival of Islamic civilization without western interference 3. unification of all Muslim countries into one feudal Islamic state 4. removal of current political leaders who do not justly rule by the sharia law.

Finally, in regard to Jerusalem, it must become an international city or under Muslim control.

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Muslim complaints regarding the west are as follows: 1. Rejection of secular modernity, including materialism, decadence, and divorce 2. Culpability in the deaths of Muslims around the world 3. Strongly biased media against the West 4. Belief in the destiny of Islam to dominate the world 5. Outrage of basing U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia 6. Criticism of the U.S. as a hegemonic superpower

In Islam, the opposite of tyranny is not liberty, but the justice of revenge. This leads to retaliation and retribution, which is what we see in the conflict between Palestinians and Jews. From the Koran, there are permitted three groups of human inequalities. These are between master and slave, believer and unbeliever, and man and woman. The inequality of believer and unbeliever leads to coercion and discrimination of the unbeliever. The inequality of man from woman leads to suppression of civil rights of the woman. The practice of slavery had largely been abandoned in modern times.

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Session 15 Clash of Civilizations As we look globally at the world, we are faced with changes and challenges which are both old and new. The old world was challenged by ideologies between communism and democracy. The new world is challenged by issues of local ethnicity and global civilizations. What will the new world look like? Will it be dominated by one superpower: the U.S.? Will it be divided into two worlds: orient and occident, north and south, Muslim and non-Muslim? Will it be multipolar with six regional civilizations: U.S., China, Russia, Japan, Europe, and India? Will it be a one-world order: U.N., WTO, WHO? Will it be a world of 184 independent and sovereign nations? The definition and history of civilizations is the starting point to answer this question. Civilizations are the broadest grouping of people based upon common bloodline, language, religion, and culture. In the history of civilizations, a life-cycle of seven stages re-occurs in each:

1. mixture (colonization and immigration) 2. gestation (internal growth) 3. expansion 4. conflict (civil war or wars of aggression) 5. empire 6. decay 7. invasion

Of the twelve historic civilizations in history, seven no longer exist and five remain. These five are Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Islamic and Western. Civilizations are not political entities, but rather cultural entities. The key elements of culture are language and religion. Of the world�s population, 30% are Christian, 20% are Muslim, 15% are Hindu, and 35% are �all other� or no religion (atheist). The growth rates trend toward Muslim because it spreads by both conversion and population growth. Religion gives people identity between believers and non-believers, which then becomes the significant definer and divider between peoples of different civilizations.

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The distinguishing characteristics of the Western civilization are as follows: 1. Christianity�Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant 2. Multi-lingual�English, Spanish, French, etc. 3. Separation of spiritual and temporal authority 4. Rule of law based on the concept of natural rights 5. Social pluralism, not based upon blood or marriage 6. Representative bodies 7. Sense of individualism with rights and liberties

Muslim societies want none of these characteristics. These characteristics define Westernization by values, beliefs, practices, and institutions. What many Muslims want is modernization , which the West has, including wealth, education, technology, science, military might, and strong financial and monetary systems. Islamic resurgence is becoming more visible to the West and is caused by several factors:

1. end of Soviet influence 2. population growth�1.2 billion Muslims 3. social migration�urban vs. rural, into the West 4. rapid communication and transportation 5. oil wealth�Wealth is proof of virtue. 6. resentment of second-class status 7. unemployment (15%) causing unrest and civil strife

Political ideological differences can be debated and resolved. Economic interests can be negotiated and settled. Cultural differences seem not to be resolvable except by �yes or no�, win or lose, zero-sum choice. Historically, geography separated Islam from the Christian West. Europe ended at the Pyrenees in Spain, at the water�s edge of the Mediterranean Sea, and at the borders of the Balkans in Bosnia and Kossovo. Today, immigration to Europe and North America removes geographical separation and introduces Islamic culture into the societies of the West. This presents the problem that allegiance to a Western nation-state is secondary to the unity and precepts of Islam to most Muslims. The future holds the potential for a clash of civilizations between the universalism of the West and the intolerance of Islam. The U.S. has always been a missionary nation believing in the rightness of its values of democracy, free markets, limited government, human rights, individualism, freedom of religion, and the rule of law, which should be exported to the non-Western nations.

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Islamic countries, except Turkey, reject these values and practices as well as the notion that the West is superior morally, culturally, legally, socially, or spiritually. They only acknowledge the West�s superiority economically, technologically, and militarily. In foreign policy, the West has used containment and non-proliferation of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons as keys to its strategy for peace and stability. Islamic countries resist this in two ways. First, by attempting to acquire these weapons, and second, by using terrorism to compensate for conventional weapons� inferiority. Regarding the superiority of Western values, Muslims generally reject our values and institutions and view our culture as materialistic, decadent, and immoral. Muslims do not respect the power of the West, but rather resent and fear that power. We are, to them, the godless West. The West views Islam as a threat due to nuclear proliferation, oil dependence, terrorism, unwanted immigration, and corrupt regimes. Of the seven nations classified by the U.S. as terrorist states, five are Muslim (Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Sudan). (Cuba, North Korea) Just to underscore the lack of friendship by Muslim countries to the West, it is well to remember that the U.S. and western Europe intervened in Bosnia and Kossovo in the 1990�s to save and protect Muslims, yet not one word of praise was issued by any Muslim government for our actions on their behalf. Is there a connection between Islam and militarism?

1. From the Koran, Islam glorifies military virtues. 2. During the 700�s, 1100-1300�s Crusades, and the 1400-1500�s of the rise

of the Ottoman empire, Islam sought to conquer and convert the West by force. 3. Islam by belief is an absolutist faith and intolerant to other religions. 4. Islam is unstable because there is no central, dominant, core nation-state as leader. 5. Moderates within Islam do not attain limited goals through negotiation and are replaced by radicals who achieve extreme goals through violence. 6. Younger Islamic leaders, who are more radical, are emerging to challenge the more pragmatic traditional older religious leaders.

The West faces problems which are symptomatic of decline and decay in any given civilization. These factors include:

1. low economic growth rate 2. low birth rate 3. increases in crime, violence and drug use 4. family decay 5. a weakening of the work ethic 6. decrease in actual learning levels 7. rejection of immigrants to national assimilation 8. promotion of diversity rather than unity, emphasizing the rights of groups rather

than individuals.

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In contrast, what needs to be promoted to counter these factors are: 1. defense and security 2. the rule of law 3. free-market capitalism 4. political democracy 5. individual liberty 6. human rights 7. cultural and religious freedom

We should not confuse culture and morality. Culture is relative. Morality is absolute. We should resist making America like the world. Western culture is unique and should be preserved for America. On the other hand, we should not try to enforce our culture on the world, universally, because the reality is that the world is multicultural. May God bless America and preserve her as a beacon to the world prompting as many as will listen to respond that �Jesus Christ is Lord.� In my view, the pressures will increase on America to side against Israel. We will be pushed by all Islamic nations, by the European Union, by the Pope, by the United Nations, by the communist countries to side with them against Israel, and to enjoy the world�s goodwill, unrestricted oil, foreign trade, and freedom from terrorist attacks on the U.S. But remember what Scripture tells us:

1. Genesis 15:18��In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates.� 2. Genesis 12:3��I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee, and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.� (God�s covenant people)

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Bibliography: History of Religions by B. F. Moore American Muslims by A. G. Hasan Atlas of Sacred Places by J. Harpur God and World Religions by P. G. Johnson The Shi�ites by D. Pinault National Geographic vol. 196 No.1 Iran National Geographic vol. 198 No. 5 Libya National Geographic December, 2001 Abraham, Father of Three Faiths From Beirut to Jerusalem by T. L. Friedman Dome of the Rock by J.F. Landay What Life Was Like in the Lands of the Prophet by Time-Life Rubaiyat by Omar Khayyam Arabian Nights A History of the Arab Peoples by A. Houani A Ready Defense by J. McDowell The Holy Koran (Selections) by A. J. Arberry A Voice of Reason by B. Victor Married to Muhammed by W. Cati Background of Islam by M Bair The Islamic Religion by D. Mathews The Root of the Problem by F. Candor A Short Summary of Islamic Beliefs and Eschatology by L. Dolphin The Family of Abraham (no author named)

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Save Jerusalem by M. Evans (video) Bin Laden: The Man Who Declared War on America by Y. Bodansky Israel at the Crossroads by D. Dolan Arafat in the Eyes of the Beholder by J. and J. Walloch The Story of Adnan Khashoggi by R. Kessler Inside Islam by R. Safa God and His Prophet: The Religion of Islam (audio) by J. Swanson The Crusades by R. Newhall Sacred Rage by Robin Wright In the Shadow of the Prophet by M. Viorst Understanding the Contemporary Middle East by D. Gerner Understanding Islam by Y. Emerick The Blood of the Moon by G. Grant Security Starts at our Borders Nov. 2001 by P. Schafley The Clash of Civilizations by S. Huntington Islamic Invasion by R. Morey The Facts on Islam by J. Ankerberg Brighter Than the Baghdad Sun by S. Bhatia and D. McCrory The Bible and the Qur�an Feb. 2002 Newsweek Questions Muslims Ask by D. Kingsriter What Went Wrong by B. Lewis Classical Islam by G. Von Grunebaum The Muslim Discovery of Europe by B. Lewis

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Key Words in the Koran are: Infidel: one who calls judgment day a lie The fire: hell, gehenna, unable to die Paradise: garden, a literal place of the senses Mosque: house of prayer Caliph: apostle of God (political leader) Koran: text which God sent down Martyr: witness to the faith Jihad: internal struggle, supreme effort (holy war) Hijab: a woman�s head covering Kabah: cube Key Words in Arabic: Harem: restricted, off-limits Halal: Islamically proscribed food (no pork) Ulema: religious scholars, council of jurists Muezzin: the person who performs the call to prayer Iman: a spiritual leader with authority Vizier: Islamic prime minister Fatwa: a learned religious opinion Islam: surrender to God Salam: peace

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Kafir: unbeliever Matam: self-inflicted wounding Shariah: divine law interpreted from the Koran Muslim: one who surrenders Muhammed: worthy of praise Medina: city of the prophet Umayyad: Ruling dynasty through Muawiya (661-750 A.D. �Damascus) Abbasid: ruling dynasty through Abba (750-1250 A.D.�Baghdad) Fatimads: ruling dynasty through Fatima (909-1171 A.D.�Cairo) Mamluks: ruling dynasty of Asian warriors (1250-1517 A.D.�Cairo) Sufis: those who believe in mysticism Amir: prince or provincial governor Mufti: Islamic legal scholar and judge of law Qadi: Islamic judge of civil and criminal trials Sultan: Islamic political leader Taliban: student Shahead: martyr Jinn: hidden ones, genie Barbary: Berber Dajjal: false prophet Shaytan: Satan Khalafah: global pan-Arabic state Shahada: witness to Allah

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Akhira: afterlife Dua: sermon in mosque Maghrib: sunset, west Hadith: sayings of Muhammed Shayhk: tribal leader Mullah: spiritual leader Shia: The political party of Ali Shura: consensus and consultation Sunna: tradition Mahdi: messiah, one who is guided Mujahideen: makers of holy war