Hi Jim. You had stated that:
Actually, the rules are to be just and moderate to all. And, there is the cornerstone of: Laa ikraha fee deen - which means that there is to be no compulsion in way of life. So, one cannot be forced to follow one way or another and must not be persecuted for choosing one way or another. Simple.
Today and in the past you have many predominantly Muslim countries in which there is a Christian, Hebrew, secular, et el minority. And, they thrive un-abused. Like in the US, there arises the issue of under-representation of the minority. But, this is handled by having just leaders and compbuttionate neighbors. Let not the mainstream media be your source of daily bread. Second-hand info is just that, second-hand. Ask a person who hung out with Christians in Egypt. Ask a person from Iran about the 3+ million Hebrews and Christians there.
Indeed, in Yugoslovia and other countries, the most peaceful period came at a time of Muslim leadership. Christians took good advantage of this period in which Christian factions were not allowed to fight one another. They built lofty Churches, the like of which cannot be built today. This, during time in which the rules were being adhered to. Now, these Churches still stand today. Travel there. Ask the locals about the history. Get informed about the rules of Islam from various sources. Do your homework.
The rules state that slavery of one over another is wrong. Each person has a right to free will and choice, life, liberty. If you have been indoctrinated into thinking that these are new and uniquely American concepts consider that still, centuries long after these rules were in place and in practice, we have Europe and Africa and America colluding on the cruelest slavery in written history. This was endorsed and enforced at the clerical, governmental and civilian levels. Every facet of it, against the rules long established!
The rules state that one cannot be the aggressor in any situation. Again, striking at someone before they have struck you is forbidden. Call it pre-emptive strike. Call it what you may, it is against the rules. The rules state that if one is forced to defend their land that even in such desperate times, there are rules of engagement among them:
1. You cannot destroy the foliage. Agent Orange (Vietnam), Atomic-Nuclear plants (Nagasaki), all against the rules 2. You absolutely cannot kill non-combatants. The killing of even one innocent civilian is not acceptable and is a war-crime. Again, collateral damage is not allowed! 3. If the attacker draws back to surrender you must allow surrender and not push for further killing 4. Disrupting of water supplies and other means of civilian utility is not allowed. 5. A prisoner of war is to be fed with the food that you eat and clothed with the clothing that you wear 6. More...
Also, the rules state that no-one is ever, ever, ever allowed to be held and prosecuted without due process no matter the circumstance. Vigilantism, buttbuttination, single person or enbreasty being cop, prosecutor, judge and jury is now allowed. Per Islamic rules, one is not allowed to be charged without credible witnesses brought forth and the evidence made clear for all to see. One is not allowed to be charged without proper legal representation. For obvious reasons of fairness and in prevention of setups and torture-drawn confessions, these are the rules.
The rules state that one cannot sit idly by while another is being persecuted (no matter who that person is). You help with your hand. If you are not able to do so then by speaking or writing against it. If you are too weak to do that then acknowledging and disdaining the wrong within yourself is a must.
The rules state the true followers of Prophets Jesus and Moses and Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon them) are brothers and sisters to one another. The notion that followers of one prophet but not another are doomed to hell is a post-Constantine, Christian notion and has no part in the minds of Muslims (or true followers of Jesus). Because this is such a firmly held belief by some post-Constantine Christians they buttume that the converse must be true as well, i.e. Muslims think Christians to be doomed to hell, worthy of being end at random. This is not the case. The Lord is not Schizophrenic, sending down various Prophets with diametrically opposed messages. It is only the people who tamper with the evidence, requiring a new Prophet to come and set things straight yet, again. So, if you see some apparent Muslim reportedly yelling that all Christians must die then you know one of two things:
1. He does not know the rules and is therefore not a knowledgeable and practicing Muslim or... 2. The report is making him out to be something that he is not
No three ways about it.
Of course there are some who call themselves Muslim who follow not the rules. And, there are still more people who profess not to be Muslim who follow not the rules. Yet, to say that the rules are not established, well known and actively adhered to by most, shows a severe lack of understanding of Islam, of history, and of the present day.
Respectfully I ask you to please allow someone who knows the rules of Islam to comment on the rules of Islam.
Cheers, Hbuttan Davis
