| FrontPageMag.com | By Robert Spencer | By Hugh Fitzgerald | Books | Jihad Watch | Islam 101 | Qur'an Blog | Raymond Ibrahim | Robert Spencer |  |
|
|
|||||||||||
|
|
Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, whom John Esposito of Georgetown University famously called "a reformist" explains the ins and outs of the Islamic view on apostasy in this article from Islamonline:
The greatest kind of danger that faces Muslims is that which threatens their moral aspect of existence, i.e., their belief. That is why apostasy from Islam is regarded as one of the most dangerous threats to the Muslim community. The ugliest intrigue the enemies of Islam have plotted against Islam has been to try to lure its followers away from it; they have even used force for this purpose. In this regard, Almighty Allah says, [And they will not cease from fighting against you till they have made you renegades from your religion, if they can.] (Al-Baqarah 2:217)In the contemporary age, the Muslim community has been exposed to horrendous invasions and aggressive attacks, one of which is the missionary invasion that aims at uprooting the Muslim community altogether. This invasion began its missions with the Western colonialism (of the Muslim world), and it still exercises its activities in the Muslim world and among the Muslim communities and minorities (in non-Muslim countries). One of its goals is to entice Muslims to convert to Christianity. This goal was made clear in the North American Conference on Muslim Evangelization (that was held in Colorado in 1978). Forty studies about Islam and Muslims and how to spread Christianity among them were submitted to that conference, and US$1 billion was allocated for this purpose. In addition, the Zwemer Institute (in South Carolina) was established to train missionaries to preach Christianity to Muslims...
Muslims are to seriously resist individual apostasy before it seriously intensifies and develops into a collective one.
That is why the Muslim jurists are unanimous that apostates must be punished, yet they differ as to determining the kind of punishment to be inflicted upon them. The majority of them, including the four main schools of jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi`i, and Hanbali) as well as the other four schools of jurisprudence (the four Shiite schools of Az-Zaidiyyah, Al-Ithna-`ashriyyah, Al-Ja`fariyyah, and Az-Zaheriyyah) agree that apostates must be executed...
A bit on the longish side, but well worth the read for anyone still confused as to why it is forbidden for Muslims to express doubt about Islam. See also Ibn Warraq's treatment, Leaving Islam.
Posted by Rebecca at April 14, 2006 9:25 AM
Print this entry
| Email this entry
| Digg this
| del.icio.us
Imam: "Oh please, oh please, oh please don't leave the cult.. I'm begging you please, please, please don't leave our cult".
/Spit
Posted by: Just_Linda![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.jihadwatch.org/dhimmiwatch/nav-commenters.gif)
at April 14, 2006 9:54 AM
Of course where there is annoying dishonessty involving Islam there is John Eposito lurking somewhere in the background.
So essentially colonilism is used as a retroactive, never ending blanket justification for Islamic atrocities?
The idea of Western Missionary activity in the Islamic world counting as a "horrendous" attack and onslaught is perverse. Islam and its adherents project their own crimes onto others.
The tragic fact is that this lie works, between the left and well funded Islamist they get to spew their libel of Christianity, Isreal and anyhing else pretty much unchallenged and the public as uneducated as much of is, never knows the difference. This evil feeds on ignorance and the guilty, self- hate conplex that grips so many Westerners. Reading someone like Bat Ye'or can help remedy this though.
I have personal experience, very negative experience with Muslims evangelizing for Islam, I would describe their attempts at dawah as an abusive onslaught. This discussion of Islamic apostasy is a prime example of the hypocracy and dishonesty that surrounds anything involving Islam.
at April 14, 2006 10:25 AM
I wonder how they would feel about it if all non-muslim states made it punishable by death to convert to islam. I bet all the same imams that are crying for death to apostates would be first in line to cry about how oppresive such a punishment is against the poor peaceloving muslims.
Posted by: ExpatriateDK at April 14, 2006 11:00 AM
"well worth the read for anyone still confused as to why it is forbidden for Muslims to express doubt about Islam."
Anyone still confused as to why it is forbidden for Muslims to express doubt about Islam is a naive Infidel who thinks the whole world must naturally be as intellectually open-minded and spiritually mature as the modern West. cough! *BUSH!* cough!
Posted by: Television at April 14, 2006 11:16 AM
Don't you dare leave this religion.
Don't you dare refuse to join this religion.
Don't you dare inform muslims of other religions.
Don't you dare refuse to force Islam on others.
Think that covers it, no?
at April 14, 2006 11:50 AM
I must say, I really feel for Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, I mean Islam is under IMMENSE assualt in Africa. I mean can you imagine if you were some poor African kid whose parents died of AIDS and your belly looks like a 40 yr. old hick's beer gut because you don't have enough food to eat? Then to top it all off some 'white' missionaries come from America or some other infidel land and spread their TOXIC message of LOVE AND PEACE AND REDEMPTION and actually feed and clothe the hungry. I MEAN, these World Relief, World Vision organizations make me sick! Coming over to our perfect Islam world and helping out our own people who we neglect everyday! I MEAN why help them out with food/medicine/shelter and then tell them that Jesus loves them and died for their sins and that they can actually have a RELATIONSHIP with God?!?!? They should stay muslim so that they can die a martyr's death so they can get 72 virgins and that way they won't have to get to know allah (a.k.a satan) or at least let them become pagan apostates so they won't preach any GOOD NEWS to desperate people!
Posted by: Erik at April 14, 2006 12:42 PM
All he needed to say were the last four words:
"...apostates should be executed...".
In contrast to the words from the Cross:
"...forgive them for they know not what they do..."
The stark antipodes of the soul.
Posted by: profitsbeard at April 14, 2006 8:55 PM
The Unique Selling Proposition of Islam must be rather weak, and the Christian one rather attractive if people choose to leave despite the death sentence.
at April 15, 2006 8:24 AM
[conference on] how to spread Christianity among [Muslims], and US$1 billion was allocated for this purpose.
I seriously doubt that US$1 billion was allocated for this or any other purpose. That is a HUGE amount that Christian ministries just don't have. (only if you count up ALL the mission boards in the country do you get that kind of figure.)
Posted by: dococ at April 15, 2006 3:59 PM
Some good Christian web sites about Islam are as follows:
http://www.ciu.edu/muslimstudies
http://www.arabicbible.com
http://www.equip.org
I believe the first web site is that of the Zwemer Institute.
Posted by: Christian at April 15, 2006 9:28 PM
(Note: The Comments section is provided in the interests of free speech only. It is mostly unmoderated, but comments that are off-topic, offensive, slanderous, or otherwise annoying stand a chance of being deleted. The fact that any comment remains on the site IN NO WAY constitutes an endorsement by Jihad Watch or Dhimmi Watch, or by Robert Spencer or any other Jihad Watch or Dhimmi Watch writer, of any view expressed, fact alleged, or link provided in that comment.)