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THE LEGACY OF BAT YE’OR A FORGOTTEN HISTORIAN OF DHIMMITUDE

February 24, 2024
By Bassam Michael Madany

Islam spread mostly at the expense of Christian lands since its rise in the seventh century. Muslim conquerors referred to Christians and Jews as “Dhimmis,” a term that means “protected.” This classification included severe rules for the conduct of their lives, including the payment of the annual Jizya tax.

The condition of being a Dhimmi is known as Dhimmitude. I’m astonished that historian Philip K. Hitti (1886-1978), who authored several books on the History of the Arabs, remained silent about the plight of Christians and Jews living under Islam. When researching the reason for his omission, I came across this explanation generated by Microsoft Copilot in response to “Had professor Philip Hitti dealt with the plight of Christians under Islamic rule”:

Philip Khuri Hitti did not explicitly deplore the treatment of Christians and Jews under Islamic rule. While Hitti’s research provided valuable insights into the dynamics between different religious communities, he maintained a scholarly and objective perspective. His work aimed to illuminate historical contexts rather than express personal opinions or judgments. It’s essential to recognize that scholars like Hitti contributed to our understanding of complex historical relationships, but their role was primarily academic rather than advocacy oriented. The treatment of religious minorities under Islamic rule remains a multifaceted topic, and various scholars have explored it from different angles.”

While “a scholarly and objective perspective” should avoid “advocacy”, it should not avoid discussing systemic discrimination, even if it was inconvenient to narratives fashionable in academia. Avoiding the discussion of such topics is tantamount to self-imposed censorship. In Hitti’s case, it’s hard to understand it, since he was of Lebanese background and his parents must have mentioned “Dhimmitude” and told him about the 1860 massacre of Christians in Mount Lebanon and Damascus, Syria. I should add that several Western historians have assiduously avoided any reference to this aspect of Islamic history.

So, we are indebted to Bat Ye’or (Daughter of the Nile) who took the initiative by writing a book on the treatment of Christians and Jews in Islam. I learned about her work from an article in First Things, by Richard John Neuhaus, who commented on her book “The Decline of Eastern Christianity Under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude.”

Bat Ye’or was born into a wealthy Jewish family in Cairo, Egypt in 1933. During the Nasser regime that began in 1952, life for Egyptian Jews became intolerable. That led the family to leave Egypt in 1957 and go to the United Kingdom as refugees. Bat Ye'or married the British historian and activist David Litman in September 1959. A year later, they moved to Switzerland and lived there until his death in May 2012. They were blessed with three children.

The French author Jacques Ellul contributed the Foreword for the book. Here are some timely excerpts:

“In Islam, Jihad is an institution and not an event, it is part of the normal functioning of the Muslim world. The conquered populations change status (they became Dhimmis), and the Shari'a tends to be put into effect, overthrowing the former law of the country. The world, as Bat Ye'or brilliantly shows, is divided into two regions: the Dar al-Islam and the Dar al-Harb; the "Domain of Islam" and "the Domain of war." The author has the courage to examine whether a certain number of events that we know in the West, do not already derive from a sort of "Dhimmitude" of the West, vis-a-vis an Islamic world that has resumed its wars, hostage-taking, terrorism, the destruction of Lebanese Christianity, the weakening of the Eastern Churches (not to mention the wish to destroy Israel.)” Bordeaux, France 1991

Bat Ye’or described the plight of Eastern Christians under Islam [pages 73,74]:

"This is not a book about Islam; it neither examines its expansion nor its civilization. Its objective is the study of that multitude of peoples subjected by Islam, and to determine as far as possible the complex processes—both endogenous and exogenous—that brought about their gradual extinction.

“I am indebted to the Lebanese Bashir Gemayel for the term ‘dhimmitude’ which he used on two occasions. This word could not better express the actual subject of my research, begun in 1971, on the manifold and contradictory aspects of a human experience which millions of individuals have endured over the centuries, sometimes for more than a millennium.

“A remarkable chronicle written by a Monophysite monk, a native of Tel-Mahre a village in Mesopotamia, gives a precise description of the fiscal situation of non-Muslims. The chronicle completed in 774, provides almost photographic detail of one of the turning points in history. The description covers Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, and Palestine, in the 8th century at the time the Dhimmis formed most of the rural populations; small landowners, artisans, or sharecroppers farming the fiefs allotted to Arabs; a numerous Jewish peasantry lived alongside Christians villages: Copts, Syrians, and Nestorians. This chronicle reveals the mechanism which destroyed the social structure of a flourishing Dhimmi peasantry in the whole Islamized Orient.”

Excerpts from the Epilogue of the book [pages 261-265]:

“Here are peoples who having integrated the Hellenistic heritage and biblical spirituality, spread the Judeo-Christian civilization as far as Europe and Russia. Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians, conquered by nomadic bands, taught their oppressors, with the patience of centuries, the subtle skills of governing empires. the need for law and order, the management of finances, the administration of town and countryside, the rules of taxation rather than those of pillages of pillage, the sciences, philosophy, literature, and the arts, the organization the transmission of knowledge--- in short, the rudiments and foundations of civilization.

“They were the peasants who sowed, planted, and farmed, who plowed. Harvested, worked in the fields, cared for the orchards and the cattle, beekeepers and vine growers, farmers, and labourers. In the towns they were the artisans who worked, hammered, wove, and fashioned objects, the glaziers, sailors, and merchants. They were also the town planners who conceived the towns, the architects who designed the mosques and the Islamic palaces, the masons who built them and the people who maintained bridges and aqueducts.

“Decimated by razzias (Arabic term for Invasions) in the countryside, they sought refuge in the towns which they developed and embellished. Branded with opprobrium, the conquerors still chose to drag them from region to region to revive ravaged lands and restore ruined towns. Once again, they built, again they worked, once again they were driven out, pillaged and ransomed. And as they dwindled, drained of their blood and spirit, civilization itself disappeared, decadence stagnated, barbarism reigned over lands which, previously when they had been theirs, were lands of civilization, of crops and of plenty.

“The elites who fled to Europe took their cultural baggage with them, their scholarship, and their knowledge of the classics of antiquity. Thenceforth, in the Christian lands of refuge --- Spain, Provence, Sicily, Italy cultured centers developed where Christians and Jews from Islamized lands taught to the young Europe the knowledge of the old pre–Islamic Orient, formerly translated into Arabic by their ancestors. Straddling the two shores of the Mediterranean, intermediaries between two civilizations, they ensured trade, exchanges, the circulation of commodities and ideas, and the transfer of technology, enriching themselves and others by their ingenuity. Then in the 19th century when Europe lifted the screed of opprobrium which stifled them, again they met their challenge of modernity. Railways, telegraph, printing, journalism, transport, industry, banking: everywhere they were the promoters, the leaven of civilization and evolution. Once again, tireless artisans of progress, builders of civilization, they created the “infrastructure of modernity from Persia to the Maghreb [northwest Africa]. And once again driven out despoiled, decimated, they fled to the Americas, to Europe, to Israel, where Armenians, Maronites, Syrians, Chaldeans, Copts, and Jews, live from their own labor and not from international charity. Henceforth, from Turkey to Iran and the Arab countries, micro communities struggle along, the last remnants of multitudes of Christians and Jews who formerly populated those lands. Only cemeteries and ruins recall their past. Their historical, political, and cultural lights dissolve in the great oblivion of time, and, in their usurped history, the profound sense of dhimmitude is revealed: obliteration in nonexistence and nothingness.”

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ISRAEL AT 75 And Paul on Israel’s Future

November 28, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Introduction

The current news from the Middle East is dominated by the Attack of the 7th of October and its aftermath. As a writer on the History of the region, I don’t comment on current issues, which are the domain of newspapers and other means of communication.

I share this article with my readers to help them understand the complicated nature of the issues that have dominated the lives of Mideastern people since the end of the Second World War.

On the 15th of May 2023, Israel celebrated its 75th as a nation. Time marches on. I remember that Saturday morning in 1948 when the BBC broadcast the news.

As the dawn of that day began, Arab armies greeted their neighbor by attacking from the north, the east, and from the south. The Haganah that had defended the Jewish people in Palestine during the British Mandate, became the IDF (Israeli Defence Force). Since that attack, Israel has been involved in a non-stop effort to defend itself and its people.

There are two aspects to the subject of the future of the State of Israel: one is historical/political, the other is in Apostle Paul’s teaching in his Letter to the Romans chapters 9-11.

We will begin with the historical/political side.

Prior to the Arab/Islamic conquest of the Holy Land in the middle of the seventh century, most of the people in Palestine were Christians, with a Jewish minority living alongside. The Islamic conquest resulted in the Arab Muslims gradually becoming most of the Palestinian population.

While most of the Jews had been living in the Diaspora for centuries, they maintained a strong yearning for a return to their ancestral land. They expressed that longing during the Passover celebration each year with the phrase “Next year in Jerusalem.”

During the 19th century, Jews were persecuted in Russia and discriminated against in Western Europe. The rise of anti-Semitism became evident in the trial of Captain Alfred Dreyfus in the aftermath of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Captain Dreyfus, who was Jewish, was charged by the French High Command with spying for the Germans. He was found guilty and spent time at Devil’s Island in French Guyana, South America. French author Émile Zola took up the defense of Dreyfus and wrote his famous letter “J’accuse” in defense of Dreyfus.i

Theodor Herzl, a Jewish correspondent of a Viennese newspaper, covered the Dreyfus trial. He became convinced that there was no hope for the Jews to achieve complete emancipation in Europe. He became the father of the Zionist Movement, which advocated the establishment of a national home for the Jews. After many debates at World Zionist Congresses, it was decided to establish this home in Palestine. After his death, the Zionist Movement was assumed by Chaim Weitzmann, a Polish Jew who was teaching chemistry in England. During the war he helped the British Navy by inventing materials used to combat German submarines. Eventually, the British Government published the Balfour Declaration, which favored the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine.

At the end of WWI, the British assumed the government of Palestine with a mandate from the League of Nations. For the next 30 years, Great Britain found strong opposition from Palestinian Arabs against the plan. In 1946, the British Government brought the matter to the United Nations. A U.N. Commission of Inquiry studied the matter and proposed the partition of Palestine into a Jewish State and an Arab State. The Jews accepted the plan; the Arabs rejected it. Britain ended its presence in Palestine on 14 May 1948 at midnight. David Ben-Gurionii, with other Jewish leaders, declared the birth of the State of Israel on 15 May 1948.

Those opposed took immediate action. Armies from Syria, Lebanon, Transjordan, Iraq, and Egypt entered Palestine in response. By mid-June 1948, the United Nations Security Council managed to pass a cease-fire between the opposing sides. But that was not the end of the conflict. Other major wars between Israel and the Arab countries took place in 1956, 1967, and 1973. Eventually, Egypt’s President Anwar Sadat took the initiative of signing a peace treaty with Israel in 1978, and in 1994, Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel.

During the second decade of the 21st century, the United States succeeded in getting several Arab countries to agree to normalize their relations with Israel. This is in a set of documents called the Abraham Accords.

The Accords ended the official Arab denial of the right of Israel to exist. However, a determined foe of Israel is now the Islamic Republic of Iran. To prove its utter faithfulness to Islamic tradition, the Iranian regime assumed an active opposition to Israel. It supports the radical Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian HAMAS in Gaza, with weapons used to continually harass Israel. While it is impossible to predict the future, the past 75 years give evidence that Israel’s existence may be frequently challenged.

Thus far the political history of the modern State of Israel.


As a Christian committed to the Biblical views of world history, I turn to The New Testament teaching on the Future of Israel.

In Romans 9 – 11, Saint Paul begins by focusing on the future of Israel, as some Jews had come to faith in Christ, while the vast majority had rejected Him as the Messiah.

Paul lists the privileges the Jews had received as witnesses to God’s glory: the Covenants, the receiving of the Law of Moses, the worship in the Temple, and the promises of God. He refers to their founding fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Finally, the Apostle mentioned that the promised Messiah was a descendant of the Patriarchs.

In Chapter 10, Saint Paul describes his desire and prayer for the people of Israel to be saved through faith in Jesus Christ. He acknowledges their zeal for God, a zeal demonstrated though efforts to obtain salvation by keeping the Law, something available only by faith in Jesus Christ. To be saved “one must confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised Him from the dead” (10:9)

Chapter 11 sums up Paul teaching about the future of Israel.

God has not rejected His previously chosen people, Israel. God’s relationship with Israel as a nation continues. Israel’s hardening will end when the “fullness of the Gentiles” has come to God through faith in Jesus Christ. Paul warns Gentile believers not to feel superior to Jewish unbelievers, since it was their faith in Christ that brought them salvation.

The future of believing Israelites is not to be separated from the future of believing Gentiles. Israel’s hope for the future is the same as that of believing Gentiles.

Chapter 11 of Romans ends with a poem structured as a hymn, expressing Paul’s profound reaction both to God’s ways and to His mercy to sinful human beings. He finishes his hymn with a statement of worship: “to God be the glory forever, Amen.”


iJ’accuse, (French: “I accuse”) a celebrated open letter by Émile Zola to the president of the French Republic in defense of Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish officer who had been accused of treason by the French army. It was published in the newspaper L’Aurore on Jan. 13, 1898.

iiDavid Ben-Gurion, orig. David Gruen, (born Oct. 16, 1886, Płońsk, Pol., Russian Empire—died Dec. 1, 1973, Tel Aviv–Yafo, Israel), First prime minister of Israel (1948–53, 1955–63) 

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A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO ISLAM

November 01, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Muslim Prophet Muhammad was born in 570, at Mecca, Arabia. At the age of 25, he married Khadija who was 40. They had one daughter Fatima Khadija died in 619. According to Islamic tradition, Muhammad’s prophetic career began at the age of 40, when the angel Gabriel appeared to him. He was greatly perturbed after this first revelation but was reassured by his wife and her cousin. Muhammad continued to receive revelations. When he began to proclaim his message in Mecca, he was met with strong opposition.

With a few followers, he left for Medina in 622, a date that marks the beginning of the Islamic Lunar Calendar 1 A.H. (Anno Hejira) i.e., the year of the Migration. This move marked the transformation of Muhammad into a Leader of the Muslim Community, the Umma. Those who came with him from Mecca are called Al-Muhajirun (Immigrants), the people who welcomed him at Medina are known as Al-Ansar (Partisans).

Muhammad began a series of raids on the Caravans of the Meccan merchants that were en route to Palestine and Syria. By 630, the Resistance among the Meccans collapsed, he and his supporters from Medina entered Mecca triumphantly, and destroyed the idols at the Kaaba (site of the Black Stone). The triumphant Prophet-Statesman returned to Medina, where he died of a high fever on Monday, the 8th of June 632.

After the death of Khadija, Muhammad married several wives, one named Aisha, a young girl whose father, Abu Bakr, was a close friend. Upon Muhammad’s death, leaders of the Muslim community in Medina chose a successor (Khalifa). The first Caliph was Abu Bakr, the father of Aisha. He died in 634, and was followed by Omar, Uthman, and Ali. These four men are known as the “Rightly Guided Caliphs.”

Omar assumed the Caliphate in 634 and launched the Conquests (Futuhat), eastward into Syria, Mesopotamia, and Persia, and westward into Egypt and beyond. He was assassinated in 644 by a Persian slave. Uthman became the third Caliph in 644 but met with opposition, as there was no consensus about his choice. He was assassinated in 656. He was followed by Ali, a cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad.

Muawiya, the military governor of Syria who was related to Uthman, claimed that Ali was involved in the murder of the new Caliph. He opposed Ali’s assumption of the Caliphate. Ali, with a considerable army, fought Muawiya, and while gaining the upper hand in the battle, a disagreement arose in his camp that led to his assassination. That opened the door for Muawiya (a member of the Umayyad clan) to become the Caliph.

Under the Umayyads, the Caliphate became a dynasty. The capital was moved from Medina to Damascus, Syria. It lasted until 750. During its rule, the Islamic conquests reached Spain, and were stopped by Charles Martel at the Battle of Tours, near Poitiers, France, in 732 AD.

The Umayyads faced several enemies, the followers of Ali, known as the Shi’ites, and other Muslim factions. Abu’l Abbas Al-Saffah, a descendent of Muhammed’s uncle, led a large army that defeated the Umayyads in 750. The Abbasids built their capital in Baghdad, Iraq. They were followed by the Ottoman Turks in 1453, after defeating the Byzantines, and renamed their capital Constantinople, Istanbul.

The Ottoman Caliphate was abolished in 1924 by Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic. He instituted a secular regime, and initiated a Latinized Turkish Alphabet, thus helping the Turkish masses to become literate. Ataturk’s reforms lasted for several decades after his passing in 1938 but were gradually overturned by Recep Tayyip Erdogan early in 2000.

According to a recent article from the AFP news service:

“President Erdogan will mark Turkey's centenary Sunday [the 29th of October 2023] by honouring the republic's revered founder, while chipping away at the foundation.

“Erdogan and Mustafa Kemal Ataturk have become the seminal figures of modern Turkey, their contrasting styles and visions defining the shape of society and the country's place in the world.

“Dubbed "reis" ("chief") by supporters, Erdogan is now Turkey's longest-serving leader, overseeing a massive modernisation drive that has sustained his popularity in poorer and more religiously conservative provinces since 2003.

“Meaning the "father of all Turks", the surname Ataturk was bestowed on Mustafa Kemal by Turkey's parliament after the field marshal drove out foreign armies and built a new, staunchly secular republic from the Ottoman Empire's ruins.

“Now, Erdogan is walking a fine line between paying respects to the man who created the country, and building his own legacy -- one that critics fear is pulling Turkey back into its Ottoman past.”

In Islam, the Sunni-Shi’ite divide began with the assassination of Ali in 661; it solidified in 680 when his son Hussein was assassinated with his entourage, at Karbala, Iraq. Most Muslims adhere to the Sunni tradition, while around 10% are Shi’ites, live in Persia (Iran), Iraq, and Lebanon. There are no Shi’ite communities in Egypt and the rest of North Africa.

In Sunni Islam, there developed four official schools for the Interpretation of the Shari’a Law. While in Shi’ite Islam, the Interpretation of the Law is handled by religious scholars known as Ayatollahs. In Sunni Islam, an Imam is any authorized leader of worship at the Mosque. While in Shi’ite Islam, an Imam is usually a descendent of Ali through Hussein, who yields absolute power in religious and political matters.

For sources about early Islamic history:

A Revised Version of Early Islamic History

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Commemorating the 22 Anniversary of 9/11

September 26, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Islamist attack on the United States at the dawn of the third millennium was, in a sense, more far-reaching than the Japanese attack on Peal Harbor, as it sought to destroy the very institutions of America.
To commemorate this event in 2023, I begin with excerpts from my Reflections on the 17th Anniversary of 9/11.
In 1453, the Ottoman Turks ended the Eastern Roman Empire, renamed its capital from Constantinople to Istanbul, and turned the Basilica Aya Sophia into a mosque.
In 1683, an Ottoman army of 200,000 soldiers laid siege to Vienna for two months. The Hapsburgs received help from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Holy Roman Empire. The Ottomans’ defeat was followed gradually by the decline of their empire.
In WWI, the Ottomans joined Germany and Austria-Hungary against the Allies. The war ended with the defeat of the Ottomans and the dismemberment of their empire. The new leader of Turkey, Mustapha Kemal Ataturk abolished the Caliphate in 1924, and initiated a program for the secularization of Turkish society. 
The abolishing of the Caliphate sent tremors throughout the Muslim world. In 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt by Hassan al-Banna. Its influence spread throughout the Arab world. Its goal was the re-establishment of an Islamic world order based on the Qur’an, Hadith, and Sunnat Muhammad.
The Brotherhood engaged in violent acts of assassinations of political leaders. When the Egyptian Army overthrew King Farouk in a coup in July1952, the Muslim Brotherhood was opposed to its policies of secularization. In 1954, its attempt to assassinate President Nasser failed and was followed by severe measures against its activities, including the execution of its ideologue, Sayyid Qutb.
The defeat of the Arab armies by Israel in the Six-Day War of June 1967, resulted in the revival of Radical Islam. A decade later, with Ayatollah Khomeini’s assuming power in Iran, Several Jihadist events followed.
The attack on U.S. Embassy in Tehran, on 4 November 1979. Sixty-six U.S.  embassy personnel and Marine guards, were blindfolded and held captive. 52 of the hostages were held captive for 444 days. 
                                                                                                                                     Shi’ite terrorists attacked the U.S. Marine Barracks in Beirut, on 23 October 1983, resulting in the death of 241 U.S. peacekeepers who were there with the UN’s approval.                                                                                                                                                             
The United States embasies were bombed on 7 August 1988, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and in Nairobi, Kenya, resulting in the death of more than 200 people.
On 12 October 2000, USS Cole, docked in Aden harbor for a fuel stop. A small boat carrying explosives and two suicide bombers approached the port side of the destroyer and exploded, creating a 40-by-60-foot gash in the ship's port side, killing 17 crew members, and injuring 39.

The intensification of the Jihad against the West took place on 9/11.

A remembrance ceremony was held at the Flight 93 Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, on the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Rev. Paul Britton, brother of a victim opened with prayer. Names of the victims were read by family members, while bells were tolling.

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf spoke about the forty heroes who, after meeting and praying for guidance, voted to storm the cockpit. Their action prevented the destruction of the Capitol Building, in Washington, D.C. 
AT THE MEMORIAL SERVICE AT THE PENTAGON, in Washington, D.C., Vice President Pence was the speaker. The Marine Corps Choir provided the songs, with a bell tolling as the names of the victims were read. The attack resulted in the death of 184 killed, military, civilians at work, and visitors, including a grade-school class with their teacher, visiting from California
What I’ve been missing from the various published online accounts of the Attack, is any reference to the role of the Qur’an in galvanizing the wills of the hijackers, enabling them to commit their horrific attacks. Atta quoted from parts of the Qur’an known as the “Sword Texts” (Ayat al-Sayf.) They encourage Muslims to kill the Infidels. It’s as if political correctness, prevented highlighting the Qur’anic Ayas (verses) that teach violence against the Infidels! 
My suspicion grew as I watched a televised program, hosted on Tuesday 11 September 2018, by the Bipartisan Policy Center, to honor the “9/11 Commission” Co-Chairs. The Bipartisan Policy Center honored former Governor Thomas Kean (R-NJ) and former Representative Lee Hamilton of Indiana (D-IN) for their work as co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission.
Dan Coats, Director of the National Intelligence, who delivered the keynote address, remarked about his experience on September 11, 2001, and how his position was created, because of recommendations from the 9/11 Commission. Dan Coats explained that full cooperation of all federal, state, and local authorities before 9/11, didn’t exist. And that no single electronic library existed for the security agencies. Now, all that has been remedied. The event held under the auspices of the Bipartisan Policy Center was very instructive. I was riveted by the lively discussion that took place. 
However, I felt deeply disappointed. Not one word by any participant in the event, uttered the words, Islamic Terrorism. One member of the Bipartisan Policy Center referred often to the “Fragile States” where terrorism incubates. The implication was that Islamic terrorists came from underprivileged poor and marginalized homes. 
In fact, most of the 19 hijackers belonged to middle class families. The leader, Muhammad Atta attended well-known universities in Egypt and in Germany. It wasn’t poverty that led him and his fellow-terrorists, to plan his acts; rather he was converted to Salafism (Islamic radicalism) at the Jerusalem Mosque in Hamburg, Germany.
Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Mosque in Hamburg, where Atta was radicalized, was closed by the German authorities nine years later, in 2010. 
Because of the failure, or reluctance of Western political leaders to acknowledge the religious component of terrorism, Islamic terrorism will be with us for a long time. When a diagnosis of a problem is wrong, there can be no solution to the problem! So, this unconventional warfare, which was launched in earnest in 1979 by the new regime in Iran, will go on indefinitely since the Jihadists rely on their belief in a Divine mandate to engage in their murderous acts. Islamic Eschatology (teachings about the End Times) bolsters their beliefs, by painting a vivid picture of the violence that would attend the triumph of Islam globally. 
As mentioned in my Introduction, while the early conquests of Islam took place rapidly, nevertheless, the Christian West stopped them at Tours, France, and at Vienna, Austria. Nowadays, the West’s secularized worldview keeps its leaders from realizing that Islam has resumed its Jihad against the West. To protect the West against this new kind of asymmetrical warfare, is to call it by its true name.
The URL for the Bipartisan Policy Center event on 11 September 2018 is:
https://www.c-span.org/video/?451324-1/bipartisan-policy-center-honors-911-commission-chairs.
 

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Watching the Ongoing August 15, 2023, Intifada

September 09, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Two southern Syrian provinces have risen-up against the oppressive Assad regime in Damascus. Unlike previous uprisings since 1970, President Bashar Assad has not sought to squelch this Intifada. One reason is the provinces are adjacent to Jordan, Lebanon, and occupied sections of the Golan Heights. The most likely reason is the fact that the population is Druze, a religious sect related to Shia Islam. The Druze have been fiercely independent and had opposed the French presence in Syria between 1920 and 1946. I remember their 1936 uprising against the French and its news that was covered in the newspapers that my father read.

The previous uprisings that took place since the Assads (Hafiz and Bashar) assumed power in 1970 were immediately crushed with brute force. Not this one! Why, and what is the plan of his foreign protectors, Iran & Russia?

Nowadays, there’s a major factor, the Internet or social media. The world is watching the ongoing drama from its epicenter: Al Suwayda and Daraa.

Crowds of people, men, women, young people, and children, some carrying banners with large Arabic words that broadcast their grievances:

Down with the despot!

We’ve had enough

We want to live as free people.

The scene resembles a grand festival. Crowds were parading, carrying large colorful banners, some from local areas, others displaying the Syrian flag. Young men climbed a local government building that had large pictures of extolling the achievements of the Assads. They tore the pictures and threw the pieces into the air. As those pieces kept raining down on the streets, it appeared that everyone was having a great time.

One thing I observed was the dress of both men and women. Very few men wore tribal outfits, meanwhile I couldn’t see one woman wearing traditional Islamic garb. They appeared no different than Western women! One leader wore a short sleeve blouse and blue jeans. Many wore something similar. Finally, have they joined modern free humanity?

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LOUIS SEGOND’S CONTRIBUTION TO BIBLE TRANSLATIONS

August 29, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Introduction

During the mid 1930’s, the United Bible Societies published a poster with this title: THE BIBLE IN 1000 LANGUAGES AND DIALECTS, noting that that made the Scriptures the most translated book in history.

Throughout history, the translation of the Bible was undertaken either by several translators or by one person.

200 BC marked the completion of the Septuagint Greek Manuscripts, which contain the 39 books of the Old Testament plus 14 books of the Apocrypha. The received account is that 70 scholars in Alexandria, Egypt accomplished this monumental task. The Septuagint was the first known translation of a major portion of the Bible into another language, and since it was a translation from a relatively obscure language (Hebrew) to the lingua franca of the educated populace within the Roman Empire (Greek), it made God's word accessible to much of Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.

Examples of an individual translator

382 AD Jerome produced the Latin Vulgate Manuscripts, which contain all 80 Books (39 Old Testament + 14 Apocrypha + 27 New Testament). The Vulgate was the first known translation of the entire Bible into another language, and since it was a translation from the language of the educated (Greek) to the language of the masses (Latin), it made God's Word accessible to a larger portion of the members of the Catholic church.

Martin Luther’s complete translation of the Bible into German was released in 1534. Luther produced one of the first translations into a contemporary medieval language, making the Bible accessible to German speakers, which was especially important due to the Protestant Reformation.

A year later, in 1535, John Calvin’s cousin, Pierre Robert Olivétan, translated the Bible into French from the original Hebrew and Greek. Olivétan provided the same service to contemporary French speakers.

Also in 1535, William Tyndale made the Bible accessible to contemporary English speakers.

What is notable about each of these ground-breaking translations is how they expanded access to God’s Word to a major new population and spurred scholarship in additional languages.

During the nineteenth century, France’s empire consisted of large parts of Africa. It included the North African lands of Algeria (1848), Tunisia (1881), and Morocco (1912) and several parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. French colonialism was accompanied by educational institutions that contributed to the rise of a cadre of national authors of importance.

Another feature of French colonialism was the presence of Catholic and Protestant missionary activities where the translation of the Bible and other Christian literature into French was done. For centuries, the only available version was that of Olivétan’s translation of the1530s. Since then, the French language had modernized considerably, and there had been advances in the practice of Bible translation, such as the work of Constantin von Tischendorf. Thus, there was a great need for a new translation of the Bible into French. Which brings us to Louis Segond's translation of 1910.

Louis Segond

Louis Segond (LSG) - Version Information - BibleGateway.com

Louis Segond (3 May 1810 – 18 June 1885) was a Swiss theologian who also translated the Bible into French from the original Hebrew and Greek. For his biography, see his Wikipedia entry.

In 1871 he began his translation, work that he completed in 1880. The British and Foreign Bible Society commissioned and published a revised edition in 1910. That version continues to be popular in the French-speaking world today.

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Hendrik Kraemer: A Great Missions Scholar (1888-1965)

August 14, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Part One

The First International Missionary Council met Edinburgh, Scotland in 1910. It marked the formal beginning of the Ecumenical movement. The Second International Missionary Council met in Jerusalem, Palestine, in 1928, and discussed a wide range of topics from industrialization to race relations.

The International Missionary Council asked Dr. Hendrik Kraemer to prepare a study guide for the meeting of the third IMC to be held at Tambaram, near Madras, India in 1938.

“At the time Hendrik Kraemer was Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Leiden, The Netherland. Born in 1888, Kraemer was raised at a Reformed Church orphanage in Amsterdam. He began a spiritual journey culminating as a missionary to Indonesia, including translating the Bible and encouraging the Indonesian churches. Back home, he survived a Nazi concentration camp during WWII, and became an internationally recognized Christian leader. He died in 1965.”

Kraemer, Hendrik (1888-1965) | History of Missiology (bu.edu)

The Study Guide that Dr. Kraemer wrote:

The Christian Message in a Non-Christian World.

In this article, I quote from passages of this book to show the relevance of Kraemer’s work, now that serious departures from Historic Christian Missions have taken place since the book was published eight decades ago.

“The Western Crisis is characterized by the almost complete replacement of all absolutes by relativism. Yet people starve and degenerate without ideals. So, the world ‘bristles with idealisms, noble and ridiculous, pure and demonic’ - idolatrous pseudo-absolutes (race, nation, classless society, a ‘holy’ or ‘eternal’ country; showing people cannot live on relativism alone. But when all is relative, ‘nothing is really worth-while, because it has no foundation in Eternity.’”

Kraemer described the Crisis of the Church thus:

“The tension between the Church’s essential nature and its empirical condition means the Church is always in a state of crisis. As a divine-human society it ‘is not one of the many religious and moral institutions that exist in the world.’ As an incarnated empirical human institution, it simultaneously witnesses against an evil-dominated world, while also witnessing to it being God’s creation and object of redeeming quality. The Church experiences crisis between the world and divine orders but is often unconscious of this because unless it realizes its nature and mission, behaves as if it was just a religious and moral institution.”

“The Church in its present crisis must face two main facts:

“1. Increasing secularization. The Corpus Christianum, the ‘indissoluble unity of Church, Community and State’ in Medieval Europe has been shattered, with the Church seeming irrelevant to most people.”

“2. The necessity for a fundamental re-orientation of the Church to the world. The Church must go ‘to the bottom in its criticism of and opposition to the evil of the world’ and ‘to the bottom in its identification with the sufferings and needs of the world.”

“The Church needs the Gospel realism that is deeper than the cynical and pessimistic realism of modern man, taking man and God radically and seriously. In the past a minority in the Churches have borne responsibility for the missionary task. For the Church to become a living body the majority must grasp this vision, e.g., not large individual gifts but financial contributions from the total membership are needed.”

“Kraemer contends that the Bible is the only legitimate source from which to derive our knowledge of the Christian faith in its real substance. He finds the Bible to be both radically religious and intensely ethical. Yet the ethical is subordinated to the religious because the Bible is radically theocentric. It is always the Living, eternally active God, the indubitable Reality, from whom, by whom and to whom all things are.”

Kraemer refers to the contrast between Christianity and the world’s religions.

“All philosophy, all idealistic religion, all consistent mystical religion, all moralism are man’s various attempts at self-redemption and instinctively they reject the truth that God and God alone can work redemption.

“So, while we are faced with God’s revelation in Christ, we are also confronted with the revelation of man. That is, man wants to be God, and this is supremely seen when man finds God or the Eternal Mind in himself. The Cross, while being God’s grace, simultaneously is God’s judgment since it reveals not only God’s love but also natural man’s blindness to God’s revelation and refusal ‘to recognize that the divine grace, as manifest in Christ, means the divine judgment on man’” (I Cor 2:8).

Christianity is the religion of the Incarnation.

“This stresses that an act of revelation makes the Christian faith possible; that what is revealed remains a mystery. The truly amazing thing about the Incarnation is that this doctrine of God really becoming man is proclaimed precisely by that religion which affirms an indelible distinction between God the Creator and man His creature, which all religions that assume the essential identity of God and man indignantly reject.”

Christianity means justification by faith.

“Romans 1-8 presupposes that the moral perfection of God requires the moral perfection of man. Therefore, Christ is the crisis of all religions and philosophies because they are all clumsy or magnificent evasions of the fact that it is impossible for sinful man to correspond to God in his perfection. Only God can make the impossible possible in Jesus Christ. Further, assurance of salvation can only be gained after such radical questioning and with such a radical answer.” (Rom 8:38, 39)

Christianity is the religion of reconciliation and atonement.

“Man wanted to be ‘like God’ and so his natural relation to God, his Lord and Maker, has been destroyed. By speaking of reconciliation and atonement, stress is laid on the need for God to take the initiative to restore the natural relation, on the indispensable need for forgiveness.”

The Kingdom of God.

“All problems in all spheres of life in this broken and disordered world reflect the underlying root of all evil, namely the disavowal of God’s will, the rejection of divine rule. Man cannot create the Kingdom of God, nor an ideal society. Only God can create the new order and therefore must take the initiative which he has done in Christ, by his saving Will.

The Christian faith is a new way and quality of life.

“The peculiar nature of this way of life stresses that God as Creator and as Renewer stands at the beginning of Christian faith. For a new and real relationship with God, not moralism or intellectualism, is the reality.

“Ordinary human thinking is inclined to embrace Voltaire’s blasphemy: ‘It is his job to forgive.’” But God’s love is radical: ‘His holy condemnation of sin and the sinner is a sign of His love, because disregarding the reality of sin would be indulgence, not love. Only if one takes holiness seriously, can one take sin seriously and understand that sin is, by its nature, irreparable.”

The Christian Ethic.

“As for the Christian faith so too the Christian ethic ‘is embedded in the same sphere of concrete religious realism and is radically religious and theocentric, in doing the will of God. Consequently, the Christian ethic is summed up as Augustine captured it: “Love God and do what you like!

“In both the Gospels and apostolic writings, the religious and the ethical are intertwined (e.g., Phil 2:12-13). The backbone of the Christian ethic is the inseparable connection between what God has done (the indicative) and therefore what man must do (the imperative).”

The Attitude Towards the Non-Christian Religions

“The Christian religion revolves around two poles: the knowledge of God and man. The non-Christian religions are not merely sets of speculative ideas about the eternal destiny of man. Christianity is built on the prophetic and apostolic witness to a divine order that transcends and judges the whole range of historical human life in every period. It follows that Christianity’s relation to the world is dialectical, combining a fierce “yes” and a fierce “no”, reflecting the “yes” and “no” of God who judges the world, yet simultaneously claims it for his love.”

“When we do this, we will deeply appreciate that it is offensive to speak glibly of the superiority of Christianity. While it is possible, with respect to the historical manifestation of Christianity, to point to certain traits which indicate superiority to other religions, there are other traits for which the same can be argued for non-Christian religions. What makes Christianity unique among religions is that radical self-criticism is one of its chief characteristics, since even it must bow to the sovereign Will of God.”

“Man’s condition is dialectical, of divine origin, yet corrupted by sin and rebelling against the divine will, as eloquently stated by Pascal: ‘What a chimera man is! What a novelty, what a monster, how chaotic, how full of contradictions, what a marvel! Judge of all things, a stupid earthworm, a depository of truth, a heap of uncertainty and error, the glory and refuse of the universe.’”

“The missionary and the Christian take both sides of the dialectical condition of non-Christian religions seriously because Biblical realism does so too. Inspired by this Biblical realism, the attitude towards the non-Christian religions combines down-right intrepidity and radical humility: One will often meet representatives of the non-Christian religions who justly fill one with deep reverence, because they represent in their whole life an extraordinary degree of devotion to the reality of the world of the spiritual and eternal. Nevertheless, in the light of Christ’s revelation it is a disturbing thing that such advanced spiritual personalities often do not show the least comprehension of the greatest gift of Christ – the forgiveness of sins “

Points of Contact

“A good missionary is expected to eagerly search out points of contact. Many considerations make this a legitimate and necessary quest:

“Biblical realism’s presentation of God as ‘deeply and strenuously concerned about man and the world’ is reflected in its passionate anthropomorphism and the Incarnation, showing ‘God wants, even passionately wants, contact with man, and thus through the act of His revelation shows His belief in the possibility of contact.’ It would make the Gospel void and meaningless to dismiss this, the strongest argument for the existence of the point of contact in man.”

“The factuality of point of contact is also indicated by our common humanity, a common psychological apparatus characterized by “our common capacity for religious and moral experience, effort, achievement and failure, our common aspirations, needs and dreads.”

“The problem of the point of contact is always surrounded by confusion: This has been aggravated by the Barthian ‘thunder stroke’: ‘There is no point of contact.’

“The effect of this Barthian position is to make preaching, religious education and instruction, missions, theological discussion, and instruction, all look rather absurd. While a surer grasp of points of contact does facilitate more effective mission ‘it has the same tendency as all human instruments, to induce us to entertain a delusive trust in these points of contact. The sole agent of real faith in Christ is the Holy Spirit.”

“The light of revelation in Christ exposes all religious life, whether lofty or degraded, as under divine judgment, since it is misdirected, thus turning all ‘similarities’ (points of contact) into dissimilarities. The revelation in Christ says ‘no’ to every point of contact, denying its development would lead to apprehending the revelation in Christ. But it also, dialectically, says ‘yes’, uncovering in the misdirected expressions of religious life “the groping and persistent human aspiration and need for ‘the glory of the children of God.’”

Points of contact can only be found by antithesis. Dialectically, we must discover ‘in the revealing light of Christ the fundamental misdirection that dominates all religious life and at the same time the groping for God which throbs in this misdirection, and which finds an unsuspected divine solution in Christ.

“There is only one point of contact which leads to many points of contact, namely the disposition and attitude of the missionary. As long as a man feels that he is the object of interest only for reasons of intellectual curiosity or for purposes of conversion, and not because of himself as he is in his total empirical reality, there cannot arise that humane natural contact which is the indispensable condition of all real religious meeting of man with man. Consequently, the problem of the points of contact is a problem of missionary ethics and not merely a problem of insight and knowledge.”

ISLAM

“Though it is a branch from the prophetic stock of Judaism and Christianity it has become, like Roman Catholicism, a syncretistic religion incorporating theocratic and legalistic Islam, mysticism and various sorts of popular religion, in which the naturalist vein of the primitive apprehension of existence shines through.”

Islam is distinguished from naturalist religions by the prophetic message proclaimed by Muhammad as the direct revelation of God and its derivation from Judaism and Christianity.”

Islam is a simple religion with a concise creed: There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is His Apostle. In its constituent elements and apprehensions, Islam is a superficial religion. In keeping with the nature of Islam as a religion involving absolute surrender to God it ‘might be called a religion that has almost no questions and no answers.

Islamic revelation, wahey, is externalized and fossilized in a set of immutable divine words, the Quran. In Biblical realism, however, revelation means God is ‘constantly acting in holy sovereign freedom, conclusively embodied in the man Jesus Christ… The foundation of Islam is not; The Word became flesh. It is, The Word became book.”

“Superficiality is also expressed in Islam’s clumsy, external conception of sin and salvation. In a facile and unconvincing manner, it speaks of the tabula rasa of the human mind at birth. Obedience in surrender to the God of Omnipotence is the core of Islam. But obedience in fellowship with the God of Holy Love is the core of Biblical realism. The eventless relation between God and man in Islam, stands in sharp contrast to the eventful relation of Biblical revelation.”

“The riddle of Islam is that despite its superficiality, it grips its adherents more tightly than any other religion. Even nominal Muslims are willing to die for Islam or to kill a man deemed to be a defiler of Islam.”

“Also, the riddle of Islam is that though so superficial and unoriginal (considering its origin and material), its adherents believe it possesses absolute religious superiority. From this superiority-feeling and from the fanatical self-consciousness of Islam, is born that stubborn refusal to open the mind towards another spiritual world.”

“How might this riddle of Islam be solved? By reference to the core of Islam (the aims of Muhammad) – the strength and weakness of Islam:

“Islam is radically theocentric engendering passionate awe as reflected in the common Islamic statements Allahu Akbar (God is great) and La sharika lahu (He has no associate):’God’s unity and soleness, His austere sovereignty and towering omnipotence, are burning in white heat within Islam.”

“Muslims test against shirk, the unpardonable sin of giving God an associate (seen as polytheism). There is a process of super-heating in the religious concepts of Islam. Allah is “white-hot Majesty, white-hot Omnipotence, white-hot Uniqueness. His personality evaporates and vanishes in the burning heat of His aspects.” These depersonalized aspects – though there is a personal connotation – are the real objects of religious devotion. ‘The surrender to Allah, the fundamental attitude in Islam, has that same quality of absolute ruthlessness. The ideal believer, the abd (or servant, as Islam says) is, so to speak, personified surrender and nothing else.”

“God’s Will becomes virtually august divine arbitrariness. ‘This hyperbolic theocentricity… derives from the fact that man has no real place in the relation of God and man… Man is entirely absorbed in the greatness and majesty of God and vanishes away” God is too exalted to have fellowship with man, or to be his Father. The intrinsic unity of the religious and the ethical is destroyed by this hyperbolic theocentricity and, consequently, such problems as that of theodicy and of the cry for a God of righteousness are entirely absent.”

A note of explanation

The Internet and social media have broken down the walls surrounding Islam for the last 1400 years. This has allowed critical views of Islam to impact the young generation and for Christian Missions to propagate the Gospel on YouTube and on Satellite Television. The rich information of Kreamer’s “The Christian Message in a Non-Christian World,” provides a helpful source for young missionaries in the preparation of their messages in reaching Muslims in a relevant and timely manner.

Posted in Articles

THE NECESSITY OF PREACHING THE GOSPEL TO MUSLIMS: AN EXAMPLE FROM FRANCE

July 29, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

We live in a globalized world. The Internet has made it possible to communicate across international boundaries rapidly and inexpensively. Another new phenomenon is the growing migration of people from Africa and Asia to Europe. While some migrants assimilate, linguistically and culturally, Muslims in general, don’t. They live in enclaves around big cities attempting to live as if they were in Daru’l Islam.

I would like to acquaint my readers with the work of a French Roman Catholic organization that is involved in Proclaiming the Good News of the Messiah to Muslims. The following is the link to their website: Jésus Le Messie - Le forum (jesus-messie.org)

Here are excerpts that I have translated from the Introduction, using the English Standard Version for Bible verses. 


“For a long time, to proclaim the Gospel to Muslims, missionaries had to cross the seas, as Saint Francis did, who went to Egypt and witnessed to its Sultan. 
“Nowadays, Christians who want to share the Good News with Muslims, all they must do, is cross a street to meet Muslims. Several of them are thirsty for the truth about God.”

The Biblical Foundations for Missions to Muslims 

“To be involved in Missions to Muslims is a measure of the health and seriousness of our faith. As Saint Paul wrote: ‘For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!’” I Corinthians 9:6

The Christian testimony (Al-Shahadah)

“Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart, one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” Romans: 10:9,10

The Holy Spirit works through the Proclamation of the Good News

“And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” I Corinthians 2: 1-4

The Core of the Message is Jesus and Jesus crucified

“Since in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” Corinthians 1: 21-25 

Pitfalls in Missions to Muslims

“Having laid down the foundation of Missions, Jesus Christ crucified, we are warned against pitfalls we face as we seek a point of contact with Muslims. Avoid false claims such as these:

  • ‘We worship the same God.’
  • 'God isn’t concerned about points of doctrine.’
  • 'Islam, when properly interpreted, is opposed to violence.’
  • 'Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have Abraham have as father.’”

The necessity of Apologetics and Polemics: Christian Missions defends Truth and condemns Error              

“For the love of Christ controls us because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. That we might become the righteousness of God.” II Corinthians 5:14,19 
“While our primary goal is evangelizing Muslims, we should be concerned about future Muslims who potentially are our children, all those who face the danger of being Islamized. What a tragedy for European parents to see their children convert to Islam! Our children need to be immunized against Islamization. Thus, we must not shy away from polemics, as some insist on simply proclaiming the faith, and not denouncing the error.”  

“In Saint Paul’s Letter to the Galatians, he denounced the errors that had crept into their churches in the strongest language: ‘I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one, we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.’” Galatians 1:6-10

“Muslims are afraid of going to Hell (Jahannam) and want to enter Heaven (Al-Jannah.) The only way to enter Heaven is to believe in Christ as Lord and Savior. This was made clear by the Lord Jesus Christ to Nicodemus, a Jewish theologian: ‘For God so loved the world, that he gave His only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.’” John 3:16-18

 

It is very encouraging to learn about this French website of an organization in the Roman Catholic Church. It shows its concern for the large Muslim presence (5 million) in France. The are several oral testimonies of converts in French.

Posted in Articles

A TUNISIAN’S JOURNEY TO CHRISTIANITY

July 17, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The following is a translated testimony of a Tunisian convert posted on the French website Jésus Le Messie - Le forum (jesus-messie.org):

I was born in Tunisia in a Muslim family. My parents were very pious, they said their five prayers a day, they fasted during Ramadan. We were ten children. I confess that I did not say my prayers five times a day. My parents taught us a lot of moral values. I'm sure my parents didn't really know the Quran. In fact, questions were taboo. I think I knew three or four Surahs from the Quran.

At the age of 22, I had no idea what Sharia was all about. Thanks to President Bourguiba, i women went to school, could work, they were present in all areas of society. Dad wanted his seven daughters to attend school. I was very happy in my family.

When my parents died, I left at the age twenty-two for Saudi Arabia. I had to wear the veil and learn to say my five prayers to be like everyone else. I lived sixty kilometers from Mecca where I finally discovered what Islam and Sharia were all about!

I began to ask several questions:

"How can God allow a man to have four wives and even more?"

"How can God allow divorce so easily?"

"How can God allow a thief's hand to be severed?"

"How can God allow the stoning of women?"

Once, I attended by chance, a stoning on a Friday. It was in Saudi Arabia and is meted out on Fridays! In this land I discovered another type of this faith. I discovered that poor people are recruited from all over the world. Young girls who had come from Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand to work as maids, are often raped! Those who became pregnant are sent back to their homelands to face the results of ruined reputations.

I left Saudi Arabia and moved to Paris, France. I lived in a neighborhood where there were no Muslims, At the apartment there were many French families. They were kind and very welcoming to me; but they never spoke to me about their faith.

God was no longer part of my life. I made a good living; I had my comfortable life. I visited everything in Paris, except the churches. I met a French man who introduced me to his Catholic family and to his friends. And little by little, I started to get interested in the Christian faith, in the Christian culture, in the Holy Scriptures and to ask a lot of questions.

One day I went to Montmartre to look at some paintings. I entered the Sacré-Coeur Church ii where I stayed for three hours. I went back home and sat on the sofa, drinking my cup of tea. I felt as if someone touched my shoulder. I looked around but saw no one! I began to reflect on that experience. At last, I realized what was missing in my life: it was Jesus Christ.

Eventually, I asked for Holy Baptism, which I received in 2002. Since then, Christ has become my whole life. I try to live in harmony with the Ten Commandments. The Eucharist is my sustenance. Since I had never smoked, I can run to church every day!

I give my testimony at every opportunity. When I testify to Muslims, they listen as if they were expecting it. I reproach Christians for not talking about their faith. The other day a Muslim asked me, “Why does your rosary have a cross?” I replied in Arabic, "It's because I'm a Christian." She was amazed because she had no idea that there were Tunisian Christians!

This is my plea: “We must proclaim that our hope has a name, it’s ‘Jesus Christ,’ the only savior of the world. We can no longer remain silent.”

i Habib Bourguiba | Tunisian Independence Leader & First President

ii https://www.sacre-coeur-montmartre.com

Posted in Articles

The Blind Spots of Bernard Lewis

June 16, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

During the 1990s, I taught a course on the History of the Middle East, since the rise of Islam, at a college in suburban Chicago, Illinois, USA.

I used Bernard Lewis’s books, as I appreciated his interpretive approach. I liked most of the books but was disappointed by the flaws that marked his historiography.

Bernard Lewis was born in the United Kingdom. He took his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of London, in the School of Oriental and African Studies, and specialized in the History of Islam. During World War II, he served at the British Army’s Middle East Command Headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. After the war, he returned to the University of London where he taught Middle Eastern History. He remained there until 1974, when he came to teach at Princeton University in the fall of that year and retired in 1986.

Here is a list of some of his works. The Arabs in History, London 1950; The Emergence of Modern Turkey, London and New York 1961; The Assassins, London 1967; The Muslim Discovery of Europe, New York 1982; The Political Language of Islam, Chicago 1988; Race and Slavery in the Middle East: an Historical Enquiry, New York 1990; Islam and the West, New York, 1993; Islam in History, 2nd edition, Chicago, 1993; The Shaping of the Modern Middle East, New York, 1994; Cultures in Conflict, New York, 1994; The Middle East: A Brief History of the Last 2,000 Years, New York, 1995; The Future of the Middle East, London, 1997; The Multiple Identities of the Middle East, London, 1998; A Middle East Mosaic: Fragments of life, letters and history, New York, 2000; What Went Wrong? Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response, New York, 2002

What I appreciated in Bernard Lewis

As we attempt to understand other cultures, quite often we see them, consciously or unconsciously, through the prism of our own worldview. In other words, we seek to understand others by comparing them with what we already know, with our ways of thinking and outlook on life. Such a method does not produce a genuine understanding of the other; this is especially the case in our attempt to understand Islam. It’s helpful to seek to understand Islam from within the Muslim point of view.

For example, in one of his earliest works, The Arabs in History, Bernard Lewis cautions us against using Western categories of thought when we study the history of the Arabs, and of Islam.

“The European writer on Islamic history labours under a special disability. Writing in a Western language, he necessarily uses Western terms. But these terms are based on Western categories of thought and analysis, themselves deriving in the main from Western history. Their application to the conditions of another society formed by different influences and living in different ways of life can at best be an analogy and may be dangerously misleading. To take an example: such pairs of words as Church and State, spiritual and temporal, ecclesiastical and lay, had no real equivalents in Arabic until modern times, when they were created to translate modern ideas; for the dichotomy which they express was unknown to mediaeval Muslim society and unarticulated in the mediaeval Muslim mind. The community of Islam was Church and State in one, with the two indistinguishably interwoven; its titular head, the Caliph, was at once a secular and religious chief.” Pp. 19, 20

Professor Lewis ended his Introduction with these words:

“Such words as ‘religion’, ‘state’, ‘sovereignty’, ‘democracy’, mean very different things in Islamic context and indeed varying meanings from one part of Europe to another. The use of such words, however, is inevitable in writing in English and for that matter in writing in the modern languages of the Orient, influenced for close on a century by Western modes of thought and classification. In the following pages they are to be always understood in their Islamic context and should not be taken as implying any greater degree of resemblance to corresponding Western institutions than is specifically stated.” P. 20

In “The Muslim Discovery of Europe,” Mr. Lewis explains why Islam failed to take Europe seriously as it was emerging from the Middle Ages and was about to play a major role on the world scene.

“It may well seem strange that classical Islamic civilization which, in its earlier days, was so much affected by Greek and Asian influences should so decisively have rejected the West. But a possible explanation may be suggested. While Islam was expanding and receptive, Western Europe had little or nothing to offer but flattered Muslim pride with the spectacle of a culture that was visibly and palpably inferior. What is more, the very fact that it was Christian discredited it in advance. The Muslim doctrine of successive revelations culminating in the final mission of Muhammad led the Muslim to reject Christianity as an earlier and imperfect form of something which he, himself, possessed in its final, perfect form, and to discount Christian thought and Christian civilization accordingly. After the initial impact of eastern Christianity on Islam in its earliest period, Christian influences, even from the high civilization of Byzantium, were reduced to a minimum. Later, by the time that the advance of Christendom and the retreat of Islam had created a new relationship, Islam was crystallized in its ways of thought and behavior and had become impervious to external stimuli, especially those coming from the millennial adversary in the West.” P. 300

Having illustrated the strong points in the writings of Bernard Lewis, several of his books are disappointing. He claims that Islam has been a tolerant religion, especially in its attitude to the People of the Book, i.e., Jews and Christians.

It is true that when Jews and Christians surrendered to the invading Islamic armies, they were given the status of “dhimmis,” an Arabic word that means, “Protected Ones.” But this so-called “protection” while allowing them to maintain their faith, deprived them of most of the rights they had enjoyed prior to their conquest. Severe restrictions were placed on dhimmis. They could not propagate their faith, they had to pay the Jizya tax, and when their houses of worship needed repair, it was extremely difficult to get a permit for such repairs. Some of their churches were confiscated, such as the Church of Saint John the Baptist in Damascus, Syria, that became the historic Umayyad Mosque.

It's a pity, that despite his erudition and knowledge of several Islamic languages, Bernard Lewis ignored the ignominious treatment of Jews and Christians within Daru’l Islami. I can never comprehend that a scholar of his stature ignored the writings of a fellow Jewish scholar, Bat Ye’or, whose works about “Dhimmis” and “Dhimmitude” are well known both in their original French and in their English translations.

In The Dhimmi, Bat Ye’or wrote about the book’s purpose:

“Its aim is much more modest. It has grown out of an independent reflection on the relationship between conqueror and conquered, established as a result of a special code of warfare, the jihad, for in the “drama” acted out by humanity on the stage of history, it is clear that the dhimmi peoples bore the role of victim, vanquished by force; and indeed, it is after a war, a jihad, and after a defeat, that a nation becomes a dhimmi people. “Tolerated” in its homeland, from which it has been dispossessed, this people lives thereafter as if it were merely suspended in time, throughout history. For the pragmatic political factor that decides the fate of a dhimmi people is essentially a territorial dispossession.”ii

The Dhimmi: Jews and Christians under Islam (Introduction)

The late Professor Jacques Ellul, of the University of Bordeaux, France, having taken a special interest in the history of the peoples conquered by Islam, made these comments in the Preface of The Dhimmi.iii

“It is within this context that Bat Ye'or's book The Dhimmi should be placed: and it is an exemplary contribution to this crucial discussion that concerns us all. Here I shall neither give an account of the book nor praise its merits but shall simply indicate its importance. The dhimmi is someone who lives in a Muslim society without being a Muslim (Jews, Christians, and occasionally "animists"). He has a particular social, political, and economic status, and it is essential for us to know how this "refractory" person has been treated. But first, one ought to realize the dimensions of this subject: it is much more than the study of one "social condition" among others. The reader will see that in many ways the dhimmi was comparable to the European serf of the Middle Ages. The condition of serfdom, however, was the result of certain historical changes such as the transformation of slavery, the end of the State, the emergence of the feudal system, and the like, and thus, when these historical conditions altered, the situation of the serf also evolved until his status finally disappeared.

“The same, however, does not apply to the dhimmi: his status was not the product of historical accident but was that which ought to be from the religious point of view, and according to the Muslim conception of the world. In other words, it was the expression of the absolute, unchanging, theologically grounded Muslim conception of the relationship between Islam and non-Islam. It is not a historical accident of retrospective interest, but a necessary condition of existence. Consequently, it is both a subject for historical research (involving an examination of the historical sources and a study of their application in the past) and a contemporary subject, most topical in relation to the present-day expansion of Islam. Bat Ye'or's book ought to be read as a work of current interest. One must know as exactly as possible what the Muslims did with these unconverted peoples because that is what they will do in the future (and are doing right now). It is possible that my opinion on this question will not entirely convince the reader.”

Another point of history that Bernard Lewis failed to remember or to mention is the Devshirme, the practice of the Ottoman Turkish conquerors in Eastern Europe whereby they forcibly took young Christian boys from their parents and made them adopt Islam. As they grew up, they were formed into an elite army corps known as the Janissary. These soldiers participated in the further Ottoman conquests in Central and Eastern Europe. It is not easy to calculate the number of Christian boys from the Balkans who were taken away from their families over the several centuries that this institution lasted. But one can imagine the deep hurts that were left in the societies of the countries affected by this evil system. It is not too much to speculate that the collective memory of the people of Eastern and Central Europe regarding the years of Ottoman oppression must have played a role in the serious troubles that erupted between Serbians and Bosnians in the aftermath of the dissolution of the Yugoslav Federation.

So, I can’t help asking myself: what motivated Bernard Lewis to persist in his silence about the Devshirme?

It is with great sorrow that I write these critical words about Bernard Lewis.iv But for a historian who enjoyed such an international reputation, as the dean of Middle Eastern and Islamic scholars, and an authority whose wisdom is sought by various governmental agencies, to have remained silent on subjects of great importance, is both unexplainable and incomprehensible!

On the legacy of Professor Bernard Lewis, read:

The Legacy of Bernard Lewis.pdf (harvard.edu)

i Daru’l-Islam, an Arabic term for the Household of Islam, the entire Islamic world.

ii The quotations are taken from Bat Ye’or’s book, The Dhimmi. The complete text is available on www.dhimmi.org

iii Jacques Ellul died in 1994 at 82. A jurist, historian, theologian, and sociologist, he published more than 600 articles and 48 books, many of which were translated into a dozen languages (more than 20 into English). From 1950-70 he was a member of the National Council of the Protestant Reformed Church of France. Professor at the University of Bordeaux, his oeuvre includes studies on medieval European institutions, the effect of modern technology on contemporary society, and moral theology. In American academic circles, he was widely known for "The Technological Society" written in the 1950's (English edition, 1964) and recognized as one of the most prominent of contemporary thinkers.

iv Bernard Lewis bibliography. Bernard Lewis (31 May 1916 – 19 May 2018) was a British-American historian, public intellectual, and political commentator. Lewis' expertise was in the history of Islam and the interaction between Islam and the West. His advice was frequently sought by policymakers, including the Bush administration.

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THE RISE AND FALL OF THE ARAB FORUMS ON THE INTERNET

June 02, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A couple years before the Arab Spring began in Tunisiai and spread to other Arab countries, a group of Arab intellectuals met in Kuwait to launch an Enlightenment Movement throughout the Arab world.

To accomplish their goal, they started a website “kwtanweer” whereby reformist Arab intellectuals posted their views in articles. I began viewing the articles in 2006; for some unknown reason the website disappeared in 2009. I downloaded 118 articles and book reviews; some of which I translated and posted on my websites. The term Tanweer is Arabic for Enlightenment. (An archived version of the website appears to be corrupted with malware.)

Another Arabic-language website was launched in 2012, Al-Awan, a term denoting a ripe time, or it’s time for action. Several Arab authors contributed to this website that served as a Journal. It began in 2012 and stopped, without notice, in 2020. I have 29 articles downloaded from this website in my files. (The following URL is an archived edition of Al-Awan https://web.archive.org/web/20200417061042/https://www.alawan.org/.)

Some serious events have taken place following the disappearance of these websites, depriving Arab readers from knowing the views of seasoned authors and writers on current issues in the Middle East and elsewhere.

As an example of the value of Internet Forums, I share this report posted by an attendee of the meeting at the Cultural Center in Kuwait City:

“I spent two days enjoying the discussions on important topics at the Kuwaiti Cultural Center discussing the Age of the Enlightenment in Europe. We learned how Europeans were liberated from a mindset that had kept them captive to supernatural beliefs. That enabled them to progress in several areas of life.

“At present, young Kuwaiti intellectuals are very concerned about the subject as they live within a traditional society that’s transitioning into Modernity? They are keenly aware that the Europeans, prior to the Enlightenment, had gone through difficult times, occasioned by sectarian religious wars. European intellectuals called for the secularisation of society and the end of the Church’s involvement in the affairs of the State.

“What took place during the sixteenth century in Europe is happening nowadays in the Arab world. The rise of violence, terrorism, and the censorship of speech is a daily experience. Sectarian conflicts have flared up in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Somalia, Sudan, Algeria, Lebanon.

“To deal with these conflicts, certain members of our societies point to the European Enlightenment as a place where we can find answers for the solution of our nagging dilemmas. At the meeting in the Cultural Center, we were privileged to listen to a ‘literary symphony’ given by Dr. Muhammad Arkoun. He took us on a tour of the sources of intellectual thought the Greek philosophers Aristotle and Socrates and the Muslim philosophers and historians like Ibn Khaldun, Ibn Rushd to remind us of a past that encouraged intellectual freedoms.

“We applaud the efforts members of the Center of Dialogue and Culture whose untiring efforts to organize these meetings, and hope that more like these will take place in the future and helping to revive the Kuwaiti intellectual life.”

i The Arab Spring (Arabic: الربيع العربي) was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in Tunisia in response to corruption and economic stagnation.[1][2] From Tunisia, the protests then spread to five other countries: Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Syria and Bahrain.

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The Arab League’s Welcome of Assad’s Regime

May 30, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Watching the Summit of the Arab League’s meeting at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in May 2023 was like watching a show on the theater of the absurd.

Soon after Syrian Air Force plane touched down at Jeddah Airport, a triumphant Bashar al-Assad emerged and came down the steps to be greeted by Prince Badr bin-Sultan, deputy governor of the Mecca region.

The decision to readmit Bashar al-Assad to membership in the Arab league was met with strong criticism by Arab commentators on the social media.

These are excerpts:

“On what basis that action was taken, while many Syrians were looking for their imprisoned, or disappeared sons, or daughters, or husbands, or wives?”

“As long as the Assad Regime exists, there can be neither justice, nor solution for the problems of the Syrian people.”

“The return of Al-Assad to the Arab League in lieu of his trial, sends a message to the world that war criminals can escape punishment.”

Commenting on the readmission of Bashar al-Assad to the Arab League, the New York Times wrote:

“Most Arab governments cut ties with Syria early in the war, as Mr. al-Assad’s government laid siege to entire towns and sent millions of refugees fleeing to neighboring countries. The Arab League suspended Syria’s membership in 2011; and Saudi Arabia, one of the leading regional powers, supported some of the rebel groups fighting Mr. al-Assad’s rule with funding and weapons supplied in covert coordination with the United States. But as the years passed and Mr. al-Assad clung to power, regaining control over large parts of Syria, regional leaders shifted their approach.

“Now, many deal openly with his government, arguing that shunning him accomplished little. This way, officials say, they can at least try to influence developments in Syria that affect the entire region, such as the flow of drugs across its borders, and the fate of the millions of refugees who remain in neighboring countries, where officials say they have strained their resources and stirred resentment from citizens.” https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/18/world/middleeast/syria-assad-arab-league.html

In the United States, The American Coalition for Syria lobbied Congress for the US to sanction the Assad regime. This resulted in. US lawmakers introducing a bill opposing the normalization with Syria's Assad as reported by Reuters on 11 May 2023.

“A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers introduced a bill… that would prohibit the government from recognizing or normalizing relations with any Syrian government led by Assad, who is under U.S. sanctions, and expands on the Caesar Act, which imposed a tough round of sanctions on Syria in 2020. The proposed legislation comes after Arab states turned the page on years of confrontation with Assad on Sunday by allowing Syria back into the Arab League, a milestone in his regional rehabilitation even as the West continues shunning him after years of civil war.” https://www.reuters.com/world/us-lawmakers-introduce-bill-combat-normalization-with-syrias-assad-2023-05-11/

Here are excerpts from the London Times regarding this topic on 19 May 2023

“President Assad of Syria is taking his seat at the Arab League today, officially ending more than a decade of isolation on the world stage in a development that has been vehemently opposed by western powers and Syrian activists. Assad arrived in Saudi Arabia on Thursday before the summit, keenly waiting to retake the seat that he lost 12 years ago. Saudi Arabia, which previously backed the armed opposition trying to take down Assad’s government, has engineered the Syrian dictator’s re-entry into the regional fold.

“The end of his isolation was cemented, and he had made no concessions to get there. For many of the people who have suffered at the hands of the regime, Assad’s reintegration into the international community is seen as a slap in the face that will only embolden his brutality.

“The Assad Family has been in power for more than 50 years! It was in 1970, that Hafez al-Assad became an absolute ruler of Syria. He was grooming his son Bassel to be his successor; but that would not take place as Bassel died in a car crash near Damascus. His son Basher studied medicine at the University of Damascus, graduating as an ophthalmologist in 1988. After serving as an army doctor at a Damascus military hospital, he moved to London, England, in 1992 to continue his studies.” The Times view on the Arab League: Assad’s Return

The information about the Syrian tragedy covered several aspects of the civil war. However, no mention was made about the enormous cultural damage inflicted on the refugee Syrian school age generation that missed formal education.

Syria, like the rest of the Arab world, has a unique linguistic tradition, the coexistence of Modern Standard Arabic (Classical) with various regional dialects. The MSA is the same from Morocco to Iraq, and is the only form for written Arabic, from school textbooks, newspapers, magazines, the Qur’an, th Bible, all the way to the codices of the vast Arab cultural heritage. While conversations at home and in society, take place in colloquial Arabic.i

The delegates to the special Summit of the Arab League took no steps to repair this cultural damage! They flew back home with an air of triumph having ‘solved’ the Syrian catastrophe, by welcoming back the Assad Regime into the fold.


i “What we refer to as "dialectal Arabic" is in truth a bevy of languages differing markedly from one country to the other, with vast differences often within the same country, if not within the same city and neighborhood.” by Franck Salameh Middle East Quarterly Fall 2011 https://www.meforum.org/3066/does-anyone-speak-arabic

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A Sampling of Audience Response to Hamed Abdel-Samad’s Series on the Major Problems of Islam

May 16, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

In Hamed Abdel-Samad TV program Box of Islam No. 215, he listed (in thirty episodes,) the major problems of Islam. A basic and active motif in Islam has been the use of religion in the service of politics. It functioned during the caliphates of the Rashidun, the Umayyads, the Abbasids, and the Ottomans

Rather than analyzing and commenting on these problems, as I often do in my articles, I share some of the comments made by the responders to the thirty episodes posted by Abdel-Samad on his YouTube channel Hamed.TV.

This sampling shows the opinions of the literate Arab audience able to access the Internet and interact with the speaker.

Here is the list of the problems mentioned by Hamed Abdel-Samad:

  • Problem 1: Separation of religion from politics.
  • Problem 2: Removal of obstacles to modernization.
  • Problem 3: Salafism i.e., Fascination with the past.
  • Problem 4: The Authority of the Qur’an.
  • Problem 5: The opposition to philosophy.
  • Problem 6: The Muslim doctrine of God and its impact on society.
  • Problem 7: The low view of women.
  • Problem 8: The weakness of economic activities and absence of inventions.

Excerpted comments:

Professor Hamed, you are a great person! How I wish Muslims would learn from you! What a loss it will be if they don’t!

Certainly, the Box of Islam program pinpoints the source of the problems we face in Islam. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your work. We are fortunate to be enlightened by you during these difficult times.

“Un grand merci au fond du cœur Mr. HAMED ABDESSAMAD pour vos éclairages. Comme vous l'avez dit dans une ancienne vidéo. l'islam est comme une maison dont les fondations sont fissurées et les pseudo réformistes ou ceux qui défendent l'islam dit des lumières essaient de peindre la maison avec une peinture plus attrayante au lieu de détruire cette maison et construire une autre avec des fondations solides ..En fin l'islam est un danger pour toute l'humanité y compris pour les musulmans eux même...il est donc temps ,pour les musulmans, de se réveiller de ce coma des instructions islamiques qui a trop duré 1444 ans ça suffit.”

(My translation of the French text)

“A big thank you from the bottom of my heart Mr. HAMED ABDESSAMAD for your insights. As you said in an old video, Islam is like a house with cracked foundations and the pseudo reformists or those who defend Islam who try to paint the house with an attractive paint, instead of destroying this house and building another one with solid foundations. In the end, Islam is a danger for all humanity, including for Muslims themselves. It is therefore time for Muslims to wake up from this coma of Islamic instructions which have lasted too long for 1444 years. It’s enough.”

I left Islam eight years ago. Since then, my life has become much better. You are the king of Enlightenment; please don’t stop your programs. Thanks so much!

I appreciate greatly your powerful efforts, Mr. Hamed Abdel-Samad, to liberate us from myths and fables.

Your series has been both interesting and enlightening. You are building free and thoughtful generations.

Thanks professor Hamed for your enlightenment. We are living in a new age while Muslims are still in their old cave! The winds of change are blowing hard, and everything is changing. It’s the law of life.

Thanks for all your contributions to enlightening the present generation. Future Arab generations will show their appreciation of your thoughts and actions toward lifting us from our present situation. Islam will undergo a change in its present form. You were right when you said, anything built on falsehood is false!

I send you my greetings and appreciation for the great work you have been doing by enlightening the public. Your drawing attention to the major reasons for the backwardness of Muslims and their cultural and ethical subjects to which no rational person would disagree. Now, there is hope thanks to the availability of digitizing and the information available on the Internet. They are signs of the dawning of the age of Enlightenment based on science and technology Coupled with lessening the impact of religion, by making it a personal matter, and opening the door for reforming the educational system.

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The Middle East: At the Rise of Islam

May 09, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

In our previous lecture, we covered the history of the early Church highlighting the development of episcopacy, and the eventual division of the Church between East and West. We alluded to the further divisions that occurred in the East, as the Church grappled with the subject of the natures and wills of Jesus Christ. As a result, more schisms took place. The Orthodox Church used the arm of the Byzantine Empire to persecute those who refused to accept orthodoxy as defined by the Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD.

The non-Chalcedonian Churches were regional, and were located in such geographical areas as Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia. Since Byzantium held political power over Egypt and Syria, it persecuted these independent Churches with the blessing of the Orthodox Church. This forms a sad chapter in the history of the Church, especially as these churches had already suffered during the first three centuries of the Christian era, prior to the conversion of Constantine. Beginning with 451, the persecutors were fellow Christians!

South of the Byzantine Empire lay the vast Arabian Peninsula. Most of it consisted of barren desert regions. They were inhabited by warring tribes, with a few urban centers such as Mecca and Medina. In the southern part of Arabia, lay the rich land of Yemen, the home of the Queen of Sheba of OT times.

In order to keep the Arabian tribes from invading the southern areas of the Empire; the Byzantines encouraged some semi-nomadic tribes to be their clients, and to act as defenders of the southern borders of the Empire. Most of these tribes had accepted the Christian faith, and for a good deal of time, they kept their agreement with Byzantium.

The great threat to the Eastern Empire lay further in the East. For centuries, Persia had been a rival of Byzantium. In fact, during most of the 6th Century, the two empires fought each other over areas known nowadays as the Middle East.? Persia considered Mesopotamia (Iraq) as within its sphere of influence and had some native client tribes that kept peace on the borders of Arabia. All seemed quiet on these two fronts until the sudden rise of Islam early in the 7th century. Persia and Byzantium faced the challenge of a new faith that had a very active political component.

At this point, it must be noted that by the time Muhammad was born in Mecca (570 AD,) Persia and Byzantium had exhausted their resources, having fought each other for an entire century. The subsidies promised to their client 'states' were rapidly diminishing. So, when the Arabs, after the death of Muhammad in 632 AD, burst out of Arabia and began the conquest of the Middle East, those Christianized tribes were not eager to fight them on behalf of either Persia or Byzantium. Some, joined the invading Arab tribes, while others offered hardly any resistance to their military incursions. By the middle of the 7th century, the Persian Empire fell, and the Byzantines lost Syria (including Palestine) and Egypt. By 732 AD, the Arab/Islamic armies had conquered parts of Asia, Africa, and Spain, calling the latter, Andalusia.

As mentioned before, most of the population of Syria and Egypt were Monophysite Christians. Since they were considered heretical, they were persecuted by the Byzantines. At first, these Christians welcomed the advancing Arab armies imagining they were their liberators! Ironically, to the East, i.e., in Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq,) the Nestorians had enjoyed more freedom than their fellow-Christians to the West, since they lived within the Persian Empire. At that time, Persia professed Zoroastrianism, a dualistic faith that taught the existence of two equally powerful and antagonistic principles: good and evil. But Persia did not withstand the advancing Arab armies, and quickly collapsed, thus allowing the invaders to proceed further East to the borders of India.

At this point, I would like to advance the thesis that the Arabs, having adopted Islam, were no longer to continue in the age-long custom of raiding one another. Muhammad had convinced them that they had become one nation (Umma.) As their local resources were scarce, they looked northward and eastward for a new source of booty. In their first incursions beyond Arabia, they were surprised by their rapid success within the Byzantine and Persian Empires. Here we must remember the historical fact that their conquests preceded their reflecting on the meaning of their spectacular successes in building a world empire. In the early history of Islam, practice came first, theorizing followed conquest. Eventually, they developed a strong belief that it was the will of Allah for Muslims to conquer the world. Thus they divided the world into two areas: Dar al-Islam (the Household of Islam) those areas conquered by Muslims, and Dar al-Harb (the Household of war), those areas yet to be conquered through warfare!

During the lifetime of Muhammad, and especially after his migration to Medina in 622, he dealt with Jewish and Christian tribes of Arabia. He had hoped that these followers of 'heavenly' (theistic) faiths who had received God?s Revelations through Moses, David, and Jesus, would now welcome him as the final Messenger of God. That did not happen however. Soon after he conquered Mecca in 630, he persecuted the Jews, slew some of their men, and enslaved their women and children. After his death, his successors (the Caliphs) decreed that no Jew or Christian may continue to live within Arabia. This prohibition is still maintained today. Exception is made for non-Muslim technicians to live temporarily in Saudi Arabia, but none may hold any worship services even within the sanctity of their homes. This prohibition was illustrated by the fact that when President Bush visited Saudi Arabia in November 1990 during Operation Desert Shield, he had to leave the Saudi territory in order to attend a Thanksgiving Day service on board of a U.S. aircraft carrier stationed in the Persian Gulf!

What about the conquered lands? The invading Arab/Islamic armies expected all pagan subjects to Islamize; but they did allow Jews and Christians to remain within their faith according to specific restrictions. The Arabs granted them the status of 'Dhimmis,' an Arabic word that literally means 'under the protection' of the new masters. The terms of this 'protection' were defined by the 'protectors.' Religious traffic flowed one way: from Judaism or Christianity, to Islam, and never vice-versa. Once a Muslim, always a Muslim. The Law of Apostasy was imbedded in the Quran, and an apostate could expect no mercy, death was the penalty for leaving Islam. Christians were restricted to worshipping within their churches, but were not allowed to evangelize. No new church buildings could be built. Christians were expected to pay a poll tax for the 'protection' they received from their new masters.

Since both the Persian and Greek administration of the conquered areas had collapsed, the Arabs allowed the Christians (natives) of Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia, to continue in their governmental work, and to use the local languages. But slowly, while Islamization slowed down, Arabization of the culture proceeded without delay. Within about 200 years after the arrival of the Muslims, Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia were Arabized. This can been seen by the fact that the first known translation of the Bible into Arabic by national Christians took place near Damascus, in the middle of the 9th century!

Having established the historical background for our study of the Plight of Eastern Christianity under Islam, we shall proceed in our next lecture, to the study of sources that document our thesis. We shall rely on a book, The Decline of Eastern Christianity, From Jihad to Dhimmitude, by Bat Ye'or, published in 1996 by Associated University Presses, Cranbury, NJ.

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The Future of Israel According to Saint Paul

May 06, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Future of Israel According to Saint Paul

Bassam Michael Madany

1 May 2023

On Saturday, the 15th of May 1948, the BBC broadcast the news of the birth of The State of Israel. At dawn, Arab armies responded by attacking from the north, the east and the south. The Haganah that was defending the Jewish people in Palestine during the British Mandate, became the IDF (Israeli Defence Force,) that has been guarding the country for the last seventy-five years!

There are two aspects to the subject of the Future of the State of Israel: one is Historical/Political, the other is Biblical as taught by Saint Paul in his Letter to the Romans, Chapters 9-11.

 

The Historical/Political Background

Prior to the Arab/Islamic conquest of the Holy Land in the middle of the seventh century, most of the people living in Palestine were Christians, with a Jewish minority living alongside. The conquest resulted in the Arab Muslims becoming a majority of the Palestinian population. While most of the Jews lived in the Diaspora for centuries; they maintained a strong yearning for returning to their ancestral land. They expressed that at the Passover celebration with "Next year in Jerusalem!"

During the19th century, Jews were persecuted in Russia and discriminated against in Western Europe. The rise of anti-Semitism became evident at the trial of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, the son of a wealthy Jewish textile manufacturer in France. In 1894, Dreyfus was accused of selling military secrets to the German military attaché. He was arrested on October 15, and on December 22, he was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. He entered the infamous penal colony of Devils Island off the coast of French Guyana, on 13 April 1895.

Theodor Herzl (1860-1904) was a Jewish correspondent for the Viennese newspaper Neue Freje Presse in Paris. He covered the Dreyfus trial and became convinced there was no hope for the Jews to achieve complete emancipation in Europe. In 1896, he published “The Jewish State,” and became the father of the Zionist Movement that advocated the establishment of a national home for the Jews. After many debates at World Zionist Congresses, it was decided to establish this home in Palestine.

After Herzl’s death, the leadership of the Zionist Movement was assumed by Dr. Chaim Weizmann, a Polish Jew who was teaching chemistry in England. During WWI, he helped the British Navy by inventing materials to combat German submarines. Eventually, the British Government published the Balfour Declaration, favoring the establishment of a Jewish State in Palestine.

At the end of WWI, the British assumed the government of Palestine with a mandate from the League of Nations. For the next thirty years, Britain faced a great opposition from the Palestinian Arabs against the plan. In 1946. The British Government brought the matter to the United Nations Organization. A U.N. Commission of Inquiry studied the matter and proposed a Partition of Palestine into a Jewish State and an Arab State. The Jews accepted the plan, while the Arabs rejected it.

Britain ended its Mandate in Palestine on 14 May 1948. David Ben-Gurion with other Jewish leaders, announced the birth of the State of Israel on 15 May 1948. The response of the Arab states was immediate. Armies of Syria, Lebanon, Transjordan, Iraq, and Egypt entered Palestine to thwart the Zionist victory.  By mid-June 1948, the United Nations Security Council arranged a cease-fire between the warring sides. Major wars between Israel and the Arab states took place in 1956, 1967, and 1973. Eventually, Egypt’s President Anwar Sadat took the initiative of signing a peace treaty with Israel, followed by Jordan.

During the second decade of the 21st century, the United States succeeded in getting several Arab states to an agreement of normalizing their relations with Israel in a document called The Abraham Accords. https://www.state.gov/the-abraham-accords/

The Accords ended the official Arab denial of the right of Israel to exist, However, the Islamic Republic of Iran became a determined foe to Israel. It supplies   Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian Hamas organization in Gaza with weapons to harass Israel. While it is impossible to predict the future, the past 75 years give evidence that Israel’s existence may be frequently challenged.

 

Saint Paul’s Teaching on The Future of Israel in Romans 9 -11

Saint Paul’s Letter to the Church in Rome is as a major work on Christian doctrine. Most likely, it was organized by people who had gone to Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost, an event narrated in the second chapter of the Book of Acts. Peter’s sermon was delivered to a vast audience of pilgrims from several parts of the world, including visitors from Rome. Around three thousand believed and were baptized. 

While waiting for an occasion to visit Rome, Paul wrote an exposition of the Christian Faith, that he called The Gospel. 

The first eight chapters of the Letter act as a Commentary on the Gospel. In chapters 9,10, and 11, Paul focused on the future of Israel. In Chapter 9, Paul listed the privileges the Jews had received as witnesses to God's glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law of Moses, the worship in the temple, and the promises of God. Another privilege Paul listed was that through the line of the patriarchs came Christ, the promised Messiah. In Chapter 10, Paul described his desire and prayer for the people of Israel to be saved through faith in Christ.  

In chapter 11, Paul asked if God has rejected His chosen people, Israel. His answer: "By no means!" and points to himself as the first evidence that God has not rejected Israel.

Paul now asserts that Israel's hardening will end when the "fullness" of the Gentiles has come to God through faith in Christ. The "fullness of the Gentiles" means "the complete number.”

The meaning of this verse has been hotly debated by Bible scholars. What does Paul mean, exactly, when he says that all Israel will be saved? Many Bible teachers have concluded that by "all Israel," Paul means the Nation of Israel as a whole. 

Chapter 11 ends with a poem, structured as a hymn, expressing Paul’s profound reaction both to God's ways and to His mercy to sinful human beings. 

“To God be glory forever. This is both a statement of fact and a prayer for its fulfillment. Glory will flow to God forever, and Paul affirms that is exactly as it should be in the form of a prayer. He ends this section of his letter with a formal amen.”

 

Postscript

In the preparation of this article, I have relied on and quoted extensively from the website of https://www.bibleref.com/Romans/9/Romans-9-2.html                                   

I found the material in harmony with my life-long study of this subject, in the writings and the lectures of the following Bible scholars: 

John H. Gerstner 
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/evangelical-history/legacy-john-gerstner-presbyterian-historian-mentor-r-c-sproul/

Oswald T. Allis 
Oswald Thompson Allis (September 9, 1880 – January 12, 1973) was an American Presbyterian theologian and Bible schola. He taught at Princeton Seminary, then left to found and teach at Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvnia.  

John Murray 
John Murray (14 October 1898 – 8 May 1975) was a Scottish-born Calvinist theologian who taught at Princeton Seminary and then left to help found Westminster Theological Seminary, where he taught for many years. He was ordained in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church in 1937. 
 

 

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A Colourful History of Antioch

May 06, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Colourful History of Antioch

Bassam Michael Madany

20 March 2023
 

Antioch was founded in 300 B.C. by Seleucus I Nicator, a general of Alexander the Great. The new city soon became the western terminus of the land routes over which goods were brought from Persia to the Mediterranean. 

Antioch’s strategic command of north-south and east-west roads across northwestern Syria greatly contributed to its growth and prosperity during the Hellenic, Roman, and Byzantine times. The suburb of Daphne was a favourite pleasure resort and residential area for Antioch’s upper classes. Seleucia Pieria, at the mouth of the Orontes River, was the city’s harbour.

Antioch was the centre of the Seleucid Kingdom until 64 B.C., when it was annexed by Rome, and made the capital of the Roman province of Syria. It became the third largest city of the Roman Empire in size and importance, after Rome and Alexandria, with its magnificent temples, theatres, aqueducts, and baths. 

Antioch was also one of the earliest centres of Christianity; it was there that the followers of Christ were first called Christians, and the city was the headquarters of the missionary Saint Paul.i

In the 4th century A.D. Antioch became the seat of a new Roman office that administered all the provinces on the empire’s eastern flank. Because the church of Antioch had the distinction of having been founded by the apostles Peter and Paul, its bishops ranked with the bishops of the other apostolic centers Jerusalem, Rome, and Alexandria. 

Antioch prospered in the 4th and 5th centuries from nearby olive plantations, but the 6th century brought a series of disasters from which the city never fully recovered. A fire in 525 was followed by earthquakes in 526 and 528. The city was captured by the Persians in 540 and 611.

During the early Arab-Islamic Futuhat (Conquests), Antioch was occupied in 637, and became much smaller. Its fortunes changed in 969, when the Byzantines recaptured the city, and it served as a frontier barrier against Islamic powers. The Seljuk Turks occupied the city in 1084, only to be ejected in 1098, when it was captured by the Crusaders, who made it the capital of one of their kingdoms. In 1268 the city was taken by the Turkish Mamluks, who razed it to the ground. Antioch never recovered from this last disaster, and it had declined to a small village when it was taken by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. It remained part of the Ottoman Sultanate for the next four centuries.

In WWI, the Ottomans sided with Germany and Austria. The victory of the Allies led to the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire. Syria and Lebanon came under the rule of France by Mandate from the League of Nations. With the end of the Ottoman rule, Turkey became a Republic under General Mustapha Kemal Ataturk. He initiated radical changes in the country: Abolishing the Caliphate in 1924, a process of secularization of society, and the adoption of a Latin alphabet in lieu of the Arabic script.

During the 1930s, certain parts of the Turkey were still under occupation by Allied Forces, Ataturk sought to end their rule by negotiation. He succeeded in terminating the French occupation of Cilicia (Asia Minor). Encouraged by that success, Ataturk claimed that the Syrian province of Alexandretta, which included Antioch, belonged to Turkey. Actually, Alexandretta was the most cosmopolitan part of Syria, and was the home of French, British, and Italian schools. The population consisted mostly of Christians from various communions: Orthodox, Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, and Protestant. A significant remnant of the Armenian Genocide had also settled in Alexandretta. Nevertheless, France handed the province over to Turkey in June 1939. Around 90,000 people of the province moved to other parts of Syria and to Lebanon. 

“Remarkably, few remains of the ancient Antioch are now visible, since most of them lie buried beneath thick alluvial deposits from the Orontes River. Nevertheless, important archaeological discoveries have been made in the locality. Excavations conducted in 1932–39 in Daphne and Antioch uncovered many fine mosaic floors from both private houses and public buildings. Dating largely from the Roman imperial period, many of the floors represent copies of famous ancient paintings that otherwise would have been unknown. 

“The activities of the modern town are based mainly on the agricultural produce of the area, including the intensively farmed ‘Amok plain. The chief crops are wheat, cotton, grapes, rice, olives, vegetables, and fruit. Antioch has soap and olive-oil factories, cotton ginning and other processing industries.  Before the Province of Alexandretta (that included Antioch) was annexed by Turkey, its population was around 220,000. Eight decades later, Antioch’s population alone, had reached 216,960ii

Demographically, Antioch had become a Turkish city, as I experienced during my visit in July 1975. When reporting on the massive 7.8 earthquake of 6 February 2023, most Western media, referred to Antioch as “the ancient Turkish city of Antakya.” The irony is that Antioch had become Turkish, in a relatively short time! While during the four centuries of Ottoman Turkish rule of Syria, which included Antioch, the population retained their Arabic language and culture. 

The world response to the 6 February 2023 destructive earthquakes has been heartwarming. Aid groups from several parts of the world rushed to help, not only in Turkey, but in nearby Syrian areas The United Nations’ estimate of the devastating earthquakes is about 50,000 people killed, with many more injured, and hundreds of thousands homeless. The magnitude of the geological damage to the area in and around Antioch is beyond belief! It would make the rebuilding of the city a gargantuan challenge in the future!

____________________________________________________________________

1. Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.  While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”  Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.  So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. Acts of the Apostles13:1-4 

iiii Antioch | modern and ancient city, south-central Turkey | Britannica

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Reflections of the Earthquakes' Impact on Alexandretta, Antioch, and Seleucia

May 06, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Reflections of the Earthquakes' Impact on Alexandretta, Antioch, and Seleucia

Bassam Michael Madany

9 March 2023

Last month, I celebrated my 95th birthday. A few days later, on Monday, 6 February, a massive earthquake hit an area in southern Turkey that flattened the place beyond recognition. It was the place where I was born and spent the first eleven years of my life. 

This is a story that goes beyond earthquakes and natural disasters; it’s an account of a forgotten tragedy, as most of those who had experienced it, have passed away. 

The Middle East was conquered by Islam in the seventh century. Christians and Jews were allowed to keep their faith by paying the Jizya tax. My ancestors remained Christian, and for some time kept their Aramaic language and culture. By the ninth century, they had Arabized but didn’t Islamize. A Christian scholar in Damascus undertook the translation of the New Testament into Arabic, providing the Christians of the Levant with the necessary spiritual food. i

The Mongolian destruction of the Abbasids in 1250 was a disastrous event for Middle Eastern peoples. Eventually, the Seljuk Turks governed the area, and were followed by the Ottoman Turks, in the sixteenth century. The Ottomans had global ambitions, their conquests included the Byzantine empire in 1453, and lands in eastern and central Europe. In 1529, they laid siege to Vienna, but failed to conquer Austria. One hundred fifty years later, the Ottomans returned with a larger army, and attempted to enter Vienna. Thanks to the help the Austrians received from the Poles, the Ottomans failed and retreated, leaving behind several sacks of coffee beans!  

The Ottomans were staunch defenders of Sunni Islam, as their Sultans had assumed the role of Caliphs. While ruling the Balkans and the Middle East, the Ottomans did not force the subject peoples to adopt Turkish. Middle Easterners kept their Arabic language. During the nineteenth century a revival of Arab culture took place in Egypt under the regime of Muhammad Ali Pasha and his successors.

In Lebanon, American missionaries founded the American University of Beirut. Several of its graduates moved to Egypt where they published newspapers and magazines. The translation of the Bible into Arabic was a major event in the 1860s, a work of significant importance for the Arabic-speaking Christians of the world.

In WWI, the Ottomans took the side of Germany and Austria. The victory of the Allies led to the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire. Syria and Lebanon came under the rule of France by Mandate from the League of Nations. My education took place during the French presence at British and French schools. That included learning English, French, and Classical Arabic. 

With the end of the Ottoman rule, Turkey became a Republic under General Mustapha Kemal Ataturk. He initiated radical changes in the country: Abolishing the Caliphate in 1924; a process of secularization of society, and the adoption of a Latin alphabet in lieu of the Arabic alphabet.

As certain parts of the Turkish mainland were still under occupation by Allied Forces, Ataturk sought to end that rule by negotiation. In the 1930s, the French ended their occupation of Cilicia (Asia Minor.) Not satisfied with those accomplishments, Ataturk claimed that the Syrian province of Alexandretta belonged to Turkey. He renamed the area as Hatay and kept pressing France to cede it to Turkey.

The province included Antioch and Seleucia as well and was the most cosmopolitan part of Syria. Besides the French schools, there were British and Italian schools. The population was mostly Christians of various communions: Orthodox, Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, and Protestant. A significant remnant of the Armenian Genocide had settled in Alexandretta.

The pressure on France kept increasing. In 1938, Turkish Forces entered the province.  At the school I attended, a Turkish teacher arrived to teach Turkish. He was an amiable person, friendly, but smoked a lot. He taught us to sing the Turkish National Anthem!

I’ll never forget June 1939. My mother passed away of a stroke on the tenth of the month. France handed the province over to Turkey; around 90,000 residents left for other Syrian provinces and to Lebanon. Our family settled in Beirut, Lebanon. To have remained in Alexandretta meant our total Turkification. That was not an option for our family. My ancestors had willingly adopted the Arabic language a millennium before. It became ours, and we loved both the Classical and the Colloquial dialects. 

When the successive earthquakes happened on 6 February 2023, one news media with no historical knowledge of the area, reported the following:

“Turkey's historic city of Antakya, known in Roman and medieval times as Antioch, has been flattened by powerful earthquakes in the past – and rebuilt itself.” 

Do eighty-four years of Antioch’s occupation qualify it as an historic Turkish city?! Antioch was the capital, of th Seleucid Kingdom, a Macedonian Greek dynasty (312–64 BC.) It was founded by Seleucus I Nicator. Carved from the empire of Alexander the Great, the Seleucid domain included Babylonia, Syria, and Anatolia. When the Romans conquered the area in 64 BC, they kept Antioch as the capital of the region that included Palestine. 

Antioch qualifies as an historic Christian city “It was in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.” Acts 11: 26b. The Antiochian church ordained Paul and Barnabas as missionaries; they sailed from its port Seleucia, on their world mission.

My reflections were evoked by the February earthquakes in a region that had witnessed other types of human disasters caused by political ambitions.
 

_______________________________________________________________________

(2) Review of the Arabic Text of MT. SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151 | Bassam Michael Madany - Academia.edu

 

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THE ESCHATOLOGY OF THE IRANIAN REGIME SOURCE OF ITS INTRANSIGENCE

May 06, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

THE ESCHATOLOGY OF THE IRANIAN REGIME

SOURCE OF ITS INTRANSIGENCE

Bassam Michael Madany

10 February 2023

The 31 January 2023 issue of the Wall Street Journal carried this headline:  

         “Iran’s Deadly Street Protests Are Replaced by Quiet Acts of Rebellion.”

It began, “Four months after a nationwide uprising erupted in Iran, a lethal crackdown and an ailing economy have quieted antigovernment street demonstrations.”

Whether the quieting of the “antigovernment street demonstrations” will last, only time would tell. In this article, I explain how the Eschatology (End-Times beliefs) of the Iranian Religious authorities, provides them with an inflexible steering of the governance of the country at this crucial time in Iran’s history. This would mark the first time in the History of Islam, when the religious establishment took over the reins of government.

From its beginnings, Islam became a State whose leader was prophet, legislator, and ruler. Muhammad didn’t leave any instructions regarding the leadership of the Islamic Umma after his passing. Some of his close associates, rushed to choose Abu Bakr as the First Caliph in 632 AD. After his death in 634, Umar succeeded him. His rule lasted ten years, during which the Islamic Futuhat (Conquests) began. After his assassination in 644, Uthman became Caliph. He collected manuscripts of the Qur’an; chose one as a Textus Receptus and sent copies to several Islamic-occupied territories. Uthman’s caliphate was riddled with controversies, which led to his assassination in 656.

Ali (cousin and a son-in-law of Muhammad) assumed the Caliphate in 656. However, Muawiya, the governor of Syria contested the election of Ali, leading to war between the two men. When Ali accepted arbitration between the two factions, some of his followers rebelled and murdered him in 661. Muawiya assumed the role of Caliph and founder of the Umayyad Dynasty, with Damascus as its capital. It lasted for nearly 100 years, during which Islam spread from India in the east to Spain in the west.

Ali’s followers, known as these Shi’ites (partisans) refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of the Umayyad Caliphate. Ali had two sons by Fatima (daughter of Muhamad,) Hasan and Husain. Hasan declined to assume the role of the Shi’ite leadership, leaving the position to his brother Husain. In 680, he moved to Kufa in Iraq to reclaim the Caliphate. He was defeated and massacred at the Battle of Karbala, on 10 October 680 (10 Muharram 61 AH)

From this point on, the Shi’ites would become an underground opposition movement. Husain and his descendants carried the title of Imam. (In Sunni Islam, an Imam is simply the leader of a mosque, in charge of the daily and weekly Salaats (worship services.)

The Umayyad Caliphate was challenged by the Abbasids who defeated them in 750. The blood bath that followed resulted in the extermination of every member of the Umayyads. One member managed to flee to Al-Andalus (Spain,) where he began a rival Islamic caliphate.

The Abbasids were descendants of an uncle of Muhammad. It was during their Caliphate that the Arab Islamic civilization flourished. Baghdad became the capital of the Abbasids, translation of works from Persian, Aramaic, and Greek sources was accomplished at the House of Wisdom. The Four Schools for the Interpretation of the Islamic Shariah were founded; the Sirat Muhammad (Life of the Prophet) was composed, first by Ibn Is’haq, and revised by Ibn Hisham. The initiative for all these accomplishments came from the Caliphs.

An intellectual group known as the Mu’tazilites appeared on the scene and discussed doctrinal and philosophical issues. A major theological topic was the Qur’an’s createdness. When Imam Hanbal preached the uncreatedness of the Qur’an, the contemporary Caliph Al-Ma’moon imprisoned him. That precipitated an event known as Mihnat al- Qur’an (the Ordeal of the Qur’an!)

Following the Mongolian advance and the destruction of Baghdad in 1258, the Abbasid Caliphate had reached its twilight. Eventually, the Sunni Caliphate was assumed by the Ottoman Turks; it lasted until the early years of the 20th century. Rival Shi’ite caliphates arose in Egypt under the Fatimites, from 969 to 1171. Persia that had followed Sunni Islam for centuries, underwent a radical change in 1501, when Ismail I, the first Shah of the Safavid Dynasty (1601–1722), captured Tabriz and proclaimed Twelver Shi’ism to be the faith of his new realm.

The Twelvers believe that, at the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632, the spiritual-political leadership of the Islamic Umma, was to pass down to Ali, and to ʿAlī’s son Husain and to other Imams (leaders) down to the 12th. He was born around 870, and went into occultation, (a state of concealment by God) in 874. This Hidden Imam is still alive and bears the title of Mahdi. Upon his return, he will inaugurate an era when the Twelver Shi’ism would be the dominant faith in Islam.  

It becomes clear from a review of Islamic history that the state played an exclusive role in all the decisions that impacted Muslim society. Beginning with Uthman’s choice of the official manuscript of the Qur’an, to Al-Mamoon’s standing for the createdness of the Qur’an. It was the Fatimites rulers who imposed Shi’ism on Egyptians and founded the University Mosque of Al-Azhar.

Things changed drastically during the Ayyubid Dynasty’s occupation of Egypt (1171-1250.) Egypt was reintegrated into the Sunni world, with Al-Azhar University Mosque becoming a bastion of Sunni Islam.

Early in the 16th century, Egypt with the rest of the Middle East, were incorporated into the Ottoman Empire that played the role of defender of Sunni Islam. During the 19th century, the Ottomans had to deal with the Wahhabis, a fundamentalist Islamic movement in Arabia. Aided by the Saudi tribe, the Wahhabis captured Mecca that had been under Ottoman control. Gradually, the Saudis extended their rule over Arabia. While Wahhabi Islam continued to be the official faith of the kingdom, political, economic, and social issues; remained in the hands of the House of Saud.  Saudi Arabia in the Third Millennium is drastically different from the 1930s! Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has initiated several reforms — concerts, movie theaters, and a permission for women driving cars, without a male chaperon! The impetus for change and modernization in Saudi Arabia came from the governing authorities, and not from the Wahhabi establishment who have been the custodians of “authentic” Islam.

It is evident that a modus operandi that had lasted for 1400 years, namely the primacy of the state in governance, was broken when Ayatollah Khomeini became the religious and political leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran. As a religious establishment professing the Eschatology of Twelver Shi’ism took over the reins of governance in Tehran, they claim their authority is derived from the infallible Mahdi. This led the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran to become intransigent, in their response to the ongoing Intifada of the young generation of Iranii

 

i Iranian Youth is the largest population bloc in Iran. Over 60 percent of Iran’s 80 million people are under 30 years old. Iranian youth are among the most politically active in the 57 nations of the Islamic world. As the most restive segment of Iranian society, the young also represent one of the greatest long-term threats to the current form of theocratic rule. https://iranprimer.usip.org/resource/youth

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Raymond Lull the Pioneer Missionary to Islam A Tribute

May 06, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Raymond Lull the Pioneer Missionary to Islam A Tribute

Bassam Michael Madany
18 January 2023
 

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound.  II Timothy 2:8,9 (ESV)

The Arabic text is from the Smith-VanDyke translation of the Bible
8اُذْكُرْ يَسُوعَ الْمَسِيحَ الْمُقَامَ مِنَ الأَمْوَاتِ، مِنْ نَسْلِ دَاوُدَ بِحَسَبِ إِنْجِيلِي، 9الَّذِي فِيهِ أَحْتَمِلُ
الْمَشَقَّاتِ حَتَّى الْقُيُودَكَمُذْنِبٍ. لكِنَّ كَلِمَةَ اللهِ لاَ تُقَيَّدُ

From my earliest days, I became interested in missions. My father’s library in our home in Latakia, Syria had several books, in English and in Arabic, relating stories of men and women who had left their homes in Europe and America and spent their lives in the Far East, India, the Middle East and Africa in obedience to the Great Commission.

I had not heard of Raymond Lull until my early twenties when a British Missionary lent me a book by Dr. Samuel Zwemer on the life and ministry of this Spanish missionary scholar. 

Raymond Lull (known in Spain as Ramon Llull) was born on the Island of Majorca, Spain, in 1235. He belonged to a rich family. He led a very worldly life until his conversion in his late forties. For the last part of his life, he was involved in intense Christian missionary work among Muslims in North Africa. The following paragraph is from Dr. Zwemer’s Biography of this pioneer missionary to Islam.

“There is no more heroic figure in the history of Christendom than that of Raymond Lull the first and perhaps the greatest Missionary to Muslims. He was years ahead of his time; a great thinker as well as doer, establishing missionary colleges to carry the Gospel to Muslims, while personally obeying Christ's command to 'Go' himself. Heaven enlightened Lull to know the love of God and to do the Will of God as no other of his generation. From a powerful vision of Christ's unrequited Love at the time of the bloody Crusades, Lull began his own crusade of love. Lull's motto was, He who loves not lives not; he who lives by the Life cannot die.” 

During Lull’s lifetime, Spain was partially occupied by the Arab Muslims since the beginning of the 8th century. His missionary labors took place during the weakened and diminishing presence of the Arab Muslim rule in Spain.

Continuing the excerpts from Dr. Zwemer’s Biography of Raymond Lull:

“Lull’s chief concern after his conversion was that all men everywhere should become Christians. He visited Rome, urging several Popes to establish schools for preparing missionaries. He convinced the Church Council at Vienne (France) in 1311, to establish missionary colleges in various parts of Europe. He lectured in major cities and encouraged the learning of the Arabic language to preach the Gospel to the Arabs of Al-Andalus (the Arabic name of Spain)

“In 1276 Lull founded the College of Miramar in Majorca, which trained men in the study of Arabic and prepared missionaries for service in Islamic lands. He made repeated missionary trips to these lands and continued writing. Altogether, he wrote some 150 or 200 works in Latin, Arabic, and Catalan on such diverse subjects as theology, philosophy, logic, and poetry. Most of them were apologies for the faith and indicate not only his primary desire to convert the infidel but also his attempt to make philosophy subordinate to theology to obtain that goal. 

“On one of his missionary journeys in North Africa, he was held in prison for over six months. All manner of attempts were made to persuade him to convert to Islam. Instead, he was successful in winning a small number of converts, among whom he later secretly labored for almost a year!

“Raymond Lull visited the city of Tunis three times, to win converts. One of his methods was to walk down the street preaching in a loud voice, shouting the fallacies of the Muslim faith and the truth of Christianity. Twice he was expelled; when he returned to Tunis the third time, he was stoned to death in 1315, at the age of eighty!”

My purpose in writing this article is not primarily to give an account of the work of the first Western missionary to Islam. Rather to explain that his biography dispelled a notion I had about the impossibility of engaging in missions among Muslims. During my early years, Western Protestants and Catholics used educational institutions as missionary methods. I was educated in these schools. Some of my fellow students were Muslims; when it came to religious courses, they were exempt from taking them! I don’t recall any conversion to the Christian faith from Muslim students, during my entire educational experience from 1934 to 1945.

Furthermore, I was fascinated with stories of missions in China, Korea, India, and sub-Saharan Africa. Those were the places to engage in the proclamation of the Good News and succeed in founding Christian churches!

I had the call to the ministry of the Gospel in 1948. I enrolled at the Reformed Presbyterian Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1950. At the seminary library I read Dr. Zwemer’s “The Cross Above the Crescent: The Validity, Necessity, and Urgency of Missions to Moslems” I wrote a letter of thanks to Dr. Zwemer care of Zondervan Publishing House in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I received a wonderful response from him who at the time was living at his daughter’s home in Alexandria, Virginia. He encouraged me in my theological studies.

As I reflect on those events of 70-80 years ago, it was my initial contact with Samuel Zwemer’s books, and later his correspondence, that were used by our Lord to direct my general interest in mission work, to a specific calling of bringing the Gospel to the Arab World.

After graduation and marriage in 1953, I served for two years as Bible teacher at a Protestant missionary school in Latakia, Syria. As conditions for missions worsened, I immigrated to Canada, laboring in church work with the Canadian Bible Society.

In 1956, I began an Arabic literature ministry and published by first book, THE INSPIRATION OF THE HOLY BIBLE. While taking a year of theological studies at Calvin Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan, (1957-1958) a copy of this book came to the attention of the Secretary of the Sudan Interior Mission in this city. He approached me about the possibility of broadcasting the Gospel in Arabic on ELWA, the missionary radio station of the SIM, in Monrovia, Liberia. That began my thirty-six-year life work of reaching the Arab world from Morocco to Iraq, 1958 to 1994 During the 1970s, I began a weekly program on the powerful Medium Wave transmitter of Radio Monte-Carlo in Monaco. The Arabic-language ministry was strengthened by correspondence and follow-up literature.

A new phase of missions began in the 21st century, with the Internet allowing a proclamation of the Good News by North African nationals who had crossed over to the Christian faith. A notable example is that of Brother Rachid’s ministry that consists of a weekly live call-show on both YouTube and Al-Karma satellite TV.

https://www.youtube.com/user/BROTHERRACHID

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More on The Veiled Genocide

May 06, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

More on The Veiled Genocide

Bassam Michael Madany

9 January 2023

On three different occasions, I posted articles commenting on the Senegalese author Tidiane N’Diaye’s book Le Genocide Voilé (The Veiled Genocide). It was published in Paris, France in 2008. Last week, I discovered more information about the subject that was posted on YouTube on 24 May 2018; where the author gave further comments on the trans-Sahara and eastern slave trade.

This video is a translation of Tidiane N’Diaye’s short presentation broadcast in French by France info. He introduces his book Le Genocide Voilé (The Veiled Genocide) on the trans-Sahara and eastern slave trade. He goes on to lament the fact that the subject remains hardly known or acknowledged among the Arabs. It is a chapter of African history that is still taboo: the slavery of black populations by the Arab world. Senegalese researcher Tidiane N'Diaye explains. There is no degree in horror, nor a monopoly on suffering or cruelty. But it is safe to say that the trans-Sahelian and Eastern slave trade was far more devastating for African populations than the transatlantic slave trade.

N'Diaye explains, if I titled my study "veiled genocide" it is because generalized castration annihilated any possibility of transmission, any possibility of descent, which explains today that their presence in the Arab world is an epiphenomenon. Also, a rather important clarification: when I say Arab-Muslim, it does not mean that I am trying to reduce peoples to their religion or culture.

You have between 400 and 500 million Muslims in Africa today. It seems that most Muslim intellectuals are reluctant to approach this page of our history, a painful page that not only should Arab-Muslim scholars have opened, but African intellectuals hesitate. And what resonance today? What is happening today in Libya, with African slave marches, is simply a kind of continuity in the treatment that Arab-Muslims reserved for Africans. Since today it is estimated that 45 million individuals are still enslaved. And as luck would have it, it is essentially in the Arab-Muslim world. African students living in the Maghreb are often treated in a rather despicable way.

African maids have their passports confiscated in Lebanon and elsewhere. By dint of silencing a crime, it risks repeating itself. Just as Elie Wiesel said, “Whoever ignores his past exposes himself to him starting again.” Hence the need for a work of memory so that the horrors of the past never fall into oblivion.

Please click on this link to watch the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxc5ENT8ajg

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Islam & the Non-Muslims

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Islam & the Non-Muslims 
An Arab Viewpoint 
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Quite early in its history, Islam’s belief system was given direction by Islamic jurists; they divided the world into two realms; Daru’l Islam and Daru’l Harb, (The Household of Islam and the Household of War.) This was an apt description of the era when Islam was triumphing and expanding its territories in Asia, Africa, and Europe. It was an application of the teachings of the authoritative texts of Islam that called for fighting the Infidels wherever they are found.

This ideological principle, reinforced by the Islamic warriors’ success on the battlefield, resulted in the addition of several new words to Islam’s vocabulary to describe non-Muslims. They were to be called “Infidels” (Kuffar) or “Polytheists” (Mushrikoon), and for Christians and Jews, the term “Ahlu’l-Kitab” was to be used, signifying that they possessed divinely revealed books, even though by the time Muhammad came on the scene, the jurists claimed these revealed books had been corrupted.

It was not until the fall of the Ottoman Turkish Empire in 1918 that this description of non-Muslims began to change. Several of the Ottoman territories in the Middle East came under the rule of the British and French governments so that at least officially, Christians, Jews, and Muslims were called by their proper, i.e., religiously-based names. But the use of the old vocabulary persisted among the Muslim populace.

When the colonial powers left the Middle East after the end of WWII, the nationalistic fervor did not abate, especially during the regime of the popular Egyptian leader, Gamal Abdul Nasser. 
However, after the disastrous June 1967 Arab-Israeli war, Arab nationalism gave way to Islamic Fundamentalism which is known in Arabic as Usooliyya. The old vocabulary designating the non-Muslim populations began to resurface in the Middle East. This phenomenon shocked some reform-minded Arab intellectuals who began calling for a more civil and tolerant view of non-Muslims living within Daru’l Islam. One way these liberal intellectuals differentiated themselves from those who used the traditional nomenclature was to refer to all non-Muslims as “Al-Akhar” (The Other) a less strident, neutral Arabic word.

Early in January, 2009, the Kuwaiti website kwtanweer posted an article on this subject with this title, “The ‘Other’ According to the Islamic View” (Al-Akhar fi’l Tasawwor al-Islami)

Here are translated excerpts from this timely article, followed by my comments.

“According to the Islamic view, the ‘Other’ is any non-Muslim. He may be a follower of Judaism or Christianity, a Zoroastrian, or an atheist. Sunnis would add to this list all those who don’t follow their brand of Islam such as Shi’ites, Ismailis, Ahmadiyya, and Abadiyya. The vast majority of Shi’ites have the same attitude as the Sunnis vis-à-vis those Muslims who do not follow their own understanding of Islam, not recognizing, for example, Non-Twelvers Shi’ites. 1

“The Muslim view of the ‘Other’ is not a theoretical subject; it translates itself into the practical areas of life on earth, as well as the afterlife. So we find real discriminatory practices in the areas of human rights, duties, and the treatment of those classified as ‘Others.’ For example, in the Islamic Republic of Iran, only a Shi’ite may become President; which implies the non-Shi’ite is not a Muslim, and is therefore not eligible to occupy the office of president! And even though the vast majority of Sunni countries with written constitutions have no specific article that bars a Shi’ite from assuming the office of president, nevertheless the very idea of such a thing happening is unthinkable.

“The discriminatory practices against non-Muslims are actually very grave. Usually, all non-Muslims are regarded as Kuffar. They may be either followers of revealed religions such as Christianity and Judaism, (with Zoroastrianism added by some Fuqaha 2), or simply heathens. The difference between them is that the former are allowed to pay the Jizya tax, thus gaining the freedom to remain in their own religion, while the heathens have only one choice: either convert to Islam, or have your neck cut off! One must add here, for the sake of objectivity, that such an awful rule was seldom put into practice, even though the sacred text was very clear that this was the proper punishment! There were quite a few differences within the Four Sunni Schools for the interpretation of the Shari’ah Law whether followers of non-revealed religions (heathens,) may pay the Jizya tax, and thus avoid Islamizing.

“All non-Muslims living within Islamic societies are thoroughly marginalized. After all, the sacred text requires the killing of the Mushrikeen 3, wherever they may be found. See, Qur’an, Surat al-Tawbah #9 (Repentance) ayat 5 and 29.

When the sacred months are over, slay the pagans wherever you find them. Capture, besiege, and ambush them. If they repent, perform prayers and pay the religious tax, set them free. God is All-forgiving and All-merciful (9:5)

Fight against those People of the Book who have no faith in God or the Day of Judgment, who do not consider unlawful what God and His Messenger have made unlawful, and who do not believe in the true religion, until they humbly pay tax with their own hands. (9:29)

“It is clear that these verses do require fighting those who do not believe in Allah, or the Last Day, and forbid what Allah and His Prophet have forbidden, and do not practice the true religion, even though they are the People of the Book (Jews and Christians), and they must pay the Jizya with an attitude of abject humility!

“Regardless of what the constitutions of Arab and Islamic countries may clearly state regarding nondiscrimination and equality between all their citizens, it is a well-known fact that non-Muslims are regarded with suspicion, and treated as second-class or third-class citizens. The testimony of a non-Muslim against a Muslim is not admissible in a court of law. When a Kafir kills a Muslim, he will surely be punished with the death penalty; whereas if a Muslim murders a Kafir, the Muslim is not liable to the death penalty, according to the Hadith of Bukhari. It is well-known that a non-Muslim may not marry a Muslim woman. Some authoritative texts command that Muslims may not greet Jews or Christians. And should a non-Muslim greet a Muslim, the latter may ‘take back’ (reject) that greeting. And when a Muslim meets a Jew or a Christian on the road, he should make it hard for them to proceed easily on their way.

“When it comes to the Jizya tax that Muslims are to impose on non-Muslims, it constitutes a very complicated matter in the relations between the two groups. At present, it is not applied in any Muslim society, even though the consensus of the Fuqaha is that it must be paid to spare the lives of the Kuffar, or merely to allow them to live within Daru’l Islam. Some even claim that the Jizya is a punishment laid on the Kuffar for their refusal to accept Islam. As Ibn al-Qayyim put it: ‘The Jizya is placed on the heads of the Kuffar to humiliate and debase them, making them feel inferior.’ 4.

“While Islam was tolerant with the People of the Book in allowing them to practice their faith, nevertheless it placed upon them some severe restrictions such as forbidding showing the Cross over their churches, or praying and reading their Scriptures in a loud voice.

“Some may say that most of these restrictions are no longer being applied. This is true. However, the very fact that they exist (in the sacred texts of Islam) constitutes a sword placed over the necks of non-Muslims that may go into action any time. This is why it is necessary to strengthen those constitutions and man-made laws (i.e. not based on Shari’a) for the protection of individual freedoms and personal rights against the encroachments of the religious leaders, by forbidding them to interfere in the peoples’ daily lives, in a tyrannical manner.”

Thus far my quotations from the article.

This article appeared on an Arabic website known by the name of “Tanweer,” which is an Arabic word meaning “enlightenment”! The writer shows that he has broken out of the chains that bind so many other Muslims by daring to enlighten his readers with some of the serious flaws in Islamic theology. He was not afraid to show just how intolerant Islam is.

The strength of his words is verified in the history of Islam itself and in its sacred texts. For example, at the very time when Islam was spreading its hegemony, at first in the Arabian Peninsula, and later on in the world at large, the two verses he quoted from the “Repentance” Surah explicitly mandated the killing of non-Muslims. Verse 5 is very clear in the Arabic original, “Faqtulu al-Mushrikeen haythu wajadtumuhom” translated as “kill the Infidels wherever you find them.” Verse 29 of that same chapter, mandates fighting against those who give no credence to the basic teachings of the Qur’an, and refers specifically to “allathena ootu’l Kitab” i.e. those who have been given the Book (which they consider to be Allah’s previous revelations, the Torah, the Zaboor or Psalms, and the Injeel.)

While it is true that these Medinan texts are not being put into practice in many parts of the Islamic world where non-Muslim minorities live, yet they have not been abrogated, and may be used any time a radical Islamic group takes it upon itself to initiate a plan of persecution and murder of non-Muslims.

The writer ended his article by pleading for the strengthening of “those constitutions and man-made laws (i.e. not based on Shari’a) for the protection of individual freedoms and personal rights against the encroachments of religious leaders, by forbidding them to interfere in the peoples’ daily lives, in a tyrannical manner.” However, one has to ask: where in the Arab world can be found those who are willing to declare that man-made constitutions and laws should be considered as more authoritative or normative than the so-called “divinely-inspired” rules and regulations of the Qur’an? Thus, while I appreciate the author for bringing this subject to the attention of the readership of kwtanweer, I have to conclude that his closing sentiments are nothing more than wishful thinking!

1. Several sects and sub-sects arose in Islam after the assassination of Ali. Some Shi’ites believe that it was the Twelfth Imam (descendant of Ali) who went into occultation, and would return to earth to bring justice; others believe that it was the Seventh Imam. Ahmadiyya Muslims follow an Indian Muslim who claimed that he was a Prophet. Ismailis are radical Shi’ites, and so are the Nusayris, and the Druze. Abadiyya are the spiritual descendents of the Khawarej who assassinated Ali in 661 A.D. 
2. Fuqaha, plural of Faqih, a legal authority in Islam, similar to a theologian. 
3. Mushrikeen, all non-Muslims who do not adhere to the strict monotheism of Islam. 
4. Ibn al-Qayyim (1292-1350) was a Syrian Sunni jurist and a commentator on the Qur’an.

http://www.kwtanweer.com/articles/readarticle.php?articleID=2119

Posted in Articles

Ex-Muslims Attracted to Western Secularism

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

From my earliest days, I noticed a certain fascination with Western secularism that was exhibited by Arab authors who dealt with modern history. For example, they showed a high regard and admiration for the French Revolution of 1789, notwithstanding the unbelievable bloodshed and turmoil that resulted from it.

During the past century, that attraction has manifested itself specifically in the rapid spread of Marxist ideology throughout the Middle East. In the 1960s, a Muslim professor at the American University of Beirut, Dr. Sadeq Jalal al-Adhm, published, “A Critique of Religious Thought.”(Naqd al-Fikr Al-Deeni.)  This book was critical, not only of the Qur’an, but of all theistic religions. His approach and methodology were thoroughly Marxist. He got into trouble with the Lebanese authorities, but was exonerated from the charge of inciting divisions among the Lebanese religious communities. Al-Adhm stuck tenaciously to his secular ideology. The last sentence in a revised and expanded version of his “Critique” was this: “It is beyond doubt that Dialectical Materialism is the best known attempt to formulate a complete and universal worldview that can be reconciled with the spirit of this age and its sciences. I believe that this is exactly what Jean-Paul Sartre meant when he said: ‘Marxism is the philosophy for our times.’” 

We now have unassailable proof that Marxism has been an utter failure, both ideologically and practically. We need only to read Aleksander Solzhenitsyn’s “The Gulag Archipelago” to see that Sartre, Albert Camus, and all their Middle Eastern disciples, were wrong in their prophecies.

Having said that, I don’t want to imply that Western Secularism has ceased to attract Arab and Muslim intellectuals. For example, early in 2006, I came across a relatively new Arabic-language website, www.kwtanweer.com , serving as a forum for dialog among Arab intellectuals who are concerned about tajdeed (renewal), tahdeeth (modernization), and Islah (reformation.) As I glance daily at their contributions, I can’t help but notice how most of them manifest the impact of Western secular worldviews on their thoughts. This is clearly seen by their repeated references to such philosophers as Nietzsche, Kant, Descartes, Voltaire, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

In May 2006, a Syrian Muslim contributed an unusual article to the Tanweer (Enlightenment) site, in which he related his painful spiritual journey that ended with his leaving Islam. Its title was, “From Religion to No Religion: The Confession of a Muslim who has renounced Islam.” 

Here are excerpts from this article, followed by my analysis and comments:

“No one chooses his religion or his beliefs. Religion is similar to the names we bear; they are given to us without our participation in the choice. I was born and grew up in a Muslim society, and within a Muslim family. If I had ever been asked whether I would one day be without any religious commitment, my answer would have been: never!  Like people around me, I believed that Islam was the true and eternal religion.

“And yet, I couldn’t help that, inwardly, I had to contend with many doubts. The more I read Islamic thought, the more my doubts increased. My mind became filled with questions that had no answers. So, I embarked on a spiritual quest for Allah. I convinced myself that all my doubts originated with Satan. It was my duty as a believer, when assailed by doubts and questions, simply to implore Allah for forgiveness, and seek to forget them. However, this method didn’t work; I couldn’t eradicate my doubts. In fact they remained firmly embedded in my mind.

“One day I decided to assume the role of an atheist and engage a group of believers, with arguments that stemmed from unbelief. My real aim was to discover areas of weakness in the position of atheists through such an encounter. I found a group of men at the Shari’ah School that was adjacent to the Law School where I was studying. I set forth my arguments for the position of unbelief. Surprisingly, they were unable to properly handle them.

“My old doubts increased. This led me to read more, and my critique of religion increased. For the first time, I began to read Islam from the standpoint of a critic. Finally I decided to adopt the position of having no allegiance to any religion, which meant my forsaking Islam.

“I believe that it is extremely difficult for a person to be at the same time both religious and rational. The logic of faith forces one to accept teachings as absolute, and that must not be questioned. Thus, you’ll find yourself either forsaking your mind and denying it any function, or continuing on the path of religion. The other choice requires a person to follow the directives of his mind, thus leading him eventually to forsake his religious beliefs.

Analysis

I don’t claim to possess a complete knowledge of the spiritual and intellectual background of this ex-Muslim; but I can surmise that he was not immune from the influences of the modern world upon him. Early in the Twentieth-Century, Syria was already experiencing the impact of Western thought. As a result, Arab nationalism was born. And when the Ottoman Empire collapsed after WWI, nationalism became a powerful factor in the resistance to French colonialism that was imposed on the country by the League of Nations. Eventually Syria gained its independence in 1946. After an attempt to unite with Egypt failed in the early 1960s, successive Syrian regimes claimed attachment to the ideology of Ba’ath Arab Socialism. Then, as a result of the Arabs’ debacle in the Six-Day war of June 1967, the radical Muslim Brotherhood movement

re-appeared as a political force in Syria. It attempted to offer an alternative to the hegemony of Hafedh al-Assad over Syria, but was crushed violently by his military forces in the city of Hama.

Now while some of this young Muslim’s doubts may have originated in his own mind, they could not have been unaffected by the intellectual climate where several competing secular ideologies were at work. This may be noticed in the paragraph where he questioned the compatibility of faith with reason. “It is my conviction that it is extremely difficult for a person to be at the same time both religious and rational. The logic of faith forces one to accept teachings as absolute, and that must not be questioned. Thus, you’ll find yourself either forsaking your mind and denying it any function, or continuing on the path of religion. The other choice requires a person to follow the directives of his mind, thus leading him eventually to forsake his religious beliefs.”

His thesis asserted that no one could be a religious believer, and rational at the same time. However, this claim, in its turn, was based on a presupposition showing his adherence to a secular worldview. As a secularist, he rejected, a priori, all religious beliefs, claiming they are incompatible with reason. But is human reason ever neutral?  

It so happens that this ex-Muslim, ever since his leaving Islam, has been very busy in spreading his ideas on other Arabic-language web sites, one operated by a group of Arab intellectuals advocating “irreligion,” or “no-religious faith,” (la-Deen, in Arabic). They are waging a secular da’wa that finds in the Internet, a safe and convenient forum for their defence of atheism. The many titles of his contributions (all in Arabic) indicate that, now that he has made his decisive choice for “la-Deen,” he must go on as an ardent da’iya (missionary), proclaiming and defending his new found secular faith!

Thus far my analysis. Here are my comments.

When reflecting on the attraction that Western secular worldviews have had for Arab and Muslim intellectuals, I’ve often asked myself, is there “a common denominator” between Islam and secularism? This question may appear rather preposterous! What commonality can exist between a deeply religious worldview such as Islam exhibits, and the variety of secular worldviews that have appeared in the West for the last several centuries?

The answer is that there exists a common thread between Islam and secular worldviews. It lies in the doctrine of man. To put it theologically, it is found in the area of anthropology. Both Islam and Western secularism teach the inherent goodness of man. While the Qur’an acknowledges the historicity of Adam’s fall, it does not teach a doctrine of Original Sin. In fact, the Islamic teaching about the condition of man is not that much different from the views of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, one of the “fathers” of Western secularism. He wrote: «L’homme est naturellement bon, mais la société a corrompu cette bonté. »  Man is naturally good, but it is society that has corrupted this goodness.”

At this point, I quote from Chapter Six of my book, The Bible and Islam, where I dealt with the Islamic doctrine of man.

“In 1957, a group of Muslim and Roman Catholic scholars met in a monastery at Toumliline, a small Berber town near Meknes, in Morocco. One of the main speakers was Dr. Uthman Yahya, a scholar from Al-Azhar University (Seminary) in Cairo, Egypt. “The title of his paper was: "Man and His Perfection in Muslim Theology”. These are some excerpts from an English translation published by the quarterly journal, THE MUSLIM WORLD, Volume 49, No. 1, January 1959:

“The Qur’an confronts us with man in two distinct states: the first in his original constitution, the prototype created in the image of God, the second man in his actual condition. In the primordial state man was created in entire harmony. He was perfectly constituted. The Qur’an gives us this description: "We created man in the most noble form” As contrasted with his ideal prototype man in his actual state is feeble (Surah 4:28), despairing (11:9), unjust (14:34), quarrelsome (16:4), tyrannical (96:6), lost (105:2), etc. It is true that Muslim theology does not speak of original sin and of its transmission from generation to generation. But we see clearly in the light of these quotations that there are two distinct states of man: that of his original nature and that of his actual fall ... The possibility of man's deliverance and the way to follow have been indicated by the Qur’an in its address to sinners, fathers of the human race: "Go forth all of you from hence and if there comes to you guidance from Me then he who follows my guidance shall have nothing to fear, nor shall they know distress” ( 2:38) By this solemn affirmation God Himself takes action (entre en acte) for the salvation of man in the path of right. Islamic tradition then has the means to lead man to final perfection, the effect of which is liberation from the fear and from the sadness that prevent man from attaining that eternal blessedness which is life in God and for God.”

In commenting on the paper of Dr. Yahya, the editor of The Muslim World wrote:

“Dr. Yahya’s exposition of Muslim theology and its concepts of man and his salvation raise several deep questions. The Christian must always be perplexed about its ready confidence that 'to know is to do,' that man’s salvation happens under purely revelatory auspices and that through the law given in the Divine communication is the path that man will follow once he knows and sees it. The whole mystery of human recalcitrance and ‘hardness of heart’ seems to be overlooked.” [Emphasis is mine] 
 

The similarity between the anthropology of Islam and that advocated by Western secularism is striking. It causes Muslims to be attracted to Western secular teachings about man and his present condition. So that when they are assailed by religious doubts, due to their encounter with Western secularism, they can move more easily from “Deen” to the new-found “la-Deen.” In either commitment, they don’t have to basically change their anthropology. Of course, the fundamental difference between Islam and secularism remains; the first proclaims a supernatural worldview, while the other advocates a purely this worldly-view.

The phenomenon of Muslims becoming ex-Muslims and promoting their new-found secular faith presents the Christian with serious challenges.

First, it is obvious that when Muslims forsake their religious tradition and become non-religious persons, it implies that they have not sought or considered the alternative, i.e. moving from Islam (a heavenly religion, in their parlance) to Christianity, another heavenly religion. One reason for that is that Western secularism has been greatly at work spreading its worldview ever since the end of the Eighteenth-Century. When Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798, he came not only with a military force, but was accompanied by scientists, archeologists and other tokens of Western civilization. Middle Easterners were dazzled by their presence. They welcomed and absorbed many aspects of Western culture after they were stripped of any Christian meaning or connection. For their part, during their imperialist presence, neither the French, nor the British, had other ambitions than to expand and defend their colonial interests. They did not seek to promote Christianity, for that would have gravely disturbed the status quo of Mideastern societies.

So, Arab intellectuals, when absorbing various aspects of Western secular views, heartily welcomed the notion of the inherent goodness or neutrality of man. And when things turned sour for them in their elaboration and application of their political plans, they could always blame the colonialists, or the local autocratic rulers. They never considered that the real problem resided fundamentally within the fallen nature of man.

Taking the above into consideration, we may point to the urgent challenge that faces the Christian nowadays, namely to present the Biblical view of man, and the divine remedy for reclaiming man from his fallen condition. In the past, it was very difficult to communicate this Biblical diagnosis, coupled with the claims of Jesus Christ to the followers of Islam. In fact, one of the last essays that Samuel Zwemer wrote on this subject was entitled, “The Glory of the Impossible.” Not long after he penned that tract, Christian radio came in as a wonderful tool for the spread the Christian message in the Muslim World. I had the privilege of being on the air for thirty-six years, broadcasting daily the message of the Word of God in Arabic to the peoples of North Africa and the Middle East. It was not a one-way ministry, as a great amount of response came to these daily messages. The letters received from Muslims indicated a thirst and an eagerness to learn more about the Kitab (the Bible,) its contents, and its basic message.

There are also Christian organizations that use satellite television to spread the knowledge of the Gospel among Muslims. We give thanks to God for all these wonderful means. One of the latest advances in communication is the Internet and its use for spreading the message of the Bible among the followers of Islam. The benefits of the Internet are enormous and can hardly be fully gauged. One of its greatest advantages is that the Gospel becomes present and available to anyone who has access to the Internet, and at anytime that is convenient to the seeker.

Let me give an example. After my retirement from my radio and literature ministry in 1994, a goodly number of my broadcast messages have been placed on a web site that would allow anyone who understands Arabic, to listen to a Bible-based sermon or lesson.

This is its URL: www.audio.arabicbible.com

Furthermore, all the printed materials I produced over the years are also available on a website, not only to read, but also to download and print for further study. The URL for this site is: www.kalimatalhayat.com  (In Arabic it means: Word of Life)

And thanks to the tremendous advances in the capacity of storing digital materials on compact disks, the above-mentioned materials (both audio and in script) are also available on a CD for free distribution. This is very important for those who, while possessing a computer, are unable to access the Internet.

I would like to close by stating that great as these improvements in the means of communications are, the most important factor remains the message. What are the basics of the message that should be made known to Muslims, who are considering leaving Islam?

The basics of the message are found and taught in that Magnum Opus of Paul, his Letter to the Romans. Realizing that the Good News he proclaimed was foolishness to the Rationalists of his days, and an offense to the contemporaneous Legalists, he nevertheless taught and defended the thesis of man’s fallen condition, and the mighty grace of God that saves man from his plight, based on the redemptive work of the Messiah, the Son of God. The Law of God, imprinted on the conscience of man, and clearly revealed in the Ten Commandments, far from being the Savior of man, reveals the utter hopelessness of his condition. Man’s salvation does not happen under purely revelatory auspices, or according to the Utopian schemes of rationalist ideologues.  Man’s salvation occurs when he surrenders to the Messiah who died on the cross, and rose again on the third day. This must be our answer to the questions that are going on in the minds of many Muslims today. What a pity that so many who leave Islam behind imagine that they have found their solace in the arid speculations of Western secularists!

Posted in Articles

Why the Copts of Egypt Fear Fridays

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany
Author: Jacob Thomas on Jun 03, 2007

On 17 May, 2007, while glancing at the website of the online daily, Elaph, I noticed a very intriguing title of an article on the plight of the Christian community in Egypt: “Why Do the Copts of Egypt Fear Fridays?” The writer, himself an Egyptian now living in France, gave a realistic explanation that should stir our thoughts, and make us fully aware of the suffering of this brave minority. I share with the readers of FFI excerpts from the article, and follow with my analysis and comments.

“Islamists have taken upon themselves the responsibility to stoke the fires of religious discord and civil strife whenever they had been extinguished. The result is that Egypt becomes the victim, and both Muslims and Christians end up being the losers. It is quite evident that Islamists don’t want the attacks against the Copts to stop.

“The last attack on the Copts took place on Friday, 11 April, 2007, in the village of Behma, of the El-‘Ayat Township, in El-Giza Province. Rumors had spread that Christians were about to make an addition to their church building. Five hundred Islamists gathered, and attacked Christians in their homes and places of business. They shouted Allahu Akbar, as they embarked on their new ghazwa (conquest), resulting in the torching of 27 homes and places of business. They proceeded to loot the contents of the shops, taking all they could find of precious metals and jewelry. After all, why not engage in the plunder, having been assured by the Islamists’ fatwas that the Christians’ possessions were legitimate war booty?! Thankfully, they stopped at that point, and did not take Christian women captives as a prize of their ugly ghazwa; however, many Christians in that village were injured.

Why Afraid of Fridays? 
“When I was in Zurich, Switzerland, attending the “Conference on the Plight of Women and Minorities in the Middle East and North Africa,”* an Egyptian Coptic correspondent told me, ‘We Copts, worry about our own safety and possessions on Fridays, can you tell me why?’ I answered her, ‘Certainly, you must know that the Islamist virus has been spreading in Egypt, in our media, in our educational institutions, and in the Friday sermons at the mosques. Islamists have altered the very nature of the Friday sermons, changing them from messages on religious and moral issues that are meant to ennoble human beings by elevating their souls toward their Creator, and enabling them to become tolerant in their relations with their fellow human beings. On the contrary, the Friday sermons have become lessons in hatred and envy of the ‘Other’ declaring him to be a Kafir, and calling for war against the ‘children of apes and pigs,’ i.e. Christians and Jews. Thus when a Muslim leaves the mosque he has become like a time-bomb, ready to explode on any Christian he encounters on his way. This is why the Friday sermon has become a very dangerous matter.

“I don’t know why we have never seen a Christian, who leaves his church on Sundays, goes ahead and sets fire to a Muslim house, or assaults a Muslim and kills him! I cannot understand why anyone who kills a Copt and burns his possessions nowadays is regarded as mentally ill! Actually, Islamists have succeeded in employing religion for their political goals. In my discussion with a historian of contemporary Egyptian history, he told me, ‘The Muslim Brothers (al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun) regard Copts as an easy prey; so whenever the government arrests one of their members, they attack a church, or the Christian population. These acts come to the attention of the world public opinion, causing the Egyptian government to stop persecuting the Ikhwan. In other words, Islamists use the Copts as a means to get their members released from prison!’

“Whenever attacks on Christians take place, the Egyptian police seem to be absent! And when they finally appear at the scene, it is too late. By then the Islamists would have attacked Christians, beaten them, and robbed them of their goods. I remember when I was in Muharram Beik, Alexandria, a Muslim told me, not realizing that I was a writer, that a policeman who guarded a church building told the attackers, ‘go ahead and attack the church, but only from its back door; then, I won’t interfere with your act!’

“The Islamist International**, under the leadership of Yousef al-Qaradawi, Rashed

Al-Ghanoushi, and Fahmi Houweidi, issued fatwas allowing for the murder of women, children, and the unborn, in Israel. But they have been silent about the killing of civilian Muslims in Morocco and Algeria, and equally silent about attacks on our Coptic brothers. These attacks receive the silent assent of the Islamist fuqaha who approve the killing of innocent Muslims and peaceful Christians, as long as the murderers are Islamists like themselves!”

Analysis 
The writer of the article draws the attention of the wide readership of Elaph to this unbelievable state of affairs in Egypt, where Copts fear the advent of every Friday. This sixth day of the week has become the occasion for attacks on their persons, homes and property; almost immediately after the worshippers leave the mosques!
 
Comments 
Many readers may find it difficult to see a connection between worship at a mosque and the destructive acts that follow. Actually, this has become a regular experience of many Christians in Egypt. This is why Copts have come to dread Fridays.

I must confess that I was rather surprised to read these words from the article: “Islamists have altered the very nature of the Friday sermons, changing them from messages on religious and moral issues that are meant to ennoble human beings by elevating their souls toward their Creator, and enabling them to become tolerant in their relations with their fellow human beings.”

The writer manifests an extremely idealistic picture of what a Friday khutba (sermon) should be. I have listened to many sermons broadcast over the airways from Cairo, Riyadh, Rabat, and Damascus. The moral and spiritual elements within a typical Friday khutba are quite often, minimal. Rather, what the khateeb (preacher) proclaims is a list of the past glories of Islam, the ills that have befallen the Islamic world since the beginning of the 20th century, and a call for rallying the forces of Islam to regain their glorious past. Added to that, are the usual imprecations that are hurled against the enemies of Islam with a ferocious intensity!

Should we then be surprised that Muslim worshippers, whether in Cairo, Alexandria, or Karachi, after having listened to a fiery preacher denounce the enemies of Islam, ‘leave the mosque as a time-bomb, ready to explode on any Christian they may encounter on the road?’

*For information about some of the lectures delivered at the Zurich Conference, please consult the following articles posted on the FFI site: “Leaving the Muslim Brotherhood” posted on 14 April, 2007; and “A New Minority in North Africa” posted on 18 May, 2007.

**The Islamist International is a new term, reminiscent of a by-gone organization, “The Comintern,” i.e. (The Third International that was formed in Moscow in 1919); which sought to spread Communism all over the globe. Events in the Islamic world, point to the rise of an Islamist International, grouping jihadist organizations, working together for a global jihad, and the resumption of the futuhat of early Islam. 

http://www.news.faithfreedom.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1327

Posted in Articles

On Defining the "Other"

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany
Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Historically, Muslims have regarded non-Muslims as Kuffar* i.e. non-believers. Of course other classifications were used, for example, Jews and Christians living within Daru’l Islam, were regarded as Dhimmi**. They enjoyed certain rights within the overall Islamic Shari’a.

In day- to-day relations between Muslims and non-Muslims, the latter have always been looked upon as Kuffar. But due to the presence of non-Muslim workers in Saudi Arabia to help with its economy, some Saudi intellectuals and members of the royal family have called for a redefinition of non-Muslims, regarding them not as “unbelievers” but as the “Others.”

A French online newspaper reported on 23 June, 2005, on the recommendations of the National Dialogue Forum that took place in Saudi Arabia, and which dealt with the topic of a redefinition of the “unbeliever,” by regarding him simply as the “Other.” Here are excerpts from the article:

Several participants at the “National Dialogue Forum” being held at Abha, in Saudi Arabia, called on Wednesday, for a modification of the religious discourse, by adopting a less trenchant vocabulary. Thus, they proposed that the word Kuffar (unbelievers), that is normally used to designate non-Muslims, be replaced, in the media and in the sermons [at the mosques], by the term “the Others.”

Furthermore, they called for “a rejection of that type of education that teaches future generations hatred for ‘the Other.’” The participants at the meeting invited the religious institution to recognize its errors, and to correct them, especially in those areas of proselytizing and justice.

The Forum met again on Wednesday, bringing together around fifty persons, including women, ‘ulemas (religious teachers), and intellectuals. They were to prepare for the fifth round of the National Dialogue Initiative. Their work has thus far insisted on the necessity of “knowing ‘the Other,’ in order to be successful in dialoguing with him.” One lady participant at the Forum, as reported by the daily al-Watan, called attention to the “inequities resulting from the prohibition of the freedom to practice their religions as imposed on foreign residents of Saudi Arabia.” She also called for “respecting these foreigners, dialoguing with them, and authorizing them to freely practice their beliefs.”

[Translation from French is mine: Bassam M. Madany]

 

The reference to the proceedings of the “National Dialogue Initiative or Forum” was not restricted to the Western press, but the daily Arabic online Al-Sharq-al-Awsat in its 24 September, 2005, issue dealt with the proceedings of the conference under this headline: “On Defining ‘the Other’: A Discussion between Two Generations at a Preparatory Session of the National Dialogue Initiative.” While this daily is published in London, it has close connections with Saudi Arabia, and is most likely financed by Saudi sources.

The preparatory meeting took place in Saudi Arabia, where the participants discussed the subject of the Other. The new Arabic term chosen to designate the non-Muslim was

Al-Akhar. First, I would like to quote from the report, and then add my comments.

“On Tuesday, 20 September, 2005, the preparatory meetings of the National Dialogue Initiative that took place at the Meridian Hotel in Jeddah, ended. A large generational gap surfaced at the close of the discussions. It became clear, during the meetings which had lasted for three days that the sixty-three adult participants were looking for an exact and proper definition of “Al-Akhar.” At the same time, seventeen young men and women who participated in a training program, in conjunction with this meeting at Jeddah, had already completed their deliberations, having concluded that their relations with the “Akhar” must have one purpose only, that of calling him or her, to convert to Islam.  

“The specific goal that had been set for these young men and women was to teach them the art of dialogue, and the proper means of communications. They were expected to learn the relation between dialogue and convincing the ‘Other’ of one’s point of view, without alienating him. However, as far as these young people were concerned, only the non-Muslim should be classified as “Al-Akhar,” regardless of where he or she had come from.”  

What a revelation! I have no idea when or why “The National Dialogue Initiative” began in Saudi Arabia. But that several preparatory meetings under its umbrella had already taken place is something to ponder and reflect on. First, it is necessary that these discussions be placed within a historical framework that, for more than a millennium, had defined the relations between Muslims and all types of non-Muslims. Here is a brief summary: 

Soon after the migration of Muhammad to Medina in 622 A.D., a new Islamic vocabulary came into existence. The Meccan believers who migrated to Medina were called, Muhajiroun.  As for those from Medina itself who joined them and acknowledged the mission of the Prophet, they were designated as the Ansar, i.e. the Partisans. At first, the residents of Arabia, who were of the Jewish or Christian faith, remained in their particular religion, but their status as Dhimmis required that they pay the Jizya tax in order to enjoy the “protection” of the Islamic Umma. However, before too long, all Christians and Jews were expelled from Arabia; but a Jewish minority continued to live in Yemen until recent times.  

As the Islamic conquests gathered steam soon after the death of Muhammad in 632, all the conquered peoples of the Middle East, North Africa, and Andalusia (Spain) were treated according to the terms of the emerging Islamic Shari’ah. A Dhimmi had to pay the Jizya, as well as to submit to all the stringent requirements of Dhimmitude. This meant that his status was lower than that of Muslims. Another classification was made that proved to be detrimental to the unity of the growing empire. Non-Arab Muslims were called, Mawalis. Theoretically, they were considered on par with Arab Muslims, but not in practice. That created a tremendous resentment among them, and was a major factor in the violent downfall of the Umayyad Caliphate in 750.  

Eventually, Muslim jurists divided the world into two segments: Daru’l-Islam, (the Household of Islam,) and Daru’l-Harb, (the Household of War.) The latter category included all the areas of the world that had not yet been conquered by Islam. It was legal to conquer such lands, and the means was war.

Up till about 1950, Muslims lived almost exclusively within their realms. So there was no question about what to do with the Other.  Should they happen to be members of the People of the Book, i.e. Jews or Christians, they had the choice of embracing Islam or live under the regime of Dhimmitude. But if they were followers of a pagan religion, there was not much choice, they had to convert or else face persecution, and quite likely death. This happened in India over a long period of time.  

The fact that Saudis are now discussing a new modus vivendi with the Other, indicates that a totally new situation in the history of Islam has surfaced. First, it was precipitated by the discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia. This brought thousands of Others from Europe, America, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, to work on Saudi soil. Their presence is essential for the wellbeing of the Kingdom. Add to that, millions of Muslims from North Africa, the Middle East, and the Indian Subcontinent rushed to work in Western Europe soon after the end of WWII. Such a totally new phenomenon for Islam has initiated some serious discussions among Saudi intellectuals, as they began to realize the full implications of the emerging globalized and inter-dependent world.  

Thus far, I have sketched out the classical Islamic view of non-Muslims. I now return to quote from the article of 24 September 2005:  

“The differences between the two groups did not consist only in their ages, or in the degree of their education. Their real differences consisted in their definitions of the identity of the ‘Other.’ Here it must be mentioned that the theme of dialogue initiative was ‘We and the ‘Other’: Toward a National Vision for Dealing with Western Cultures.’  

“The average age of the academicians, intellectuals, and businessmen and businesswomen who met at the main hall of the Meridian, ranged between the mid-thirties to the mid-forties. As far as they were concerned, the ‘Other’ may belong to various categories; he may be a Bedouin or a city dweller; a Sunni, or a Shi’ite, or a Kafir; a man or a women; a tradionalist or a secularist. In other words in their view, the term ‘Other’ should be understood etymologically. In that sense, it should not carry any baggage other than its literal meaning. At the conclusion of their meetings they arrived at several recommendations.

“In contrast, the ages of the students who participated in the learning sessions and who had come from Saudi secondary schools, ranged between sixteen and eighteen. They defined the Other as a Kafir or Infidel. For them, the term was not understood etymologically, but culturally and religiously. So, as far as they were concerned, the goal for learning the art of dialogue was restricted to da’wa (calling) i.e. inviting the ‘Other” to embrace Islam, the true Pathway of Allah.

The reporter for Al-Sharq al-Awsat emphasized the generational gap that separated the adult participants from the young people who felt no need for a nuanced definition of the Other.

“The young adults arrived at this consensus: there was no reason at all to depart from the age-long outlook that had defined all non-Muslims, as Others. In other words, they saw life in terms of black and white. For example, an eighteen year old student from a school in Mecca who participated in the training sessions said: ‘the Other is anyone who differs from us in religion; so the purpose of our dialogue must simply be to ask him to embrace Islam. We should accomplish that through kind words coupled with an exposition of the principles of the Islamic Shari’ah.’”  

The author of the report went on to explain:

“The third preparatory meeting in Jeddah was related to the coming Fifth National Dialogue Initiative which was scheduled to take place at Abha, in the Province of ‘Asir. As mentioned above, the students did not have the same outlook as the adults who participated in the discussions. Their differences may be the result of two contrasting milieus that surrounded their upbringings: the older generation having grown up within a conservative community. Now, some of them who may have studied or lived overseas would prefer to liberate themselves from the grip of the traditional restrictions that had governed relations with the Other. At the same time, the young generation who grew up in the space-age, and as a reaction to the allurements of modernity believes that the proper way to deal with the subject at hand is to return to the traditions of the past. It is this conviction which leads them to regard all Others as objects of Da’wa, i.e., the duty to invite them to embrace Islam. Unlike the adult intellectuals and business people who have to rub shoulders with many Others, both at home and abroad, these young adults are not the least interested in being accepted by those classified in the Shari’a as Kafirs or Infidels.

The reporter ended his article by asking some crucial questions:  

“Is the next generation in Saudia to entertain the same thought pattern that surfaced among the young adults, namely that dialogue with the Other should take place only  within the restrictions of the Shari’ah? In other words, dialogue for the young students always meant Da’wa. Is there any hope for the thoughts and deliberations of the adult conferees to be taken seriously in the future? For example, is there any room for a new classification of people that would place the Akhar in a neutral category, thus eliminating the stigma of Kafir? In other words, may we expect some changes in the status quo?”  

Thus far, I have allowed the reporter to share with us his musings. It is quite evident that two divergent points of view appeared in this report. One view is rather encouraging; as it indicates that some intellectuals and business people in Saudi Arabia are actually attempting to re-open the door of Ijtihad. They are suggesting the need for a new hermeneutic in the interpretation of the Qur’an, Hadith, and the Shari’ah. However, this door has been closed for around 500 years, and every attempt to re-open it since then, has eventually failed.  

With respect to the projected meeting at Abha, in Saudi Arabia, for the discussion of the Other, may we now entertain the hope for the resumption of Ijtihad in a milieu that has been dominated for decades by the radical Wahhabi school of interpreting the sacred texts? If we take seriously the conclusions of the young adults who participated in their own sessions, the outlook for any basic change vis-à-vis the “Other,” remains dim. I am afraid they represent a major section of Saudi public opinion. I may be wrong in this conclusion, but my study of past attempts at reforming Islam has convinced me that any real change is not on the horizon!

More than two years have passed since the meetings of the National Dialogue Forum took place. As I glance at the headlines of several Arabic-language online dailies, including Al-Sharq al-Awsat, to my dismay, I find nothing more about the topic. Could it be that those who control the media and the intellectual life in Saudi Arabia have decided that it was too risky, at this time, to suggest a new definition of non-Muslims? Certainly the use of “al-Akhar” would have marked a move in the right direction for any genuine dialogue between Muslims and non-Muslims in our globalized world.

*Kuffar, the Arabic word for unbelievers; its singular form is Kafir.

**Dhimmi, an Arabic word that designated the status of Jews and Christians living within the Household of Islam, i.e. Daru’l Islam.

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Why Islam Is Different from All Other Faiths

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Most Americans as well as other Western people, assume that Islam is just a religion like any other of the world’s major religions which include Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, and Shinto. The assertion is almost universally made that “Islam is a peaceful religion,” and anything in Islam that might be termed radical, is only due to the extremists in its midst. Such extremists, or Islamists so-called, have highjacked this “peaceful” faith.

There is one basic fact about Islam that is not taken into consideration in this widely-held view. The world needs to understand that Islam is a synthesis of religion and politics in one indivisible entity. History bears this out for all with eyes to see. More importantly, the synthesis is supported by the authoritative texts of Islam: the Qur’an and the Hadith.

Muhammad claimed that in the year 610 A.D., Allah called him to be a prophet to all mankind. He soon began preaching the Oneness of Allah, and the vanity of idol worship. He claimed to have received “revelations” that “descended” upon him while he lived in Mecca. However, opposition arose from the leaders of that city forcing him to move to Medina in the year 622.

622 A.D. is a most significant date. It marks the first year in the Islamic lunar calendar, known as Anno Hejira, i.e. the Year of the Migration. An activist interpretation of continuing “revelations” was becoming manifest. Muhammad in Medina steadily fostered a distinctively political and juridical course of action. Opposition to him was then seen to be opposition to Allah. Some of the Surahs (Chapters) of the Qur’an sanctioned the use of force in opposing the enemies of the Prophet. And force was used so that by 630, Muhammad had vanquished his enemies, and returned in triumph to Mecca. Thus, before his death in 632, Muhammad had become both a Prophet and Political Leader of the New Community of Believers, known as the Umma.

The history of Islam proves the thesis that Islam is different from all other faiths. Here are the facts:

  1. Several Arab tribes gave their allegiance to Muhammad while he lived, but went back on Islam after he died. The first Caliph, Abu Bakr, waged war against them and forced them back into Islam. In Islamic history, they are known as “Huroob al-Radda,” i.e., the wars against Apostasy.
  2. The expansion of Islam took place by military force. Between 632 and 732, Muslim armies successfully overran the Persian Empire, and took Syria, Egypt, and North Africa from the Byzantine Empire. They were prevented from making even further expansion into Europe at the Battle of Tours/Poitiers that was fought on October 10, 732, between forces under the Frankish leader Charles Martel and a massive invading Islamic army led by Emir Abdul Rahman Al-Ghafiqi. During the battle, the Franks defeated the Islamic army and Emir Abdul Rahman was killed. This battle stopped the northward advance of Islam from the Iberian Peninsula.
  3. It must be noted that all the early and very deadly disputes among Muslims were of a political, and not of a religious nature:
    1. Caliphs Umar and Uthman were assassinated by disgruntled Muslims.
    2. Third Caliph Ali (cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad) had to face an insurrection by the Governor of Damascus, and was murdered by one of his own followers for having accepted arbitration with his opponent.
    3. A new dynastic Caliphate, the Umayyad, came into existence in 661, and made Damascus the capital of the expanding Islamic Empire. Enemies of this Umayyad dynasty brought it to an end, in a blood bath in 750.
    4. The Umayyads were followed by the Abbasid dynasty which moved the capital of the Islamic empire to Baghdad. It was mainly during the Abbasid’s relatively long history that Muslims engaged for a time in discussing theological and juridical subjects.
  4. The Turks took on the mantle of spreading Islam after the fall of Baghdad in the 13th century. They succeeded in expanding the Islamic Empire at the expense of the remnants of the Byzantine Empire. In 1453, the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople, and renamed it Istanbul. In 1529, they laid their first siege of Vienna. Then, in 1683 a huge Turkish army under Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa surrounded Vienna. The Ottomans failed for the second time to conquer Vienna, as John III, king of Poland, came to the help of the Austrians. A decade later, the Treaty of Karlowitz cost Turkey Hungary and other territories.
  5. The fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1918, and the abolishing of the Caliphate in 1924, caused a great crisis in Islamic history. But it did not change the basic beliefs of Islam. Islam remains a religious-political ideology which animates the radicals in the Arab-Muslim world, and gives legitimacy to the Taliban in Afghanistan, and al-Qaeda elsewhere.
  6. One little-known by-product of Islamic Jihadism is the continuing struggle between the Algerian government and the radical Islamist group, FIS (Front Islamique de Salut) Islamic Salvation Front. Since 1991, around 200,000 Algerian civilians have been murdered by members of FIS.

These facts of history should make it clear what the true nature of Islam is. To claim that Islam is a peaceful religion evades the real question whether Islam should even be regarded simply as a religion. More appropriately it should be seen as a thoroughly ideological synthesis of religion & politics in one indivisible entity.

The “War on Terror” as declared by President Bush in the aftermath of 11 September, 2001, evaded the true nature of the war. “Terror” is an abstract concept; one cannot fight abstractions. Muhammad Atta & his colleagues attacked vital centers and symbols of America by super-violent means due to their political-religious beliefs. It is unfortunate that political correctness has overtaken political discourse in the United States and the West in general, such that the authorities refuse to see the true identity of the enemy: Islamic Jihadism, which stems from the teachings of the Islamic faith. There is no logical or legitimate reason to keep using the meaningless term, “The War against Terror.” It is as a struggle against Islamist Jihadism! And this particular vision of Islam which is espoused by violent extremists needs to be understood. Is it reformable one might ask? There is reason for some hope. Arabic-language websites, operated by reform-minded intellectuals, denounce Islamism and Islamists as well. They are not afraid to propose far-reaching proposals on how to view certain passages from the Qur’an, particularly those known as the Sword Verses, by suggesting they should no longer be considered normative!

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Learning from the "New" Maghrebi Christians

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

During the second half of the 20th century, Evangelicals spent a great deal of time and energy on the subject of contextualization, especially regarding missions to Muslims. At a Caucus on Missions held near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in July 1985, I read a paper on “Neo-Evangelical Missiology and the Christian Mission to Islam.” In my critique of this missiology, I said:

“During the last two decades, some severe criticisms have been levelled at the missionary work which has been undertaken since the days of William Carey. We are told by these critics, for example, that missions among Muslims have been a failure. Most of the missionaries of the past, so the critics say, were not good at ‘cross-cultural communication.’ This happened because missionaries failed to ‘contextualize’ the Christian message.” www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/rethinking_missions_today.cfm 

In order to correct the “mistakes” of the past, some Evangelicals proceeded further in their efforts to contextualize the Gospel among Muslims, guided by Cultural Anthropology and secular theories of communications. Without going into the history of the various stages of contextualization, by the time the 21st century had arrived, the latest genre of contextualization, as propounded by the “Insider Movement,” has made considerable inroads into various missionary organizations, claiming to offer the ideal and successful approach for the evangelization of Muslims.

The majority of the advocates of the “Insider Movement” come from Western Evangelical circles that, unlike the pioneer missionaries of the 19th and early 20th centuries, do not seem to be adequately versed in Islamic languages such as Arabic, Farsi, Turkish, Urdu, or Malay. This is not to belittle their scholarship, but to indicate that their work suffers from a lack of acquaintance with what present-day Muslim intellectuals are writing on religious topics in general, and on the emergence of an indigenous Christian Church in the Maghreb (Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco.)

Thanks to the Internet, it has become possible to study materials on this new phenomenon by consulting Arabic-language reformist websites. If we embark on a serious research in this area, we come across a subject that is being discussed in Maghrebi and European circles, namely the “Phenomenon of the New Maghrebi Christians.”

(Dhahirat al-Masihiyyeen al-Judod fi Dual al-Maghreb al-‘Arabi)

It would be uncharitable, if we ignore or dismiss the testimonies of our Maghrebi brothers and sisters in our discussions of missions to Muslims in the 21st century. After all, they are the ones who have made the journey from Islam to Christianity at a great cost. It is only reasonable to listen to the accounts of their conversion, and the way they have expressed their new life in Christ, by joining or organizing, national congregations of Masihiyyeen (Christians.)

I would like to share my study of this phenomenon, and learn from the “New Maghrebi Christians” how they have arrived at a totally different paradigm of missions to Muslims, than the one offered by the “Insider Movement.”

It was around four years ago, that I came across the term “Masihiyyoo al-Maghreb” (The Christians of North Africa,) in the Arab media. That indicated the presence of a considerable number of North African Muslims who have embraced the Christian faith. In March 2007, a conference was convened in Zurich, Switzerland, by “Copts United,” under the leadership of an Egyptian Christian engineer named Adli Yousef Abadir, and chaired by Dr. Shaker al-Nabulsi, a Jordanian Muslim intellectual. The theme of the conference was “The Defense of Minorities and Women.” The Arabic online daily Elaph reported on the proceedings of the conference.

One of the lectures was entitled “The Christians of the Maghreb under the Rule of Islamists,” where it must be noted that the Maghrebi converts to Christianity were called, “Masihiyyoo al-Maghreb” and not “followers of ‘Issa,” the way the Insider Movement likes to refer to converts from Islam.

Another term referred to them as “Al-Masihyyoon al-Judod” i.e. the New Christians of the Arab Maghreb:  
 

Here are translated excerpts from that lecture delivered in 2007, at the Zurich Conference:

“The New Christians’ phenomenon throughout the Arab Maghreb has come to the attention of the media. For example, the weekly journal, Jeune Afrique, devoted three reports on this subject with respect to Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. In March 2005, the French daily Le Monde devoted a complete report about this topic. And Al-‘Arabiyya TV channel telecast two reports on the subject that had been recorded in the Kabyle district of Algeria.

Jeune Afrique estimated that the number of people who have embraced Christianity in Tunisia was around 500, belonging to three churches. A report on the website of “Al-Islam al-Yawm” prepared by Lidriss el-Kenbouri, and dated 23 April 2005, estimated the number of European evangelists in Morocco was around 800, and that quite often, their evangelistic efforts were successful. The report further added that around 1,000 Moroccans had left Islam during 2004. The magazine “Al-Majalla,” in its No. 1394 issue, claimed that the number of New Christians in Morocco was around 7,000; perhaps the exact number may have been as high as 30,000.

“The report that appeared in the French daily Le Monde claimed that during 1992, between 4,000 and 6,000 Algerians embraced Christianity in the Kabyle region of Algeria. By now, their numbers may be in the tens of thousands. However, the authorities are mum about this subject, as an Algerian government official put it; ‘the number of those who embraced Christianity is a state secret.’”

“When we enquired from those who had come over to the Christian faith to learn about the factors that led to their conversion, they mentioned several factors, among them was ‘The violence of the fundamentalist Islamist movements.’ A Christian evangelist working in Algeria reported: ‘These terrible events shocked people greatly. It proved that Islam was capable of unleashing all that terror, and those horrific massacres! Even children were not spared during the uprising of the Islamists! Women were raped! Many people began to ask: Where is Allah? Some Algerians committed suicide! Others lost their minds; others became atheists, and still others chose the Messiah!’”

“Quite often, the ‘New Christians’ testified to the fact that what they discovered in their new faith was love; it formed another factor in their conversion. These are some of their words: ‘We found out that in Christianity, God is love.’ ‘God loves all people.’ ‘What attracted us to Christianity is its teaching that God is love.’”

It is quite evident that the testimonies of these new Maghrebi Christians are extremely important. The Christian message came to them through various means, but it struck them as a word of a loving God in search for His lost sheep. They embraced the Messiah who died on the cross, and rose again for their justification. Notwithstanding all the difficulties they faced, they clung to the Biblical Injil that had brought them peace with God, and the gift of eternal life.

The link to this Arabic-language report is: http://www.elaph.com/ElaphWeb/ElaphWriter/2007/4/225336.htm

Almost two years after the Zurich Conference that dealt with the plight of Maghrebi Christians should the Islamists succeed in taking over the reigns of government I read the following report posted on 22 January, 2009, on the Arabic-language Aafaq (Horizons) website. It detailed the news of young Algerians who have converted to Christianity because they had become disaffected with Islam. Here are excerpts from the report datelined Algiers:

“Some Amazigh websites have disclosed that many Algerian young people have left Islam and adopted Christianity. They confessed that they did so due to the ugliness of the crimes perpetrated by the Salafist ‘Da’wa and Combat Movement’ against civilians. They were tremendously disappointed and disenchanted with Islam, claiming that it was responsible for nurturing these Jihadists who have been terrorizing and murdering innocent people.

“The website noted that the spread of Christianity in Algeria has even reached areas that were entirely under the influence of the Islamists, such as in eastern Algeria. Furthermore, the Christian expansion in the country was not due exclusively to missionary organizations, as certain Islamic groups claim. The reason is to be found in Islam itself. It has been associated in the minds of the youth with Irhab, assassinations, and crimes against innocent people. They remember that many of the crimes were committed during the 1990s, and occurred in distant villages of Algeria when young women were abducted, taken to the mountains as “captives,” gang-raped, and then killed by having their throats slit. Such horrific scenes took place in Algeria over several years and resulted in the very word “Islamic” becoming synonymous with Irhab!

“The report added that in Islam a woman is regarded as an enemy that must be fought with all means. She must be punished for the simplest mistake, while men go unpunished when they commit similar misdeeds. Thus, a woman is held responsible for the simplest act, and is liable to be put to death, since she is by nature a “Shaytana” i.e. a female Satan. This seriously misguided and misogynist view of women causes young men to worry about their own sisters, and be anxious about their future daughters as well.

“It went on to explain that the Irhabis who committed those awful crimes against women held to a view of Islam that took for granted that discrimination between the sexes is normal. They believed in the notion that the bed is the sole reason for a woman’s existence. In northern Algeria alone, 5,000 women were raped. This Amazigh source regards these radicals as ‘Allah’s guards on earth’ who refuse to act as civilized human beings.”

The website ended its comments on the alienation of Algerian youth by stating “that as long as Islam is unable to get out of its closed circle, and evolve according to the requirements of a civil society that is open to love, tolerance, and coexistence with others; it will continue to alienate more young people.”

In the Providence of God it has transpired that the despicable actions of the Irhabis in the bloody and dark decade of the 1990s have contributed to more than 20,000 Algerians converting to the Christian faith.

Reporting on the same topic of conversions to Christianity that are taking place in Algeria, on 24 April, 2009, the Aafaq website posted an article, with this headline:  
Religious Leaders in Algeria Are Demanding the Punishment of the Apostates.

Here is my translation of the news item: 

“An Algerian policeman and his daughter have made a public confession that they have embraced Christianity. The policeman’s announcement precipitated a tremendous amount of discussion and argument in Algeria, causing the religious authorities to demand that the police department dismiss him from his position since his actions proved him to be an Apostate, a Murtad

“The policemen declared to the Algerian newspaper al-Nahar that his previous life as a Muslim was filled with anxieties and the absence of peace of mind. He added that the radical Islamist movements that had massacred women and children caused him to become fearful of Islam which he held responsible for the bloodshed. His life was caught up in a deep struggle that eventually led him to embrace Christianity, that according to him, ‘has given me peace of mind.’ 

“As to the daughter of the policeman, she explained that the reason she embraced Christianity was due to her feeling that Islam treated women as maids and concubines, only to be sexually exploited by men. Muslim men regard women only from a physical point of view. Now, having embraced Christianity, she began to feel as a dignified human being. Her decision was final, and she didn’t regret it at all. 

“The Algerian religious authority reacted swiftly by declaring that Irtidad (Apostasy) is tantamount to becoming a Kafir (Unbeliever,) and thus becomes subject to capital punishment unless an apostate repents by returning to Islam. It is estimated that there are around 10,000 Christians, most of whom live in the Kabyle district of Tizi Ouzou. Some unofficial sources claim that the number of Christians in Algeria is more than 100,000; they are to be found all over the country, especially in the west of Algeria around Oran and Mostaganem, most of these converts are young men and women. They claim that the reason that prompted them to embrace Christianity was Islam’s responsibility for murder, terror, and rape, as perpetrated by the Islamist groups who, in 1992 started their Jihad against civilians with the hope of getting closer to Allah!”

It is noteworthy that both the policeman and his daughter openly confessed that they had embraced Christianity, using the Arabic word al-Masihiyya and not another Arabic term such as the Qur’anic “Nasraniyya.” The word Masihiyya is used by Arabic-speaking Christians throughout the Middle East. To embrace Christianity and publicly announce it is a courageous act of the “New Maghrebi Christians!”

Finally, I would like to refer to an article by a reformist Algerian intellectual that was posted on 7 July, 2009, on the daily online Al-Awan (Kairos) website. He unmasked the hypocrisy of the Islamic propaganda machine that seeks to paint a rosy picture of the human rights conditions in the “Lands Governed by the Sharia.” He began, with tongue in cheek, to quote a paragraph written in a flowery Arabic style that sang the praises of the superlative tolerance and magnanimity shown to the various religious and ethnic minorities living within Daru’l Islam. Then he proceeded to list certain actions taken by Muslim governments that contradicted the empty claims enumerated in the propaganda piece. I must confess that I was fascinated with his sarcasm and wit which comes through especially forcefully in Arabic!

Here are excerpts from the article.

“We are a tolerant people. With us, there is no ‘compulsion in religion.’ We don’t punish apostates, or force them to return to Islam. Buddhists living among us are free to build their temples. As to our Christian brothers and Jewish cousins, they have all the freedom to build their houses of worship without any hindrance. [Among us] you are as free to change religion as you are to change your shirt. There is true freedom in Daru’l Islam. A Copt is a citizen, and not a dhimmi. A Shi’ite enjoys the same privileges as a Sunni in a Sunni majority land; the same thing obtains for a Sunni living in a Shi’ite majority country. The Ahmadis 1 and the Bahais 2 are well-treated. In fact, all religions are properly treated in our Arab-Muslim world. May Allah protect us from the evil designs and calumnies of the West who are very jealous on account of our blessings, the blessings of justice, peace, and Islam.”

“Now, anyone who takes seriously such propaganda, [referring to the words of the paragraph above] is a fool for believing such lies! The meetings that take place, and the funds that are spent to present Islam as a tolerant religion, are nothing but smoke-screens.

“The facts gleaned from the Islamic world don’t reveal an idealistic and tolerant Islam. How can a genuine spirit of citizenship prosper in the Muslim world, where the Sharia mandates not only discrimination against non-Muslims, but their ultimate elimination?

“Any keen observer of the condition of human rights in the Muslim world is able to dismantle meaningless discourse that seeks to present to the world an idealistic Islam. Such an observer cannot but take note of the total lack of individual freedoms and human rights in all those countries where their laws are based on Sharia, and not on human reason.

“It is necessary to dismantle the very structures of Islamist discourse based, as we know, on purely verbal formulations and vapid eloquence. Doing so would reveal the true nature of that miserable and imagined “glorious Islamic past,” a past that the Islamists are trying to resurrect, which can only mean that entire Muslim societies will continue to remain underdeveloped!

“Let us observe realistically the present state of affairs in the Arab-Islamic world so that we may not be duped by the empty claims of the Islamists. Where is that vaunted justice when a young Algerian woman is brought to trial, simply because she chose to embrace Christianity in a country with a constitution that guarantees freedom of belief? The Algerian Government claims that there is a widespread evangelization movement taking place in the country. But what exactly is the problem with that? Should the State be responsible for the conscience of its people and their inner convictions? Why do we forbid others to engage in activities which we allow ourselves? What’s the difference between “da’wa” and “tabshir” (evangelism?) And can there be harmony between the Sharia as the basis of legislations and the principle of religious freedom?

“In the final analysis, it is only when we adopt a secular outlook as the basis of our laws that we can arrive at a just solution to the problem of religious, ethnic, and racial minorities who are at present ‘submerged’ in the sea of an intolerant Muslim majority throughout the Arab world.”

This information gleaned from Arabic-language sources on the phenomenon of the “New Maghrebi Christians,” is extremely important. Western Christians are being told by some “missiologists,” that Muslims converting to the Lord Jesus Christ, need not call themselves “Masihiyyeen,” nor stop their former Islamic practices such as attending the Friday services at the mosque, or fasting during Ramadan. This novel “missionary” theory is being offered as a “quick fix” to solve the problem of the paucity of fruits in missions to Muslims.

I risk being regarded as an extremely judgmental person when I describe the Insider’s missiology as a purely Western construct, that manifests a radical discontinuity with the missiology of the great missionaries of the past, from St Francis of Assisi and Raymond Lull in the Middle Ages, down to the days of the pioneers of the 19th and 20th centuries such as Henry Jessup, Cornelius Van Dyck, Eli Smith, Samuel Zwemer, and J. W. Sweetman. As an Eastern Christian who spent most of my life bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the followers of Islam, I find it ironic that the Insider Movement, while intending to be “culturally sensitive”, becomes in the final analysis a rather imperialistic, even hegemonic effort. Yet, this attempt to sell a new genre of missionary theory is being implicitly rejected by those brave New Maghrebi Christians. Both they and those who report about them in the Arab press, use the term “Masihiyyeen,” as a testimony to their solidarity with other Arabic-speaking Christians, and as full members of the “One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church,” in the words of the Nicene Creed.

It is my fervent hope that we pay more attention to the Biblical directives on missions, at the very time when they are being undermined by the advocates of the Insider Movement. We should never forget that notwithstanding the Jewish and Gentile outright rejection of the gospel of the cross, Paul did not hesitate to proclaim it. “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but for us who are being saved, it is the power of God, (dunamis Theou estin.)” (I Corinthians 1:18) The basis of our salvation is the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ; and its instrumental means is the kerygma, i.e., the Word of the Cross, whether it is formally preached by a minister of the Gospel, or given as a marturia (testimony) by a Christian.

Paul expanded on this basic missionary doctrine in verse 21: “For since in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know Him, it pleased God, through the foolishness of the preached message (kerygmatos) to save those who believe.”

Indeed, I cannot hide my joy when I hear news about the rebirth of the Christian Church in North Africa. I praise God for the boldness of these new Maghrebi Christians who are not ashamed of the Cross of their Savior, but place its symbol in the humble meeting rooms where they worship Him. They show in a concrete manner that they are “unashamed of the Injeel,” since it is the power of God that they had experienced in their own lives when He enabled them to leave Islam, and join the great company of the Masihiyyeen (Christians). He will also preserve them should the Islamist forces manage to take over the lands of the Maghreb.

Posted in Articles

Algerians Alienated from Islam Are Turning to Christ

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Algerians Alienated from Islam 
Are Turning to Christ 
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

 

When recounting the history of the early Islamic Futuhat, I get tears in my eyes as I reflect on the disappearance of the Christian Church in North Africa. This tragedy took place in a part of the world that, prior to the rise of Islam, had made significant contributions to the historic Christian Faith. One of the greatest North Africans was Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430). All Christian traditions know what an important role he played in the formation of the seminal Church doctrines that constitute Christianity. His legacy contributed in an important way to the rise of the Protestant Reformation.

During the 19th century, Protestant missionaries went to Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and sought to re-plant the Gospel in those countries after many years of Islamic hegemony over the land and people. The opposition to their work was great, and the few converts who came to experience liberation from Islam endured great persecutions when their conversions became public.

During my 36 years of radio missions to the Arabic-speaking world (1958-1994), I developed a special interest in the growing number of North African listeners who corresponded with Saatu’l Islah (Reformation Hour) requesting the Bible-based literature we offered. I will never forget those letters from Algeria in the early 1960s, written by members of the FLN (the French acronym for Front de la Liberation Nationale.) Those correspondents were involved in the war against France, which had colonized their country since the middle of the 19th century.

Over the years, I mailed thousands of Arabic books and tracts to my North African listeners acquainting them with the claims of the Biblical Messiah. I remember one listener who, upon receiving my book Freedom in Christ, spent two weeks in prison after being charged with communicating with a “subversive” organization!

So it was with great pleasure that I read about two years ago on Elaph, an Arabic online daily, the text of a lecture delivered at a Conference held at Zurich, Switzerland, on The Plight of Women and Minorities in the Middle East and North Africa, (24-26 March, 2007.) The title of one lecture was: The Christians of the Maghreb under the Rule of Islamists. http://www.elaph.com/ElaphWeb/ElaphWriter/2007/4/225336.htm

I quote some pertinent parts to illustrate the wonderful news that the Christian Church is being re-established in that important region of Africa.

The New Christians’ phenomenon throughout the Arab Maghreb has come to the attention of the media. For example, the weekly journal, Jeune Afrique, devoted three reports on this subject with respect to Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. In March 2005, the French daily Le Monde devoted a complete report about this topic. And Al-‘Arabiyya TV channel telecast two reports on the subject that had been recorded in the Kabyle district of Algeria.

Jeune Afrique estimated that the number of people who have embraced Christianity in Tunisia was around 500, belonging to three churches. A report on the website of “Al-Islam al-Yawm” prepared by Lidriss el-Kenbouri, and dated 23 April 2005, estimated the number of European evangelists in Morocco to be around 800, and that quite often, their evangelistic efforts are successful. The report further added that around 1,000 Moroccans had left Islam during 2004. The magazine “Al-Majalla”, in its No. 1394 issue, claimed that the number of New Christians in Morocco was around 7,000; perhaps the exact number may be as high as 30,000.

“The report that appeared in the French daily Le Monde claimed that during 1992, between 4,000 and 6,000 Algerians embraced Christianity in the Kabyle region of Algeria. By now, their numbers may be in the tens of thousands. However, the authorities are mum about this subject, as an Algerian government official put it; ‘the number of those who embraced Christianity is a state secret.’”

The paper mentioned several important factors that led people to convert to Christianity:

“When we enquired from those who had come over to the Christian faith to learn about the factors that led to their conversion, they mentioned several factors, among them was ‘The violence of the fundamentalist Islamist movements.’ A Christian evangelist working in Algeria reported: ‘These terrible events shocked people greatly. It proved that Islam was capable of unleashing all that terror, and those horrific massacres! Even children were not spared during the uprising of the Islamists! Women were raped! Many people began to ask: Where is Allah? Some Algerians committed suicide! Others lost their minds; others became atheists, and still others chose the Messiah!’”

“Quite often, the ‘New Christians’ testified to the fact that what they discovered in their new faith was love; it formed another factor in their conversion. These are some of their words: ‘We found out that in Christianity, God is love.’ ‘God loves all people.’ ‘What attracted us to Christianity is its teaching that God is love.’”

The testimonies of these new Maghrebi Christians are heartwarming. The Christian message came to them through various means, but it struck them as a word of a loving God in search for His lost sheep. They embraced the Messiah who died on the cross, and rose again for their justification. Notwithstanding all the difficulties that they were to face in the future, they clung to the Biblical Injil that had brought them peace with God, and the gift of eternal life.

Almost two years after the Zurich Conference that dealt with the plight of Maghrebi Christians, I was overjoyed to read the following report posted on 22 January, 2009, on the Arabic-language Aafaq (Horizons) website. It detailed the news of young Algerians who have converted to Christianity as they became ever more alienated from Islam. Here are excerpts from the report datelined Algiers:

“Some Amazigh .1 websites have disclosed that many Algerian young people have left Islam and adopted Christianity. They confessed that they did so due to the ugliness of the crimes perpetrated by the Salafist ‘Da’wa and Combat Movement’ against civilians. They were tremendously disappointed and disenchanted with Islam, claiming that it was responsible for nurturing these Jihadists who have been terrorizing and murdering innocent people.

“The website noted that the spread of Christianity in Algeria has even reached areas that were entirely under the influence of the Islamists, such as in eastern Algeria. Furthermore, the Christian expansion in the country was not due exclusively to missionary organizations, as certain Islamic groups claim. The reason is to be found in Islam itself. It has been associated in the minds of the youth with Irhab, assassinations, and crimes against innocent people. They remember that many of the crimes were committed during the 1990s, and occurred in distant villages of Algeria when young women were abducted, taken to the mountains as “captives,” gang-raped, and then killed by having their throats slit. Such horrific scenes took place in Algeria over several years and resulted in the very word “Islamic” becoming synonymous with Irhab!

“The report added that in Islam a woman is regarded as an enemy that must be fought with all means. She must be punished for the simplest mistake, while men go unpunished when they commit similar misdeeds. Thus, a woman is held responsible for the simplest act, and is liable to be put to death, since she is by nature a “Shaytana” i.e. a female Satan. This seriously misguided and misogynist view of women causes young men to worry about their own sisters, and be anxious about their future daughters as well.

“It went on to explain that the Irhabis who committed those awful crimes against women held to a view of Islam that took for granted that discrimination between the sexes is normal. They believe in the notion that the bed is the sole reason for a woman’s existence. In northern Algeria alone, 5,000 women were raped. This Amazigh source regards these radicals as ‘Allah’s guards on earth’ who refuse to act as civilized human beings.

“The website ended its comments on the alienation of Algerian youth by stating that as long as Islam is unable to get out of its closed circle, and evolve according to the requirements of a civil society that is open to love, tolerance, and coexistence with others; it will continue to alienate more young people. Ultimately, it is the actions of the Irhabis that have been responsible for the Christianization of more than 20,000 Algerians during the bloody and dark decade of the 1990s.”

I was thrilled by this piece of news, especially because it appeared on a widely-read Arabic-language site. Within 5 days (by 27 January) 17 comments were posted on the aafaq website. Five demanded that the Sharia Law of Apostasy should be applied to the converts; and should they refuse to revert to Islam, they must be put to death.

A few comments claimed that Islam was not responsible for the acts of the Islamists. Two comments quoted from the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the peacemakers…” Other comments criticized severely those who asked for the murder of the apostates.

We need to learn more about the growth of the Church in North Africa since the Western media show little interest in the spread of the Gospel in Daru’l Islam. Furthermore, this information is extremely important to Western Christians who are being told by some experts on missions, known nowadays as “missiologists,” that Muslims converting to the Lord Jesus Christ, need not stop their former Islamic practices such as attending the Friday services at the mosque, or fasting during Ramadan.

This novel “missionary” theory is known as the “Insider Movement.” It is being offered enthusiastically by some Evangelicals as a “quick fix” to solve the problem of the paucity of fruits in missions to Muslims.

Actually, it is a serious departure from the Biblical teachings for missions in this New Testament era. As a European Evangelical colleague described this movement, “I think this is a horrible heresy into which many missionaries and even churches are getting.

It is my fervent hope that we pay more attention to the Biblical directives on missions, especially those of Saint Paul. For notwithstanding the Jewish and Gentile outright rejection of the gospel of the cross, Paul did not hesitate to proclaim in I Corinthians 1:18: “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but for us who are being saved, it is the power of God, (dunamis Theou estin.)” The basis of our salvation is the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ; and its instrumental means is the kerygma, i.e., the Word of the Cross, whether it is formally preached by a minister of the Gospel, or given as a marturia (testimony) by a Christian. Paul expanded on this basic missionary doctrine in verse 21: “For since in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know Him, it pleased God, through the foolishness of the preached message (kerygmatos) to save those who believe.”

Indeed, I cannot hide my joy when I hear news about the rebirth of the Christian Church in North Africa. I praise God for the boldness of these new Amazigh Christians who are not ashamed of the Cross of their Savior, but place its symbol in the humble meeting room where they worship Him. I am mostly thankful that their example is a loud rebuke and rebuttal to the claims of those Western Christians who are peddling their unbiblical theories of missions, and thus departing from twenty centuries of missionary principles and practices.

1. Amazigh is the name preferred by the original people of North Africa. The Arab invaders called them Berber. During the French colonial era, their region in Algeria was known as the Kabyle, a word derived from the Arabic, ‘Qabila,’ a tribe. After independence, non-Arab Algerians began to use their ancient name, ‘Amazigh.’ It is especially among them that Christianity is spreading nowadays. There is growing awareness of the fact that their ancestors were Christian, prior to the Islamic invasions of the 7th and 8th centuries A.D.

To read the Arabic text of the article from Algiers, please go to: 
http://www.aafaq.org/print.aspx?id_print=7858

Posted in Articles

The Desperate Plight of Iraqi Christians

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Several factors have contributed to the world’s neglect of the condition of Iraqi Christians. The Iraqi government for instance has recently been preoccupied with other matters, one being negotiating the terms of a treaty with the United States which attempts to resolve the issues surrounding the presence of United States military forces in the country. Another factor is the truism that people in general have trouble seeing beyond their own interests. Spectacular events do tend to get their attention especially when the media cover them 24/7. Such was the case with the recent terrorist attack in Mumbai, Another reason for the scant attention given to the suffering Christians of Iraq is that few people in America or other Western democracies care much about the issue. The United States has recently gone through an interminably long presidential election cycle which overshadowed most other world events. A serious economic downturn has occurred which is affecting everyone. And now there is another shocking scandal surrounding the Illinois Governor dominating the news. Sadly, the plight of Iraqi Christians is low on the radar screen of the self-absorbed world community. Yet, one can be thankful that not all have forgotten the newly dispossessed Eastern Christians. Christians around the world are becoming increasingly concerned and trying to do something about it.

To draw attention to the plight of Iraqi Christians at this particular time does not imply that persecution is a new phenomenon for Eastern Christians. Ever since the invasion of the Levant, Mesopotamia, Egypt, and North Africa by Arab-Islamic forces, the condition of the native Christian and Jewish populations has been very precarious. The Islamic invaders instituted Shari’a Law in the lands they conquered and the followers of Christianity and Judaism were subjected to draconian measures meant to “humble” them, and restrict their religious and civil freedoms. So the problem for Christians living under Islam has been present for 1400 years. But now in the 21st century, with the marvels and speed of world-wide communication, especially the Internet, more people are becoming aware of the persecution of Christians in the Arab world, and specifically in Iraq.

On Friday November 14, the daily online Internet site Elaph published an article with this title, The Responsibility of the International Community for the Fate of Iraqi Christians. Included here is a translation of the entire text, followed with my comments.

“The world stands helpless as it witnesses the unfolding of another bloody chapter in the ‘Tragedy of Eastern Christians.’ This time, it involves the Christians of Iraq, most of whom are Chaldean Assyrians, the original inhabitants of the country. They are the victims of organized campaigns of ethnic-religious cleansing in their historic homeland. To date, thousands of Christians have been murdered, and more than 250,000 have been forced to seek refuge outside Iraq.

“Just as in all of the previous blood-drenched chapters that began around a century ago during the colonialism of the Ottoman Empire, the perpetrators have been Muslims, whether Turks or Kurds, Arabs, or Foreigners. They have all participated in the decline of the Christian presence in the East. The Christian community has almost completely disappeared from the Arabian Peninsula, as well as in North Africa. In some places such as Turkey and Iran, the Christian presence is getting smaller and smaller, and is threatened with total extinction due to political, social, economic, and religious factors. Against the backdrop of such ethnic and religious tyranny inflicted upon them in their historic homelands, Eastern Christians have been forced to seek refuge and safe havens in other countries. No longer available to them in the lands of their birth are even the barest rights that are given to the Muslim inhabitants. Their dreams of becoming citizens of modern secular states are being shattered everywhere.

“No doubt the American invasion of Iraq in March, 2003, increased the deterioration of the security situation in the area, and added to the festering ethnic and religious animosities allowing the Islamist movements to concentrate their attacks on the Eastern Christians of Iraq. Many who are very concerned about their fate wonder whether it will be similar to that of the Iraqi Jews who have disappeared from Iraq because of the severe discriminatory measures taken against them after the rise of Israel. With respect to the ordeal of Eastern Christians, the French author, Annie Laurent,* predicted after the 9-11 events ‘that Christians living in the Muslim world would become martyrs on account of their faith, and victims of the radical Islamist aggression.’

“It is true that the number of Muslims killed in Iraq far exceeds the number of Christians murdered in the country. However, Arab (Shi’ite and Sunni) and Kurdish militias are fighting for political and economic privileges for their own communities. And Christians are being murdered even though they are not involved in these disputes; and were not responsible for the American presence in their land. Iraqi Christians are killed because of their faith, while we witness almost total silence from the Arabs. A few voices against such persecution are raised from the ranks of liberal intellectuals. The silence from the majority Arab population is explained as an undeclared Iraqi, Arab, and Islamic plan for bringing about a forced migration of Eastern Christians from the area. Reports indicate that the mass murders and expulsion of the Christians of Mosul and other Iraqi cities occur under the very eyes of the American and Iraqi armies, and in collaboration with some militant Iraqi groups.

“We have doubts about the seriousness of the American and European position vis-à-vis Eastern Christians. The reaction of the ‘International Community’ to the murder and forced migration of Mosul’s Christians has been limited to issuing words of regret and condemnation, and asking for aid to be provided to the dispossessed. In spite of the size and well-documented catastrophe that has befallen Iraqi Christians; the great powers have not called for the convening of an International Conference to deal with their cause, or for measures to be taken against the repetition of the massacres and abductions that took place in Iraq. No call was made for securing a safe area for these rejected people. On the other hand, we are fully aware that the ‘International Community’ took specific measures during the 1990s, to help the Kurds in the northern part of Iraq, by preventing the forces of Saddam Hussein from pursuing them, and by establishing a safe zone for them. Recently, Britain, a traditional ally of America, refused to even consider the idea of coming to the aid of Iraqi Christians. The British minister responsible for the Middle East declared at a joint press conference with the Kurdish prime minister that ‘the United Kingdom is not convinced of the necessity that there be a secure area for Christians.’

“As we contemplate the dark scene in Iraq and the dismal state of its Christians, added to the precarious state of Eastern Christians in general, we are terribly disappointed and angry at the ‘International Community’ for its unwillingness to protect Iraqi Christians, abandoning them to face all the dangers surrounding them alone. Isn’t it rather surprising and questionable that, at the very time when Iraq is being emptied of its Christian population and its other small ancient community groups such as the Sabeans, Mandeans and Yezidis, the French ambassador in Baghdad would declare that ‘the Europeans were pleased with the rise of a pluralist and democratic Iraq?’

“Several Christian leaders in the Middle East and elsewhere have expressed deep disappointment about the plight of Christians in Mosul and other parts of Iraq, charging the Iraqi government and the occupying American forces with responsibility for the protection of Christians and all other minorities in the country. Christians have become victims of the internecine fights between the major Muslim factions of Iraq, when actually they have not been part of these struggles. Some newspapers have reported eye-witness accounts of armed bands passing through checkpoints manned by Iraqi army soldiers and the Kurdish armed men of the Pesh Merga on missions to murder Christians in Mosul. These criminal activities were not stopped. Neither were the threatening letters posted on the homes of Christians living in Kurdistan, telling them to leave or face certain death! It is well known that the Kurds play a very important and basic role in the central government in Baghdad, and in all the branches of the Iraqi state, and yet no finger was lifted to stop these horrible terrorist acts.

“We are supposed to be living in a new and open world that is confronting international terrorism in order to arrive at a humane society free of violence and all sorts of hatred and prejudice. So, it becomes the right of the ‘threatened peoples’ to demand protection from the ‘International Community,’ especially after the United Nations have taken action against mass killings, war crimes, and ethnic cleansing, when the local governments have failed to assume responsibility for the safety of their persecuted communities. On Tuesday, November 11, Father Frederico Lombardi, Pope Benedict XVI’s representative, questioned whether the Iraqi government was serious about protecting the Christians in Mosul. According to Reuters, he called on the Iraqi government and human rights organizations to work harder for the protection of the Christians in Mosul, who are being systematically attacked and kidnapped in a planned campaign. Is the ‘International Community’ waiting for an increase in the number of murdered Christians before they are convinced of the failure or unwillingness of the Iraqi government to provide the needed protection for Iraqi Christians before it takes positive action for their protection?”

Comments

There is little anyone could add to this article. It informs us of the appalling conditions for Christians and minorities in Iraq, especially in Mosul and several other towns in the northern part of the country. While the American intervention in Iraq successfully toppled the regime of the despot Saddam Hussein and liberated the Iraqis from decades of his regime’s cruelty and terror, some unintended consequences have also arisen. The lawlessness that followed the American liberation unleashed the terrorists’ attacks on U.S. soldiers and precipitated bloody warfare between Sunnis and Shi’ites. No sooner had a relative peace been established, and al-Qaeda forces on the run, a shocking campaign of ethnic cleansing surfaced. It was directed against Christians, Mandeans, Sabeans, and Yezidis.

Christians and other minorities in Iraq were first marginalized, then Christian churches were destroyed, and many leaders murdered. The exodus of those able to leave began and continues still. Receiving countries, notably Jordan, are none too happy to accept these refugees. We are told that enlightenment is advancing in Iraq and one hopes and prays this is the case. Yet there are elements of the population who want to destroy “the Other” amongst them as though they didn’t belong to Iraq. But they do. They are of the ancient Chaldean race, a noble, biblical and still existent people. Would that we can see in the future a return of these people to the place of their birth!

As I finish these lines, a relatively new Arabic-language site has come to my attention. It is www.aafaq.org (Horizons,) and from it I learned about another horrible massacre of four women and three men of the Yezidi faith, on Sunday evening, December 14. The crime took place in Sinjar, in the north of the country.

As has already been mentioned, the Western media are preoccupied with economic and political matters affecting Western interests. Do they even follow the tragedies that happen almost on a daily basis in the world influenced by Islamic interests? Why should not the so-called “International Community” show more concern for the dispossessed of Iraq and elsewhere? Why the liberation of Iraq from a bloody Baathist regime should have led to its being emptied of all its minority groups? When Serbia was engaged during the latter part of the 20th century in a terrible campaign of ethnic cleansing directed against Bosnians, the United States and its NATO allies intervened forcefully to end that genocide. Muslims were the beneficiaries and some might even argue that in the aftermath, Christians have been lumped in with the truly evil Serbian elements and now they are being persecuted and marginalized. Why the United States and the Western nations that are keeping the Balkans somewhat quiet at the moment, continue to keep silent about what’s going on in Iraq? The French author Annie Laurent was right when she predicted after the 9-11 events ‘that Christians living in the Muslim world would become martyrs on account of their faith, and victims of the radical Islamist aggression.’

It is important to note that the continued presence of non-Muslim religious communities within the Middle East is considered by the dominant Muslim majorities, as an implicit denial of the finality and superiority of Islam. Therefore, there is no raison d'être for their continued existence. This judgment may sound like an extremely shocking explanation for the rise and persistence of anti-Christian and anti-Jewish sentiments among the Muslim majorities of the area. But I believe it must be taken into consideration when trying to understand the hatred that leads to the type of ethnic-religious cleansings that are going on in Iraq and elsewhere.

I am grateful to this courageous Arab writer who brought to the attention of the readers of Elaph, the desperate plight of Iraqi Christians. It is now the turn of Western Christians basking in their freedoms, to come to the aid of their brothers and sisters in Mesopotamia. We should make every attempt to prevail upon our political leaders in voices loud and clear, by telling them:

Don’t forget Christians, Mandeans, Sabeans, and Yezidis. Liberating Iraq should not have ended with many of these people being murdered, many others having their homes stolen, and many, if so privileged, being forced to leave their homeland for other lands which do not even welcome them. What kind of a legacy will the United States, Britain and free nations everywhere leave behind in Iraq, if this situation is not addressed and rectified? The crimes we see occurring against our fellow men be they Christians, Mandeans, Sabeans, or Yezidis or any other neglected minority, in that desperate place must not be forgotten, and every effort taken by free nations everywhere to right a palpable wrong.

Note 
*Annie Laurent, [Né en 1949] 20e siècle

Annie Laurent est docteur d'État en sciences politiques pour une thèse sur "Le Liban et son voisinage (1943-1984)", obtenue à l'université de Paris-II. Journaliste et écrivain, collaborant à des revues scientifiques et grand public, elle a vécu pendant cinq ans au Liban où elle éditait le périodique "Libanoscopie" (1988-1992). Elle a publié, entre autres ouvrages : "Guerres secrètes au Liban", Paris, Gallimard, 1987 ; Collectif, "Vivre avec l'islam ?", Paris, Saint-Paul, 1996 ; « Au cœur du dialogue interreligieux », "Cahier d'EDIFA", n° 6, 1999 ; "Pour l'amour de l'Église", entretiens avec l'abbé Christian Laffargue, Paris, Fayard, 1999.

Annie Laurent, who was born in 1949, received her doctorate in political science for her thesis on “Lebanon and its Environment (1943-1984)” from the University of Paris-II. She is a journalist and a writer, whose works appear in scientific journals as well as in popular magazines. She has lived in Lebanon for five years during which she was the editor of “Libanoscopie” from 1988-1992. Among her publications are the following: “The Secret Wars in Lebanon,” (1987,) “Living with Islam,” (1996,) “In the Heart of Inter-religious Dialogue,” (1999,) and “For Love of the Church” (1999)

Translation by Rev. Bassam M. Madany

The URL for the Arabic article in Elaph:

http://www.elaph.com/Web/AsdaElaph/2008/11/382652.htm

Posted in Articles

Our Men and Their Men

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author: Jacob Thomas on Saturday, July 19, 2008

There is no end to the surprises I get when glancing at the Arabic-language websites that offer forums for liberal thinkers. Last month, I noticed a brief article on the Kuwaiti Tanweer site: “Rijaluna wa Rijaluhom.” It was a very frank comparison between Muslim clerics and their Christian counterparts. Here are excerpts from the article, followed by my analysis and comments.

The writer began with a shocking statement followed by his reasons for making it: 

“By men, I refer here to Christian clerics and their Muslim counterparts. It is my conviction that on a social level, a Christian cleric is one million times better than a Muslim cleric. Muslim clerics exhibit a condescending attitude toward their people. This may be observed, for example, in their being called, “Ulema,” plural of “Alim,” a term which means a “scientist.” Since a Muslim cleric’s diploma is granted by a religious institution; it has no value or relevance whatsoever in the general fields of knowledge and science! And regardless of his very limited knowledge, we find him issuing fatwas on all kinds of topics. In fact, I have never heard of a Muslim cleric who admitted his ignorance about any subject!

“By contrast, there isn’t one Christian cleric who provides answers to all kinds of questions. Rather, he consults his church, seeking the opinion of his people; and the result is far from resembling those fatwas which come clothed with an irrational halo of sanctity. In fact, several fatwas have advocated murder. For instance, a fatwa was issued in Saudi Arabia allowing for the murder of Dr. Shemlan al ‘Aessa simply for the way he responded to a question that was put to him by a Kuwaiti Islamist. Let’s not forget the fatwa that led to the assassination of the writer, Dr. Farag Foda; or the one that authorized the murder of the well-known novelist, Naguib Mahfoudh, the only Arab writer that has earned the Nobel Prize for Literature! Fortunately, the assailant failed in his attempt. Add to that, the numerous fatwas against the Kuffar, and those who have committed the sin of radda (apostasy.) In short, a Muslim cleric has become a perpetual cultural calamity, and a source of a dictatorship that opposes all true knowledge and freedom.

“Let’s now consider the case of a Christian cleric. Actually, he has learned a great deal from the experiences of the Middle Ages and the Reconquista of Spain that ended with the expulsion of the Muslim population that had lived there for seven centuries. He limits his concerns to his needs and to those of his congregation. He regards no one in society as his enemy. People come to him seeking the Lord’s forgiveness. He doesn’t declare anyone to be a kafir. And when someone makes derogatory remarks about the Messiah, the church deals with him in a conciliatory manner. The church does not seek legal actions in order to defend its beliefs. Has anyone heard a Christian cleric issuing a fatwa authorizing the murder of a Christian or a non-Christian, after charging him with apostasy? Have we ever heard of a Christian cleric that has ready answers to all kinds of questions, as the case is in our own Muslim societies?

“A Christian cleric is more merciful in his relationships with his people than his Muslim counterpart. Nowadays, we witness a bitter harvest being gathered by Muslims due to the fatwas issued by their clerics: Irhab, assassinations, oppression, and an absence of a creative literary activity. The irony is that when Muslims are fed up with their own societies, they flee to the heavenly West! Even Muslim clerics choose the infidel West, when they leave their own countries. This why the West is filled with Irhabis; it explains why Muslims find little respect in the West, since they are regarded as potential terrorists, unless they can prove the opposite!

“A Muslim cleric’s sin is unforgivable due to the harmful fatwas that he has proclaimed, and which have resulted in the death of his society. Therefore, I will continue to show more respect for Christian clerics on account of their humane attitude towards all people.”

Analysis

The author of “Our Men and their Men” is very upset by the behavior of several Muslim clerics. His statement, “a Christian clergyman is one million times better that a Muslim clergyman,” sounds rather shocking, especially when you read it in the original Arabic. He was venting his anger on account of the great harm done to Islamic societies by irresponsible men who had arrogated to themselves the right to issue religious edicts.

Comments

At the outset, I must say that this comparison between Muslim and Christian clerics is done exclusively on an ethical basis. The author is not comparing Islamic teachings or doctrines with those of the Christian faith. In other words, as a Muslim, he approached his subject pragmatically, and not theologically.

Another thing I would like to observe is that the writer arrived at his conclusions, on account of the experiences he may have had, during his residence in the West.

He alluded briefly to the lessons Christian religious leaders must have learned from the experiences of the Middle Ages. This is rather a vague statement. He may have had in mind Martin Luther, a German monk who revolted against the practice of selling “indulgences” guaranteeing forgiveness of sins for a sum of money given to the church! Luther became the leader of a reform movement that spread throughout Europe. One of the results of his work was the “democratization” of the government of the church. The old hierarchal structure was dismantled among the Protestants, and was replaced by a simpler form where people from the congregation were chosen as elders and deacons, to work with the minister. Once or twice a year, the entire congregation would meet to discuss financial and spiritual matters, and participate in the election of new office holders.

While the writer may have had such facts in mind, as he described a Christian cleric’s work in his society, he failed to consider the ultimate cause for the differences between Muslim and Christian clerics.

Let me explain. Muslim and Christian men who enter their vocations are likely to face many temptations. In other words, neither is inherently perfect in his relationship with his society. If there is any difference between the two, it must not be located in the person himself, but in the authoritative texts of his faith.

If a Christian clergyman is conciliatory and humane in his attitude towards his people, it is due to his conformity to the ethics of Christ that were marked with tolerance and love. Early in his preaching, Christ taught, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” And Paul, who was responsible for the spread of the Christian faith in the Mediterranean world, wrote these words to the young Christians in Rome: “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. If your enemy is hungry, feed him, if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.”

It is such ethical teachings that have informed and impacted the behavior of the Christian clerics over the years.

On the other hand, our writer was not willing to dig deeper into the matter, and to look for a doctrinal reason that would have explained the basis for any Muslim cleric’s fatwa authorizing the assassination of a member of his society. Violence is embedded in the sacred text of Islam. This is recognized by some liberal Muslims.

On 22 June, 2006, I posted an article on this website that referred to the subject of Islamic violence, as advocated in the Medinan chapters of the Qur’an. Here are excerpts from that article:

“Early in June, I was struck by an article with this title: ‘Religious Reformation in Islam: ‘Islam of Mecca” versus “Islam of Medina.’ (Al-Islah al-Deeni Fi’l-Islam: Islam ‘Mecca’ Fi Muwajahat Islam ‘Al-Medina.’

“I found this article quite bold in positing the existence of a confrontation (Muwajahat) between the Islam that was revealed in Mecca, and the Islam that was, later on, revealed in Medina. The author began by stating his theory about the existence of ‘two Islams.’

“For a long time now, Westerners have been hearing from two divergent groups within Muslims. One group keeps telling them, “Islam is a religion of tolerance, peace, and mercy.” The other tells a contrary story, “Islam is a religion of jihad, killings, and the persecution of non-Muslims.”

“Obviously, Westerners find themselves in a quandary. Which group are they to believe? Is it possible for a religion to proclaim, at the same time, two contradictory messages? Something must have gone wrong with the telling of the story of Islam.

“One explanation is that there are actually two Islams. There is the Islam of Mecca, and then, the Islam of Medina. The first Islam (as revealed in Mecca) is characterized by peace and the absence of violence; that is when Muhammad was weak and persecuted by the leadership of the Quraysh tribe.

“But when he migrated to Medina, he became strong, and eventually organized an Islamic state. It was during this period (622-632,) that he received surahs that called for Jihad against the unbelievers in Mecca, as well as the Jews and Christians in Arabia. Therefore, those who claim that Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance are right; and those who say that Islam is a religion of jihad are right. The problem is: to which Islam are they pointing, is it to “the Islam of Mecca, or the Islam of Medina?”

“Ultimately, if a real reformation is to take place, it would require the adoption of a new view of the sacred text, and the rise of a new fiqh (hermeneutic) based on reason as informed and enlightened by the new sciences. This requires that the reformists must cling to the ‘Meccan Islam,’ with its basic spirituality, tolerance, and love; while at the same time, rejecting the ‘Medinan Islam’ that promotes violence and jihad against non-Muslims.” [End of quotation from the 2006 article] 
*****

“Our Men and Their Men” was a very revealing article; it shed light on some of the perplexities that haunt Muslim intellectuals Unfortunately, the writer of this article, was either unable or unwilling to go as far as the one who (around two years ago,) had acknowledged the root cause of Islamic violence, namely in the Medinan chapters, and especially in those verses described as Ayat al-Sayf, i.e. the Sword Verses. It is not enough to lament the sad state of affairs in Daru’l Islam, a far-reaching reformation is needed that would declare the Meccan surahs as the only basis for faith and action! Is there any Muslim today who is willing to take part in this Mission Impossible?

Posted in Articles

Why Do our Young Adults Become Apostates?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author: Jacob Thomas on Monday, July 28, 2008

On 8 July, 2008, I noticed an article on the Tanweer website that had a very revealing title: “Limadha Yulhidu al-Shabab?” A literal translation would read: “Why do al-Shabab Become Apostates?” ‘Shabab’ is the plural of ‘Shab,’ and refers to young adults.

The writer is a lady intellectual and a regular columnist for the Kuwaiti online Al-Jarida, an Arabic term for “Newspaper.” The topic is not usually discussed in the Arab media, as it happens to be a very sensitive one. Furthermore, it is overshadowed by the almost continuous reporting about the Islamists, or radical Muslims, some of whom have regressed into Irhabis. Is it really possible that some Muslim young adults are turning against their faith, and adopting what amounts to be an atheistic worldview?

Let me first quote from this article, and follow it by my analysis and comments.

“As we follow the discussions that are going on among young adults over the Internet, we notice an elevated tone in the call for ‘Ilhad’ or apostasy in the Arab homeland, including Kuwait. What is rather strange among these young adults is that for them ‘Ilhad,’ is not simply a personal conviction; rather it is a point of view that has assumed an independent existence. It claims that it can lift the nation from ignorance, backwardness, and retrogression in all areas of life. What’s extremely puzzling about this phenomenon is that during the height of the spread of Communist and Socialist ideologies in the Arab world in the 20th century, no one ever called for an outright denial of the ‘Creator.’ Those movements restricted themselves to fighting all religions, regarding them as the “Opium of the People.” The spread and the extremist nature of this new wave of unbelief, requires our study and research, as it has several ramifications.

“After the rise of the Soviet Union as a great power in the early years of the last century, several Arab organizations adopted the Communist and Socialist ideologies, as a solution that would guarantee equality, justice, and freedom. Those movements did not surface as a reaction to Islam per se, or to certain Islamic groups. They arose as an alternative for the capitalist ideology, and as a reaction to Western colonialism that had impacted most Arab lands. So it was not unusual for Arab Socialists to participate in religious ceremonies, such as attending the Friday prayers at the mosques. One could hardly find in the Arab Socialist discourse, any arguments about the existence of the Creator, or a call to apostasy and unbelief.

“At present however, in spite of the disintegration of the Socialist and Communist systems, and the rise of the Islamist tide; we witness the appearance of an extremism of an opposite kind, as a natural reaction to the ideology and practices of political Islam. These young adults (shabab) having grown up in societies that experienced neither foreign occupation, nor colonialism, find their countries in a worse shape than in colonial times.

“As these young adults attempt to change the present order, they clash with the Islamists, who now play the role of the Church during the Middle Ages. For example, they encounter a person who, because he wears the ‘amama (a Muslim cleric’s headgear,) claims infallibility, and seeks to impose his own views on others; arrogates to himself the right to declare these young adults as ‘Kuffar,” and seeks to drag them before the courts.

“These radical Islamists preach hatred, murder, and suicide, in the name of Allah. As a reaction, the ‘shabab’ having also become the targets of the Islamists’ deep-seated hatred, tend to apostatize. In fact, it is the Islamists who, by their words and deeds, bear the responsibility for pushing the “shabab” into unbelief. Would they ever realize the enormity of their crime?”

Analysis

The author of the article charges the Islamists with the crime of pushing some young adults into apostasy. This genre of unbelief constitutes a new phenomenon in the Arab world, and requires the serious attention of moderate or liberal Muslims such as the writer herself.

Comments

One can understand the distress of the columnist in observing the rise of ‘Ilhad’ among the ‘shabab,’ throughout the Arab world, including her own country, Kuwait. I wonder though, whether she has considered that some Arab young men reject Islam, and become “unbelievers” not so much on account of the words and actions of Islamists, but for other weighty reasons. For example, back on 31 May, 2006, I posted an article on this website with this title Muslims Questioning Islam. It dealt with a young man from Damascus, Syria, who described his journey from faith to unbelief. Throughout the entire narrative, there was no indication that he had acted in reaction to an Islamist ideology. After much reading and reflection, he came to the conclusion to leave Islam. Here are excerpts from his testimony:

“Since I belonged to a religious family I became very religious, committed to Islamic teachings, and very faithful in performing all the duties of my faith. I was a very strong believer in Islam. I defended it emotionally, and with zeal. However, I had to contend with doubts and questions without finding answers to them.

“All the religious authorities kept telling me: everything in the Qur’an is true, and everything that did not agree with it was wrong and false. As for your doubts and suspicions, they proceed from Satan. If you keep on dealing with these doubts, don’t forget to seek refuge in Allah and implore Him to defend you from the evils of the devils.  
“I believed, and I grew up. The intensity of my clinging to Islam led me to read … Islamic books, ancient and modern, ultra conservative as well as those open to new ideas. The more I read … the more my doubts increased. My mind became filled with questions that had no answers.

“I could not eradicate my doubts. In fact they remained embedded in some dark corners of my mind waiting for an appropriate moment to reappear with strength and to confront me anew.

“Once, while I was still a religious Muslim, a satanic idea came to me. I decided to assume the role of an atheist and confront a group of religious men with my arguments. Actually, my real aim was to strengthen my ability to engage in apologetics, and to discover areas of weakness in the position of the atheists through such encounter.

"So, I went to the College where the Shari’ah is taught as it was close to the Law School where I was studying. I chose a bunch of bearded men and sat among them. I began to engage them in a religious discussion, setting forth my own arguments for unbelief. I allowed my tongue to wax eloquent with all kinds of proofs for my position. I was surprised to find them unable to deal with my arguments!

“For the first time, I began to read Islam as a critic … This led me to finally arrive at my position of no religion, and of forsaking Islam. It is very difficult to summarize the multitude of my readings and reflections in a few lines. That would require several pages. Some samples of my critique of religion can be found in articles I write for a network of irreligious Arabs (www.ladeeni.net)

“I am convinced that the Internet has a tremendous value as it serves anyone who has an idea to defend. It has opened for us a limitless space … to express our views. In fact, if it were not for the Internet, we would not have been aware of the existence of the irreligious or non-religious current within Arab and Islamic societies. Perhaps the day is coming when I would be able to speak openly and boldly using my real name, and say: “Yes, I am an irreligious person, and these are my reasons.”

I quoted from my 31 May, 2006, article not to disagree with the findings of the author of “Why do our Young Adults Become Apostates?” but to correct the notion that those who leave the Islamic faith do so only in reaction to the Islamist discourse and violent actions. The story of the Damascus “Shab” who confessed his “ladeen” (irreligion) shows that in today’s globalized world, with the Internet facilitating exchanges of ideas, it is inevitable that some Muslims will forsake their faith and become either apostates, or embrace another religious faith. And regardless of the motives for such radical events taking place within the Household of Islam, this new phenomenon will grow during this new century. For the challenges facing Islam are so powerful and complex, that to continue repeating the warn-out mantra that Islam is the solution for mankind’s problems, has been proven utterly bankrupt. I won’t be surprised if more defections will take place among the ‘shabab” of the Arab world.

Posted in Articles

Losing the War against Jihadism

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author: Jacob Thomas on Saturday, May 31, 2008  
By Jacob Thomas

On Memorial Day weekend, Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen spoke on C-Span2 about their book “Days of Infamy.” They gave a riveting account of how the Japanese planned and executed their attack on Pearl Harbor, on 7 December, 1941. That day is known in America as the “Day of Infamy.”

Another day in American history deserves the same designation. I refer to 11 September, 2001, when Islamic Jihadists attacked the United States causing the death of thousands of innocent civilians in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania.

Many changes have taken place in our lives as the result of that attack. The most noticeable one is experienced daily in American airports where long lines of passengers have to be thoroughly searched, and all prohibited items confiscated by agents of DHS “The Department of Homeland Security.” We are thankful that no similar attack has taken place since that fateful day in 2001. However, we cannot but be puzzled by the directives of this federal agency that were issued recently regarding the appropriate and inappropriate vocabulary that may be used in reference to Islamic Jihadists. This official “advice” was highlighted in an op-ed article by Bret Stephens in the Wall Street Journal of Tuesday, 27 May, 2008. Its headline was: “Homeland Security Newspeak.”

Here are some excerpts.

“The Department of Homeland Security thinks it's a bad idea to use the word ‘liberty’ when describing America's foreign policy goals. Nor does it much like the terms ‘Islamist’ and ‘jihadist.’ Heaven forbid the federal government cause needless offense in the current war against, well, whoever.

“Such are the recommendations on ‘Terminology to Define Terrorists,’ a nine-page, ‘Official Use Only’ memo issued in January by Homeland Security's Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties. It purports to represent the suggestions of a ‘wide variety’ of unnamed American Muslim leaders consulted on the subject. And while it is not a statement of official policy, it neatly captures the sophisticated government thinking about its rhetorical strategies for what used to be called the ‘Global War on Terror.’ 
Now, thanks to the DHS brain trust, we are offered a ‘Global Struggle for Security and Progress.’

“In ‘1984,’ George Orwell famously created Newspeak, ‘the only language in the world whose vocabulary gets smaller every year.’

“In the new dispensation, much of which has reportedly been adopted by the State Department, using the word Islamic is out because it potentially ‘[concedes] the terrorists’ claims that they are legitimate adherents of Islam.’ Use of the word jihad is said to ‘glamorize terrorism.’ Islamist – a neutral and broadly accepted term for those who espouse Islam as a political system – is frowned upon because ‘the general public … may not appreciate the academic distinction between Islamism and Islam.’ Using the word Salafism, the religious variant of Islam espoused by al Qaeda, may have the unfortunate effect of demonizing those Salafists who aren’t violent.

“Last October, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff was a guest of honor at a Ramadan event at which, according to one participant, he was publicly thanked by the president of the Islamic Society of North America for ‘keeping the doors open so we can advise you on how to engage the Muslim world.’

“For the record, the ISNA was named an unindicted co-conspirator in the case of the Holy Land Foundation, a U.S.-based charity alleged to have had ties with Hamas. Imagine if the Kennedy administration had consulted with the Workers World Party on strategies to contain the Soviet Union, and you get a sense of what Homeland Security is doing today.

“No doubt the government really does need better terminology to describe the war we're in, which is against violent Islamic extremists and every regime, warlord, charity, school or imam supporting them. No doubt, too, we need the support of every Muslim we can rally to our side. Those many millions who do not shrink from the word ‘liberty’ might just fit the bill.”

Thus far, my quotations from The WSJ. I recommend that the entire article by Bret Stephens, be read for its excellent description of the mindlessness exhibited by a governmental agency that purports to lead the fight against the Islamists’ aggressive plans to attack us! The URL for the article is: online.wsj.com

When I finished reading Homeland Security Newspeak, I was aghast! I couldn’t believe the recommendations of a federal department that was assigned by the Congress of the United States, to be responsible for the security of the land! The jargon preferred by the DHS tended to conceal rather than reveal the truth about Islamic terrorism. It is my strong conviction that God has given us, human beings, the gift of speech in order to reveal the truth, and not to conceal it. “Newspeak” falsifies reality and truthfulness. It is the mark of totalitarian regimes, and not of democracies.

Furthermore, the directives of the DHS manifest an abysmal ignorance of Islam, its history, and its religious-political ideology. Islam is unique among the major world religions. It’s unlike Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Christianity, and Judaism. Islam combines religion with politics in one indivisible entity. This a fact firmly embedded in Islamic history.

The founder of Islam preached the Unity of Allah and the vanity of idols between 610 and 622 A. D., in his hometown, Mecca. He gained a few followers. After he migrated to Medina in 622, he became both a “Prophet and Statesman.” He led his small army in several raids against the Meccan caravans. He expropriated the Jewish inhabitants of a nearby oasis, killing the men, and enslaving the women and their children. Whereas the revelations that “descended” in Mecca tended to be almost uniquely religious and ethical, the ones that came down in Medina between 622 and 632 (the year of his death) dealt with war and peace, civil laws, economics, and rules that govern the relations between believers (Muslims) and unbelievers.

After Muhammad’s passing, his successors, the Caliphs inherited his political mantle only. They began the futuhat (conquests) of the world. And by 732, the nascent Islamic Empire stretched from Spain to Western India! The Umayyad Caliphate (661-750,) was renowned for its expansionist policy, and may be regarded as the continuation, on a global scale, of the raids undertaken by Muhammad against his foes in Arabia. This imperialist impulse or motif of Islam was carried further by the Ottoman Turks. After their conquest of the heartland of the Byzantine Empire, they gave it a death blow in 1453, with their conquest of Constantinople, now to be known as Istanbul! In 1529, the Ottomans laid their first siege to Vienna, repeating that almost a century and a half later.  
The failure to capture Vienna marks the beginning of the decline of this last Islamic Empire.

In relating briefly the history of Islamic imperialism, I have tried to show that the cessation of Islamic expansionism was due to Islam’s inability to engage in new futuhat. This became apparent after the fall and dissolution of the Ottoman Caliphate in the aftermath of WWI. However, for the purists or Salafists in Islam, conquests must go on, if not by means of conventional wars, they can still take place by terrorist “raids” on the lands of the Infidels.

The recommendations of the Department of Homeland Security, vis-à-vis the proper nomenclature to be used when referring to Islamic terrorists or jihadists, are actually ludicrous. The very term “Islamic Terrorism” (Al-Irhab al-Islami) is actually used in the Arab press. For example, the online daily, Elaph.com devoted three articles on Islamic Irhab on 22, 23, and 25 July 2007. In concluding his third article on this topic, the writer asked: “Having dealt with the subject [of Irhab in the Islamic World] in the first two articles, may we conclude that this phenomenon does not receive popular support within Islamic societies? Definitely not! The opposite is true; for this is exactly why Irhab has enjoyed a great degree of continuity, in spite of the efforts to contain it, in the majority of the countries of the world.”

A note of explanation is needed regarding the popularity and impact of this Internet medium throughout the Arab world. Elaph began publishing its online daily on 21 May 2001; on December 2006, the Audit Bureau of Circulation certified that Elaph’s web traffic “showed 665,849 unique users and 12,332,686 page views in that month. Elaph’s uniqueness was also apparent in the even spread of its readers among Arab countries and as well as Europe and North America.”

In my daily visit to the Elaph website, I glance at the variety of articles and reports, and especially note the responses received as “Letters to the Editor.” It is astonishing to discover the variety of readers, and their comments on the articles! I must confess that, as far as I remember, there were no outcries, or objections, when the term “Al-Irhab al-Islami” was used.

Elaph is not the unique online source of enlightened Arab thought. I have already mentioned in my previous contributions to FaithFreedom website, the Kuwaiti website, kwtanweer.com  
(Tanweer is an Arabic term for enlightenment) This scholarly Internet journal has published  
forthright and objective articles dealing with the subject of Islamic Jihadism and Irhab. Here are some titles that indicate no reticence whatsoever in the use of a terminology that is being frowned upon and regarded as taboo by the DHS. “The Psychology of Irhab,” 9 February, 2007; “The Politics of Salafism;” “Religious Education and its Relation to Irhab,” 20 April 2006; “The Caliphate: An Impossible Dream,” 2 September 2007. All these articles, written by a variety of Arab intellectuals who subscribe to the ideals of democracy, freedom, and modernity; use a vocabulary that describes accurately and fearlessly, the dangerous worldview that dominates some large segments of Arab society. So, why should we, in the land of The Bill of Rights, have to be “advised” of our Department of Homeland Security or the Department of State to be cautious about the use of words that reveal the truth about Islamist ideology? And why do we consult some unnamed Muslim “leaders” in the USA, or such organizations like ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) or CAIR (The Council on American-Islamic Relations?)

Our brave men and women are engaged in a heroic fight against Jihadism in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many of them have already laid down their lives in the cause of resisting the attempts of Salafists and Jihadists to destroy the free world, and create another global caliphate. We betray them and their loved ones at home, when we bind ourselves by political correctness, and fail to speak the truth about a mortal danger. If courageous and liberal voices in the Arab world are not afraid to describe the dangers coming out of radical Islam, and when they write articles and essays on the subject, we, in the free world, betray them by refraining to call a spade a spade. And just as the war in Vietnam was lost in the USA, so also our war in the Middle East will be lost in the home front, if we indulge in “Newspeak” rather than boldly speaking of the global Islamist Jihad.

In closing, I wonder about the reports of the press-attaches in our embassies in Cairo, Damascus, Riyadh, Beirut, Amman, Kuwait, the Gulf, and other capitals in the Arab world! Do they visit the uncensored websites of Elaph, Tanweer, and other Arab Internet sources that tell the truth about the challenges of radical Islam? If they do, they better enlighten the high echelons of the State Department, and plead with them, not to advise the young Department of Homeland Security to resort to vapid and meaningless terms when speaking of the Islamic Irhab. We can win the war against Jihadism, by telling the truth about its global threat, and by joining our voices to those valiant Arab intellectuals who are not afraid to openly and boldly speak about this menace to their homelands, and to the rest of the world.

Posted in Articles

Bernard Lewis Strikes Back

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author : Jacob Thomas on May 10, 2008 - 01:14 AM

The war against radical Islam is being waged militarily in Iraq and Afghanistan. Unfortunately, this conflict is being sabotaged by academics who occupy important chairs in American universities within the departments of Middle East Studies. The public is unaware of their activities as they spread their propaganda within the classrooms of our universities. This sad state of affairs was recently highlighted in an article in The Wall Street Journal, of Friday, 2 May, 2008.

In the print edition, the article had this headline:

Bernard Lewis Takes on Political Correctness in Middle East Studies

When I looked up its online version, it carried this revealing title:

Balance of Power: A New Group Counters Leftist Agitprop in Middle East Studies

I would like to quote from this article, adding my comments on this extremely important subject that should receive the attention and scrutiny of the Western public.

Charlotte Allen began the article by asking, “What to do if you are a college professor and the academic society that represents your field has been overrun by political correctness? One answer is: Form your own organization.

“That is how, six months ago, the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (Asmea) came into being. Now claiming 500 members and gearing up to publish its own scholarly journal, Asmea is meant to be a corrective to the 2,600-member Middle East Studies Association, the premier professional society for scholars of the Middle East. That organization is now regarded by many as stiflingly politicized. Institutionally, it engages in nonstop Israel-bashing and seems to blame America for every economic and geopolitical wrong on the planet.

“Interestingly, both the Middle East Studies Association and the new Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa were founded by the same person: Bernard Lewis. Now 91, Mr. Lewis is the eminence grise of scholars of Islam. His 60-year scholarly career encompasses more than two-dozen books and decades of teaching, first at the University of London and then at Princeton, where he is now a professor emeritus. He gave up on MESA to found Asmea last fall because he wanted there to be "a truly open academic society."

Mr. Lewis spoke those words at Asmea’s first annual conference at a Washington hotel last weekend. The two-day gathering -- featuring only eight panels and roundtables, in contrast to the hundred or so at MESA’s annual meeting in Montreal in November --- showed the promise and also the problems that are part of any professional society’s attempts to defy orthodoxy.”

We may be extremely puzzled as to how MESA that was founded by Mr. Lewis became such an ideologically motivated association of academics who are bent on destroying the very raison d’etre of their discipline. The answer is found in the life and writings of the late professor Edward Said (1935-2003). By the way, I have always been puzzled by the transliteration of the Arabic name of our professor, since for English-speaking people, it should have been properly spelled, Sa’eed!

In 1978, he published “Orientalism,” a book that charged “Western scholarship on Islam was all but worthless because it had been motivated by efforts to further the ‘colonial’ interests of Western imperial powers, still intent on dominating the East.”

It is unbelievable how many “experts” in the history of the Middle East, fell for the unsubstantiated thesis of Mr. Said. As the WSJ article explains, “Unlike Mr. Lewis, Mr. Said had no training in Islamic or Mideast studies (he was in fact, for years, a professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University). Even so, Mr. Said continues to exert a powerful influence on many American Islamicists; He is their guru, and "Orientalism" is their catechism.”

Over the years, I have always regretted the trajectory of Edward Said’s life. Coming from an Eastern Christian background, rather than devoting his scholarship to deal with the plight of his people over fourteen centuries of Islamic imperialism, he became the typical Dhimmi who offered his services to the defence of Islam, and to the denigration of the excellent work of British and French Orientalists. Furthermore, he was not equipped to deal with the subject as his training was in another field of knowledge.

An American Orientalist, and President of the American University of Beirut, Malcolm Kerr, who was murdered by radical Islamists on the campus of his university on 18 January 1984, described “Orientalism” in December, 1980:

“This book reminds me of the television program ‘Athletes in Action,’ in which professional football players compete in swimming, and so forth. Edward Said, a literary critic loaded with talent, has certainly made a splash, but with this sort of effort he is not going to win any major races. The book contains many excellent sections and scores many telling points, but it is spoiled by overzealous prosecutorial argument in which Professor Said, in his eagerness to spin too large a web, leaps at conclusions and tries to throw everything but the kitchen sink into a preconceived frame of analysis. In charging the entire tradition of European and American Oriental studies with the sins of reductionism and caricature, he commits precisely the same error.”

From the International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, vol. 12 (December 1980), Pp. 544-547.

In 2007, Ibn Warraq wrote a masterpiece, “Defending the West: A Critique of Edward Said’s Orientalism.” (Prometheus Books, 59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228-2119) 
This 556-page work, demonstrates the utter nonsense of “Orientalism,” and should be read by academics and politicians, in order to understand the nefarious impact of a book that claimed to be a scholarly expose of the West, but was actually a literary fraud.

Here are some quotations from Ibn Warraq’s book:

“To argue his case, Said very conveniently leaves out the important contributions of German Orientalists, for their inclusion would destroy --- and their exclusion does indeed totally destroy --- the central thesis of Orientalism, that all Orientalists produced knowledge that generated power, and that they colluded and helped imperialists found empires. As we shall see, German Orientalists were the greatest of all scholars of the Orient, but, of course, Germany was never an imperial power in any of the Oriental countries of North Africa and the Middle East. … Would it have made sense for German Orientalists to produce work that could help only England and France in their empire building?” P. 44

Another relevant excerpt shows the unbelievably disastrous effects of Said’s work:

“Said has much to answer for, Orientalism, despite its systematic distortions and its limited value as an intellectual history, has left Western scholars in fear of asking questions --- in other words, it has inhibited their research. Said’s work, with its strident anti-Westernism, it has made the goal of modernization of Middle Eastern societies that much more difficult. His work, wherein all the ills of Middle Eastern societies are blamed on the wicked West, has rendered much-needed self-criticism by Muslims, Arab and non-Arab alike, nearly impossible. His work has encouraged Islamic fundamentalists, whose impact on world affairs needs no underlining. P. 54

One last quotation from Part 3 of Warraq’s superb book is sufficient to demonstrate the unbelievably destructive nature of Said’s Orientalism:

“Stephen Schwartz once wrote, ‘[Bernard Lewis] has, it is true, been brutally attacked --- most notably by the charlatan Edward Said. Said’s Orientalism, a ridiculous imposture from its first page to its last, is now a standard text in Anglo-American universities, but reads like the product of a rather dense college student who has discovered Marxism; there can be no more telling condemnation of the present sate of American academy than the ascendancy of Said.” P. 299

Back to the WSJ article,

“The MESA Web site features links to the society’s many denunciations of Israel and its defense of such controversial academics as Rashid Khalidi, an apologist for the Palestinian Liberation Organization and a member of Columbia's faculty. As for last year’s MESA meeting in Montreal, some 11 panels were devoted solely to Palestinian grievances.”

As to the newly organized ASMEA, one academic who attended its meeting in Washington, D.C., said,

“‘There’s been a lot of lamenting about the political correctness that’s taken over MESA,’” says Tristan Mabry, a visiting assistant professor of government at Georgetown University who decided to attend the Asmea conference for a breath of fresh air. ‘The A-No.1 issue that dominates MESA is always Israel, and even if you're not interested in Israel [Mr. Mabry’s research focuses on Pakistan, India and Bangladesh], where you stand on Israel is always a litmus test.’”

“Asmea aims to attract centrist scholars such as Mr. Mabry, and its conference dealt with matters that are clearly off-limits at MESA unless approached from an anti-American and anti-Israeli perspective: terrorism and suicide-bombing, for instance. In point of fact, however, relatively few of the 250 attendees last weekend were scholars at universities. Many were members of the military, defense specialists, think-tank researchers and free-lance writers. The presence of the defense contingent was understandable: In today's highly politicized academic climate, many scholarly societies forbid their members to consult for the U.S. military or intelligence services. The scholarship of Asmea's members may be the government's only academic resource for information useful in current Mideast conflicts.”

The chairman of ASMEA is Bernard Lewis, and its vice-chairman is the Lebanese-American scholar, Fouad Ajami, the director of Middle East studies at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies.

My sincere thanks go to the WSJ for publishing an article on the decline and fall of MESA, and the birth of a truly scholarly association that deals accurately with the history and culture of the Middle Eastern nations. It’s high time that the Western public discovers what has taken place in the departments of Middle Eastern Studies at several of our universities, where they had uncritically swallowed the spurious thesis of Edward Said’s Orientalism. The war against global jihadism cannot be won as long as the home front is being weakened by the writings of Edward Said and his disciples who are still very active in spreading the lies about Western Orientalism.

http://www.news.faithfreedom.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1889

Posted in Articles

The Debacle of the "Common Word" Initiative

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Muslims are extremely sensitive to any direct or implied criticism of Islam. This became quite evident when Pope Benedict XVI made reference to Islam in his Regensburg address on September 13, 2006. A month later, 38 Muslim scholars responded to the Pope’s words. The text of their answer can be accessed on the website of a Jordanian organization, http://www.acommonword.com/

Continuing their campaign to win the good will of the West, 138 Muslim scholars addressed the Christian World in a message entitled, “A Common Word Between Us and You.” I quote the following passages from this message to illustrate the Muslims’ concept and purpose of this initiative:

“The final form of the letter was presented at a conference in September 2007, held under the theme of “Love in the Quran,” by the Royal Academy of The Royal Aal al-Bayt* Institute for Islamic Thought in Jordan, under the Patronage of H.M. King Abdullah II. Indeed, the most fundamental common ground between Islam and Christianity, and the best basis for future dialogue and understanding, is the love of God and the love of the neighbor. 

“Never before have Muslims delivered this kind of definitive consensus statement on Christianity. Rather than engage in polemic, the signatories have adopted the traditional and mainstream Islamic position of respecting the Christian scripture and calling Christians to be more, not less, faithful to it.  

“It is hoped that this document will provide a common constitution for the many worthy organizations and individuals who are carrying out interfaith dialogue all over the world. Often these groups are unaware of each other, and duplicate each other’s efforts. Not only can ‘A Common Word Between Us and You’ give them a starting point for cooperation and worldwide co-ordination, but it does so on the most solid theological ground possible: the teachings of the Qur’an and the Prophet, and the commandments described by Jesus Christ in the Bible. Thus despite their differences, Islam and Christianity not only share the same Divine Origin and the same Abrahamic heritage, but the same two greatest commandments.” 

Quoted from “The Amman Message Islamica Magazine The Great Tafsir Project of the Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute R.I.S.S.C. 2007 C.E. 1428 A.H.

One Christian response to the “Common Word” overture came from scholars of the Yale Divinity School. They released a statement “warmly embracing the open letter ‘A Common Word between Us and You.’”  It was entitled, “Loving God and Neighbor Together: A Christian Response to A Common Word between Us and You.” Here are excerpts:

“We receive it [A Common Word] as a Muslim hand of conviviality and cooperation extended to Christians world-wide. In this response we extend our own Christian hand in return, so that together with all other human beings we may live in peace and justice as we seek to love God and our neighbors." 
 

“Since Jesus Christ says, “First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye” (Matthew 7:5), we want to begin by acknowledging that in the past (e.g.in the Crusades) and in the present (e.g. in excesses of the ‘war on terror’) many Christians have been guilty of sinning against our Muslim neighbors.  Before we ‘shake your hand’ in responding to your letter, we ask forgiveness of the All-Merciful One and of the Muslim community around the world.” 
 

“…..’Let this common ground’—the dual common ground of love of God and of neighbour – ‘be the basis of all future interfaith dialogue between us,’ your courageous letter urges.  Indeed, in the generosity with which the letter is written you embody what you call for.  We most heartily agree.”

“The statement was issued by Harold Attridge, dean of Yale Divinity School and Lillian Claus Prof of New Testament; Miroslav Volf, director of the Yale Center for Faith & Culture and  Joseph Cumming, director of the Reconciliation Program at the Yale Center for Faith & Culture; and Emilie M. Townes, the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of African American Religion and Theology and president-elect of the American Academy of Religion. More scholars are expected to endorse the statement as it is circulated at Yale Divinity School and at other academic institutions across the country.”

The Yale Divinity School Response gathered many signatures throughout the USA, including some who are associated with conservative Protestants. Since that time, a controversy has surfaced among the Evangelical circles, leading some signatories to announce the withdrawal of their support for the Yale Response. Mark Tooley, the director of United Methodist Action at the Institute for Religion and Democracy, contributed an article entitled, A Dialogue in Bad Faith, to the online www.FrontPageMagazine.com  on January 10, 2008. Here are some excerpts:

“Controversy continues to swirl around the predominantly Religious Left and Evangelical Left response to ‘A Common Word Between Us and You,’ the statement issued by 138 Islamic authorities in October.  

“The Muslim declaration was relatively moderate and invited dialogue with Christians. Mostly left-leaning religious studies faculty from the Ivy League organized ‘Loving God and Neighbor Together’ as a ‘Christian Response.’ It offered regrets for the Crusades and the War on Terror, while eagerly accepting the invite to dialogue with Islam. The Muslim statement, of course, offered no apologies for Islamist conquests or terror. 

“Predictable Evangelical Left activists such as Jim Wallis signed as well as more moderate Evangelicals, including the president of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) Leith Anderson and the NAE's increasingly left-leaning Washington spokesman, Richard Cizik. Rev. Anderson hoped that his signature would be ‘especially helpful to Christians who live and minister in Muslim-majority countries.’ And he likewise expressed concern that ‘not signing could be damaging to these Christian brothers and sisters who live among Muslims.’

“On January 3, a publication of James Dobson’s conservative ‘Focus on the Family’ criticized evangelicals who endorsed ‘Loving God and Neighbor Together.’ It quoted Southern Baptist theologian Albert Mohler, who slammed the statement's ‘naiveté,’ including the Crusades apology. ‘I just have to wonder how intellectually honest this is,’ he said. ‘Are these people suggesting that they wish the military conflict with Islam had ended differently - that Islam had conquered Europe?’ 

“In response to the Focus on the Family critique, ‘emerging church’ guru Brian McLaren vigorously responded with his own op-ed for Jim Wallis’ Sojourners. He likened the troubles between Christendom and Islam to an unpleasant domestic dispute between spouses who are in need of good counseling. 
“McLaren wondered about his fellow Christians: ‘How can we not apologize for our sins? Should we claim we have no sins? Or should we knowingly refuse to acknowledge them? Isn’t the humility to confess sins a Christian virtue?’ In an analogy that would surprise persecuted Christian minorities in Islamic countries, he portrayed Muslims as ostracized outsiders in need of Christian inclusion: ‘I’m sorry when anyone feels alienated by those of us who try to follow Jesus' command to be peacemakers and to treat others as we would be treated, but didn't Jesus, when faced with a choice of reaching out to those considered untouchable outsiders by the Pharisees, side with the excluded?’

“Was McLaren implying moral equivalence between the U.S. and al Qaeda’s radical Islamist allies? If so, he would not be entirely alone among many signers of ‘Loving God and Neighbor Together,’ who are desperately anxious to separate themselves from U.S. policies or conservative evangelicals who support them. Many of these signers are pacifist absolutists and genuinely see no ethical distinctions between terrorist strikes and a U.S. military response to them. 

“The NAE’s Leith Anderson admitted ‘there were lines in the Christian letter that were not quite what I would write’ and ‘sometimes we all sign onto things that are not all that we would like them to be.’ But he hoped that the Christian response to the Islamic overture would foster ‘mutual respect between the two largest religions on the globe’ and broader religious liberty.  Anderson expressed fear that Christians in Muslim lands might suffer if he declined to sign. Endorsing Christian apologies to Islam in order to protect Christians from being persecuted or killed by Islamic authorities or mobs hardly bodes well for constructive Christian-Islamic dialogue.”

Having begun their initiative of dialogue with Christians, the Muslim side continued their efforts by sending Seasons’ Greetings to Christians. On the last day of December, 2007, they purchased a half-page ad in The Wall Street Journal that ran as follows:

A Muslim Message of Thanks and of Christmas and New Year Greetings, 
December 2007

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful 
May God bless Muhammad and his kin and bless Abraham and his kin 
Al-Salaam Aleikum; Peace be upon you; Pax Vobiscum 

Peace be upon Jesus Christ who says: Peace is upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected 
(Chapter of Mary; the Holy Qur’an, 19:33).

During these joyful holidays we write to you, our Christian neighbors all over the world, to express our thanks for the beautiful and gracious responses that we Muslims have been receiving from the very first day we issued our invitation to come together to ‘A Common Word’ based on ‘Love of God and love of Neighbor’  

We thank you and wish you all a joyous and peaceful Christmas Holiday Season commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, may peace be upon him. 

We Muslims bear witness that: There is no god but God, without associate, and that Muhammad is Servant and Messenger, and that Jesus Christ is His Servant, His Messenger, His Word cast to Mary, and a Spirit from Him … 
(Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya’)*** 

The Christmas and New Year Greetings, continued by referring to the coincidence in 2007, between Muslim and Christian feasts: (Hajj, Christmas and New Year), and called attention to the patriarch Abraham who was not allowed by God to sacrifice his son, thus affirming and proclaiming the sanctity of human life. Then in an attempt to assume a moral high ground by making Islam eminently “Pro Life,” it referred to those “Muslim scholars who issued a historic declaration affirming the sanctity of human life – of every human life – as an essential and foundational teaching in Islam upon which all Muslim scholars are in unanimous agreement (see details at www.duaatalislam.com).” 

The “Message” ended with these words: 

“May the coming year be one in which the sanctity and dignity of human life is upheld by all. May it be a year of humble repentance before God, and mutual forgiveness within and between communities. 

“Praise be to God, the Lord of the world.” 

The WSJ advertisement coming on December 31, 2007, claimed to be a “Season’s Greetings” addressed to the Christian World. It was prompted by “the beautiful and gracious responses that we Muslims have been receiving from the very first day we issued our invitation to come together to ‘A Common Word’ based on ‘Love of God and love of Neighbor.’  

At this point, I would like to address the translation of the Qur’anic words, ‘kalimaton sawa’ as “A Common Word.” While kalimaton means a word, the choice of common for sawa’ is debatable. I have read the text in the Arabic Qur’an several times, and was not convinced of the accuracy of the choice of “common.” I consulted a standard Arabic-English dictionary, Hans Wehr’s “A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic,” edited by J. Milton Cowan, and published in 1961 by Otto Harrassowitz, in Wiesbaden, Germany. Sawa’ was given several English equivalent words: equal, equality, equally, indiscriminately, without distinction, in like manner, evenly. The word ‘common’ was not among them. 

I realize that no word, in any language, can be understood simply on the basis of its etymology. According to the universally accepted rules of hermeneutics, the context is extremely important in determining the exact meaning of a word. This is especially the case as we attempt to translate a word from Arabic into a European language. Thus, in order to understand the meaning of the Muslim Christmas and New Year’s greeting, it is necessary to reflect on the context of the “Common Word” message, taken from Chapter 3 of the Qur’an, Surat Al-‘Imran. This passage sets forth “The Conditions for Dialogue” between Muslims and Christians. As we read some of the verses from Chapter 3, which are normative for Muslims, it becomes clear that dialogue with non-Muslims can only take place on the basis of the normative teachings of the Qur’an.  

Here are some verses from Surat Al-‘Imran, in Arberry’s Translation of the Qur’an:

Say: 'People of the Book! Come now to a word common between us and you, that we serve none but God, and that we associate not aught with Him, and do not some of us take others as Lords, apart from God.’ And if they turn their backs, say: 'Bear witness that we are Muslims.’ V. 64

No; Abraham in truth was not a Jew, neither a Christian; but he was a Muslim and one pure of faith; certainly he was never of the idolaters. V. 67 
 

People of the Book! Why do you disbelieve in God’s signs, which you yourselves witness? People of the Book! Why do you confound the truth with vanity, and conceal the truth and that wittingly? V. 70,71 
 

Whoso desires another religion than Islam, it shall not be accepted of him; in the next world he shall be among the losers. V.85

It is clear that those Muslims who issued the invitation to dialogue, and adopted the term, “A Common Word” (kalimaton sawa’on baynana wa-baynakom,) from the Qur’an, declared their complete adherence to the teachings of their sacred book.  Furthermore, it must be noted that the tone of the texts from Chapter III is decidedly polemical. Christians are charged with the sin of shirk, i.e. in claiming that Allah had associates! Then they are exhorted to “serve none but God.” Thus, if Christians engaged in dialogue with Muslims, they are expected first to renounce their belief in the Trinity.  

Another Islamic requirement is to accept the authenticity of the Qur’anic version of Sacred History. This implies the rejection, for example, of the Biblical accounts of Abraham’s life. Thus verse 67 of Chapter III, categorically states: “ma kana Ibraheemu Yahudiyyan wala Nasraniyyan, walaken kana Hanifan Musliman …” (Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Nazarene, but he was a Hanif** and a Muslim…) [Translation mine]

Verses 70 and 71 address the Christians, as those who mix truth with vanity, and who refuse to believe in Allah’s signs. A pretty bad trait for those who are to dialogue with Muslims!  

Finally, the exclusivist nature of Islam is seen in verse 85:

“Waman yabtaghi ghayr’l Islami deenan, falan yuqbala minhu, wahua fil’akhirati min’al khasereen.”(He who seeks a religion other than Islam, that will not be acceptable of him, and at the Last Day, he will be among the Lost.)  [Translation mine]

Having dealt with the Qur’anic context of “A Common Word,” I turn to the text of the December 31, “Greeting.” I find it very difficult to receive it as a bona fide “Season’s Greetings.” While its title seems genuine, as one proceeds to analyze its contents, it reveals expressions and views that are thoroughly alien to the history of Christianity as recorded in the Bible, a book that antedates the Qur’an by several centuries.

For example, the reference to Jesus Christ is taken from the text of the Qur’an. It naively assumes that Christians would gladly accept it, rather than stick to the authentic accounts of the life of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament. These words from Surat Maryam 19:33, make Jesus say, “Peace is upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected.” It is rather ludicrous to quote from this chapter regarding Jesus Christ. Among other things it recounts a Mary who was alone under a palm tree, about to give birth to Jesus; who after he was born, addressed the critics of his mother for her supposedly immoral conduct, while yet a baby! Did those who drafted the “Message” really expect Christians to be that gullible and prefer that bizarre account, to the ones given in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke?! 

The “Message” continued, “We Muslims bear witness that: There is no god but God, without associate, and that Muhammad is Servant and Messenger, and that Jesus Christ is His Servant, His Messenger, His Word cast to Mary, and a Spirit from Him …(Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya’) 

All Christians (Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant,) subscribe to the doctrine of the Trinity, and the deity of Jesus Christ. Arabic-speaking Christians begin their prayers by invoking the name of God in this way: “Bismil Aab, wal Ibn, wal Ruh al Qodos, Ilah Wahed, Amen.” (In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God, Amen.”) They would not regard it as a compliment, or a basis for dialogue, that Muslims consider Jesus Christ merely as “Servant, or as Messenger.”  

The “Muslim Message of Thanks and of Christmas and New Year Greetings,” was a genre of Islamic propaganda aimed at Western people. The drafters of the “Season’s Greetings” hoped that their attempt would bear fruit among Christians. After all, who would ignore at that time of the year, such a gesture of good will? Here are Muslims who publicly declare that they honor and recognize Jesus as a prophet, isn’t that great? But who is this Jesus they honor? He is certainly not the Jesus Christ whose birth Christians celebrated on the 25th day of December, 2007. He is a pale shadow of the Biblical Christ; in fact he is a pseudo-Messiah. He is the Messiah of Surat Maryam (19) that contains an intensive polemic against the historical and real Messiah of the Bible. 

I don’t know how many of the readers of the December 31, Wall Street Journal, received at its face value, the “Message of Thanks…” I guess some who have been impacted by political correctness, may have welcomed the message as an expression of good will. But I certainly hope that those readers, who have done their homework on the history and sacred texts of Islam, would have realized that the WSJ ad is contradicted by the concrete facts of history. Islam remains a world religion that adheres to an imperialistic worldview, and looks askance at the Bible, with its supreme authority for Christians, in all areas of faith and life.  

Notes 
*Royal Academy of The Royal Aal al-Bayt: A Jordanian academy under the auspices of King Abdullah II.

The term, Aal al-Bayt, refers to descendents of the Prophet Muhammad, who was of the Hashem clan, and of the Quraysh tribe. Literally, Aal al-Bayt, signifies, Members of the House, of Hashem.

The kings of Jordan are descendents of Sharif Hussein of Mecca, who claimed descent from Muhammad. During WWI, he allied himself with the British against the Ottoman Turks. After the war, his son Faysal became king of Iraq, and his son, Abdullah, prince of Transjordan. After the birth of Israel in 1948, Abdullah became king of “The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

**Hanif: Refers to those Arabs, in pre-Islamic Arabia, who rejected paganism, and professed belief in a creator God.

*** Sahih Bukhari: Refers to a collection of Hadiths (Traditions of Muhammad’s life and sayings) that are regarded as authentic. Many of the collected Traditions were spurious. Bukhari’s collection is considered as containing authentic (in Arabic, Sahih,) sayings of Muhammad.

Posted in Articles

Season's Greetings or Islamic Propaganda?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author: Jacob Thomas on Sunday, January 06, 2008

By Jacob Thomas 

On Monday, 31 December, 2007, the Wall Street Journal published the following “Message” on page A9:

A Muslim Message of Thanks and of Christmas and New Year Greetings, 
December 2007 

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful 
May God bless Muhammad and his kin and bless Abraham and his kin 
Al-Salaam Aleikum; Peace be upon you; Pax Vobiscum 

Peace be upon Jesus Christ who says: Peace is upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected 
(Chapter of Mary; the Holy Qur’an, 19:33).

During these joyful holidays we write to you, our Christian neighbors all over the world, to express our thanks for the beautiful and gracious responses that we Muslims have been receiving from the very first day we issued our invitation to come together to ‘A Common Word’ based on ‘Love of God and love of Neighbor’ (see www.acommonword.com for the document and the responses). 

We thank you and wish you all a joyous and peaceful Christmas Holiday Season commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, may peace be upon him. 

We Muslims bear witness that: There is no god but God, without associate, and that Muhammad is Servant and Messenger, and that Jesus Christ is His Servant, His Messenger, His Word cast to Mary, and a Spirit from Him … (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya’) 

The “Message” continued by referring to the coincidence this year, between Muslim and Christian feasts: (Hajj, Christmas and New Year), and referred to the patriarch Abraham who was not allowed by God to sacrifice his son, thus affirming and proclaiming the sanctity of human life. Then in an attempt to assume a moral high ground by making Islam eminently “Pro Life,” it referred to those “Muslim scholars who issued a historic declaration affirming the sanctity of human life – of every human life – as an essential and foundational teaching in Islam upon which all Muslim scholars are in unanimous agreement (see details at www.duaatalislam.com).”

The “Message” ended with these words: 

May the coming year be one in which the sanctity and dignity of human life is upheld by all. May it be a year of humble repentance before God, and mutual forgiveness within and between communities.

Praise be to God, the Lord of the world.”

I would like to analyze this “advertisement-message,” and add my comments. 

Analysis 
The WSJ “ad-message,” coming on the last day of 2007, purports to be a “Season’s Greetings” addressed to the Christian World. It was prompted by “the beautiful and gracious responses that we Muslims have been receiving from the very first day we issued our invitation to come together to ‘A Common Word’ based on ‘Love of God and love of Neighbor.’  

It must be noted here, that a Christian response to the Muslim overture, “A Common Word,” was drafted by some members of the Faculty of the Divinity School of Yale University, with several signatures of well-known academics and ministers appended to it. 

Comments 
In our attempt to understand the true meaning of the Islamic greeting of 31 December, it is first necessary to reflect on the context of the initial “Common Word” message, taken from Surat Al-‘Imran. This Qur’anic passage sets forth what I would like to call “The Rules of Engagement” for Muslims when they dialogue with Christians. Dialogue with non-Muslims can only take place on the basis of the Islamic authoritative texts. Here are some Ayat of Surat Al-‘Imran, in Arberry’s Translation of the Qur’an:  

Say: 'People of the Book! Come now to a word common between us and you, that we serve none but God, and that we associate not aught with Him, and do not some of us take others as Lords, apart from God.’ And if they turn their backs, say: 'Bear witness that we are Muslims.’ V. 64 
No; Abraham in truth was not a Jew, neither a Christian; but he was a Muslim and one pure of faith; certainly he was never of the idolaters. V. 67 
People of the Book! Why do you disbelieve in God’s signs, which you yourselves witness? People of the Book! Why do you confound the truth with vanity, and conceal the truth and that wittingly? V. 70,71 
Whoso desires another religion than Islam, it shall not be accepted of him; in the next world he shall be among the losers. V.85 
Verse 85 in the Arabic original reads as follows:  “Waman yabtaghi ghayra’l Islami deenan, falan yuqbala minhu, wahua fil’akhirati min’al- khasereen.” 

It is clear that those Muslims who issued the invitation to dialogue, and adopted the term, “A Common Word” (Kalimaten sawa’en baynana wa-baynakom,) from the Qur’an, wanted to declare their complete adherence to the teachings of their sacred book. Furthermore, it must be noted that the tone of these texts from Chapter III is decidedly polemical. Christians are charged with the sin of shirk, i.e. in claiming that Allah had associates! Then they are exhorted to “serve none but God.” Thus, if Christians want to engage in dialogue with Muslims, they must first renounce their belief in the Trinity. 

Another Islamic requirement is to accept the authenticity of the Qur’anic version of Sacred History. This implies the rejection, for example, of the Biblical accounts of Abraham’s life. Thus verse 67 of Chapter III, categorically states: “ma kana Ibraheemu Yahudiyyan wala Nasraniyyan, walaken kana Hanifan Musliman …” (Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Nazarene, but he was a Hanif and a Muslim…) [Translation mine] 

Verses 70 and 71 address the Christians, as those who mix truth with vanity, and who refuse to believe in Allah’s signs. A pretty bad trait for those who are to dialogue with Muslims! 

Finally, the exclusivist nature of Islam is seen in verse 85: 
Waman yabtaghi ghayr’l Islami deenan, falan yuqbala minhu, wahua fil’akhirati min’al khasereen.”(He who seeks a religion other than Islam, that will not be acceptable of him, and at the Last Day, he will be among the Lost.) [Translation mine] 

Having dealt with the Qur’anic context of “A Common Word,” I turn to the contents of the 31 December “Message.” I find it very difficult to receive it as a bona fideSeason’s Greetings.” While its title seems genuine, as one proceeds to analyze its contents, it reveals expressions and views that are thoroughly alien to the history of Christianity as recorded in the Bible, a book that antedates the Qur’an by several centuries. 

For example, the reference to Jesus Christ is taken from the text of the Qur’an. It naively assumes that Christians would gladly accept it, rather than stick to the authentic accounts of the life of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament. These words from Surat Maryam 19:33, make Jesus say, “Peace is upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected.” It is rather ludicrous to quote from this chapter regarding Jesus Christ. Among other things it recounts a Mary who was alone under a palm tree, about to give birth to Jesus; who after he was born, addressed the critics of his mother for her supposedly immoral conduct, while yet a baby! Did those who drafted the “Message” really expect Christians to be that gullible and prefer that bizarre account, to the ones given in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke?! 

The “Message” continued, “We Muslims bear witness that: There is no god but God, without associate, and that Muhammad is Servant and Messenger, and that Jesus Christ is His Servant, His Messenger, His Word cast to Mary, and a Spirit from Him …(Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya’) 

All Christians (Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant,) subscribe to the doctrine of the Trinity, and the deity of Jesus Christ. Arabic-speaking Christians begin their prayers by invoking the name of God in this way: “Bismil Aab, wal Ibn, wal Ruh al Qodos, Ilah Wahed, Amen.” (In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God, Amen.” They would not regard it as a compliment, or a basis for dialogue, that Muslims consider Jesus Christ merely as “Servant, or as Messenger.” 

The “Muslim Message of Thanks and of Christmas and New Year Greetings,” was a genre of Islamic propaganda aimed at Western people. The drafters of the “Season’s Greetings” hoped that their attempt would bear fruit among Christians. After all, who should ignore at this time of the year, such a gesture of good will? Here are Muslims who publicly declare that they honor and recognize Jesus as a prophet, isn’t that great? But who is this Jesus they honor? He is certainly not the Jesus Christ whose birth Christians celebrated on the 25th day of December. He is a pale shadow of the Biblical Christ; in fact he is a pseudo-Messiah. He is the Messiah of Surat Maryam (19) that contains an intensive polemic against the historical and real Messiah of the Bible. 

I don’t know how many of the readers of the 31 December, 2007, Wall Street Journal, received at its face value the “Message of Thanks…” I guess some who have been impacted by political correctness, may have welcomed the message as an expression of good will, especially at this time when we are involved in wars within Islamic lands. But I certainly hope that other savvy readers, who have done their homework on the history and sacred texts of Islam, would have realized that the WSJ ad is contradicted by the concrete facts of history. Islam remains an imperialistic worldview, and has never surrendered its dream of world domination. This they keep on trying to accomplish, either by force, or by subterfuge!

Posted in Articles

Western Dhimmitude

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author: Jacob Thomas on Thursday, December 27, 2007

Nowadays, some Western scholars who deal with Islam behave like dhimmis. This is in sharp contrast with those 19th century European scholars who produced works of lasting value on Islam that were marked by objectivity and genuine scholarship.

I feel constrained to deal with the phenomenon of Western Dhimmitude having listened recently to a video clip of an interview with the Director of the Reconciliation Program, at Yale Divinity School. It dealt with Pope Benedict’s quoting of a 14th century Byzantine Emperor who had made a critical remark about Muhammad. The interview, dated 15 September, 2006, can be accessed at http://www.yale.edu/divinity/video/cumming_msnbc.shtml

In order to refresh the memory of the readers, and to place the interview in its proper context, I quote from Wikipedia, the following information about the controversy. 

On September 12, 2006, while lecturing on ‘Faith, Reason and the University’ at the University of Regensburg, where he was formerly a professor, Pope Benedict quoted the opinion of Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos, ‘Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.’ The Pope later explained that the remark was meant to compare early Muslim teaching on religious freedom with the later teaching on jihad, and was cited as part of a larger theological assertion, that ‘reason and faith go hand in hand, and that the concept of a holy war is always unreasonable, and against the nature of God, Muslim or Christian.’

“The Director of the Vatican press office, Federico Lombardi, explained the Pope's statement: ‘It was certainly not the intention of the Holy Father to undertake a comprehensive study of the jihad and of Muslim ideas on the subject, still less to offend the sensibilities of Muslim faithful. Quite the contrary, what emerges clearly from the Holy Father’s discourses is a warning, addressed to Western culture, to avoid 'the contempt for God and the cynicism that considers mockery of the sacred to be an exercise of freedom.'

“There were public protests, including violent ones in the West Bank where two churches were firebombed, over his comments in various countries in the subsequent days. There has been a death threat on the Pope since the lecture from a group linked to Al Qaeda.”

Three days after the Pope’s remarks, Dr. Joseph Cumming, Director of the Reconciliation Program, at Yale Divinity School was interviewed by MSNBC.

The interviewer asked: “Is it true that Islam was spread by the sword?  Can that be said of any other religion?”

The Director replied: “Well, it is certainly true that all religious faiths and secular ideologies use religion to justify violence.”  

I thought I was listening to a politician who was obfuscating in his response, not wanting to go on record regarding the role of the sword in the history of Islam. The listeners to the television news channel needed to know whether Islam was spread by the sword or through peaceful means. A sincere question required an honest answer. To say, “it is certainly true that all religious faiths and secular ideologies use religion to justify violence,” was not an answer.

To begin with, I would like to offer a contrast between the first three hundred years in the histories of Christianity and Islam. From A.D. 1 until around 310, Christians were persecuted by the Roman Empire. Jesus Christ was crucified during the rule of Pontius Pilate, the representative of Rome in Palestine. Peter and Paul, two leaders of the early Church were martyred during the reign of Emperor Nero. This mad ruler started the fire that burned Rome, blamed the Christians for it, and punished them with horrific acts of cruelty. Several waves of persecution followed during the second and third centuries; so that one of the Church Fathers coined the saying, “The Blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.”

In contrast, Islam did spread by the sword. Muhammad’s work in Mecca was not successful. So he moved to Medina, where he assumed the position of prophet and ruler. He led military campaigns against the Meccan caravans, and eventually entered Mecca as a triumphant ruler. After his death in 632, his successors launched the Futuhat (conquests) and managed to destroy the Persian Empire and parts of the Byzantine Empire. By 732, Muslims ruled lands stretching from India to Spain.

Furthermore, the response of Yale’s Director of its Reconciliation Program posited moral equivalence between Islam and the other major world religions. But history does not bear testimony to the veracity or accuracy of his claim. He should know better. I am not denying the fact that Christian nations were involved in building empires; and for centuries ruled many parts of the world. I grew up under French rule, attended French schools, and for some time, French was my primary language.

However, when we make judgments about religious faiths, we must begin by comparing the authoritative texts of these religions. Christ and his apostles clearly taught the distinction between God and Caesar, Church and State. Not so in Islam. From A. D. 622 (A. H. 1) religion and politics, “church” and state, became intertwined and inseparable in Islam.

At this point I would like to quote from my article, “Islamic Imperialism”: A Neglected Topic that appeared on the FFI website on 23 September, 2006. In that article I pointed to the fact that there was a “basic imperialistic impulse within Islam.” I quoted from a book by Professor Ephraim Karsh, (Head of the Mediterranean Studies Programme, King’s College, University of London,) ISLAMIC IMPERIALISM: A HISTORY. (Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2006)

In his Introduction, Professor Karsh contrasted Christianity with Islam:

“The worlds of Christianity and Islam, however, have developed differently in one fundamental respect. The Christian faith won over an existing empire in an extremely slow and painful process and its universalism was originally conceived in spiritual terms that made a clear distinction between God and Caesar. By the time it was embraced by the Byzantine emperors as a tool for buttressing their imperial claims, three centuries after its foundation, Christianity had in place a countervailing ecclesiastical institution with an abiding authority over the wills and actions of all believers. The birth of Islam, by contrast, was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Muhammad, who derived his authority directly from Allah and acted at one and the same time as head of the state and head of the church. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religious aura and to channel Islam’s energies into ‘its instruments of aggressive expansion, there [being] no internal organism of equal force to counterbalance it.” P. 5

In the Epilogue of Professor Karsh’s book, we read the following:

“Contrary to widespread assumptions, these attacks, [reference here is to 9/11/2001]

and for that matter Arab and Muslim, anti-Americanism, have little to do with US international behavior or its Middle Eastern policy. America’s position as the pre-eminent world power blocks Arab and Islamic imperialist aspirations. As such, it is a natural target for aggression. Osama bin Laden and other Islamists’s war is not against America per se, but is rather the most recent manifestation of the millenarian jihad for a universal Islamic empire (or umma). This is a vision by no means confined to an extremist fringe in Islam, as illustrated by the overwhelming support for the 9/11 attacks throughout the Arab and Islamic worlds.” P. 234 Emphasis is mine, JT

To go back to the comments of the Director of the Reconciliation Program at Yale Divinity School, I ask: why didn’t he give a straight answer to the question of the interviewer? As a member of a theological and academic faculty, has he forgotten that language is meant to reveal and not conceal the truth?

As a descendent of dhimmis who endured 1300 years of humiliation and persecution from the hands of the Muslim conquerors of the Levant, I know what it is to lead a life of a dhimmi, and the necessity to watch one’s words when uttering anything about Islam or its founder. But why should some Western scholars, who have studied Arabic and Islam, behave like dhimmis and avoid telling the truth about Islamic imperialism?

What leads Westerners to engage in camouflaging the true nature of Islam? Perhaps, it is their eagerness to be seen as engaged in an attempt to reconcile the West with Islam. But should that reconciliation require a re-writing of the histories of all non-Islamic faiths, while ignoring the fact that Islam has distinguished itself in the use of the sword in its expansion?

As long as Islam clings to the authority of the Qur’an, Hadith, and the Sunna of the Prophet, Islam remains as an exclusivist worldview. Its basic impulse or motif continues to be imperialistic. Its hegemony extends beyond the geographical sphere; as it appropriates the religious personages of the past from Adam to Jesus, by declaring them as proto-Muslims.

Islamic reconciliation with the rest of the world, will not take place thanks to the endeavors of some Western scholars’ wishful thinking, but only when the Muslim world recognizes that the Medinan Surahs of the Qur’an (that harbor the Ayat al-Sayf, the Sword Texts) are no longer normative in our globalized world. Until that day, Islam remains a religion of the word and the sword. If you don’t believe that, just glance at the flag of Saudi Arabia, with the words: La Ilaha illa’llah, Muhammad Rasool Allah, superimposed over two swords, and tell me what those symbols mean.

http://www.news.faithfreedom.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1670

Posted in Articles

Anxious for Dhimmitude

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

By Mark D. Tooley 
FrontPageMagazine.com | 10/18/2007

A large group of senior Islamic clerics and teachers has recently issued “A Common Word Between Us and You,” a statement addressed to churches urging greater comity between Muslims and Christians. The clerics unapologetically espouse Muslim teachings, while asserting there is common theological ground between the two faiths. The Vatican and some conservative Protestants have commented that the Muslim outreach merits a thoughtful response.

But the Religious Left, always anxious to burnish its multicultural credentials, has responded to “Common Word” with enthusiasm.

The National Council of Churches’ (NCC) top (though outgoing) interfaith official hailed the Islamic outreach, saying it will fuel the “urgency” of the NCC’s own Muslim-Christian dialogue. Part of the NCC’s own interfaith ministry, as Shanta Premawardhana described it, is standing “in solidarity with Muslims at a time when many Muslims in the United States faced significant levels of discrimination,” post 9-11.

Premawardhana thanked the Muslim clerics and scholars for speaking out against Muslim “extremists.” Similarly, he boasted, the NCC is trying to “counter the voices of extremist Christians with initiatives aimed at teaching Christians about Islam and helping churches build relationships with mosques in their local communities," Premawardhana added.

Actually, “Common Word” did not criticize Muslim “extremists.” Nor did it attempt to modify Islamic teachings that demand that non-Muslims live in subordination to Islamic authority in majority Muslim societies. But it did call for non-violent interaction between Muslims and Christians, and it actually speaks of “freedom of religion.” This makes it “moderate.”

Perhaps an even more effusive reaction to “Common Word” was a quickly organized but lengthy statement from Ivy League seminary scholars, who were “deeply encouraged and challenged” by the Muslim outreach. They titled their piece “Loving God and Neighbor Together,” dedicated it, in typical seminary speak, to the “Infinitely Good God whom we should love with all our being.”

“We receive ‘A Common Word as a Muslim hand of conviviality and cooperation extended to Christians world-wide,” the academics enthused. “In this response we extend our own Christian hand in return, so that together with all other human beings we may live in peace and justice as we seek to love and our neighbors.”

The Ivy League seminary professors included with every reference to Jesus Christ a “Peace be Upon Him,” in a wan attempt to show the Muslims how attuned they are to Islamic lingo. No doubt the Islamic scholars will be impressed.

And the Ivy Leaguers opened their manifesto with apologies for Christianity’s perceived sins against Islam. “We want to begin by acknowledging that in the past (e.g. the Crusades) and in the present (e.g. the war in Iraq) Christians have been guilty of sinning against our Muslim neighbors.”

Naturally, the Ivy Leaguers want the Muslims’ forgiveness for all of Christianity’s countless outrages. “Before we ‘shake your hand’ in responding to your letter, we ask forgiveness of the All-Merciful One and of the Muslim community around the world.”

The “Common Word,” unlike the left-wing Western religious response to it, carefully avoided political statements. There is no mention of Iraq, or the Palestinians, or even of the Crusades. No apologies are offered for any of Islam’s historic depredations, nor did the Islamic clerics request any apologies from their Christian audience. But the Religious Left, when conversing with perceived victims of the Christian West, is always anxious to extend remorse.

The Ivy Leaguers also took some other political swipes, warning against serving “idols” such as a “ruler, a nation, [or] economic progress,” which leads to “deep and deadly conflicts.” The professors commended the Muslim clerics & scholars for their “generosity” and courage.

“It is with humility and hope that we receive your generous letter, and we commit ourselves to labor together in heart, soul, mind and strength for the objectives you so appropriately propose,” the Ivy Leaguers concluded portentously, sounding like a sad caricature of the Founding Fathers.

The Ivy League signers of “Loving god and Neighbor Together” included the dean of Yale Divinity School, the president of Princeton Theological Seminary, the dean of Harvard Divinity School, and several seminary professors from those schools.

Unlike the responses from the NCC and the Ivy Leaguers, the Muslim statement definitively asserted Islamic beliefs about Allah, about Muhammad as his only Prophet, about the authority of the Koran, and about divine judgment. Neither the NCC nor the academics appeared to be anywhere near as resolute in presenting Christian doctrines about God, Jesus Christ, the Bible, and the end times.

If the Muslim scholars behind “Common Word” do not already know it, they will soon learn: left-wing clerics and scholars in the West often will not talk about much less defend Christian theology because they themselves do not believe in its historic doctrines. For them, Christianity is mostly just a vessel through which the goals of the political Left can advance.

In dialogues with Muslims, the Religious Left wants to apologize for Christianity and form common alliances against traditional Christians and Jews, while also denouncing various foreign and military policies of the U.S. No doubt, many “Common Word” Muslim scholars and clerics will be glad to indulge this. But if they are looking for substantive exchanges over theological differences between Christianity and Islam, they will have to look elsewhere.


Mark D. Tooley directs the United Methodist committee at the Institute on Religion and Democracy.

Posted in Articles

Islam's Peace Offensive

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

By Stephen Brown and Jamie Glazov 
FrontPageMagazine.com | 10/16/2007

In a move eerily reminiscent of the Soviet “peace offensives”, 138 leading Muslim scholars have composed a letter to Christianity’s leaders, with Pope Benedict’s name heading the list, requesting a meeting to discuss the “common essentials of our two religions.” The authors warn that “the survival of the world” is at stake if the two religions do not make peace, which, the Muslim authors believe, is possible since the basis of Islam and Christianity is “the two commandments of love.” 

While it is at least admirable that these learned representatives of Islam acknowledge that their religion is at war with Christianity (since much of the Christian world is in denial), the main sticking point, the letter makes clear, is the aggressive nature of Christianity. The Muslim scholars emphasize that: “As Muslims, we say to Christians that we are not against them and that Islam is not against them - so long as they do not wage war against Muslims on account of their religion, oppress them and drive them out of their homes.” 

The problem with this theme, however, is that the religious believers being oppressed and driven out of their homes in the world today are Christians, and other non-Muslims, who find themselves trapped under Muslim rule. It is not surprising that the Muslim scholars’ “peace” letter nowhere mentions the murder of Palestinian Christian Rami Ayyad, who was recently abducted, tortured and murdered in Gaza City. Six months earlier, a bomb had destroyed his Christian bookstore, the Holy Bible Society. Ayyad’s murder and the bombing of his bookstore are consistent with the pattern of barbaric violence that is being carried out by Muslims against Christians in the Gaza strip today, particularly by a jihadist group that calls itself “The Righteous Swords of Islam.” 

Christians living under the Palestinian Authority are habitually brutalized and must now practice their religion in secret. Hamas is planning to enforce the jizya, the special tax mandated by the Qur’an (9:29) for Jews and Christians. Christian women, meanwhile, must veil themselves or face dire consequences. A few years ago, members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades shot dead two Christian women for not wearing the Islamic veil. The Muslim group explained: “We wanted to clean the Palestinian house of prostitutes.”  

It is no wonder then that a mass exodus of Christians is occurring under the Palestinian Authority - just as has been the case almost everywhere where Christians have been trapped under Islamic rule. Bethlehem used to be 85 per cent Christian sixty years ago. Today, after decades of Muslim persecution, Christian believers in one of Christianity’s most holy sites comprise only 15 per cent of the population. 

In Iraq, meanwhile, Christians are the victims of a reign of terror being waged by Muslims – a tragedy epitomized by the murder of Syrian Orthodox priest, Fr. Boulos Iskander, by Muslims in the Iraqi city of Mosul. To be sure, Rami Ayyad’s and Fr. Iskander’s tragic fates represent the victimization of all Christians, everywhere from Egypt to Pakistan and from Sudan to Nigeria, at the hands of Muslims. Christians in these Islamic settings suffer constant discrimination, harassment and persecution. 

In the context of these ugly realities, the question must be asked: why did the Muslim authors of the “peace” letter not mention these ingredients of Muslim-Christian “relations”? Why did they not condemn the persecution of Christians by Muslims and denounce the teachings on which this persecution is based? Why did they not acknowledge that it is Muslims, not Christians, who are killing other Muslims and driving them out of their homes today? For instance, the United Nations calls Darfur the worst human rights situation in the world today. It is a place where Muslims have killed about 300,000 of their fellow Muslims. And the worst case of war being waged against Muslims on account of their religion exists between Shiites and Sunnis—who slaughter each other off in Islamic countries like Iraq and Pakistan in the thousands. Al Qaeda and its extremist allies are no slackers when it comes to killing Muslims, the Algerian civil war being a good example. Oppression and honor murders of Muslim women in both Islamic and western countries are also not committed by Christians and peoples of other faiths. It is Muslim men who oppress them, not just driving them out of their homes, but also throwing them to their deaths over the balconies of their domiciles. Why did the Muslim authors of the “peace” letter not mention these facts? 

If the Muslim authors of the “peace” letter truly wanted to make peace with Christians, one would also think that their letter would have contained a categorical rejection of traditional Islamic law that mandates the death penalty for any Muslim who leaves Islam, in accordance with Muhammad’s command: “Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him.” Indeed, this is still the position of all the schools of Islamic jurisprudence. Thus, Muslims who have converted to Christianity have suffered—and continue to suffer—vicious persecution all over the Islamic world. Christianity, meanwhile, has no equivalent of such a teaching and Christians are free all around the world to convert to the religion of their choosing—including to Islam without a fear for their lives. 

It is also curious: why did the Muslim authors not include a condemnation of Sura 9:29 of the Qur’an, which commands Muslims to fight Jews and Christians until they “pay the jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued”? 

At the same time, why did they also not renounce the imperative in Islam to subjugate the world under the rule of Islamic law, which is deeply embedded within Islamic theology (see Qur’an 9:29, discussed above; Sahih Muslim 4294; and a host of other evidence from all the Sunni madhahib and Shi’ite sources as well). Indeed, all the schools of Islamic jurisprudence teach that it is part of the responsibility of the umma to subjugate the non-Muslim world through jihad. Muslims waging jihad against the West perpetually justify their acts on the basis of what they read in the Qur’an. If Islam and Christianity are truly to exist peacefully, isn’t it vital that this reality be dealt with by Muslims who want true peace with Christianity? 

If the Muslim authors of the letter truly wanted peace, one would also think that they would have mentioned and repudiated Qur’an 5:17, which says that those who believe in the divinity of Christ are unbelievers, or 4:171, which says that Jesus was not crucified, or 9:30, which says that those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God are accursed. One would think they would know it is common sense that renouncing these teachings is a mandatory stepping stone to better relations with Christians. 

Overall, the main issue ignored by this letter is that it is the Christian West that has shown its tolerance and respect for the Muslim religion by allowing millions of its adherents to immigrate here, to build their mosques and religious schools (sometimes with taxpayers’ money), proselytize and practice their faith unmolested, protected by scores of laws and human rights codes. Which begs the question: if Christianity was so aggressive and thought itself at war with Islam, why would it allow millions of the enemy’s followers to settle within its borders? Church leaders in Muslim countries would be overjoyed to enjoy just a slight percentage of the freedoms and legal protections granted to Islam in western countries. And what has the West received in return for its tolerance? The attacks of 9/11, the Paris riots, the Madrid and London bombings, and countless other thwarted terrorist attacks – not to mention “peace” letters accusing it of an exterminating aggression. 

The Muslim “peace” letter and its calling of a Christian-Muslim peace conference reminds one of the old Soviet practices of always claiming victim status and talking peace while waging war around the world—and at home against its own people. And the Soviets always approached peace talks with the one-way street attitude: what’s ours is ours; what’s yours is negotiable. Even from the theological point of view, the Bishop of Rochester in England, Pakistani-born Dr. Nazir-Ali, says that the Muslim scholars’ letter “seems to verge” on dictating “the terms on which the dialogue must be conducted.” Again, that manipulative, one-way street approach. 

Before any “peace talks” are held, it would be wise—and fair - for the Muslim scholars to prove their sincerity in desiring real peace and tolerance between the two religions. They must unequivocally condemn the terrorism committed in the name of Islam; they must renounce violent jihad and dhimmitude as obstacles to peace; they must renounce the more offensive parts of Sharia law, such as slavery and discriminatory laws against women and non-Muslims; and they must call for the end of all restrictions on minority religions in Islamic countries. If these Muslim scholars signed a letter supporting the building of Christian churches, even just one, in places such as Saudi Arabia, then one could believe their desire for peace was genuine. 

But if these things are not done, then the peace “letter” of the Muslim scholars can be seen to be what it really is: a passive-aggressive, disingenuous, Soviet-style tactic to psychologically disarm the enemy in a larger war that these learned Muslims admit their religion is already waging.


Stephen Brown is a columnist for Frontpagemag.com. Jamie Glazov is the managing editor of Frontpagemag.com.
Posted in Articles

A New Minority in North Africa

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

The Maghrebi Christians under the Rule of Islamists

By Jacob Thomas

On 14 April, 2007, FFI posted my article where I commented on a paper that was read at the “Conference on the Plight of Minorities and Women in the Middle East and North Africa.” The conference was held in Zurich, Switzerland, between 24 and 26 March, 2007. The paper’s title was: “Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun: (The Muslim Brotherhood) Source of the Persecution of the Minorities and Women.”

Another subject that came up at the Zurich Conference was the status of Maghrebi* Christians, a topic that is seldom mentioned, or discussed in Arab publications. The title of the paper was: “Masihiyyou al-Maghreb fi Hukm al-Islamiyyin.” (The Maghrebi Christians under the Rule of Islamists.) It was posted on the online daily, Elaph, on 10 April, 2007. The following is a translation of the text, followed by my analysis and comments.

“The region known nowadays as the Arab Maghreb (North Africa) was, up to the 7th Century, inhabited by Jewish and Christian people. Later on, they converted to Islam. During the 19th Century, they stood firm against all attempts of Christian evangelism. However, a new phenomenon has surfaced during the last few decades, namely the embracing of the Christian faith by North Africans. This fact raises several questions as to the importance of these conversions, their causes, and the dangers that threaten this minority of “New Christians.”

First, we deal with the New Christians’ phenomenon throughout the Arab Maghreb

  1. The Rise of this Phenomenon

“In a sense, this phenomenon is not restricted to the Arab Maghreb, as there are indications that a number of Muslims are embracing Christianity throughout all the continents, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and in Asia. As to the Arab Maghreb, this phenomenon has drawn the attention of the media. For example, the weekly journal, Jeune Afrique, devoted three reports on this subject with respect to Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. In March 2005, the French daily Le Monde, devoted a complete report about this topic. And Al-‘Arabiyya TV channel telecast two reports on the subject that were recorded in the Kabyle region of Algeria.

“Jeune Afrique estimates the number of people who have embraced Christianity in Tunisia to be around 500, belonging to three churches. A report on the website of “Al-Islam al-Yawm” prepared by Lidriss el-Kenbouri, dated 23 April 2005, estimated the number of European evangelists in Morocco, around 800. Quite often, their evangelistic efforts are successful. The report further added that about 1,000 Moroccans have left Islam during 2004. The magazine “Al-Majalla” in its No. 1394 issue, claimed that the number of New Christians in Morocco is around 7,000; perhaps the exact number may be as high as 30,000.

“The report in the French daily Le Monde claimed that during 1992, between 4,000 and 6,000 Algerians embraced Christianity in the Kabyle region. By now, their numbers may be in the tens of thousands. However, the authorities are mum about this subject; as an Algerian government official put it, the number of those who have embraced Christianity is a state secret.

  1. The Most Important Factors for Conversions to Christianity

“First factor: The violence of the fundamentalist Islamist movements.

“In a statement by a former member of the Algerian Nahda Movement ** made to Jeune Afrique: ‘I observed that during my imprisonment, there was no difference between the police’s treatment and that of the Nahda.’ This factor played a greater role in Algeria in the aftermath of the terrible massacres that began in 1992. A Christian evangelist working in Algeria said: ‘These terrible events shocked people greatly. It proved that Islam was capable of unleashing all that terror, and all those massacres! Even children were not spared during the uprising of the Islamists! Women were raped! Many people began to ask: ‘Where is Allah?’ Some Algerians committed suicide! Others lost their minds; others became atheists, and still others chose the Messiah!’

“Second Factor: The failure of the political regimes.

“According to Sebastian Fateh, of the National Center for Scientific Research in France, the Maghrebi states tried to apply, during the last four decades, various political regimes, such as nationalistic, Islamists, and dictatorial types. Thus, the embracing of Christianity by people of the region represents another attempt to discover the proper regime; since all the previous ones had failed.

“Third Factor: The religious training within the family.

“The report of “Al-Majalla” mentioned above, included the testimony of a young Moroccan woman who embraced Christianity: ‘Our father used to order us to pray and read the Qur’an; when we disobeyed that command, he punished us with beatings. He told us that if we refused to wear the hijab, we would suffer in hell.’

“According to her testimony, this young woman’s relation with Allah was devoid of love. A Christian Moroccan aged 30, involved in spreading his faith declared: ‘Many of us regard Islam as a social fetter, a shackle, or a handicap.’

“Undoubtedly, the religious education offered in Muslim countries depicts a sadistic and fearful view of Allah, whose punishments are severe. He must not be questioned about what He does; only his followers are questioned about their acts. No doubt that the horrific massacres perpetrated by the Islamists in Algeria, did contribute to the success of the evangelistic work both in Algeria, and in the surrounding countries. But why are people choosing specifically Christianity?

“Fourth Factor: The geographical and linguistic factors have played an important role in the conversion of Maghrebi people to Christianity.

“This is especially the case with France which has welcomed many Maghrebi immigrants. We should not forget the existence of Christian churches in some of the big cities of North Africa, nor the impact of five Christian satellite TV stations that telecast their programs in Arabic. The young Moroccan evangelist estimates that personal contacts are responsible for 60% of conversions; while the role of the Internet is around 30%, while those who embraced Christianity through the work of foreign missionaries tends to be around 10%

“Quite often, the “New Christians” testify to the fact that what they discovered in their new faith is love; it was the major factor in their conversion. These are some of their words:

‘We found out that in Christianity, God is love,’ ‘God loves all people;’ ‘What attracted us to Christianity is the teaching that God is love.’

“Second, what is of concern for us at the Zurich ‘Conference for the Defense of Minorities’ in our part of the world, is the danger surrounding these New Christians, a danger that will increase should the Islamists assume power in North Africa.

           3. The Present Danger:

“Even though the various constitutions of the Maghrebi states guarantee religious freedom and the fact that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Section 18) supports freedom of belief; New Christians do face serious dangers due to the fatwas prescribing severe punishments for the sin of “radda” (apostasy). Actually such fatwas are being issued by the Islamists. Here we may refer to the Algerian Front Islamique du Salut FIS, and the Moroccan Justice and Development Party, as well as the Justice and Benevolence Movement, all clamoring for the application of the Medieval Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) with respect to the sin of apostasy. Their pronouncements may lead some crazy person to take it upon himself to punish apostates with the ultimate penalty, namely the shedding of their blood. In this respect, we should not forget the law passed by the Algerian Parliament on 20 March 2006 requiring the punishment of any person ‘who makes, holds, or distributes any pamphlets, audio or video cassettes, or any other method that aims at shaking people’s faith in Islam.’

            4. The Future Danger when Islamists assume power in North Africa.

“The greatest danger will be faced should the Islamists take over governments. This danger already exists in Morocco, where opinion polls indicate that the Justice and Development Party is expected to win the elections planned for the latter part of this year. In that case, it would not be beyond the realm of the possible that terrible massacres will take place when thousands of those who had voluntarily converted to Christianity, would lose their lives, notwithstanding the existence of  Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that guarantees freedom of belief. A former Algerian government official warned that the future wars in the Arab Maghreb will be “Huroub al-Radda”*** (Wars against the Apostates), i.e. wars between Islamists and those Maghrebi Muslims who had left Islam.

“Taking the above into consideration, I believe that it is of utmost importance that the ‘Organization for the Defense of Minorities’ that would come out of the Zurich Conference, should adopt the cause of our brothers in humanity. It is necessary that we invite representatives from these groups in North Africa to join our new-born organization. We should cooperate with Arab and international organizations dedicated to the defense of human rights, and lend our support for this North African religious minority. These new Christians are facing dangers coming from those fundamentalist North African movements whose actions have taught us that they do not hesitate at committing the ugliest crimes. We should never forget that FIS

(Islamic Salvation Front) filled the streets, valleys, and mountains of Algeria during the 1990s, with blood and corpses. In the same way, Moroccan Islamists are following the footsteps of the Algerian radicals, committing crimes against the security forces, tourists, members of the Jewish community, and students. This is why we must remain on our guard!”

Analysis

The purpose of the paper was to draw the attention of the conferees to the existence of a new minority in North Africa that deserves recognition and protection. While the Islamic Shari’a allows for the existence of Jews and Christians within Daru’l Islam by granting them the dhimmi status, the same law prohibits radda (apostasy), and punishes a murtad (apostate) with death.

Comments

This paper about Maghrebi converts to Christianity is of great significance. Muslims never cease to boast about converts to Islam from other world faiths, but they are loathe to acknowledge that some of their own faith do leave it, either to embrace a no-faith worldview, or to become members of another religion. The tradition that began immediately after Muhammad’s death in 632, and which forced Arab tribes who had gone back on Islam to return to Islam, is still in force fourteen centuries later.

The deep reason for forbidding radda is to maintain the very raison d’etre of Islam. Muhammad declared himself to be the last prophet of Allah. Therefore, there could be no new prophet to supersede him; nor could the previous revelations given to the prophets that preceded him be considered as authentic; since as Muslims contend, they have all been corrupted. Islam remains the only true religion, and Muslims must never consider leaving their faith, for the sin of apostasy is just as serious as the sin of shirk (belief in many gods.)

However strict the laws of apostasy may be, the fact is that some Muslims are converting to Christianity. This is not propaganda emanating from the Christian side. The paper I quoted above made it clear that these conversions are taking place, and gave anecdotal accounts about the reality of these conversions, based on Arab and non-Christian sources.

Most of the testimonies of the converts pointed to the fact that what attracted them to the Christian faith was something that was totally lacking in their own tradition. Allah seemed to be unconcerned about his creatures; all he demanded was blind obedience. They craved for love, and they discovered that message in the Christian faith. That’s the summary reason for their conversion.

In reflecting on the report given at the Zurich Conference, I could not help noticing this total lack of quid pro quo that exists between Islam and the rest of the world. Muslims living within traditionally non-Muslim lands, enjoy total freedoms of worship and proselytizing. They build mosques everywhere, and engage in aggressive da’wa (calling people to Islamize.) And when non-Muslims embrace al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem (the Right Path=Islam), they broadcast that on all types of media. On the other hand, dhimmis in the lands of their ancestors, are not allowed to build new churches, and are forbidden to propagate their faith outside their own people! And woe unto any Muslim who considers embracing a religion other than Islam. After all, the Holy Book declares: “Inna’l Deena ‘inda’l Allahi al-Islam.”  “Certainly the only acceptable religion with Allah is Islam.” [3:19]

The relation between Islam and the rest of the world is marked by asymmetry. Muslims may and do enjoy all kinds of freedoms and privileges in the lands of the Kuffar; however non-Muslims are not granted the same rights and privileges when they live in Daru’l Islam. Western politicians don’t seem to notice this anomaly; while most Western academicians don’t appear concerned about this lack of quid pro quo in the Islamic world. In our globalized world, this state of affairs should not continue. The existence of these New Christians of North Africa must be acknowledged; they need our love and our concern. We should not allow them to be eliminated, if the Islamists succeed in taking over the governments in Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. 

*Maghreb: Derived from the Arabic noun that denotes the Western regions of the Arab world, in contrast with Mashreq, or Eastern regions of the Arab world. In contemporary Arabic, Maghreb signifies North Africa, while Mashreq has been replaced by the term Al-Sharq al-Awsat (Middle East) Maghrebi: the Arabic adjective that refers to North Africans in general, and specifically to Moroccans.

** Nahda: Arabic for Awakening; in Algeria, it is the name of an Islamist group.

***Huroub al-Radda: This is a reference to the wars against those Arab tribes who defected from Islam, after the death of Muhammad in 632 A.D. The first Caliph, Abu Bakr launched several campaigns against them, and forced them to return to Islam. Huroub is the plural of Harb (war); Radda is the Arabic term for going back (on Islam) i.e. committing the sin of apostasy. The word for apostate is murtad.

Posted in Articles

Why Don't The Christians Learn from the Jewish Experience?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

“Limadha la Yastafid al-Masihiyyun min Tajribat al-Yahud ?”

 

Author: Jacob Thomas on Friday, November 02, 2007

Lately, several articles have appeared in the online Arabic daily Elaph, dealing with the plight of the Christians living in the Arab world. Western media don’t focus their attention on this topic when they report on the Middle East, since they are preoccupied with the war in Iraq, and Iran’s attempt to develop nuclear weapons. Without minimizing the importance of these subjects, the status of Middle East Christians deserves the attention of the world. So, I was very pleased with the fact that some Arab writers have turned their attention to the worsening conditions of Mideastern Christians who are the remnants of the original inhabitants of the area.

On Friday, 26 October, 2007, I noticed an article in Elaph, with this intriguing title, “Why Don’t Christians Learn from the Jewish Experience?” Let me share with you excerpts from the article, followed by my analysis and comments.

The author began with these introductory remarks:

“In a previous article, I discussed the difficulties facing the life of Christians in the Arab world. I suggested that a realistic solution to their problem would require a mass migration of these Christians to Western countries. Several Christians objected to my proposal, but offered no realistic alternative toward the solution of the problem. They expressed the hope that somehow, coexistence between Muslims and Christian in the Arab world, would someday materialize.

“In this article, I would like to pose this question: ‘Why don’t Christians learn from the experience of the Jews who lived in the Arab world?’ They patiently endured religious persecution and racial discrimination; without expecting a change in their political situation, or the rise of a spirit of tolerance and coexistence. The Jews paid a heavy price for their patience: they were persecuted, oppressed, lost their properties and their citizenship in the Arab countries.

“When we consider the prevailing social, political, and religious conditions in the Arab world, how can Christians expect, in the near future, a complete change in their situation? Do they really look forward to the time when some of them would get nominated for high office in the Arab world, or be elected to such positions as prime minister, or president of the republic, with Muslim citizens voting for them?!

“Do Christians expect Shi’ites and Sunnis to be reconciled; thus reflecting the emergence of a new spirit of inter-communal tolerance?! Do they anticipate a change in the Islamic fiqh (jurisprudence) which is the source of the doctrinal and psychological barriers between Muslims and followers of other religions?!

“Unfortunately, there are no indications of the possibility of liberating Arab societies from their inherited backwardness. Discrimination exists even within members of the same family; fanaticism and intolerance begin at the tribal level, and then proceed to the ethnic, regional, and confessional levels. Religious extremism and fanaticism result from these perverted societal and psychological structures that have produced an irrational religious mind, marked by a lack of openness to the “Other.”

“How unfortunate then that many Christians, when they attack Irhab (terrorism) and fanaticism, attack at the same time, the very source of Islamic doctrines by denying their divine origin, considering them merely the human thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad. They fall into the same trap of fanaticism by assailing the beliefs of others.”

Analysis

The author described the difficulties that attend the lives of Christians in the Arab world, and proceeded to ask, “Why Don’t Christians Learn from the Jewish Experience?” This experience has been marked by religious persecution, ending with the Jews losing their properties, and their citizenship. He refrained from telling the whole story that after the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, almost the entire Jewish population in the Middle East had to leave their ancestral homes, and find refuge in Israel, Europe, and the Americas.

Comments

At first, I was very intrigued by the title of the article. I thought the author must have had in mind a worthwhile lesson that Christians living in the Arab world would learn from the experience of the Jewish people. So, what was that lesson that Christians should learn? Is it that the Jews of the Arab world had suffered a great deal since the rise of Islam? But so did the Christians. Both were labeled as “dhimmis” by the Islamic conquerors; they were tolerated within the Islamic Umma as long as they behaved properly, and paid the Jizya tax according to the Qur’anic prescription, ‘an yaden wahum saghirun.*

Actually, the lesson our author wanted Christians to learn was to pick up and leave their homelands or convert to Islam. It’s a recipe for a voluntary ethnic and religious cleansing. Why this drastic solution? Well, Arab Christians should not be naïve and expect Muslims to change their minds, and accept them as equals in rights and responsibilities. As he put it, a realistic solution to their problem would require a mass migration of these Christians to Western countries.” What a solution! To uproot around 15 million people whose roots in Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Egypt, go back to more than three millennia?  While I appreciate the author’s honest description of the awful plight of the Christians in the Arab world, I am terribly shocked by his surrealistic proposal!

Another disappointing part of the article was the last paragraph, where the author blamed some Christians for their intolerance. “How unfortunate it is that many Christians, who attack Irhab and fanaticism, attack at the same time the very source of Islamic doctrines by denying their divine origin, and consider them as merely the human thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad. Thus, they fall in the same trap of fanaticism by assailing the beliefs of others.” 

I am not aware that Christians living in the Arab world openly engage in polemics against Islam. They know better than to do that. On the other hand, does he expect these Christian communities, after enduring 1400 years of marginalization and persecution, to forsake their allegiance to their Christian faith? To accede to his advice and accept the “sources of Islamic doctrine” as being of “divine origin,” would amount to becoming Muslims?! All that remains for them to formalize their conversion would be to utter the “Shahada.”

As a Levantine Christian, I have always keenly felt that what bothers our fellow Arabic-speaking Muslims is the fact that, even after fourteen centuries, we still cling tenaciously to our faith. It’s hard for them to comprehend that while our ancestors finally Arabized, nevertheless, we did not Islamize. Arabic-speaking Christians must be terribly stubborn, unwilling to accept Islam as God’s last message to mankind! It is too bad that Muslims cannot understand the reason for our “stubbornness!”

So, my response to the advice of the author of the article is: “No thanks, we will stay in our homelands; and while some of our people have reluctantly settled in the West, we will never contemplate a mass exodus from the lands of our fathers.”

* In Surah 9:29 of the Qur’an, we read the following about the Jizya tax:

“Fight those who believe not in Allah, nor the Last Day, nor hold forbidden that which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued”

The Arabic original of “with willing submission and feel themselves subdued” is: ‘an yaden wahum saghirun.’ “saghirun” literally means “diminishing themselves” or “acting with utter submissiveness” vis-à-vis their Muslim masters!

Posted in Articles

Saying No To Moral Equivalence

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Notwithstanding the mounting evidence regarding the aggressive nature of Islam, some Western writers claim that not only Islam, but Judaism and Christianity as well, have violent elements in their respective traditions, and have engaged in violence throughout their history. This position, derived from the prevailing climate of political correctness, became evident recently in an Interview aired by Cable TV station, C-Span2, on Sunday, September 16,  2007.

Raymond Ibrahim, editor and translator of “The Al Qaeda Reader” was interviewed by Lawrence Wright, a staff writer at the New Yorker, and author of “The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11.”

As I watched the interview, Raymond Ibrahim appeared as a budding scholar and an expert on Islam, its history, and its sacred texts. He spoke with an authority that comes from one who has done his homework in the most exacting way. Furthermore, he demonstrated a good knowledge of the Christian faith, its history and theology. Here are some points of the interview based on the notes I took while watching the telecast.

Lawrence Wright began by asking him about his interest in the subject. He responded that while he was studying at California State University, his research dealt with the battle of Yarmouk which took place in southern Syria in 636 A.D., four years after the death of Muhammad. That battle was the first major encounter between Islam and Christianity, and resulted in the loss of the Syrian province of the Byzantine Empire. It became a “role model” for the Islamic futuhat (conquests) and an integral part of its theology throughout history.

The interview then turned to al-Qaeda’s ideology. When it first surfaced, this organization had a list of grievances, such as the presence of U.S. forces on Saudi soil during the early 1990s in preparation for the liberation of Kuwait, Western humiliation of the Muslim world, and the creation of State of Israel.

Raymond Ibrahim remarked that when Osama Ben Laden and Ayman Zawahiri address the West, they use a different set of arguments and pronouncements than when they write for a specifically Muslim audience in Saudi Arabia. For example, when a number of Saudi religious scholars wrote a document addressed to the West entitled “How We Can Co-exist” they were severely criticized by Ben Laden, and charged as having “prostrated to the West.”

Then Wright turned to the subject of Israel. Mr. Ibrahim stated that even if Israel ceased to exist, Islamic antagonism towards Christians and Jews would not stop. He referred to the early history of Islam where the Jews stood condemned. He quoted Chapter 9:29 from the Qur’an as a proof that Jews, as dhimmis, must submit to Islamic authority. “Fight against those who (1) believe not in Allâh, (2) nor in the Last Day, (3) nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allâh and His Messenger (4) and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth (i.e. Islâm) among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.”  Ibrahim concluded his comment on this text by saying that the teaching of this verse “has been codified in the Islamic Shariah Law.”

At this point Lawrence Wright commented: “All religions have their fundamentalists and tend to have radicals who interpret the sacred texts in a literalistic way, thus giving rise to violence. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, all have had their share of violence.”

Raymond Ibrahim disagreed. He said that we must differentiate between the teachings of these religions, and the actions of their followers. Islam has its violent sacred texts enshrined in the Qur’an, the Hadith, and the Sunna. When the doctrine of abrogation is applied in the exegesis of the Qur’an, the violent texts of the Medinan Surahs that ‘descended’ between 622 and 632 abrogate the more peaceful texts of the Meccan Surahs that date from 610 to 622.

Mr. Ibrahim added that while Christians have been involved in violence across the centuries, it does not follow that their sacred texts can be charged with aggressive teachings. He said that the Christian sacred texts “advocate passivity and are metaphysical.”  I presume he meant by “metaphysical” the eschatological elements of the Christian religion. And while the Old Testament records some violent acts such as in the conquest of the Land of Promise, that was only for a specific period in Old Testament history. Raymond asserted that Judaism did not codify violence in its laws, and does not have a worldview that advocates the conquest of whole world.

It was very perceptive of Raymond Ibrahim to respond to the attempts of Mr. Wright who sought to paint Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, with the same brush. He insisted that violence is part and parcel of the official and unchanging teachings of the Qur’an. He quoted this well-known verse (among Muslims) from Chapter 9, verse 111, of the Qur’an:

“Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the Law, the Gospel, and the Qur’an.”

Lawrence Wright persisted in his claim that violence and extremism are universal, as in the activities of the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, and in the behavior of the Japanese pilots during WWII. Raymond disagreed; he explained that the Japanese were following an ideology which has been discredited after the war. As for the Tamil Tigers, their motivation was not religious. He pointed to a very important distinction that must be made between ideologies and theologies. Ideologies are man-made and their life-span can be relatively short; whereas theologies are based on authoritative sacred texts, and possess a long life. According to Islamic theology, the Qur’an is held to be God’s very word, is immutable, and valid in all time and space. Even moderate Muslims, who don’t engage in violence, agree with the worldview of the radicals as to the continuing validity of Jihad.

Mr. Wright continued his argument which tended to further confuse the issue, by saying that “every religion has contradictions.” Some literalist Jews, he said, would like to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. Fundamentalist Christians, he claimed, would like to bring about the Apocalypse. But as Raymond retorted, there is no New Testament teaching about the rebuilding of the Temple. He also insisted that we must always distinguish between what Christians say and do, and what their sacred text teaches. It is the Islamic authoritative texts that advocate violence. Not only so, but in Islam, the consensus of the ‘Ulema, or religious scholars, constitutes another source of teaching for the Umma. It is this belief that gave birth to the Islamic worldview which divides the world into two distinct realms: Daru’l Islam and Daru’l Harb (Household of Islam and Household of War.)

The above belief, whether articulated or not, was behind all the Islamic violence and futuhat, beginning with the 7th century and down to the 17th century. All these conquests were done as a Jihad fi Sabeel Allah, i.e. War in the Pathway of Allah. Raymond Ibrahim referred to the little known Houroob al-Radda, i.e. the Wars of Apostasy. They took place soon after the death of the Prophet in 632, when many Arabian tribes left Islam, and returned to their former faiths. Abu Bakr, the first caliph, waged war against them, and violently forced them to return to Islam.

Lawrence Wright continued to paint an attractive portrait of Islamic history by referring to the “beauty and tolerance” of Islam in Al-Andalus (Spain.) He followed that by referring to the expulsion of the Muslims from Spain in1492. But Raymond Ibrahim reminded him that it was the Muslims who first invaded the Iberian Peninsula back in the 8th century. The same thing pertains to the criticisms of the Crusades. Yes, many violent acts took place in the Holy Land from the 11th to the 13th centuries; but why forget that it was the Islamic armies that had first conquered Palestine in the early years of the 7th century? The Crusader Wars were a belated reaction to the prior conquest of the Holy Land by the Islam.

At this point I would like to reiterate that while Raymond Ibrahim did an accurate and objective exposition of the true nature of Islam, Lawrence Wright manifested a weakness that bedevils several Western writers on Islam as they tend to downplay the aggressive nature of this faith. They accomplish that by lumping Islam with Judaism and Christianity, and claiming that all theistic religions have violent teachings and histories.

Mr. Ibrahim, more than once during the interview, challenged this point of view in Mr. Wright’s statements. While it would not be proper for me to put Lawrence Wright in the same category as some well-known Western apologists for Islam, I was saddened when he tried to downplay the violent teachings and actions of Islam. Having done his research for writing “The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11” one would have expected that he had gained a better knowledge of Islam than he actually exhibited during the Interview.

To give a good idea of the scholarship of Raymond Ibrahim, I would like to quote from an article he published on National Review Online on May 10, 1007, “Karen Armstrong's Islamic Apologetics.” This British writer has distinguished herself as one of the most ardent defenders of Islam in the Western world.

“Islamic apologist extraordinaire Karen Armstrong is at it again. In an article entitled "Balancing the Prophet" published by the Financial Times, the self-proclaimed "freelance monotheist" engages in what can only be considered second-rate sophistry.

“The false statements begin in her opening paragraph:

“Ever since the Crusades, people in the west have seen the prophet Muhammad as a sinister figure.… The scholar monks of Europe stigmatized Muhammad as a cruel warlord who established the false religion of Islam by the sword. They also, with ill-concealed envy, berated him as a lecher and sexual pervert at a time when the popes were attempting to impose celibacy on the reluctant clergy.”

“This is just an obvious error of fact. Armstrong and others try as a routine to tie European sentiments toward Islam to the Crusades, but in fact, "people in the west" had something of a "dim" view of Mohammed half a millennium before the Crusades. As early as the 8th century -- just a few generations after Mohammed -- Byzantine chronicler Theophanes wrote in his Chronographia:

“He [Mohammed] taught those who gave ear to him that the one slaying the enemy -- or being slain by the enemy -- entered into paradise [e.g., Koran 9:111]. And he said paradise was carnal and sensual -- orgies of eating, drinking, and women. Also, there was a river of wine … and the woman were of another sort, and the duration of sex greatly prolonged and its pleasure long-enduring [e.g., 56: 7-40, 78:31, 55:70-77]. And all sorts of other nonsense.”

Raymond Ibrahim continued:

“It wasn't only during the Crusades -- when, as Armstrong would have it, popes desperately needed to demonize Mohammed and Islam in order to rally support for the Crusades -- that Westerners began to see him as a "sinister figure." Many in the West have seen him as that from the very start. So, claims of Mohammed being a "lecherous pervert" were not due to any "ill-conceived envy" on the part of 12th-century popes trying to "impose celibacy on the reluctant clergy." (Indeed, this last notion posited by Armstrong -- an ex-nun -- appears to be more telling of her own "ill-conceived envy" against the Church.) Despite the oft-repeated mantra that the West is "ignorant" of Islam -- dear to apologists like Armstrong -- this [8th century] passage reveals that, from the start, Westerners were in fact aware of some aspects of the Koran.

“Having distorted history, she next goes on to distort Islamic theology:

“Until the 1950s, no major Muslim thinker had made holy war a central pillar of Islam. The Muslim ideologues Abu ala Mawdudi (1903-79) and Sayyid Qutb (1906-66), among the first to do so, knew they were proposing a controversial innovation. They believed it was justified by the current political emergency.”

Raymond Ibrahim corrects Ms. Armstrong:

“Even better than a "major Muslim thinker," Allah himself proclaims: "Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor forbid what has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger [i.e., uphold sharia], nor embrace the true faith, [even if they are] from among the People of the Book [Jews and Christians], until they pay tribute with willing submission, and feel themselves utterly subdued" (Koran 9:29). Mohammed confirms: "I have been commanded [by Allah] to fight against mankind until they testify that none but Allah is to be worshipped and that Muhammad is Allah's Messenger” (Bukhari B2N24; next to the Koran, the second most authoritative text in Islam).

“Armstrong then spends an inordinate amount of time criticizing author Robert Spencer and his new book The Truth about Muhammad:

“The traditions of any religion are multifarious. It is easy, therefore, to quote so selectively that the main thrust of the faith is distorted. But Spencer is not interested in balance. He picks out only those aspects of Islamic tradition that support his thesis. For example, he cites only passages from the Koran that are hostile to Jews and Christians and does not mention the numerous verses that insist on the continuity of Islam with the People of the Book: 'Say to them: We believe what you believe; your God and our God is one [29:46]'.”

“But is Armstrong not herself being a bit disingenuous by assuring the people of the West -- primarily Christian -- that the Koran's notion of God "insists on continuity" with theirs? What about the other Koranic verses: "Infidels are those who say Allah is one of three… [i.e., the Christian Trinity;]" (5:73). "Infidels are those who say Allah is the Christ [Jesus], son of Mary" (5:17). The divinity of Christ -- anathema to Islam -- is fundamental to the Christian view of God. Surely Armstrong has not forgotten this from her days at the convent.

“Armstrong's lament that "there is widespread ignorance of Islam in the west," and that we should rectify this by developing a more "balanced" and "nuanced" understanding of the Koran is as ridiculous as asking Muslims living in Palestine and Iraq to overlook the "Crusader" presence there and instead consult the Bible itself to see how many portions of it accord with peace and justice. (Indeed, such a proposition is worse than ridiculous, since the Bible comes nowhere near to theologically justifying violence against the "Other" in perpetuity as found in the Koran.)

“In the final analysis, Armstrong's historical and theological "discrepancies" (to be polite) are baffling -- particularly her many oneline sentences that simply defy historical fact: "Muhammad was not a belligerent warrior." "The idea that Islam should conquer the world was alien to the Koran…" "Muhammad did not shun non-Muslims as 'unbelievers' but from the beginning co-operated with them in the pursuit of the common good." "Islam was not a closed system at variance with other traditions. Muhammad insisted that relations between the different groups must be egalitarian."

“Still, in the end one can sympathize with Armstrong's closing sentence: "Until we all learn to approach one another with generosity and respect, we cannot hope for peace." But we should also hasten to add the more important virtues of honesty, sincerity, and truthfulness.”

Thus far, my quotations from Raymond Ibrahim’s article in NRO. For those of you, who would like to read more of Mr. Ibrahim’s writings on Islam, please drop me an email, and I would be glad to send you some of his articles in attachment form.

I hope that my review and comments on the Interview have made it clear that Christians have the responsibility to witness boldly against all theories of “Moral Equivalence” that obliterate the radical difference between Islam and Christianity. Raymond Ibrahim, a young scholar working at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., has done an excellent job in defending the integrity of the Christian faith. It is up to each one of us to do the same.

Posted in Articles

Does 'Blaming the Other' Fix Our Problems

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany
“Lawm al-Akhar’, Hal Yusleh Awda’ana?”
By Jacob Thomas
 
Early during the Six Day War of June, 1967, President Nasser realized that the war was lost. His entire Air Force was destroyed by the Israelis before any Egyptian plane could take to the skies and face the incoming Israeli Air Force. Rather than acknowledging his defeat, and taking full responsibility for starting the war with Israel, Nasser telephoned King Hussein of Jordan; and together they concocted the story that US and British war planes had joined in the Israeli attack on the Egyptian airfields! Nasser resorted to an age-long habit among Arabs and Muslims, that of blaming others for their own mistakes and misadventures. In fact, this is a trait of the Arab mind that is illustrated in Raphael Patai’s “The Arab Mind,” Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, (1973,) and David Pryce-Jones’ “The Closed Circle: An Interpretation of the Arabs,” HarperPerennial, New York, (1991.)
 
Early in 2007, an Arab writer dealt with this subject in an article under the title, “Lawm al-Akhar, Hal Yusleh Awda’ana?”(Does ‘Blaming the ‘Other’ Fix our Problems?) It was posted on the liberal online site, www.kwtanweer.com on 4 March 2007. When I saw it on 22 August, 239 people had already read it during the previous six months. Here are excerpts from the article, followed by my analysis and comments.
 
“Why does the treason-discourse seem to rule the Arab scene? It is a discourse which labels ‘others’ as kafirs. Why do the Arab masses accept a confrontational discourse, rather than the one that advocates enlightened points of view? Why does the conspiratorial mind dominate the collective Arab mind? Why do preachers of hate have more followers than preachers of tolerance? And finally, why do the religious pulpits keep on cursing the “Others,” and calling for divine retributions to fall upon them?
 
There can be only one reason for that, namely the belief of both the elites and the masses that the “Other” must always be blamed; and that he deserves our hatred and enmity. Actually, it is this culture of ‘blaming the Other” that relieves a person of his responsibility to deal with his own situation, and makes him blame the ‘Other.’
 
“Recently, Sunni and Shi’ite religious leaders met in Dohahoping to achieve a rapprochement between the two religious groups, and to prevent war between their followers. After some deliberations, they concluded that Israel, the United States, and the West were to blame for the problems that hound the Middle East!
 
The ‘Other’ must always be blamed, as far as the Arab Mind is concerned. He is the cause for our suffering, and the failures of our development projects. The ‘Other’ is responsible for the collapse of our democratic experiments, and for the rise of religious factionalism among us. And yes, it is the ‘Other’ that brought Irhab(terrorism)into our lands!
 
“The culture of ‘blaming the Other’ is a doctrine believed by some Arab elites and by the Arab masses who remain transfixed by the ‘Other.’ This frame of mind is not of recent origin, it has been with us across our entire Islamic history, going back all the way to the Great Schism. Rather than try to understand the human nature of the Sahaba*, and admit their role in the troubles that irrupted after 632 A.D., Arab historians searched for an imaginary ‘enemy.’ They invented a mythical Jewish figure, Abdullah bin Saba, and made him the villain responsible for the Schism of 656 A. D.
 
“If we glance at the contemporary Islamic text- books, we discover that ‘The Protocols of the Elders of Zion’ are taught as authentic Jewish documents, and are claimed to be responsible for the present-day divisions in Islam. They also claim that the Jews were behind the fall of the Caliphate through the instrumentality of Ataturk**
 
“Many Arabs exhibit the same logic by attributing to the Mosad*** a principal role in the plot of 11 September 2001. The Mosad must take the blame for the bombings in London, Taba, and Sharm el-Sheikh; and in the assassination of Sunnis and Shi’ites in Iraq. And let’s not forget, the Mosad was behind the plots to assassinate Arab leaders beginning with Gamal Abdel-Nasser, Yasser Arafat, and Rafik al-Hariri, the Prime Minister of Lebanon.
 
“It’s high time we cease blaming the ‘Other’ and begin engaging in self-criticism. We gain nothing by blaming the ‘Other,’ and by clinging to the conspiracy theories. We don’t help ourselves by talking about cultural imperialism, or by regarding globalization as an evil thing. Let’s learn from those nations which transcended their defeats after WWII. For example, Germany worked on the eradication of Nazi ideology; and Japan jettisoned its Imperial dreams of superiority. Both Germans and Japanese engaged in self-criticism, corrected their mistakes, and rose again on the world scene. As for us Arabs, we go on cursing the Satans of darkness, without ever lighting one candle to expel the darkness surrounding us.”
                                                           
Analysis
 
It is refreshing to read such words that describe a regrettable trait of the Arab-Muslim mind. After some tragic events have taken place, rather than admit their true nature, and the causes that led to them, Arabs resort to blaming the “Other.” There is a total absence of self-criticism that would seek the causes that led to a national or communal tragedy. The author ended his article by pointing to the great benefits that accrued to both Germany and Japan, when they exercised self-criticism after their defeat in WWII, and the Arabs’ reluctance to do anything to change their habit of blaming the “Other,” by engaging in self-criticism!
 
Comments
 
The early history of Islam manifested tremendous successes, especially in the speed of their futuhat (conquests) in the Middle East, North Africa, and Spain. After the collapse of the Abbasid Caliphate in the 13th century, the newly converted Turks continued the Islamic conquests in the Balkans, and in parts of Central Europe. The Ottoman Turkish Caliphate, having joined Germany and Austria in WWI, lost its colonial territories. The last Islamic Caliphate was abolished in 1924, by Ataturk, the father of the Turkish Republic.
 
Ever since then, Muslims have not stopped asking, “What Went Wrong?” Rather than approaching their problems by engaging in an objective analysis of the causes for their decline, Muslims play the blame game, and point to the “Other” (al-Akhar) as the source of their failures.
 
Now what is rather helpful about the article is that it brought to light certain forgotten details of Arab history, as it pointed out that the habit of blaming “Others” is ingrained in the Arab-Muslim mind. It referred to a Jewish person, Abdullah Bin Saba, and his involvement in the Schism of 656 A.D.  This tragic event in the early history of the Islamic Umma was an internal affair that surfaced after the assassination of Caliph Uthman. When Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, succeeded Uthman in 656, Mu’awiya, the governor of Damascus, claimed that Ali was involved in the murder of his relative, Uthman. He refused to acknowledge Ali’s caliphate, and rebelled against him. He was joined by Aisha, the youngest wife of Muhammad. The civil war lasted five years, and ended with the murder of Ali, and resulted in the Great Schism in Islam, pitting the followers of Mu’awiya (to be known as Sunni) against the followers of Ali (to be known as Shi’at Ali, or simply, as Shi’ite.)
 
Not wanting to tell the whole truth about the abrupt collapse of the unity of Islam, some close friends of the Prophet known as the Sahaba, invented the myth of a Jewish role in the Great Schism. This shows that even those venerated Sahaba were ordinary humans afflicted with worldly desires and ambitions. They could not admit that such a terrible thing could have happened, and began the tradition of blaming “Others” i.e., non-Muslims, for the division of Islam into two rival groups!
 
Blaming others, or “Lawm al-Akhar,” has been joined by a Conspiracy Theory of History. For the “Akhar” to be successful in his plots against the Islamic Umma, he must acquire the cooperation of anti-Islamic circles. So this theory has gained acceptance among Arabs, and is invoked whenever a crisis occurs in an Arab or Islamic country. So why not blame the United States, and Western Europe, for all the failures and debacles that have bedeviled the lands of Islam?! And then there is the arch-enemy of Islam, Israel and its Mosad which is ubiquitous. It must have been behind 11 September, 2001, and all the lesser attacks in Europe and the Middle East. As to ‘The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.’  it was actually a Russian secret police forgery aimed at justifying the persecution of the Jews. But it has now been taken over by the Arabs and declared to be an authentic Jewish treatise that has a blue-print for Zionist world domination!
 
The ingrained habit of blaming the “Other” for the woes of the Islamic Umma deepens their intensity. It is high time that, having taken note of the futility of blaming others, Arabs engage in self-criticism. This painful exercise would begin a process that will allow them see that most of their problems are self-inflicted. Unless they swallow their pride, and acknowledge that blaming the “Other” has gotten them nowhere, they will continue to sink deeper and deeper in the quick sands of their own making!
 
*Sahaba: The Companions of the Prophet Muhammad who came with him to Medina in 622 A.D. They constituted an “inner circle” among the larger group of Muhajiroun (Immigrants).
 
**Ataturk: The Turkish general, Mustapha Kemal led the remnants of the Ottoman Army after the defeat of Turkey in WWI. He succeeded in pushing back the Allied armies that threatened the integrity of the Turkish heartland. He founded the Turkish Republic, and abolished the Caliphate in 1924. He was responsible for the founding of a secular tradition in Turkey that sought to keep Islam out of politics. He was honored by receiving the title of Ataturk, the Father of the Turks.                                                                                                                                              
His legacy received a severe blow on 28 August, 2007, when an Islamic politician, Abdullah Gul, was elected President of the Turkish Republic.
 
***Mosad: The Israeli intelligence agency that operates outside Israel.
Posted in Articles

The Myth of Islamophobia

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany
“Khurafat al-Islamophobia”
 
Author: Jacob Thomas on Friday, August 03, 200711:24 PM
 
 
During the lifetime of the USSR, it was customary for the Russian Communists and their fellow-travelers, to attempt to silence anyone who disagreed with their Marxist ideology. So they resorted to vilifying their adversaries by painting them as “bourgeois reactionaries” and “enemies of the toiling masses.” They acted according to the age long principle that attack was the best defence.
 
Nowadays, we find a similar strategy being used by Islamists and some “moderate” Muslims. They work hard to silence anyone who unveils the belligerent components of Islam. One of their tactics is to brand critics of Islam as manifesting “Islamophobia.”
 
On 23 July, 2007, I noticed an article on www.kwtanweer.com with this title: “Khurafat al-Islamophobia?” (Khurafat is the Arabic for myth.) Do we dismiss the author as someone trying to endear himself to the West? That would constitute an unwarranted conclusion. In fact it would amount to a condescending attitude towards any Arab intellectual who spoke boldly about a serious blind spot in the Arab-Muslim mind.
 
So, let me share with you excerpts from this article, and follow that by my analysis and comments. The author began with these introductory words:
 
“We have heard and read a great deal about “Islamophobia,” i.e. the fear of Islam. It is claimed that Western Intelligence Services have invented this term to generate fear of Islam among their peoples. This was necessary, we are told, after the end of the Cold War, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the Socialist camp in Eastern Europe. This theory claims that the West has always needed a common enemy to maintain its cohesion and its alliances. The Communist threat served that purpose for around half a century, and now it is Islam’s role to do the same.
 
“Let’s be realistic: how did the term “Islamophobia” originate? And, who benefits from it? Who is threatening whom? Is it true that the West is afraid of Islam? If there is a fear of Islam in the West, which Islam is the West afraid of? Is it Islam as a religion, or is it rather political Islam, that has produced Irhab,* and continues to commit its ugly crimes against humanity in the name of Islam? Which side suffers the most from these crimes, is it the West, or the Islamic peoples?
 
Who is behind “Islamophobia?”
“Now, if the West is truly afraid of Islam, who caused the rise of this phobia? Aren’t Muslims themselves responsible for that? Arabs suffer from an incurable disease known as the Conspiracy Theory of History. They know they are terribly underdeveloped, but at the same time, they resist joining modern civilization. They have nothing to offer save oil, Irhab, and destruction. And notwithstanding their backwardness, as their illiteracy (reading ability) stands around 60%, while their cultural illiteracy is around 90%; Arabs believe they are the best people on earth! They regard the West, with all its sciences, technology, modernity, philosophy, democracy, and human rights; as living in the days of Jahilyya,** according to the theory of Sayyed Qutb.*** 
 
“So, if you tell Muslims they are underdeveloped, they will respond loudly and tell you that Western imperialism, Zionism, and Crusaderism are responsible for their underdevelopment. They add that the West wants nothing less than the destruction of Islam and to appropriate the Muslims’ possessions! This theory has contributed to filling the minds of Muslim youth with hatred and enmity for the West, and has encouraged them to join the ranks of Irhabis.
 
“Unfortunately, such theories do not emanate only from the propagandists of political Islam, but equally from some liberal-minded writers. For example, the columnist Ouled Abahu contributed an article to the online daily, Al Sharq al-Awsat on 20 July 2007, in which he blamed the rise of Islamophobia on the West. He wrote: ‘It is clear that this negative picture [of Islam] has been fashioned by the Neo-Conservative Movement in the United States, the new British Literary Movement, and the French Conservative-Leftist intellectuals who supported the new Rightist French President Sarkozy.’
 
This writer went on blaming these groups for “regarding Islam as the greatest threat facing Western civilization.’ To prove his point, he referred to two recently-published novels that dealt with Islamic subjects. The one was Salman Rushdie’s ‘Shalimar.’ ‘Its Muslim hero had only one goal: forcing people to build mosques, and hiding women under chadors. The second novel, ‘The Last Days of Muhammad Atta’ depictsAtta as a woman-hater who acquired this attitude from the Qur’an and the Sirat [Life] of the Prophet of Islam’
 
“The question remains: Do these quotations from the aforesaid novels accurately describe the actions of Muslims, or were they false accusations of Islam? Aren’t Muslims those who require women to wear the hijab? Don’t they also claim that women are mentally and religiously deficient, and are therefore inferior to men? Don’t Muslims quote various Hadiths attributed to the Prophet Muhammad as having said, ‘No man should embark on a project without seeking another man’s advice; but if he fails to find a man, let him ask a woman’s advice, and then do exactly the very opposite of what she had advised?’ Another Hadith shows the low esteem for women in Islam: ‘When you obey women, you’ll soon regret it!’ Another similar Hadith: ‘Men have perished when they obeyed women!’
 
“As for Muslims’ attitude toward non-Muslims, the fuqaha of Irhab love to quote this Hadith: ‘I have been commanded to fight people until they say La Ilaha illa’l Allah; when they utter these words, they have my promise that I would not shed their blood, or acquire their possessions.’ Isn’t it political Islam that urges young men to kill innocent non-Muslims, as well as Muslims who don’t agree with them? Aren’t Muslim religious leaders who use texts from the Qur’an and Hadith, to blame for transforming Muslim doctors living in the West, into Irhabis? If all that I have detailed is true, why then blame Westerners for the invention of the term, “Islamophobia?”
 
Is it true that the West is afraid of Islam?
“Had the West been really afraid of Islam as a religion, Western governments would not have allowed Muslim communities to settle in their countries, or offered financial aid in building their mosques, or allowed them to bring Imams from Muslim lands. If the West was truly afraid of Islam, why were some propagandists of political Islam allowed to settle in Western countries? Millions of Muslims come to the ‘Infidel West’ and live in it, in peace and tranquility. In fact the proportional number of mosques in the West is greater than in Islamic lands. For example there are more than one thousand mosques in Britain, while the number of Muslims living there is around two million! At the same time, Copts in Egypt are not allowed to build new churches unless they get permission from the President; and obtaining the needed permit for that is almost impossible. Furthermore, when a Christian comes to Saudi Arabia, he is not allowed to bring his Bible with him; if he has one, it is confiscated at the airport!
 
“Muslims enjoy complete freedom of worship in the West; in fact they have more freedom in Western lands than in Islamic countries. Actually, religious freedom for Muslims is granted only and uniquely to the type of Islam that is sanctioned by the state. Thus, Shi’ites living in Wahhabi Saudi Arabia don’t enjoy the freedom to express their own type of Islam. As for Iran, the case is reversed, since Shi’ism is the official religion of the state, Sunni Muslims do not enjoy complete freedom. It is a fact that no mosque has been bombed in any Western country, whereas attacks on mosques, [both Sunni and Shi’ite mosques] often happen in Islamic countries.
 
Who Benefits from the “Islamophobia” Lie?
“It was the followers of political Islam who invented the term “Islamophobia” and they are the ones who benefit from it. Their goal is to place the Muslim communities in the West in a state of confrontation with the host nations; pushing them to adopt a radical form of Islam, and thus, inflaming the struggle with the West. They have succeeded, up to a point, to gain the sympathy of some moderate Muslims who criticize the West, and rail against its “Islamophobia.”
 
“For example, after the failed terrorist attacks in London and Glasgow, an Arab organization in Britain issued a statement criticizing the terrorist attack, while at the same time it blamed Britain’s foreign policy as a possible reason for that attack. But such a claim is nothing but a pack of lies! There can be no justification whatsoever for any act of terror. Let’s never forget that those who were involved in the terrorist attack were medical doctors who betrayed the honor of the medical profession. It was a religious ideology that changed Muslim doctors into Irhabis. Now, aren’t Westerners justified if they fear people like them? After all, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the second in command in al-Qaida, is a doctor and the son of a doctor!
 
To sum up.
“Yes, political Islam is a threat to the world. The majority of terrorists are Muslim, who have been brainwashed and made to hate the West and its civilizational values. Those who encourage this attitude rely on religious texts to convince would-be terrorists to commit their terrible crimes. Thus, it is the duty of reasonable Muslims to save Islam from those who have high jacked it and use it to reach their goal, namely to recreate the Islamic Caliphate. But such a dream can only be realized within their sick minds. What is needed is to bring certain Islamic texts, the Ayat al-Sayf wal-Qital (The Qur’anic Sword Texts) in line with the conditions of the present time. Unless peaceful coexistence with the rest of mankind is advocated, Islam and Muslims would find themselves in a perpetual confrontation with the rest of the civilized world. The results would be catastrophic for Muslims themselves. Actually, in the West, there is no fear of Islam as a religion; but there is fear of political Islam, the source of Islamic Irhab, whose danger is greater for Muslims than for the West.”
 
Analysis
The writer is at pains to explain that the West did not invent “Islamophobia” as a means to combat Islam and Muslim nations in this new century. It is radical Muslims and their fellow-travelers who use this term, in order to silence any honest and needed critique of certain aspects of Islam. He points to the fact that many Muslims have settled in the Western world, where they enjoy freedom of worship, and an opportunity to earn a decent livelihood. If there is a fear of Islam, it is of “Political Islam.” He holds it responsible for the spread of fear of Islam, in other words, “Islamophobia.” He insists that radical Islam, and not the West, is responsible for the rise and spread of this term.
 
Comments
It is indeed refreshing to read such an article on a widely-visited website. The author is very frank and extremely bold in telling a truth that is seldom heard from the side of Arab and Muslim writers.
 
My problem with the article is that the distinction the author makes between Islam as religion, and political Islam, can be sustained only on a theoretical level. In reality, however, it is Islam as religion that eventually gave birth to Islam as a state with its political ideology. This is the verdict of the history of the last 1400 years.
 
Islam began in 610 A.D. as a religious movement. Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, claimed that Allah was giving him a definitive word for mankind. The revelations that “descended” on Muhammad in Mecca (610-622) dealt with purely religious themes: the unity of God, the vanity of idols, and the necessity to submit to Allah according to His holy shari’a or law. As one begins to read the Qur’an in Arabic, he will notice at the head of every chapter a superscription that gives its name, and the place of its “descent.” For example, Surat al-Fatiha (Chapter One) is “Makkiya wa-Ayatuha Sab’a” (It is Meccan, and has Seven Verses); while Surat al-Baqarat (Chapter Two) has 281 verses, and was the first to “descend” in Medina.
 
It was during his sojourn in Medina (622-632) that Muhammad became both Prophet and Statesman.  The revelations “descending” upon him in this new place dealt with both religious and political issues. When he died in 632, his successors, the Caliphs, began their futuhat or conquests of the world. They built within one hundred years, a huge empire stretching from Spain in the West to India in the East. It is very doubtful that Islam, as a religion (or the Islam of the Meccan chapters of the Qur’an) would have spread as it actually did, without the aid of the political-military complex it had become.
 
Not long ago, an Islamic Caliphate or Empire still existed. I have in mind the Ottoman Empire that had once succeeded in finishing off the Byzantine Empire in 1453. It controlled the Middle East, the Balkans, several parts of Central Europe, and twice reached the gates of Vienna (1529 and 1683.) But since the abolishing of the Caliphate in 1924, by Mustapha Kemal Ataturk, a powerful malaise has set in within Daru’l Islam. Muslim intellectuals kept asking, “What Went Wrong?” The dream of resurrecting the old glory of the Caliphate has never died. Soon after the end of Western colonialism and the various nationalistic-socialist experiments in the Arab world proved their utter bankruptcy, attempts to revive Islam as a political power have gained momentum. It is at this point that Islamic triumphalist ideologies gained popularity among Arab and Muslim young men. Thus, what is now called political Islam, or Islamism, was born. It is not, however, entirely unconnected with Islam per se. For this faith, unlike all other major world religions, has never been simply and purely a religion in the accepted meaning of the word.
 
It is next to impossible to bring in line or modify the warlike Qur’anic texts, known as Ayat al-Sayf, wal-Qital, and adapt them according to the demands of a globalized world, where various worldviews may peacefully coexist. Such a project requires the “re-opening of the door of Ijtihad **** and the rise of a new hermeneutic that would consider as non-normative, many parts of the Medinan Chapters of the Qur’an.
 
I don’t want to be pessimistic, but the forecast for the future remains rather disturbing. As long as Islamic Terrorism continues to threaten the world, non-Muslims are justified in being afraid of Islam. On the other hand, no one should charge the West for inventing “Islamophobia” as a means to subjugate the Islamic world. It’s high time to bury this dangerous myth that plays into the hands of the Irhabis.
 
*Irhab: terrorism
**Jahilyya: In Islamic historiography, the period in Arab history that preceded the rise of Islam is regarded as the Days of Ignorance. It is a term used by Islamists to denigrate and vilify their opponents.
*** Sayyid Qutb: A prominent member of the Muslim Brotherhood. Because of his opposition to President Nasser, he was tried and executed, by hanging, on 29 August, 1966. He is considered as the intellectual “father” of radical Islam.
**** Ijtihad an Arabic word that designates a theological activity, especially in interpreting the sacred texts of Islam. It is generally agreed that the early activities or endeavors in theology (Kalam) and jurisprudence (fiqh) came to an end with the death of Imam al-Ghazzali around 1111 A.D. He played a major role in the “Closing of the Door of Ijtihad.”
Posted in Articles

Why Do The Copts of Egypt Fear Friday

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany
Author: Jacob Thomas on Jun 03, 2007
 
On 17 May, 2007, while glancing at the website of the online daily, Elaph, I noticed a very intriguing title of an article on the plight of the Christian community in Egypt: “Why Do the Copts of Egypt Fear Fridays?” The writer, himself an Egyptian now living in France, gave a realistic explanation that should stir our thoughts, and make us fully aware of the suffering of this brave minority. I share with the readers of FFI excerpts from the article, and follow with my analysis and comments.
 
“Islamists have taken upon themselves the responsibility to stoke the fires of religious discord and civil strife whenever they had been extinguished. The result is that Egypt becomes the victim, and both Muslims and Christians end up being the losers. It is quite evident that Islamists don’t want the attacks against the Copts to stop.
 
“The last attack on the Copts took place on Friday, 11 April, 2007, in the village of Behma, of the El-‘Ayat Township, in El-Giza Province. Rumors had spread that Christians were about to make an addition to their church building. Five hundred Islamists gathered, and attacked Christians in their homes and places of business. They shouted Allahu Akbar, as they embarked on their new ghazwa (conquest), resulting in the torching of 27 homes and places of business. They proceeded to loot the contents of the shops, taking all they could find of precious metals and jewelry. After all, why not engage in the plunder, having been assured by the Islamists’ fatwas that the Christians’ possessions were legitimate war booty?! Thankfully, they stopped at that point, and did not take Christian women captives as a prize of their ugly ghazwa; however, many Christians in that village were injured.
 
Why Afraid of Fridays?
 
“When I was in Zurich, Switzerland, attending the “Conference on the Plight of Women and Minorities in the Middle East and North Africa,”* an Egyptian Coptic correspondent told me, ‘We Copts, worry about our own safety and possessions on Fridays, can you tell me why?’ I answered her, ‘Certainly, you must know that the Islamist virus has been spreading in Egypt, in our media, in our educational institutions, and in the Friday sermons at the mosques. Islamists have altered the very nature of the Friday sermons, changing them from messages on religious and moral issues that are meant to ennoble human beings by elevating their souls toward their Creator, and enabling them to become tolerant in their relations with their fellow human beings. On the contrary, the Friday sermons have become lessons in hatred and envy of the ‘Other’ declaring him to be a Kafir, and calling for war against the ‘children of apes and pigs,’ i.e. Christians and Jews. Thus when a Muslim leaves the mosque he has become like a time-bomb, ready to explode on any Christian he encounters on his way. This is why the Friday sermon has become a very dangerous matter.
 
“I don’t know why we have never seen a Christian, who leaves his church on Sundays, goes ahead and sets fire to a Muslim house, or assaults a Muslim and kills him! I cannot understand why anyone who kills a Copt and burns his possessions nowadays is regarded as mentally ill! Actually, Islamists have succeeded in employing religion for their political goals. In my discussion with a historian of contemporary Egyptian history, he told me, ‘The Muslim Brothers (al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun) regard Copts as an easy prey; so whenever the government arrests one of their members, they attack a church, or the Christian population. These acts come to the attention of the world public opinion, causing the Egyptian government to stop persecuting the Ikhwan. In other words, Islamists use the Copts as a means to get their members released from prison!’
 
“Whenever attacks on Christians take place, the Egyptian police seem to be absent! And when they finally appear at the scene, it is too late. By then the Islamists would have attacked Christians, beaten them, and robbed them of their goods. I remember when I was in Muharram Beik, Alexandria, a Muslim told me, not realizing that I was a writer, that a policeman who guarded a church building told the attackers, ‘go ahead and attack the church, but only from its back door; then, I won’t interfere with your act!’
 
“The Islamist International**, under the leadership of Yousef al-Qaradawi, Rashed
Al-Ghanoushi, and Fahmi Houweidi, issued fatwas allowing for the murder of women, children, and the unborn, in Israel. But they have been silent about the killing of civilian Muslims in Morocco and Algeria, and equally silent about attacks on our Coptic brothers. These attacks receive the silent assent of the Islamist fuqaha who approve the killing of innocent Muslims and peaceful Christians, as long as the murderers are Islamists like themselves!”
 
Analysis
 
The writer of the article draws the attention of the wide readership of Elaph to this unbelievable state of affairs in Egypt, where Copts fear the advent of every Friday. This sixth day of the week has become the occasion for attacks on their persons, homes and property; almost immediately after the worshippers leave the mosques!
 
Comments
 
Many readers may find it difficult to see a connection between worship at a mosque and the destructive acts that follow. Actually, this has become a regular experience of many Christians in Egypt. This is why Copts have come to dread Fridays.
 
I must confess that I was rather surprised to read these words from the article: “Islamists have altered the very nature of the Friday sermons, changing them from messages on religious and moral issues that are meant to ennoble human beings by elevating their souls toward their Creator, and enabling them to become tolerant in their relations with their fellow human beings.”
 
The writer manifests an extremely idealistic picture of what a Friday khutba (sermon) should be. I have listened to many sermons broadcast over the airways from Cairo, Riyadh, Rabat, and Damascus. The moral and spiritual elements within a typical Friday khutba are quite often, minimal. Rather, what the khateeb (preacher) proclaims is a list of the past glories of Islam, the ills that have befallen the Islamic world since the beginning of the 20th century, and a call for rallying the forces of Islam to regain their glorious past. Added to that, are the usual imprecations that are hurled against the enemies of Islam with a ferocious intensity!
 
Should we then be surprised that Muslim worshippers, whether in Cairo, Alexandria, or Karachi, after having listened to a fiery preacher denounce the enemies of Islam, ‘leave the mosque as a time-bomb, ready to explode on any Christian they may encounter on the road?’
 
*For information about some of the lectures delivered at the Zurich Conference, please consult the following articles posted on the FFI site: “Leaving the Muslim Brotherhood” posted on 14 April, 2007; and “A New Minority in North Africa” posted on 18 May, 2007.
 
**The Islamist International is a new term, reminiscent of a by-gone organization, “The Comintern,” i.e. (The Third International that was formed in Moscow in 1919); which sought to spread Communism all over the globe. Events in the Islamic world, point to the rise of an Islamist International, grouping jihadist organizations, working together for a global jihad, and the resumption of the futuhat of early Islam.
 
Posted in Articles

Leaving the Muslim Brotherhood

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Author: Jacob Thomas on Apr 14, 2007 - 05:18 PM 
http://www.news.faithfreedom.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1196

Late in March 2007, I read in Elaph, the daily Arabic online newspaper, a report about the “Conference on the Plight of Minorities and Women in the Middle East and North Africa,” that was held in Zurich, Switzerland, between 24 and 26 March. All the lectures were delivered in Arabic, and are appearing gradually on Elaph’s website. By early April, I had downloaded several conference papers that dealt with this issue. I hope to work on their translation, and ultimately, to share some of their contents with the readers of FFI.

The opening lecture was delivered by a former member of the Muslim Brotherhood; its title was: “Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun: (The Muslim Brotherhood), Source of the Persecution of the Minorities and Women” Here are excerpts from the lecture; followed by my analysis and comments.

“As we consider the status of minorities and women in the Arab and Muslim world, we become very disturbed about their condition. At the same time, we notice that minorities living in the civilized world enjoy their complete rights. It is a well-known fact that Muslims consider both women and minorities as inferior. A non-Muslim is not equal with a Muslim on account of his religion; whereas a woman is worth half a man, because of her gender.

“Now I would like to offer myself as an example for the possibility of bringing about a change in the Arab and Muslim world. Up till 1990, I was a disciple of al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun, having adopted their thoughts, and being willing to defend them till death. Why not, does not our faith possess absolutely the whole truth, for all time and place; and is not our holy book perfect? But after coming to France, I discovered a new world; a world that has no place for hat red, resentment, selfishness, or a sickly religious narcissism. It is a world where one’s ability enables him or her to get a job, regardless of color, religion, or race. I found myself, an Egyptian Muslim immigrant, enjoying all the rights that French citizens have, except the right to vote in their elections.

“So I asked myself, how could France’s motto, “justice, equality, and fraternity” (1) be considered as “kufr,” (2) while our minorities and women are discriminated against daily in the name of Islam? I came to the conclusion that al-Ikhwan al-Muta’aslimeen (3) are the main cause for this tyranny, and for the persecution of minorities and women. They managed to accomplish their designs by taking control of the fields of education, information, religious discourse, and al-Azhar University. They filled the textbooks with passages that encourage hatred for the “Other,” calling him a “kafir” (2). The teachers who follow the Ikhwan’s ideology explain verse 7 of the Fatiha, (the first chapter of the Qur’an) “The path of those whom Thou hast favoured; not the (path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who go astray” as follows: “those who earn Thine anger” are the Jews; and “those who go astray,” are the Christians.

“They choose Hadiths that demean women forcing them to wear the hijab, making it a required Islamic practice. I read in the 10 March 2007 issue of the magazine Rose el-Youssef, that a government school in Upper Egypt forces Christian girls to wear the hijab.

“The Islamist ideology is basically exclusivist, and advocates the doctrine that Islam is the only true faith. They base their claim on Surah 3 and Aya 85 of the Qur’an: “If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to God), never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter He will be in the ranks of those who have lost (All spiritual good).” (Translation of Yusuf Ali) I used to look at this text as propounding an absolute and permanent truth, not open to any discussion or interpretation, teaching all Muslims that there was no other true religion on earth except Islam.

“The Ikhwan taught me that a woman was similar to Satan since she is a tempter of man. After all it was Eve who tempted Adam, and caused him to leave the Garden where he had enjoyed an eternal bliss! Furthermore, these Islamists did not stop with the various Hadiths that denounced women, but they advocated the necessity of depriving women of enjoying their sexual life by advocating their circumcision. They ignored the fact that this custom dates back to the time of the Pharos of Egypt; and that neither the Prophet nor his associates ever practiced the circumcision of their daughters. The degradation of women and the minorities in the teaching of the Ikhwan could be also seen in their forbidding women and non-Muslims, from holding any important positions in government.

“I turned against the Ikhwan when I discovered that they were the source of our misfortunes in our Arab and Islamic Umma. It was in France that I learned that the ‘Other’ was not my enemy, but my friend and comrade. Getting to know the ‘Other’ and understanding him, freed me from the lies of the Ikhwan. I remember that after coming to France, a young beautiful lady worked in the same department with me. At first, I was rather attracted to her. But when I discovered she was Jewish, I distanced myself from her. I became afraid of her; I convinced myself that she was ugly! I could no longer be friendly with her, since that would have compromised my faithfulness to my religion and country. In fact, I began to work on a novel that portrayed Jews plotting against Egypt! That was the extent of my fear of the ‘Other!’

“When I was in Egypt during the period of my attraction to Islamist ideology, I had a Christian friend who was very dear to me. One day, I told him, ‘I want you to embrace Islam.’ He asked, ‘Why?’ I answered, ‘Since you are dear to me, I don’t want you to go to hell.’ He laughed, and said, ‘But why should I go to hell?’ I replied, “Over heaven’s gate stand these words: “La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasul Allah.” (4) So, no one enters heaven but a Muslim. These words summarize the Ikhwani mentality.

“There is no way for minorities and women to get their civil and human rights but through the spread of a culture of tolerance. It is necessary to use our minds as we read our sacred texts, and to oppose the role the Islamist teachers are playing in our schools. They fill the minds of students with the hatred of the ‘Other’ and of women. From their earliest days, students should become acquainted with other faiths; and that their religion is not the only true faith, but one among other faiths.

“I remember when I was a teacher in Upper Egypt back in 1987 there was only one Christian girl in the public school Once she told me that on her way home after school, there were students who used to throw stones at her. Her only crime was that she was a Christian! That was the impact of the Islamist mentality at work in Egypt, thanks to the teachings of the Ikhwan!

“The solution for the plight of minorities and women is to be found in two words: citizenship and ‘Ilmaniyya (6). All religions should be practiced in freedom. ‘Ilmaniyya is not against religion, but in the service of religion. The state would become a nation for all its citizens, with no discrimination on account of religious faith or gender. The Ikhwan reject the concept of separation of religion and the state, and prefer to have a religiously-based state, with the imposition of the Jizya tax on non-Muslims. Oh, how I thank God for delivering me from their ideology; otherwise I would still be feeding on their lies and fantasies.”

Analysis

The thesis of the opening lecture at the Zurich Conference reveals the destructive and discriminatory nature of the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood. No one but a former member of the movement could have described it in such a clear and objective way!

Comments

The meeting and the papers that were read at the Zurich conference constitute a landmark in the

history of the modern Arab world. Those who met there represented a cross-section of Mideastern and North African intellectuals. There were Arab Christians and Muslims, men and women, Kurds and other ethnic minorities. They pointed to a deep-seated problem that has plagued the region since the early years of the 20th century.

It’s over two weeks since the Zurich conference has met, and I have yet to see one report about it in the Western press. Unfortunately, neither mainline Western media, nor agencies of Western governments, seem to have been interested to learn the facts about the true nature and source of the problems of the Middle East and North Africa. Not only that, but soon after the conference was held in Switzerland, a troubling piece of news appeared on the website of Fox News, on Saturday, 7 April, 2007

“Hoyer Meets Official From Egypt's Banned Muslim Brotherhood”

“House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer met with the Muslim Brotherhood's parliament leader, Mohammed Saad el-Katatni, twice on Thursday — once at the parliament building and then at the home of the U.S. ambassador to Egypt, said Brotherhood spokesman Hamdi Hassan.”

It is beyond belief that a U.S. House Majority leader should consider meeting in Egypt with a member of an organization that has been the source for the resurgence of Islamic radicalism since the early 1920s?! How much Middle East history does Mr. Hoyer know? Did he realize, for example, when dialoguing with Saad el-Katatni, that on 6 October 1981, President Anwar Sadat was assassinated by members of Al-Jihad movement, an off-shoot of Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun?

What a pity that some U.S. members of Congress, knowing next to nothing about the history of the Middle East, imagine that by visiting the area, and holding talks with dictators and members of terrorist organizations, they are working for the welfare of the region! Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer should have gone to Zurich, rather than to Damascus and Cairo. Their real education in the affairs of the Middle East would have taken place in Switzerland, while listening to the impassioned papers that were delivered at the Conference of the Plight of Minorities and Women in the Middle East and North Africa.

Notes

(1) Actually, it is: “Liberté, égalité, et fraternité” that translates, “Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity.”

(2) Al-Ikhwan al-Muta’aslimeen is a new construct which implies that this group is not truly Muslim, but claiming Islam. Another way of denying them legitimacy.

(3) Kufr: Unbelief; Kafir: Unbeliever.

(4) The Islamic creed: There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.

(5) ‘Ilmaniyya: This Arabic word does not carry the same connotation as the English word, “secularism.” It is closer to the French word, ‘Laic’ implying separation of religion from the state.

Posted in Articles

Islam: Empire of Faith (A Review)

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

As Seen on Public Television, WTTW Channel 11, Chicago 
on 8 May 2001, 8-10:30 P.M.

Reviewed by: Bassam M. Madany


In his Foreword to Bat Ye'or's book, The Decline of Eastern Christianity Under Islam: from Jihad to Dhimmitude, Jacques Ellul, the late Protestant scholar, was concerned about what he called the "Dhimmitude of the West." He was referring to those Western writers and intellectuals who would adopt self-censorship when dealing with Islam. Such behavior is similar to that of the Jews and Christians who came under Islam. The conquering Arab Muslims called them, "Dhimmis." This status conferred upon them the freedom to practice their religion on the condition that they refrain from any criticism of Islam. Furthermore, they were not to propagate their faith. Once a Dhimmi embraced Islam, he or she, could no longer go back to his former faith. Apostasy was punishable by death.

I could not help thinking of his words when viewing a Public Television production, Islam: Empire of Faith. In Chicago, it was aired on May 8, 2001, from 8-10:30 p.m. The majority of the speakers and commentators are Western, and are associated with such institutions as the University of Saint Louis, Columbia University, Boston College, and Edinburgh University. At several intermissions during the two and half hour show, we heard the usual refrain that the documentary was being made available "through viewers like you."

At this point, someone may question whether I am eligible to undertake a review of "Islam: Empire of Faith." After all, I am an Eastern Christian. How could I be free from the prejudices that my people have harbored regarding Islam, ever since the conquest of their homeland in the early seventh century? I admit that I am not entirely free from some bias. But it is an attitude that has a legitimate and reasonable foundation. Furthermore, I do have the credentials to make an assessment of this documentary. I have lived a good deal of my life in the Middle East. I experienced some of the great upheavals that took place in that area in the aftermath of World War II. Even after moving to North America, I have kept up my studies of the history of the Arabs and of Islam, both in Arabic and in English. My credentials are just as valid as those of the speakers who voiced their comments on "Islam: Empire of Faith."

As the documentary proceeded, I felt I was watching a thoroughly revisionist history of the Middle East since the rise of Islam. I have read Arabic books written by Muslim scholars and intellectuals that were far more objective than what I was watching. Western scholars seldom show such a sympathetic attitude toward Christianity, as these "experts" showed towards Islam.

The airing of "Islam: Empire of Faith" had hardly begun before we were told that one fourth of mankind were followers of Islam. This is a preposterous claim. The world population today is around six billion. The Muslim world has, at the most, one billion adherents. That inflated ratio alerted me right away that I was watching a piece of propaganda.

When dealing with the experience of Muhammad in a cave near Mecca, the commentator made no qualification when saying the Prophet's "mission was given by Divine revelation." While it is accurate to report that in 622, Muhammad and some of his followers moved to Medina on account of the hostility of the leaders of Mecca, it is not accurate to state, "Hostility always began from Meccan side." Muslim historians extol the ability of the Prophet to organize attacks against the Meccan caravans that were on their way to Syria. Details in the life of the Prophet that may offend Western viewers were totally left out. Indeed, it was a truly sanitized biography!

As to the early years of Islam, the age of the caliphate and the conquests, the impression was given that the spread of this theistic religion was primarily due to the power of the faith. But this is not the whole story. Certainly, the early Muslims were fired with a tremendous zeal as they burst out of Arabia and entered the territories of the Byzantine and Persian Empires. But the rapid success of their conquests was not exclusively due to the "power of the faith."

The two super powers of the time, Persia and the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) had been in violent conflict for several decades. They had exhausted their resources and emptied their treasuries in that rivalry. So, they were no longer able to subsidize the Arabized kingdoms on the borders of the Arabian Peninsula that had kept the Bedouin tribes in their homeland. Thus, when the Arab horsemen came from the south, Persia crumbled like a house of cards, while Byzantium lost its hold on Egypt and Syria.

Muslims revere the early "golden" era of their history. It lasted a little over 25 years and was called the age of the "Rightly Guided Caliphs." The conquest of the Middle East had begun, and soon North Africa was to come within the Empire. At the same time, the golden age was not so golden! Of the four Caliphs that succeeded Muhammad after 632, three were assassinated. Ali, the fourth Caliph, who was a cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, was murdered by some of his disgruntled followers. After his death, the Caliphate became dynastic. The capital of the growing empire was moved from Medina to Damascus, Syria. The Caliphs of this era, now belonging to the Sunni division of Islam, bore a fierce hostility to the family of Ali and to their Shi'ite followers. One of their Caliphs ordered the massacre of Husein, Ali's son and his entire family. Eventually, in 750 this Damascus-based Caliphate came to an abrupt end in a horrible blood bath. The leader of the revolt, Abul 'Abbas is known in Arab history as As-Saffah (the blood letter). He became the first caliph in the new dynasty, which ruled the Islamic world from Baghdad for almost 500 years. There was no mention of this tragic part of their history in "Empire of Faith."

Meanwhile the brutality of the Crusaders was described in great detail. No Christian scholar would defend that tragic episode in the history of Western Christianity. To the Western Christians at the time, the Crusades were a type of Reconquista. Eventually they failed. Centuries later, the Spanish did mount their own Reconquista, and in 1492, they were successful in driving out all the Muslims and regaining their homeland. To this very day, in the eyes of Muslims, their conquests were divinely mandated. Thus, no criticism may be leveled against them. But non-Muslims may not and should not claim any right to re-conquer what once was their own homeland!

In commenting on this documentary in the Winter 2002 issue of Middle East Quarterly, its editor, Martin Kramer wrote: "The depiction of the Islamic empire as an 'empire of faith' is already a limiting one, since Islam was spread by fear as well as faith, by conquest as well as commerce. Anyone who has taken an elementary course in Islamic history will know this. Anyone who has only watched this film will not." (Page 73)

I don't have time to go over all the other details that were thrust at the viewers by those scholarly men and women, who kept on extolling the greatness of Islam. But the apex of my horror was reached when the Ottoman period of Islamic history was being recounted. The Ottoman Turks had come from Central Asia, and served the Caliphs as mercenaries. Eventually, they adopted Islam. They became the defenders and spreaders of their new faith. They pushed the boundaries of the Islamic Empire into Eastern and Central Europe. They devised a military system known as the "Devshirme." This involved the seizure of Christian boys from their families in the conquered parts of Europe, and forcing them to Islamize. After rigid training they were formed into an elite army corps that would go on to expand the boundaries of the Ottoman Empire in Europe. This army was known as the Jannisary.

How did the commentator describe this barbaric act that deprived Christian families of some of their male offspring? With a tone of full approval she said that the Ottomans "recruited Christian children" as if it were a privilege. Is "recruited" the proper word to use here? What a blatant camouflage of an evil system that lasted so long in Eastern Europe that it left scars on its inhabitants to this very day!

In referring to the deliberate omission of the dark side of the history of Islam, Martin Kramer wrote:

"The imbalance caused by this omission is particularly unfortunate now that Islam: Empire of Faith has been trotted out to do service as an antidote to September 11. Gardner [reference is to the producer for PBS] made a deliberate and legitimate choice not to bring the film up to the present. But the decision by PBS to rebroadcast it after the attacks effectively revokes the choice. It the film has some relevant message, it is the one made by a raft of "experts" who claim that violence is not a part of Islam and that jihad was never anything more than peaceful persuasion. But it's not true. Wars of conquest expanded Islam's frontiers and every one of them was conducted under the banner of jihad. And if anyone doubts the Islamic legitimacy of slaughtering innocents in the assault on an enemy city, they have only to look to the fall of Constantinople. They just won't be able to find it in this film." (Page 76)

It is not my intention to sound very critical of the history of Islam. My point is that the documentary that cost PBS $1.54 million should have included an objective and balanced view of this history. The PBS documentary did not accomplish that. And there was too much deference shown to the Muslim organizations in the USA which played quite a role in deciding what might and might not be included in the film. More than that, this whole production would not help us in our relationship with the Islamic world. One of the most urgent needs for its leadership is to realize that we are living in a new era of global history. No past empire can be resurrected. We all live in an age of interdependence. We need one another. We have global problems that require global solutions.

In summary, it is very difficult for Muslims, whose religion has always had a political component, to relinquish the dream of founding another great Islamic empire. In the past, they conquered vast areas of Europe, Africa and Asia. So it is not easy to expect them to jettison every notion of resurrecting their past glory. But they must. The task before Western leaders today is to speak honestly and openly with their Muslim counterparts. Their people face some gigantic challenges, such as population explosion, the lack of water resources, and too much dependence on one major source of income, such as oil. The Islamists ignore these facts and repeat the mantra, "Islam is the solution." They can and do resort to awful measures of destruction. Unlike the Marxists of the 20th century whose dream was to establish an earthly paradise, the Muslim worldview contains a supernatural element. This belief in an after-death paradise of bliss and unending pleasure, allows the radicals to contemplate unimaginable acts of violence.


The following books are relevant to this topic and offer us a more balanced view.

The Decline of Eastern Christianity under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude, by Bat Ye’or. Associated University Presses, Cranbury, NJ  08512, 1996

Any of Prof. Bernard Lewis’s books.  He taught at the University of London, and during the 1990s, he moved to the USA, and taught at Princeton University. His books are available at major bookstores.  The Arabs in History and The Middle East and the West, Harper & Row, New York 1960’s.  The Political Language of Islam, University of Chicago Press 1988 and Race and Slavery in the Middle East, Oxford University Press, 1990.

What You Need to Know About Islam & Muslims, by George W. Braswell Jr. Broadman & Holman Publishers, Nashville, TN, 2000

Faith & Power: The Politics of Islam, by Edward Mortimer. Random House, New York, 1982

In the Path of God: Islam And Political Power, by Daniel Pipes, Basic Books, Inc. New York, 1983

Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey, by V. S. Naipaul, Vintage Books, Random House, New York, 1981

Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions Among the Converted People, by V. S. Naipaul, Random House, New York, 1998

The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, by Samuel P. Huntington, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1996

Posted in Articles

The Early Church: Western and Eastern

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

The Christianity that is most familiar to us in North America is Western Christianity. By this term I mean that the vast majority of Christians in this continent, can trace their background to either the? Roman Catholic Church, or to the various Protestant Churches that came out of Rome early in the 16th Century.

In 312 AD, the Roman Emperor Constantine embraced the Christian religion. In 313, he published the Edict of Milan, that ended the persecution of Christians in the Empire. He chose Byzantium as his capital in 323, and renamed it, Constantinople (the city of Constantine.)

In 325, he called the Great Council of Nicea which defined the orthodox faith of the Church in a document known as the Nicene Creed.

Eventually, the Roman Empire was divided between the Western Empire, with Rome as its capital, and the Eastern Empire, with Constantinople as its capital. The language used in the Eastern Empire (known also as the Byzantine Empire) was Greek, while the language of the Western Empire continued to be Latin.

In the fifth century AD, the barbarians sacked Rome. That event marked the beginning of the end of the Western Roman Empire. However, the Western Church survived. It was this Church that experienced the event known as the Reformation (1517.) Thus, both Roman Catholics and Protestants trace their history back to the Western Church. But this is not the whole story about the Universal Christian Church.

The Easter Roman Empire lasted another one thousand years after the fall of Rome. In 1453, the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople, and renamed it, Istanbul. It remained the capital of the Ottoman Empire until the 1920s.

The story of the Church in the East is quite complicated. During the First Century AD, it was understood among Christians that the rank or position of an apostle was unique, and that it ceased to exist after the death of the apostle John. Most of the apostles were not only leaders of the church, but served as channels of God?s revelation. Their writings are preserved in the New Testament.

Quite early in the subsequent centuries, the First Century form of church government composed of Elders and Deacons (with some Elders serving as teaching or preaching Elders) gradually gave way to episcopalianism. The Greek word episcopus literally means, supervisor, and is transliterated, bishop. It was practically synonymous with the Hebrew word, elder. Christian church leaders in large metropolitan centers, began to assume the title of Patriarch or Archbishop. There were five important centers in the early church: Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, Rome, and Constantinople. The bishops in these cities were known as Patriarchs, and their specific ecclesiastical territory, as a patriarchate.

Eventually, the attempt of one patriarch (the Bishop of Rome) to assume the position of Head (or Pope) of the Universal Church, gave rise to the great division or schism of the Church. The Western Church recognized the sole leadership of the Pope in Rome; the Eastern Churches continued to recognize the historic leadership of their particular patriarchs in the East. This schism became final very early in the Second Millennium (1054).

The story of the Church in the East is even more complicated!

Let us go back to the Council of Nicea (325 AD). The great controversy that occasioned the convening of the first General or Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church was centered around the true doctrine of the Person of Jesus Christ. Arius, a presbyter in the church at Alexandria, propounded the theory that our Lord was a created being. He denied the clear teachings of the Bible such as in Psalm 2, Psalm 110, John 1, Hebrews 1, Ephesians 1, Colossians 1, and Revelation 1. Another Alexandrian presbyter, Athanasius (293-373,)defended the Biblical teaching about the Messiah, by stressing both the deity and humanity of Jesus Christ. His position was accepted by the Council, and the Creed that was issued at Nicea, is known as the Nicene Creed. Since that time, it became the standard of Orthodoxy in Christianity. The teachings of Arius became known as Arianism, and his followers were called, Arians. They were considered as heretics. Arianism spread among the Barbarians who later on invaded Rome, Spain, and North Africa.

It must be noted that delegates from of both the Western and Eastern parts of the Universal Church were at Nicea. The Council of Nicea dealt primarily with the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. The discussions within the Church relevant to the relationship between the human and divine natures of Jesus Christ, led to further divisions. These occurred within the Byzantine Empire and the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Several Ecumenical Councils took place after Nicea, Council of Constantinople (381,) Council of Ephesus (431,) and Council of Chalcedon (451.) At this meeting, Christian Orthodoxy was further defined as to declare that, since his incarnation, the Lord Jesus Christ possessed two natures, divine and human. That also meant that our Lord had two wills, divine and human, but he remained one Person. Later on, this belief was set forth in a creed known as the Athanasian Creed. This creedal document is recognized only in the West, and is also known by its Latin name, Symbol Quicunque; (its opening words are: " Whosoever will be saved."

Rather than consolidating the unity of the Church, Chalcedon became the occasion for new divisions. Some church leaders, while strongly adhering to the deity of Jesus Christ, nevertheless defended the thesis that he possessed only a divine nature. They were known as the Monophysites. They were very prominent in Egypt and in Syria. Other church leaders, endeavoring to take full account of the Biblical teachings about Jesus Christ, went to the other extreme. They so described the two natures and wills of the Messiah as to make him almost two persons. They were called the Nestorians, i.e., followers of Bishop Nestorius of Constantinople, who was the champion of this teaching.

The Monophysite and Nestorian Churches were declared heretical by the Eastern Orthodox Churches. It is very unfortunate that the Orthodox party used also the arm of the Byzantine Empire to persecute those Christians who had not accepted the Chalcedonian formulation of the doctrine of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Eastern Churches fall into two major categories:

  • The Chalcedonian Branch. It comprises the Orthodox Church, which was the State Church of the Byzantine Empire. Its territory included many parts of the Middle East, the Balkans, and Russia.
  • The Non-Chalcedonian Churches, have the following distinctive names within?well-recognized geographical regions of Africa and Asia:
    • The Coptic Church: Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia.
    • The Jacobite Church: Syria.
    • The Nestorian Church: Mesopotamia (Iraq).
    • The Armenian Church: Armenia, Middle East, and the Diaspora.
    • The Saint Thomas Church: India.
    • The Maronite Church: Lebanon.
Posted in Articles

The Middle East After the Islamic Conquest

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

In our previous lecture, we noted that the Arabs allowed the Christians of Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia, to continue in their governmental work, and the use of the local languages. While Islamization of the conquered areas slowed down, Arabization of the national cultures proceeded without delay. Before long, Arabic became the national language of the Middle Eastern peoples.

Having covered the historical background of Eastern Christianity, and the impact of the Islamic conquests, we shall now proceed to the study of the decline of Eastern Christianity in the Middle East. Our primary source is, The Decline of Eastern Christianity, From Jihad to Dhimmitude, by Bat Ye'or, published in 1996 by Associated University Presses, in Cranbury, NJ, 08512? The author was born in Egypt, and was member of a sizable Jewish community that had lived in that country for centuries before Christ. The Jewish population of Egypt dwindled rapidly after the birth of Israel in 1948. Bat Ye'or (a Hebrew name that means, Daughter of the Nile), migrated to France and contributed several works on the topic of Dhimmis (Jews and Christian) under Islam. In 1991, this book was first published in French, and five years later, the English translation appeared.

Most of what follows are quotations that illustrate the plight of Eastern Christianity since the Islamic conquests of the Eastern and Southern parts of the Mediterranean world. Professor Jacques Ellul, a well-known French Protestant scholar of the University of Bordeaux, wrote the? Foreword to the book. Ellul reminds us that an intrinsic part of the Islamic faith is jihad. While modern Islamic scholars have endeavored to re-define jihad, claiming that it is primarily a struggle with self, Jacques Ellul points out that history proves otherwise.

"But a major, twofold fact transforms the jihad into something quite different from traditional wars, waged for ambition and self-interest, with limited objectives, where the normal situation is peace between peoples; war in itself, constitutes a dramatic event which must end in a return to peace. The twofold factor is first the religious nature, then the fact that war has become an institution (and no longer an event). Jihad is generally translated as holy war (this term is not satisfactory): this suggests both that this war is provoked by strong religious feeling, and then that its first object is not so much to conquer land as to Islamize the populations. This war is a religious duty." P. 18

"In Islam, however, jihad is a religious obligation. It forms part of the duties that the believer must fulfill. It is Islam?s normal path to expansion." P. 18,19

"Hence, the second important specific characteristic is that the jihad is an institution, and not an event, that is to say it is part of the normal functioning of the Muslim world. The conquered populations change status (they become dhimmis), and the shari'a tends to be put into effect integrally, overthrowing the former law of the country. The conquered territories do not simply change owners. Rather they are brought into a binding collective (religious) ideology --- with the exception of the dhimmi condition --- and are controlled by a highly perfected administrative machinery." P. 19

Coming now to our author's text, we are impressed by the thorough research and analysis of the sources that prove the thesis of Bat Ye'or, namely that the Islamic conquests had given birth for all time (within the Muslim world) of an institution that places the native populations into a permanently handicapped status.? Writing about The Origin of Jihad, Bat Ye'or put it in these words:

"The Jihad 'linked the mores of great warlike nomadism with the conditions of existence of Muhammad in' Medina where he emigrated in 622, fleeing the persecutions of the pagans of Mecca. Lacking means of subsistence, the small emigrant Muslim community lived at the expense of the new converts in Medina. As this situation could not last, the Prophet organized armed incursions to intercept the caravans which traded with Mecca. Interpreter of the will of Allah, Muhammad combined the political power of a military leader, the religious power and the functions of a judge: Whosoever obeys the Messenger, thereby obeys God (Koran 4:82)" P. 37

"In 640 the second caliph, Umar Ibn.al-Khattab, drove the Jewish and Christian tributaries out of Hijaz  [he] invoked the desire expressed by the Prophet on his deathbed: ?Two religions should not co-exist within the Arabian peninsula." P. 39

To go over the details that Bat Ye?or mentions in her book may sound totally out of tune with the spirit of our times when a globalized and shrinking world requires all of us to live in harmony and in peace and to forget the past. But what if in the past some civilizations were based on continual warfare, and if their histories have become normative for the present And what if, as we notice today, Islamic radicalism is impacting our world from Indonesia, passing through Pakistan, and into the Middle East Are we supposed to engage in self-censorship and suppress facts that are based on ancient dogmas and which still impact the present?

I have really been puzzled by the little reference made to this great work of historical research. It has been accomplished meticulously by an immigrant author who found in France a welcoming home and a proper atmosphere for the publication of her works on the plight of the Dhimmis across fourteen hundred years.

Here are a few more quotes.

"The religious obligation to fight the Christians required a permanent state of war which justified the organization of seasonal raids (ghazwa)'They sometimes consisted of short pillaging incursions  to collect booty, steal livestock, and enslave the villagers. Other campaigns, led by the caliph in person, called for considerable military preparations. Provinces were ravaged and burned down, towns pillaged and destroyed, inhabitants massacred or deported." P. 48

"For centuries after its conquest in 712, Spain became the terrain par excellence for the jihad in the West of the dar el-Islam." P. 49

"Under the Umayyads, the Peoples of the Book, particularly the Christians, represented the large majority of the Islamic states' subjects and ---with the Zoroastrians --- its principal taxpayers. This economic strength also constituted a political power that had to be controlled, since revolts would have paralyzed the Arab army, which was accumulating booty and slaves for the caliph in the dar al-harb." P. 69

"The two pillars of the nascent Islamic state in the conquered lands were the army --- formed by Arab tribes and the slaves taken as spoils of war --- and the conquered masses: tributaries, slaves, freed men, and converts, a workforce which fed the economic sector. The third pillar --- juridical power --- was being elaborated. It would undertake to balance and rectify the enormous demographic disparity between the conquered Peoples of the Book and the Muslims. - the legal institution would formulate a collection of laws which gradually whittled down the rights of the dhimmis and confined them to a cramped condition, by transferring to the umma all the key positions that the dhimmis had formerly held." Pp. 69,70

"From the beginning of the conquests --- in Syria and Spain, as well as in other conquered provinces --- the Christians had ceded to the Muslims half of their churches which became mosques as a result of the Muslim influx." Pp. 83,84

"In the Maghreb, where endemic anarchy prevailed, sources mention the massacre in 1033 of five to six thousand Jews in Fez. The Almohad persecutions in the Maghreb and Muslim Spain (1130-1212) eliminated Christianity there." P. 89

Chapter 10 is titled: Conclusion. Bat Ye'or endeavors to bring together for the contemporary reader, a meaningful result of her research. Her goal is not merely to supply us with facts relating to the past fourteen centuries, but to enable us to understand the challenges that we faced at the end of the twentieth century, and that continue to be with us throughout the twenty-first century.

"Does the expression 'protected religious minorities' or 'tolerated religious minorities' adequately describe the dhimmi peoples?

"In the lands conquered by jihad  the Peoples of the Book formed majorities, among whom the Arabs of the first wave of Islamization and the Turks of the second wave were in the minority. Presumably the complex and little-known processes that transformed those majorities into minorities covered some three or four centuries for each wave of Islamization. By contracting it, the expression 'religious minorities' reverses a chronological process that had spread over centuries, whose result --- the minority condition --- is taken as its starting point."

"This interpretation, which omits the essential phase when irreversible changes occurred, conceals the political aspect of dhimmitude and reduces it exclusively to a religious minority status. In addition, the formula becomes inadequate for certain regions, such as the Balkans, where non-Muslims were in the majority until the nineteenth century" P. 243

"Today, it would seem absurd to describe the Rumanian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Greek and Israeli nations as former 'tolerated religious minorities.' Similarly, the common cliche second-class citizens has no meaning, because the dhimmis were not citizens and the term 'second-class' is devoid of the dhimma's historical and juridical substrata." Pp. 243,244

"dhimmitude reveals another reality. Here are peoples who,  spread the Judeo-Christian civilization as far as Europe and Russia. Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians, conquered by nomadic bands, taught their oppressors, with the patience of centuries, the subtle skills of governing empires, the need for law and order, the management of finances, the administration of town and countryside, the rules of taxation rather those of pillage, the sciences, philosophy, literature, and the arts, the organization and transmission of knowledge --- in short, the rudiments and foundations of civilization." P. 264

"Decimated by razzias in the countryside, they sought refuge in the towns which they developed and embellished. Branded with opprobrium, the conquerors still chose to drag them from region to region in order to revive ravaged lands and restore ruined towns. Once again, they built, again they worked. Once again they were driven out, again pillaged and ransomed. And as they dwindled, drained of their blood and spirit, civilization itself disappeared, decadence stagnated, barbarism reigned over lands which, previously, when they were theirs, were lands of civilization, of crops and of plenty." P. 265

"The elites who fled to Europe took their cultural baggage with them, their scholarship, and their knowledge of the classics of antiquity. Therefore, in the Christian lands of refuge --- Spain, Provence, Sicily, Italy --- cultural centers developed where Christians and Jews from Islamized lands taught to the young Europe the knowledge of the old pre-Islamic Orient, formerly translated into Arabic by their ancestors." P. 265

"And so this study would prefer to end with the a tribute. Indeed, as the centuries shed their leaves, these rejects of history disclose the infinite variety of the human character. Servile, corrupt, cowardly, pusillanimous, and presumptuous, but also learned, industrious, and heroic; all aspects blended and intermingled; faces of blood and tears, faces of wisdom and enquiry, molded in a thousand-year-old human magma which the historian only approaches with respect and without judgment." P. 265

Posted in Articles

The Western Church and Its Response Settings Last Published Version Back

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Having covered briefly the history of Eastern Christianity before and since the rise of Islam, we face an important question. What is our responsibility, as Christians of the Western tradition, to our brothers and sisters still living under Islam? I trust that our survey, in the last three lectures, was not a purely academic exercise. Our concern was not prompted simply by a desire to learn more about the history of the early Church. After all, don't we confess in the words of the Apostles' Creed that we believe in one holy universal church? And how often have we sung the hymn, 'The Church's One Foundation Is Jesus Christ Her Lord,' where we also affirm the oneness of all believers?

Our study of The Plight of Eastern Christianity Under Islam should lead us to some serious reflection regarding our response. What are certain concrete things we must do so that our concern may prove genuine? I would like to make the following suggestions:

  • First, Western Christians need to develop a keen interest in the history of Eastern Christianity. Many of our fellow-Christians in North America have roots in the various Eastern Christian communions of the Old World. Unfortunately, most of the churches in the West are not equipped to adequately inform their people about the plight of Eastern Christianity under Islam. I may sound rather critical of our theological institutions, but I personally experienced this deficiency in my training at two different theological seminaries. I don't mean to imply that we did not cover the doctrinal differences between East and West, or the deeper controversies that raged within the Eastern Churches leading to serious divisions. But all these matters were dealt with in a purely formal manner, i.e., within the study of specific doctrinal subjects such as the natures and wills of Christ, and the unity of the human and divine in his person. What was lacking was the story of our brothers and sisters in the East who succumbed to an invader that gradually destroyed their vibrant Christian lives, reducing them to a despised dhimmi status.
  • Second, Western Christians must translate their knowledge of Eastern Christianity into a ministry of intercession. Many Eastern Christians still live under Islam, especially in the Middle East. They are facing tremendous difficulties due to the rise of radical Islam, and the continual conflicts that have beset the area since 1948. Our kinsmen in the East are greatly strengthened in their faith when they realize that their Western brothers and sisters have not forgotten them, but intercede for them in their homes and their churches.
  • Third, Western Christians must act. What do I mean by this call to action? We are accustomed to all kinds of advocacy groups that seek to enlighten the public about various causes that need help or redress. So, why not speak out on behalf of suffering Christians under Islam? Did we not work hard to bring to the world attention the cause of Christians suffering under various Marxist regimes? Is it wrong to call attention to a situation that has lasted more than 70 years, yes to fourteen hundred years? Does the duration of this intolerable situation make it normal, or has it acquired a finality of an irreversible condition?

This call to action is not easy for several reasons. Most Western institutions, whether governmental, business, or educational, are not concerned about suffering Christians under Islam. As the West becomes more secularized, it manifests hardly any allegiance to a specific faith tradition. Our leaders are primarily concerned about national interest, which is nothing more than a euphemistic word for our continued economic well-being. Specifically, since Muslim nations control most of the oil reserves of the world, we are very careful not to offend them by mentioning anything about dhimmis and dhimmitude. Here are some anecdotal instances that illustrate my point.

In February 2001, the news media reported that Turkey had canceled a hefty military hardware contract from France as a protest for the French Parliament declaring that genocide did occur in Turkey against the Armenians during World War I. This sad event in the twentieth century that took the lives of over one million Eastern Christians, both Armenian and Assyrian, has never been acknowledged by successive Turkish governments which are heir to the old Ottoman Turkish Empire. Even though France is far more secularized than the United States, it had the courage to adopt an official statement about this genocide. On the other hand, various attempts by the U. S. Congress to adopt similar statements have been discouraged by the Executive branch! What a sad commentary on our genuine interest in the plight of persecuted and martyred communities. For more than half a century we regarded Turkish sensitivities of paramount importance since they provided an Eastern bulwark against the Soviet Union. And nowadays, Turkey still supplies us with air bases that come in handy in our flights over the no-fly zone in northern Iraq!

Regardless of the callous attitude of our various cultural institutions vis-?-vis Eastern Christianity, we members of the Universal Church of our Lord should not hesitate but bear witness, individually, and corporately, to the continual plight of Eastern Christians under Islam.

Throughout my study of this subject, I have been rather puzzled, chagrined, and grateful at the same time. Puzzled and grateful because it took members of the Jewish faith to champion the plight of Eastern Christians by making a thorough study of the history of dhimmitude over fourteen hundred years of Islamic domination. It was not so much Christian scholarship that has brought this almost irreversible consequence of Islamic conquests to the world's attention. Furthermore, I have been saddened, because on the same topic, it was another Jewish scholar, the Britisher, Bernard Lewis, of the University of London, and later on, of Princeton University, who contributed numerous books on this subject. Likewise, V. S. Naipaul, also a British scholar of Indian Hindu background, undertook the task of describing the impact of Islam on other cultures! What a challenge to Christians of the new Millennium to take up the cause of their brothers and sisters who still live in Islamic countries and who have suffered silently for so many, many years!

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The Plight of Eastern Christians Revisited

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany
Rev. Bassam M. Madany


These days, the media are preoccupied with the US presidential campaign. As for the overseas news, the war in Afghanistan and Iraq remains in center stage, with endless speculations about the resurgence of al-Qaida, and its plans to attack Western targets throughout the world. Hardly, any attention is given to the ongoing tragedy of the Christian minorities living within the vast Islamic world. Their ill-treatment is not episodic, but is based on the Islamic Shari'a Law, which has enshrined their inferior status in the law of Dhimmitude.* Contrast that with the status of the Muslim residents in the West who enjoy all the privileges of the citizens of the host countries!  

This lack of a just and equitable treatment of the Christian minorities in Islam was featured in the Arabic-language online daily, www.Elaph.com on 4 August, 2007. The author, a Syrian living in Paris, France, described himself as a "human-rights activist." Here are quotations from his article: 

"Eastern Christians have encountered great challenges as they sought to achieve their goal of becoming full members of a modern secular state, while enjoying full citizenship and political equality with Muslims. It is well known that the Arab Awakening** that spread democratic and liberal ideas in Syria and Egypt at the end of the 19th Century, was spearheaded by Christian intellectuals who were open to European culture. This movement led to the rise of political parties that sought independence from the Ottoman Empire.  

"Having achieved independence, the Christian elites realized the importance of the modern secular government as a guarantee to achieve a better status for Eastern Christians, who are the original inhabitants of the area.  However, the project for the establishment of a modern secular government encountered several challenges; the most powerful one came from Traditional Islam. It rejects modernity and secularism, and any separation of religion from the state. This conservative Islam insists on regarding the Shari'a Law as the basic source of legislation, thus constituting a distinction among the citizens, based on religion and ethnicity. Practically, a Muslim enjoys more privileges than a non-Muslim, especially in the area of government, where the ruler must always be of the Muslim faith.  

"More than a century has passed since the rise of the Arab Awakening, and now the peoples of the Middle East are facing concerted efforts for the establishment of an Islamic State. It is being offered by political Islam under the slogan of, "Al-Islam hua'l Hall," (Islam is the Solution.) It is being offered as a substitute for the crisis-ridden National State that has been controlled for a long time, by corrupt and oppressive regimes. 

"Due to Lebanon's special background, and the historical psychology of the Maronites, it refused to accept the Arab-Islamic recipe in the writing of its Constitution. Its political system was crafted in an agreement known as the 1943 National Pact, [where the President is a Maronite Christian, the Prime Minister, is a Sunni Muslim, and the Speaker of the Parliament, is a Shi'ite Muslim.] This modus operandi continued until the Civil War of 1975. The Taif Charter of 1989, that brought to an end the war, diminished at the same time, the political influence of the Maronites, giving more power to the Islamic communities, by shrinking the powers of the president of the Lebanese Republic. 

"A new era in the history of the Middle East in general, and of the Christian minorities in particular, was ushered in with the beginning of the American campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. The plight of the Christians has worsened, as a result of these military campaigns. They fanned the flames of the historic enmity that remains latent in the Islamic Arab world vis-à-vis the United States and the West. A struggle is going on between the United States and its European allies on the one hand, and the radical Islamic organizations such as al-Qaida, as a defender of Islam, on the other hand. As a result, it is the Eastern Christians who pay dearly, not because they have done anything wrong themselves, but simply and uniquely because they happen to be Christian!  

For example, in the backlash from the Danish Cartoons, and the recent lecture of Pope Benedict XVI, several terrorist attacks have taken place on the lives and belongings of Middle East Christians. A priest in Turkey, a nun in Somalia, and several priests in Iraq, have been assassinated. Church buildings and monasteries have been burned by radical Islamic groups in more than one Arab and Islamic capital. 

"Should we forget Hrant Dink, the Turkish journalist of Armenian background, who was assassinated by a young Muslim Turk on 19 January, 2007?  This event cannot be isolated from the terror that is being directed against Eastern Christians by radical Islamic organizations. It is no exaggeration to say that this crime points to the condition not only of the small Christian minority that is left in Turkey, but to the plight of the entire Eastern Christian minorities that remain in the Islamic Arab world. 

"Going back to Hrant Dink, it is important to remember that in spite of his great love for Turkey as his country, and his unending call to both Turks and Armenians to be reconciled, and to transcend the historic enmity between them; he was once convicted of defaming the Turkish identity according to Article 301 of the Turkish Criminal Code. In his last article, he wrote: 'I shall keep on fighting [for reconciliation] regardless of the threats.'  This article appeared in the Lebanese newspaper, Al-Nahar. Several Turkish newspapers began a campaign of vilification claiming that he manifested enmity towards the Turks. In this article, he had expressed his doubts about the integrity of the Turkish judicial system, as he referred to several cases of Islamist Turkish writers who had been charged with the same offense, but whose cases were dismissed! What is rather disturbing in Dink's case is that his assassin's picture surfaced in a video showing him draped with the Turkish flag. He was treated by the Turkish policemen as a national hero. It is reported that his mother said, ‘My son did his duty, he is a hero like Ali Aca,'*** the one who attempted to kill Pope John Paul II in 1981.  

"The governments of the Arab and Islamic states have not been supportive of their religious minorities. Otherwise how can we explain that they marshal all their forces to combat radical Islamists when they attack governmental agencies, but they act slowly and hesitantly against these terrorists when they murder innocent Christian citizens in their homes or their churches? Furthermore, the government-controlled media often deceive the public by offering lame excuses for attacks on Christians, claiming that these Irhabis were mentally deranged, or had some previous unresolved issues with the murdered Christians! These discriminatory policies spread despair and anxiety among the Christian minorities. So, instead of the governments doing their utmost to strengthen the minorities' national loyalties by treating them on par with the majority population, they spread doubts about the minority's national loyalty, thus justifying their marginalization."  

The above words, taken from an August 2007 article on the challenges facing the Christian minorities within the Household of Islam remind me of a book that was published in 1963, under the title of, "A LONELY MINORITY: THE MODERN STORY OF EGYPT'S COPTS." The author of the work was Edward Wakin, an American journalist. Even though more than four decades have passed, its findings describe the plight of the Christian minorities today, not only in Egypt, but throughout the entire Muslim world. Here are some quotations that should make you deeply concerned about the treatment of the original inhabitants of the lands of the Middle East. 

"Viewed today from the West, the Copts are a major test of modern coexistence between a large Christian minority and a Moslem majority. In the Middle East, the Copts constitute the largest body of Christians in that part of the world where Christianity was born. For Egypt which is trying to mobilize all its human resources into a modern state, the test may be decisive. For a mosaic of minorities in the Middle Eastern countries of Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Turkey, the Coptic story can be read as handwriting on the wall. For the Christians of Lebanon, who are maintaining an uneasy dominance in a country evenly divided between Christians and Moslems, their prospects in Moslem Arab hegemony can be deciphered from the Coptic situation in Egypt. It is a problem echoed nearby in the tenuous Greek-Turkish partnership of Christian and Moslem in the island republic of Cyprus." P. 4 [These words were written before the brutal Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus in 1974.] 

"The cross suits this cruel culture of poverty and persecution, both as identification and an outlet for the Copts. It is their brand and their balm; it gives a meaning to life when there are only blind nature and inexplicable misfortune. If Western Christianity gives prime glory to Easter, the day of Resurrection, deliverance and confirmation of Christ's divinity --- Good Friday is more appropriate psychologically to the Copts. On this day when the cross was born as a universal Christian symbol, modern Copts say ‘Kyrie eleison' (Lord, have mercy upon us) 400 times at home, 100 times in each direction, and flock to their churches. P. 136 

"At the end of this intimate rendezvous with the Copts, a concluding moral note is unavoidable. The obligation to oppose tyranny wherever it stands, even when the tyranny is elusive and unannounced, even unintended. It begins with labeling injustice long before shop windows are smashed, icons broken, and families torn apart. This labeling is an antidote to the danger of dulled sensibilities in our time and while the Copts can be accused of hypersensitivity, their problem is by no means imaginary. They are feeling pressures that inflict suffering without mutilating, that intimidate relentlessly without exploding sporadically that wound without bloodshed.  [Emphasis mine] 

"The Copts are numbed and helpless as well as anxious as their historic cycles of acceptance and rejection, their recurring stages of toleration, discrimination, and persecution move inexorably in the direction of rejection. Persecution is still the nightmare, discrimination the reality in the latest chapter of a long story of a people. They are there in Egypt and there they remain, the ‘true Egyptians,' the 'original Christians,' the four million Copts of the Nile Valley, that troubled, enduring, lonely minority. Pp. 175 and 176 

By quoting from portions of an article on the sufferings of Eastern Christians during the early years of the Third Millennium, and going back half a century to quote from a scholarly research on the plight of Egypt's Copts, I don't mean to simply add to your knowledge of their fourteen-century old sufferings. I want you to consider your responsibility as Christians vis-à-vis this intolerable position of a dwindling Christian minority that suffers silently, with hardly any attention given to it by the conventional media. We are exhorted in the closing chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews to "Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated, as if you yourselves were suffering." (13:3) In other words, let us put into practice the Kononia of the Saints which we confess in the Apostles' Creed. This is accomplished in our daily prayers on behalf of our brothers and sisters in the Household of Islam, and making their plight known by all the means available to us. 

Millions of Muslims have come to reside permanently among us in the West. They enjoy freedoms not even accorded to them in their homelands. We should remind our political leaders, who quite often manifest an abysmal ignorance of Islam that it is their duty to speak out about the tragic plight of all minorities in the Muslim World. The civilized and tolerant culture that grants Muslims the rights that are enjoyed by other citizens in the West, has never been reciprocated in a quid pro quo treatment of the Christian minorities in Islam. What a shocking commentary on a culture that parades under the banner of the Religion of Peace! 

*Dhimmitude: The status of being a Dhimmi, an Arabic term that refers to Jews and Christians who live under Islamic rule, subject to strict laws defining their limited rights. 

**The Arab Awakening: The cultural renaissance that began in Egypt and the Levant in the aftermath of Napoleon's brief military campaign in the closing years of the 18th Century. It introduced Arabic-speaking intellectuals (both Muslim and Eastern Christian) to the European civilization, and its accomplishments in the arts and sciences. 

***Aca: The name of the man who attempted the murder of Pope John Paul II. In the Turkish Latinized alphabet, the letter "C" is pronounced as "J"; so Aca is pronounced Aja.

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Islam: Past, Present, and Future - Part Two

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

28 December 2022

On 15 December 2022, I posted Part One of “Islam: Past, Present, and Future.” I covered the early history of Islam, ending this paragraph:

“A century after the founding of the Abbasid Caliphate, the distant parts of the Empire began to secede. A cataclysmic event occurred in the middle of the 13th century when the Mongolians invaded the eastern parts of the Caliphate and destroyed Baghdad.”

What of the present and Future of Islam? 

In Bernard Lewis’ “What Went Wrong?” he attempted to explain the malaise that affects Islam nowadays: “Muslims from Indonesia to Morocco. Put it simply, the first 1000 years in the history of Islam, the Muslim world was a center of power, culture, and enlightenment. At least this is what Muslim historiographers say, and what most Muslims believe. Allah was on their side for a millennium. Is He no longer with them today?”

After achieving their independence in the middle of the 20th century, several countries in the Middle East espoused Socialism as the way to catch up with the rest of the world. It didn’t take long to find that Socialism was the wrong choice.

A major challenge faced them with the birth of Israel in 1948. How could immigrants from Europe, resist and then overcome five Arab armies in the summer of 1948? And then, after a couple of decades, came the unbelievable Arab Hazima (defeat) of the Six Day War in June 1967. Was that terrible event a sign that God had forsaken them?

The preoccupation with the Palestinian problem and the militarization of many Arab states during the second half of the 20th century diverted Muslims from realistically facing the challenges of modernity. While the nations of the Pacific Rim joined the ranks of the First World Club, Muslim states stagnated, their desperate societies became prey to such radical movements as FIS (Algeria’s Islamic Salvation Front) the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas, Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip, and the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Two major subjects best describe the plight of the Muslim nations today: Geography, and Demography.

Except for Indonesia, Malaysia, and Bangla Dash, most Muslim lands lack adequate water resources. While Turkey, Syria, and Iraq share the waters of the Tigris and the Euphrates, the growing demand for more irrigation points to some serious problems soon. The same situation faces the countries that share the Nile River, Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt.

The second topic that receives scant attention comes under the rubric of demography. According to the Population Reference Bureau of Washington, D.C., most of the populations in the Muslim world double ever twenty years!  Such statistics are very hard to grasp. For example, most of the citizens of Iran were born after the revolution of 1979; and around 40% of the Saudis are below 45 years old!

Besides the problems of geography and demography, most countries of the Muslim world suffer from the hegemony of authoritarian and oppressive regimes. Syria was brutalized by Hafez al-Assad between 1970 and 2000. His son Bashar has continued the oppressive regime to this very day, causing millions of Syrians to seek refuge in nearby countries and in Europe. The uprising of the Iranian masses against a regime claiming divine authority to persecute and execute anyone opposing them is part of the daily news!

Earlier in my article, I had quoted from Bernard Lewis’ “What Went Wrong?” I would like to end the article with a quotation from his last work,  

“The End of Modern History in the Middle East”[i]

‘With the ending of global strategic confrontation between superpowers, those in the Middle East must adjust to a new reality: to accept final responsibility for their own affairs, to make and recognize their mistakes, and to accept the consequences. In The End of Modern History in the Middle East, Bernard Lewis discusses the future of the region in this new, postimperialist era. For each country and for the region as a whole, he explains, there is a range of alternative futures: at one end, cooperation, and progress; at the other, a vicious circle of poverty and ignorance “

--------------------------

[i] The End of Modern History in the Middle East (Hoover Institution Press Publication) (Volume 604) Hardcover – May 1, 2011

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Islam: Past, Present, and Future - Part One

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

15 December 2022

It’s mid-December 2022, one week before Christmas; these are the headlines that caught my attention today:

Iranian Regime's Slow-Motion Genocide of The Balochi People  Erdoğan Places Bounties on Critics Abroad

Iran's General Strike: Can the Regime Survive?

Gravitas Plus: The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

Who are the Kurds and why don't they have their own country?

German politicians raise awareness of plight of Iranian protestors

To understand why these headlines, dominate our attention, I would like to refer to the work of the Lebanese American Philip Hitti who started the Near Eastern Studies Department at Princeton University, around 85 years ago. In his book “Islam: A Way of Life” dealt with Islam as Religion, Islam as State, and Islam as Culture. So, Islam is much more than a religion.

Another scholar who wrote on Islam was Bernard Lewis who came to Princeton, after teaching at his alma mater, the University of London, England. Professor Lewis was a prolific author and a frequent speaker on radio and television, especially after the attacks of September 11, 2001.

In his book, “Race and Slavery in the Middle East: An Historical Enquiry,” he explained the several meanings of the word ‘Islam.’

“There is a distinction that it is important to make in any discussion of Islam. The word ‘Islam’ is used with at least three different meanings, and much misunderstanding can arise from the failure to distinguish between them.      In the first place, Islam means the religion taught by the Prophet Muhammad and embodied in the Muslim revelation known as the Qur'an. In the second place, Islam is the subsequent development of this religion through tradition and through the work of the great Muslim jurists and theologians. In this sense, it includes the mighty structure of the Sahri’a, the holy law of Islam, and the great corpus of Islamic dogmatic theology. In the third meaning, Islam is the counterpart not of Christianity but rather of Christendom. In this sense Islam means not what Muslims believed or were expected to believe but what they actually did, in other words, Islamic civilization as known to us in history.” (P. 20)

         

Muhammad died in 632 A.D leaving no instructions for his succession.

The first four caliphs are called the “Rightly Guided Caliphs.” This designation implied that the years that stretched from 632 to 661, constituted the Golden Age of Islam. The conquests of the world began almost immediately after the death of the Prophet. The Arab armies burst out of Arabia and conquered the Persian Empire, and two provinces of the Byzantine Empire, Syria, and Egypt.

The three decades of the Rightly Guided Caliphs were turbulent. The first caliph died in 634. The two that followed him, were assassinated. The fourth Caliph Ali ruled for five years and was assassinated in 661. The unity of Islam ended. The followers of Ali came to be known as the Shi’ites. They became the opposition party within Islam. Muslims who sided with the opponents of Ali, were called Sunnis; and belonged to the Umayyads, a wealthy Meccan clan. They moved the capital of the Islamic empire from Medina to Damascus, Syria.

The Umayyads continued the Islamic conquests. By 710, their armies had crossed the strait of Gibraltar and occupied Spain (Al Andalus) until 1492! At one time, the Muslim armies crossed the Pyrenees, invaded France, but were defeated by Charles Martel at the Battle of Tours in October 732.

The Umayyad dynasty ended in 750. It was replaced by the Abbasid Caliphate that moved the capital from Damascus to Baghdad, Iraq. The

Abbasids encouraged the flowering of a great culture in Baghdad. The House of Wisdom was a cultural center where scholars undertook the translation of great works from Greek, Aramaic and Indian. Great advances were made in mathematics, chemistry, astronomy, and medicine.

During this period Muslims developed the Four Orthodox Schools for the interpretation of the Shari’a. Most of the theological discussions centered on the doctrine of the uncreatedness of the Qur’an, and Predestination and human responsibility.

A century after the founding of the Abbasid Caliphate, the distant parts of the Empire began to secede. A cataclysmic event occurred in the middle of the 13th century when the Mongolians invaded the eastern parts of the Caliphate and destroyed Baghdad.

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A Reaffirmation of Historic Christian Missions

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Reaffirmation of Historic Christian Missions

Bassam Michael Madany

13 December 2022

Nowadays, we face major departures from Historic Christian Missions. I would like to address this subject, by quoting and commenting on a document posted on the website of the German organization, Institut Diakrisis. http://www.institut-diakrisis.de/  

The subject of the document was: “Transformation” as the New Topic of Evangelical Mission Theology. The following comments of the document, explain how this change had taken place:

“The concept of ‘Transformation’ is dangerously loaded. The reason why the Neo-Evangelicals found the concept of a societal transformation useful is because, since the last quarter of the 20th century, ‘Kingdom Theology’ had asserted itself in major parts of the American mission movement, while the Missions theology which focused on personal conversion and the planting of churches was pushed aside. 

“One facet of this ‘Kingdom of God Theology’ arose from the older tradition of Post-Millennialism, i.e., the conviction that Jesus would return after the Messianic Kingdom of peace had been established on earth. In their publications, Transformation theologians consider that next to the proclamation of the Gospel, social and possibly political action is presented as an equally important – if not even preferred – expression of the Gospel and the kingly rule of God. Through this widening of the concept of mission, the soteriological, i.e., the dimension of the Gospel, which is focused on eternal life, namely the salvation brought by Jesus through His atoning death, does not remain unaffected. On the contrary: in theory as well as in missionary practice, the salvation of the soul takes second place to the creation of better social and economic conditions.”

It is evident that Transformation Theology contradicts the teaching of Romans 8, that the full benefits of the Gospel, await the return of Christ at the end of time.

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father.’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope, we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Romans 8: 14-39 (ESV)

Transformation Theology offers a different teaching on the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ in the areas of Christology and Soteriology.

“Contextual Bible interpretation has major consequences for Christology, i.e., the doctrine of the person and work of Jesus the Christ ... It is true that, at times, authors of the Transformation Theology are expressing Christological viewpoints. But what interests them most, is the humanness of Jesus and His devoted service in the social needs of this world. At the same time His divinity, as emphasized particularly in the Gospel of John (John 1:1-14; 2:28) and formulated by the early church in its basic Creeds of Nicea and Chalcedon (325 and 451 AD, respectively), is largely obliterated. 

According to these Ecumenical Creeds, the Son of God is of one nature with God the Father, and in His Person both natures, the divine and the human, are inseparably united. Now the miracle of the Incarnation of God is called ‘incarnatory’ and plays an important role in the contemporary understanding of the Neo-Evangelical movement. However, what is meant is not so much the singular miracle of the Incarnation of the eternal Logos in the Person of the Christ. Rather, in what could be called an ‘Example Christology,’ it is emphasized that the Incarnate Jesus Christ has made Himself a servant and led a life of service in the needs of mankind. 

“The ‘view of the end’ (Eschatology) which used to guide the Protestant mission movement in the past, has been allowed to be forgotten. For the strength of the salvation-oriented understanding of missions proves itself in that it takes up the Bible's own understanding of God, the world, and time. It centers in the saving work of God in Jesus Christ, and accordingly puts the Old and New Testaments into the right relationship to one another, making the necessary distinctions. Herein originates the tension between the ‘already now’ and the ‘only then’. 

“In closing, we want to stress that our criticism of Transformation Theology is not aimed at a single false doctrine, and not at individual theologians representing it. Rather, we retain with them the brotherhood in Christ, although, unfortunately, they have been enticed by an erroneous trend. Therefore, we want to struggle for an abiding in the Biblical truth jointly with them. In this, we are also conscious of the fact that we ourselves are in constant need of correction and deepening through the Word of God and are ready, therefore, for Biblical correction on our part. At the same time, we address our urgent warning to the entire Christian Mission Movement. May it beware of succumbing to a historical theology which is becoming an ideology! For this, as we can see, replaces eternal salvation with temporal social well-being and forgets that the Kingly rule of Christ is not of this world (John 18:36). In His end-times address on the Mount of Olives, Jesus warned his disciples of false prophets and false Christs who would come in the last days and lead many astray (Matthew 24:11). As the Ascended One (Revelation 3:10) He warns of the ‘hour of temptation’ which will come upon the whole world (Greek: oikouméne!)  3:11 But the ascended Christ promised the church of Philadelphia to keep them from the hour of temptation because they had kept His word steadfastly. 

“We, too, may likewise firmly trust that He, the Good Shepherd, will even today help His faithful flock through all external and internal temptations. He will do this through the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit whom He has given to His own as a pledge of the completed salvation in His Kingdom (2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5; Ephesians 1:14).” 

I am grateful to our Sovereign God who has guided the Institute to state the Biblical principles of Christian Missions, at a time when young men and women from non-Christian faiths are attracted to the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
 

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Needed: Global Solidarity with the Iranian People

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Needed:  Global Solidarity with the Iranian People

Bassam Michael Madany
12 December 2022

My concern for the brave people of Iran took me to several sources where I learned about the ferocity that the Regime is using to end the unstoppable Intifada of the Iranian people. 

On Thursday, 8 December, the Iranian authorities carried out their first execution of a protester, who was convicted of injuring a member of the security forces. Mohsen Shekari, a 23-year-old student was hanged in Tehran after a sham trial. 

His uncle living in Germany commented, that having listened to the proceedings of the trial that were telecast, he was convinced that his nephew’s confession was forced. Mohsen’s voice never sounded like that! Most likely, more executions would follow, as the Regime’s only measure that might frighten the masses and end the revolution.

Having watched the news first on the German DW website, I turned to AL-HADATH, an Arabic-language channel. I listened to a heart-rending Interview with an Iranian human rights activist from London. With tears coming down her eyes, she described the situation in her homeland that reached the point of no return.

“For the last forty-three years, Iranians have been living in fear. Fear that someone is listening to your phone conversation. When the doorbell rings, you wonder whether the police has come to arrest a member of the family! If one leaves home to buy food, would he come back without delay?”  She went on, “the Iranian Islamic regime is not going to surrender; for them it’s an existential matter. The young generation isn’t stopping their revolution either, they’ve had enough humiliation and depravation! No one knows how long this stalemate is going to last!”   

On Monday, the 12th of December, a second protester was executed by the regime. Majid Reza Rahnavard who was detained during anti-government protests, was convicted for allegedly stabbing two security officers to death during demonstrations. Human rights activists say nearly 500 people have been killed, in the nationwide protests that began in mid-September 2022. 

The wording of the charge against the protesters caught my attention: they are classified as "moharebeh" — i.e., waging "war against God," a crime that carries the death penalty under Iran's Islamic law. Now that the issue has been raised to a Supernatural level, there is no need for discussion; either submission, or execution! 

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“Saint Augustine As Told to My Daughter”

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

“Saint Augustine As Told to My Daughter”

Bassam Michael Madany
29 November 2022

In November 2018, I came across a work in French, by Mohamed-Christophe Bilek, an Algerian Christian. He was born in Algeria in 1950; was converted to the Christian faith at the age of 20 and was baptized by an Evangelical pastor in 1970.

He serves as a Catholic Priest, carrying on a missionary service to Muslims.

In 1999, he wrote a book addressed to his daughter, drawing a comparison between his conversion and that of another North African, Saint Augustine.

The following is a translated summary of the book, which is available in French only!

Saint Augustin raconté à ma fille

Saint Augustine As Told to My Daughter, By Moh-Christophe BILEK

“Like Saint Augustine, Moh-Christophe BILEK did not accept, without question, the Muslim heritage transmitted by his family. In fact, he did not refuse to assume himself as “A not very Catholic Algerian” the testimonial book published in 1999 (editions du Cerf).

This particularism aroused in him the desire to delve into the history of his ancestors who confessed, depending on the era, several religions. He discovered with them - and Augustine is the best example - that faith must remain a free consent given to God.”

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Islam's Reconciliation with Modernity A Dream or a Possibility?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Islam's Reconciliation with Modernity
A Dream or a Possibility?

Bassam Michael Madany
21 Novmber 2022


In his Program No. 162, Brother Rachid welcomed Hamed Abdel-Samad, the German-Egyptian writer to discuss ISLAM’S FIVE ILLUSIONS.

Superiority
Infallibility
Universality [Valid in all Time & Place]
Suspicion of Others [Conspiracy Theory]
Uniqueness [Allah’s Revelation in Arabic]

These “Illusions” may be considered as The Basic Motifs of Traditional Islam.

While discussing this subject, Abdel-Samad referred to his recently published book on the history of Islam from Muhammad’s days to the present, referring to facts that remain unknown to the rank-and-file Muslims.

As the dialogue progressed, Brother Rachid asked Abdel-Samad: “If these Illusions still dominate the Muslims’ outlook, what hope can there be for the future?”

Abdel-Samad responded: “I remain hopeful. The young generation’s outlook [reference here is to the Arab youth] is changing, thanks to the Internet and the social media. I hear from many young men and woman who appreciate my programs. They long for the liberation of the Arab mind from the fetters of the past and yearn for Islam’s reconciliation with Modernity.”

Nowadays, when lectures are proceeding on a website, the audience can post their comments. Which enables the speaker to gauge the impact of his/her message on the listeners. Thus, when Abdel-Samad expressed his hope for the future, he based it on the comments and responses he had received from his audience.

I listened to Brother Rachid’s Interview and read comments that appeared on the screen. Most were in Arabic, a few were in English or French. 

Here are samples of translated comments.

“This isn’t an ordinary program. It consists of a realistic analysis of our 1500-hundred-year cultural catastrophe. Thanks very much” 

“Thanks, Brother Rachid, for inviting Professor Hamed Abdel-Samad to enlighten us with this lecture.”

“Merci pour votre contribution pour éclairer les personnes envoûtée par cette doctrine néfaste à l'humanité entière. Encore, merci pour votre éclairage. Continuez à éveiller les esprits”

“Oh my God! Been waiting for this episode many years ago, it’s a while your two legends haven’t been together can’t wait to watch” [Original words]

“An excellent program with two famous intellectuals participating in this lecture! Please more programs of this type!” 

“Wow! Fantastic discussion done in an excellent manner with Brother Rachid asking questions. Excellent dialogue. Hamed Abdel-Samad explains the topic simply and adequately.”

“Utterly exhilarating! The greatest enlightenment pioneers to gather! Just LOVE this "Duetto" [Original words]

“Brother Rachid, and Professor Hamed, you’ve done a marvelous job. You diagnosed the various ills of Islam. Hoping that would enlighten the Muslims. Thanks, may the Lord bless and protect you!”

“The best two people ever! I cannot wait to see and listen to the subject.” [Original words] 

“Both of you are blessed and great, I like your cogent analytical illustration. Please continue with your long way of pursuing the freedom for the lost, deceived, and muted by Sabre rattling.” [Original words]

“Merci, je vous souhaite une très bonne continuation Salutation de la Kabyle”

“Bravo J'ai beaucoup appris merci encore une fois pour vous deux l'islam son temps est terminé Salutation de la Kabylie.”

“I can’t express adequately my joy when I listen to Professor Hamed Abdel-Samad expressing his realistic, logical, and enlightening thoughts!”              
“The best two people ever; I cannot wait to see and listen to the subject.” [Original words]

“As you listen to Rachid and Hamed, you can say surely there’s hope for change in our world”

“Le vidéo pouvait être traduit en français et en anglais, un bienfaiteur de l’humanité pouvait se proposer de payer le prix de la traduction et de la diffusion.” 

“You both are great and gifted men. we do admire and respect both of you very much!” [Original words]

“C'est un entretien en profondeur pour aller plus loin avec un témoin de notre temps ! ... Merci à vous. “

To watch the Interview with Hamed Abdel-Samad, use the following link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfiGW6nCL9g&t=48s

Posted in Articles

Reflection on The Iranian Uprising Facing an Inflexible Regime

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Reflection on The Iranian Uprising
Facing an Inflexible Regime

By Bassam Michael Madany
7 November 2022

 

The upheavals in Iran have been going on for several weeks, with a growing number of Iranians calling for an end to the theocratic regime. The Government remains inflexible in its position claiming that the demonstrations have been instigated by foreign governments. A brief account of the history of Islam might be helpful to clarify the situation.

The main Shiʿah branch in Islam is known as the Twelvers. They claim that upon the death of Muhammad in 632 A.D, the Muslim Community was to have been governed by Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet.

Muhammad died in 632 A.D, without leaving instructions for an orderly Succession (Caliphate).  Abu Bakr and Omar, both Companions of Muhammad, excluded the Prophet’s family from the deliberations about the Succession and hastened to announce Abu Bakr as a caliph in 632, Thus, it became inevitable that trouble would eventually ensue. None of the first three caliphs, Abu Bakr, Omar, and Uthman were from the Hashemite clan of Muhammad. When Ali assumed the caliphate in 656, his opponents were mainly from the Umayyad clan that had bitterly opposed Muhammad in Mecca and caused him to migrate to Medina in 622.

Finally, when Ali took office in 659, he faced opposition that led to his  assassination in 661 and the rise of the Umayyad Caliphate (661-750.) 

Ali’s elder son Hassan, showed no interest in leading the Shia, his younger son, Husain became the legitimate Imam (Leader) of the Shia.  In 680, Husain was killed a in a battle at Kerbala, Iraq, while attempting to regain the Caliphate. The event cemented Schism in Islam, where around 90% of world Muslims are Sunnis and 10% Shias. Thus, within three decades after the passing of the Prophet, the Islamic Umma became divided between Sunnis (followers of the Umayyad dynasty) and Shi’ah (Partisan) of Ali.

After the Arab/Islamic forces had occupied and settled in Persia, some Persians migrated to India, to escape persecution by Muslims and preserve their Zoroastrian identity. They are known as the Parsees. The majority of Persians became followers of Sunni Islam for centuries. In the 16th century, when the Safavids rulers converted to Shia, they initiated a process of forced conversion. Thus, Persia (Iran) that had been a Sunni majority population, became a stronghold of Shia Islam, specifically of the Twelvers Shia.

In the early 1920s, the Qajar Dynasty that had been ruling Persia since 1794, was replaced by the Pahlavi Dynasty that ruled for 54 years (1925-1979) Reza Pahlavi became the new Shah of Iran on 12 December 1925. He had planned to declare the country a republic as his contemporary Kemal Atatürk had done in Turkey; but abandoned the idea due to the clerical opposition. The official name of the country became “The Imperial State of Iran.”

During the Cold War, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi became firmly aligned with the Western Powers acting as a bulwark against the Soviet Union. While the country experienced success in the increase of literacy, health, and the standard of living, the Shah faced a growing opposition in 1978. That led to his eventual departure from Tehran, the return of Ayatollah Khomeini from exile in Paris, France, and the founding of the Islamic Republic of Iran in February 1979.

The system has one legislative Parliament with several oversight groups dominated by the clergy. The President is both Head of State and the Government, but the ultimate authority rests with the Supreme Ayatollah. This position has been held by Ayatollah Khamenei since 1989. At present, Ebrahim Raisi is the President of Iran.

I trust that this brief Reflection has been helpful towards understanding Iran’s politics today. It’s clear that when authorities base their legitimacy on a supernatural source, it becomes impossible to engage in genuine negotiations, or find ways for a peaceful compromise!
 

 

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ON THE IMPACT OF THE DESERT ENVIRONMENT ON ISLAM

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

ON THE IMPACT OF THE DESERT ENVIRONMENT ON ISLAM

Bassam Michael Madany

26 October 2022

On Program 186 of Hamed Abdel-Samad, he dealt with “The Impact of the Desert Milieu on the Rise of Islam.” He added that the Arabian tribal tradition of raids on other tribes, became the Operas Operandi of the Islamic Futuhat (Imperialist Expansions) throughout the world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HM17KyUqV0k&t=555s

As the German-Egyptian writer expounds his thesis via a journey within the History of Islam on YouTube, several of the viewers/ listeners start sending their comments.

“I’m extremely excited about this series! Keep up the great work, sir”

“Dear Professor, you enlighten us with your rational, logical, and deep thoughts!”

“What a joy to listen to you! It’s become one of my best life experiences. I can hardly find words to describe the internal peace I receive from your guiding light.”

“Glad to have you back, dear Professor Hamed! Your friendliness touches me as well as many Moroccans I know. You have won our hearts. May God protect you!"  

“You are always radiant and convincing. I'm learning a great deal from you. A big thank you!”

“Every Monday, I wait eagerly for the lectures of Dr. Hamed to acquire an accurate information about subjects that were not properly treated at our schools. Ever since I discovered your lectures, I haven’t missed any session.” 

“Greetings Professor Hamed, thank you for the subject you expounded today. As you mentioned, the Arabs are beneficiaries of the world’s cultural treasures, but not its producers. And that has been going on from the very beginnings of Islam.”

Comment

Hamed Abdel-Samad[i] is a well-known German-Egyptian writer who grew up in Egypt. His father, the Imam of the village mosque, saw to it that his son memorized the Qur’an from his earliest days, with the hope that one day, Hamed would take his place.

Hamed went to Cairo and received a regular education. For some time, he became a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. His love for learning took him to Germany where he studied and changed his views about Islam.

Having mastered the German language, Hamed Abdel-Samad taught at German Universities.  He published several books in German, Arabic, English, and other languages.

His interviews in Germany appear on Deutsche Welle (International German public radio and television channel) In the eyes of Muslims, both in Egypt and elsewhere in the Muslim world, he is regarded as a heretic. He lives under the protection of the Federal German Police.

Thanks to the YouTube technology, Hamed Abdel-Samad is heard world-wide. Those watching him send their comments that appear instantly on the screen. Thus, Hamed is in personal contact with an audience consisting mostly of the young generation.

We are witnessing a new phenomenon in the Muslim world. The young Arab generation is being impacted by one whose worldview is diametrically opposed to Islam. Can we expect the Muslim world to be seriously impacted by an “enlightenment” that thousands are receiving from Hamed Abdel-Samad and his colleagues?   

________________________________________________

https://www.bookdepository.com/author/Hamed-Abdel-Samad

Posted in Articles

Islam's New Challenge Coping with the Proliferation of Unbelief Among the Rising Generation

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Islam's New Challenge Coping with the Proliferation of Unbelief Among the Rising Generation

Bassam Michael Madany

20 September 2022

The twenty-first century witnessed great advances in the field of communications. The Internet facilitated the dissemination of knowledge without any hindrance. Its impact on the Arab/Muslim world has been far reaching. One byproduct was the appearance in June 2022, of Qanat Al-Mulhid “The Unbeliever’s Channel,” where subjects that had been taboo, would henceforth be discussed openly and without restraint. 

Qanat Al-Mulhid (https://youtu.be/m_9egvnKA8Y,) has attracted an army of young Arab men and women who watch the famous Stars of the Arab media and add their enthusiastic approving comments.

Having read a number of these comments, I would like to classify them under two categories: the Ethical and the Scientific. Furthermore, a speaker on the Qanat is called a Shahed. He, or she gives the reason for becoming an unbeliever. As an example, this is a Shahadah (testimony) of a Saudi Mulhid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py_Nwcud9CI

The Ethical category refers to accounts or anecdotes taken from the Islamic tradition, that may scandalize the young generation as   incompatible with the ethics of modernity.

The Scientific category refers to accounts of supernatural events in Islamic history, now deemed contrary to science. In Islamic theology, the term for Supernatural is Ghaibi, i.e., hidden.  

To deal with the faith problems of young Muslims, certain reformist Arab authors, have called for the development of a modern Hermeneutics of the Qur’an. On 31 May 2009, this essay was posted on a Kuwaiti website,

So That Islam Might Not Die” حتى لا يموت الإسلام Hatta la Yamutul’-Islam.

“We must acknowledge that traditional Islam is standing in the way of progress. A reformation can only take place by adopting a distinction between Allah and Muhammad; Allah is an absolute and unchanging Being, while the Prophet is not. Doubtless, Muhammad was the founder of the Islamic Umma; but as a human being, he acted within the cultural contexts of his days. Thus, the texts which the Prophet brought forth, including the Qur’an, are purely historical texts.”

Not long after the posting of this essay, www.kwtnweer.com stopped functioning. One may speculate that the authorities decided that this website should not go on spreading such critiques of Islam.

Another reformist online Journal http://www.alawan.org representing a forum for a secular, rational, and enlightened culture, stopped its activities without explanation. Previously, it had published on 12 September 2010, 

What Is the Qur’an? ما هو القرآن؟  Ma Huwa al-Qur'an

The author, Sa’eed Nasheed is a prolific Moroccan writer who had contributed more than 20 articles and book reviews to Al-Awan.

Here are excerpts from the article:

“One day, I thought of organizing a virtual forum where readers of Al-Awan might dialogue on the subject of “What Is the Qur’an?”

So, I began to read from Surah (Chapter) Al-Nisa’ (Women):

And all married women (are forbidden unto you) save those (captives) whom your right hands possess. 4:24

“Actually, my right hand has never owned anyone” Thus, this Ayah (verse) doesn’t concern me.

In the same Surah, Ayah 34, I read:

“So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them.”

“Now let’s suppose I began to beat my wife; that would be a criminal act; it would upset my children and the neighbors. Therefore, this Ayah is irrelevant!

“As a Muslim. I must make up my mind about Islam’s sacred texts, which are loaded with burdensome injunctions. My apprehension is shared by millions of Muslims who hesitate to express themselves about these topics.

“I do consider myself as a Muslim, both emotionally and culturally. What appeals to me in Islam, is the possibility of a direct communion with Allah, who is the exalted Supreme Being, and Who doesn’t dwell in any sanctuary, nor within any sacred text, nor in any specific religion.”

The authors of “That Islam Might Not Die” and of “What Is the Qur’an?” are two examples of reformist Muslims doing their utmost to reconcile contemporaneous Islam with Modernity.

Could it be that, since their voices have been stopped; now the young Arab generation having lost all hope for reform, have opted for the extreme positions of Qanat Al-Mulhid and the latest, Qanat of Al-Murtadi?!  

_____________________________________________________________________

i Al-Murtad (Apostate) is derived from Radda an Arabic term for Apostasy

Posted in Articles

On The Passing of Queen Elizabeth II

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

9 September 2022

Queen Elizabeth II passed away on the Eighth of September 2022. The official notification of her death was made after the Prime Minister was informed by the Queen’s private secretary, the cabinet secretary, and the Privy Council.

The event reminded me of the passing of her grandfather, King George V on 20 January 1936. I was eight years old, living in Alexandretta, Syria. Our neighbors invited the family to listen to the funeral service being broadcast on the BBC. I was very touched by the singing of the hymn ABIDE WITH ME, FAST FALLS THE EVENTIDE. It was decades later that I learned about the British composer of the Hymn, the Rev. Henry Francis Lyte.

“Henry Francis Lyte, an Anglican minister was born in 1793. He pastored a seashore church in England, among the rough sailors and uncultured villagers. They loved him and he loved the work. However, health finally left him, and the doctor advised him to retreat to sunny southern France. The last Sunday before leaving, although he had no strength to stand up and preach, yet he forced himself and preached among his weeping congregation. That evening, by the light of the evening sun, he composed this memorable hymn: “Abide with me, Fast falls the Eventide.”

Henry F. Lyte settled in Nice, France, where he died on 20 November 1847. The British came to this city on the Mediterranean to spend their winters. It was recommended as an ideal location for people suffering from respiratory illnesses. The French called the boulevard where the British lived, Promenade des Anglais. The name is used at present, as I noticed in 1975, when visiting Nice. The hymn was sung for the very first time at his funeral. The tune is "Eventide" by William Henry Monk. (1823 – 1889)

Abide with me, Fast falls the Eventide

Abide with me- fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens- Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

I need Thy presence every passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me.

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight and tears no bitterness;
Where is death’s sting? where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still if Thou abide with me.

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine thru the gloom and point me to the skies;
Heaven’s morning breaks and earth’s vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

Posted in Articles

Abdallah Al-Quseimi: From Wahabism to Ilhad An Example of a Radical Metanoia

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

<h1 style="text-align: center;">An Example of a Radical Metanoia</h1>

<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Bassam Michael Madany</strong></p>

<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>15 July 2022</strong></p>

<p style="text-align: center;">INTRODUCTION </p>

<p>Throughout history, there were a number of radical changes in certain persons’ beliefs.  This phenomenon is called <strong>Metanoia</strong>.  “The term suggests repudiation, change of mind.” (Oxford) - Also, “a <a href="https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/fundamental">fundamental</a> change in character or <a href="https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/outlook">outlook</a>,(Collins)” </p>

<p>An early example of a person undergoing a <strong>Metanoia</strong>, would be <strong>Saint Paul</strong>. The account of his conversion to the Christian faith is recorded in the Book of Acts, Chapter 9. His missionary activities in the Mediterranean world occupy the rest of Acts (13-28)  </p>

<p>Another example of one who experienced <strong>Metanoia</strong> is <strong>Saint Augustine </strong>(354-430) ”In his youth he was drawn to the eclectic <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manichaeism">Manichaean faith</a>, and later to  <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoplatonism">Neoplatonism</a>. After his conversion to Christianity and baptism in 386, Augustine developed his own approach to philosophy and theology, accommodating a variety of methods and perspectives.[3”                                      </p>

<p>Coming closer to our times, <strong>Martin Luther </strong>(1483-1546) is an example of <strong>Metanoia</strong>. He is  considered  as a “theologian and religious reformer who was the <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catalyst">catalyst </a>of the 16th-century <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Reformation">Protestant Reformation</a>.” The conversions of Paul, Augustine, and Luther determined the nature of Christianity, as a faith that revealed God’s redeeming love of humanity.                                                            </p>

<p>The <strong>Metanoias </strong>that occurred in the 20th century, were in the cultural and political fields. Mostly, they related to Western men whose concern for “<strong>the Crisis of our Time</strong>” led them first to Marxism, as exemplified in the USSR, under the leadership of Lenin and Stalin. Eventually, having understood the true nature of its ideology and learned of its horrific crimes, they came out to witness against it. Their testimony was published in “<strong>The God That Failed.</strong>”  </p>

<p>It was a classic work and a crucial document of the <strong>Cold War</strong> that brought “together essays by six of the most important writers of the twentieth century on their conversion to and subsequent disillusionment with communism.” <strong>André Gide (France), Richard Wright (the United States), Ignazio Silone (Italy), Stephen Spender (England), Arthur Koestler (Germany), and Louis Fischer, an American foreign correspondent</strong>, all told how their search for the betterment of humanity led them to communism, and the personal agony and revulsion which then caused them to reject it <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_God_that_Failed">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_God_that_Failed </a></p>

<div>“A most dramatic <strong>Metanoia</strong> of the twentieth century was that of Whittaker Chambers. He was the veteran Soviet spy who became, in William F. Buckley Jr.’s words, ‘the most important American defector from Communism’ when he testified against members of his underground Communist cell in the 1930s. Yet Chambers did more than reject Communism: He revealed a key problem with modern liberalism. In his now-classic autobiography Witness, he argued that Communism ought to be rejected in the name of something other than 20th-century modern liberalism by showing how the two grew out of a common ideology that places unbounded confidence in state power. As he remarked, New Deal acolytes had no principled reason for opposing unlimited state intrusion into the social, economic, and political realms. Herein lies the source of Chambers’ ongoing relevance: While Communism stands discredited, many still accept its fundamental conceit that man makes his own reality, and that the government is the solution to all our ills.”                                   </div>

<div><a href="http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2011/03/still-witnessing-the-enduring-relevance-of-whittaker-chambers ">http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2011/03/still-witnessing-the-enduring-relevance-of-whittaker-chambers </a></div>

<p>Thus far, we’ve been citing examples of <strong>Metanoias</strong> that took place in the West. Now, we turn to the<strong> Arab/Muslim</strong> world where a major case of<strong> Metanoia </strong>happened in the life of a prominent Saudi scholar, <strong>Abdallah Al-Quseimi.</strong>  </p>

<p>The Algerian scholar, <strong>Hamid Zanaz </strong>contributed an article about <strong>Al-Quseimi’s Metanoia</strong>, that was published on the online <strong>Arabic Journal, Al-Awan, on 28 April 2011. </strong></p>

<p><strong> عبد الله القصيمي، من الوهابية إلى الإلحاد  Abdallah al-Quseimi: from Wahhabism to Ilhad </strong><a href="http://www.alawan.org/article9698.html ">http://www.alawan.org/article9698.html </a></p>

<p>Lately,<strong> Al-Awan’s</strong> website has not been functioning. Since I had already downloaded the article, I was able to translate excerpts from the article. </p>

<p>“<strong>Al-Quseimi</strong> didn’t simply critique the Islamic religious tradition, he called for its destruction. He continued his call for the Arabs to radically liberate themselves from everything Islamic. The important fact is that he came from within a religious system where he had occupied a prominent place and having authored several works in defence of <strong>Wahhabism</strong>. </p>

<p>“Like all genuine intellectuals, he did not hesitate to follow the guidance of his mind. His courage led to the rejection of everything that he had previously believed. He considered everything in the Islamic tradition as a roadblock to any progress among the Arabs. The apathy and passivity of the Arab mind contributed to its acceptance of the shallow opinions of the <strong>Fuqaha</strong> (legal authorities,) past and present.  </p>

<p>“Unlike the hesitant advocates of modernity, <strong>Al-Quseimi </strong>expounded his radical unbelief in several of his works and remained steadfast in his rational views, to the very end of his life. </p>

<p>“Notwithstanding the attempts of some Islamic circles to claim that <strong>Al-Quseimi </strong>repented and returned to <strong>Al-Sirat Al-Mustaqeem</strong> (the Right Path,) such efforts are fruitless. No one can “assassinate” his books; in fact, they are being reprinted, and some are available on the <strong>Internet</strong>. The titles of his book include <strong>“How Muslims Lost Their Way – 1940” “These Are The Shackles – 1946” “A Limitless Sahara – 1967” “The Arabs Are An Oral Phenomenon.”</strong>   </p>

<p>“While one may understand the attitude of the Islamists vis-à-vis <strong>Al-Quseimi</strong>, the silence of most of Arab intellectuals is puzzling, as they neither praised nor critiqued him, but treated him as if he had never existed!   </p>

<p>“<strong>Al-Quseimi’s </strong>books remain his most important legacy. As to those who claimed that he suffered from mental illness, that points to their desperate attempt to disparage his radical<strong> Metanoia</strong>.” </p>

<p><strong>Postscript </strong></p>

<p><strong>Links to some articles of Hamid Zanaz  </strong></p>

<p>The West’s Predicament: Unable to Heed Warning Signs - Middle East Resources (<a href="http://www.unashamedofthegospel.org">www.unashamedofthegospel.org</a>) </p>

<p>Islamism as Told (Explained) to My Daughter - Middle East Resources (<a href="http://www.unashamedofthegospel.org">www.unashamedofthegospel.org</a>) </p>

<p>“Boulevard of Islamism: An Example of How Islam Is Spreading and Impacting Europe” (<a href="http://answering-islam.org">answering-islam.org</a>) </p>

<div>
<p> </p>
</div>
 

Posted in Articles

A New Voice In the Arab world QANAT AL-MULHID, (THE UNBELIEVER’S CHANNEL)

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

 (THE UNBELIEVER’S CHANNEL)

Bassam Michael Madany

11 July 2022

The 20th century witnessed great advances in the recording of music and of speech, beginning with 78 RPM, to 33.3 RPM records, and transitioning to tape-recordings of 15 IPS, 7.5 IPS, followed by CDs that were safer and durable. 

The advances in the same fields during the 21st century came at the speed of light! The Internet coupled with the galloping advances in computer manufacturing, allow the dissemination of knowledge, orally and textually, without hindrance. This phenomenon has ushered in the Era of the Acceleration of Time! The implication of this fact plays a special role in the Arab/Muslim world at the beginning of the third decade of the twenty-first century. 

Two decades ago, the situation was entirely different as explained in the following quotation: 

“At the turn of the 21st century, the Arab creative writer operated at a local level within a social environment that, more often than not, constrained freedom of expression and indeed subjected literature to strict forms of censorship. Many prominent Arab authors spent large segments of their life in exile from their homelands for political reasons. More broadly, the confrontation between secularism and popular religious movements, which might in the best of circumstances provide for a fruitful interaction of opinions, instead—because of local, regional, and global factors—created an atmosphere of tension and repression that was often not conducive to creative thought. This confrontation also prompted Arab litterateurs to view the global environment with considerable circumspection.” https://www.britannica.com/art/bestiary-medieval-literary-genre

Thus, the appearance in June 2022 of “Qanat Al-Mulhid” an Arabic-language channel for reformist Arabs to express their views, was a significant phenomenon.  They plan to counter the Islamists’ campaign of imposing their beliefs on Arab societies, a campaign that has been going on for the past fifty years.

To begin with, It’s important to recognize that the Arab world had been in the process of modernization since the beginning of the nineteenth century. It was prompted by Napoleon’s expedition in Egypt, an event that had far reaching consequences, not only for Egypt, but the entire Arab world.

Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire. Following Napoleon’s retreat, Muhammad Ali Pasha was appointed in 1805 by the Ottoman Sultan, as ruler of Egypt, He is considered as the founder of modern Egypt. His dynasty ruled for almost 150 years. It ended in July 1952, when Gamal Abdel-Nasser, staged a coup d’état, and dethroned King Farouk, the last Egyptian monarch.
 
Egypt became a republic under a leadership that promoted a Pan-Arab ideology. In 1958, President Nasser entered into a union with Syria, creating the UAR (United Arab Republic.) The union was short-lived and ended in 1961. Nasser’s adventurism led to Egypt’s involvement in Yemen’s Civil war, “which Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser later referred to as ‘my Vietnam.’
  
The Hazima (Defeat) of Egypt, in the Six Day War of June 1967 gave rise to a Sahwah Islamiyah (an Islamic Réveille) whose leaders claimed that the defeat was occasioned by Nasser’s Pan-Arab ideology.

After President Nasser’s passing in September 1970, President Anwar Sadat reversed his predecessor’s policies, allowing the Muslim Brotherhood to resume its campaign of Islamizing Egyptian society. Following the 1973 Yom Kippur war with Israel, Sadat signed a peace treaty with Israel, allowing Egypt to regain the Sinai Peninsula that it had lost in 1967. In October 1981, Sadat was assassinated by members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, during the Armed Forces Day military parade commemorating Egypt’s victory in the October 1973 war.

Hosni Mubarak became the third president of Egypt from October 1981 until February 2011 when he was forced to resign during the turbulent demonstrations in Cairo, triggered by the Arab Spring.
 
The by-products of the Arab Spring throughout the Arab world were varied. Some regimes became democratic, allowing for the proliferation of social media channels, who began to challenge the dominant Islamist ideology.

One YouTube Channel began in June 2022, with a very bold title, “Qanat Al-Mulhid,” The term “Mulhid” is derived from “Ilhad” i.e., “Unbelief, or Atheism.” The name indicated a break with the past, and the birth of a secularized Arab civilization. Subjects that had been taboo, would henceforth be discussed openly and without restraint. 

For example, on 5 July 2022, Sa’eed Shoaib, an Egyptian reformist intellectual dealt candidly with some very delicate topics, such as: “Why do some Muslims regard the Caliphate sacred and part and parcel of the Islamic faith?”

“Why do Muslims consider their Futuhat (Conquests) as divinely sanctioned; rather than admit they were imperialistic invasions, no different from those of the Tatars and Mongolians?” 

“What’s the difference between the Ottoman Empire and the British or French Empires?”

On 5 July 2022, Sa’eed Shoaib, interviewed Dr. Zainab Al-Tijani, a Tunisian scholar, about the topic of Islamic Imperialism.  The Interview was very lively and informative. 

Professor Zainab didn’t mince words. “Yes, Islamic conquests were driven by imperialistic motifs, and meant for the enrichment of the Arab conquerors.” 

As usual, people watching the Interview on YouTube, began texting their comments. Here are samples translated from the original Arabic text:

“Thanks so much for this program and your exceptional guest. You are liberating us from the slavery that had been our lot. Now, we may work on building a homeland that respects our minds. I wish that those who praise the Ottoman Caliphate would be listening to this session!” 

“Thank you for your program, it’s indeed a useful one. I appreciated Dr. Zainab’s interpretation of history and benefited greatly.”

“This is to express our deep thanks for this enlightening session; now we’ve become acquainted with a new Tunisian intellectual. Most of the enlightening programs seem to invite Tunisian guests!”
                                                                                                           
“As I was listening to your session that dealt with the dream of reviving the Islamic Caliphate, I couldn’t stop reflecting on the poor conditions of the 53 Islamic states that have missed development. That didn’t happen by chance. Muslims had remained static and attached to the Qur’an, clinging to the motto that “Islam is the solution to all problems (هو الحل) and is valid for all time and in all places.  مكان يصلح لكل زمان

The most radical voice was that of a Saudi Mulhid who critiqued the Islamic Boycott Campaign Against India, occasioned by two Indian politicians’ views of Muhammad’s marriage to young Aisha.

Listening to his voice on YouTube one got the impression that he had thoroughly rejected Islam.

It’s equally surprising to read the text messages his speech had elicited!

“You are a genuine thinker, your words gave peace to my mind, may Allah enlighten your way!”

“I’ve been following your channel for some time, your words spring from your heart.”

“Thank you, brother, you are speaking the truth!”

“Dear Brother, thank you for your efforts to spread the truth among the public. May Allah bless you; we need more people like you.”

The rise of Qanat Al-Mulhid was indeed a unique and surprising phenomenon. I don’t imply that Ilhad is new in the history of Arab/Islamic civilization. There were some prominent Unbelievers in the past, such as Al-Rawandi (827-911), Al-Ma’arri (973-1057.)

The most celebrated Mulhid in our days was Sadiq Jalal al-Azm (1934-2016) who authored in 1969 “Naqd al-Fikr al-Dini” (“Critique of Religious Thought”)

The book is available in Arabic only! The following is an apt description of the book. “Nothing better describes the goal of the “Critique of Religious Thought” than the publisher’s statement on the back cover of the book:
                                               
“Rarely does modern Arab thought attempt to openly challenge the intellectual structures and the dominant metaphysical ideology of our society, because penetrating this realm touches its most sensitive area, which is the religious question.  But the contemporary Arab revolution cannot endlessly avoid addressing vital questions that are connected with metaphysical religious ideology and its relationship with the revolution itself – including all the problems that arise from reactionary Arab forces using religion as a major ‘theoretical’ weapon to mislead the masses. Thus, this series of critical studies of religious thought form a daring and necessary attempt by Sadiq Jalal al-Azm to destroy the dominant mythological mentality and substitute it with contemporary revolutionary and scientific ideas.”                                                                 
Forty-Year-Old Classic Remains Influential:                                                                                            
Sadiq Jalal al-Azm’s ‘The Critique of Religious Thought’ https://www.aljadid.com/node/2039
 

[1] On July 1, 1798, Napoleon landed in Egypt with 400 ships and 54,000 men and proceeded to invade the country, as he had recently invaded Italy. But this Egyptian invasion was to be different. For, in addition to soldiers and sailors, Napoleon brought along 150 savants — scientists, engineers and scholars whose responsibility was to capture, not Egyptian soil, but Egyptian culture and history. And while the military invasion was an ultimate failure, the scholarly one was successful beyond anyone’s expectations. https://napoleon.lindahall.org/learn.shtml 

Ii Viewing the Six Day War as an unintended consequence of the Saudi-Egyptian struggle over Yemen, Ferris demonstrates that the most important Cold War conflict in the Middle East was not the clash between Israel and its neighbors. It was the inter-Arab struggle between monarchies and republics over power and legitimacy. Egypt’s defeat in the “Arab Cold War” set the stage for the rise of Saudi Arabia and political Islam. 

https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691155142/nassers-gambl 

[1] https://www.britannica.com/event/Arab-Spring  

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Imt6JtYlS7o.                                                                          

V (282) ملحد سعودي يرد على حملة المسلمون المسعورة ضد الهند | قناة الملحد - YouTube 

 

Posted in Articles

Murder of Women University Students In Egypt & Jordan

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Murder of Women University Students
In Egypt & Jordan

Bassam Michael Madany

27 June 2022

While the Arab world struggles with current issues in Iraq, the Gulf, Syria, and the never-ending Israeli-Palestinian relations; the recent murders of an Egyptian University student and of a Jordanian University student, illustrate what Arab women still face in society.

On Monday, 20 June 2022, the Cairo Ahram Online published news about “the murder of a female student at Mansoura University, north of Cairo,  who had her throat slit with a knife by a male colleague.” It continued with these gruesome details:

“The prosecution examined the victim’s body and found injuries on her neck, chest, and other areas. A video of the incident has been widely circulated on social media, showing a man cutting a woman’s throat on a busy street before he was restrained by bystanders.”

One Arab website reported the following: “Around twenty witnesses were interviewed including the victim’s parents and sister. They explained that the assailant had hoped to marry their daughter who showed no interest in his proposal. When he persisted in his efforts, they reported him to the authorities and got a written promise to cease and desist in his efforts to get a positive response.” The murderer did not keep his promise and committed his heinous crime! 

While the following Arabic links were meant for an Arab audience, please watch them to fathom the depth of the sorrow of the speakers.

The first link is about the murder of the Egyptian university student.
(265) مقتل طالبة جامعية يحيي الجدل حول العنف ضد المرأة في مصر - YouTube                        

This link has the comment of an Egyptian human-rights activist:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra6-u9Hjnng

In this link, there is an editorial by an Egyptian journalist about the shocking discrimination against women in Arab/Muslim societies, fostered by religious leaders. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wq7BlbbLRKs&t=898s

Soon after the murder of Nera Ashraf, the Egyptian student, a similar crime took place in Amman, Jordan, at a university campus. “The Jordan Times carried a report on the murder.

“Police on Thursday, 23 June, who were searching for a suspect who shot and killed a university nursing student earlier in the day. The victim, Iman Ersheid, a student at the Applied Science Private University, was gunned down by an unidentified assailant who was wearing a cap.

“The victim’s brothers posted several statements on their Facebook page, expressing shock and outrage over the murder of their sibling. The victim’s father told media outlets that he dropped his daughter at the university to sit for an exam. Almost two hours later, the father received a call from police that his daughter was being treated at a hospital. When he arrived at the hospital, he was told that his daughter was shot to death by an unidentified man. 

“The university dean Zakaria Mubashir told a local media outlet, the security personnel at the university first thought the gunshots were firecrackers but later realised that a student was shot,’ When they attempted to stop the suspect, he managed to escape. The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital where she eventually died.” 

On Monday, 27 June, “Jordanian police said a man suspected of shooting dead a female student at a university in Amman died in hospital on Monday after shooting himself. The murder’s name, Oday Hassan, was in his late 30s.”  

It is my fervent hope and prayer, that such barbaric murders would never happen again.
 

 

Posted in Articles

How Books Can Influence One’s Life

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

How Books Can Influence One’s Life

Introduction

Bassam Michael Madany

1 June 2022

My late wife Shirley Winnifred Madany (née Dann) passed away in August 2008. I would like to post as a Memorial, a “Talk” she made at the Public Library in South Holland, Illinois, on April 29, 1970. Before we were married in1953, Shirley was secretary to the editor of The Winnipeg Free Press. Working on the five weekly editorials was her main assignment. She did some book reviews as well. 

This isn’t a “book review” in the traditional sense.  I would like to tell you about one particular writer and his family (which included an author sister) and how they influenced my life.  Then, with that as an example, I would touch briefly on the challenge we have as Christians, to be selective in our reading.

I venture the thought that books read in the teenage years, can set the pace of one’s reading for life.  And also, that these same books do have a definite influence on the life of the reader – even without them being aware of it.  It is only now in retrospect, that I can sit with these Buchan books and see where they fit into my life.

When I was 16, I picked up and read my first autobiography. Memory Hold the Door, written by John Buchan, Lord Tweedsmuir, the recent Governor General of Canada.  I can remember to this day the excitement that I experienced as I read this book.  It opened up a new world to me and I liked to refer to John Buchan as a “kindred spirit.”

John Buchan was a very popular Governor General.  You may wonder what that term means.  Although Canada was completely self-governing, the office of Governor General was established as a link with Britain and the throne.  He represented the King or Queen as the case might be.  Throughout his term in Canada, John Buchan was working quietly on his autobiography which he intended to publish on his retirement.  The manuscript reached the publishers only two weeks before his death.  Because of the small population of Canada such a public figure was very well known. When you read a person’s last book and are attracted to his style of writing, you immediately search for his earlier writings.

Perhaps I should fill in a bit on my background for those of you who don’t know anything about me.  My hometown – Portage la Prairie, Manitoba – was the fourth largest in that vast prairie province – and yet it only had 8000 of a population!  I wish you could picture our library facilities.  Two rooms in the downstairs of a gloomy-looking brown frame house.  The walls lined with books to the ceiling, so that you had to use a stepladder.

Book dividers down the center of the room as well.  New publications were kept out of reach behind the librarian’s desk and only handed out on request.  Children were simply not catered to, and the junior section was very, very small.  The books in the second room seemed all to have been printed in the 1800’s.  

Soon after reading Memory Hold the Door, I discovered most of John Buchan’s adventure series and eagerly read them.  He actually had specialized in biography himself – writing about Cromwell and Montrose – but I have never been able to get hold of these books, and his adventures were written more for his own relaxation, and as an outcome of the research which one has to do to write a good biography.

Let me read part of a paragraph close to the beginning of the book; perhaps you will realize what was so special about his family.

“Our household was ruled by the old Calvinistic discipline. That discipline can have had none of the harshness against which so many have revolted, for it did not dim the beauty and interest of the earth.  My father was a man of wide culture, to whom, in the words of the Psalms, all things were full of the goodness of the Lord.  But the regime made a solemn background to a child’s life.  He was conscious of living in a world ruled by unalterable law under the direct eye of the Almighty.  He was a miserable atom, as compared with Omnipotence, but an atom, nevertheless, in which Omnipotence took an acute interest.  The words of the Bible, from daily family prayers and long Sabbath sessions, were as familiar to him as the story of Jack and the Beanstalk.  A child has a natural love of rhetoric, and the noble scriptural cadences had their own meaning for me, quite apart from their proper interpretation.  The consequence was that I built up a Bible world of my own and placed it in the woods.”

There was another series of books by a writer called O. Douglas and these became my special favorites – O. Douglas turned out to be none other than Anna Buchan – and her stories were unlike her brother’s because she based her stories on the events of their family life.

The Buchan’s home was a parsonage.  They weren’t rich but they had a wonderful father and mother who provided them with a fine Christian upbringing and a tremendous love of mankind.  To me they are the personification of that command which we hear every Sunday in our churches – “To love God with all our hearts and our neighbor as ourselves”. When John Buchan went to Oxford to study, he found that he had already done all his required reading from his father’s extensive library.  And Anna Buchan adopted a style of writing in her novels in which each chapter began with some quotation from a favorite author. 

This thread of Calvinistic-Presbyterian upbringing had its influence on me.  I am confident of that because I admired this family so much that I know I deliberately set out to learn from them – if they admired a book – then I tried to get hold of it and read it too.  I too was brought up in a Christian home, but our small prairie town did not offer much in the way of books.  Being an avid reader, I was forced to re-read old favorites, and I don’t suppose I could count how many times I read every Buchan book.

Five years after Memory Hold the Door, Anna Buchan wrote a biography of her brother entitled Unforgettable, Unforgotten.  A beautiful title.  This homey book gave one a chance to become closely acquainted with the whole Buchan family.  To quote the preface:  

 To my gentle readers.  You who read so faithfully my books may, perhaps, be interested in this family chronicle.  It was written in an effort to lighten dark days by remembering happier ones.  My brother John used to say that when he wrote stories he invented, but that I in my books, was always remembering.  Here in this chronicle is the fount of all my memories.”

In 1948 I set out for the British Isles to realize a dream that I had saved for since I was a little girl.  I wanted to meet my cousins and to see my parent’s homeland.  After visiting with relatives in southern England, I traveled north to friends in Edinburgh.  My heart seemed to be a Scottish as it was English.  I fell in love with the Scottish countryside and the friendliness of its people.  

One day we visited Peebles, a small village in the border land between Scotland and England.  This was the part of the country where the Buchan children spent every summer vacation at their grandparents.  Many of the O. Douglas books were written about this locality.  I wondered if I would recognize anything.  Can you imagine how excited I was to find that I did recognize a certain house from its descriptions in a book called Jane’s Parlor, and then I purchased the town’s guidebook (every town has a guidebook) and found I was correct.  One other day, we went across the Firth of Forth to the county of Fife, and I found myself at the very spot which gave John Buchan the idea for the title of his first book The Thirty-nine Steps.

Within the pages of both these sets of books, lived very real people who loved God, loved life, respected the elderly, saw something important in everyone (even the social climber, or the unlovely) people who were content with their hum-drum lives, and people who loved to read.  It was like having a private tutor.  I tried to absorb it as much as possible.

To get back to John Buchan.  Several years later there was another volume entitled, John Buchan, by His Wife and Friends.  No one wanted to forget John Buchan. I should mention here that in his own autobiography, you were most struck with the fact that it really was more about his own friends than himself.  John Buchan enjoyed some tremendous friendships and so many of his age were killed in the First World War.  Now it was the turn of other friends to write what they remembered.  One of them, G. Trevelyan, said this:

“Whenever I saw John Buchan, even in later years when illness did what illness could to clog his activity, I always felt ashamed in his presence that I was not more active, that I did not make more of the wonderful and variegated world of nature and of man, of past and of present, that was our common heritage.  One’s own little fire was feeble beside his sun like warmth, but it was part of the world which meant so much to him, and his interest in one seemed to add to one’s value.  How many men and women of all sorts and conditions have come away from seeing John Buchan, feeling just like that, going back the stronger to meet the world and wave of men.”  (Trevelyan was a famous British historian and writer!)

“When he had been repeatedly ill, baffling physicians and surgeons, John Buchan was persuaded to visit a world-famous Continental psychiatrist, a man noted for tracing such physical ailments as duodenal ulcers to psychic disorders in the patient.  He submitted himself to examination and was long closeted with the specialist.  The verdict: ‘Never in my experience have I met anybody less frustrated or less crippled by inhibitions.  He is free from neuroses.  His trouble must be wholly of physical origin.’  

 “Out of my own later and different knowledge of him, I believe this to be true.  In John Buchan’s lifelong, dual activity (as an author and as a public servant) there was no confusion, no impoverishing conflict, but rather a recreative interplay between realism and romance, between fact and fancy, between the business and the dream. But there was more to it than that. He recognized the essential strangeness, the tragedy, the pathos in things. But he submitted all ultimate questions to the ruling of the Christian faith, which he accepted absolutely. It was no more than the truth that was spoken of him by Kenneth de Courcy when he said, ‘He was a supremely honest Christian gentleman, whose faith was simple, unshakable, and inspired.’”  G. Trevelyan, Pp.164-165

How different from some of our present-day public servants. This meant a great deal to me.  I have always been convinced that Christians can seek the highest offices and still be known as Christians.

I considered myself early to belong to the great circle of Buchan friends.  It was as if they invited this feeling.  To illustrate this, I would like to read part of a chapter now from his sister’s book in which she remarks on this very fact.

“Mr. Ferris Greenslet, writing of his old friend in his book says, ‘He made quite literally a million friends.  When I went to Ottawa, the week of his death, porters, conductors, small shopkeepers, men in the street, spoke of him with broken voices.’ “That is what strikes one most in all that was said and written of him, the note of personal affection and loss.

“To take two instances:

“’It is the simple unadorned truth to say that we loved this man.  There was that about him which made a universal appeal.  We saw in him an emergence of that quality of life which in our own best moments we all long to possess.’”

“A leader in The Ottawa Journal begins:

‘This extraordinary grief for Lord Tweedsmuir, bowing alike the heads of the great and humble, coming from all races and classes and creeds, what does it tell?  Surely that life today, plagued though it be by demagogues and dictators, afflicted by strife and hate, and cursed by false philosophies and ideologies, still gives its heart in affection and homage to the best in man.’

“Many beautiful things were said to us in the thousands of letters that came from all over the world, and they helped, for lovely words have a healing quality, but nothing touched me more than the simple sentence of a girl in a Princes Street shop.  [Princes Street is the Michigan Avenue of Edinburgh] I had been sending some cake and sweets to my nephews and she asked me to put my name and address on the back of the order.  I scribbled ‘Buchan, Peebles,’ and she said: 
‘Are you John Buchan’s sister?’

“The tears that sprang to my eyes at the unexpected question answered her, and for a moment in that crowded shop we looked at each other sorrowfully, as she said, ‘He must be an awful miss.’” And I still don’t read those words without tears coming to my eyes too.

But to come back to Memory Hold the Door – and my own introduction to serious writing.  I hope you will suffer me to read one more quotation – and I would ask you to think what an influence such writing could have on a teenager.  I am still looking for more positive writing to come out of our circles.  Original and wholesome – writing which is a kind of sharing of all the blessings which we enjoy.

John Buchan said: (p. 306-307)

“Today the quality of our religion is being put to the test.  The conflict is not only between the graces of civilization and the rawness of barbarism.  More is being challenged than the system of ethics which we believe to be the basis of our laws and liberties.  I am of Blake’s view: ‘Man must and will have some religion; if he has not the religion of Jesus, he will have the religion of Satan and will erect a synagogue of Satan.’  There have been high civilizations in the past which have not been Christian, but in the world as we know it, I believe that civilization must have a Christian basis, and must ultimately rest on the Christian Church.  

Today the Faith is being attacked, and the attack is succeeding.  Thirty years ago, Europe was nominally a Christian continent. It is no longer so.  In Europe, as in the era before Constantine, Christianity is in a minority.  What Gladstone wrote seventy years ago, in a moment of depression, has become a shattering truth: ‘I am convinced that the welfare of mankind does not now depend on the State and the world of politics; the real battle is being fought in the world of thought, where a deadly attack is made with great tenacity of purpose and over a wide field upon the greatest treasure of mankind, the belief in God and the Gospel of Christ.’”

Now I think you will be surprised to find that I am not recommending that you yourselves should try to read all the Buchan books.  I really doubt that you would like them.  They belong to a different age, and certainly to a different environment.  They are so British that they might be rather annoying. But there is a command in the New Testament which many of us think relates to our choice of reading matter.  It is the passage from Paul’s Letter to the Philippians 4:8 

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

There are some authors popular today which I can imagine having a very deep influence on those who read them.  In the children’s section there is a very homespun goldmine in the rather recent Laura Ingalls Wilder books.  Here is a delightful series of very true stories which actually portray a definite time period in American history.  I was fortunate enough to discover them early and spend many Sunday afternoons reading them aloud to our children.

Another author who has earned a very excellent reputation for her Christian novels is Grace Irwin. Now Miss Irwin has not written a biography but one of her novels entitled In Little Place, seems to be very much the story of her own life.  It is always exciting to find out more about a favorite author and understand better how they get to write as they do.  

She has written a trilogy in a different kind of way.  Least of All Saints appeared in 1952 – then some years later there was a follow-up to that book with one called Andrew Connington.  And in about 1969 she wrote a third book with a strange title, Contend With Horses.  The time lapse in the writing of these books makes them seem more like true stories because there is that kind of a time lapse in the books.  They are all about a minister and the last one is of the minister after his family has grown up – and you get to see his growth in grace – his strength of faith – and a very beautiful portrayal of lasting love for his wife.  Books you can build on.

Perhaps the most rewarding author to get to know for this day and age is C. S. Lewis. If you were to start with his spiritual autobiography Surprised by Joy – then you would appreciate all the more the series of children’s stories that he wrote – the famous Narnia books.  This brilliant author has given us so many books which can strengthen one’s faith.  Mere Christianity, The Problem of Pain, The Screwtape Letters etc.  His adult science fiction isn’t for everyone as not all of us can take that much imagination.  But there is much non-fiction which is very, very clear and easy to read.

We are all aware of the hazard of recommending books.  Sometimes that which touches us the most will not appeal to our friends.  But I would like to return to the original theme of this talk – that books, can have a real influence on one’s life. I am fond of quoting verses from Ulysses, a poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson, which I had to memorize in school, and which I must have taken very much to heart:

I am a part of all that I have met,
Yet all experience is an arch where thro
Gleams that untravell’d world, whose margin fades
For ever and for ever when I move.
How dull it is to pause, to make an end
To rush unburnished, not to shine in use!
                                                                                                                                                                               

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History: Fact of Fiction An Essay on Why the West is Wrong about Islam

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

History: Fact of Fiction
An Essay on Why the West is Wrong about Islam

Bassam Michael Madany

20 May 2022

Early in May 2022, I received a summary of “The Fate of Abraham: Why the West is Wrong about Islam,” that had appeared on the book and on all advertisements of the work.i The following is the summary’s text:

“As the Cold War faded into history, it appeared to have been replaced by a new conflict - between Islam and the West. Or so we are told. After the events of 9/11 and the advent of the 'war on terror', this narrative seemed prophetic. But, as Peter Oborne reveals in this masterful new analysis, the concept of an existential clash between the two is a dangerous and destructive fantasy.

“Based on rigorous historical research and forensic contemporary journalism that leads him frequently into war-torn states and bloody conflict zones, Oborne explains the myths, fabrications and downright lies that have contributed to this pernicious state of affairs. He shows how various falsehoods run deep, reaching back as far as the birth of Islam, and have then been repurposed for the modern day. Many in senior positions in governments across the West have suggested that Islam is trying to overturn our liberal values and even that certain Muslims are conspiring to take over the state, while Douglas Murray claims in his new book that we face a 'War on the West'. But in reality, these fears merely echo past debates, as we continue to repeat the pattern of seemingly willful ignorance.

“With murderous attacks on Muslims taking place from Bosnia in 1995 to China today, Oborne dismantles the falsehoods that lie behind them, and he opens the way to a clearer and more truthful mutual understanding that will benefit us all in the long run.”ii 

I was stunned by the first paragraph. Peter Oborne has concluded that after the end of the Cold War, the West had to find a replacement for the USSR, It’s Islam!  In fact, not one reputable source supports Mr. Oborne’s thesis!

This is not to deny the terrible events that took place in Bosnia after the dissolution of the Yugoslavian Federation.iii

The plight of the 12 million Uyghurs, mostly Muslim, living in Xinjiang, is well-known, even though Muslim countries are not doing much to help them.          

One would have expected Iran to have championed their cause, but “Iran's economy is particularly vulnerable to supply chain problems because of its reliance on China.”   (ME Quarterly 17 May 2022)
                                                                                                                                         
Several serious works have been published since the early 1990s about the post-USSR world; none would substantiate Oborne’s claims. Here are examples:

Francis Fukuyama’s “THE END OF HISTORY AND THE LAST MAN  describes his vision of the world following the end of the USSR.

“As the tumultuous twentieth century shudders toward its close — with the collapse of communism leading to a transformation of world politics — Francis Fukuyama asks us to return with him to a question that has been asked by the great philosophers of centuries past: is there a direction to the history of mankind? And if it is directional, to what end is it moving? And where are we now in relation to that "end of history"? It is Fukuyama's brilliantly argued theme that, over time, the economic logic of modern science together with the "struggle for recognition" lead to the eventual collapse of tyrannies, as we have witnessed on both the left and right. These forces drive even culturally disparate societies toward establishing capitalist liberal democracies as the end state of the historical process.” 

Not a word about the problems facing the West and Islam. Perhaps Mr. Fukuyama had not specialized in Middle East studies, and thus did not reflect on the impact of the Islamic Revolution in Iran on the region and beyond.

However, the late Samuel P. Huntington did refer to Islam in his book, “The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order” Here is a relevant passage:

“In all these places, [reference is to Middle East and Africa] the relations between Muslims and peoples of other civilizations --- Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Hindu, Chinese, Buddhist, Jewish --- have been generally antagonistic; most of these relations have been violent at some point in the past; many have been violent in the 1990s. Wherever one looks at the perimeter of Islam, Muslims have problems living peaceably with their neighbors. The questions naturally rises as to whether this pattern of late- twentieth-century conflict between Muslim and non-Muslim groups is equally true of relations between groups from other civilizations. In fact, it is not. Muslims make up about one-fifth of the world’s population but in the 1990s they have been far more involved in intergroup violence than the people of any other civilization. The evidence is overwhelming.” Chapter 10: From Transition Wars to Fault Line Wars, P. 256

His book was well-documented; in fact, one Arab writer agreed with his analysis and contributed an article to a daily online newspaper with this title: “Was Huntington Wrong in his Clash of Civilizations?vi  

At this junction in history, it’s important to rely on the expertise of Arab scholars who have written on the history of the Arab/Islamic civilization as they reflect on subjects from within an Arab/Muslim milieu and having studied in their homelands and at western universities. 

Here are three writers that I am well-acquainted with their contributions.

Ahmed Saad Zayed, is an Egyptian scholar who champions rational objective thought. His writings include a critique of traditional Islamic worldview. Dr. Zayed is the founder of the “Salon al-Insaniyya (Humanity)” and lectures on the urgent need for the modernization and reform of Arab/Islamic civilization. vii

Hamed Abdel-Samad is a German-Egyptian scholar whose contributions are numerous and available in Arabic, German, English, and several other languages. viii  

Héla Ouardi, a Tunisian Professor of French Literature and Civilization at the University of Tunis, and Associate Researcher at the CNRS Laboratory for Monographic Studies. ix

Had these three scholars noticed anything akin to the thesis of “The Fate of Abraham: Why the West is Wrong about Islam,” they would have denounced it as arising from a Conspiracy Theory of History.

______________________________________________________________________

i https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/The-Fate-of-Abraham/Peter-Oborne/9781398501027

ii Peter Oborne is an award-winning writer, journalist and broadcaster who has worked for various newspapers, including the Spectator, the Daily Mail, and the Daily Telegraph, where he was the chief political commentator until his resignation from the paper in 2015. He now writes for Middle East Eye. He is the author of numerous books, including The Rise of Political Lying (2005), Wounded Tiger (2014) and the Sunday Times bestseller The Assault on Truth (2021)

iii https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/yugoslavia-dissolution

iv http://aps-ua.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/The-End-of-History-and-the-Last-Man-Francis-Fukuyama-1992.pdf

The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order
Samuel P. Huntington, Published in 1996 by Simon & Schuster, New York, NY 10020
 

vi Was Huntington Wrong in his ‘Clash of Civilizations?’

vii الحضارة العربية الاسلامية - تأويلات النص - الذروة والمآل- أ. احمد سعد زايد - YouTube
Ahmed Zayed - YouTube 
 

viii Hamed Abdel-Samad - YouTube

Hamed Abdel-Samad: Enlightenment Requires Clash With Heritage | MEMRI

Hamed Abdelsamad - Violence in Surat Al-Tawbah - YouTube

For more information click on the following: Videos of Hamed Abdel Samad On YouTube

ix Hela Ouardi - Quatre siècles de lecture : Les Orientalistes et le Coran. Essai de périodisation. - YouTube
Séance inaugurale - Conférence "Islam au XXIe siècle" du 26 février 2019 à l'UNESCO - YouTube
Réécrire l'histoire de l'islam | Hela Ouardi | TEDx https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYfvUR-554ACarthage - YouTube
 


 

 


 

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THE OTTOMANS’ CONQUESTS IN EUROPE AND THEIR LASTING IMPACTS ON ITS SOCIETIES

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

THE OTTOMANS’ CONQUESTS IN EUROPE

AND THEIR LASTING IMPACTS ON ITS SOCIETIES

Bassam Michael Madany

13 May 2022

I have been interested in the history of the Ottomans since my early days. My father served in the Ottoman Army during the Great War (WWI). I’m thankful that he was stationed in Cilicia, Asia Minor and spared the fate of most Syrian conscripts who were posted on the east bank of the Suez Canal facing the British forces on its western side, The poor living conditions, and the excessive heat of the Sinai Peninsula, caused the death of hundreds of Syrian soldiers, including my uncle John.

Who were the Ottomans and how did they achieve such a prominence for several centuries in many parts of the world? At this point, a brief history of Islam is needed.

The Prophet Muhammad died at Medina in 632 A.D., without instructions about the leadership of the nascent Islamic Umma (Nation.) A number of his prominent followers devised the institution of the Caliphate, i.e., the Succession; that meant exclusively for Governance, since Muhammad was considered as the Last and Seal of Allah’s Messengers. The first four Caliphs were not related, they ruled from 632 to 661. Serious disputes took place among the Muslims in Medina, resulting in the assassination of three Caliphs.

A new phase of the Caliphate began with the Umayyad dynasty in 661, that moved the Capital from Medina to Damascus, Syria. The Umayyads began the Futuhat, as the Islamic conquests were called. Between 632 and 732, the Islamic Empire had spread eastward as far as India, and westward to Egypt, North Africa, and Spain.

The Umayyads employed Arabs in their army. Their rule was contested by Muslim factions who questioned the legitimacy of their Caliphate. In 750, they were defeated by the Abbasids who were descendants of Abbas, an uncle of Muhammad. The Abbasids built their capital Baghdad, on the shores of the Tigris River in Iraq. Gradually, they lost power; rival Caliphates sprung up in Andalusia (Spain) and in Cairo, Egypt. Eventually, the converted Turks of Central Asia, founded the Ottoman Empire, adding new territories to Islam, in eastern and central Europe. They conquered Constantinople in 1453 and expanded deep into the Middle East and North Africa. The Ottoman Sultan Selim I following the defeat of the Mamluks rulers of Egypt, assumed the position of Caliph of the Muslim world in 1517.

The Ottomans in Europe

From the late Middle Ages up to the early years of the twentieth century, the Ottomans sought to expand their domains in Europe. After they occupied Constantinople in 1453, their campaigns centered on Central Europe. The Battle of Mohacs in 1526, gave them control over the southwestern part of Hungary. The Ottomans mounted their first attack on Vienna in 1529. They tried again in 1683 with a force of 140,000 men. To stop this invasion, a Holy League was formed of Austria and Poland. Vienna was besieged for two months, however, the Ottomans failed in their attempt, thanks to the help Austria received from the Polish-Lithuanian League. That was a turning point in history, after which the Ottomans ceased to be a serious threat to Europe.

During the 19th century, the Ottomans were preoccupied with wars against Russia, which enabled the Serbs to free themselves from Ottoman rule (1804-1817). Greece achieved its emancipation from the Ottomans in the war of (1821-1832). The Ottomans lost all their lands in the Middle East in the aftermath of the 1914-1918 War.

This much, the history of the Ottoman Empire told according to conventional historiography. Unfortunately, this approach leaves unmentioned the lasting impact of those conquests on the lives of the conquered societies. To give a balanced account requires a Social History of the Ottoman’s European Conquests is required. When this pathway is followed, It reveals the existence of a little-known feature of Ottoman Imperialism: “The Institution of the Devshirme.”

The Devshirme is a Turkish term that describes the Ottoman practice of taking away   young Christian boys from their families in the Balkans. Ottoman soldiers would enter a town and head to the Orthodox Church. They compelled the Parish Priest to procure the Baptismal Record revealing the names and ages of the boys born in the parish.

“With that list on hand, the five-year old boys and older, were taken away from their parents and sent to Istanbul where they were Islamized and trained for various positions in the empire. They were given a formal education, and trained in science, warfare, and bureaucratic administration, and became advisers to the sultan, elite infantry, generals in the army, admirals in the navy, and bureaucrats working on finance in the Ottoman Empire. They were separated according to ability and could rise in rank based on merit. The most talented, were trained for the highest positions in the empire. Sometimes, the devshirme recruits were castrated and became eunuchs to serve at the haremi.  Others joined the military, including the famed the corps of the Janissariesii.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devshirme

The Ottoman’s Devshirme robbed families of their sons in Serbia, Croatia, Greece, Armenia, and other parts of eastern and central Europe. The pain inflicted on families who lost their sons, is beyond measure. It became an unforgettable part of the collective memory of Eastern Christians who lived under the Ottoman rule. The Institution’s legacy must not be forgotten as other historical events have been, such as the Genocide of East African Slaves, related by Tidiane N’Diaye, in his book, “The Veiled Genocide: A Forgotten Historic Tragedy.iii The book is available in a French edition only. While it was published in France in 2008, no English edition has appeared fourteen years later!

Publishing this article on The Ottomans’ Conquests In Europe must not be construed as an attempt to cover up the sins of European Imperialism. The difference is that the former have not been confessed, while the latter were acknowledged by Western nations.

For example, Prime Minister Harold Macmillan of Great Britain, made it clear in his “The Winds of Change” speech at Cape Town in South Africa, on 3 February 1960.                        

“We have tried to learn and apply the lesson of our judgement of right and wrong. Our justice is rooted in the same soil as yours - in Christianity and in the rule of law as the basis of a free society. This experience of our own explains why it has been our aim in the countries for which we have borne responsibility, not only to raise the material standards of living, but also to create a society which respects the rights of individuals, a society in which men are given the opportunity to grow to their full stature - and that must in our view, include the opportunity to have an increasing share in political power and responsibility, a society in which individual merit and individual merit alone, is the criterion for a man's advancement, whether political or economic.”iv

While British, French, and Dutch decolonization took place without much struggle, it was not the case with the Belgian and Portuguese decolonization process, which was slow and violent. On the other hand, we should not forget a great cultural legacy of the European colonialists: the Latin script for the alphabetization of the African and Asiatic languages, which contributed to the spread of literacy among the various strands of society. A key role was played by Christian missionaries laboring in the field of translating the Bible into national languages. The French helped Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, by giving them a Latin-based alphabet, thus liberating them from the Chinese Ideographic symbols they had previously used.

In our globalized world where the Internet and the Social Media have broken down the walls of secrecy and isolation, it’s become extremely necessary to give revised and accurate versions of history. In fact, there are hopeful signs on the horizon as Arab Reformist scholars are calling for a revised version of Early Islamic History.

The Tunisian scholar Héla Ouardi published a book in French “The Last Days of the Prophet” where she dealt with the confusion that surrounded the passing of Muhammad. Three years later, she published, “The Cursed Califs”, a reference to the early disputes in Islam resulting in the rise of Sunni and Shi’ite Islam.  To appreciate the changing cultural scene in some parts of the Arab world, watch this Interview of Professor Ouardi done in French:

« Ouardi, chercheuse au CNRS est spécialiste de l’islam et de littérature française Trois ans après « Les Derniers Jours de Muhammad », dans lequel elle revenait sur la mort de Mahomet, elle publie « Les Califes maudits. La Déchirure » (Éditions Albin Michel). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrUczoKUxow

___________________________________________________________

i The Imperial Harem was the Ottoman sultan's harem – composed of the wives, servants (both female slaves and eunuchs), female relatives and the sultan's concubines – occupying a secluded portion (seraglio) of the Ottoman imperial household.[1] This institution played an important social function within the Ottoman court, and wielded considerable political authority in Ottoman affairs, especially during the long period known as the Sultanate of Women (approximately 1533 to 1656).

Ottoman Imperial Harem - Wikipedia

iiJanissaries began as elite corps made up through the Devshirme system by which AlbaniansArmeniansBulgariansCroatsGreeks, and Serbs were taken, levied, subjected to circumcision and conversion to Islam, and incorporated into the Ottoman army. They became famed for internal cohesion cemented by strict discipline and order. Unlike typical slaves, they were paid regular salaries. Forbidden to marry before the age of 40 or engage in trade, their complete loyalty to the Sultan was expected. By the seventeenth century, due to a dramatic increase in the size of the Ottoman standing army, the corps' initially strict recruitment policy was relaxed. Civilians bought their way into it in order to benefit from the improved socioeconomic status it conferred upon them. Consequently, the corps gradually lost its military character, undergoing a process that has been described as "civilianization".

The Janissaries were a formidable military unit in the early years, but as Western Europe modernized its military organization technology, the Janissaries became a reactionary force that resisted all change. Steadily the Ottoman military power became outdated, but when the Janissaries felt their privileges were being threatened, or outsiders wanted to modernize them, or they might be superseded by the cavalrymen, they rose in rebellion. By the time the Janissaries were suppressed, it was too late for Ottoman military power to catch up with the West.  The corps was abolished by Sultan Mahmud II in 1826 in the Auspicious Incident, in which 6,000 or more were executed.  Janissary - Wikipedia                     

iii In 2008, Editions Gallimard published Le Génocide Voilé. The author, Tidiane N’Diaye, is a Senegalese anthropologist and economist, living in Dakar, the capital of Senegal.

iv Harold Macmillan: The Wind of Change Speech, 3 Feb. 1960 Address by Harold Macmillan to Members of Houses of the Parliament of the Union Of South Africa, Cape Town, 3 February 1960   https://web-archives.univ-pau.fr/english/TD2doc1.pdf                     

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Hasan al-Banna & Gamal al-Banna Two Bothers Whose Expositions Of Islam Were Poles Apart

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Hasan al-Banna & Gamal al-Banna

Two Bothers Whose Expositions Of Islam Were Poles Apart

Bassam Michael Madany

10 May 2022

In late April 2022, I watched a YouTube program about the life of the Egyptian scholar, Gamal al-Banna. Right away I wondered, could he be related to Hassan al-Banna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood? In fact, Gamal and Hasan were brothers!

First, an Introduction  

Islam spread through conquests led by Muhammad and his successors the Caliphs. Following the assassination of Ali in 661, Islam became divided between his followers known as the Shi’ites, and the Umayyads their opponents known as Sunnis. Ali’s son Hussein was assassinated in 680 in his attempt to regain the Caliphate, an event that intensified and perpetuated the animosity and rivalry between the two camps.

In 750, the Umayyad Caliphate ended in a bloodbath. It was replaced by the Abbasid Caliphate, that moved the center of Islam from Damascus to Baghdad. The Four Schools for the interpretation of Shariah law were founded during their reign. Theological disputes arose regarding the nature of the Qur’an, and Predestination & Free Will.

Gradually, the Abbasids lost power, rival Caliphates sprung up in Andalusia (Spain) and in Cairo, Egypt. Eventually, the converted Turks of Central Asia, founded the Ottoman Caliphate, adding new territories to Islam in eastern and central Europe. After their failure at the Second Siege of Vienna in 1683, they began to decline. At the end of WWI, the Ottomans lost all their former colonies. The founder of Modern Turkey, Mustapha Kemal Ataturk (father of the Turks,) abolished the Caliphate in 1924 and secularized the institutions of Turkey.

The abolishment of the Caliphate caused an ideological tremor among Muslims in Egypt and in India.  Two Egyptians ideologues, Hasan al-Banna, and Sayyid Qutb, called for the re-establishment of the Caliphate. In India, Abul Ala Mawdudi entertained the same hope. Hasan al-Banna organized the Society of the Muslim Brotherhood in 1928. In January 1949, a member of the Brotherhood assassinated the Prime Minister of Egypt; the Egyptian secret police retaliated by assassinating Hassan al-Banna a month later.

Gamal Abdel-Nasser’s coup of July 1952 ended the Egyptian monarchy and brought in an Arab nationalist ideology that clashed with the Brotherhood’s worldview. An attempted assassination of President Nasser at Alexandria in 1954 by a member of the Brotherhood, led eventually to the trial of Sayyid Qutb, who was found guilty of conspiracy against the regime, and executed on 29 August 1966.

Following the death of President Nasser in 1970, he was succeeded by Anwar Sadat. His surprise attack on the Israeli forces on the east side of the Suez Canal in 1973, paved the way for peace with Israel. That cost him his life on the 6th of October 1981 when he was assassinated by an Islamist officer during a parade commemorating the Egyptian victory of October1973!

Thus far the legacy of Hassan al-Banna and the impact of the Brotherhood in Egypt, and elsewhere.

Gamal al-Banna began as an Islamist like his brother; however, he underwent a metanoia (radical change of mind,) and became a reformist Muslim intellectual.

Here are excerpts from “The Forgotten Archives of Gamal al-Banna” by Ian Hamel, a specialist in the history of The Muslim Brotherhood.i

“About fifteen years ago, I had the privilege of entering Gamal al-Banna’s lair, the youngest brother of Hassan al-Banna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood. In a small apartment in a working-class district of Cairo, he had collected more than 30,000 books, hundreds of unpublished documents, such as handwritten notes on the secret links between the Brotherhood and the Free Officers Movement, the military organization founded by Gamal Abdel Nasser.  Gamal al-Banna who died in January 2013, had once edited the Brotherhood’s newspaper, ‘Al-Ikhwan Al-Muslimeen.’ He was arrested in Deccember 1948, along with many Muslim Brotherhood leaders, and released in 1950. 

“But very quickly, he had moved away from this Islamic organization to devote himself to the workers’ cause. and became head of the General Union of Textile Industry Workers. He published ‘La liberté de croyance en Islam’, (The Freedom of Belief in Islam,) ‘L’Islam et le rationalisme,’ (Islam and Rationalism) and ‘L’échec de l’État islamique à l’époque moderne.’ (The Failure of the Islamic State In Our Time)”

Analysis and Comment 

What drives Muslims in their persistence to bring about such a utopian dream as The Islamic Caliphate? It’s the conviction that the Islamic State, founded by Muhammad at Medina in 622, must expand until the entire world had become part and parcel of the global Islamic Umma. This notion doesn’t come from the Qur’an which is silent about the Caliphate. We are indebted to the work of the Tunisian scholar Dr. Héla Ouardi, who authored in 2017, Les Derniers Jours de Muhammad. (The Last Days of Muhammad.)ii  

Here are excerpts from her book:

“While investigating the circumstances of Muhammad’s passing, Héla Ouardi found an important matter, ‘namely that the climate among the Prophet’s family during his last days was a climate of great political tension, an atmosphere of a dénouement of an established order.’ As to whether Muhammad left a will regarding his successor is not very clear. Both Sunni and Shi’ite sources relate that on the Thursday before his death, the Prophet expressed the wish to dictate a will. He asked for a tablet and an inkwell and said, ‘I will write a document that will protect you from bewilderment for eternity.’ But Omariii, who was present, opposed it and said: ‘The Prophet is confused; we already have the Qur’an, and that’s enough for us.’   Since the Qur’an is silent about a successor to the Prophet, how did the idea of Khalifa come about? In fact, the Caliphate was an ad hoc institution invented by the Companions of the Prophet when were suddenly confronted by the absence of a power center.  By preventing the Prophet’s family from assuming the role of the Caliphate, the history of Islam has been punctuated by violent conflicts. Thus, in Islam violence has become sacred, allowing some Muslims to perform horrific acts to bring them closer to God. 

“Muslims generally think they are superior to others, since they follow of the last revealed religion, and their Prophet is the last or ‘seal’ of the prophets. Muslims are incapable of self-criticism. This feeling of ‘sufficiency’ has produced an immobility in many Muslim societies, especially in Arab-Muslim societies, clinging to the utopia that carries dreams of glory, constantly shattered by several stinging failures.” 

Here is the assessment of another North African scholar, the Algerian Boualem Sansal. He commented in the French journal L’Express on the “Consequences of this Never-Dying Dream,” in these words:

"Where Islam takes hold, it is forever. Islamism is based on Islam, which no one has the right to criticize. Since democracy recognizes all opinions, from the far right to the far left, it is obliged to recognize Islam as well. All those who do not commit attacks or violent acts, are protected by law. Islamism finds itself in a conquered terrain. So, it’s   necessary to fight Islamism from the beginning. Because it is like humidity in a house. Initially the threat is invisible, it penetrates the walls which, little by little, crumble. When you realize it, it’s too late. You have to destroy everything to clean up. It becomes a mission impossible. France is at the stage where it has just discovered that Islam is eroding her home." 

Boualem Sansal : "La France vient de découvrir que l'islamisme ronge la maison" - L'Express (lexpress.

Hassan al-Banna’s death took place in 1949; his brother Gamal al-Banna died sixty-four years later.  Hassan’s legacy lives on in the Brotherhood and in the many Islamist organizations it had inspired.

Gamal’s legacy continues in the life of other reformists like Farag Foda who paid with his life for preaching a modernized Islam.iv Another reformist Dr. Sayyid Al-Qimni who passed away on 6 February 2022. was an indefatigable advocate for the updating and reforming the hermeneutics of the Qur’an and Hadith.

Farag Foda was a prominent Egyptian professor, writer, columnist, and human rights activist. He was assassinated on 8 June 1992 by members of the Islamist group El Gama'a El Islamia, after being accused of blasphemy by a committee of scholars at al-Azhar University Mosque.

______________________________________________

i https://global-watch-analysis.com/freres-musulmans-les-archives-oubliees-de-gamal-al-banna/?lang=en

iiHéla Ouardi is a Tunisian scholar who in 2017 published in Paris, France, Les Derniers Jours de Muhammad. (The Last Days of Muhammad.) She is Professor of French Literature and Civilization at the University of Tunis, and Associate Researcher at the CNRS Laboratory for Monographic Studies. She is general Manager of the Book at the Ministry of Cultural Affairs of Tunisia from September 2016 to January 2018.

iiiOmar played a vital role in the founding of the Caliphate. He may be regarded as the effective founder of the Institution, even though Abu Bakr (Father of Aisha) held that position from 632-634. Omar was the second Caliph, from 634-644, followed by Uthman from 644-656, followed by Ali from 656-661. His death marked the end of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. These dynastic caliphates followed: The Umayyad Dynasty from 661-750, the Abbasid Dynasty from 750-1258, when destroyed by the Mongolian invasion. The major Caliphate that followed was the Ottoman Caliphate that governed parts of the Balkans, the former Byzantine Empire, the Middle East, and most of North Africa, until it ended in 1924.

ivFarag Foda was a prominent Egyptian professor, writer, columnist, and human rights activist. He was assassinated on 8 June 1992 by members of the Islamist group El Gama'a El Islamia, after being accused of blasphemy by a committee of scholars at al-Azhar University Mosque.

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Creeds, Confessions, and Missions in the Twenty-First Century

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Creeds, Confessions, and Missions in the Twenty-First Century  

Bassam Michael Madany  

Nowadays, the Church is found throughout the entire oecumene (world), and its membership includes people from every race and culture. Early in the twentieth century, a great controversy arose between Modernism and Fundamentalism. Modernists, in their attempt at “Rethinking Missions” ended up with another gospel. Fundamentalists reacted by emphasizing certain basic truths of the Christian faith, without manifesting a proper concern for the heritage of the Church as summarized in the Ecumenical Creeds and the Confessions and Catechisms of the Reformation. 

This lack of interest in the historical documents may be attributed to the rise and spread of Dispensational hermeneutics. Back in the early fifties, Dispensationalism had become the semi-official dogma of several Evangelicals. I came to the United States in 1950 and studied at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the seminary library, I read an article in the “Sunday School Times” by a British author who claimed that the birth of the State of Israel in May 1948, was a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. 

In 1952, a fellow seminarian informed me of a course on Dispensationalism offered at the Pittsburgh-Xenia Theological Seminary, by Dr. John Gerstner. I attended the lectures and was fascinated by Dr. Gerstner’s teaching and thankful for his lucid manner of expounding the subject. Years later, I had the privilege of visiting him at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, where he was teaching a summer course. By then, Dr, Gerstner had published his book, “Wrongly Dividing the Word of Truth” 

Recently, I read a book review of the book by Dr. Stanford E. Murrell, Pastor of Sovereign Grace Baptist Church, 705 Frederick Court Apollo, Pa 15613. The following are pertinent excerpts:

“After fifty plus years of learning and teaching about the Christian faith, Dr. Gerstner came to believe it was time for him to formally challenge the errors of Dispensationalism in a detailed manner. “Wrongly Dividing the Word of Truth” is an endeavor to examine the main points of the departure of Dispensationalism from historic Christianity. In his work, Dr. Gerstner does not engage in personal attacks, but reveals the theological areas of concern while offering correction and instruction in righteousness. The tone of the work is vigorous but gracious
Premillennialism was never any part of the creeds of the universal church. It did not find a place in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds. The Council of Constantinople, when speaking of Christ’s kingdom affirmed that ‘of whose kingdom there shall be no end.’ The Athanasian Creed states: ‘at whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies and shall give account for their own works, and they that have done good shall go into life everlasting, and they that have done evil into everlasting fire’ (Philip Schaff, ed., The Creeds of Christendom) 
Dr. Gerstner’s approached the subject from a Historical Theological point of view. 
http://www.sounddoctrine.net/stanford/Wrongly%20Dividing.pdf

To study the subject from a hermeneutical point of view, I visited Dr. Oswald T. Allis at his home in Wayne, Pennsylvania, in 1952. He had written a book on this subject, “Prophecy and the Church.” The following paragraph summaries its main points:    
 
“Should the interpretation of the Prophetical Books of the Old Testament in accordance with the time-tested belief of the Church, that the kingdom prophecies of the Old Testament Church have their fulfillment in large measure in the New Testament Church? Or should one follow the relatively new and decidedly revolutionary teaching of Dispensationalism and declare that these prophecies ‘skip over’ the Church age and will be literally fulfilled in a Jewish kingdom age which will follow it? These were the alternatives between which the author found himself obliged to choose. His decision and the reason for it are set forth in Prophecy and the Church.

To summarize:                                                                                                                     

If the Church is to maintain its spiritual vitality in our time, she must reclaim its heritage beginning with the Apostolic age. The Second Century yielded the New Testament canon, which together with the Old Testament, became the authoritative standard of the Church. The Post-Apostolic era was the age of the Church Fathers who confronted their pagan environment with the claims of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When doctrinal disputes arose about the fundamentals of the faith, Church Councils met at Nicea (325), Constantinople (381), Ephesus (431), and Chalcedon (451), and issued the Ecumenical Creeds that defined orthodox Christianity for all time.

 

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Samuel M. Zwemer: Defender of Apostolic Missions

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Samuel M. Zwemer: Defender of Apostolic Missions

Bassam Michael Madany

4 April 2022

During Dr. Samuel M. Zwemer’s extensive career both as missionary in the Muslim World, and as professor of missions at Princeton Seminary, he authored around fifty books, and was the founder and editor of the quarterly journal “The Muslim World." He knew Arabic very well and was patient and understanding when Muslim inquirers came to discuss the claims of the Christian faith.

Dr. Zwemer combined his great interest in winning Muslims to Christ, with a solid commitment to the Apostolic Tradition, or the Historic Christian faith. In his late years, he took a clear stand against theological liberalism and syncretism.

During his early days as missionary in the Middle East, a general consensus prevailed among missionary agencies and missionaries concerning the cardinal doctrines of Christianity. They held to the supreme and final authority of the Bible; the uniqueness, finality, and superiority of the Lord Jesus Christ; the primacy of the proclamation of the Gospel; and the necessity of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, as a condition of salvation.

Following the First World War, these historic beliefs were questioned by members of certain Protestant denominations. In 1932 the publication of Re-Thinking Missions: A Layman’s Inquiry After One Hundred Years” caused a great stir in missionary circles. The authors of the report advocated a radical change in the purpose and goal of missions. Dr. Zwemer addressed these departures from historic Christianity in his book, Thinking Missions With Christ. Here are excerpts from this valuable book:

“In the recent volume entitled “Re-thinking Missions,” the old Biblical Christocentric basis for missions is discarded and we read: ‘At the center of the religious mission, though it takes the special form of promoting one’s own type of thought and practice, there is an always valid impulse of love to men; one offers one’s own faith because that is the best one has to offer” (p. 19).

This line of thought is not different from the pluralist theologies that have invaded some Western theological thinking in the 20th and early 21st centuries. Dr. Zwemer minced no words in denouncing the above-quoted line of reasoning as non-Christian. Actually, he was dealing with the nature and future of missions in “Re-Thinking Missions.” He went on to explain the crucial importance of orthodox beliefs in Christian Missions, especially among Muslims.

“For us who work among Muslims, their denial of Jesus Christ’s mission, His Incarnation, His Atonement, His Deity, are the very issues of the conflict. Almost spontaneously, therefore, what might have been mere theological dogma in the mind of the missionary turns into a deep spiritual conviction, a logical necessity, and a great passion. Face to face with those who deny our Saviour and practically deify Muhammad, one is compelled to think in black and white. The challenge of the muezzin, so romantic to the tourist, is a cry of pain to the missionary; it hurts. In the silence of the night one cannot help thinking, that it pleased the Father that in Jesus Christ should all fullness dwell, not in Muhammad. Face to face with Islam, one cannot help asking what the final outcome of Christian Unitarianism will be. In the history of Islam its bald monotheism has always degenerated into some form of pantheism or deism.   (Pp. 20, 21).

The last chapter in “Thinking Missions With Christ,” has a very stirring challenge to remain faithful to the Apostolic Faith. Dr. Zwemer had played a key role in the organization and the proceedings of the First World Missionary Council that was held at Edinburgh, Scotland in 1910. He was also present at the Second Missionary Council that met in Jerusalem in 1928. As mentioned above, the theological climate had changed among several Protestant denominations. Some warning calls were issued against the secularization of the mission of the church. The following are some pertinent excerpts from the last chapter of this book, “The Otherworldliness of the Missionary Enterprise.” 

“It was pointed out at the Jerusalem Council Meeting in 1928, that the present-day terminology of the Church and of missions lays such great emphasis on social service and the present life, that we are in grave danger of losing the sense of the eternal. Our own worldliness blinds us to the other worldliness of those whom we call heathen. Our vocabulary is too secular. Our horizon is too earthly. Our outlook is too much in the realm of time. Secular movements rivet our attention.” (p. 129).

As always, Samuel Zwemer turns to the Scriptures. It is in them that he hears the voice of his Lord and Saviour, and the testimony of the apostles. Paul’s missionary message and passion were due to this vision of the eternal. “We look not at the things which are seen.” “Knowing the terror of the Lord we persuade men.” “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” “If in this life only we have hope in Christ we are of all men most miserable.” Not only at Damascus, but through all Paul’s life, he could not see (earthly things) for the " glory of that light” --- which shone from the heavenly world. “Our citizenship,” he said, “is in heaven.” Here we are only pilgrims and sojourners to dwell in tents. We must not be entangled with the things of this world if we would be Christ’s ambassadors. (p. 133).

To read the works of Samuel M. Zwemer and reflect on them, is like sitting at the feet of the greatest missionary-theologian of modern times. 

A Short Bibliography of Dr. Samuel M. Zwemer 

Islam and the Cross: Selections from ‘The Apostle to Islam’ Samuel M. Zwemer, edited by Roger S. Greenway. Phillipsburg, NJ 08865-0817: P&R Publishing, 2002. Pp. xviii +165. 

A Call to Prayer. Samuel M. Zwemer. London: Marshall Brothers, 1923. 

Thinking Missions with Christ: Some Basic Aspects of World- Evangelism, Our Message, Our Motive and Our Goal. Samuel M. Zwemer. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI:  1934. 

The Cross Above the Crescent: The Validity, Necessity, and Urgency of Missions to Moslems. Samuel Marinus Zwemer, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI 1941

_______________________________________________________________

Re-Thinking Missions: A Layman’s Inquiry After One Hundred years. William Ernest Hocking. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1932.


 

Posted in Articles

The Cross in Zwemer’s Writings

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Cross in Zwemer’s Writings

Bassam Michael Madany

Lately, books on Islam have been appearing rather frequently. Most of them deal with geo-political subjects such as “Islam and Political Poweri and “After Jihad: America and the Struggle for Islamic Democracy.ii”  This is why “Islam and the Crossiii is a very welcome book as it reminds Christians, that the challenge of Missions to Muslims is greater than ever.  

Millions of Muslims have settled in Western Europe and North America. While some new works on missions to Muslims have been published, there is hardly anything that approaches the books of Samuel M. Zwemer. They breathe with Christian fervor coupled with solid scholarship. This fact earned him the title “Apostle to Islam.”

During his lengthy career both as missionary in the Muslim world, and Professor of Missions at Princeton Seminary, Dr. Zwemer authored more that fifty books, and was the founder and editor of the quarterly journal “The Muslim World.” He knew Arabic very well and was patient and understanding when Muslim inquirers came to see him and discuss the claims of the Christian faith. 

After reading his book, The Cross above the Crescent” back in 1950 while I was a theological student in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I wrote Dr. Zwemer expressing my deep appreciation for the contents of his book. I was delighted to receive a very warm response from him. He encouraged me to persevere in my interest in missions to Muslims and made a few suggestions that I have always cherished. Not long after that letter, “The Apostle to Islam” passed away on April 2, 1952. By the end of that year, J. Christy Wilson published, “Apostle to Islam: A Biography of Samuel M. Zwemeriv"

We are indebted to the labors of the editor, Dr. Roger S. Greenway, in providing us with these important selections from the writings of this great missionary in “Islam and the Cross: Selections from ‘The Apostle to Islam’ Samuel M. Zwemer

Part I, deals with the topic of Islam and Christianity with excerpts from “The Muslim Christ,” “Mohammed and Christ,” “Islam and the Holy Spirit,” “Christianity’s Stumbling Block,” and “The Way to the Muslim Heart.”

Part II treats the general subject of “Islam and Animism.”  The concluding chapter, “A Call to Prayer,” was published in 1923 in London.

Early in the 21st century, we witnessed the revival of Islam and of radical Islamist organizations that seek world domination. To balance that, ex-Muslims like Brother Rachid have appeared on the scene. His weekly TV and YouTube programs present the claim of the Christian faith to the Arabic-speaking Muslim world from Morocco to Iraq.v

Another phenomenon that is impacting the Muslim world, is the passionate work of ex-Muslims like the Egyptian-German scholar Hamed Abdel-Samad; his books and lectures on YouTube and TV, offer a scholarly critique of Islam.vi

It is my fervent hope that more of Dr. Zwemer’s books would become available to a new generation of Christians who need to hear the call of Missions to Islam, through his inimitable style, and his contagious zeal.

_______________________________________________________________

i https://www.e-ir.info/2011/10/25/islam-and-political-power/

ii https://wcfia.harvard.edu/publications/after-jihad-america-and-struggle-islamic-democracy

iii Islam and the Cross: Selections from ‘The Apostle to Islam’ Samuel M. Zwemer, edited by Roger S. Greenway. Phillipsburg, NJ 08865-0817: P&R Publishing, 2002.

iv https://www.abebooks.com/first-edition/APOSTLE-ISLAM-Biography-Samuel-M-Zwemer/22468345592/bd

v https://youtu.be/tWJp_kRe7VM

vi Hamed Abdel Samad,‏ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HdE--WnypE

 

 

Posted in Articles

A Major Feature of Islamic Imperialism

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Major Feature of Islamic Imperialism 

A Permanent Colonialism, Sanctioned by Divine Authority

15 March 2022

Bassam Michael Madany


European Colonialism reached its peak early in the 20th century. Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Portugal had established their dominion over several areas in Africa and Asia during the 19th century.

Having lived under French rule in the Levant (Syria and Lebanon) during my formative years, I attended French schools and studied textbooks used in France and its possessions overseas. The géographie book was LA FRANCE ET SES COLONIES, with sections about L’Afrique Occidentale Française, L’Indochine, and Nouvelle Calédonie. The History textbook was HISTOIRE DE FRANCE. I still remember a picture from the textbook, showing the assassination of King Henri IV, while he was in his Chaise enroute to a destination in Paris! 

I have no idea whether the British followed the same policy in their vast Empire. However, the fact that English is now spoken in places like Kenya and Ghana, and used in the Indian Parliament during its deliberations, point to the lasting impact of British Colonialism. I am keenly aware of the global spread of English. Several readers of the articles on my two websites, come from countries that were not colonized by the UK.

Basically, European Colonialism lasted for 150 years. It had to come to its end, as Prime Minister Harold Macmillan made it clear in his “The Winds of Change” speech to Members of both Houses of the Parliament of the Union of South Africa, Cape Town, on the third of February 1960i The following is an excerpt from this historic document:

“We have tried to learn and apply the lesson of our judgement of right and wrong. Our justice is rooted in the same soil as yours - in Christianity and in the rule of law as the basis of a free society. This experience of our own explains why it has been our aim in the countries for which we have borne responsibility, not only to raise the material standards of living, but also to create a society which respects the rights of individuals, a society in which men are given the opportunity to grow to their full stature - and that must in our view, include the opportunity to have an increasing share in political power and responsibility, a society in which individual merit and individual merit alone, is the criterion for a man's advancement, whether political or economic.”

While Great Britain managed the process of decolonization peacefully, France failed to keep its colonies, leaving her Indochinese and African colonies. Indonesia won its independence from The Netherlands without struggle.

In contrast with European Imperialisms, Islamic Imperialism has been, with a few exceptions, permanent and final. This is explained in the book, “Islamic Imperialism: A History,”ii  by Efraim Karsh, Professor Emeritus of Middle East and Mediterranean Studies at King’s College London, UK. 

“The worlds of Christianity and Islam, however, have developed differently in one fundamental respect. The Christian faith won over an existing empire in an extremely slow and painful process and its universalism was originally conceived in spiritual terms that made a clear distinction between God and Caesar. By the time it was embraced by the Byzantine emperors as a tool for buttressing their imperial claims, three centuries after its foundation, Christianity had in place a countervailing ecclesiastical institution with an abiding authority over the wills and actions of all believers.

“The birth of Islam, by contrast, was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Muhammad, who derived his authority directly from Allah and acted at one and the same time as head of the state and head of the church. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religious aura and to channel Islam’s energies into instruments of aggressive expansion, there [being] no internal organism of equal force to counterbalance it.’” (P. 5)

Another basic feature of Islamic Imperialism was the manner of its extension. In contrast with European Imperialism that was “overseas,” Islam spread contiguously and by land routes. From Arabia, eastward to Syria, Mesopotamia, Persia, India; and westward to Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco; and northward to Spain! The only sea they crossed was the narrow strait known ever since as Jabal Tariq, Gibraltar!

Professor Karsh described that aspect of Islamic Imperialism as follows:

“The empires of the European powers of old were by and large overseas entities that drew a clear dividing line between master and subject. The Islamic empires, by contrast, were land-based systems in which the distinction between the ruling and the ruled classes became increasingly blurred through extensive colonization and assimilation. With the demise of the European empires, there was a clear break with the past. Formerly subject peoples developed their distinct brands of state nationalism, whether Indian, Pakistani, Nigerian, and so on. Conversely, the Arabic-speaking populations of the Middle East were indoctrinated for most of the twentieth century to consider themselves members of “One Arab Nation”iii or a universal “Islamic ummaiv rather than patriots of their specific nation-states.”                     (Page 7)

Dr. Karsh’s statement ‘With the demise of the European empires, there was a clear break with the past,’ must not be understood as a total break, especially with respect to the former French colonies in Africa and Asia.

France has retained a close relationship with her former colonies via “Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, an international organization representing countries and regions where French is a lingua franca or customary language, where a considerable proportion of the population are francophones, or where there is a notable affiliation with French culture.”

Furthermore, we should not forget a great cultural legacy by the European colonialists: the Latin script for the alphabetization of the African and Asiatic languages, which contribute to the spread of literacy among the various strands of society. A key role was played as well by Christian missionaries laboring in the field of translating the Bible into national languages. The French helped Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, by giving them a Latin-based Alphabet, thus liberating them from the Chinese Ideographic symbols they had previously used.

That was in contrast with Islamic Imperialism which brought the Arabic Alphabet into countries like Persia and Turkey, whose languages were non-semitic, thus requiring several additional signs and strokes to be added to the Arabic letters. It was the genius of Kemal Ataturk, the Father of modern Turkey, who while making a clean break with the Ottoman past, introduced a Latin-based Alphabet that increased literacy among the Turkish masses.

I find no better way of summing up the Impact of Islamic Imperialism on conquered people, than these words from the Prologue of V. S. Naipaul’s “Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions among Converted People” published by Vintage Books in 1998.

“Islam is in its origins an Arab religion. Everyone not an Arab who is a Muslim is a convert. Islam is not simply a matter of conscience or private belief. It makes imperial demands. A convert’s worldview alters. His holy places are in Arab lands; his language is Arabic. His idea of history alters. He rejects his own; he becomes, whether he likes it or not, a part of the Arab story. The convert must turn away from everything that is his. The disturbance for societies is immense, and even after a thousand years can remain unresolved; the turning away must be done again and again. People develop fantasies about who and what they are; and in the Islam of the converted countries there is an element of neurosis and nihilism. These countries can be easily set on the boil.” P. xi  

 

__________________________________________________________________

iHarold Macmillan: The Wind of Change Speech, 3 Feb. 1960 Address by Harold Macmillan to Members of Houses of the Parliament of the Union Of South Africa, Cape Town, 3 February 1960
https://web-archives.univ-pau.fr/english/TD2doc1.pdf

ii https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300198171/islamic-imperialism

iii One Arab Nation, Umma ‘Arabiyya Wahida, is the Motto of the Baath Party in Syria and Iraq

iv Islamic Umma, is the Motto of the Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, after Ataturk’s abolishing of the Islamic Caliphate in 1924.

Posted in Articles

The Story of the Smith-Van Dyck Translation of the Bible into Arabic 1865

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Story of the Smith-Van Dyck Translation
of the Bible into Arabic
1865

 

Bassam Michael Madany

28 February 2022
 

During 2022, I posted articles on “The Bible & the Church” and “The Translation of the Bible Into Arabic.” In this article, we get the story of the “Smith-Van Dyck Translation of the Bible into Arabic.” Thanks to the American missionary, Dr. Henry Jessup who reported on this historic event in his memoir, “Fifty-Three Years in Syria” This two-volume book has been reprinted; also, a digitized copy of the book is available at

https://www.arabicbible.com/for-christians/the-bible/148-fifty-three-years-in-syria.html 

Prior to the Great War (WWI), Beirut, Tripoli, Sidon, and Tyre, were parts of Syria that had been ruled by the Ottoman Turks. While “Jebel Lubnan” i.e., Mount Lebanon, was a semi-autonomous district inhabited by Maronite Christians and an Islamic sect, the Druze. Henry Jessup lived in Beirut, which explains the term “Syria” in the title of his book. Most American missionaries labored in Mount Lebanon in the 19th century.   

Here are excerpts from “Fifty-Three Years in Syria,” interspersed with my comments.

Referring to the challenges of Bible translations, Dr. Jessup wrote:

“If it was difficult for Luther to translate from the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures into German, how much more to translate [into Arabic] 960 pages from the Hebrew of the Old Testament, and 270 pages from the Greek of the New Testament!”

The American missionaries arrived in the Levant during the early years of the 19th century. Their goal was to revive the Eastern Churches that had been under Islamic rule for twelve centuries. To accomplish this goal, required the availability of the Christian Scriptures in Arabic.

“The translation project began in 1848, with Dr. Eli Smith. On 9 April 1848, Dr. Smith submitted a copy of the new translation of the Book of Genesis.

Four years later, most of the Pentateuch had been translated and approved. Dr. Smith worked on the translation of the New Testament that was completed in 1855.”

“At the time of his death in 1856, Eli Smith had devoted nine years to this work. The mission appointed Dr. Cornelius Van Dyck who continued with the translation work in November 1857, until it was accomplished in 1865.

“Cornelius Van Alan Van Dyck, M.D., came to Syria, April 2, 1840, aged twenty-one years and four months, the youngest American ever sent to Syria. He came as a medical missionary, had never studied theology, but in seventeen years in Syria he had mastered the Arabic language, the Syrian, Hebrew, Greek, French, Italian and German. He was of Dutch origin, born at Kinderhook in 1818. He had a genius for languages, a phenomenal memory, a clear intellect, and excelled in medicine, astronomy, the higher mathematics, and linguistic science. His knowledge of Arabic, both classical and vulgar, was a wonder to both natives and foreigners, as will be seen in the chapter on his life and work. He had been ordained January 14, 1846, and afterwards received the degrees of D.D. and LL.D., and later that of L.H.D. from Edinburgh.”

“The following is a partial list of the "helps" that were available for use by the men involved in the translation:

“Of Hebrew Grammars, Gesenius' Lehrgebaude (1817), a smaller grammar edited by Rodiger (1851), a gift from the editor; Ewald's Lehrbuch (1844) and Nordheimer's Grammar. Of Lexicons: Gesenius' Hebrew Thesaurus, and Robinson's Gesenius, also Furst's Concordance and his School Dictionary, also Noldin’s Concordance.

“Of Commentaries: Rosenmuller on the Pentateuch, and Tuch and Delitzch and Knobel on Genesis. The London Polyglot with Buxtorf's Chaldee, and Castel's Syriac Lexicon, and Schleusner's Greek Lexicon of the Septuagint. Also, Tischendorf's Septuagint, and for a general Greek lexicon, Liddell, and Scott.

Dr. Cornelius Van Dyck continued with the translation work assisted by the Lebanese scholars Nasif El Yazigy, and Butrus El Bistany. He consulted with Arabic scholars in Germany, viz: Professor Fleischer of Leipsic, Professor Rodiger of Halle, Professor Flugel of Dresden, and Dr. Haranguer, librarian of the Imperial Library, Vienna.”

The Arabic Language of the translation

“The style of Arabic adopted was to be the same as had been adopted by Dr. Smith after long and frequent consultations with the mission and with native scholars. Some would have preferred the style “Qur’anic” i.e., Islamic, adopting idioms and expressions peculiar to Muslims. All native Christian scholars decidedly objected to this. It was agreed to adopt a simple but pure Arabic, free from foreign idioms, but never to sacrifice the sense to a grammatical quick or a rhetorical quibble, or a fanciful tinkling of words. As a matter of fact, it will be seen that in the historical and didactic parts, the style is pure and simple, but in the poetical parts, the style necessarily takes on the higher standard of the original, e.g., Job, Psalms, and parts of the prophets. 

“The work of the translation of the New Testament was finished on March 9, 1860. Dr. Van Dyck was assisted by a Muslim scholar of high repute, Sheikh Yusef El Asir, a graduate of Al-Azhar University of Cairo, whose purely Arabic tastes and training fitted him to pronounce on all questions of grammar, rhetoric and vowelling, subject to the revision and final judgement of Dr. Van Dyck.

“Dr. Van Dyck reported the completion of the translation of the Old Testament. Friday, March 10, 1865, a celebration took place at the American Press, in honor of the printing of the Old Testament, thus completing the new Arabic translation of the Bible.”

Celebration and Praise

Dr. Henry Jessup continued: “In the upper room, where Dr. Smith had labored on the translation eight years, and Dr. Van Dyck eight years more, the assembled missionaries gave thanks to God for the completion of this arduous work.” 

“Just then, the sound of many voices arose from below, and on throwing open the door, we heard a large company of young men, laborers at the press and members of the Protestant community, singing to the tune of Hebron a “new song.” “Even praise to our God,” composed for the occasion by Mr. Ibrahim Sarkis, chief compositor, in the Arabic language. Surely not for centuries have the angels in heaven heard a sweeter sound arising from Syria [Beirut, Lebanon] than the voices of this band of pious young men, singing a hymn composed by one of themselves, ascribing glory and praise to God that now for the first time, the Word of God is given to their nation in its purity.

“The hymn was translated this hymn into English, and on Sunday evening, March 12th 1865, a public meeting was held in the old church in commemoration of this great event, and addresses were made by Rev. James Robertson, Scotch Chaplain, Mr. Butrus Bistany and Rev. D. Stuart Dodge. The hymn was sung in Arabic and English.”

The English translation follows:

Hail day, thrice blessed of our God. Rejoice, let all men bear a part. Complete at length Thy printed word; Lord, print its truths on every heart.

To Him who gave His gracious word, Arise, and with glad praises sing; Exalt and magnify our Lord Our Maker and our glorious King.

Lord, spare Thy servant through whose toil, Thou gav'st us this of books the best, Bless all who shared the arduous task From Eastern land or distant West.

Amen! Amen! lift up the voice, Praise God whose mercy's e'er the same, His goodness all our song employs, Thanksgiving then to His Great Name.

“On the 3rd of June 1865, Dr. Van Dyck proceeded to New York, in accordance with arrangements made with the American Bible Society and superintended the making of a set of electrotype plates of the entire Arabic Bible in large type 8 volumes, and of the voweled New Testament. Two years later he returned to Beirut with Mr. Samuel Hallock, an electrotyper, and superintended electrotyping the voweled Old Testament 8vo, and editions of the entire Bible and of the New Testament. The American Bible Society furnished the British and Foreign Bible Society with a duplicate set of plates of the Bible and New Testament made in New York and also of the vowelled Old Testament made in Beirut.”

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i https://www.logos.com/product/28109/fifty-three-years-in-syria-vols-1-2

https://www.vitalsource.com/products/fifty-three-years-in-syria-volume-ii-henry-harris-jessup-v9781528760058?duration=perpetual 

https://www.garnetpublishing.co.uk/product/fifty-three-years-in-syria-v-2-folios-archive-library/

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The Translation of the Bible Into Arabic

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Translation of the Bible Into Arabic

Bassam Michael Madany

21 February 2022

Introduction

Throughout my ministerial career that began in Syria in 1953, and that is still continuing by the grace of God to the early decades of the Twenty-First Century, I have studied the Holy Scriptures in several languages. 

 I have been reading the Bible in Arabic since my early days. As Syria was under French control during my formative years, I learned French as well. Eventually, I learned English that supplanted French after Syria’s independence in 1946.

My call to the ministry brought me to the USA. I spent three academic years at the Reformed Presbyterian Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by 1958, and after one year of theological studies at Calvin Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I embarked on my life work. It consisted of the preparation and recording of messages on the Bible in Arabic. They were broadcast over international radio stations in the direction of North Africa and the Middle East.

While I continued to reside in the United States, I kept my Arabic up-to date through listening to short-wave stations, reading daily and weekly papers from the Middle East. I visited North Africa and the Middle East frequently. During such visits, I purchased Arabic books that gave me information about the evolving Arab culture, and the growing Arabic vocabulary.

The radio and literature ministry became a two-way traffic: the broadcasts brought responses from Eastern Christian and Muslim listeners. I responded via air mail letters and printed follow-up materials.

In my work I used the Smith-Van Dyke translation of the Bible. It was published in1865 and became the most widely used version of the Bible in Arabic. A moving account of this venture was related by Dr. Henry Jessup In his book, “Fifty-Three Years in Syria.” (First Volume, Chapter 4, Pp. 66-78, published by Fleming H. Revell Company, New York, 1910)

The preparation of messages was done with the audience in mind. The exposition of the Word of God was done with full awareness of the prejudices and misunderstandings of the Bible that are part and parcel of the Islamic tradition. My messages were not polemical, and did not refer to the Qur’an, the Hadith, or Muhammad.

Besides my education in the Middle East, I also taught in Arabic, at Roman Catholic and Protestant mission schools for six years. That enabled me to become fluent in the use of Standard/ Classical Arabic.

The Bible in Missions to Muslims

While proclaiming the Gospel to Muslims, one must not ignore the Islamic baggage regarding the Bible. For them, the Qur’an is Allah’s final revelation; it abrogates all previous revelations. Muslims claim that the Bible was corrupted prior to the rise of Islam. Thus, to publish a revised version of the Smith/Van Dyke of the Bible, may allow Muslims to point to the Christians’ propensity to keep amending their Holy Book. 

Arabic is a living and changing language. I have compiled a list of the new Arabic vocabulary that I had not known prior to 1950.Every time I read Asharq al-Awsat or Assafir Newspapers, or the digital program of BBC Arabic, I discovered a new Arabic word. But this does not mean that ‘older’ Arabic terms cannot be understood by contemporary Arabs. Why? Because the Arabic language is based on the Qur’an, a document that had its text finalized during the life of Caliph Uthman (644- 656.) This document plays a significant role in the life of Arabic speaking people, regardless of their religious affiliation. Arabic is tied to the Qur’an much more than English is related to the Authorized Version of the Bible or, to Shakespeare.

Before too long, the Smith-Van Dyck Arabic Bible will be two-hundred years old. It has become the Bible for most of Arabic speaking Eastern Christians of the Middle East. It’s loved, cherished, and memorized by the new Christians of North Africa who have crossed over from Islam to freedom in Christ.  

The pioneer missionaries who sponsored and worked on the translation of the Bible in Beirut, were churchmen and operated within confessional contexts. They adhered to the early Ecumenical Creeds, and to the Reformed Catechisms and Confessions of Faith. They were not innovators, but reformers. Part of being Confessionally Protestant (whether Lutheran, Reformed, or Anglican) is to believe that the primary means of grace is the preaching of the Word of God. 

While emphasizing the importance of the written text of the Bible, the missionaries realized that converts needed more than a Bible translation. A.A. Hodge’s book on Systematic Theology was translated, and commentaries on the Old and New Testaments were provided in Arabic. The Psalter was translated, and we sang it in a beautiful Arabic poetic style. Also, Arabic hymns were composed by Evangelical (Presbyterian) converts. One American missionary, the Rev. George Ford had the gift of composing Arabic hymns, a talent that I had coveted but never obtained!ii

The mission of the Church requires the proclamation of the Gospel, in Arabic it is known as al-Injeel, derived from the Greek Evangelium. When a person believes in the Lord Jesus Christ, he is grafted into a communion of believers whose faith is anchored in a tradition that stretches back for centuries. Twenty-first century Christians cannot approach the Bible de nuovo, they must read it in the light of a living heritage that goes back to the Apostolic Age.

Saint Paul expected all believers, whether Jewish or Gentile, to appropriate the sacred history of the Old Testament. In First Corinthians 10:1, he included all members of the church (both Jews and Gentiles) in the statement:

1فَإِنِّي لَسْتُ أُرِيدُ أَيُّهَا الإِخْوَةُ أَنْ تَجْهَلُوا أَنَّ آبَاءَنَا جَمِيعَهُمْ كَانُوا تَحْتَ السَّحَابَةِ، وَجَمِيعَهُمُ اجْتَازُوا فِي

الْبَحْرِ، 2وَجَمِيعَهُمُ اعْتَمَدُوا لِمُوسَى فِي السَّحَابَةِ وَفِي الْبَحْرِ،

“Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;”

Paul informed the non-Jewish background-believers that the Israelites of the Old Testament, who went through the Red Sea, were their fathers. Non-Jewish people upon conversion to Christ had appropriated the Old Testament translation into Greek, known as the Septuagint. That was the only Scriptures they had, as the New Testament was still in the process of being recorded. The British scholar Michael Green in his book, “Evangelism in the Early Church,” referred to the Jewish Diaspora and the Septuagint as playing a key role in the spread of the Christian faith.”  iii

The apostle Paul wrote in I Corinthians 1:21 “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching (Kerugmatos) to save them that believe.”

In his Letter to the Church in Rome (10:17), Paul explained how people are saved.

“So then, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” AV

“So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” ESV                          

In F. F. Bruce’s “Tradition, Old & New,” Published by the Paternoster Press in 1970, he stressed the role of the Christian Tradition in the interpretation of the Bible.

“Hold fast to the traditions,’ wrote Paul to the Christians in Corinth. Yet one would regard freedom from any kind of tradition as the sign of spiritual maturity and emancipation. That is because of the mistaken idea that tradition is always bad. Yet the living tradition, the community of Christian life, is indispensable. Without it, Scripture would have had no context. If we would suppose that the church had been wiped out in the Diocletian persecution and the church’s scripture lost, to be rediscovered in our own day like the Dead Sea Scrolls, would the rediscovered scriptures once more have the effect which we know them to have in experience, or would they, like the Scrolls, be an archeological curiosity and a subject of historical debate?

“On the other hand, the living tradition without the constant corrective of Scripture, (or, in more modern language, without the possibility of ‘reformation according to the Word of God’), might have developed out of all recognition if it had not indeed slowly faded and died.”  Page 128 

“And, for the Christian, history is the arena of the witness of the Spirit, by whose vital presence the once-for-all act of God which launched the Christian era and is documented in the New Testament retains its dynamism from generation to generation and is effective in human life today. The history of Christian beginnings inevitably takes on fresh significance as it is reapplied and reinterpreted in the experience of successive generations that receive it as their heritage. Thus, it remains potent and relevant. But it is necessary that the history as received should be checked from time to time against the history ‘as it actually occurred’, lest the two should part company irretrievably.”     Pages 172,173

The importance of sound hermeneutics for the proper understanding of the Bible, is masterfully expounded by Dr. Gerald Bray in his article: 

“Two Testaments, But One Bible”iv

The Old Testament worldview is taken for granted by the New Testament writers. The doctrine of creation is an obvious case in point. The belief that there is an intimate correlation between doctrine and ethics is another Old Testament principle which the New Testament writers took for granted.

The message of redemption cannot be separated from the doctrine of creation. The New Testament teaches us that all things were made in and through Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God. A gospel which does not affect the material order is no gospel at all, and Evangelical Christians have historically been in the forefront of those who insist that God changes things - not just in the sky when we die, but here and now, on this earth. As human beings, we have not chosen to be made in God’s image, nor can we abdicate this status. We can rebel against God’s covenant, of course, but if we do so we will be punished for trying to escape from our God-given responsibilities. 

It is in this context that we read the Bible and interpret what the different dispensations have to say to us today. We do not have the freedom to disregard its teaching on the ground that it is now outdated, because the underlying principles remain the same. At the current time we have to face the issue of homosexuality. We all agree that the Levitical prescription of stoning is no longer applicable, but we should not conclude from that, that the prohibition of homosexual behaviour has been lifted as well. 

When we read the Bible, we are called to read it spiritually - looking for the underlying principle, and then trying to work out how those principles should be applied in practice. If the principles are kept in view, the range of possible applications will be coherent. To interpret the Bible correctly therefore is to learn how to discern its spiritual principles and then seek ways in which those principles can and should be applied in a given context. Armed with such resources, it is then the privilege of the pastor and preacher to bring God’s Word to his people and show them that it is indeed a living power, just as vital and effective today as it was when it was first written and proclaimed.

http://www.theologian.org.uk/bible/2testaments1bible.html

 

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i A Lexicon of Contemporary Arabic Vocabulary & Phrases

ii George Edward Ford, son of an American Missionary, was born in Aleppo, Syria, and lived in Sidon. There he founded the National Evangelical Institute for Girls & boys, along with Rev. William King Eddy, on the 1st of Dec. 1881 He died in 1928. Rev. Ford translated two hymns and composed nine hymns in Arabic.

iii https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/review-of-evangelism-in-the-early-church

ivDr. Gerald Bray is professor at Beeson Divinity School – Samford University Birmingham, Alabama

 

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THE PASSING OF SAYYID AL-QIMNI

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

THE PASSING OF SAYYID AL-QIMNI

Bassam Michael Madany

14 February 2022

On Sunday the 6th of February 2022, Dr. Sayyid Al-Qimni, an Egyptian author and human rights activist passed away at his home in Cairo.

On 8 February 2022, the Arabic section of BBC News gave a brief report on the event.  The following is the translated text:

“The Egyptian intellectual Sayyid Al-Qimni passed away on Sunday at the age of 75. In his writings and speeches, Al-Qimni advocated the updating and reforming of the hermeneutics of the Qur’an and Hadith. Some critics charged that his proposal was inspired by a Marxist ideology. Others claimed that Al-Qimni should have refrained from dealing with sacred subjects that must be shielded from any critique.”

Dr. Sayyid Al-Qimni founded the Egyptian Secular Party. He lectured at the meetings of the Party that have been archived on YouTube.

I had expected that by mid-week, some online Arabic newspapers and magazines would have commented on the passing of Sayyid Al-Qimni. Perhaps editors of the Arabic media are hesitant to comment on the work of a controversial scholar whose critique of Islam was considered harsh and quite shocking. A week later, the event is still ignored by most of the Arab media. At the same time, a lively debate is going on in Egypt where friends and foes of the late Dr. Sayyid Al-Qimni offer their positive or negative views of him. Reports indicate that he was refused the normal funeral service at the Mosque. Family members and friends are active defending his contributions to the cultural and political life of Egyptians.

A major Cairo daily Al-Ahram published the news of Al-Qimni’s passing, in its Arabic and English editions. The following are excerpts from the English Al-Ahram of Thursday, 10 February 2022.

Sayyid El-Qimni, the Religious Critic Who Met Fire with More Firei

“Controversial Egyptian secular thinker and researcher in the history of religions, Sayyid El-Qimni, who rattled Islamists and gained both criticism and praise from academic scholars, died on Sunday at the age of 74. The late author stirred up controversy over his views on the Quran and his battles with Al-Azhar accusing the latter of sponsoring terrorism. El-Qimni, who was born in 1947, focused mainly on the Islamic tradition and the history of monotheistic religions. He offered what he labelled a socio-political reading of the life of Prophet Muhammad and the beginnings of Islam, in a series starting with Al-Hizb Al- Hashimi (The Hashimite Party), Huroob Dawlat Al-Rasoul (The Wars of the Prophet’s State), and Naskh in Al-Wahy (The Abrogation in the Revelation).

“His problems with Al-Azhar and the Islamic Research Academy came in 1996 after he published his book Rab Haza Azzaman (The God of This Age), which the academy demanded be confiscated.  In 2005, he received death threats on the internet from Al-Qaeda, which prompted him to stop his writing in the media. In 2009, El-Qimni was awarded the state’s appreciation award for his body of work.

“El-Qimni’s thesis that treats the Quran as a historical text that can be examined in a critical fashion, brought the wrath of scholars and Islamists who asserted that the Quran is the word of God, and not an earthly text. His critical approach to Islam brought accusations of apostasy and blasphemy on him.”

I am disappointed but not surprised that some major Arabic online dailies and journals have ignored the event. At the same time, a lively debate is going on in Egypt where friends and foes of the late Dr. Sayyid Al-Qimni offer their positive or negative views of him.

To get an idea of the encyclopedic learning of this Egyptian scholar, here is a list of some  of the speeches and lectures he gave, both at home and abroad.

On 31 May 2013, Al Qimni described “The conditions and future of the minorities according to the Muslim Brotherhood’s Jurisprudence.”

On 7 and 8 December 2014, Sayyid Al-Qimni lectured on a Cairo TV Station on “The Right of a Secular Egyptian to Life and Freedom.” 

On 7 June 2016, Al-Qimni spoke at conference in Brussels, Belgium, on “The Roots of Violence in Islam.”

On 13 August 2015 and 22 August 2016, Dr. Sayyid Al-Qimni lectured at Egypt Secular Party’s Headquarters in Cairo.ii 

While the lecture was delivered in Arabic, those who don’t know Arabic, by listening to it, may experience the passion of a pioneering scholar who attempted to reconcile Islam with modernity! 

 

__________________________________________________________

i Sayyid El-Qimni, the religions critic who met fire with more fire - News - Books - Ahram Online

ii المحاضرة الكاملة للدكتور سيد القمني في الحزب العلماني المصري - برنامج البط الأسود ٢٢٠ ( حلقة خاصة ) - YouTube

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The Bible and The Church

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Bible and The Church

Bassam Michael Madany

January 2022

Over the years, I dealt with several translations of the Scriptures. My mother tongue is Arabic, my father, Michael Nicholas Madany, served as pastor of the Evangelical Church in Seleucia, and Alexandretta, Syria. I have been reading the Bible in Arabic since my early days. I learned French at school quite early, and it became my second language. 

My call to the ministry brought me to the USA. I spent three academic years at the Reformed Presbyterian Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I improved my English, and learned New Testament Greek and Hebrew. 

In 1958, after one more year of theological studies at Calvin Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I embarked on my life work: the preparation and recording of messages based on the Arabic Bible, to be broadcast to the Arab world in the Middle East and North Africa.

While I continued to reside in the US, I kept my Arabic up to date, by listening to short-wave radio stations, reading daily and weekly papers from the Middle East, and occasionally visiting Arab countries. During these visits, I purchased Arabic books that gave me the latest information about the evolving Arab culture, and the growing Arabic vocabulary. Once in Beirut, Lebanon, I purchased “Ilah al-Ilhad al-Mu’aser: Marx & Sartre” (The God of Contemporary Unbelief: Communism & Existentialism.) I learned that some people in the Arab world were concerned about the inroads of Marxism and the atheistic Existentialism of Jean-Paul Sartre.

The radio and literature ministry became a two-way traffic: the broadcasts brought responses from Eastern Christians and Muslims; I responded via air mail letters and follow-up materials that went by surface mail.

My work required a careful preparation and writing of the broadcast materials. I read from the Bible using the Smith/Van Dyck version of 1865. My exposition of the Word of God was done with full awareness of the prejudices and misunderstandings of the Bible in the Islamic tradition. I was not polemical, and made no reference to the Qur’an, or the Hadith.

My early formal education had taken place in the Middle East at British, French schools.  Beginning in 1946 (the year of Syria’s independence) I taught at Catholic and Protestant mission schools for six years, using Standard (Classical) Arabic.

The pioneer missionaries were churchmen and operated within confessional contexts. They adhered to the Ecumenical Creeds. They had not rejected the Apostolic Tradition. They were not innovators, but reformers. Part of being Confessionally Protestant (whether Anglican, Lutheran or Reformed) was the importance of proclaiming the Word of God. (Romans 10 and I Corinthians 1 & 2). While emphasizing the importance of the written text of the Bible, the missionaries translated theological works and Bible commentaries. 

In his First Letter to the Church at Corinth, Paul dealt with the Jewish and Gentile objections to the Cross, in chapters One & Two. In chapter 10:1, he wrote: 
“Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; etc.” 
Paul informed those non-Jewish background-believers that the Israelites of the Old Testament, who went through the Red Sea, were their fathers. Of course, he did not mean physically but spiritually. When non-Jewish people joined the Church, they became heirs of the Old Testament, which meant appropriating the message, the language and phraseology of the Septuagint.

As absolutely necessary the Bible is for missions, no Bible translation by itself can and would accomplish the missionary task of the Church. The Bible must be expounded and proclaimed. As Paul put it in I Corinthians 1:21

“For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching (Kerugmatos) to save them that believe.” 
επειδη γαρ εν τη σοφια του θεου ουκ εγνω ο κοσμος δια της σοφιας τον θεον ευδοκησεν ο θεος δια της μωριας του κηρυγματος σωσαι τους πιστευοντας.

Paul emphasized the fundamental role of hearing the Gospel. “So then, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (ara e pistis ex akoes, e de akoe dia ‘rematos Xristou.” (Romans 10:17)

To make my point clear, I end with an excerpt from F. F. Bruce’s book “Tradition, Old & New,” Published by the Paternoster Press in 1970.i

 “Hold fast to the traditions,’ wrote Paul to the Christians in Corinth. Yet one would regard freedom from any kind of tradition as the sign of spiritual maturity and emancipation. That is because of the mistaken idea that tradition is always bad. Yet the living tradition, the community of Christian life, is indispensable. Without it, Scripture would have had no context. If we would suppose that the church had been wiped out in the Diocletian persecution and the church’s scripture lost, to be rediscovered in our own day like the Dead Sea Scrolls, would the rediscovered scriptures once more have the effect which we know them to have in experience, or would they, like the Scrolls, be an archeological curiosity and a subject of historical debate?” 

“On the other hand, the living tradition without the constant corrective of Scripture, (or, in more modern language, without the possibility of ‘reformation according to the Word of God’), might have developed out of all recognition if it had not indeed slowly faded and died.” Page 128

“And, for the Christian, history is the arena of the witness of the Spirit, by whose vital presence the once-for-all act of God which launched the Christian era and is documented in the New Testament retains its dynamism from generation to generation and is effective in human life today. The history of Christian beginnings inevitably takes on fresh significance as it is reapplied and reinterpreted in the experience of successive generations that receive it as their heritage. Thus, it remains potent and relevant. But it is necessary that the history as received should be checked from time to time against the history ‘as it actually occurred’, lest the two should part company irretrievably.” Pages 172,173

The Bible and the Church belong together and are intimately connected. Throughout the past 2000 years, the Bible formed the textbook of the Church. When it departed from its teachings, it faltered and lost its way. And as it returned to the supreme and final authority of the Word of God, the Church revived to proclaim her message:

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”      

______________________________________________________________
 

https://www.amazon.com/Tradition-Old-New-F-Bruce/dp/1597529885




 

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Muhammad Ali Pasha: A Pioneer Orientalist

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Muhammad Ali Pasha: A Pioneer Orientalist

Bassam Michael Madany

7 January 2022

Near the end of the 18th century, France was at war with Great Britain. In order to disrupt its trade routes with India, Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798. In September 1801, the French forces left Egypt due to disturbances in the country coupled with British attacks on their forces.

With the European powers out of the eastern Mediterranean, the Ottoman forces returned to Egypt under the command of Muhammad Ali Pasha. Before long he became the autonomous ruler of Egypt. His family dynasty ruled Egypt until July 1952, when his great-great grandson King Farouk was ousted in a coup headed by Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser and his Free Army Officers. 

Muhammad Ali was possessed with unique qualities that enhanced his ability to rule Egypt. His life and rule was the subject covered in an Interview Ahmed Saad Zayed had with Dr. Hela Ghonim, a professor at Philipps University of Marburg where she held a prominent position in the Department of Islamics.i Her special interest was the importance of the Arts in the Diplomacy of Muhammad Ali, both internal and external. In the Interviewii as she began explaining her findings, she made it clear that her views of Western scholars were antithetical to Edward Said in his book “Orientalism.”  Said was a highly influential scholar whose ideas dominated the discourse about Middle Eastern peoples.  While some anti-Western scholars have entertained negative views about Orientalism, there are experts in the field who have faulted Edward Said’s thesis. For instance, the late president of the American University of Beirut, Dr. Malcom Kerr, himself an accomplished Orientalist. Here is an excerpt from his review of Said’s book:

“The book contains many excellent sections and scores many telling points, but it is spoiled by overzealous prosecutorial argument in which Professor Said, in his eagerness to spin too large a web, leaps at conclusions and tries to throw everything but the kitchen sink into a preconceived frame of analysis. In charging the entire tradition of European and American Oriental studies with the sins of reductionism and caricature, he commits precisely the same error.” http://www.geocities.com/orientalismorg/Kerr.htm

The Anglican bishop Kenneth Cragg’s View of Edward Said is well-expressed in his book, “The Arab Christian: A History in the Middle East.” Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1991

“The most erudite and forthright example is Edward Said, Orientalism (New York: Random House,1978)."There is, it would seem, a degree of Palestinian nationalism in Edward Said's approach. He insists that all knowledge turns on power and there is no western orientalism not funded by political, commercial, or imperialist interests. It would seem, on this count, that only insiders to it can know a culture, seeing that all outsiders bring unsurmountable prejudice. The dishonesty lies in propounding this view from within an eastern insidership, which has so eminently demonstrated a capacity to know the West and its ethos and literature on the part of one, by origin an outsider. It would have been generous to acknowledge similar capacities in reverse on the part of those orientalists, e.g., Hamilton Gibb, whom he mostly castigates." P. 302

Dr. Hela Ghonim went on to explain that Muhammad Ali did not hesitate to use European artists to provide him with portraits of Mid-Eastern people. He participated in the final results of the portraits by offering his comments and suggestions. He, as a well-informed leader who had studied the lives of European monarchs like Louis XIV of France, planned to use the portraits of Egyptians as visual lessons in governance. Unlike Said, neither Ahmad Saad Zayed nor Hela Ghonim entertained a suspicious attitude vis-à-vis Westerner scholars writing about Eastern (Oriental) people. Muhammad Ali Pasha used the talents of the British artist, Sir David Willkie for some of his portraits.iii

Dr. Ghonim was quite enthusiastic in her description of Muhammad Ali Pasha’s efforts to invigorate Egyptian society through his reforms.  His recruitment of European artists to reach his goal, may qualify him as an early Orientalist, who would never regard European Orientalists as facilitators of Western Imperialism, as Edward Said would charge 150 years later. 

I’ve always been puzzled by Edward Said, a Levantine Christian whose fame is associated with his critique of Western Imperialism. This was a relatively brief episode in history. In reality the Arab/Islamic colonialism has been total and irreversible. The British author V. S. Naipaul described it succinctly:

“Islam is in its origins an Arab religion. Everyone not an Arab who is a Muslim is a convert. Islam is not simply a matter of conscience or private belief. It makes imperial demands. A convert’s worldview alters. His holy places are in Arab lands; his language is Arabic. His idea of history alters. He rejects his own; he becomes, whether he likes it or not, a part of the Arab story. The convert must turn away from everything that is his. The disturbance for societies is immense, and even after a thousand years can remain unresolved; the turning away must be done again and again. People develop fantasies about who and what they are; and in the Islam of the converted countries there is an element of neurosis and nihilism. These countries can be easily set on the boil.” P. xi
“Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions among Converted People,” Vintage Books in 1998.

_______________________________________________________________

i Philipps-University is a public university in Marburg, Germany.
The Philipps University of Marburg was founded in 1527 by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, which makes it one of Germany's oldest universities and the oldest still operating Protestant university in the world. It is now a public university of the state of Hesse, without religious affiliation. 

ii A Dialogue by Ahmed Saad Zayed with Dr. Hela Ghonim https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlrRixTgQ2o

iiiDavid Willkie — THE SULTAN GALLERY
Sir David Wilkie | Artist | Royal Academy of Arts

 

 

 

Posted in Articles

The West Ignores History to its Own Peril

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The West Ignores History to its Own Peril

21 December 2021

By Bassam Michael Madany

Two articles published on 13 December 2021, dealt with the growing advance of Islam throughout the Western world. One by Daniel Pipes, “Migration, Islam, and Western Atonement.”i  The other article was entitled “A Permissive Pope Only Encourages Lack of Freedom,” ii was contributed by Father James G. Grant, and posted on the online Crisis Magazine. Here are relevant quotes from the thesis of Father Grant.  

“The papacy of Pope Francis has been widely portrayed in social media as a radical break with Vatican and papal attitudes of the past. In 2014, Francis offered his central tip for a happy life to be ‘live and let live.’ In addition to this philosophy surrounding personal freedom and morality, Francis has false views about Islam, which he has been quick to bolster and defend. To the dismay of Catholics and other Christians living under intense Islamic persecution, the pope repeatedly calls Islam “A religion of peace, that is opposed to every form of violence” (Evangelii Gaudium).”

“In 2016 an interview for the French newspaper La Croix, the pope noted, “It is true the idea of conquest is inherent in the soul of Islam. However, it is also possible to interpret the objective in Matthew’s Gospel, where Jesus sends his disciples to all nations, in terms of the same idea of conquest” (Matthew 28).”

It’s beyond belief that Pope Francis would point to any similarity between the spread of Christianity and Islam. Has he read The Acts of the Apostles’ account of the martyrdom of Stephen, and James, the brother of John? The early Church met with severe persecution during the first three centuries, as the Roman authorities attempted to stamp it out. Its historical development was the very opposite of how Islam became a worldwide imperialistic system under successive Caliphates from 632 to 1924.

As the historian Efraim Karsh explained in his book, “Islamic Imperialism: A History” iii

“The worlds of Christianity and Islam, however, have developed differently in one fundamental respect. The Christian faith won over an existing empire in an extremely slow and painful process and its universalism was originally conceived in spiritual terms that made a clear distinction between God and Caesar. By the time it was embraced by the Byzantine emperors as a tool for buttressing their imperial claims, three centuries after its foundation, Christianity had in place a countervailing ecclesiastical institution with an abiding authority over the wills and actions of all believers. The birth of Islam, by contrast, was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Muhammad, who derived his authority directly from Allah and acted at one and the same time as head of the state and head of the church. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religious aura and to channel Islam’s energies into ‘its instruments of aggressive expansion, there [being] no internal organism of equal force to counterbalance it.’” (P. 5)

Bernard Lewis referred to the Christian teaching about the distinction between church and state in “The Roots of Muslim Rage” iv in the September 1990 issue of The Atlantic Monthly:

“If the idea that religion and politics should be separated is relatively new, dating back a mere three hundred years, the idea that they are distinct dates back almost to the beginnings of Christianity. Christians are enjoined in their Scriptures to 'render . . . unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things which are God's.' While opinions have differed as to the real meaning of this phrase, it has generally been interpreted as legitimizing a situation in which two institutions exist side by side, each with its own laws and chain of authority-one concerned with religion, called the Church, the other concerned with politics, called the State. And since they are two, they may be joined or separated, subordinate or independent, and conflicts may arise between them over questions of demarcation and jurisdiction.”

Father James Grant was puzzled by the silence of Pope Francis towards the growing persecution of Christians living in Islamic lands.

“The indifference of Pope Francis to Christians suffering under Islamic Sharia Law has become shameful in the eyes of an increasing number of Catholics and non-Catholics alike. After the Islamic terrorist attack on the offices of French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, the pope chose not to defend the victims, free speech, or Western civilization. Rather, he defended Islamic terrorism when he noted, “You cannot provoke. You cannot insult the faith of others. You cannot make fun of the faith of others.” People should expect a punch, he said, if they offend others. 

“In July of 2016, again in France, an Islamic Jihadist cut off the head of a Catholic priest within his own church. The pope refused to attribute these actions to Islamic violence but rather noted, ‘the true terrorism is found in Capitalism. As long as the god of money is at the center of the global economy and not the human person, this is the first terrorism.’ The reality on the ground for Christians in Islamic states is that appeasement of Islam has not made Christians safer but more persecuted than they have been for centuries. The Vatican and the papacy must more vigorously support democratic regimes throughout the world and help democracies everywhere throw off dictatorial, communist, or rabidly Islamic regimes. The appalling behavior of Iran, Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hamas in the Gaza strip are fundamental challenges to all freedom-loving people in the world. The Vatican’s failure to call out the atrocities of such regimes to their own people, to Christians and their neighbors, is quickly suggesting a Vatican and papacy that aids evil through silence and indifference.”  

I am grateful for the passionate words of Father James Grant reminding us to show genuine solidarity with all people everywhere who are persecuted for their beliefs!

__________________________________________________________

“Migration, Islam, and Western Atonement,” #1737
December 13, 2021
https://www.danielpipes.org/20883/the-west-tries-to-atone-for-its-great-sins

iiA Permissive Pope Only Encourages Lack of Freedom (crisismagazine.com)

iii  https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300198171/islamic-imperialism

iv http://www.cis.org.au/Policy/summer01-02/PolicySummer01_3.html

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Crossing Over from Darkness into Light Maryam al-Uteybi’s Conversion

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Crossing Over from Darkness into Light

Maryam al-Uteybi’s Conversion

30 November 2021

Bassam Michael Madany

In the 1960s, the British colonial presence ended in the Arabian (Persian) Gulf. The countries of Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, got their independence; the smaller Gulf principalities formed the United Arab Emirates (UAE.) While the British colonial presence was still active in these areas, they needed people to administer the smooth running of the government. The British brought in various groups from India and other parts of the Middle East, and they settled in the various locales in the Gulf. Having come from various religious backgrounds, they were allowed to practice their faiths in churches or temples. However, that concession did not apply to Kuwaitis who were predominantly Sunni Muslims.

A person who changes his faith in Kuwait, as in most Muslim countries, is liable to be punished for the sin of Radda, i.e., going back on Islam. It’s even a greater sin if a Kuwaiti woman becomes a Christian. 

The following vignette honors one Maryam al-‘Uteybi, a Kuwaiti lady who converted from Islam to the Christian faith. She belonged to a family and extensive tribe which was spread all around the Arabian Peninsula, including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

At school in Kuwait City, Maryam had a variety of studies, including Islamic Law. A teacher introduced her to 19th century Russian literature! At the secondary school, she continued her religious subjects.

While researching Islamic History, she was shocked by the sectarian divisions between Sunnis and Shiites. She discovered that there were Mulhideens (Atheists) of Muslim background! When she sought to have her many questions answered about the Muslim faith and practice from the Ulema (Islamic religious teachers,) she was rebuffed and warned not to ask such questions. That afront prompted her to begin a serious reading of the Qur’an. Her research and reading caused her to cast doubts on the Muslim belief system. For one year she lived in Ilhad (Atheism,) then she became a Deist, and a Human Rights activist. At the University Library, she discovered that in the past, some Muslim philosophers, in particular Ibn Sina, and Ibn Hazm, were open-minded and tolerant.

One day, Maryam met Carlos who gave her a copy of the Injeel (New Testament.) She was struck by the Ayat (Verse) in the Injeel that proclaimed “The Lord is Love.) She decided to go to a church in Kuwait City, where almost immediately she felt at peace. To facilitate making her Kuwaiti identity unnoticed, she spoke with the Syrian dialect. She was able to receive Christian books from outside the country. She met many people who had crossed over from Islam to the Christian faith and she was warmly welcomed into their circles. Eventually, Maryam was able to migrate to the United Kingdom where she now fellowships with people who have crossed over from the darkness of Islam to the light and freedom found in the Lord Jesus Christ and His Universal Community (The Church)

Maryam al-Uteybi’s conversion to the Christian faith reminds me of these wonderful words from God which Felix Mendelssohn put to music in his Oratorio, Elijah: 
“If with all your hearts ye truly seek me, Ye shall ever surely find me, Thus saith our God.”
 

Posted in Articles

The Bible Needs No Defence

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Bible Needs No Defence

Bassam Michael Madany

November 2021

Muslims throughout the last 1400 years have claimed that Christians altered their Scriptures to suppress a “prediction” about the coming of a final prophet of Allah.

Two passages from the Qur’an advocate the charge.

2. O Muslims, do you then expect that these people will accept your invitation and become believers? whereas there have always been among them some who have been hearing the Word of God, understanding it well and then perverting and tampering with it knowingly. Baqra:75 

5. And there is a party among them who twist their tongues while reciting the Book to make you think that it is part of the Book when in fact it is not. They say: 'It is from Allah', when in fact it is not from Allah. They falsely fix a lie upon Allah and do so wittingly. Aale Imraan:78

These polemics ignore the fact that the Canon of the New Testament was settled early in the second century A. D.

The New Testament has been preserved in more manuscripts than any other ancient work of literature, with over 5,800 complete or fragmented Greek manuscripts catalogued, 10,000 Latin manuscripts and 9,300 manuscripts in various other ancient languages including Syriac, Slavic, Gothic, Ethiopic, Coptic, and Armenian.
 

Posted in Articles

The Great Gift to the World: Christian Choral Heritage

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Great Gift to the World: Christian Choral Heritage

Bassam Michael Madany

November 2021

It’s rather unusual to say the least, for a Levantine whose area of scholarship is in History and Theology, would venture to write on the Western Christian Choral Heritage.

The year was 1936, I was 8 years old. Living in a Levantine town where several European institutions operated schools where French, English, and Italian were taught, as the population was ethnically diverse. Our neighbors owned a radio set with access to Long, Medium, and Short-Wave frequencies.

King George V of Great Britain died on the 20th of January 1936 at Sandringham, Norfolk. His funeral took place on 28th January 1936 at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle following the Lying-in-State in London. Our neighbors invited us to listen to the funeral service. I heard the Hymn, ABIDE WITH ME FAST FALLS THE EVENTIDE, sung by the royal choir. I was gripped by the tune, and caught most of the words, as at that time, I was studying at a British run School.

When WWII began, we were blessed with a radio that broadcast news about the war in Europe, the Middle East, and Russia. On Fridays, I listened to a BBC program, “THINK ON THESE THINGS,” with hymns from the Book of Common Prayer.

Early in 1950, I heard an excellent recording of Felix Mendelssohn’s Oratorio Elijah, recorded on the new 33.3 RPM disk. During the 1960s, FM stations competed with AM stations, with certain FM stations broadcasting Classical Music, including the great Masterpieces of European composers, Bach, Beethoven, Handle, Haydn, Mendelssohn, Mozart, and others. The Internet and YouTube made Western Sacred Music available to a global audience.

All that couldn’t have happened without the work of the Martin Luther who translated the Bible into German, thus giving rise to a new German language that went beyond the provincial German dialects. Luther’s hymns became “engraved” in the memory of worshippers as they sang “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” “The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us with us sideth; Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; The body they may kill God’s truth abideth still, His kingdom is forever.” Nowadays, this treasure is available to the world via the Internet and YouTube.

It is possible to listen to Bach’s Cantatas on the Bach Hour of WGBH, of Boston, MA
https://www.classicalwcrb.org/the-bach-hour

Also, to the Choir of the Swiss J.S. Bach Foundation
J.S. Bach-Stiftung Channel on YouTube

 

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A Warning of Two Reformist Algerians: “Le Grand Replacement” (The Great Replacement)

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Warning of Two Reformist Algerians:
“Le Grand Replacement” (The Great Replacement)

Bassam Michael Madany

28 October 2021

The following article deals with the Impact of the presence in Europe of unassimilable people, resulting in the “Replacement,” of the local culture, by a radically different one.

The beginning of a mass movement of peoples from the former European colonies to Europe, began in the aftermath of WWII.  Helped by the United States Marshall Plan, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and other Western countries, for lack of a local labor force, invited labor from the former colonies to do the work. First, only men were admitted as “guest-workers.”. Eventually, their families joined them. The Governments failed to consider the demographic and political baggage that accompanied the settlers from Islamic lands.

I dealt with this subject in the past in an article entitled, The West’s Predicament: Unable to Heed Warning Signs. i 

Here is a link to book on this topic: The Unsettling of Europe: How Migration Reshaped a Continent ii   

In October 2021, two North African intellectuals wrote about “Le Grand Replacement” (The Great Replacement) 

“An Interview was conducted by the French BFM TV with Fawzi Benhabib, a resident of Saint-Denis, who said ‘that since his arrival from Algeria 25 years ago, he found in France the ideology from which he was fleeing in his former country, adding that For the Islamists, it is a question of Islamizing modernity, not of modernizing Islam.’ 

The second interviewee was an Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal, who expressed his concern about the level of Islamization in the French journal,  L'Express

“Where Islam takes hold, it is forever. Islamism is based on Islam, which no one has the right to criticize. But in your countries, it also plays a role in democracy and in the rule of law. Islamism exploits these values. Since democracy recognizes all opinions, from the far right to the far left, it is obliged to recognize Islam as well. All those who do not commit attacks or violent acts are, in principle, protected in a state of law. Islamism thus immediately finds itself in a conquered terrain. It is necessary to fight Islamism from the beginning. Because it is like humidity in a house. Initially the threat is invisible, it penetrates the walls which, little by little, crumble. When you realize the extent of the damage, it’s too late! You must destroy everything to clean up. It becomes a mission impossible. France is at stage where it has just discovered that Islam is eroding her home".

To consider my writing on this subject as motivated by Islamophobia, cannot be sustained. This topic was first discussed by Algerian nationals of Muslim countries. Like other Reformist Muslims, they long to the see the day when Islam would have joined the global community of nations grappling together to find concrete solutions for several  existential problems! 

_________________________________________________________________

The West’s Predicament: Unable to Heed Warning Signs - Middle East Resources (www.unashamedofthegospel.org)

ii The Unsettling of Europe: How Migration Reshaped a Continent By Peter Gatrell
Reviewed by Andrew Moravcsik November/December 2019 

This important book puts today’s levels of migration to Europe in historical perspective. Far from being unprecedented, large population movements have been the norm since World War II, after which over 12 million people fled Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. From the 1950s on, Eastern Europeans steadily left the Soviet bloc. In the 1960s, decolonization led millions to head for metropoles in the West, and guest workers came northward to Germany from countries such as Turkey (although the vast majority of these Gastarbeiter returned home). The end of the century saw further displacement caused by wars in the former Yugoslavia and waves of economic immigration. The author, a demographic historian, concludes with a dose of idealism: Europe should embrace immigration and diversity, which have made the continent what it is. Yet this seems to ignore political reality. Recent migration rates are the highest Europe has seen since the postwar movement of Germans. The percentage of foreign-born people in France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the United Kingdom is substantially higher than it was decades ago. In a period of low economic growth, European societies are grappling with tricky questions of cultural integration and difference. This book does surprisingly little to illuminate how many governments today face the political pressure to restrict immigration.

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The Impact and Consequences of a Never-Dying Dream: “The Islamic Caliphate”

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Impact and Consequences of a Never-Dying Dream:

“The Islamic Caliphate”

Bassam Michael Madany

October 2021

 

Ever since Mustapha Kemal Ataturk abolished the Islamic Caliphate in 1924, there have been various attempts to revive a system that had been in existence since 632 A.D.

During the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (The ISIS-K) carried out an attack at Kabul international airport, killing 13 US service members and dozens of Afghans. The IS-K is the most extreme and violent of all the jihadist militant groups in Afghanistan. It was set up in January 2015 at the height of IS's power in Iraq and Syria before its self-declared Caliphate was defeated and dismantled by a US-led coalition.

What drives Muslims in their persistence to bring about such a utopian dream? It’s the belief that the Islamic State, founded by Muhammad at Medina in 622, must expand until the entire world had become part and parcel of the global Islamic Umma. This notion doesn’t come from the Qur’an which is silent about the Caliphate. We are indebted to the work of the Tunisian scholar Héla Ouardi, who wrote in 2017, Les Derniers Jours de Muhammad. (The Last Days of Muhammad.) i

In an interview with the Algerian French-language daily El Watan, dated October 31, 2018, professor Ouardi dealt with several issues discovered during her research, that I have translated and summarized in the following paragraphs:  

“A mystery surrounds the death of Muhammad at the age of 63. Tradition provides contradictory answers, Hadith compilers like Tabari or Bukhārī, say that he died poisoned by a Jew from Khaybar; but sometimes they claim he died of pleurisy. The fact is that all sources indicate that in his last days, the Prophet was in a state of psychological depression. His gloomy predictions about the future of Islam, whose history is marked by civil wars, have indeed come true!

While investigating the circumstances of Muhammad’s passing, Héla Ouardi found an important matter, “namely that the climate among the Prophet’s family during his last days was a climate of great political tension, an atmosphere of a dénouement of an established order. There are two reasons to explain the three-days wait before Muhammad was buried. At the time, many Muslims believed that the Prophet would be resurrected after three days. Another reason was some Muslims were in a state of denial; while others believed that the death of the Prophet was a sign that the end of the world was imminent.

“As to whether Muhammad left a will regarding his successor is not very clear. Both Sunni and Shi’ite sources relate that on the Thursday before his death, the Prophet expressed the wish to dictate a will. He asked for a tablet and an inkwell and said, I will write a document that will protect you from bewilderment for eternity” But Omarii, who was present, opposed it and said: The Prophet is confused; we already have the Qur’an, and that’s enough for us.  

“Since the Qur’an is silent about a successor to the Prophet, how did the idea of ​​Khalifa come about? Actually, the institution of the Caliphate has no religious foundation, neither in the Qur'an, nor in the Hadiths. The Prophet himself did not clearly designate a successor. The Shi’ites claim that the Prophet transmitted the torch to Ali; however, they refer to him as an Imam, who is more a spiritual guide than a political leader. The Caliphate was an ad hoc institution invented by the Companions of the Prophet when suddenly confronted by the absence of a power center. 

“The Sunni-Shi’ite divide began with the assassination of Ali in 661; and it solidified around twenty years later, when his son Hussein was assassinated with his entourage, in Karbala, Iraq. The event had deep roots going all the way back to the days of Abu Bakr, in 632. While the family of the Prophet, Ali and Fatima were busy with the funeral arrangements, the followers of Abu Bakr and Omar announced the choice of Abu Bakr as Caliph. It was a fait accompli!

“By preventing the Prophet’s family from assuming the role of the Caliphate, the history of Islam has been punctuated by violent conflicts all committed in the name of religion. Thus, in Islam violence has become sacred, allowing some Muslims to perform horrific acts to bring them closer to God.

“Muslims generally think they are superior to others, since they follow of the last revealed religion, and their Prophet is the last or ‘seal’ of the prophets. God addresses them in the Qur’an, "You are the best of the nations of humanity. 3:110. This creates in them a sense of superiority that makes them hostile to any form of criticism and incapable of self-criticism. This feeling of ‘sufficiency’ has produced an immobility in many Muslim societies, especially in Arab-Muslim societies, clinging to the utopia that carries dreams of glory, constantly shattered by several stinging failures.”

Professor Ouardi summed up her analysis with these trenchant words: “In any case, I remain convinced that without a work of self-criticism, most Muslim societies will be unable to fully integrate within the modern world.”

I have quoted from a Muslim scholar who had risked her life for publishing this shocking verdict, so that as I continue this discussion, I may not be labeled as an Islamophobe or an overly-alarmist writer.

Thus far, I have relied on research published in 2018. Now, we are more than a decade later, and we continue to face the Consequences of this Never-Dying Dream. In mid-October 2021, I read two reports about this subject. One was an Interview conducted by the French BFM TViii, with Fawzi Benhabib, a resident of Saint-Denis, who said “that since his arrival from Algeria 25 years ago, he found in France the ideology from which he was fleeing in his former country, adding that For the Islamists, it is a question of Islamizing modernity, not of modernizing Islam.”

Another Algerian, Boualem Sansal, commented on the Consequences of this Never-Dying Dream, in the weekly French journal, Express.

"Where Islam takes hold, it is forever. Islamism is based on Islam, which no one has the right to criticize. But in your countries, it also plays a role in democracy and in the rule of law. Islamism exploits these values. Since democracy recognizes all opinions, from the far right to the far left, it is obliged to recognize Islam as well. All those who do not commit attacks or violent acts are, in principle, protected in a state of law. Islamism thus immediately finds itself in a conquered terrain.

“It is necessary to fight Islamism from the beginning. Because it is like humidity in a house. Initially the threat is invisible, it penetrates the walls which, little by little, crumble. When you realize it is too late, you have to destroy everything to clean up. It becomes a mission impossible. France is at the stage where it has just discovered that Islam is eroding her home."

Boualem Sansal : "La France vient de découvrir que l'islamisme ronge la maison" - L'Express (lexpress.fr)

__________________________________________________________________

i Héla Ouardi is a Tunisian scholar who in 2017 published in Paris, France, Les Derniers Jours de Muhammad. (The Last Days of Muhammad.) She is Professor of French Literature and Civilization at the University of Tunis, and Associate Researcher at the CNRS Laboratory for Monographic Studies. She was General Manager of the Book at the Ministry of Cultural Affairs of Tunisia from September 2016 to January 2018.

ii Omar played a vital role in the founding of the Caliphate. He may be regarded as the effective founder of the Institution, even though Abu Bakr (Father of Aisha) held that position from 632-634. Omar was the second Caliph, from 634-644, followed by Uthman from 644-656, followed by Ali from 656-661. His death marked the end of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. These dynastic caliphates followed: The Umayyad Dynasty from 661-750, the Abbasid Dynasty from 750-1258, when destroyed by the Mongolian invasion. The major Caliphate that followed was the Ottoman Caliphate that governed parts of the Balkans, the former Byzantine Empire, the Middle East and most of North Africa, until it ended in 1924.

iii i BFM TV is a 24-hour rolling news and weather channel based in France and available globally via digital, cable and satellite television. As the country's most-watched news channel with 10 million daily viewers.

 

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The Role of the English Language in the Global Spread of Information

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Role of the English Language in the Global Spread of Information

Bassam Michael Madany

October 2021

Throughout history, certain languages played a key role in the spread of knowledge and information. For example, Greek was predominant from 300 B.C. to around 400 A.D. It was displaced by Latin, due to Jerome’s translation of the Bible into Latin, known as the VULGATE.

Latin became the language of communication for a millennium. Early in the 16th century, Martin Luther’s translation of the Bible into German, initiated the rise of national languages, such as English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.

European colonialism brought these languages into Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Following the end of colonialism in the aftermath of WWII, English and French became the major means of communication among the newly independent countries in Asia and Africa.

Late in the 20th century, the advent of the Internet and the Social Media caused English to become the major means of communication. This did not imply that the other major languages could not be digitized for use in emails and websites. Rather, the global prominence of English, spontaneously made it the convenient tool for the spread of information.

To illustrate this phenomenon, I looked at the articles I had posted on my website, from January to October 2021 (1) Bassam Michael Madany - Academia.edu

Indonesians, Indians, Malaysians, Thais, Canadians, Nigerians, Chinese, Turks, Pakistanis, Brazilians, Armenians, and Vietnamese; had accessed one of the following articles translated from Arabic or French. That was possible for them, since they knew English.

A list of the articles that were read:

A Revised Version of Early Islamic History, Islam’s Problematic with Time, The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East, The Inter-Testamental Period, Arab Reformists Warnings to the West, The Suez Canal: Its History and Importance, Review of the Arabic text of MT. SINAI CODEX 151, A Revised Version of Early Islamic History, The Arab Spring of 2019, The Islamic Caliphate: An Impossible Dream, Reactions to a Revised Version of Early Islamic History Hong, A Revised Version of Early Islamic History,  Islam & Modernity, Islamic Imperialism: A Neglected Topic, The Decline of Western Civilization.

Posted in Articles

Afghanistan: Past, Present & Future

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Afghanistan:  Past, Present & Future

8 September 2021

Bassam Michael Madany

Commenting on the disastrous and humiliating exit of the United States from Afghanistan, Gerald Baker, Editor-at-large of The Wall Street Journal, described the event with these memorable words:

“If you wanted to capture the geopolitical history of the 21st century so far in a single paragraph, you couldn’t do much better than this:

‘Twenty years ago, America fought a brief and successful military campaign to oust from power the people who had enabled a terrorist organization to kill as many American citizens as have ever died at the hands of a foreign power in a single day in the nation’s history. A month shy of two decades later, the U.S. pleaded with that same power not to harm its soldiers, its citizens, and their allies as it scrambled to complete a chaotic and humiliating retreat that left that former enemy—and American adversaries everywhere—immeasurably stronger.’”  30 August 2021

Twenty years ago, most people in the Western world knew very little about Afghanistan. The 9/11 attack on the United States brought that country to their attention. It was the base from which Osama Bin Laden, planned and launched his war against America and the West.

In response, the United States went into Afghanistan to stop any further attacks. It isn’t likely that the US administration had taken adequate notice of the long history of Afghanistan, and the experience of the world powers that had invaded it.

Following the end of the First World War, Afghanistan became an independent nation. Concerned that it had fallen behind the rest of the world, the ruler of Afghanistan Amir Amanullah Khan began a campaign of socioeconomic reforms. In 1926, he declared Afghanistan a monarchy, proclaimed himself king and sought to limit the power of the National Council. His critics rose up against him forcing him to abdicate in 1929.

In 1934, Muhammad Zaher Shah ruled Afghanistan for the next 40 years. In 1973, the pro-Soviet General Muhammad Daoud Khan, became prime minister and sought economic and military assistance from the USSR. Three years later, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev agreed to help Afghanistan, and the two countries became close allies.                                                                                         

In 1976 General, Muhammad Daoud Khan staged a military coup overthrowing King Muhammad Zaher Shah and became president of The Republic of Afghanistan. He embarked on a campaign of modernization. However, opposition came from conservative Islamic and ethnic leaders who objected to social changes introduced by Khan. A guerrilla movement Mujahadeen was created to battle the Soviet-backed government.

The USSR invaded Afghanistan on 24 December 1979, to bolster the faltering communist regime. Early 1980, the Mujahadeen united against Soviet invaders and the USSR-backed Afghan Army, and began receiving arms from the United States, Britain, and China. September 1980 marks the date when Osama bin Laden and 15 other Islamists formed al-Qaida, the Arabic term for “The Base” or “The HQ,” to continue their Jihad against the Soviets.

Following Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Mujahadeen continued their resistance against the Soviet-backed regime of communist president Muhammad Najibullah, who had been elected president of the puppet Soviet state in 1986. The Mujahadeen stormed Kabul, and ousted Najibullah from power in 1992. Three years later, an Islamist militia the Taliban came on the scene and publicly executed former President Najibullah.

After al-Qaida’s bombings of two American embassies in Africa, President Clinton ordered cruise missile attacks against al-Qaida’s training camps in Afghanistan where bin Laden was hiding. On 11 September 2001, Islamist hijackers commandeered four commercial airplanes and crashed them into the World Trade Center Towers in New York, the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C., and a Pennsylvania field, killing thousands of Americans and people of other nationalities.

On 7 October 2001, the United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan.  Hamid Karzai was sworn in as the leader of the interim government in Afghanistan on 22 December 2001. In January 2004, the National Assembly adopted a new constitution, Presidential elections were held. Hamid Karzai was elected, and the nation held its first parliamentary elections in more than 30 years.

Amid continuing fighting between Taliban and al-Qaida fighters and the Afghan government forces, NATO expanded its peacekeeping operation to the southern portion of the country in 2006. The international community pledged $15 billion in aid to Afghanistan in 2008, while Afghan President Hamid Karzai promised to fight corruption in the government.

President Barack Obama announced the dispatch of military and civilian trainers to the country, in addition to the 17,000 more combat troops he had previously ordered.

A victory for the U.S. was accomplished by its Special Forces who overtook a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden on the 2nd of May 2011. 

NATO officially ended its combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014. U.S.-led NATO troops remained to train and advise Afghan forces. President Obama maintained 5,500 troops in Afghanistan when he left office in 2017. President Trump decided to continue military involvement on 21 August 2017. In 2019 U.S. and Taliban signed an agreement for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan by May 2021.

A few days before President Biden was inaugurated, the U.S. announced its plans to cut U.S. troop size down to 2,500. President Biden announced his aim to end U.S. troop withdrawal by 9/11.

Things accelerated greatly when on the 5th of July 2021, the United States left Bagram Air Base without informing the new Afghan Commander of the Base. The Taliban occupied Kabul on 26 August 2021. Chaos followed as two suicide bombers of an extremist group caused the death of 169 Afghani civilians and thirteen U.S. soldiers. Four days later, on the 30th of August, the U.S. transported the final contingent of troops from Kabul Airport, officially ending America’s twenty-year-war.

The future of Afghanistan under a medieval Islamist regime is dark. They entered Kabul flying their black banners blazoned with the Islamic Creed: La Ilaha Illa Allah Muhammad Rasool Allah. Their agenda for governing the country is: al-Islam Hua al-Hal, (Islam Is the Solution) However, as the Egyptian reformist Sayed al-Qimni remarked, “we have tried Islam for the last 1400 years, but it hasn’t solved our problems.”

I end my article with excerpts from the late British author, V. S. Naipaul’s “Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions among Converted Peoplei” describing the impact of the Utopian Islamic worldview on non-Arab Muslims.

“Islam is in its origins an Arab religion. Everyone not an Arab who is a Muslim is a convert. Islam is not simply a matter of conscience or private belief. It makes imperial demands. A convert’s worldview alters. His holy places are in Arab lands; his language is Arabic. His idea of history alters. He rejects his own; he becomes, whether he likes it or not, a part of the Arab story. The convert must turn away from everything that is his. The disturbance for societies is immense, and even after a thousand years can remain unresolved; the turning away must be done again and again. People develop fantasies about who and what they are; and in the Islam of the converted countries there is an element of neurosis and nihilism. These countries can be easily set on the boil.” P. xi

_________________________________________________________________

Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions among Converted People, is a non-fiction book by V. S. Naipaul published by Vintage Books in 1998. It was written as a sequel to Naipaul's Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey. 1998 Little, Brown and Company (UK), Random House (US)

Note: Afghanistan is a multi-ethnic tribal country: Pashtun form 42% Language: Indo-European; Tajik form 27% Persian as spoken by Tajik; Hazara 9% Shia Muslims of Mongolian descent; Uzbek 9% a Turkic ethnic group.

To watch a YouTube link to Dr. Al Qimni’s defence of his position: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4c3vhgqFOY

 
        
 

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The Decline of Western Civilization: As Seen in its Ethical Decadence

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Decline of Western Civilization: As Seen in its Ethical Decadence

Bassam Michael Madany

22 July 2021

The subject of the Decline of the West goes back to the early years of the twentieth century. For example, the German historian Oswald Spengler (1880 – 1936) predicted in his book, “The Decline of the West” (1918 & 1922) that about the year 2000, Western Civilization would enter a period of decline. His view impacted the works of Arnold Toynbee and Samuel P. Huntington.

In 1954, C. S. Lewis delivered his Inaugural Lecture from the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University, “De Descriptione Temporum” where he dealt with the Decline of the Westi. The following are excerpts: 

“The christening of Europe seemed to all our ancestors, whether they welcomed it themselves as Christians, or, like Gibbon, deplored it as humanistic unbelievers, a unique, irreversible event. But we have seen the opposite process. Of course, the un-christening of Europe in our time is not quite complete; neither was her christening in the Dark Ages. But roughly speaking we may say that whereas all history was for our ancestors divided into two periods, the pre-Christian and the Christian, and two only, for us it falls into three, the pre-Christian, the Christian, and what may reasonably be called the post-Christian. This surely must make a momentous difference. I am not here considering either the christening or the un-christening from a theological point of view. I am considering them simply as cultural changes. When I do that, it appears to me that the second change is even more radical than the first. Christians and Pagans had much more in common with each other, than with a post-Christian. The gap between those who worship different gods is not so wide as that between those who worship and those who do not.”

An acceleration of the Decline began in the early years of the Third Millennium. On 16 July 2021, The Wall Street Journal published an essay with the title: “Is Pope Francis Leading the Church to a Schism?” It began with this observation: “Disagreements over same-sex relationships and the role of women are heightening tensions among Catholics worldwide.” The following excerpts reveal the depth of the crisis.

“German Catholics have been meeting since last year to consider major changes to church life, including the blessing of same-sex relationships and the ordination of women. Cardinal Rainer Woelki of Cologne, leader of the conservative minority of German bishops, has warned that the process could lead to a schism and even ‘a German national church.’ His warnings have been echoed by cardinals and bishops in other countries. ‘Please join me in praying for the universal Church and the bishops in Germany, that they step back from this radical rupture,’ Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco said in May. Cardinal Philippe Ouédraogo of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, urged African Christians in an Easter sermon this year to ‘rebel against the imperialism of certain lobbies and associations which advocate and want to impose same-sex marriage, socio-sexual debauchery [and] divorce.ii

From across the Atlantic, Mireille Vallette, a Swiss human rights activist, wrote on her blog, “Le grand mensonge sur la loi Orban et l’idéologie LGBT” (The Big Lie about the Orban law and LGBT ideology) on 17 July 2021. Here are excerpts that reveal the gravity of the ethical revolution not only in Switzerland, but throughout the Western worldiii.

“The new doctrine closes any possibility of debate and would plunge society into innumerable delusions. Resistance movements are emerging, as took place at a conference where we got a clear idea about the slogan, ‘Satisfying the Desire of Children’, according to the LGBT worldview.

“Imagine such far-fetched questions and answers, that had never entered into the mind of citizens, which are promoted nowadays by radical lobbies and governmental institutions:

“Are you in favor of the propaganda intended to convince your children that their biological sex is irrelevant, and that they can choose from all kinds of identities: being lesbian, gay, queer, trans, non-binary, etc.?” 

“Do you agree an education that allows your little Cécile to call herself Arthur at school, and that school authorities must respect her new identity? 

Here are some answers that may utterly shock you: 


The media: "Yes, we are enthusiastically engaged in this just campaign almost every day." 

Schools: "Yes, we have already established a protocol to best meet the wishes of the children." 

The Canton of Vaud: "Of course, we have already hired a senior civil servant responsible for disseminating this new vision in places of education." 

The Political Parties: "Yes, of course ..." But not the UDC .” 

How about the parents? “We must absolutely avoid telling them what is being taught, as they could protest and be outraged! They must be left in the dark at all costs.” 

Another question: - "Are you proud to be a heterosexual?" 

The Media: “This question is a blasphemy! Only the other ‘Prides’ should celebrate. 

“To be straight is to be a partisan of patriarchy, no to this heresy!" 

“Every day we are assaulted by such claims that to affirm that only children born to a father and a mother is normal, discriminates against the LGBT people. They demand surrogacy for buying a child; also, that surgical gender reassignment should be generalized to everyone desiring it. If you do not agree, you are homophobic and condemned to social lynching. “The LGBTetcwant to be able to sexualize, even “homosexualize” students in complete freedom, with the consent of the state and under the pretext of eradicating the mechanisms of domination and oppression. Totalitarian society is booming.”

Ms. Mireille Vallette’s article brought to mind the last stanza of “The Recessional,” a poem by Rudyard Kipling published in connection with Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1897. “The poem went against the celebratory mood of the time, providing instead a reminder of the transient nature of British Imperial power. The poem expresses both pride and also an underlying sadness that the Empire might go the way of all previous empires.vi

For heathen heart that puts her trust
  In reeking tube and iron shard,
All valiant dust that builds on dust,
  And, guarding, calls not Thee to guard;
For frantic boast and foolish word—
Thy Mercy on Thy People, Lord!

_____________________________________________________________________

i De Descriptione Temporum, Inaugural Lecture from The Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University, 1954 By C. S. Lewis, From They Asked For A Paper London, Geoffrey Bles, 1962, PP. 9-25

iiIs Pope Francis Leading the Church to a Schism? - WSJ 

iiiLe grand mensonge sur la loi Orban et l’idéologie LGBT  - Boulevard de l'islamisme (tdg.ch)

ivUDC pursues conservative social and economic policies, including lower taxes and reduced spending, as well as the protection of Swiss agriculture and industry. The party has also opposed Swiss membership in international bodies such as the United Nations (which Switzerland joined in 2002) and the European Union. Although its support was originally concentrated in rural Switzerland, it now enjoys considerable success in urban areas. It has also been strong historically with German-speaking Swiss citizens. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Swiss-Peoples-Party
 
vLGBTetc. is the French equivalent of LGBT+

vi  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recessional_(poem)

Postscript Ms. Vallette referred in her article to “The Big Lie about the Orban Law and LGBT ideology” The following is a brief explanation of “The Orban Law”.
“Prime minister Viktor Orbán became the target of extreme outrage at home and throughout the EU after the Fidesz-dominated Parliament enacted anti-LGBTQ legislation that banned content that was ‘deemed to promote homosexuality and gender change’ in school sex-education programs and media aimed at those under age 18. The law passed by a 157–1 margin, with the bulk of the opposition parties boycotting the vote. At an EU summit about a week after the vote, Orbán stood firmly by the law despite being excoriated by other national leaders.”
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Viktor-Orban
 

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A New Era in Missions to Muslims

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A New Era in Missions to Muslims

July 2021

Bassam Michael Madany

The advent of the Internet and social media have given rise to an unprecedented spread of the Christian Gospel and the birth of new indigenous churches worldwide. In June 2021, I came across an Arabic-language YouTube channel operated by Haydar, an Iraqi convert who had “crossed-over” from Islam to Christianity. (The Arabic term for a convert from Islam to Christianity isAbir meaning “someone who has crossed over”.) Haydar is a convert of Shi’ite Muslim background who found his way to a European country where Christians helped him settle. He was given an Arabic Bible and received instructions in the Christian faith. After conversion and baptism, he is now reaching through his YouTube Channel, Arabic-speaking Muslims in their homelands and in Europe.

Having memorized passages of the Qur’an in the past, now he is memorizing portions of the Bible in the spread and defense of the Christian message and engaging in polemics with the teachings of the Qur’an, Hadith, and Sunna (the Life of Muhammad.)

I watched several of Haydar’s programs and was impressed by his ability to explain the faith. He is not the first convert from Islam to use the Internet as a tool in Christian Missions, but his work is available daily to anyone roaming the Internet. Other converts have weekly programs.i    

A major feature of these missionary endeavors has been the spontaneous nature of their origin. While Haydar had received instruction in the Christian faith by Western Christians in Europe, and Brother Rachid first learned about Christian beliefs from Christian radio broadcasts, their motif for launching their work, came from a conviction that their new faith was to be spread through the best available means. In their study of the Bible, they learned that proclaiming the Gospel leads people to faith in Jesus Christ. 

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.  Romans 1:16a

So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.  Romans 10:17

For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.    I Corinthians 1: 21 – 24

This new method in Missions to Muslims radically differs from the ways that had characterized Christian missions from the 18th to the middle of the 20th centuries as critiqued by the British missionary Roland Allenii,  who opposed the Western missionary methods that primarily used educational institutions in their work.
 
In my study and reflection on this subject, I benefited from an essay by Dr. Harry R. Boeriii in The Reformed Journal, of August 1953. Here are excerpts:

“A few weeks ago, two booklets gave me long, long thoughts. I held in one hand William Carey’s An Enquiry into The Obligations Of Christians To Use Means For the Conversion of The Heathen. It was published in 1792.  In the other hand, I held Christian Missions and The Judgment Of God, by David M. Paton. It was published in 1953.  Both are English, both were printed in London.  Between them lie the century and six decades which history will record as the massive effort of European and American Protestantism to proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth.  This period begins with the publication of Carey’s book, and it finds a decisive historical turning point in the expulsion of the missionaries from China.  To the analysis of this last significant and tragic event Mr. Paton’s book is devoted.  It will be good and sobering for us to place ourselves between the dawn and the sunset of modern missions and contemplate the lessons which this spectacle can teach us. 

“Carey pleaded for a world-wide preaching of the Gospel.  He was not indifferent to the need of the heathen with respect to education, health, and science, but there is no evidence in his book that he regarded the meeting of these needs as a ‘preaching of the Gospel.’ Rather he expected these needs to be met as a result of the preaching of the Gospel.

“The Christian West was not content with a program of proclamation.  It was deeply convinced of the superior quality of its civilization, it shared the sentiment that it was the “White Man’s Burden” to transmit its culture to the Orient and to Africa, and it showed little appreciation and often a great deal of contempt for the culture of the people it sought to Christianize… the heathen do not have the knowledge, the comforts, and skills that we enjoy.  As a consequence, they suffer.  Let us therefore lift them to a higher level of existence.  This current ran in and through and alongside the true motivation for missionary effort.  The result of this total motivation complex was a mission activity that was often as much intent on civilizing as on evangelizing.

“In China, particularly was it felt that the social structure must be so influenced as to create an atmosphere favorable to the Church’s growth not only, but also to make increasingly possible the introduction of the general benefits of Christianity and civilization enjoyed by the West.  Not all Protestant missions were agreed as to this, it is true.  The large China Inland Mission did not accept this point of view, and others expressed dissent from what was known as the Social Gospel.  Nevertheless, the movement was imposing and was characteristic to a marked degree of Protestant missions in China and in other areas at the turn of the century and later. The growth of the new emphasis did not mean that evangelization was ignored, but it did mean that a substantial proportion of the total Protestant missionary effort was given to social services and did not aim directly at conversion and at the building of the Church. 

“We are not here called to evaluate the result of the Social Gospel simply, but also the results of orthodox missionary effort which availed itself of education and hospitals and rural reconstruction and the like.  The answer seems to be, not that the sun rose higher, but rather that the shadows lengthened until at last the missionary sun disappeared behind the Communist horizon.”

As mentioned above, a similar analysis of the Modern Missionary Enterprise was undertaken by Roland Allen the Anglican missionary, who advocated planting churches that from their inception would be self-supporting, self-propagating, and self-governing.

Here are excerpts from his book, The Spontaneous Expansion Of The Church And The Causes That Hinder It:

“This then is what I mean by spontaneous expansion. I mean the expansion which follows the unexhorted and unorganized activity of individual members of the Church explaining to others the Gospel which they have found for themselves; I mean the expansion which follows the irresistible attraction of the Christian Church for men who see its ordered life, and are drawn to it by desire to discover the secret of a life which they instinctively desire to share; I mean also the expansion of the Church by the addition of new Churches… …the spontaneous expansion of the Church involved not merely the multiplication of Christians but the multiplication of churches

“I know not how it may appear to others, but to me this unexhorted, unorganized, spontaneous expansion has a charm far beyond that of our modern highly organized missions. I delight to think that a Christian travelling on his business, or fleeing from persecution, could preach Christ, and a Church spring up as the result of his preaching... The spontaneous expansion of the Church reduced to its elements is a quite simple thing. It asks for no elaborate organization, no large finances, no vast number of paid missionaries…. The organization of a little church on the apostolic model is also extremely simple …There is no need at the beginning to talk of preparing leaders to face great national issues. By the time the issues have become great and complex the leaders of the little churches of today will have learned their lesson, as they cannot possibly be taught it beforehand.”

Roland Allen directed his critique at the use of educational institutions in foreign missions in Education in The Native Church, published by the World Dominion Press in 1928. In Chapter 3, he wrote:

“Christian education is far more the education of Christians than education given by Christians. We often speak of the education given in missionary Institutions as Christian education because the teachers are Christians; but if education is education of the pupils, it is far more important for Christian education that the pupils should be Christians than that the teachers should be Christians. All intellectual enlightenment, from whatever source it is derived, received by a Christian becomes Christian enlightenment for him and in him; but intellectual enlightenment given by a Christian to a non-Christian is only the intellectual enlightenment of a non-Christian, and is not for him Christian enlightenment. Teaching received by a Christian from a non-Christian is made Christian in the Christian mind; teaching received by a non-Christian from a Christian is non-Christian in the non-Christian mind. Therefore, non-Christians cannot receive Christian education in a Christian school even if they are compulsorily taught much Christian doctrine and Gospel history, whilst Christians can receive Christian education in a non-Christian school, even if they were compulsorily taught the doctrines of Hinduism or Confucianism. Thus, the native Church could be educated in government schools.

“Christian education so established, whether in Church schools or in government schools, no Government could destroy, even if it desired to do so. If the Church established its own schools a Government might insist upon a standard of educational efficiency being maintained, but that would be all to the good. It might nationalize all schools; but then Christian education would be carried on in its own institutions. An education rooted and grounded in the life of the Church occupies an impregnable position. Nothing short of the destruction of the Church can destroy it…When all is said, the thing of real importance is that we should establish the native Churches, and it is that work which we have yet to begin. The mission field is dotted with communities of Christians which are not churches, and which are not native, dependent upon foreigners, in every viable way. Until these are native Churches there can be no education of native Churches.”

The assertions of Roland Allen may shock many Christians, namely that “Christian education is far more the education of Christians than education given by Christians” and “Teaching received by a Christian from a non-Christian is made Christian in the Christian mind; teaching received by a non-Christian from a Christian is non-Christian in the non-Christian mind.”

In our discussion of this subject, we must remember that the term “mind” has been used by writers dealing with cultural subjects. For example, Raphael Patai's The Arab Mind,iv is an anthropological-sociological work on how the Arabs think, look at the world and seek to organize their thoughts. Several authors have used “mind” in their works, such as the following:

The Christian Mind, by Harry Blamires.  S.P.C.K., London, 1966
The Secularist Heresy: The Erosion of The Gospel in The Twentieth Century, by Harry Blamires. Servant Books, Ann Arbor, MI, 1980
Recovering the Christian Mind: Meeting the Challenge of Secularism, by Harry Blamires. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 1988
Creeds, Councils & Christ, by Gerald Bray. InterVarsity Press, 1984

The Bible refers to "mind" on several occasions. For example, the summary of the moral law is mentioned in all the synoptic gospels. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." (Matt. 22:37)   "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." (Mark 12: 30) These words are repeated in Luke 10: 27, with a slight difference in order.

The Word of God informs us about the devastating effects of the Fall on the human mind. In Romans 1:28 we read: "Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done."

The closest approximation to the phrase "Christian Mind," occurs in two passages. In First Cor. 2: 16: "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?  But we have the mind of Christ."   And in Philippians 2:5 "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus." (AV) It is important to remember that development of a Christian mind does not entail a journey into one's own subjective world. Rather, it is a life-long exercise in appropriating and assimilating a Christian mind that is informed by these basic biblical motifs of Creation, the Fall, Redemption, and Consummation.  

In God’s wonderful providence, the New Era in Missions, especially in Missions to Muslims, was ushered in by a renaissance of Indigenous missions as advocated in the past by William Carey, David Paton, Harry Boer, and Roland Allen.

I find no better way to end the article than these verses from William Cowper’s Hymn:

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sovereign will.

His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flow’r.

Amen

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iBrother Rachid is a Moroccan former Muslim and convert to Christianity whose father is an Imam. He is a Christian apologist and critic of Islam and hosts a weekly live call-in show on Al Hayat TV where he compares Islam and Christianity. brother rachid on karma tv - Bing video

iiMissionary Methods: St Paul’s or Ours? World Dominion Press, London, 1953, 1912
The Spontaneous Expansion of The Church: And the causes which hinder it. World Dominion Press, 1956, 1927

iiiDr. Harry Boer (1913 -1999) graduated from Calvin College in 1938 and from Calvin Seminary. In 1942, during WWII, he served as chaplain in the U. S. Marine Corps in the Pacific region.  After the war, he continued his theological studies at the Free University of Amsterdam. His doctoral dissertation was later published by Eerdmans under the title of “Pentecost and Missions.” The dissertation may be summarized in these words: “Whereas the Lord Jesus Christ gave the Great Commission in the Imperative Mood, in the life of the early church it functioned in the Indicative Mood. Dr. Harry Boer was a missionary of the Christian Reformed Church in North America. He served in Nigeria as professor and director of the Theological College of Northern Nigeria.

ivThe Arab Mind is a cultural psychology book by Hungarian-born, Jewish cultural anthropologist and Orientalist Raphael Patai, who also wrote The Jewish Mind. The book advocates a tribal-group-survival explanation for the driving factors behind Arab culture. It was first published in 1973, and later revised in 1983. A 2007 reprint was further "updated with new demographic information about the Arab world".

Posted in Articles

“The Veiled Genocide” Remains Unpublished in English

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

3 June 2021


Bassam Michael Madany


“On 22 May 2018, I published an article on this website about the Slave Trade in East Africa. It was based on “The Veiled Genocide” a book by the Senegalese scholar Tidiane N’Diaye.


Revisiting “The Veiled Genocide” - Middle East Resources (www.unashamedofthegospel.org)


To date, the book has not been translated into English from the French edition! There is a great interest in the subject, as I gather from the reports of Stat Counter, that provide me with the number of visitors to my website, and the articles they had read.


On 23 May 2018, Tidiane N’Diaye gave a passionate three-minute talk about his book on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxc5ENT8ajg


Here is what he said:

“The trans-Sahelian and Eastern slave trade, lasted more than 13 centuries, without interruption. The Arabs raided the Black Continent, a chapter in African history that is still taboo, the slavery of black populations by the Arab world. There is no degree of horror, nor a monopoly of suffering or cruelty. But we can safely say that the Trans-Sahelian and Eastern Slave Trade was much more devastating for the African populations, than the Transatlantic Slave Trade. It is because the generalized castration that was done on the African slaves, annihilated any possibility of them leaving any descendants. This explains why today there is hardly an African presence in the Arab world. It seems that most Muslim intellectuals hesitate to approach this part of our history, a painful page that not only Arab-Muslim scholars should have opened, but African intellectuals also hesitate to deal with it. By keeping silent about a crime, it risks repeating itself.” 


In an interview on Africa Global News online journal, dated 19 June 2019, Tidiane N’Diaye referred among other matters, to the absence of an English edition of his book.


https://africaglobalnews.com/the-arab-muslim-slave-trade/


The Interviewer began, with this introduction:


“Tidiane N’Diaye is a Franco-Senegalese anthropologist, economist, and writer. He is the author of a number of publications on the history of Black Africa and the African diaspora, as well as numerous economic studies of the Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques on the French overseas departments (Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique). N’Diaye’s essays on the Arab slave trade (Le génocide voilé “the veiled genocide”, Étude de la traite négrière arabo-musulmane “study of the Arab-Muslim negro slave trade”) were nominated for the Prix Renaudot in 2008.”


Tidiane N’Diaye explained “You know, despite the translation of many of my books into several languages, it seems that American publishers have little interest in what happens in the Francophone world. While ‘The Veiled Genocide’ on the Arab-Muslim slave, published by Gallimard as most of my works, although widely commented upon by newspapers, magazines and even on American English sites, no publisher of USA has acquired the rights for its translation and distribution in this country.


“Many believe that the oppressors of blacks, (i.e., Christians) have always been white. Not only is it wrong regarding the history of Black People, but especially the role played by the Muslim Arabs during the Islamization of Africa. I sincerely wish that one day, an American publisher would translate this book so that our brothers African Americans are actually aware of this reality.”


I have listened to Professor Tidiane N’Diaye’s presentations on YouTube several times,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxc5ENT8ajg I am impressed by his passion and sincerity. His goal has always been to give a truthful narrative of one of the most shocking events in African history. For me personally, to publish this information is a sacred duty. Having grown up in the Levant as an Eastern Christian, whose ancestors lived as Dhimmis under Islamic colonialism for centuries, I am thankful to see the publication of the “Veiled Genocide.” The humiliations and deprivations inflicted on my forefathers, pale into insignificance when compared with the sufferings of Black Africans! The least I can do for the memory of East African and Trans-Saharan captives, is to share this information, gleaned from a French book written by a trustworthy, honorable, and brave African scholar! 

Posted in Articles

The Myth of the Andalusian Paradisei

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Myth of the Andalusian Paradisei

Bassam Michael Madany

3 May 2021

Reading “The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise” shows how certain Western authors have  offered varnished accounts of the history of Islam and its Futuhat (Conquests.) Their narratives are unsupported by the research of other Western writers, as well as by the work of reformist Arab/Muslim scholars. This is specially the case, in the study of the seven-hundred-year history of Islam in Spain.

Author Darío Fernández-Morera, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature and Hispanic Studies at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, begins each chapter of his book, with excerpts from the works of Western authors who depict the magnanimity and tolerance of the Arab conquerors of Al-Andalus (Spain.) In contrast, they describe Western European lands as suffering from “unceasing warfare in which superstition passed for religion, and the flame of knowledge sputtered weakly.ii

Dr. Fernández-Morera responds to such claims with these words:

“This book aims to demystify Islamic Spain by questioning the widespread belief that it was a wonderful place of tolerance and convivencia of three cultures under the benevolent supervision of enlightened Muslim rulers. As the epigraphs throughout this book illustrate, the nineteenth-century romantic vision of Islamic Spain has morphed into today’s ‘mainstream’ academic and popular writings that celebrate ‘Al-Andalus’ for its ‘multiculturalism,’ ‘unity of Muslims, Christians, and Jews,’ ‘diversity,’ and ‘pluralism,’ regardless of how close such emphasis is to the facts.”                                       P. 1

While several Western writers on the history of Al-Andalus have praised the tolerance of the Muslim conquerors, others have offered a different view. For example, in a BBC “Story of Andalus: Muslim Spain (711-1492,) two different narratives of that history are related. Here are some pertinent excerpts:

“The traditional story is that in the year 711, an oppressed Christian chief, Julian, went to Musa ibn Nusair, the governor of North Africa, with a plea for help against the tyrannical Visigoth ruler of Spain, Roderick. Musa responded by sending the young general Tariq bin Ziyad with an army of 7000 troops. The name Gibraltar is derived from Jabal At-Tariq which is Arabic for 'Rock of Tariq' named after the place where the Muslim army landed. The story of the appeal for help is not universally accepted. There is no doubt that Tariq invaded Spain, but the reason for it may have more to do with the Muslim drive to enlarge their territory. The heartland of Muslim rule was Southern Spain or Andulusia. The name Andalusia comes from the term Al-Andalus used by the Arabs, derived from the Vandals in the region. 

“Islamic Spain is sometimes described as a 'golden age' of religious and ethnic tolerance and interfaith harmony between Muslims, Christians, and Jews. Some historians believe this idea of a golden age is false and might lead modern readers to believe, wrongly, that Muslim Spain was tolerant by the standards of 21st century Britain. 

“Bernard Lewis in his “The Jews of Islam, 1984,” wrote that the status of non-Muslims in Islamic Spain was a sort of second-class citizenship, but he went on to say, a recognized status, albeit one of inferiority to the dominant group. Jews and Christians did retain some freedom under Muslim rule, providing they obeyed certain rules.

“Bat Ye’or states in her book, ‘Islam and Dhimmitude, 2002,’ that Muslim rulers didn't give their non-Muslim subjects equal status; they definitely were at the bottom of society that was sharply divided along ethnic and religious lines, with the Arab tribes at the top of the hierarchy, followed by the Berbers who were never recognized as equals, despite their Islamization; lower in the scale came the converts, and at the very bottom, the Dhimmi Christians and Jews.   

The maturing of the Internet and its derivatives, YouTube, websites, and satellite TV have provided channels of communications for reformist Arab scholars to delve into forbidden subjects. Nowadays, the old taboos are gone! As the German-Egyptian scholar Hamed Abdel-Samad put it, ‘Muslims are out of the Box.’ 

Here are translated excerpts from “Box of Islam #139,” of an interview Abdel-Samad conducted with the Moroccan scholar Ahmad ‘Aseed, about the Arab/Islamic “Conquest of Al-Andalus:” iii

“The conquest was a decision made by the Arabs (Umayyads) under the leadership of Musa Ibn-Nusair who used Tariq Ibn-Ziyad to lead the invasion. The Arabs were afraid of the twelve- kilometer strait that separated North Africa from Spain. Thus, they used the Amazigh men for the invasion. In fact, the Amazigh were remarkably familiar with the southern part of the peninsula, and had been frequently there, not as conquerors but as settlers. There was a state of co-existence between the Amazigh and the Byzantines prior to the Arab conquest of North Africa. It took eight Arab military expeditions to finally subdue the Amazigh in North Africa. The war with the Amazigh weakened the Umayyad armies to such an extent that it contributed to their ultimate defeat by the Abbasids in 750 A.D.

“The purpose for the invasion of Spain was to obtain booty and Gothic slave women for the Umayyads in Syria. Both Musa Ibn-Nusair and Tariq Ibn-Ziyad were summoned by the caliph to Damascus. Musa arrived with a cavalcade of soldiers and spoils. He entered Damascus and brought the booty, which provided him and Tariq, an unprecedented popularity amongst the people of Damascus. The Caliph Sulayman demanded that Musa deliver up all his spoils. When Musa complained, Sulayman stripped him of his rank and confiscated all the booty. Both conquerors ended their lives in abject poverty!”

The preceding information gathered from Western and Arab sources, support the thesis of Dr. Darío Fernández-Morera’s book, that the Arab/Islamic presence in Spain did not bring about an Andalusian Paradise. In fact, it was a colonialism similar to all other regions conquered by Islam, since the seventh century. The difference is that unlike what took place in the Middle East, in North Africa, and in large areas in Asia, where Islamic colonialism became permanent, the Spanish Reconquista succeeded by liberating the original inhabitants from their masters and ended their mythical “Paradise.”

_____________________________________________________________________

 “The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise Muslims, Christians, and Jews under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain” by Darío  Fernández-Morera.” Wilmington, Del.: ISI Books, 2016. 376 pp. $29.95.

ii On the intellectual level, Islam played an important role in the development of Western European civilization by passing on both the philosophy of Aristotle and its own scientific, technological, and philosophical tradition.… Religious tolerance remained a part of Islamic law, although its application varied with social, political, and economic circumstances. —Bert F. Breiner and Christian W. Troll, “Christianity and Islam,” in The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, ed. John L. Esposito (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009)

iii  https://tinyurl.com/8a5ht4f9h Streamed on May 21, 2018

Posted in Articles

Orientalism Beyond Edward Said

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Orientalism Beyond Edward Said

Bassam Michael Madany

The NEW YORKER magazine published in the April 26 & May 3, 2021 Issue, an article by Pankaj Mishra under the title of “The Reorientations of Edward Said.” It is a review of Timothy Brennan’s biography of Edward Said. https://www.newyorker.com

Here are excerpts from the review: 

“Multiple and clashing selves were Said’s inheritance from the moment of his birth, in 1935, in West Jerusalem … Sent as a teen-ager to an American boarding school, Said found the experience ‘shattering and disorienting.’  In ‘Orientalism,’ published two decades into a conventional academic career, Said unexpectedly described himself as an ‘Oriental subject’ and implicated almost the entire Western canon, from Dante to Marx, in the systematic degradation of the Orient.” It becomes quite evident that Edward Said (pronounced Sa’eed) was prone of making generalized and sweeping statements about Western views of the Arabs and Islam.

For example:

“His anger seems to have long simmered as he witnessed ‘the web of racism, cultural stereotypes, political imperialism, dehumanizing ideology holding in the Arab or the Muslim. In a conversation filmed for Britain’s Channel 4, Said claimed that many of his cultural heroes, such as Isaiah Berlin and Reinhold Niebuhr, were prejudiced against Arabs.”

“In ‘Orientalism,’ Said’s uncooperative demon at last burst into view. He boldly defined himself as the ‘product of the historical process’ of colonialism ‘whose domination has been so powerful a factor in the life of all Orientals. He insisted that Orientalist thinking justified colonial rule not after the fact but ‘in advance,’ positing an unbroken Western tendency to represent Orientals as inferior, running from ancient Greece through Renaissance Italy to the New York Times.”

It is utterly strange that Edward Said, a Levantine Christian, failed to recognize that Western Imperialism with all its faults, was a passing episode in history, and quite different from Arab/Islamic colonialism which in many parts of the world, was total and irreversible. I am not defending Western Imperialism, I experienced it during my formative years in the Levant, when the French ruled Syria and Lebanon for 25 years. 

During his last days, Edward Said was battling Leukemia; he passed away on 25 September 2003.  Most likely, he was unaware of the rise of what I would like to call “Oriental” experts on the history of the Arab/Islamic civilization; their analyses of the subject were more severe and to the point, than those of the Western Orientalists that Edward Said had so harshly castigated.

Here is a list of some Arab scholars, whose works were published in French or in Arabic. These are the New Orientalists, born in an Arab/Muslim context, who knew the basic Islamic authoritative texts, and had studied both in their homelands and in the West. I salute them, and trust that as you read their offerings, you will appreciate their valuable contributions.

Ahmed Saad Zayed, is an Egyptian scholar who champions rational objective thought. His writings include a critique of traditional Islamic worldview. Dr. Zayed organizes meetings in Cairo, Egypt where he lectures on the urgent need for the modernization and reform of Arab/Islamic civilization.i 

Hamed Abdel-Samad is a German-Egyptian scholar whose contributions to the fields covered by traditional Orientalism are numerous and available in Arabic, German, English, and several other languages.ii  Muhammad Al-Musayeh is a Moroccan expert on the manuscripts of the Qur’an, interviewed by Hamed Abdel-Samad. 

Héla Ouardi, a Tunisian Professor of French Literature and Civilization at the University of Tunis, and Associate Researcher at the CNRS Laboratory for Monographic Studies. iii

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i  الحضارة العربية الاسلامية - تأويلات النص - الذروة والمآل- أ. احمد سعد زايد - YouTube
https://www.patreon.com/ahmedzayed
https://www.facebook.com/amedsaadzayed
Ahmed Zayed - YouTube 
واقع جزية المسيحيين واليهود في العصر العثماني مع أحمد سعد زايد - YouTube

ii  Hamed Abdel-Samad - YouTube
Hamed Abdel-Samad: Enlightenment Requires Clash With Heritage | MEMRI
Hamed Abdelsamad - Violence in Surat Al-Tawbah - YouTube
A Discussion of Islamophobia: Dangerous & misleading. Narration is in English.
Hamed Abdel Samad عربي اسلامرفوبيا - Bing video
For more information click on the following: Videos of Hamed Abdel Samad On YouTube
Interview with Muhammad Al-Musayeh by Hamed Abdel-Samad
 .... صندوق الإسلام 160: تحليل كتاب مخطوطات القرآن للأستاذ محمد المسيح - YouTube

Hela Ouardi gives a keynote address at the International Qur’anic Studies Association's International Qur'an Conference 2019 hosted by the Tangier Global Forum at the University of New England’s Tangier Campus in Morocco.

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iii Hela Ouardi - Quatre siècles de lecture :Les Orientalistes et le Coran. Essai de périodisation. - YouTube
Séance inaugurale - Conférence "Islam au XXIe siècle" du 26 février 2019 à l'UNESCO - YouTube
Réécrire l'histoire de l'islam | Hela Ouardi |TEDx https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYfvUR-554ACarthage - YouTube
 

Posted in Articles

An Update on the Suez Canal Accident

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

5 April 2021

On Tuesday, the 23rd of March 2021, the Japanese-owned Ever Given giant container ship, got stranded sideways in the Suez Canal. That caused a traffic jam of cargo ships waiting to make it through, on both sides of the waterway. The Suez Canal Authority did it utmost to refloat the ship. On Monday, the 29th of March, the 3,700-ton Rotterdam-based Alp Guard and nine other tugboats, took up positions around the hull of the ship.

Engineers worked hard throughout the day and managed to dislodge the Ever Given, thanks to the high tide making their job easier. Tugboats helped pull the vessel out from the side of the canal where it had been stuck, before straightening its heading. Then it was towed to anchor at the Great Bitter Lake in the Canal, to allow an inspection of its seaworthiness.

What a happy ending to a drama that had kept the world on edge for one long week! The canal usually allows 50 cargo ships to pass daily between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, providing a vital trade corridor between Europe and Asia. Had the blockage dragged on, shippers would have been forced to reroute their ships around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa, adding about two weeks and extra fuel costs to journeys.

Posted in Articles

The Suez Canal: Its History and Importance for World Trade

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Suez Canal: Its History and Importance for World Trade

Bassam Michael Madany

29 March 2021

On Tuesday, the 23rd of March 2021, the Japanese-owned Ever Given cargo ship, got stranded sideways in the Suez Canal. That caused a traffic jam of cargo ships waiting to make it through, on both sides of the waterway. The Suez Canal Authority did it utmost to refloat the giant container ship. On Monday, the 29th of March, its herculean efforts were successful. The container ship that had blocked the Canal for six days, has been freed and was moving north.

Engineers worked hard throughout Monday and managed to dislodge the Ever Given, thanks to the high tide making their job easier. Tugboats helped pull the vessel out from the side of the canal where it had been stuck, before straightening its heading. It will be towed to anchor at the Great Bitter Lake in the Canal, to allow an inspection of its seaworthiness. What a happy ending to a drama that had kept the world on edge for almost one long week! 

The following is the story of the Suez Canal that I have gleaned from several online sources.    

“The Suez Canal is a waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean via the Red Sea. It enables a direct route for shipping between Europe and Asia,  allowing for passage from the North Atlantic to the Indian Ocean without having to go around Africa. The Canal stretches 120 miles (192 kilometers) from Port Said on the Mediterranean to the city of Suez on the northern shores of the Gulf of Suez

“Early in the 19th century, the Ottomans appointed Muhammad Ali Pasha, as Governor of Egypt. His son, Ibrahim Pasha was tasked with suppressing the Wahhabi Revolt in Arabia that was interfering with the yearly Pilgrimage to Mecca. His campaign and subsequent activities in the Ottoman Empire, gave rise to a de facto dynasty of Muhammad Ali’s descendants.

“By the 1850s, Khedive Said Pasha (khedive is the title Ottomans gave to Egypt’s governors) granted French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps permission to construct a canal. It was accomplished by the Suez Canal Company and was given a 99-year lease over the waterway and surrounding. area. In the 1830s, a work of French explorer and engineer Linant de Bellefonds had performed a survey of the Isthmus of Suez which confirmed that the Mediterranean and Red seas were at the same level of altitude. Thus, making construction of a canal significantly easier.

“Lesseps created the International Commission for the Piercing of the Isthmus of Suez. The commission was made up of 13 experts, including Alois Negrelli, a leading civil engineer. Negrelli built upon the work of Bellefonds and his original survey of the region. Construction began, at Port Said  in early 1859. The work took 10 years, and an estimated 1.5 million people worked on the project. By that time, Egypt was effectually  ruled by Britain and France. Khedive Ismail Pasha formally opened the Suez Canal on 17 November 1869.

“The Canal had a profound impact on world trade. In 1888, the Convention of Constantinople decreed that the Suez Canal would operate as a neutral zone, under the protection of the British, who had by then assumed control of the surrounding region, including Egypt and the Sudan. The Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 reaffirmed Britain’s control over the canal.

“In the aftermath of the Second World War, following years of negotiation, the British withdrew their troops from the Suez Canal in 1956, handing control over to the Egyptian government, under President Gamal Abdel Nasser. Nasser nationalized the canal in July 1956. As a result of that action, Britain, France, and Israel attacked the Canal area leading to the Suez Crisis of October 1956. Eventually, a United Nations peacekeeping force began to protect the canal and ensure access to all nations.

“In mid-May 1967, President Nasser ordered the U.N. peacekeeping forces out of the Sinai Peninsula. It was a great gamble since the Egyptian Army had already been weakened due to its involvement in the 1956 Civil War in Yemen. Early on Monday morning, the 6th of June, Israeli Air Force had raided all the Egyptian airports, destroying most of the Egyptian Air Force. Israel followed by launching simultaneous attacks on the Egyptians in the Sinai, on the Jordanians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and on the Syrians in the Golan Heights. By Saturday, the war was over, inflicting on the three Arab armies a crushing defeat. 

“As a result, the Israeli Forces stood at the east of the Suez Canal, while the Egyptian Forces controlled the western part. Navigation through the Canal stopped. At the Arab League conference held in Khartoum, Sudan on 29 August, a decision was reached and became famous for "The Three No's," No peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with Israel. 

“It took eight years, the War of Attrition, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, plus an intensive dredging operation, before the Suez Canal was opened on 5 June 1975.  During those years, the canal became the home ‘to the Yellow Fleet: a convoy of merchant ships trapped by the closing of the canal in 1967.They remained at anchor, blown over with desert sand until June 1975, when only two ships were able to leave under their own power.  An average of 50 ships navigate the canal daily, carrying more than 300 million tons of goods per year. In 2014, the Egyptian government widened sections of the Canal from 61 meters (200 ft)  to 312 meters (1023 ft.) As a result, the canal could accommodate ships to pass both directions simultaneously.”

A Historic Celebration 1871

Khedive Ismail Pasha commissioned Giuseppe Verdi in 1869, to write an opera to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal. Aida tells the story of forbidden love between the Egyptian leader Radames and the beautiful Nubian princess Aida. The plot is based on a true story found in Papyrus and re-written by French Egyptologist, Auguste Mariette. The performance took place at the Khedive Opera House in 1871.

A Tragic Finale

On the morning of 28 October 1971, the Khedivial Royal Opera House was on fire. The 100-year-old, rococo-style architectural gem in downtown Cairo burned to ashes. Ballet costumes, theater sets, musical instruments and velvet curtains were all gone.

A Joyous Rebirth: The Cairo Opera House

The Cairo Opera House was inaugurated on 10 October 1988. It stands on the Gezira Island surrounded by other cultural centers: 

Verdi: Aïda - San Francisco Opera (starring Luciano Pavarotti) 
How the (closure of the) Suez Canal changed the world | The Gamming
 

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The Primacy of Truth in the Christian Tradition

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Primacy of Truth in the Christian Tradition

Bassam Michael Madany

12 March 2021

 

Truth in Christianity is of utmost importance. For example, the writings of the Apostle John are replete with references to truth. In the Gospel according to John, Jesus Christ said “to the Jews who had believed him, If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (8:31,32)

In his Letters, John drew attention to the fact that truth is manifested in the daily walk of the Christian. He began his Second Letter with these words: 

The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth, because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever. 

Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son, in truth and love. I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father. And now I ask you, dear lady, not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning. And this is love that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.  

St John’s emphasized the primacy of truth, in his Third Letter:

The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth. Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. 

The importance of maintaining and defending the truth was observed throughout the history of the Church. In AD 325, the First Ecumenical Council at Nicea, affirmed the deity of Jesus Christ, under the leadership of Athanasius. The Creed was further refined at the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451.

For Christians, the Bible and the Ecumenical Creeds are the standards of truth and orthodoxy. Any deviation from these authoritative documents is harmful to the essence of the Christian faith. Thus, Christians must be alarmed by the statements of Pope Francis during his recent visits to the Gulf States and Iraq, when he spoke about the “commonalities” between Christianity and Islam. 

It is noteworthy that prior to the pontificate of Pope Francis, the Roman Catholic Church had manifested a serious misunderstanding of Islam in Article 841 of “The Catechism of the Catholic Church,” where we find these puzzling words:

“The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."

Setting aside the obvious doctrinal differences between Christianity and Islam, the Catechism gives credence to the myth of the “Three Abrahamic Religions.” The implication is that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, possess a common spiritual ancestor, namely Abraham. 

In fact, there are no historical or archeological grounds for asserting, as Muslims do, that Abraham had gone to Mecca with Ishmael, or that the latter is the father of the Arabs. The Biblical account tells of the journeys of Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees, in southern Mesopotamia, to the land of Haran (in present-day Syria), continuing his journey southward to Hebron, Palestine. After Abraham sent away Hagar and her young son Ishmael, we read  in Genesis 21, that “God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.” (ESV) The wilderness of Paran is in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt; the area that became the home of Ishmael’s descendants.

“The Three Abrahamic Religions” is a term of recent origin. Before the term became popular, the more exact designation was  the “Three Theistic Religions;” which set Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, apart from the Asiatic faiths, which were either polytheistic, or pantheistic. In Arabic, Muslims speak of the “Three heavenly religions,” or, “The Custodians of the Revealed Books.”

 I am indebted to the works of the German-Egyptian political scientist, Hamed Abdel-Samad, and his colleague, Professor Muhammad al-Musayeh, a Moroccan expert on Islamic History and the early  manuscripts of the Qur’an, for their research in the history of western Arabia. They found that there is no mention of the existence of Mecca, prior to the Third Century AD. Furthermore, there were in the Arabian Peninsula, several Kaabas, almost one for every tribe. The Mecca that existed in Muhammad’s days, was not there in Abraham’s time. Their opinion is that the Prophet Muhammad invented the account that Abraham, accompanied by Hagar and Ishmael, came to Mecca, and built the Kaaba. 

Now, even if Mecca had existed 1800 years BC, Abraham, an elderly man, could not have made the arduous journey of 1200 kilometers, from Hebron to Mecca, with Hagar and Ishmael, her young son. The Genesis narrative makes sense, since a move of 150 km. from Hebron to Paran, where Hagar and her son settled, was both possible and practical. 

While the concept of the “Three Abrahamic Religions” has found currency in the West, both in Academia, and in an official document of the Roman Catholic Church, it remains a myth. Two Arab scholars, have proven their case, and their findings should not be ignored! In fact, no one benefits from perpetuating a religious myth! 

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Explaining Martin Luther to an Arab Audience

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Explaining Martin Luther to an Arab Audience

Bassam Michael Madany

10 February 2021

Introduction

The Arab quest for cultural renewal dates from the early 19th century about the time Napoleon made his expedition into Egypt to interdict Britain’s activities in the eastern Mediterranean. Napoleon was accompanied by scientists like Champollion who deciphered the Hieroglyphics. He brought with him the printing press, the first in the Arab world.

The French presence in Egypt was brief, but it gave impetus to the work of three early reformers: Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, Muhammad Abduh, and  Rashid Rida. They called for the adoption of a new hermeneutic of the Qur’an that would allow for allegorical interpretations of the sacred text. Their work was facilitated by Muhammad Ali Pasha and his successors who were appointed by the Ottomans to govern Egypt. Efforts for revival and modernization of Islam in Egypt and the Arab world, have continued during the last two centuries but have often been thwarted by military dictatorships in Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and Algeria.

On 22 October 2019, the German-Egyptian writer Hamed Abdel-Samad, posted on his website an article entitled, “The speech of Martin Luther That Changed History”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-YXeIjyfpk&t=295s
خطاب مارتن لوثر أمام البابا الذي غيّر التاريخ
 

Abdel-Samad began his article by referring to the several factors that led to the success of Luther’s Reformation without which, it would have failed. According to Abdel-Samad:

“Luther’s success in launching the Reformation was due to several factors that had been at work in Germany for centuries. One was the existence of a Civil Society  independent of the Church and of the Emperor. As an example, note what took place at Bamberg in Upper Franconia, near the river Main. The population wanted to build a Rathaus (Town Hall) for their meetings, but the Bishop who owned most of the land  refused to cooperate. So, they went ahead anyway and created a suitable place by digging into the river and built their Rathaus!

“Another factor was the existence of universities that produced an educated middle-class. A fact that dispels the notion of the existence of the Dark Ages. While those institutions were founded by the Church to teach theology, they soon added faculties that offered several disciplines in the arts and the sciences. As a result, an educated Middle Class came into existence in Germany.

“Martin Luther was a professor at the University of Wittenberg in Germany. In 1517, he drew up the 95 theses condemning the Catholic Church for its corrupt practice of selling ‘indulgences,’ or forgiveness of sins. In 1521, Pope Leo X excommunicated him, he was called to appear before Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms to defend his beliefs. Refusing to recant, Luther was declared a heretic. He burned publicly the Pope’s document of excommunication. He gave a lengthy speech about his position and ended by saying, ‘If, I am not convinced by proof from Holy Scripture, or by cogent reasons, I neither can nor retract anything; for it cannot be either safe or honest for a Christian to speak against his conscience. Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise; God help me! Amen.’ “Luther’s Reformation taught that a believer did not need the priest’s mediation; he could go directly to God supported by his faith in Jesus Christ.”i

As Hamed Abdel-Samad told the story of Martin Luther’s speech and its effects, he often referred to the utterly different conditions that prevailed in the Muslim world compared to Luther’s. Most importantly, no Civil Society came into existence in Islam. It is true that during the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad, a group of intellectuals known as the Mutazilites, attempted to use reason in the interpretation of the sacred texts. Had they succeeded, that might have led to the rise of an educated following or a Middle Class. Unfortunately, the powerful opposition by Imam Al-Ghazzali (d.111) to the Mutazilites closed “the Door of Ijtihad” (reasoning) for the next 1000 years! 

The most important factor for the success of Luther’s Reformation was the support of the Bible for his movement. Luther used specific texts of Holy Scripture to prove that the  teachings of the Roman Catholic Church about the forgiveness of sins were wrong. The New Testament (known in Arabic as Injeel) teaches that forgiveness takes place by faith in Jesus Christ’s death on the Cross and His resurrection on the third day. (First  Corinthians 15: 1 – 4) Another passage Luther used was Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans 8, where the apostle summed the Gospel with these words:                                                                                                                                   

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?  He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 31-33. 35-39

A would-be Muslim reformer cannot rely on the authoritative texts of his faith, the Qur’an, Hadith, and Sirat (Life of Muhammad) in support of his efforts to reform the faith. For example, Surah 9 al-Tawbah (Repentance) Ayah 5 states:

When the Sacred Months have passed, kill the polytheists wherever you find them. And capture them, and besiege them, and lie in wait for them at every ambush. But if they repent, and perform the prayers, and pay the alms, then let them go their way. God is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.

The ninth chapter of the Quran that contains 129 verses is one of the last Medinan surahs. In other words, it abrogates those Surahs that had “descended” on Muhammad in Mecca when his message was conciliatory (610 – 622.) However, when he migrated to Medina in 622, and gained both political and religious powers, the tone of the revelations changed.ii

Early during the twenty-first century, several Arab intellectuals called on Muslims to adopt new hermeneutics of the Qur’an. Here are excerpts from an article posted on the online journal, Al-Awan on 3 February 2018, calling for radical interpretation of the Qur’an:

“What’s Needed: Radical Reforms, Not a Revision of Public Discourse”

“A Call to Add Marginal Notes to Passages in the Qur’an”

(Al-Islahat al-Jidhriyyat, La Tajdid al-Khitab al-Dini) 

الإصلاحات الجذريّة لا تجديد الخطاب الديني.. - جمعية الأوان (alawan.org)


“The Qur’an declares that, the only acceptable religion to Allah is Islam (3:19) This Ayah implies that Islam is the most complete and worthy faith to follow. Islamists, most Muslims, even so-called ‘Moderates,’ regard all other religions as false.

“Can we claim then that Islam is a tolerant religion or, are its detractors right, when they assert that Islam, is the most intolerant faith? When Muslim radicals commit crimes against humanity, the conclusion is obvious: Islam is a violent and belligerent religion. 

“On the other hand, when we study the early chapters of the Qur’an, we encounter Ayas that breathe a tolerant faith, with emphasis on freedom and mercy toward all human beings. 

Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things. 2:256

O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things).49:13

“Don’t these texts breathe a spirit of love and a view of a humanity living in harmony; where all people enjoy equal status; created to get acquainted with one another, and becoming friends, without reservation or preconditions, and regardless of differences in beliefs?

“However, it’s both painful and unfortunate when we encounter in the Medinan Surahs (622-630) Ayas that contradict the view of a peaceful Islam! Actually, the Qur’an reveals two ‘faces’ of Islam: an Islam of love, mercy, and tolerance as when the Prophet was at peace with the Jews. On the other hand, there is an Islam of murder and intolerance. As one Hadith recounts Muhammad as saying, I’ve come to slaughter; another Hadith, where he describes himself as laughing while killing; and that Jihad is the apex of faith!

“There are around 500 Ayas in the Qur’an calling for violence and intolerance vis-à-vis  non-Muslims; while those calling for tolerance, have been marginalized in the religious discourse. In contrast, the violent Ayas are clear, detailed, and form an essential part of the regular Khutbahs (sermons) of the Friday services at the mosques!

“We urgently need radical reforms. To attain this goal, marginal notes must be added to the Mus’haf (the printed copy of the Qur’an) where combative and intolerant Ayas, are explained, and declared as no longer normative.

“As an example, we may refer to The First Chapter of the Quran, Al-Fatihah that constitutes the text for the five-daily prayers. The seventh Ayah, as historically expounded by Muslim exegetes, refers to the Jews, as being under the wrath of Allah; and to the Christians, as those who had gone astray. This Ayah requires a complete re-interpretation. 

“Arab intellectuals must learn from the Europeans who made radical reforms in their culture, when they discovered that the Bible taught a separation, or a distinction between the role of the Church and that of the State; each having its own sphere of authority. The distinction between religion and governance, secured the integrity of religion; and allowed the state to deal with the affairs of life in the here and now.iii

“It was Western scholars who initiated serious and scholarly research of the early manuscripts of the Qur’an. While they encountered opposition from certain academic circles, yet they persisted in their ventures. We may mention among them, Patricia Crone, Christof Luxembourg, and Tom Holland. Some were forced to hide their identities, lest the radical Islamic authorities might issue fatwas legitimizing their assassination! The discipline of Orientalism was depicted as a Western colonialist anti-Islamic plan to spread Islamophobia, a term employed by Islamists, to silence opposition to their cause.

“As an example of this Islamist attitude, we may refer to the silencing of the documentary, Islam: The Untold Story, by the British historian Tom Holland. It was aired only once on the BBC Chanel 4 due to the pressure exerted on the channel by the Gulf States. In contrast, the same channel had aired programs critical of Christianity’s basic beliefs; however, neither the Christian Church, nor Christian groups, attempted to stop their airing!

“Nowadays, Islamists have become a global active force, thanks to millions of dollars they receive from governments to spread their propaganda among the Muslim communities living abroad. Qatar is one of these states; its TV Station Al-Jazeera, works hard to stifle any reform movement in the Muslim world, while  spreading archaic teachings about Islamist governance, and ethics. Its goal is to defend Salafism, based on the views of the late Sayed Qutb, the notorious ideologue of the Muslin Brotherhood.

“For example, Kemal Ataturk’s authoritarianism led to the rise of modern Turkey, where secularism pervaded every aspect of life. Turkey became one of the advanced societies in the world. However, this Kemalist renaissance began to decline and wither, when Erdogan’s Islamist Justice and Development Party assumed the reins of government, and began a ‘creeping Islamization’ policy, as some Turkish intellectuals have called it. He has succeeded in striking at the roots of Turkey’s secular tradition, by altering the Constitution through a series of plebiscites, the prosecution of journalists, and by weakening the two basic supports of Turkey’s secularism: an independent Judiciary and the Army.

“In order to overcome the Islamist plague, with its debilitating illnesses, such as underdevelopment, and Irhab; it is necessary to embark on radical reforms. Now it’s our responsibility as Muslims to undertake the required measures for the rise of a tolerant Islam, that’s utterly distinct from the violent Islamism of the radical movements!” 

______________________________________________________

iThe Reformer received the support of German princes. He left Worms on April 26th, 1521. On his return journey, he was taken into protective custody by agents of Frederick the Wise, who was concerned for his safety. Luther stayed at the Wartburg castle in Eisenach. It was a productive opportunity for the Reformer during which he produced by 1522, a new German translation of the New Testament within five months, one of the most important products of the German Reformation. 

iiThe Qur’an has 114 Surahs; they are listed according to their size, and not chronologically. Every Surah is designated as Meccan or Medinan, and the number of its Ayahs. The First Chapter, Al-Fatiha is Meccan, the number of its Ayahs is 7. The Second Surah Al-Baqarah has 280 Ayas, was the first Surah that “descended” in Medina.

Glancing at my copy of the Qur’an, I noticed that most of the large Surahs were Medinan, dating after Muhammad’s migration in 622!

iiiTo learn more about this subject, consult my two posted articles “Modernity and the Qur’an,” and “What is the Qur’an?”

Modernity & the Qur’an - Middle East Resources (www.unashamedofthegospel.org)

What is the Qur’an? (answering-islam.org)

 

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Why Don’t Muslims Apologize?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Why Don’t Muslims Apologize?

27 January 2021

Bassam Michael Madany

Hamed Abdel-Samadi , the German-Egyptian writer posted a talk to his YouTube channel Hamed.TV entitled: 

صندوق الإسلام 141: لماذا لا يعتذر المسلمون عن جرائمهم التاريخية؟ - YouTube 

“Why Don’t Muslims  Apologize for Their Historical Crimes?” 
 

This was posted on 3 June 2018 as part of Abdel-Samad’s series entitled, “The Box of Islam.”  

The following paragraphs are excerpts transcribed from the video.  He explains the reason for the absence in Islam of a culture of apology and the ability to critically review the past. 

A mature culture can stand at a distance and reflect on its past. The trouble is that Islam is anchored to a view based on a sacred text, a sacred person, and a sacred history. Everything in Islamic history, including the conquests of vast parts of the world, were accomplished in the Pathway of Allah. So, why confess or apologize? 

The West has a different culture, including the ability to distance itself from its history, reflect on its events, and apologize for the wrongs of the past. For example, the Church has apologized for the Crusades, and for the persecution of the Jews. Look at the Americans, they fought a Civil War to end slavery of Black people. President Lincoln gave his life for that cause. Australia has apologized to the Aboriginals for their mistreatment.  France and Britain apologized to the counties they had colonized, with the French questioning their prior colonizing of Algeria 

It is not only the Europeans who apologized for their historical crimes. The Japanese did so after WWII. They acknowledged their atrocities in China, Korea, the Philippines, and elsewhere in the Pacific region.                                                                                          

In contrast, the Turks have never confessed the Genocide of the Armenians, nor have they apologized to the nations of Eastern Europe and the Balkans for centuries of harsh colonialism and attempts to eradicate their national identities, as well as their mistreatment of the Kurds of eastern Turkey.

Muslims ignore their imperialism that was much worse than what European had done for approximately 150 years. Islamic colonialism included jihads, the eradication of local history and identity. Massacres at a large scale took place in the Indian subcontinent. No one mentions these horrific tragedies. When a civilization fails to reflect on the misdeeds of its own history, it tends to repeat them in the future.

Muslims lack a sense of social consciousness. An example, a young German feels somehow a responsibility to be on alert, so that the mistakes of the past are never repeated in the future. In contrast, Muslims are afflicted with a triple sickness: falsification of the truth, suppression of the truth, or denial of the truth. Their future remains anchored in the past. They never see any blind spots and regard their history as having been immaculate.
 
A study in Germany by psychiatrists treating Muslim migrants showed that their  patients had a great difficulty to describe their problems. Many astonished their doctors by failing to reveal the real issues that brought them to the clinic! Their culture had not taught them the virtue of confession. 

Muslims only empathize with other Muslims. They are quick to manifest solidarity with Bosnian Muslims or Burmese Muslims, even when they have no idea where those countries are located. However, they fail to manifest any sympathy for the Yezidi women who were raped, or the Christians of Mosul when they were attacked and expelled by ISIS!

It is time for Muslims to re-examining their history and renounce their old worldview that kept them from apologizing for their misdeeds. 

Postscript

Hamed Abdel-Samad’s remark on Islam’s suppression of historical facts, has been noted by the British author V. S. Naipaul. 

In his Prologue to his book “Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions among Converted People,” published by Vintage Books in 1998, he wrote: 

“Islam is in its origins an Arab religion. Everyone not an Arab who is a Muslim is a convert. Islam is not simply a matter of conscience or private belief. It makes imperial demands. A convert’s worldview alters. His holy places are in Arab lands; his language is Arabic. His idea of history alters. He rejects his own; he becomes, whether he likes it or not, a part of the Arab story. The convert has to turn away from everything that is his. The disturbance for societies is immense, and even after a thousand years can remain unresolved; the turning away has to be done again and again. People develop fantasies about who and what they are; and in the Islam of the converted countries there is an element of neurosis and nihilism. These countries can be easily set on the boil. P. xi” 

__________________________________________________

iHamed Abdel-Samad is a German-Egyptian political scientist and author. He was born in 1972, in Giza, near Cairo, Egypt. He studied at Cairo University. He came to Germany in 1995 at the age of 23. He studied political science in Augsburg. He worked as a scholar in Erfurt and Braunschweig. He taught and conducted research until the end of 2009 at the Institute for Jewish History and Culture at the University of Munich; his dissertation topic was: Bild der Juden in ägyptischen Schulbüchern ("Image of the Jews in Egyptian textbooks”). Subsequently he decided to become a full-time professional writer. In mid-2015, he launched the show Ṣundūq al-Islām ("Box of Islam") on his official YouTube channel, Hamed.TV. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MaWbE6akU4 
100 Programs of Sunduq al-Islam 
 

                                                                                      

Posted in Articles

Revisiting “The Veiled Genocide”

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

4 January 2021

In 2018, I dealt with the subject of the “Veiled Genocide” and posted it on the website Middle East Resources. Two more years later, the book of the Senegalese scholar Tidiane N’Diaye, has not been translated into English from the original French edition.

I’m perplexed why the Anglophone world still cannot read this timely work.                            

The Veiled Genocide: A forgotten Historic Tragedy - Middle East Resources (www.unashamedofthegospel.org)

There is a great deal of interest in the subject, as I learn from the report of Stat Counter. People from various parts of the world are accessing my article on a daily basis.

On 23 May 2018, Tidiane N’Diaye used the means of YouTube, to give a passionate three-minute lecture on “The Veiled Genocide.”  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxc5ENT8ajg

The text of the message

The trans-Sahelian and Eastern slave trade, lasted more than 13 centuries, without interruption. The Arabs raided the black continent. It is a chapter in African history that is still taboo: the slavery of black populations by the Arab world.

There is no degree of horror, nor a monopoly of suffering or cruelty. But we can safely say that the trans-Sahelian and Eastern Slave Trade was much more devastating for the African populations, than the Transatlantic slave trade. If I called my study "Veiled Genocide" it is because the generalized castration that was done on the African slaves, annihilated any possibility of them leaving any descendants. This explains why today there is hardly African presence in the Arab world.

It seems that most Muslim intellectuals hesitate to approach this part of our history, a painful page that not only Arab-Muslim scholars should have opened, but African intellectuals also hesitate to deal with it. African students living in the Maghreb are often treated in a rather despicable manner. African maids have their passports confiscated in Lebanon or elsewhere [that is to keep them from leaving the country due to their maltreatment]. By keeping silent about a crime, it risks repeating itself. Exactly as Elie Wiesel said. Whoever ignores their past is at risk of having it all over again.

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A Reaffirmation of Historic Christian Missions

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

19 December 2020

Nowadays, we face major departures from Historic Christian Missions. I would like to address this subject, by quoting and commenting on a document posted on the website of the German organization, Institut Diakrisis. The subject of the document was: “Transformation” as the New Topic of Evangelical Mission Theology [i] The preamble explains the role played by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in the redefinition of the nature of Christian Missions.

“Ever since the Third General Assembly of the World Council of Churches in New Delhi, 1961, a modern understanding of missions has developed through the influence of secular ecumenical theologies and political ideologies. Due to the influence of ‘radical evangelicals’ originally from Latin America, this view is increasingly being adopted also by the evangelical side. The contemporary theological thinking of evangelicals ranges between the proclamation of salvation in Christ on the one hand, and the changing of society as the surmised goal of evangelism on the other. The latter understanding of mission is called ‘holistic’ or ‘incarnatory’. Many missiologists now call their discipline ‘Missional Theology’, based on the view that all functions of the church, including her social and political responsibilities, plus the dialogue with other religions, are determined by her total mission in the world which is to establish the promised ‘Kingdom of God’. In this connection, the word ‘Transformation’, so far unknown to many Christians, has become a key concept.”

It becomes clear from the above paragraph that the theology that informed the Protestant Christian Missions during the 19th and first half of the 20th century, has been replaced by an ideology that is alien to Holy Scripture, the Ecumenical Creeds and the Confessional standards of the Reformation. It is not Evangelization, i.e., the proclamation of the Good News of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ, but Transformation or Renewal of the structures of society, that has become the goal of Christion Missions.

The following comments of the “Transformation” document explain how this change has taken place:

“The concept of ‘Transformation’ which was first adopted by the Neo-Evangelical movement in North America, is dangerously loaded. The reason why the Neo-Evangelicals found the concept of a societal transformation useful is because, since the last quarter of the 20th century, ‘Kingdom Theology’ had asserted itself in major parts of the American mission movement, while the Missions theology which focused on personal conversion and the planting of churches was pushed aside.

“One facet of this ‘Kingdom of God Theology’ arose from the older tradition of Post-Millennialism, i.e., the conviction that Jesus would return after the messianic kingdom of peace which he had proclaimed and initiated, the millennium of Revelation 20:1-6, had been established on earth. In their publications, Transformation theologians consider that next to the proclamation of the Gospel, social and possibly political action is presented as an equally important – if not even preferred – expression of the Gospel and the kingly rule of God. Through this widening of the concept of mission, the soteriological, i.e., the dimension of the Gospel, which is focused on eternal life, namely the salvation brought by Jesus through His atoning death, does not remain unaffected. On the contrary: in theory as well as in missionary practice, the salvation of the soul takes second place to the creation of better social and economic conditions.”

The emphasis on the “Here & Now” was due to the Hermeneutics adopted by Transformation Theology

“Transformation theologians [employ] ‘contextual hermeneutics’ which seeks to understand a text from its context (the context in which people find themselves), in this case the social and political situation. The problem is that Biblical texts are then read using such contextual methods of interpretation, as we have seen from Liberation and Feminist Theologies. The social and political situation of the readers of the Biblical texts thus provides the key to interpretation. …. Arbitrarily chosen historic events of the Old Testament, especially the liberation of Israel from Egypt and the prophetic sermons against misuse of power and injustice, are regarded as ‘paradigmatic’ models to be imposed upon today’s mission of the Church. With this, the basis of the classical evangelical view of the Bible is abandoned. As we know, Jesus Christ and His salvation are at the centre of the Holy Scriptures. He Himself provides the key as to how the Old Testament should be understood in relation to Him (Luke 24:27,45; see Acts 13:47; 2 Corinthians 1:20). The consequence of a contextual view of the Bible among Transformation theologians is that man with his problems and wishes, becomes the centre, not God who in the Scriptures reveals His actions in judgment and mercy. When the Biblical text is read only in terms of today’s context, then it can no longer show what it really intended to say.”

It is evident that Transformation Theology contradicts the teaching of the eighth chapter of Romans, that the full benefits of the Gospel await the return of Christ at the end of time.

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father.’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope, we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”                    Romans 8: 14-39 (ESV)

Transformation Theology offers a different teaching on the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ in the areas of Christology and Soteriology,

“Contextual Bible interpretation has major consequences for Christology, i.e., the doctrine of the person and work of Jesus the Christ ... It is true that, at times, authors of the Transformation Theology are expressing Christological viewpoints. But what interests them most, is the humanness of Jesus and His devoted service in the social needs of this world. At the same time His divinity, as emphasized particularly in the Gospel of John (John 1:1-14; 2:28) and formulated by the early church in its basic Creeds of Nicea and Chalcedon (325 and 451 AD, respectively), is largely obliterated. According to these, the Son of God is of one nature with God the Father and in His Person both natures, the divine and the human, are inseparably united. Now the miracle of the Incarnation of God is called ‘incarnatory’ and plays an important role in the contemporary understanding of the Neo-Evangelical movement. However, what is meant is not so much the singular miracle of the Incarnation of the eternal Logos in the Person of the Christ. Rather, in what could be called an ‘Example Christology,’ it is emphasized that the Incarnate Jesus Christ has made Himself a servant and led a life of service in the needs of mankind.

“Certainly, Jesus of Nazareth called on men to follow Him, and in His sermons and teachings he did lay the foundations of a Christian ethic. However, we need to understand that the matchless Incarnation of the eternal Word of God (John 1:14), His once for all sacrificial death, and His ascension to the throne of God, set up a barrier against any ‘imitatio Christi’ for His atoning sacrifice on the cross to take away our guilt cannot be imitated. This would contradict the Biblical understanding of salvation as taught by the Reformers. Indeed, it is inadmissible to change the message of ‘Christ for us’ to the slogan, ‘Let us act like Christ’, thereby making the Gospel a new Law.

“The ‘view of the end’ (Eschatology) which used to guide the Protestant mission movement in the past, has been allowed to be forgotten. For the strength of the salvation-oriented understanding of missions proves itself in that it takes up the Bible's own understanding of God, the world, and time. It centers in the saving work of God in Jesus Christ, and accordingly puts the Old and New Testaments into the right relationship to one another, making the necessary distinctions. Herein originates the tension between the ‘already now’ and the ‘only then’.

“This applies firstly and especially to the place of the people of Israel among the nations. According to the testimony of Paul in Romans 11:25-36, the ultimate conversion and re-acceptance of Israel will take place when the mission to the nations has been completed, the ‘fullness of the gentiles’ has been gathered, and Christ will return. To open the hearts of the Jews for Him is what mission to Israel wishes to do. Secondly, the question of the nature of non-Christian religions in their relationship to the Christian faith, will be answered according to their threefold determination, i.e., through God’s original revelation (Acts 14:17; John 1:9; Romans 1:19-20), through man’s response in obedience and resistance (Acts 17:27f; Isaiah 53:6a), and through the efficacy of demons (2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2). Thirdly, the salvation historical view also proves itself in the present struggle for a future in line with the Gospel. The Church of Jesus Christ may, by taking her share of social and political responsibility, set signs of the dawning Kingdom, but without attaching to a false significance to them. She rather trusts in the fulfillment of the Biblical promise of the Kingdom of God at the return of Jesus Christ in power and in glory. In His Kingdom, peace and justice will finally be established (Revelation 21:1.24).

“In closing, we want to stress that our criticism of Transformation Theology is not aimed at a single false doctrine, and not at individual theologians representing it. Rather, we retain with them the brotherhood in Christ, although, unfortunately, they have been enticed by an erroneous trend. Therefore, we want to struggle for an abiding in the Biblical truth jointly with them. In this, we are also conscious of the fact that we ourselves are in constant need of correction and deepening through the Word of God and are ready, therefore, for Biblical correction on our part. At the same time, we address our urgent warning to the entire Christian Mission Movement. May it beware of succumbing to a historical theology which is becoming an ideology! For this, as we can see, replaces eternal salvation with temporal social well-being and forgets that the Kingly rule of Christ is not of this world (John 18:36). In His end-times address on the Mount of Olives, Jesus warned his disciples of false prophets and false Christs who would come in the last days and lead many astray (Matthew 24:11). As the Ascended One (Revelation 3:10) He warns of the ‘hour of temptation’ which will come upon the whole world (Greek: oikouméne!)  3:11 But the ascended Christ promised the church of Philadelphia to keep them from the hour of temptation because they had kept His word steadfastly.

“We, too, may likewise firmly trust that He, the Good Shepherd, will even today help His faithful flock through all external and internal temptations. He will do this through the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit whom He has given to His own as a pledge of the completed salvation in His Kingdom (2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5; Ephesians 1:14).”

Tübingen, Pentecost 2013 International Christian Network

https://www.ikbg.net/pdf/The-Tuebingen-Call-of-Pentecost-2013-On-Missions.pdf

A Personal Note of Thanks

I am indebted to the Institut Diakrisis for the above information, and its steadfast efforts, to maintain and defend the Historic Christian Missions, in harmony with the Holy Scriptures, the Ecumenical Creeds, and the Confessional Standards of the Protestant Reformation.

Bassam Michael Madany bashir2824@msn.com

Middle East Resources www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org

 

 

http://www.institut-diakrisis.de/  

The International Conference of Confessing Communities (IKBG/ICN) is a worldwide association of Christians of different denominations who see themselves as “confessing.” This means that the accept the Bible with the Old and New Testaments as a binding basis for faith and ethics and profess the Triune God with the Apostolic and Nicene Creeds. Those dealing with the faith today encounter many currents that have distanced themselves far from these elementary foundations, both inside and outside the Church.

The IKBG has set itself the goal of counteracting this and protecting and preserving the common Apostolic Heritage in order to promote the unity of the worldwide Christian Church. It forms a network for professed Christians all over the world and wants to give them a public presence and voice. At the same time, the IKBG offers its members and supporters an important forum for exchange among themselves, information, and cooperation. The support of persecuted Christians all over the world is also an important concern of the IKBG. With this website we would like to introduce ourselves, our goals, and activities. We invite interested lay people to dialogue and engage with the faith. Under Publications/Archive you will find a number of writings published by the IKBG on various theological topics.                                    

IKBG Internationale Konferenz Bekennender Gemeinschaften Veröffentlichungen
 

Dr. Peter Paul Johannes Beyerhaus (1 February 1929 – 18 January 2020) was a German Protestant pastor, theologian, missionary scholar, and academic teacher.

To learn about his interest in Christian Missions, read: My Pilgrimage in Mission

https://www.questia.com/magazine/1G1-68157996/my-pilgrimage-in-mission

Posted in Articles

The Clash of World Cultures

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Clash of World Cultures

Bassam Michael Madany

18 December 2020

Introduction

My late wife Shirley Winnifred Madany (née Dann) worked for several years as the secretary to the Editor of the Winnipeg Free Press, a daily paper in Manitoba, Canada. It was an excellent school for her typing five editorials per week and doing research for the Editor at the newspaper’s library.

We were married in June 1953 and set off to the Middle East where we worked as teachers in the American Mission schools in Latakia, Syria. Due to changes in the Syrian Government law regarding Christin missions, the schools were eventually nationalized. We returned to Canada, I as an immigrant, and for some time I was serving as pastor of a small Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg. Eventually, we moved to the United States, and I began a broadcasting ministry to the Arab world over international radio stations covering the Middle East and North Africa. Shirley began to write articles about the radio ministry where she gave information about various religious and cultural subjects related to the Arab world. While this article is dated, its relevance has not diminished after a quarter of a century. The following is the text of the article on THE CLASH OF WORLD CULTURES. 

You would not expect a political scientist from Harvard to be the author of what ought to be "must" reading for missionaries and candidates to mission school. Samuel P. Huntington, a Professor at Harvard University, and Director of security planning during the Carter administration, as well as founder and co-editor of Foreign Policy magazine, has written a prophetic book entitled: THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS AND THE REMAKING OF WORLD ORDER, published by Simon & Schuster. 

The book has sparked glowing reviews and comments, and upon delving into its contents, one finds they are not exaggerated. J. Bacevich, reviewing the book in the May '97 issue of FIRST THINGS, commented that his "style is precise, pithy, plainspoken and coolly analytical. He eschews jargon. Crisp, declarative sentences array themselves in tightly organized paragraphs." 

Here is a sample: "The argument now that the spread of pop culture and consumer goods around the world represents the triumph of Western civilization trivializes Western culture. The essence of Western civilization is the Magna Carta not the Magna Mac. The fact that non-Westerners may bite into the latter has no implications for them accepting the former."

Huntington sees religion as the single most important factor in world cultures and he has redrawn the geographical map along these lines. He points out eight distinctive civilizations: Islamic, Sinic (centered on the 'core state' of China), Western (with the United States at its core), Orthodox (With Russia as its core), Japanese, Hindu, Latin American and possibly African. 

He considers Islam, the West and China to constitute the most important of these classifications and that most future clashes will be between these three major groupings. The book is thought provoking in the extreme as this skillful author prepares our minds for the Third Millennium. Colonialism has all but disappeared with momentous return of Hong Kong to China. A totally new situation is developing. 

He emphasizes the part that Islam is already playing in the de-stabilizing of the world order. In the long march of world history, he considers the clash between communism and the West to be only a "fleeting and superficial historical phenomenon, compared to the continuing and deeply conflictual relation between Islam and Christianity." 

The would-be missionary needs to be aware that the people of Islam "are convinced of the superiority of their culture and are obsessed with the inferiority of their power." Because of this, Islam finds it difficult to live in harmony with its neighbors. He would have you trace the borders of Islam and see the conflict: Bosnia, Chechnya, etc. He talks about "fault line wars" listing "Arabs and Israelis, Indians and Pakistanis, Sudanese Muslims and Christians, and Lebanese Shi'ites and Maronites.

Even though religion has been relegated to a back seat in the United States, still this political scientist assigns it a front row place on the global scene. He considers that religious affiliations signify "who we are" and "who we are not." 

The serious young Christian feeling the call to share his/her faith with Muslims certainly would be well served to get some prior preparation. The prevalent style of travel where you leave everything to a tour guide eliminates a need for study and maps. One detects a tendency for American Christians to rush off to a foreign country with little awareness of its history, culture, or mores.

When we take the insights and forecasts of Prof. Huntington into account, we may point to certain implications for missionaries and their journeying in the 21st century. It is quite obvious that Western missionaries going into the rest of the world would be operating under different conditions than those that prevailed from William Carey's days (1792) to the end of World War II. While that period was marked by the existence of several European empires dominating huge parts of Asia and Africa, we now live in the post-colonial days where all nations, no matter what their size, assert their own sovereignty and are proud of their particular culture.

During the past 200 years, Western missionaries came from various communions and manifested a consensus about the fundamentals of Christianity. They asserted the uniqueness, finality and superiority of the Lord Jesus Christ and the necessity of faith in Him as a condition of salvation. Nowadays that consensus has disappeared. Unfortunately, some influential theologians and missiologists are either Universalists or Pluralists (the latter advocate the equal validity of all religions). It is therefore especially important that the true missionaries of the cross must distance themselves from all these false forms of Christianity as well as from the wider Western culture which is getting more and more secularized.

To quote again from this book: "American culture bears more than passing resemblance to the decadent and corrupt Great Satan that is the favorite target of fundamentalist mullahs [of Iran]. Crime, violence, drug abuse, illegitimacy, failing schools, the erosion of the family, a weakened work ethic, and 'a cult of personal indulgence' all point to a moral decline that approaches cultural suicide.'" 

Thus, Christian missionaries must reaffirm their faithfulness to the Bible as the authoritative source of faith and to the historic Christian traditions, which have been summarized for us in the early ecumenical creeds and in the confessional documents of the Reformation. They should wholeheartedly proclaim the Biblical worldview that portrays Christianity as the faith for all mankind.

In conclusion, The Clash of Civilization and the Remaking of World Order, comes at a critical time in the history of the West and should cause all Christians to reflect seriously about their faith and the obligation to share it with the six billion people of the world.  While Prof. Huntington does not claim a personal adherence to the Christian faith and might not have dreamt that it would be recommended for missionary reading, nevertheless his diagnosis of the global situation is both realistic and useful. 

The decade of the nineties afforded him, by its fast-moving events, the opportunity not only to set forth his thesis, but also to buttress it with concrete examples from contemporaneous history. It remains for us Christians to proclaim the Gospel as the only divinely revealed cure to the ills of individuals and civilizations. Christianity is not synonymous with the West. It has been around for 2000 years and has impacted all kinds of Civilizations, on all continents. Being based on the Gospel of God, it is not bound to one culture, but transcends all cultures. If Western civilization is rapidly distancing itself from its Christian roots, it does not follow that Christianity has failed. Other peoples in different cultures are welcoming its liberating message. 

The forecasts of Samuel Huntington may well come true, and the next century may witness some terrible clashes between the followers of different cultures. But we must maintain our Christian hope and, by our missionary work, hasten the coming of the Day when we shall join the heavenly choir and sing: Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. (Rev. 9:6b)
 

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A Tribute to Raymond Lull A Pioneer Missionary to Isla

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Tribute to Raymond Lull

A Pioneer Missionary to Isla

Bassam Michael Madany

24 November 2020

From my earliest days, I became interested in missions. My father’s library had several books, in English and in Arabic relating stories of men and women who had left their homes in Europe and America and spent their lives in the Far East, India, the Middle East and Africa. I had not heard of Raymond Lull until my early twenties. Reading the account of his life written by Dr. Samuel Zwemer, left a lasting impact on my life and on my radio ministry to the Arabic-speaking world from 1958 to 1994.

Raymond Lull was born on the Island of Majorca, Spain, in 1235. He belonged to a rich family. He led a very worldly life until his conversion in his late forties. For the last part of his life, he was involved in intense Christian missionary work among Muslims in North Africa. The following paragraph is from Dr. Zwemer’s Biography of Raymond Lull. 

'There is no more heroic figure in the history of Christendom than that of Raymond Lull the first and perhaps the greatest Missionary to Muslims. He was years ahead of his time; a great thinker as well as doer, establishing missionary colleges to carry the Gospel to Muslims, while personally obeying Christ's command to 'Go' himself. Heaven enlightened Lull to know the love of God and to do the Will of God as no other of his generation. From a powerful vision of Christ's unrequited Love at the time of the bloody Crusades, Lull began his own crusade of love. Lull's motto was, He who loves not lives not; he who lives by the Life cannot die.” 

During Lull’s lifetime, Spain was partially occupied by the Arab Muslims. Following the conquest of North Africa, the Arab-Muslim armies crossed the narrow strait separating North Africa from Spain in 710 AD and pushed northward until they entered France in 732, exactly one hundred years after the death of the Prophet Muhammad! Their advance was stopped at the Battle of Tours, near Poitiers, by Charles Martel.

Back in Spain, the Vandals had retreated to the northern parts of the country. Eventually, when the Arab rule weakened, due to the civil wars that broke among them, the Reconquista (Reconquest of the county) began in earnest and was accomplished in 1492. This places the life and missionary work of Raymond Lull, during the weakened and diminishing presence of the Arab Muslim rule in Spain.

“Lull’s chief concern after his conversion was that all men everywhere should become Christians. He visited Rome, urging several Popes to establish schools for preparing missionaries. He convinced the Church Council at Vienne (France) in 1311, to establish missionary colleges in various parts of Europe. He lectured in major cities and encouraged the learning of the Arabic language in order to preach the Gospel to the Arabs of Al-Andalus (the Arabic name of Spain)

“In 1276 Lull founded the College of Miramar in Majorca, which trained men in the study of Arabic and prepared missionaries for service in Islamic lands. He made repeated missionary trips to these lands and also continued writing. Altogether, he wrote some 150 or 200 works in Latin, Arabic, and Catalan on such diverse subjects as theology, philosophy, logic, and poetry. Most of them were apologies for the faith and indicate not only his primary desire to convert the infidel but also his attempt to make philosophy subordinate to theology in order to obtain that goal. https://biography.yourdictionary.com/raymond-lull

“On one of his missionary journeys in North Africa, he was held in prison for over six months. All manner of attempts were made to persuade him to convert to Islam. Instead, he was successful in winning a small number of converts, among whom he later secretly labored for almost a year!

“Raymond Lull visited the city of Tunis three times, in an effort to win converts. One of his methods was to walk down the street preaching in a loud voice, shouting the fallacies of the Muslim faith and the truth of Christianity. Twice he was expelled; when he returned to Tunis the third time, he was stoned to death in 1315, at the age of eighty!”

Between the 14th and the early 19th centuries, the rulers of North Africa suppressed every Christian presence that had survived sine the Islamic Futuhat of the 7th and 8th centuries. Things began to change after the French occupation of Algeria in 1848, the French Protectorate rule in Tunisia (1880s) and in Morocco (early1900s,) when Christian missionary organizations began a limited work especially among the Amazigh. 

The 20th century brought in the Gospel through radio. I had the privilege to broadcast lessons from the Bible in the direction of North Africa in 1961 over Radio Station ELWA of Monrovia, Liberia. During the 1970s, added a weekly program from Trans World Radio, using the powerful Medium Wave transmitter of Radio Monte-Carlo in Monaco. The Arabic-language ministry was strengthened by correspondence and follow-up literature.

A new phase of missions began with the Internet allowing a proclamation of the Good News by North African nationals who had crossed over to the Christian faith. A notable example is that of Brother Rachid’s ministry that consists of a weekly live call-show on both YouTube and Al-Karma satellite TV.

At this point I would like to refer to an Algerian convert Mohammed-Christoph Bilek who wrote about a phenomenon that may be considered as a resumption of the work begun around 700 years before the martyrdom of Raymond Lull. Father Bilek published, DES MUSULMANS QUI DEVIENNENT CHRÉTIENS - SIGNE DES TEMPS POUR L'EGLISE (2013)                                                                      

MUSLIMS WHO BECOME CHRISTIANS: A SIGN OF THE TIMES FOR THE CHURCH                                                                                             
The following are excerpts from a book review I Translated from French.

“Mohamed-Christophe Bilek is well-known in France for his spiritual support and enablement of Muslims who manifest an interest in Christ and in the Christian faith, especially those seeking baptism. He was impressed by the lives of saints like Martin of Tours, Francis of Assisi, and Mother Theresa which contributed to his conversion. He married a Muslim lady who respected his choice, and after thirty years, she received Baptism!

“Bilek is the founder of the “Association for the Welcome of Inquirers;” he uses a website that enables a Muslim inquirer to get in touch with a believer ready to answer questions about the Christian faith.

“The book is the fruit of several exchanges and contacts with people in North Africa, the Middle East, and Black Africa. Most of all, Bilek shares his reflections gained from years of contacts with the Church in France. The book consists of three parts:

“The First Part deals with accounts of conversion to Jesus Christ, leading in most cases to baptism.

“The Second Part relates accounts of persons who reverted to Islam; and of those who may be labeled as “Imposters.” Also discussed are the means of conversion, such as Dreams and Visions, the Holy Scriptures, and Christian example.

“The Third Part deals with the author’s reflections based on the specific journey of each convert, as he or she, undergoes baptism, followed by struggles and persecution, leading to spiritual growth. The book ends with a consideration of God’s Plan for Muslims. The work is original, covering a number of conversion accounts, and an analysis of their testimonies.”

A lay Muslim convert offers the Christian Community the following challenges:

“How do we receive and welcome converts? What place they must be given? Are we fully aware of the difficulties they encounter, not only on account of their leaving their former way of life, but also and above all, how to find a Christian community ready to welcome them?

“Three obstacles must be surmounted by every Muslim desiring the Christian faith. They are the Qur’an, the Prophet Muhammad, and the Umma. Liberation from the latter, is the most difficult one, as it involves the family and the fast of Ramadan.“ Converts, considered by the Umma as apostates, must not continue to love the Muslim religion, since it was its sacred texts that hid the truth they have now confessed. The stakes remain high!

“For those of us who have come out of Islam, following Christ has consequences. Ipso facto, it requires a break with the past, with family, with community, and with past moral and spiritual certitudes. It’s much easier to remain a Muslim, believe me! There are numerous excuses for not making the rupture. It’s perilous to leave Islam, as it may cost one’s own life!

                    
“Not only are we despised and persecuted by our blood brothers as apostates, but we also incur the wrath of Allah and the worst of his punishments. By leaving Islam, we show our whole-hearted agreement with the statement of Jesus Christ: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.” And whether we are baptized as Mohamed-Christophe, Maria-Aïcha, Joseph or Ali, it is quite freely that we have taken the only path that leads to the Father and the joy of knowing Him in eternal life. 

“We face a real battle. They try to silence us, we who have left Islam; they want us to remain silent, since we are the only ones who can realistically tell the full story of how Christians are being treated in Islamic lands.  Persecution and insecurity remain in place for the 50,000 Christians in Algeria. There it is, my dear Western brothers and sisters, please welcome us, and help us, having crossed over to Jesus Christ and His Church.” 

Mohammed Christophe Bilek has authored two books: “Un Algérien pas Très Catholique,” (A Not-Very Catholic Algerian) published by Éditions du Cerf, and, « Saint Augustin Raconté à Ma Fille, » (Saint Augustine As Told to my Daughter) published by Éditions Qabel. 
   

Posted in Articles

Missions to Muslims in the Twenty-First Century

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Missions to Muslims in the Twenty-First Century 

Bassam Michael Madany 

23 November 2020

 

As the first two decades of the Twenty-First Century draw to a close, Christian Missions must remain anchored on the Word of God and a realistic description of our times. Between 1800 and 1950, the West reflected the impact of the Christian worldview. The mission fields in Asia and Africa were within the colonial empires of Britain, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. Not so today. The West is secularized, and the European empires are a thing of the past.  

The post-World War II era ushered in a new Diaspora with millions from the former colonies now living in the Western world that requires a re-examination of missionary strategies. Millions of Muslims from the Indian sub-continent, Southeast Asia, North Africa and the Middle East, have settled in North America and in Europe. They use the freedoms of the host countries not only to practice their faith, but they engage in proselytizing within the host countries. 

Unlike Europeans, North Americans have had little experience with Islam and Muslims. The first American encounter with Muslims occurred soon after independence. The pirates of Tripoli terrorized maritime trade in the Mediterranean, which led U.S. Navy to deal with them. Another American experience in Muslim lands took place when missionaries of the Presbyterian Church, the Congregational Churches, and the Reformed Church in America, began their missionary work in the Middle East, during the 19th century, lasting until the 1950s. 

Conducting Christian missions within newly independent states became extremely difficult in the Levant. I experienced that personally, when Mission schools In Syria faced restrictions on teaching Bible courses to their students. Eventually, foreign schools were nationalized, ending the main missionary activity dating back to the early years of the 19th century. 

An important phenomenon at the dawn of the New Millennium has been the revival of the major world religions. In an article entitled, “Pluralism and the Otherness of Word Religions,” Prof. S. Mark Heim of Andover Newton Theological School, remarked that the representatives of world religions, such as Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus, remain attached to their belief in the validity and uniqueness of their particular religious tradition, and are unwilling to accept certain conditions made by Western pluralist theologians.i

Traditional Islam divides the world into two camps: Daru'l Islam and Daru'l Harb, i.e., the household of Islam and the household of war. Within Islamic countries, the Shari’a is supreme and is enforced through the arm of the state. Nowadays, Radical Muslims, enjoying the freedoms of the Western pluralistic societies, are working hard to create conditions that would allow Muslims to live as if they were still residing within an Islamic land. This was explained in an article published in the International Bulletin of Missionary Research of October 1993.

The noted West African scholar, Lamin Sanneh wrote, “Can a House Divided Stand? Reflections on Christian-Muslim Encounter in the West.”  Dr. Sanneh, a convert from Islam and a Professor of Missions and World Christianity at Yale Divinity School, commented in his article on the inevitable confrontation between the “pluralistic tradition of the West” and the demands of Muslim immigrants for implementing practices which stem from their theocratic view of the state.  

"It would be wrong for Westerners to think that they can preserve religious toleration by conceding the extreme Muslim case for territoriality, because a house constructed on that foundation would have no room in it for the very pluralistic principle that has made the West hospitable to Muslims and others in the first place. The fact that these religious groups have grown and thrived in the West at a time when religious minorities established in Islamic societies have continued to suffer civil disabilities shows how uneven are the two traditions. We risk perpetuating such a split-level structure in our relationship, including the risk to the survival of our great public institutions, unless we take moral responsibility for the heritage of the West, including tolerance for religion. Such tolerance for religion cannot rest on the arguments of public utility but rather on the firm religious rock of the absolute moral law with which our Creator and Judge has fashioned us. 

"In view of growing signs of Muslim pressure for religious territoriality, often expressed in terms of Shari’ah and political power, and in view of the utter inadequacy of the sterile utilitarian ethic of the secular national state, Westerners must recover responsibility for the Gospel as public truth and must reconstitute by it the original foundations on which the modern West has built its ample view of the world.” 

Coming from a tradition which considers religion as involving all areas of life, and having witnessed the moral collapse of Western societies, it is understandable that Muslims offer their faith as a remedy to the deplorable spiritual conditions within the host countries. Their boldness stems from their deep conviction that the West is rapidly entering the twilight of its civilization and that only Islam has the answer. 

From across the Atlantic, Wolfhart Pannenberg, Professor of Systematic Theology at the University of Munich, contributed an article that referred to the zeal of Muslim minorities in the West to engage in missionary activities. It was published in the December 1994 issue of FIRST THINGS under the title: 

“Christianity and the West: Ambiguous Past, Uncertain Future.ii ”   

"If Western freedom in fact means no more than individual license, others do well to try to defend their communities and spiritual values against the encroachment of Western secularism. Beyond the defensive mode, Islamic missions in Western societies express a strong sense of missionary vocation aimed at liberating Western nations from the materialism and immorality associated with secularism. These Muslims view Christians as having failed in the task of the moral transformation and reconstruction of society. Such criticism is a serious challenge to traditional Christianity and to Western culture. A culture devoid of spiritual and moral values is not equipped to meet that challenge and is bound for disintegration and decay." 

Christians should realize that the credibility of their missionary endeavors, at home within a pluralistic society, and overseas, depends on their distancing themselves from the norms and the lifestyles of the secular societies that surround them; otherwise, no Muslim will consider seriously what Christianity has to offer.  

Returning to Professor Pannenberg's article: "And so, while we can envision a great resurgence of Christianity and Western culture in the third millennium, such a future is by no means certain. Western societies may ignore their need to recover the strength of their religious roots. They may continue headlong on a secularist course, unaware of its certain and dismal outcome. The end of Western culture, however, would not spell the end of Christianity. The Christian religion is not dependent upon the culture to which it gave birth. As it has in the past, the Church can survive and flourish in the context of other cultures. 

"The further secularism advances the more urgent it is that Christian faith and Christian life be seen in sharp contrast to the secularist culture. It is quite possible that in the early part of the third millennium only the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, on the one hand, and evangelical Protestantism, on the other, will survive as ecclesial communities. What used to be called the Protestant mainline churches are in acute danger of disappearing. I expect they will disappear if they continue neither to resist the spirit of a progressively secularist culture nor to try to transform it. There is no alternative to the Church. The further the secularist dominance of the general culture advances, the more clearly the Church, in clear distinction from that culture, emerges as the reference point of Christian existence."

We must now consider the implications of the new developments that have taken place in the Arab Muslim world, for Missions to Muslims. They are of three types. 

First, Arab Muslims who left Islam and engage in polemics through print and online publications. A prominent one is the German-Egyptian Hamed Abdel-Samad. iii

Second, Reformists Muslims. A prominent example is Ahmad Saad Zayed. He lectures in Egypt and elsewhere on the reconciliation of Islam with Modernity.
Zayed deplores the huge civilisational gap separating the Arab world from the renaissance in both East and West. The Arab world is behind the rest of the world culturally and intellectually.
https://thearabweekly.com/what-does-it-take-enlightenment-take-arab-world

Third, Muslims who crossed over to the Christian faith and engage in Missions to Muslims.                                                                                    
Brother Rachid is a Moroccan former Muslim and convert to Christianity whose father is an Imam. He is a Christian apologist and critic of Islam and hosts a weekly live call-in show on Al Karma TV https://brotherrachid.com/

The developments mentioned above manifest a totally new situation in the Arab Muslim world and an unprecedented opportunity in Missions to Muslims. Nationals are calling upon Muslims to face their age-long problems and to re-examine their antiquated view of Islam as “valid for all time and in all places.” Chanting the slogan, “Al-Islam Hua Al-Hal” (Islam is the Solution) has not solved any of their mounting problems. Often, Abdel-Samad pleads with Muslims to “get out of the Box” that had kept them in ignorance and backwardness and join the rest of mankind! 
 

_________________________________________________________

 

i https://www.firstthings.com/article/1992/08/pluralism-and-the-otherness-of-world-religions 

In denying that Christian faith can be taken as the norm for judging other traditions, pluralistic theologies have at the same time tended to presume that the norms they have accepted to judge Christianity in the modern West can be taken as universal standards for reconstructing all faiths. They intend to affirm the various faiths in the strongest way… once they have been assimilated to these terms.

ii  https://www.firstthings.com/article/1994/12/christianity-and-the-westambiguous-past-uncertain-future

iii Reflections on my interview with Hamed Abdel-Samad
Hamed Abdel-Samad is an Egyptian Ex-Muslim. He is fluent in Arabic (his mother tongue) and French, English and German. Most of the excuses used to dismiss Ex-Muslims don’t work on him. He speaks Arabic. He grew up in a Muslim country. He memorized the Quran, the holy book of Islam in its entirety. He is also the son of an imam. He was even a part of the Muslim Brotherhood. To read the rest of the Interview go to https://abdullahsameer.medium.com/reflections-on-my-interview-with-hamed-abdel-samad-22e9573a0c5f

   

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The West’s Predicament: Unable to Heed Warning Signs

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The West’s Predicament: Unable to Heed Warning Signs

Bassam Michael Madany

3 November 2020

I am typing these words on the afternoon of Election Day in the United States of America. I decided not to watch television regarding forecasts for the results. It may take days as some experts have been telling us. So, I decided to reflect on the Islamists attacks that took place in France and in Austria in October and in early November.

Having read several reports on the subject in both American and Foreign news media, I am struck by the fact that to date, the West has missed reading warning signs that were offered by specialists on Islamism.

One such writer on this topic whose essays I have read in French and in Arabic, is the Algerian born Hamid Zanazi.

« L'Europe face à l'invasion islamique : Une civilisation en péril »  
“Europe facing the Islamic invasion - A civilization in danger” 
Published on 17 January 2019
https://www.furet.com/livres/l-europe-face-a-l-invasion-islamique-hamid-zanaz-9782846212786.html

A translated summary of the Book follows:

“France, Switzerland, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Great Britain and Norway ... are today in the mouth of the wolf, refusing to understand that Islam never seeks to enrich a culture or integrate into a civilization. Its final goal is to supplant them before eradicating them. How, then, can we not be afraid of the threats posed by Islamism in view of the violence, attacks and murders that have become our daily lot?”

To read another article by Hamid Zanaz on the dangers of Islamism

                  
The Return of “Religion” Among the Young is a Time-Bomb” http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/thereturnofreligionamongtheyoungisatimebomb.cfm

___________________________________________________

 Biography of Hamid Zanaz
Freelance translator and journalist, Hamid Zanaz contributes to various Arabic and French publications. Permanent contributor to Al Awan, journal of the League of Arab Rationalists. He is the author of numerous essays, in both Arabic and French, touching on religion, politics or science in the Islamic world. 
 


 

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Muslims Converting to Christ: A Sign of the Times

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

12 October 2020

Two years ago, I came across a work in French, by Mohamed-Christophe Bilek, an Algerian Christian. He was born in Algeria in 1950; was converted to the Christian faith at the age of 20 and baptized by an Evangelical pastor in 1970.

In 2013, he published, DES MUSULMANS QUI DEVIENNENT CHRÉTIENS - SIGNE DES TEMPS POUR L'EGLISE

(MUSLIMS WHO BECOME CHRISTIANS: A SIGN OF THE TIMES FOR THE CHURCH)

A review (in French) of Mr. Bilek’s book by LAURENT BASANESE, S.J. appeared on the journal of Pontificia Universitas Gregoriana in Rome, in April 2014.                                                

I consider this review, and Mr. Bilek’s book to be of excellent value in missionary work among Muslims.  What follows are some excerpts from that review.

“Mohamed-Christophe Bilek is well-known in France for his spiritual support and enablement of Muslims who manifest an interest in Christ and in the Christian faith, especially those seeking baptism. He was impressed by the lives of saints like Martin of Tours, Francis of Assisi, and Mother Theresa; which contributed to his conversion. He married a Muslim lady who respected his choice, and after thirty years, she received Baptism!

“Bilek is the founder of the Association for the Welcome of Inquirers; he uses a website that enables a Muslim inquirer to be in touch with a believer ready to answer any questions about the Christian faith.

“The book is the fruit of several exchanges and contacts with people in North Africa, the Middle East, and Black Africa. Most of all, Bilek shares his reflections gained from years of contacts with the Church in France.

“The book consists of three parts:

“The First Part deals with accounts of conversion to Jesus Christ, leading in most cases to baptism.

“The Second Part relates accounts of persons who reverted to Islam; and of those who may be labelled as “Imposters.” Also discussed are the means of conversion, such as Dreams and Visions, the Holy Scriptures, and Christian example.

“The Third Part deals with the author’s reflections based on the specific journey of each convert, as he or she, undergoes baptism, followed by struggles and persecution, leading to spiritual growth.

“The book ends with a consideration of God’s Plan for Muslims. The work is original, as it deals at the same time with the number of conversion accounts, and with an analysis of the testimonies.

“Finally, a lay Muslim convert, having taken account of the number of baptized Muslims, offers the Christian Community the following questions:

“How do we receive and welcome converts? What place they must be given? Are we fully aware of the difficulties converts encounter, not only on account of their leaving their former way of life, but also and above all, how to find a Christian community ready to welcome them?

“Three obstacles have been identified and must be surmounted by every Muslim desiring the Christian faith. They are the Qur’an, the Prophet Muhammad, and the Umma. Liberation from the latter one is the most difficult one, as it involves the family and Ramadan.

“Converts, considered by the Umma (the Worldwide Islamic Community) as apostates, must not continue to love the Muslim religion, since it was its sacred texts that hid the truth they have now confessed. The stakes are high!

“For those of us who have come out of Islam, following Christ has consequences. Ipso facto, it requires a break with he past, with family, with community, and with moral and spiritual certitudes. It’s much easier to remain a Muslim, believe me! There are numerous excuses for not making the rupture. It’s perilous to leave Islam, it may cost one’s own life!                    

“Not only are we despised and persecuted by our blood brothers as apostates, but we also incur the wrath of Allah and the worst of his punishments. Would our conversion be useless then, and the Christian faith, founded on the death and resurrection of Christ, an imposture? Not at all! 

 “Leaving Islam, we are simply consistent with the statement of Jesus: I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.” And whether we are baptized as Mohamed-Christophe, Maria-Aïcha, Joseph or Ali, it is quite freely that we have taken the only path that leads to the Father and the joy of knowing Him in eternal life.

“We face a real battle. They try to silence us, we who have left Islam; they want us to remain silent, since we are the only ones who can realistically tell the story of how Christians are treated in Islamic lands.  Persecution and insecurity remain in place for the 50,000 Christians in Algeria. There it is, my dear Western brothers and sisters, please welcome us, and help us, having crossed over to Jesus Christ and His Church.”                                                              

To round up the story of the Algerian’s conversion, the following are excerpts from an Interview he gave, one year after the publication of “MUSLIMS WHO BECOME CHRISTIANS: A SIGN OF THE TIMES FOR THE CHURCH”

Interview, Algeria, Berber, Nostra aetate, Berbers, Christianity in Africa, ex-Muslim, Berbers. Amazighs. History of Berbers. Cultural and Political Claims. Cultural and Berber Movement. North of Africa. Algeria. Morocco., Ex-Muslim Studies, Research Area: North Africa (Berbers / Imazighen, and Islam and Catholicism

North Africa had some very important churches like Carthage, and Christians ippo, and great saints like Augustine, Perpetua, Felicitas, and Cyprian. Yet indigenous Christianity was almost entirely absent from the region for centuries. Do you feel like that early history means much to the new Christians today? Or is it just an interesting but unimportant historical footnote?

The discovery of the African saints, and mainly the greatest of them, Augustine of Thagaste, is always vivifying and almost blissful: “If my distant ancestors were Christians, then there is no shame in being one” more than one convert has said to himself. Some have declared after their baptism, “I came back to the religion of my fathers!” But more generally speaking, ancient Christianity enables oneself to ask the question of freedom of choice. If my distant ancestors chose Islam freely, then I can make the same choice myself; but if this religion was imposed on him by the sword, then I do not commit a treason toward my tribe if I quit this religion.

Many Catholic priests in the West know little about Islam and evangelism. What advice would you give to the average priest in Lyons, Manchester, or Chicago who has a Muslim coming to mass or asking for a Bible?

Do the same thing as Saint Philip when he asked the Ethiopian “Do you understand what you are reading?” (Ac 8 :30) When I was young, I learned thirteen chapters of the Quran by heart, without understanding anything. In Islam, it is forbidden to seek to understand of the texts, it is not okay to ask questions. But in Christianity, it is the opposite: God want us to adore him in spirit and in truth, and He tells us that the truth will set us free. One must welcome the questions and inquiries of the Muslim who seeks the truth and we should not hide anything from him. 

I would like to know more about your website. Why did you start it? What is its purpose? What reaction have you received?

The Internet is wonderful because it reaches beyond borders and soon it will break the language barrier. Of course, you can find good seed as well as bad, but the Spirit guides the true children of God to find their Savior. We started at the beginning of 2005. Many slim countries are catching up.people have been led to baptism thanks to this modest website.  

To read an article related to this topic, on the Common Features in the Conversion of Muslims to Christ, http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/common-features.cfm

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Islamic Reactions to President Macron’s Speech

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

An Analysis: 9 October 2020

Bassam Michael Madany

On Friday, the 2nd of October 2020, “French President Emmanuel Macron Friday called Islam ‘a religion that is in crisis all over the world,’ in a speech addressing what he calls ‘separatism in France’s Islamic community.’
“In remarks delivered in the western Paris suburb of Les Mureaux, Macron said Islam is a religion in deep crisis worldwide, even in countries where it is the majority religion, because of “tensions between fundamentalism and political projects … that lead to very strong radicalization.” The French president said the government will offer legislation in December to “reinforce secularism and consolidate republican principles.

https://www.voanews.com/europe/islam-crisis-all-over-world-frances-macron-says

Reactions to President Macron’s speech came quickly from Islamic sources. President Erdogan of Turkey responded by warning Macron, “not to mess” with Turkey. He dismissed such remarks and accused Macron of ‘lacking historical knowledge’. Mr Macron, you’re going to have more problems with me, Erdoğan threatened.” I was surprised that some moderate Arabic-language websites took Macron’s words as an unwarranted critique of Islam.

Over the years, several Arab intellectuals levelled a similar analysis of Islam, and warned about the attitude of Islamic communities in Europe, that have opted to remain separate from the welcoming countries, such as France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Scandinavia.

In April 2020, I read an article by the Algerian intellectual Hamid Zanaz, warning Western leaders about the dangers arising from the growing numbers of Muslims in Europe who remain unassimilated and hostile to the host countries. It was published on a widely read online Arabic journal, Al-Awan. He titled it: “How the West Is Digging its Own Grave?” Zanaz contends that Europe had for too long, allowed many of its Muslim residents to disseminate an Islamic supremacist ideology. This, he believes, would lead to the eventual downfall of European civilization.

“A pioneer Islamist ideologue said the following about the West’s inability to face the challenge of Islam: ‘While we are able to fight democracy from within; democracy, on the other hand, cannot fight Islam, or at least, it cannot openly admit that.’ These words point to the most difficult problem facing Western democracies. Europe finds itself in an unprecedented dilemma as it confronts the Islamists’ destructive activities within its borders.

“Islamists receive all kinds of advantages available to them in Europe. They travel on European passports, receive free social services, benefit from the democratic and human rights traditions; only to work for the destruction of these blessings of modernity. How long should the Muslim communities in the West be allowed to provide a Trojan horse for these extremists to pursue their attacks on freedom and democracy?

“Is France, and with it, the entire West, on its way to Islamization? Or is this fear simply an indication of Islamophobia spreading throughout Europe and America, due to what the activities of the Islamists pretend? Is there any hope that descendants of Arab and Muslim immigrants would eventually integrate within Western secular and democratic societies? Or, are they going to demand recognition for their specific culture, by requiring the promulgation of laws based on the Islamic Sharia? Are they going to be satisfied with the freedom of worship that secular European laws grant them; or would they demand more special privileges?

“In other words, what should be the response of modern European societies to Muslim immigrants who are facing tremendous pressures from Islamist groups that seek to isolate them culturally, thus preventing them from integrating and acting as free and independent individuals?

“Second generation Muslims thus became the main agents in the project for the Islamization of Europe. Their financial support comes from both oil-producing countries, like Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States, as well as from fund-raising campaigns at European mosques. Are the descendants of this ‘Islamic Civilization’ about to become the West’s major problem during the 21st century, as many intellectuals are predicting? Is Sharia going to rule Europe as many Muslims dream? Finally, what will be the Europeans’ response to this Islamic invasion?”

For the full text of the article, please go to the following link:

https://www.answering-islam.org/authors/thomas/islam_west.html

Related articles on this topic are available on my website, Middle East Resources

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/euro-islam-or-islamized-europe.cfm

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/muslims-tragic-history.cfm

Today I noticed on Al-Awan, an article by Hamid Zanaz dated 14 March 2020:              IN EUROPE, THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD SPREADS THEIR POISON VIA THEIR SCHOOLS. Clicking on the underlined Arabic name provides the text of his article.

في أوروبا ينشر الإخوان سمومهم عن طريق مدارسهمحميد زناز 

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Reflections of Shirley Winnifred Madany

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Reflections of Shirley Winnifred Madany

On The State of Christianity in the Middle East

1953 – 1994

Prologue by Bassam Michael Madany

My late wife Shirley (1924 -2008) was born in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada. Her parents, Roland and Nellie Dann had immigrated from Kent and Sussex, England. Roland George Dann’s family grew fruits and vegetables at Battle, Sussex for the London markets.

During WWII, two large airports near Portage served as training centers for airmen from the British Commonwealth. Her brother Roland joined the RCAF and served in England flying missions in the North Sea hunting for German submarines. At 24, he was hit by a Messerschmitt airplane; and was killed as he crash-landed at the airport. After the war, Shirley left for Winnipeg, and worked as secretary to the editor of The Winnipeg Free Press.

In August 1950, I came to United States to study at a Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the end of the academic year in mid-May 1951, I served a Presbyterian congregation in Winnipeg. I met Shirley at a meeting in an independent church.

In the summer of 1952, I served at the same church, and before returning to Pittsburgh for my senior year, we got engaged. We were married a year later and took off for a life of church work in Syria.

From this point on, I quote Shirley’s reflections on our life together, first in Syria, then back to Canada, until we and our growing family settled in South Holland, a farming community in the southern suburbs of Chicago, Illinois.

Part One

I have been glancing at a box of letters written by both of us to my parents in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada. They tell about the long journey to Syria, and the ordering of simple furniture to be made by a carpenter for our small-rented house. They are the first impressions of a bride in a new country! In 1953 Latakia was definitely not the modern seaport which it is now.

Once there, we soon saw that our days in Latakia would be limited. The mission school where Bassam was asked to teach, would soon be nationalized. Syria was about to close its doors to any kind of mission work. The country was in ferment and there were constant “coups” which usually closed the schools.

As we walked to school, where I tried my hand at teaching as well, the sight of soldiers at the street corners early in the morning would be a signal that we would soon be sent home again. No school that day.

Our first son was born at home with an Armenian midwife who could speak French, Arabic and Armenian, but not English! He arrived early on a Friday morning, the Muslim holy day, when radios turned up full blast would be bringing sermons from mosques in Damascus, and Cairo.

We look back now, at those days of waiting, from the vantage point of more than 50 years and marvel at the unbroken length of years as a daily broadcaster in the Arabic language which were to follow.

Years of fruitful contact with the Muslim world through that daily radio ministry have never ceased. In fact, with the Internet, it is possible to make our materials available around the world. An Arabic-language website, www.arabicbible.com was created by a keen Lebanese Christian, now contains most of our published Arabic material, thanks to his vision and determination. Our own website, “Middle East Resources” is directed towards educating people about the global challenge of Islam. www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org

But that is another story. In 1953, Latakia, Syria’s only seaport was still very backward and very, very Muslim. This is the province from which Syria’s President Hafez al-Assad had come.

I soon found myself exclaiming over the sad state of affairs in the country. Christians were told that they could worship and gather together, but they were not allowed to propagate their faith. I felt that these restrictions were impossible to bear. This was not what I called tolerance. I could not see how a Christian could survive under such conditions. When the apostles Peter and John were told not to do anything more in the name of Jesus, their instant reaction was, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4: 19, 20).

It shocked me that I was living in a country where it was considered a crime to talk about the Savior to a friend or neighbor if they happened to be Muslim. Years and years of persecution have shaped the nature of the Eastern Christian. Every family has its sad story. They have learned to live within the law of the land, but it has exacted a visible price—the stifling of the spirit. Obedience to the Great Commission is a part of a normal Christian life. We may be guilty of omission when it comes to personal obedience here in the West, but at least we know we have all the freedom in the world.

I have discovered these same sentiments in an important book entitled “CHRISTIANS IN THE ARAB EAST” (1978), by Robert Brenton Betts.The author has done a thorough study of the various Christian groups in the Middle East who now number around 14 million persons. (This number has changed drastically with the increased flight of Christians to the Western world. One marvels that Christians have survived at all for so many centuries.) The following quote applied well to my brief stay in Syria:

“By the middle of the 8th century the Christian communities and their leaders had come to recognize that the official Muslim toleration which had seemed so attractive a century earlier was in fact a rigid prison from which there was no escape other than apostasy or flight….the dhimmi system, while allowing the Heterodox Christians to keep their religion, churches and property, and to live according to the canon law of their particular sect, condemned them in effect to a slow but almost inevitable decline and death. They were not allowed to build new churches, and as succeeding caliphs became less tolerant, many of their old churches were appropriated by the state and made into mosques, the most famous example being the conversion of the Basilica of Saint John the Baptist in Damascus to the present-day Umayyad Mosque during the reign of Calip Al-Walid. All Christians were prevented from seeking new members from among even the non-Muslims of Dar Al-Islam (that territory under Muslim rulership), and apostasy from Islam was punishable by death.” P.10

Is it surprising then that Eastern Christians made so little effort to bring the Gospel to their neighbors, the Muslims? They have breathed an atmosphere which permits them only a kind of ghostly half-life as Christians. They had to be content with internal growth. Some groups, such as the Nestorians of Iraq, did find a spiritual release for a while by engaging in extensive missionary work eastward throughout India and as far as China.

But at home, the grip of Islam never weakened. In fact, it has become even stronger. There are various kinds of suffering and diverse kinds of persecution. Eastern Christians have known harsh physical persecution as well as the subtle soul-destroying kind. They deserve our sympathetic understanding and our prayers.

To illustrate I would like to share another passage from the Betts’ book:

“The First World War was for the Christians of Syria, Mesopotamia, and Anatolia a purgatory from which they emerged broken and decimated, a tragic chapter in their history of suffering which today, more than fifty years later, remains an omnipresent memory even to those born long afterward….An estimated 100,000 Jacobites and Syrian Catholics are known to have perished from privation and massacre….During (the war) an estimated 100,000 Lebanese, virtually all of them Christian (largely Maronite) died of disease, starvation, and execution….almost 25% of the total population of that populous region of Mount Lebanon. The incalculable suffering which the Christians of Syria and Mesopotamia had endured at Turkish hands during the War caused many among them, heretofore sympathetic to the aims of nascent Arab Nationalism, to question their future under any Muslim administration.” Pp. 28,29

Foreigners, transient on the scene and always having a ready “escape hatch,” have tended to criticize the indigenous Christians of the Middle East. The great achievements of the missionary enterprise were realized only when the Muslim countries were at their weakest. But times have changed. Islam has revived and Western Christians are finding themselves unable to go openly to countries like Saudi Arabia, Libya, and Syria, to name just a few. Missionary work has had to develop along different lines and with other strategies. My husband was one of those Eastern Christians. His roots go back to a Christianity that had existed long before Islam. He felt called to bring the Gospel to his neighbors in what the late Samuel Zwemer called “The Glory of the Impossible.” Step by step God led us to our radio ministry.

Our first Arabic publication, put together while we were living like refugees in my native Canada, was placed in the hands of the Sudan Interior Mission. It had been typed on an Arabic typewriter and dealt with “The Inspiration of the Holy Bible.” This book led to the opening of a door for broadcasting the Gospel in Arabic over the SIM missionary station, ELWA, in Monrovia, Liberia. The work was sponsored the Back-to-God Hour, an agency of the Christian Reformed Church in North America.

Surely God opened up doors beyond our highest expectations. This was seen by the quality and quantity of mail received over 36 years of broadcasting. And now we see the possibility of re-using all those messages when they are placed on the Internet. Having used an expository method of preaching the Gospel, they remain relevant. God has given us this new means of propagating the Gospel.

___________________________________________________

iChristians in the Arab East, in its second edition, is a comprehensive study of the varying roles which Arabic speaking Christians have played in Islamic society since the Muslim conquests, and in the states of the Arab East since independence. Except for Lebanon where they are an official majority and where they continue to dominate many areas of society and government, these Christian communities are a minority conspicuous for their affluence, education, and Western orientation, whose influence in the contemporary Middle East greatly exceeds their numerical strength. Detailed demographic statistics, many made available here for the first time in English, the power structure and political involvement of the various churches, Christian participation in the Palestinian nationalist movement and Lebanon in the immediate aftermath of the 1975-76 civil disturbances - all are examined in the light of the growing importance of the Middle East in world affairs.

John Knox Press; Revised Edition (January 1, 1978) 100 Witherspoon St, Louisville, KY 40202

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Hezbollah’s Ubiquitous Activities

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Hezbollah’s Ubiquitous Activities

By Bassam Michael Madany

25 August 2020

In July 2017, the Al Arabiya Television channeli aired an Interview that Lebanese journalist Carole Maalouf had with two Hezbollah Prisoners. The prisoners had been captured in northwestern Syria, by the Al-Nusra Front, a militant Sunni group opposed to the Assad Regime.

It is important to know the background of how it came to be that Hezbollah was brought in to help shore up Bashar al-Assad’s faltering rule. In the early 1920s, France was the Mandatory power governing the Levantii. Shi’ite regions were incorporated into the new boundaries of Lebanon. This increase in the territory of the country required a restructuring of Lebanese politics to keep a balance between the various religious and confessional groups. The President was to be a Maronite Christian, the Prime Minister, a Sunni Muslim, and the Speaker of the Parliament, a Shi’ite Muslim. This arrangement functioned well during the early years of Lebanon’s independence from 1946 to 1957.

The 1952 Coup in Egypt that brought Colonel Nasser into power, encouraged some Sunni Lebanese to act in ways that upset the Lebanese balance of power. The situation worsened following the Jordanian conflict with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in September 1970, resulting in its move to Beirut, Lebanon.

In the spring of 1975, a bus load of Palestinians clashed with a Lebanese group precipitating a lengthy Civil War. Ten years later, Hezbollah (Arabic for Party of Allah) appeared on the Lebanese scene as a Shi’ite political party bringing with it a heavily armed militia. Five years earlier, the Islamic Revolution had taken place in Iran, creating a Shi’ite regime bent on extending its hegemony throughout the Arab world. Hezbollah became its surrogate military force serving Iran’s interests in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and beyond.  

Syria became independent with the departure of the French in 1946. It inherited a democratic system of government with a President, a Prime Minister, and a Parliament. Unfortunately for the country and the region, Syria experienced several violent military coups. Hafez al-Assad, an officer in the Syrian Air Force, staged the final coup in 1970, that put him in power for the next thirty years.  He belonged to the Alawite sect that had settled in the province of Latakia, northwest Syria, centuries before. 

Hafez al-Assad died in 2000 and was succeeded by his son Bashar. At first, the country hoped for a gentler regime, having suffered greatly under his father’s brutal governance. Their hopes were dashed in March 2011, when the local police reacted violently in the southern town of Dara’a, against students who had scribbled graffiti on the town wall that showed disrespect for the President. The event sparked an uproar in Damascus and elsewhere in Syria. President Assad’s attempt to hold on to power, he received support from the Islamic Republic of Iran, which signaled to its surrogate Hezbollah to get the job done for Assad. Scores of party members went to Syria and fought on the side of the regime. 

Pockets of resistance to the regime existed in Syria, among them was the Al-Nusra Front stationed in northwestern of Syria, close to the Turkish border. In 2016, members of this group captured two Hezbollah fighters. This news attracted the attention of the investigative Lebanese journalist, Carole Maalouf, who was working for Al-Arabiyya Television station. Ms. Maalouf went to the area and interviewed the prisoners.

The following is my translation of excerpts from the Interview

Carole: This Interview is not meant to add to your sufferings! I am an independent Lebanese journalist, I got wind that the Al-Nusra Front had captured two members of Hezbollah fighters that are held at this place. I managed to get over here, first by going to Turkey. Please introduce yourselves.

POW1: I am a Hezbollah communications technician recently stationed in the Aleppo-Idlib part of Syria. I was on a mission to install antennas and other gears in a nearby position. On our return to the base, we lost our way, were ambushed, and captured.

POW2: I come from the same region in south Lebanon and belong to the Shi’ite community; I joined Hezbollah’s militia like several other men in the area. I was on a mission to this part of Syria and ended up as a prisoner!

Carole: You are both from south Lebanon, what were you doing in this distant place?

POW1: You are a Lebanese, certainly you must be aware of the situation in our country. Members of the Shi’ite community are indoctrinated in our faith which has a religious and a political side. I had been working as a teacher at a Government school. At the same time, I was a member of Hezbollah. Had I not joined the Party; I would have been ostracized by the Shi’ite community. Hezbollah’s main goal was leading the Resistance against Israel in south Lebanon. Eventually, the conflict moved to Syria, where the Party played a vital role in defending Syria against the Israeli aggressioniii. Hezbollah expects us to be on active duty for 15 days annually. Soon after I got married in 2016, I was ordered to report to the Syrian front.

Carole addressing POW2: Did you ever consider why you traveled hundreds of kilometers to Syria to defend a regime that was oppressing its people for five long decades? One would have expected Hezbollah to take the side of the persecuted Syrians! 

POW2: All along, even after getting to the Syrian front, we were supposedly engaged in the battle against the Zionists! We were so thoroughly indoctrinated that we never questioned how by serving in northwest Syria, we were actually engaged in the Resistance against Israel!

Carole: Did you ever consider joining the Lebanese Army to defend your homeland? Now, by joining Hezbollah, you might end up fighting in Iraq, or Yemen, even in faraway South America! 

POW2: Our indoctrination was so complete and thorough, that we were convinced that our cause was just.

Following the ambush, the two Hezbollah fighters were captured by Al-Nusra Front. They were taken to a post for interrogation. POW1 was admitted to the field hospital for the treatment of his broken forearm. 

Carole: You should have realized that Hezbollah was in fact fulfilling Iran’s agenda that of spreading their hegemony over the Middle East and beyond. 

POW1 & POW2: You are right, but we had been deceived by Hezbollah’s intensive propaganda. 

Carole: Were there other groups fighting on behalf of Bashar al-Assad?

POW1 & POW2: Yes, members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Afghanis and other radical groups were fighting on the side of the Syrian regime. They greatest help came from the raids conducted by the Russian Air Force that pursued a “scorched earth policy,” devastating large parts of the Syrian territory that was controlled by anti-Assad forces. 
 
Carole: By the way, have you been speaking in this manner, hoping to get a better treatment from your captors; only to change your story later, when you would have managed to get your freedom?

POW2: No, we have been telling exactly the truth. Following our captivity and the treatment we received, we experienced a profound change of mind vis-à-vis Sunni Muslimsiv.

Carole: You have been in captivity for 42 days, how do assess your situation?

POW1 & POW2: We had joined Hezbollah to get involved in the Resistance against Israel; actually, Hezbollah got us over here to fight their own war. We were carried away by their slogans and did not reflect adequately on the totality of their plan. Now however, we have become immune to their propaganda. The treatment we have been getting from our captors has been exemplary. We get decent food, a weekly warm bath, proper hygiene, and all the necessities of life. This is our appeal to Hezbollah: “treat kindly your Sunni prisoners!

POW1 & POW2: Addressing these words to Carole
Thank you very much for taking the trouble to come all the way here, for this Interview. When you get back to Lebanon, please tell our relatives about our situation. Inshallah, we will eventually get our freedom. 

Comment

It was a moving experience to watch and listen to this Interview carried in the Lebanese Arabic dialect. Carole Maalouf and the two Lebanese prisoners sounded like normal human beings engaged in an honest and serious conversation. 

The testimony of the two men revealed that the rise of Hezbollah had drastically altered the older Entente (agreement and cooperation) between the multi-religious and confessional groups in Lebanon. The Lebanon that had survived many challenges since independence, no longer exists. I need not catalogue the recent events of 2020 that confirm my conclusion that Lebanon is now held hostage to Hezbollah, and ultimately to the Iranian Regime.  The leadership holds to an otherworldly Shi’ite belief that the Hidden Imam will return to the world to bring peace and justice to mankind. It is impossible to reason with believers in an eschatological worldview that assumes the infallibility of its leadership. The Iranian Revolution of 1980 has morphed during the last four decades, into a global movement with Hezbollah as their agent. 

I may be exaggerating the consequences of Iran soon becoming a superpower, armed with long-range ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons. However, ignoring Iran’s activities in the region through Hezbollah, and its weaponry build-up can only lead to instability and turbulence in international relations. This is not a pleasant thought at any time, but especially when the entire world is facing the challenge of a global pandemic.    

 

________________________________________________________________

iAl Arabiya is a television news channel based in Dubai.
Click on the Link below to watch the Interview. Even if one is not familiar with MSA (Modern Standard Arabic) it would help to “feel” and appreciate this moving and educational event! 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELzuRL0155Q&t=111s

iiLevant a French term that refers to the territories The League of Nations granted to France as the Mandate that would lead them to independence. Practically, it comprised Syria and Lebanon. During the Ottoman rule that had lasted four hundred years, the term Lebanon referred to a smaller area called, Jabal Lubnan (Mount Lebanon). Tripoli, Beirut, Sidon, and Tyre formed the Ottoman Vilayets (Provinces) of Syria.  

iii“The conflict moved to Syria” was the propaganda line used by the leadership of Hezbollah to interfere in the Syrian Civil War. Actually, the Syrian front with Israel was on the Golan Heights and had been calm for a long time! 

ivEver since AD 680 when Hussein, son of Ali, and grandson of Prophet Muhammad was assassinated at Kerbala, Iraq, a longstanding enmity arose between Sunni Muslims and Shi’ite Muslims. Shi’ites living in Muslim-majority countries were marginalized. That was the plight of Iraqi and Lebanese Shi’ites under the 400-year rule of the Ottoman Empire that held the Sunni Caliphate until it was abolished in 1924 by Turkey’s Mustapha Kemal Ataturk.

vHezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon's Party of God
https://www.amazon.com/Hezbollah-Global-Footprint-Lebanons-Party/dp/1626162018
 

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The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East Ravaged by Military Coup d’états Part 3

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East Ravaged by Military Coup d’états

By Bassam Michael Madany

Part III: The Bloody Iraqi Upheavals

 

It is an exceedingly difficult and complicated task to describe the part that Iraq plays in “The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East”.

In a footnote to my first article on the history of Post-Colonial Middle East regarding Syria, I noted that the arrival of the Assad family made dictatorship certain. They were members of the minority Alawite sect and authoritarians with a vengeance. They believed it necessary to control the majority Sunnis.

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/the-tragedy-of-post-colonial-middle-east.cfm

Iraq is even more complicated. While the majority of Iraqis are Arabs, there are also Kurds, living in the north, Turcoman in the area around Kirkuk, and the Yazidis (around 500,000) who in recent times suffered tremendously when the ISIS (Khalifate) overran their area. Sunnis, Shi’ites, Christians (Assyrian and Chaldean) and Jews always lived in Iraq. The Jewish population numbering around 90,000 was forced to leave in the aftermath of the creation of Israel in 1948.

So, to explain the bloody upheavals that afflicted the country since the middle of the twentieth century, it is instructive to consider the history of Iraq prior to its emergence as a modern state in the 1920’s. Besides these demographic and religious complexities, Iraq (known as Mesopotamia for centuries) shares borders with Turkey, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Syria. Its coastline on the Persian Gulf measures 32 miles, making it almost landlocked.

Early in the 16th century, the Ottoman Turks defeated the Mamluks who had controlled Egypt and the Levant for centuries, thus becoming the major power throughout the Middle East until the early years of the twentieth century. When the Great War began in 1914, the Ottomans joined Germany and Austria in the war against Britain, France, and Russia. 

Britain and France fought the Ottoman Turks on several fronts. In 1917, British forces entered Baghdad, and by 1920, they completed the occupation of Iraq. During the war, Britain had negotiated with Sharif Hussein, the ruler of Hejaz in western Arabia, to join the Allies in the war against the Ottomans, promising independence for the Arabs of the Middle East. At the same time, Britain agreed with the French to divide the area into spheres of influence between themselves.

In October 1918, Emir Faysal, a son the Sharif Hussein, liberated Damascus from Ottoman rule, formed a government, and was proclaimed as King of Syria. Two years later, French forces intervened and expelled him from Syria. Eventually, the League of Nations granted France the Mandate to “guide” Syria and Lebanon into independence. Great Britain received a similar mandate vis-à-vis Palestine and Transjordan.

In 1921, the British named Emir Faysal as Iraq’s first king. He ruled for 12 years under a constitutional monarchy until his death from a heart attack, at age 48. Faysal’s son, Ghazi, succeeded his father in 1933, but died six years later in a car crash in Baghdad. The title of king fell to Faysal II, who was just three years old; his reign began under the regency of his uncle, Crown Prince Abdel-Ilah. Faysal II was educated in Britain at Harrow, along with his cousin, the future King Hussein of Jordan. In 1953, Faysal II took the throne at age 18. His rule was to last for five years!

I’ll never forget the shocking news reports on the 14th of July 1958. The Iraqi Monarchy was overthrown in a predawn coup by General Abd al-Karim Qassim and Colonel Abd al-Salaam Arif. The Revolution met virtually no opposition. King Faysal II and his uncle Abdel-Ilah were executed, as were many others in the royal family. Prime Minister Nuri al-Said was killed after attempting to escape disguised as a veiled woman. King Faisal II was 23 and engaged to marry.

Just as the French Revolution of 1789 was followed by a “Reign of Terror,” so did the Iraqi Revolution; it ushered in decades of instability marked by coups, vendettas between Iraqi Communists and Baathists, savage attacks on Iraqi Kurds, and eight years of warfare between  Iraq and Iran during the 1980s; culminating with the occupation of Kuwait in the 1990s!  

On 8 February 1963, a coup d'état took place led by Abd al-Salam Arif that ended with the removal of Abd al-Karim Qassim from power. The next day, Qasim offered his surrender in return for safe passage out of the country. His request was denied and was executed in midafternoon! 
In April 1966, Arif was killed in a helicopter crash and his brother, Abd al-Rahman Arif, was installed in office. Two years later, he was deposed in a bloodless coup on 17 July 1968, and was exiled to Turkey. 

Saddam Hussein, 31, rode through Baghdad atop a tank in the July 1968 coup. His kinsman, Gen. Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr, who led the coup became president. Like Bakr, Hussein was from Tikrit, a Sunni town north of Baghdad that historically had fielded a disproportionate share of army officers. Saddam’s ferocity and cunning had impressed President Hassan al-Bakr, who appointed him to run the national security apparatus. In that capacity he set out to eliminate his main rivals, and he placed relatives and fellow Tikritis in positions of power and influence in the Baath Party, the armed forces, and the government. In 1979, Saddam Hussein became president following Bakr’s resignation, and began a series of horrific executions of thousands of Iraqis, including members of the Baath Party and of the Armed Forces.i

On 22 September 1980, Saddam Hussein launched his eight-year war against the Islamic Republic of Iran. It turned out to be very costly in human life for both sides of the conflict. Saddam had counted on a demoralized and weakened Iranian armed forces; but his estimate was wrong. At first, Iraqi army advanced along a broad front into western Iran and captured Khorramshahr; but by the end of the year the Iraqi offensive had bogged down. Iran counterattacked adding the Revolutionary Guards to the regular armed forces who compelled the Iraqis to give ground in 1981. In 1982, Iraq withdrew its forces from all captured Iranian territory and sought a peace agreement with Iran. Ayatollah Khomeini decided to continue the war and launched attacks that included human assault waves of untrained and unarmed young boys who would sacrifice their lives in the mine fields planted by the Iraqis. The number of casualties was great. Estimates range from 1,000,000 to twice that number. The number killed on both sides was perhaps 500,000, with Iran suffering the greatest losses. 
Saddam’s invasion and occupation of Kuwait in August 1990 resulted in the assembling of a coalition several of armies led by the US. The Gulf War began on 17 January 1991 and ended in the eviction of the Iraqi invaders from Kuwait at the end of February 1991.

The next event that confronted Saddam Hussein was the growing suspicion among Western powers that he was engaged in the production of “weapons of mass destruction.” Unconvinced by his denial of such projects, the United States invaded Iraq on 20 March 2003. On 9 April, US forces entered Baghdad bringing an end to Saddam’s 24-year dictatorship. He was captured on 14 December 2003. In October 2005, Saddam went on trial before the Iraqi High Tribunal. He was charged with the killing of 148 townspeople in Al-Dujail, a mainly Shiite town, in 1982. He was convicted of crimes against humanity and was sentenced to death by hanging. Days after, an Iraqi court upheld his sentence; in December 2006, Saddam was executed.ii

While the American occupation is too complicated to briefly summarize, I believe something should be said about some of Paul Bremer’s actions as the US Administrator of “A Provisional Coalition Administration of Iraq,” which was to supervise Iraq’s transition to normalcy.                                                                                                                 
One of Bremer’s first acts was to dissolve the entire former Iraqi Army, putting close to half a million former soldiers out of work. Bremer was later heavily criticized for his action. In fact, American commanders at the time were negotiating with senior Iraqi army officers on how to use the Iraqi army for security purposes. Beside Bremer’s action vis-à-vis the army, he fired thousands of schoolteachers and removed Baath Party members from government positions. Bremer’s actions were not helpful to the normalization of political life in Iraq. These actions did much to further destabilize Iraq as it transitioned into what was hoped in the West would be a democratic state. rather, they added to the tensions that have marked the governance of Iraq since 2003! 

Postscript

By calling my series “The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East,” I don’t imply that it was inevitable that the history of Post-Colonial Syria, Egypt, and Iraq, should have followed the trajectory it did! I don’t approach my historical work from a deterministic motif. Also, my use of the term “Post-Colonial” must be taken as a purely historical marker. 

To understand why Syria, Egypt, and Iraq had gone through their travails, one common factor should be noted. The coups were mounted by adventuresome army officers with no background in civilian governance. They were hungry for power and once obtained power is difficult to surrender to the democratic processes which we in the West hold so dear They turned on their own people, creating societies of fear and manipulation. It is my hope that eventually the Arab countries will enjoy freedom and security under properly ordered and functioning democracies. That would allow them to meet the mounting challenges that impact the lives of the 300 million men, women, and children living in peace, from Morocco on the Atlantic, to Iraq on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers!

___________________________________________________________

iFor details of the murderous deeds of Saddam Hussein, I watched/listened to a series of Interviews conducted by a professional journalist, with Iraqi officials (mostly diplomats) who had served before and after Saddam’s assuming the Presidency. They defected when they were recalled back to Iraq, fearing execution as happened to most of the Baath Party leadership and governments officials.
In assembling materials for this article, I relied on an Arabic language program شاهد على العصر (A Witness on the Epoch) i.e. an eyewitness account of events as archived on YouTube channels. Sessions lasted around 50 minutes.                        

The links listed below relate (in Arabic) extremely painful and shocking events in the modern history of Iraq, such as televised public trials of “conspirators” who had planned to overthrow Saddam Hussein. One by one, they were carried away for execution. An Iraqi author, Kanan Makiya’s book “Republic of Fear: The Politics of Modern Iraq,” described the horrific atmosphere that hovered over the Iraqi society during the presidency of Saddam Hussein!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpwL0KZqti0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQrhA7mNknA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rngkqpJ0Dhw

ii https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saddam-Hussein
 

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The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East Ravaged by Military Coup d’états Part 2

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East Ravaged by Military Coup d’états

By Bassam Michael Madany

Part II: The Militarization of Egyptian Governance

Syria began the cycle of military coup d’états in the Middle East during the summer of 1949. Three years later, Egypt went through a similar upheaval, even though it lacked the violence that had accompanied the Syrian coup.

On 22–26 July 1952, a group of disaffected officers in the Egyptian army launched a coup d’état against the government of King Farouk of Egypt. At first, the leader of the Revolution was a seasoned officer, General Muhammad Naguib, It didn’t take long to discover that the real power behind the coup was Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser, founder of the Free Officers group who had participated in the First Arab-Israeli War, in May 1948. While the Egyptian Army managed to occupy the Gaza Strip and the region of Hebron;  by the end of the summer, Egypt and all the other Arab armies that had participated in the war, had accepted the Armistice Agreement that was negotiated by the United Nations Organization.

Gamal Abdel Nasser ruled Egypt from 1952 until his death in September 1970. During this period, modernization and Socialist reforms became a part of Egyptian life. He regarded himself as the leader of Pan-Arab nationalism. On the world stage, Nasser was a constituent member of the Non-Aligned Movement with Prime Minister Nehru of India, Marshall Tito of Yugoslavia, and President Sukarno, of Indonesia.

Three years after the Revolution, President Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal that had been under the control of Britain and France. In response, Israeli, British and French forces attacked the Canal’s zone, which precipitated a major world crisis. Both the USR and the US (under President Eisenhauer) forced the retreat of British, French, and Israeli forces from the Sinai Peninsula.

President Nasser & the Muslim Brotherhood

The Society of the Muslim Brothers (Jama ‘at al-Ikhwan al-Muslimeen) was founded by the Egyptian teacher, Hassan al-Banna in 1928, four years after Kemal Ataturk, President of Turkey, had abolished the Caliphate. During the reign of King Farouk, the Brotherhood was involved in the assassination of Prime Minister Mahmoud Fahmy Elnokrashy Pasha on 28 December 1948. In retaliation, the government arranged for the murder of al-Banna on 12 February 1949.

The Muslim Brotherhood did not welcome Nasser’s Pan-Arabism, that brought them into conflict with him. On 26 October 1954, while President Nasser was addressing a Rally in Alexandria, a member of the Brotherhood attempted to assassinate him. That led to a campaign of persecution of the organization, including the execution of several of the Brotherhood’s leaders.

[A personal note. At the time, I was living in Syria; quite often I would tune in to Radio Cairo. On Tuesday afternoon of 26 October 1954, while listening to President Nasser’s speech, I heard gun shots. A few moments later, it became clear that Nasser was safe! What a relief!]

One of the major leaders in the Brotherhood was the Egyptian Sayyid Qutb. He had authored several books, including “Ma'alim fi al-Tariq,” (Milestones on the Way,) where he outlined a plan for organizing the Muslim world on strictly Quranic grounds, casting off what he  considered Jahiliyyah (Ignorance), a term describing the pre-Islamic days in Arabia. In 1966, he was convicted of plotting the assassination of President Nasser and was executed by hanging.

President Nasser’s Foreign Adventures

President Nasser’s commitment to Pan-Arabism led him to adventures beyond
Egypt, in Syria and in Yemen.

On 22 February 1958, Egypt and Syria united to form the United Arab Republic. Arab nationalists in the Middle East hailed the birth of the UAR as the first step in the realization of their dream for a larger union. That triggered serious conflicts within Lebanon and Jordan, where local “Nasserite” activist groups hailing Nasser as their hero.  

In 1958, President Camille Chamoun of Lebanon, fearing trouble from the “Nasserites,” requested the assistance of the United States. President Eisenhauer sent American forces to help in stabilizing the situation. American and Lebanese government forces successfully occupied the Port of Beirut and Beirut International Airport. With the crisis over, the United States withdrew.

Jordan felt isolated as never before, after the fall of the Monarchy in Iraq on 14 July 1958. King Hussein appealed both to the United States and to Britain for help. The United States instituted an airlift of petroleum. In July 1958 Britain flew troops into Amman to stabilize the regime. For some weeks, the political atmosphere in Jordan was explosive, but the government kept order through limited martial law. The army proved its unquestioning loyalty to the king, and the Israeli frontier remained quiet.

Nasser’s involvement in the Yemeni Civil War proved to be one of his most serious mistakes. Yemen and Saudi Arabia were the only independent countries in the Arabian Peninsula. Britain controlled the port city of Aden, in southern Yemen and the Emirates that dotted the southern and eastern coasts of Arabia, all the way to Kuwait.

On 26 September 1962, a coup d’état was carried out by the Yemeni army commander Abdullah as-Sallal who dethroned Imam Muhammad al-Badr and declared a republic under his presidency. Imam al-Badr retreated to the Saudi border and got support from the northern tribes, resulting in a full-scale civil war that lasted until 1970.

Jordan and Saudi Arabia came to the aid of the Royalists by supplying them with military aid. The Republicans got help from Egypt and the Soviet Union. President Nasser sent an Egyptian force of 70,000 troops who got bogged down in Yemen’s Civil War and manifested the inability of his forces to offer any substantive help to the Republicans and indicating his poor judgment as a military strategist. This weakness became shockingly evident during the June 1967 War with Israel.

Throughout the 1960s, Palestinian Fedayeen groups stationed in Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan, attacked Israeli towns which precipitated sharp reprisals from the IDF (Israeli Defence Forces.) In April 1967, the Israeli Air Force shot down six Syrian Soviet-made fighter jets. A month later, Soviet Intelligence claimed that Israel was planning to attack Syria, heightening the tensions between Israel and its neighbors.

From mid-May on, President Nasser began a propaganda war against the Jewish State giving the impression to the Arab masses, that victory would be quick and decisive. At the time, I was getting a daily Lebanese newspaper, An-Nahar; I still remember the references to the fiery words of the Egyptian leader. Adding to his rhetoric, Nasser requested the removal of the UN Peace-keeping Forces stationed in the Sinai since 1956, and closed the Gulf of Aqaba, thus blocking navigation to the Israeli port of Eilat, in southern Israel. 

Early on Monday morning 5 June, Israel launched a preemptive air attack that destroyed most of Egypt’s air force on the ground. Then, Israel mounted a similar assault on the Syrian air force. By Saturday the 10th, Israel had captured the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula up to the east bank of the Suez Canal.

King Hussein was warned to keep Jordan out of the fight; he refused, and the outcome was disastrous for his country. On 7 June, Israeli forces entered East Jerusalem and occupied most of the West Bank. A cease fire arranged by the UN Security Council on the same day was accepted by Jordan, and Israel on the following day. Syria continued to shell northern Israel forcing Israel to launch an attack on 9 June and occupy the Golan Heights. Syria accepted the cease-fire on the tenth of June.

The Six-Day War was devastating beyond Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. The entire Arab world was shaken up by the Hazima (Arabic for Defeat.)  Egypt’s casualties numbered 11,000, Jordan 6,000, and Syria 1,000. The battle fields in the Sinai, West Bank, and the Golan Heights, were littered with heaps of shattered tanks, trucks, and other war materiel. 

President Nasser resigned, only to change his mind because of popular demand. Before the end of summer, the Arab League held it summit on 29 August in Khartoum, Sudan. Its Resolution came to be known as “The Three No’s” No peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with Israel. The summit also resolved that the “oil-rich Arab states” give financial aid to the states who lost the war and to “help them rebuild their military forces.” The final communique of the meeting “underscored the Palestinians’ right to regain the whole of Palestine.

Having received support from the Arab countries at the Summit in Khartoum, President Nasser embarked on warlike activities known as the “War of Attrition” that involved Egypt, Jordan, and the PLO from 1967 to 1970. During the early phase of the war, there were artillery duels and incursions into the Sinai. Then on 8 March 1969, Nasser ratcheted up the conflict by large-scale shelling along the Suez Canal, extensive aerial warfare, and commando raids until August 1970, one month before his death.  

President Anwar Sadat’s New Deal

Anwar Sadat ruled Egypt from 15 October 1970 until his assassination on 6 October 1981. He was born on 25 December 1918 in a town situated in the Delta (Northern) of the country. When the British created a military academy in 1936, Sadat was among the first to enroll. After graduation, he received a government post, where he met Gamal Abdel Nasser. The two became close friends and organized a revolutionary group designed to expel the British from Egypt. In 1952, as a member with Nasser of the Free Officers Group, they were behind the coup that toppled King Farouk, and organized the republican regime. Soon after the Revolution, when Nasser assumed the Presidency, Sadat became his Vice-President.

During the turbulent years that followed the Six-Day War of June 1967, Anwar Sadat had learned several lessons, both political and military. Now as president, he knew that negotiations with Israel for the return of the Sinai were futile, unless he could negotiate from a position of strength. So, Sadat negotiated with President Hafez al-Assad of Syria and agreed on a plan to attack the Israeli forces that had dug in in their fortifications on the east side of the Suez Canal, for the past six years. Early on Saturday morning on the 6th of October 1973, the Egyptian Forces attacked the Israelis on Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement,) making some headway, until the IDF succeeded to stop the Egyptian advance.                                                                                                                              

Israeli General Ariel Sharon crossed the Suez Canal in the south and overrun the Golan Heights in the north. The tide of battle turned; ceasefire negotiations eventually produced an end to hostilities. By that then, Israeli forces were not far from the gates of Damascus and were only 100 kilometres from Cairo. The war had been short, but it changed the world.                                                                     

“A few years after the Yom Kippur War, Sadat restarted his efforts to build peace in the Middle East. He went to Jerusalem in November 1977 and presented his peace plan to the Israeli Knesset. Arab states did not appreciate Sadat’s diplomatic efforts for a lasting peace with Israel. Finally, President Jimmy Carter took the initiative to help in the negotiations between Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin. A preliminary peace agreement, the Camp David Accords, was agreed upon between Egypt and Israel in September 1978.

“For their historic efforts, Sadat and Begin were awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1978, and follow-through on the negotiations resulted in a finalized peace treaty between Egypt and Israel—the first between Israel and an Arab country—being signed on March 26, 1979.”

Unfortunately, Sadat's popularity abroad was matched by a new animosity felt toward him in Egypt and around the Arab world. Opposition to the treaty, a declining Egyptian economy and Sadat's quashing of the resulting dissent led to general upheaval. On October 6, 1981, Anwar Sadat was assassinated in Cairo by Muslim extremists during a military parade commemorating the victory of the Yom Kippur War!

President Hosni Mubarak

Following this tragedy, Vice-President Hosni Mubarak became president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011. “Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in the Egyptian Air Force. He served as its commander from 1972 to 1975 and rose to the rank of air chief marshal in 1973. His presidency lasted almost thirty years, making him Egypt's longest-serving ruler since Muhammad Ali Pasha, who ruled the country for 43 years from 1805 to 1848.”

Mubarak’s rule was marred by political and economic crises. In 2011, the winds of the Arab Spring that began in Tunisia, blew over to Egypt. Crowds of dissatisfied young people gathered at Tahrir Square (Liberation Square) in Cairo, demanding change in the regime. After 18 days of demonstrations, President Mubarak resigned on 11 February 2011, and transferred authority to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. He was jailed for six years after the uprising but was freed in 2017. He died, on 25 February 2020, at the age of 91.

President Mohamed Morsi

In a rather confusing atmosphere that Egypt experienced after the “fall” of the Hosni Mubarak regime, the country elected a civilian president, Mohamed Morsi. He was an Egyptian politician and engineer, having studied both in Egypt and in the United States. Soon after his election, It became clear that the vast majority of Egyptians did not want to live under an Islamist regime. The opposition formed “The National Salvation Front” (NSF) under the leadership of Mohammed el-Baradei and Amr Moussa whose goal was the formation of a commission to amend the constitution that had been adopted in 2012, and signed into law by President Morsi on 26 December 2012. Massive riots took place throughout Egypt on 30 June 2012 demanding the resignation of the President. In response, on 3 July 2013, General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi removed him from office in a coup d'état.

For the last seventy decades (1952 – 2020) Egypt’s governance has been under military men, except for one brief year. By pointing to this historical fact, I’m not rendering a positive, or a negative judgment. I’m simply referring to the special role of the military in the life of Egypt since the end of the Monarchy. My hope is that the country would enjoy a period of calm and stability, thus enabling the Government to cope with the mounting economic, and demographic challenges facing the future of the country.

I would like to end my article by referring to “The Role of the Suez Canal in the Life and Economy of Egypt."

“The Role of the Suez Canal in the Life and Economy of Egypt,”

In 1956, President Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal that had been under joint control of Britain and France for a long time. Very soon after, Israel invaded the Sinai, and was soon joined by British and French forces that landed in the Canal area. Egypt blocked the Canal to all shipping from 1956 until March 1957. The United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Nations forced the invading powers to withdraw from the areas they had occupied. However, Israel attained for the first time, freedom of navigation through the Straits of Tiran, an essential maritime route to Eilat, on the Gulf of Aqaba.

A second closing of the Suez Canal took place during the Six Day War of June 196; it remained closed for more than 8 years.

Egypt’s revenue from the Suez Canal was $853.7 million in April and March 2020, 4.1 percent higher than the same period a year earlier.

In 2014, Egypt announced a plan to deepen the canal and create a new 22-mile lane branching off the main channel, due to the increase in the traffic and accommodate two-way traffic of tanker ships.

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The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East Ravaged by Military Coup d’états

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Tragedy of Post-Colonial Middle East

Ravaged by Military Coup d’états

By Bassam Michael Madany

Part I: The Destruction of Syria Hasn’t Stopped

I began writing these words on Friday, the 17th of April 2020, during the Lockdown necessitated by the spread of Covit-19 virus. On that day in 1946, Syria celebrated Evacuation Day (‘Eid al-Jalaa’,) as the last French troops had left the country two days before. The country was exuberant with joy, as Syrians looked with great hope for the blessings of independence and freedom.

The French Mandate that had governed the country since the early 1920s had introduced Syrians to the modern ways of governance, giving the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial institutions their specific and independent roles. Beginning with 1922, several men served as presidents, with the prior approval of the French High Commissioner residing in Beirut.

The 1946 elections brought to power President Shoukry al-Quwatli, with Fares al-Khoury serving as Prime Minister. The governors of the ten Provinces were appointed by the central government in Damascus.

During the French Mandate, the Syrian Army had both French and Syrian officers in command. A Military Academy was formed at Homs, in the center of the country. Military service followed a volunteering system; recruits came generally from the poor classes, with a preponderance of soldiers from the Alawite population that lived in the mountainous region of the northwest, close to the Mediterranean Sea.

Political parties were few; they all sought to end the French presence and gain independence. There were three ideological parties: the Syrian National Party, The Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party, and the Syrian Communist Party. The Syrian National Party was organized by Anton Sa’adi; its agenda was the independence of Greater Syria, that would unite Syria, Lebanon, Transjordan, and Palestine. The Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party’s goal was the ultimate federal union of all Arab lands. The Communist Party followed blindly the instructions of the Comintern’s headquarters in Moscow.

I’ll never forget the news coming over Radio Damascus on Wednesday morning, 30 March 1949. The announcer began reading several communiqués, No. 1 informed the Syrian public of a Coup d’état that toppled President Shoukry al-Quwatli.i  The coup was led by Colonel Husni al-Za’im. During his rule that lasted 136 days, Syria changed into a police state, with informers springing everywhere, and freedom of speech curtailed. On Sunday, 14 August, our neighbor’s radio was blaring, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, another coup had occurred: Husni al-Za’im was executed! A return to civilian life followed with President Hashem al-Atassi in office. His regime lasted from 15 August 1949 to 2 December 1951. A return to military rule became the new “normal” with a dizzying number of upheavals that culminated in union with Egypt to form the “United Arab Republic” under President Gamal abd-el Nasser, on 23 February 1958. The union didn’t last long and was dissolved on 29 September 1961, as Pan-Arabism couldn’t overcome the historic cultural differences between Egypt and Syria.

A series of chaotic changes followed, with a Baathist military officer assuming power in March 1963. Ultimately, it led the way for Hafez al-Assad, an Air Force officer’s coup of 22 February 1971.

A new era in Syria's history began that impacted the nation and the Middle East for the following fifty years.ii  Hafez al-Assad claimed allegiance to the ideology of the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party which brought him into conflict with the Syrian Nationalist Party and the Muslim Brotherhood.

On 22 April 1955, Adnan al-Maliki, the deputy-chief of staff of the army was assassinated. The Syrian Nationalist Party was blamed for the murder, which allowed the Arab Socialist Baath Party to lead a crackdown on the SNP in Syria, and to its gradual disappearance from the political life in the country.

The remaining opposition to Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party was The Muslim Brotherhood.iii While it began in Egypt, its view was Pan-Islamic, which led to the rise of “branches” of the Brotherhood in Syria and the rest of the Middle East.iv

Two major terrorist attacks took place in Syria that solidified Hafez al-Assad’s resolve to harden his grip on power. One was the attack on the Military School in Aleppo, and the second was the 1982 Uprising in Hama.

On 16 June 1979, the Muslim Brotherhood carried out an attack on cadets at the Aleppo Artillery School. An officer on duty, and members of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood massacred between 50 and 83 Alawi cadets in the Aleppo Artillery School.

The Hama Massacre, or Hama Uprising, occurred in February 1982, when the Syrian Arab Army and the Defense Companies, under the orders of the country's president Hafez al-Assad, besieged the town of Hama for 27 days to quell an uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood against al-Assad's government. The massacre, carried out by the Syrian Army under commanding General Rifa’at al-Assad, effectively ended the campaign against the government, begun in 1976 by Sunni Muslim groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood.

At the time, Bill Rugh, was serving at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus. The following endnote has his description of the event.v The massacre of the Alawite cadets in Aleppo and the Hama Intifada widened the rift between Hafez al-Assad and the Sunni population in Syria. Not that the majority of Sunnis were pro-Brotherhood; still they resented that a member of the Alawite sect, could rule the country as if it were his own fiefdom.

Hafez had initially chosen his brother Rifa’at, as successor. But when Rifa’at attempted to seize power in 1983-1984 failed, when the President’s health had deteriorated, he was exiled. Bassel, the eldest son was chosen.vi  After his death in a car accident in 1994, the succession went to his brother Bashar who became President on 17 July 2000.vii

To summarize the tortuous history of Syria during Bashar’s rule, these are excerpts from the website of  https://www.history.com/  on the events that have transpired since 2000.              

“What started as a nonviolent protest in 2011 quickly escalated into full-blown warfare. Since the fighting began, more than 470,000 people have been killed, with over 1 million injured and millions more forced to flee their homes and live as refugees.

“Although many complicated motives led to the Syrian civil war, one event, known as the Arab Spring, stands out as perhaps the most significant trigger for the conflict. In early 2011, a series of political and economic protests in Egypt and Tunisia broke out. These successful revolts, dubbed the Arab Spring, served as an inspiration for pro-democracy activists in Syria. However, in March of that year, 15 Syrian schoolchildren were arrested and tortured for writing graffiti that was inspired by the Arab Spring. One of the boys was killed. The arrests sparked outrage and demonstrations throughout Syria. Citizens demanded the release of the remaining children, along with greater freedoms for all people in the country.

“But the government, responded by killing and arresting hundreds of protestors. Shock and anger began to spread throughout Syria, and many demanded that Assad resign. When he refused, war broke out between his supporters and his opponents.

“Even before the Arab Spring-inspired incident, many Syrian citizens were dissatisfied over the government’s incompetency, the people’s lack of freedoms and the general living conditions in their country. Assad became president in 2000 after the death of his father. Several human rights groups have accused the leader of habitually torturing and killing political opponents throughout his presidency.

“Another problem was a tense religious atmosphere in the country: Most Syrians are Sunni Muslims, yet Syria’s government is dominated by members of the Alawite sect. Tensions between the two groups is an ongoing problem throughout Syria and other nations in the Middle East. Since the start of the war, the situation became much more complicated, as other countries and organized fighters have entered the picture. The Syrian government’s main backers are Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah of Lebanon.

“Experts estimate that 13.1 million Syrians need humanitarian assistance, such as medicine or food. Nearly 3 million of these people live in hard-to-reach areas. More than 5.6 million refugees have fled the country, and another 6.1 million are displaced within Syria. Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan are credited with hosting the most Syrian refugees.

“Since 2014, the United Nations has hosted several rounds of mediated peace talks, known as the Geneva II process. Despite this intervention, little progress has been made. Both the Syrian government and rebels appear unwilling to agree on terms of peace. If nothing changes, this war-torn area of the world is likely to be the site of more violence and instability.”

https://www.history.com/news/syria-civil-war-assad-rebels

I’m finishing this article on the 5th of May 2020. It seems like ages ago, when I stood in the crowds of joyful Syrians on 17 April 1946, to celebrate Independence. At the time, I was 18, and had graduated from a Syrian Government institution, having majored in the “History of the Arab-Islamic Civilization,” and began teaching in the coastal city Latakia, at “Terra Sancta” a private school, run by the Franciscan Order. 

The 1949 Coup was a prelude to many similar upheavals, culminating in the rise of Hafez al-Assad and his son, Bashar who have ruled Syria now, for the last half century.

I’ve been exhausted from viewing and hearing multiple reports and interviews in Arabic, about the unending Syrian tragedy. Sometimes, I feel as if it’s all a horrible nightmare; unfortunately, it’s real.

One report estimated the cost of rebuilding Syria after its liberation, would be in billions of dollars. That’s not an exaggeration; the destruction in cities like Hama, Homs, and especially in Aleppo, is beyond belief. But I hope it would take place.

However, there is one damage that cannot be undone; it’s the cultural and societal destruction inflicted on the Syrian boys and girls, both in Syria and the Diaspora, who have missed their proper education. Most of my readers are perhaps unaware that Modern Written Arabic, known also as Classical Arabic, isn’t learned at home. It takes years to acquire a proper knowledge and use of its grammar and syntax. It’s the language of books, newspapers, and the Internet. It’s the language of Sacred texts, like the Qur’an and the Bible (for Arabic-speaking Christians.)viii    

Five years ago, I posted on this website, “As the World Watches, Syrians keep on dying!” It ended with these words:

“I am waiting on the Lord to use His mighty power to end the many-sided Civil War in Syria. In the meantime, these words of the Prophet Habakkuk express my feelings:

“O Lord, how long shall I cry for help and you will not hear? Or cry to you Violence!” and you will not save?  Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So, the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous, so justice goes forth perverted.” Habakkuk 1: 2-4 (ESV)

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places.”  Habakkuk 3: 17–19 (ESV)

In 2020, I’m adding these hopeful words:

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.  For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.  For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.  And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience."  Paul’s Epistle to the Romans 8:18 – 25 (ESV)

_______________________________________________________

i Husni al-Za'im was a Syrian military officer and politician. Husni al-Za'im, had been an officer in the Ottoman Army. After France instituted its colonial mandate over Syria after the First World War, he became an officer in the French Army. After Syria's independence in 1946 he was made Chief of Staff and was ordered to lead the Syrian Army into war with the Israeli Army in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The defeat of the Arab league forces in that war shook Syria and undermined confidence in the country's chaotic parliamentary democracy, allowing him to seize power in 1949. However, his reign as head of state would be brief: he was executed on 14 August 1949.

ii Fifteen men, both military and civilian, exchanged power in Syria, between Husni al-Za'im and Hafez al-Assad. What marked a radical change with the arrival of the Assads, was that for the first time, a president belonged to a minority sect, the Alawites; all the previous presidents, before and after independence, came from the Sunni majority population. Such a fundamental change in governance, could only be maintained in a dictatorial regime!

iii The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt, by Hassan al-Banna in 1928 as an Islamic political, and social movement, with branches throughout the Middle East. It was a reaction to the abolition of the Islamic Caliphate by Ataturk in 1924, which left the Islamic world with a titular head for the first time in history. From its earliest days, the Brotherhood sought to implement its agenda through violence. During the 1930s, the movement was involved in the assassination of the Prime Minister of Egypt; in retaliation, King Farouk’s secret police assassinated al-Banna.

The July 1952 Revolution that toppled the King, brought a group of Egyptian officers to power, under the leadership of Colonel Gamal abdel-Nasser. The Brotherhood supported the revolution with the hope of further spreading its influence. Soon however, they opposed Nasser, and attempted to assassinate him while addressing a crowd at Alexandria in November 1954.

Following Syria’s independence in 1946, The Muslim Brotherhood increased its activities in the country, as Syrians went to Egypt for their higher education. Upon their return home, some students had been converted to the Brotherhood’s ideology, and began making converts throughout the country. 

iv The Muslim Brotherhood in Syria was founded in the mid-1940s by Mustafa al-Siba'i and Muhammad al-Mubarak al-Tayyib, who were friends and colleagues of the founder of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al-Banna. In the first years of Syrian independence the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood was part of the legal opposition, and in the 1961 parliamentary elections it won ten seats. After the 1963 coup brought the secularist, Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party, it was banned.

v Bill Rugh Former Ambassador, UAE; Vice-Chair of the Board, Middle East Policy Council

On November 29, 1981, I was sitting in my office at the U.S. embassy in Damascus when I heard a loud explosion not too far away. I had arrived and taken up my duties as deputy chief of the U.S. mission only a few weeks earlier. A car bomb had been detonated in front of the Syrian Air Force headquarters close to the residential neighborhood of Mazza, where our embassy was located. The explosion had destroyed much of the façade and all of the windows of the building. It had torn down the first and third words of the Baath party slogan, “unity, freedom, socialism,” that had been on the top of the building (I thought that was an ironic accident). It had also thrown debris and some body parts into the playground of the American Community School across the street, forcing it to close while the place was cleaned up. We estimated later that more than 60 people had been killed in the attack. The parents and teachers connected with the school were shocked that it had come so close to us.

This attack was not directed at Americans but was part of a series of skirmishes that had been taking place over the past five years between Islamic extremists, especially Muslim Brotherhood partisans, and the Syrian government. President Hafez al-Assad had tried to suppress the opposition, but he had been unable to stop random terrorist attacks on government targets.

Then, nine weeks later, a major battle between government forces and Islamists broke out 100 miles north of Damascus in Syria’s fourth-largest city, Hama, which harbored Islamic extremists. On February 2, 1982, Syrian police and army entered the old part of the city to arrest Muslim Brotherhood leaders, but in the narrow streets and alleyways they came under sniper fire from insurgents. Our military attaché, who had information from his sources about the fighting as soon as it started, kept us informed as it continued. It was his responsibility to keep track of the Syrian military, and he was constantly on the road, following convoys and identifying units. There were no reports in the Syrian media about fighting in Hama, but soon after it started, our attaché was able to monitor it by careful observation at a discreet distance and from his local contacts.

From his reports, we knew that the insurgents were dug in, but the Syrian army, the defense companies under the president’s brother Rifa’at, and the air force were escalating the assault from all sides. The fighting went on for 27 days, finally stopping on February 28. Not a word about it appeared in Syrian media, but everyone in Damascus seemed to know that something big was happening in Hama. Our military attaché was able to get into the city by a circuitous route to assess the situation. He found at the end of the fighting that three relatively small areas in the oldest part of the city had been badly damaged; buildings, including mosques, had been flattened. He estimated that a few thousand lives had been lost, perhaps as many as 10,000, as these were very crowded areas.

Our CIA station chief reported that according to his contacts, the government had discovered during the fighting that the insurgents had been using weapons clearly identifiable as having come from neighboring Iraq. Sources later told him that President Assad was so incensed at Iraqi complicity in the insurgency that this helped persuade him to become more openly hostile to the regime of Saddam Hussain, later shutting down the border as well as a pipeline that crossed Syrian territory. We reported in detail to Washington on the fighting and the implications related to Iraq.

The Syrian media never did fully cover the event and was silent on Iraq’s apparent involvement. The international media did not report at all on the fighting during February, while it was going on. There were no foreign correspondents in Syria, and word did not leak out. A month after the fighting ended, the New York Times ran a story about it on March 26, datelined Beirut. The Times bureau chief in Beirut, Tom Friedman, finally decided at the end of May to come to Damascus to look into the story. I briefed him at the embassy, and then he went to Hama to look for himself.

Friedman was surprised by what he saw. Eight years later, when he published his book From Beirut to Jerusalem, which received a National Book Award, he devoted an entire chapter to the Hama massacre. He called it “Hama Rules,” to describe what he thought had happened. He said the regime had “destroyed one of its largest cities,” and “large parts of the city were demolished.” He said, “The whole town looked as if a tornado had swept back and forth over it for a week.” For years after the incident, in Times columns and interviews, he repeatedly used the term “Hama rules” to refer to the 1982 event, saying Assad had “destroyed the city” as a lesson to the Syrian people.

On September 21, 2001, just a few days after 9/11, the New York Times published an op-ed by Friedman in which he recalled the 1982 incident. The story had grown: “President Assad identified the rebellion as emanating from Syria’s fourth-largest city, Hama, and he literally leveled it, pounding the fundamentalist neighborhoods with artillery for days. Once the guns fell silent, he plowed up the rubble and bulldozed it flat, into vast parking lots.” Friedman concluded, “I tell this story not to suggest this should be America’s approach. We can’t go around leveling cities. We need to be much more focused, selective and smart in uprooting the terrorists.”

Actually, the whole town had not been destroyed. I drove through it in March 1982, a few weeks after the fighting, and most of the city seemed perfectly normal, just as it had been before the fighting. Multi-storey buildings in commercial and residential districts were untouched. I visited the main square, a favorite tourist spot, and saw that the famous giant wooden water wheels (“na’ourias”), 90 feet high and dating from the thirteenth century, were still sitting intact at the edge of the Orontes River that runs through Hama; some of them were turning. I did see a part of the old city where two-storey buildings facing narrow lanes had been demolished and the area, no larger than a football field, leveled flat. But standing there I could see areas all around us where the residential buildings were still intact. I visited Hama again in 2005, and it showed almost no sign at all of the March 1982 events. The damaged area I had seen then had been completely rebuilt; the rest of the city looked perfectly intact, much of it old and obviously predating 1982.

When reports appeared in the Western newspapers, magazines and books by Friedman and others saying the city had been destroyed, I was amazed. The hyperbole by journalists was striking. We thought their estimate of casualties was higher than it should be (Robert Fisk in his book “Pity the Nation” said 20,000), but even accepting his numbers, for a city of 180,000, that was only ten percent of the population. Hama had not been “literally leveled,” as Friedman claimed.

https://mepc.org/commentary/syria-hama-massacre

vi Bassel al-Assad (23 March 1962 – 21 January 1994) was the eldest son of President of Syria Hafez al-Assad and the older brother of (later) President Bashar al-Assad. It was widely expected that he would succeed his father as President of Syria until he died in a car accident in 1994.

vii Born and raised in Damascus, Bashar al-Assad graduated from the medical school of Damascus University in 1988 and began to work as a doctor in the Syrian Army. Four years later, he attended postgraduate studies at the Western Eye Hospital in London, specializing in Ophthalmology.  In 1994, after his elder brother Bassel’s death, Bashar was recalled to Syria to take over his brother’s role. He entered the military academy, taking charge of the Syrian military presence in Lebanon 1988.

viii “Classical [or Modern Standard] Arabic: the language used for all written and official communication; a language that was codified, standardized, and normalized well over a thousand years ago and that has almost a millennium and a half of uninterrupted literary legacy behind it. There is only one problem with [this] Arabic: No one speaks it. What Arabs speak is called Arabi Darij ("vernacular Arabic"), lugha ammiyye ("the vulgar language"), or lahje ("dialect"); only what they write do they refer to as "true [Arabic] language." Does Anyone Speak Arabic?  https://www.meforum.org/3066/does-anyone-speak-arabic

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Reflections on the Defining Role of Marxism in the 20th

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Reflections on the Defining Role of Marxism in the 20th Century

By Bassam Michael Madany

It’s Holy Week 2020; like everyone else, my life is impacted by the restrictions occasioned by the Pandemic of Covit-19 virus. There was no sense being glued to the TV set, watching the news of the “war” against this global epidemic.

So, I began reflecting on my early years as a Levantine who arrived at New York City harbor, on the first of September 1950. I had boarded an American Export Line ship that left Beirut on 8 August. It stopped at the ports of Alexandria, Egypt, Piraeus, Greece, Naples, Genoa, Italy, and Marseilles, France. The Mediterranean part of the journey was great; however, as soon as we crossed the Strait of Gibraltar, the Atlantic welcomed us with big waves and colder weather.

I had enrolled at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA. The academic year began in mid-September. My previous education had been in Arabic and French, with English as a second language. Now, I had to learn unfamiliar terms, Old Testament Hebrew, and work on improving my New Testament Greek.

On Saturday mornings, I spent time at the Seminary library. I read The Saturday Evening Post. “Up to 1969, it was a weekly magazine and one of the most widely circulated and influential magazines within the American middle class, with fiction, non-fiction, cartoons and features that reached millions of homes every week.”

During 1952, the Saturday Evening Post began publishing Whittaker Chambers, “Witness.” I had never heard of him before. I had hardly begun reading the first installment, that I noticed his definition of Communism, “Communism Is a Vision of the World Without God,” Actually, the subject wasn’t new to me.

Back home in Alexandretta, Syriai, my father used to get newspapers from Beirut. I had become an avid reader, such as the accounts of Stalin’s Great Purges of 1937 – 1938. The photo of Marshall Mikhail Tukhachevsky is etched in my mind; he was executed by Stalin, after forcing him to confess his “collaboration” with the enemy.

Before leaving home for the voyage to America, the subject of Communism had already occupied the free world. Not long after WWII had ended, Stalin and Mao Tze Tung began expanding the hegemony of Marxism. On 5 March 1946, Winston Churchill gave his “Iron Curtain Speech” at Westminster College, in Fulton, Missouri, signaling the beginning of the Cold War.

In 1948, President Truman proclaimed his policy to counter the Soviet Union’s threat to its neighbors. It was known as the “Truman Doctrine.” The US pledged to defend both Greece and Turkey against any attempt to dominate them by the USSR. In June 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea which prompted the US entry into a new war in Asia.

The response to the expansion of Marxism throughout the world was not merely a military one. On the ideological level, works appeared by Western writers dealing the threat. On a trip  during the Christmas of 1951, I picked up at a railroad station in Iowa, “The God That Failed, a classic work and crucial document of the Cold War that brought together essays by six of the most important writers of the twentieth century: Louis Fischer, André Gide, Arthur Koestler, Ignazio Silone, Stephen Spender, and Richard Wright. They told of their conversion to and subsequent disillusionment with communism.”

It’s not likely that young Americans, or others in the rest of the world, know much about these major events in modern history. Here are certain online documents about the Cold War, the legacy and continued relevance of Whittaker Chambers. While Stalin’s show trials, Gulags, and his many barbaric acts, are a thing of the past, new threats to peace and freedom keep propping up in various parts of our world.  

Foreign Policy and Whittaker Chambers (A Video Presentation)

http://www.c-span.org/video/?309872-2/foreign-policy-whittaker-chambers&showFullAbstract=1

Whittaker Chambers: A Biography (Modern Library Paperbacks)

By Sam Tanenhaus

Still Witnessing: The Enduring Relevance of Whittaker Chambers

http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2011/03/still-witnessing-the-enduring-relevance-of-whittaker-chambers

___________________________________________________________________

Alexandretta, Syria  Following the end of WWI, the Ottoman Empire lost all its colonies in the Middle East. The League of Nations mandated France to “prepare” Syria and Lebanon for full statehood. The new leader of Turkey, Mustapha Kemal, known as Ataturk, abolished the Caliphate in 1924, embarked on several reforms such as the secularization of Turkish society, and the adoption of a Latin-based alphabet, thus facilitating the spread of literacy among the masses. Ataturk claimed that the Syrian Province of Alexandretta belonged to Turkey. A few months before his death. In 1938, the Turkish Army entered the region with the consent of the French. In June 1939, Turkey annexed the province causing most of its residents (Arabic-speaking Christians and Armenian survivors of the Genocide) to seek a new home in Syria and Lebanon.   

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In Defence of Orientalism and Orientalists

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

In Defence of Orientalism and Orientalists

By Bassam Michael Madany

During the lockdown occasioned by the Covid-19 Pandemic, I discovered comments I had written twelve years ago, on a Wall Street Journal article, dated 2 May 2008. It was titled, “Bernard Lewis Takes on Political Correctness in Middle East Studies.”

These are excerpts from the article, with further quotations from other sources, followed by my comments. The author, Charlotte Allen began the article by asking, “What to do if you are a college professor and the academic society that represents your field has been overrun by political correctness? One answer is: ‘Form your own organization.’

“That is how, six months ago, the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (Asmea) came into being. Now claiming 500 members and gearing up to publish its own scholarly journal, Asmea is meant to be a corrective to the 2,600-member Middle East Studies Association, the premier professional society for scholars of the Middle East.

“Interestingly, both the Middle East Studies Association and the new Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa, were founded by the same person: Bernard Lewis.[i] Now 91, Mr. Lewis is the eminence grise of scholars of Islam. His 60-year scholarly career encompasses more than two-dozen books and decades of teaching, first at the University of London and then at Princeton, where he is now a professor emeritus. He gave up on MESA to found Asmea last fall because he wanted there to be "a truly open academic society."

The chairman of ASMEA is Bernard Lewis, and its vice-chairman is the Lebanese-American scholar, Fouad Ajami, the director of Middle East studies at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. 

“Mr. Lewis spoke those words at Asmea’s first annual conference at a Washington hotel last weekend. The two-day gathering -- featuring only eight panels and roundtables, in contrast to the hundred or so at MESA’s annual meeting in Montreal in November --- showed the promise and also the problems that are part of any professional society’s attempts to defy orthodoxy.”

“We may be extremely puzzled as to how MESA that was founded by Mr. Lewis became such an ideologically motivated association of academics who are bent on destroying the very raison d'être of their discipline. The answer is found in the life and writings of the late professor Edward Said (1935-2003).  In 1978, he published “Orientalism,” a book that charged “Western scholarship on Islam was all but worthless because it had been motivated by efforts to further the ‘colonial’ interests of Western imperial powers, still intent on dominating the East.”

It is unbelievable how many “experts” in the history of the Middle East, fell for the unsubstantiated thesis of Mr. Said. [By the way, I have always been puzzled by the transliteration of the Arabic name as Said, in lieu of Sa’eed!]

As the WSJ article explains, “Unlike Mr. Lewis, Mr. Said had no training in Islamic or Mideast studies (he was in fact, for years, a professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University). Even so, Mr. Said continues to exert a powerful influence on many American Islamicists; He is their guru, and "Orientalism" is their catechism.”

Over the years, I have been saddened by the trajectory of Edward Said’s life. Coming from an Eastern Christian background, rather than devoting his scholarship to deal with the plight of his people over fourteen centuries of Islamic imperialism, he became the typical Dhimmi who offers his services to the defence of Islam, and to the denigration of the excellent work of American, British and French Orientalists.  

In December 1980, an American Orientalist, Dr. Malcom Kerr,[ii] reviewed “Orientalism” in the International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 12, Pp. 544-547.

“This book reminds me of the television program ‘Athletes in Action,’ in which professional football players compete in swimming, and so forth. Edward Said, a literary critic loaded with talent, has certainly made a splash, but with this sort of effort he is not going to win any major races. The book contains many excellent sections and scores many telling points, but it is spoiled by overzealous prosecutorial argument in which Professor Said, in his eagerness to spin too large a web, leaps at conclusions and tries to throw everything but the kitchen sink into a preconceived frame of analysis. In charging the entire tradition of European and American Oriental studies with the sins of reductionism and caricature, he commits precisely the same error.”

In 2007, Ibn Warraq wrote “Defending the West: A Critique of Edward Said’s Orientalism.” (Prometheus Books, 59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228

Here are quotations from Ibn Warraq’s book: “To argue his case, Said very conveniently leaves out the important contributions of German Orientalists, for their inclusion would destroy --- and their exclusion does indeed totally destroy --- the central thesis of Orientalism, that all Orientalists produced knowledge that generated power, and that they colluded and helped imperialists found empires. As we shall see, German Orientalists were the greatest of all scholars of the Orient, but, of course, Germany was never an imperial power in any of the Oriental countries of North Africa and the Middle East. … Would it have made sense for German Orientalists to produce work that could help only England and France in their empire building?  P. 44

“Said has much to answer for, Orientalism, despite its systematic distortions and its limited value as an intellectual history, has left Western scholars in fear of asking questions --- in other words, it has inhibited their research. Said’s work, with its strident anti-Westernism, has made the goal of modernization of Middle Eastern societies that much more difficult. His work, wherein all the ills of Middle Eastern societies are blamed on the wicked West, has rendered much-needed self-criticism by Muslims, Arab and non-Arab alike, nearly impossible. His work has encouraged Islamic fundamentalists, whose impact on world affairs needs no underlining.  P. 54

My sincere thanks go to the WSJ for having published an article on the decline and fall of MESA, and the birth of the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa, a scholarly organization that deals accurately with the history and culture of Middle Eastern nations.

_________________________________________________________

[i] Bernard Lewis, (31 May 1916 – 19 May 2018) was a British American historian specializing in oriental studies. He was also known as a public intellectual and political commentator. Lewis was the Cleveland E. Dodge Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. Lewis' expertise was in the history of Islam and the interaction between Islam and the West. He was also noted in academic circles for his works on the history of the Ottoman Empire.

[ii] Malcolm Hooper Kerr (October 8, 1931 – January 18, 1984)  Kerr's youth was spent in Lebanon, on and near the campus of the American University of Beirut, where his parents taught for forty years. His father became the chairman of the Department of Biochemistry at AUB, and his mother was Dean of Women. During World War II, the family relocated to Princeton University in New Jersey. Malcolm undergraduate degree in 1953 came from Princeton University where he had studied with Professor Philip Hitti. He returned to Lebanon and entered a master’s program in Arabic studies, completing it in 1955 at the AUB. He did his doctorate work in Washington, D.C., at the School for Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, from where he received his Ph.D. in 1958. He served as president of the American University of Beirut from 1982 until he was assassinated two years later, on the campus of the AUB, by an Islamist gunman.

 

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St. Paul's Theology of Missions

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

St. Paul's Theology of Missions

By Bassam Michael Madany

Following World War II, Evangelicals held congresses and consultations to address plans for Christian missions in the post-colonial era. Unfortunately, some began with the presupposition that Christian missions in Muslim lands had failed, for lack of contextualizing the Gospel. It was a misleading evaluation of a work that had begun early in the 19th century and had accomplished great things throughout the Middle East.

Having spent thirty-six years in broadcasting the Gospel in Arabic over several international radio stations, and communicated with thousands of Muslim listeners, I found it strange to hear the claims of the Contextualization Movement assuring us that if only missionaries would adopt their methodologies, some if not all the obstacles to missions among Muslims would disappear!

The basic motif or impulse of the Contextualization Movement has been to facilitate the conversion of Muslims to the Christian faith. As much as one may laud the purpose of Christians engaged in this difficult task, there are certain Biblical principles which must not be ignored. Such as the Pauline missionary tradition.

When Paul and Barnabas were sent by the Church in Antioch with the blessing of the Holy Spirit, they were properly prepared for their missionary task. Paul was born in Tarsus Cilicia, Asia Minor, where he received his early education in the Hellenistic culture. His parents, being devout Jews, sent him to Jerusalem to complete his formation at the school of Gamaliel, where he became an expert in Rabbinic Judaism. Barnabas, a native of Cyprus, was at home in Greek culture, and equally equipped to deal with Jewish and Gentile objections to the Gospel of the Cross.

Paul and Barnabas preached the Gospel without any dilution, or compromise. For example, in the First Epistle to the Corinthians, Paul reminded the new believers in Corinth (who were of Jewish or Gentile backgrounds,) that he had made no concessions to their prejudices when he first came to their city to proclaim the Good News.

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.’ Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” I Corinthians 1:18-25 ESV

“And I, when I came to you, brothers I did not come proclaiming to you the testimony    of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. I Corinthians 2: 1-5 ESV

“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things but is himself to be judged by no one. ‘For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” I Corinthians 2:14-16 ESV

It is evident from the above quotations that Paul, with full awareness of the Jewish and Greek objections to his message, did not hesitate to declare the saving message of a crucified and risen Messiah. He, as a former Pharisee, had believed in the ability of getting right with God, by fulfilling the demands of the Law. And being familiar with the Hellenic mind, knew that the kerygma sounded like nonsense to the Greeks. Still he brought to Corinth what they needed, and not what they wanted. The real problem existed in the Rabbinical and Hellenistic minds, and not in the core of his message!

In 2 Corinthians 3, Paul returned to discuss the subject of the receptivity of the Gospel, by explaining why the Jews missed the meaning of the Messianic passages of the Old Testament:
“Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3: 12-18 ESV

The Old Testament Scriptures’ main emphasis was on the saving message that was first proclaimed by God in the Garden of Eden to our first parents, Adam and Eve. (Genesis 3:15) This promise was made specific to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and reiterated to David. Unfortunately, even though the Prophets like Isaiah and the Psalms, spoke of the coming Messiah as a redeemer from sin, Rabbinical Judaism, as it developed during the Intertestamental era, formulated the doctrine of salvation by observing the deeds of the Law. This doctrine became a “veil” over the minds of the religious leaders in Israel that prevented them from welcoming a Redeemer Messiah. It became the firm belief of the Jews in the Diaspora, which explains why many of them did not welcome Paul’s message. They expected a political Messiah who would liberate their nation from Roman imperialism.

Thus far, I dealt with the objections to the message of the Gospel, by both Jews and Greeks during the time of Paul. My point has been to show that the impediment to the reception of the Gospel resided in the minds of the Jewish and Greek recieptients, and not in the vocabulary used by Paul. However, I was not implying that there was no hope or way to convert Jews and Gentiles, seeing that their minds had insurmountable obstacles to the message of the Good News. My purpose was to show that God had, in fact, provided a way to overcome their resistance to the Gospel offer. Paul put it this way in I Cor. 1:21: (ESV) “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.”

The expression “the folly of what we preach” refers to an important formula that summarized the essence of the apostolic proclamation known in Greek as the κηρυγματος. In God’s plan, the instrumental cause of salvation is the proclamation of the Gospel; while the efficient cause of salvation is the death of Jesus Christ on the cross and his resurrection, as actualized by the work of the Holy Spirit.
This Pauline teaching about faith in Christ occurring within the context of hearing the proclamation of the Gospel is expounded in Romans 10. Paul’s heart yearned for the salvation of his people. He acknowledged their tremendous “zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” Romans 10:2-4 ESV

This attempt to establish one’s own righteousness is the major obstacle to the reception of the Gospel, by Jews and Muslims alike. Both systems of belief are thoroughly legalistic. Man, in Rabbinical Judaism and in Islam, possesses the ability to please God by doing the deeds prescribed by the Law or Shariah!

Furthermore, notwithstanding the strong criticisms that have been leveled by Muslims against the Bible’s authenticity, the Trinity, the deity of Jesus Christ, and His crucifixion; their greatest objection has been to Biblical Anthropology. Whereas the Christian view of man’s predicament takes seriously the drastic results of the Fall, the Muslim view of man’s present condition is very optimistic. It may be described as a thoroughly Pelagian point of view.

This was articulated in a 1959 article published in the quarterly “The Muslim World” where the Islamic doctrine of man was discussed. At a gathering of Christian and Muslim scholars in Morocco, a Muslim professor said:
“The possibility of man’s deliverance and the way to follow have been indicated by the Qur’an in its address to sinners, fathers of the human race: ‘Go forth all of you from hence and if there comes to you guidance from Me then he who follows my guidance shall have nothing to fear, nor shall they know distress.” (Surah 2:38) In this solemn affirmation God Himself acts for the salvation of man. By following the Right Path, Islam leads man to final perfection, the effect of which is liberation from the obstacle which prevented him from attaining the eternal blessedness which is life in God and for God.”

Commenting on the paper, Edwin Calverley, the then editor of the journal wrote:
“[This] exposition of Muslim theology and its concepts of man and his salvation raises several deep questions. The Christian must always be perplexed about its ready confidence that ‘to know is to do,’ that man’s salvation happens under purely revelatory auspices and that through the law given in the Divine communication is the path that man will follow once he knows and sees it. The whole mystery of human recalcitrance and ‘hardness of heart’ seems to be overlooked.”

Goring back to Romans 10, we read:

“For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim);because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Romans 10: 5-17 (ESV)

Paul repeats what he has taught in I Corinthians about how saving faith in born: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” In the Greek text, it reads: “αρα η πιστις εξ ακοης η δε ακοη δια ρηματος χριστου” “dia rematos Xristou” may be translated as “the Preaching of Christ,” which is equivalent to the term κηρυγματος Kerugmatos used in I Corinthians 1: 21. 

We must never forget that the Lord Jesus Christ gave the missionary mandate to His Church. As we have noticed earlier, it was the church in Antioch that commissioned Paul and Barnabas, to preach the Gospel throughout the Roman Empire. After they had finished their First Missionary journey (Acts 13 & 14), they returned to Antioch and gave a report to the assembled church, about the Lord’s blessing on their labors. When disputes arose about Gentile converts and their submission to the Mosaic Law, the problem was resolved at an official Church Assembly as recorded in Acts 15.

Having expounded the main points of Paul’s missions teaching, I end by turning to the work of missions among Muslims. In these crucial times, Muslims are facing some tremendous challenges, with unresolved disputes and civil wars, coupled with tense relations with the rest of the world. Their need for the message of the Biblical Christ is urgent. Thanks to the Internet, Christians possess the means to communicate the Good News. The proper way to accomplish this work, is to apply Saint Paul’s Theology of Christian Missions.
 

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One Man’s Journey to Freedom: From Tehran to Switzerland

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

One Man’s Journey to Freedom: From Tehran to Switzerland

By Bassam Michael Madany

 

Mireille Vallette is a Swiss journalist and human rights activist. Her website is hosted by the Swiss daily, La Tribune de Genève. Her weekly email message provides the latest news related to her podcast, Boulevard de l’Islamisme. On Tuesday, 4 February 2020, Ms. Vallette posted an interview with an Iranian refugee in Switzerland. Following are translated excerpts from the French article.

A few years ago, Nahid (a pseudonym) arrived at Saint-Gall, Switzerland, as an ideal refugee. To date, his request has been refused, but there still hope. It’s difficult to find a more warm-hearted smiling and communicative resident of Saint-Gall; he seems more integrated than a native Swiss. He is loved by some, appreciated by many; he speaks both French and German. We want more refugees like him. Except he is not a refugee, that status has been denied him. 

Nahid, when and where were you born? 

I was born in Tehran in 1991, twelve years after the Revolution. My family was moderately religious; I followed those rituals imposed on us by culture and by religion.  We prayed at school, and recited passages from the Qur’an. As for the Revolution, my parents were neither for it, nor against it. Once, I heard them say, "the mullahs suck our blood", it didn’t shock them. 

When did you begin to critique Islam?

Quite early in life, I began to think for myself and to choose unusual subjects to read. I got interested in Darwin very early, and I loved Dostoevsky. At around 12 years old, I asked my teacher a question, pointing out that Darwin contradicts Ali, our First Imam’s teaching. He slapped me and summoned my parents. I think my rejection of Islam started there. 

Did you continue the study of Islam?

At college, I changed completely. My reflections deepened; I got interested in history, Western culture, the great literature like Dante. I was in love with the study of languages. At 12, I was doing very well in English, but none of the studies were in the religious field.

What else?

I was drawn to heavy metal, hard rock, I belonged to a group. I spent many evenings with music, girls, alcohol ... At the age of eighteen, I started working. And suddenly, the fateful day arrived, my summons to military service. 

How did this period go?                                                                                                                                              

It was the worst time in my life! As soon as Iranian boys become teenagers, they begin to dread military service. You live with people you can't stand; you pretend, you have to get up at dawn with the calls of the muezzin, which I had never done in my life. Sometimes I used to cry; I got angry too. If you don't do the two year-service, you can't get a passport and be stuck in Iran.

What did you do after leaving the Army?

At college, I studied pedagogy. I taught English and began traveling. I met a Christian girl in Bulgaria, and eventually we got married. Her folks didn’t approve the match. I lost my passport, and finally made it to Switzerland.
[No explanation how that happened, and the way they arrived in Switzerland]

Have you applied for asylum? 

Yes, but we were not believed, our application was refused. It was a terrible moment. In addition, a fortnight before the return flight, my wife fell ill. We were granted a temporary medical permit to stay in the country. Furthermore, we welcomed the birth of a son, and found many friends. I look forward to being authorized to remain here with my small family.

Postscript 

According to Nahid, “Sometimes I wanted to hit my head against the walls thinking about the future of Switzerland. I met people who were there for decades on social assistance who made no effort to integrate, and others who did not speak a word of French after 20 years spent here. It saddens me for this country. "
Nahid confidently awaits the permit that would allow him to stay in Switzerland.

Comment

There has been a good deal of news and reporting about Iran. The Islamic Republic sphere of influence has been growing. Its support for the Houthi rebels in Yemen, the Assad regime in Syria, and Hezbollah in Lebanon, prove that. The United States was responsible for the killing of a senior Iranian commander, Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike in Baghdad on 3 January. A few days later, Iran admitted "unintentionally" shooting down a Ukrainian passenger jet, killing all 176 people on board.

Accounts about the life of ordinary Iranians are rather scarce. So, the story of the young Iranian Nahid throws light on the difficulties encountered by the younger generation living under an Islamic Shi’ite regime. Founded in 1979 by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the country’s policies are inspired by a tradition derived from an eschatological (end-time) view of history. After Khomeini’s death, he was succeeded in 1989 by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 

The worldview that has motivated the leaders of Iran since 1979, can be illustrated in a quote from an article published on 6 September 2016, in the Arabic online journal Al-Awan. It is a plea to the followers of Shi’ism to get over their spirit of victimhood. The quote is my summarized translation of the Arabic text.

“Shi’ism has been based on two foundations: Suffering from Victimhood and Asking for Justice. With the passing of time, these basic principles became deeply embedded and accentuated. The tragedy morphed into a catastrophe accompanied by an unbearable weight. The resulting sadness turned into a melancholy transcending time and space.

“Wherever Shi’ites live has become Karbalai, and all time is now ‘Ashuraii . The main purpose of the believer has become an act of bemoaning the historic Event and transforming it into a contemporary Event that must be both actualized and condemned.  Furthermore, requesting justice has changed into a powerful quest for vengeance. It has become the source of dreams, anticipating with alacrity, the execution of the demands for justice. This powerful motif is then passed on from one generation to the following one. 

“The Shi’ite Eschatology has developed these unique features: at the return of the Twelfth Imam, he will be accompanied by Ali and his sons, as well as by their enemies; now resuscitated, to receive the just retribution, they deserve!


“Thus, instead of seeking justice, Shi’ites dream of a grotesque vendetta. For example, Aisha, the youthful wife of Muhammad and an enemy of Ali’s Caliphate, would be publicly lashed; Abu Bakr and Umar, will be crucified and burned! Such Shi’ite tales that describe horrific methods of torture would surpass Dante’s description of the Inferno in his Divine Comedy!


“What a wonderful day that would be when Shi’ism would have transcended a legacy that had become an integral part of worship; and would adopt an ethic of forgiveness and reconciliation!” 

_________________________________________________

i Karbala is a city in Iraq where Husayn, the grandson of Muhammad met a violent death at the hand of the Umayyads in 680.
ii Yom Ashura or Ashura is the tenth day of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic calendar. It marks the day that Husayn was martyred in the Battle of Karbala
 

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Orientalism’s Great Achievements

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Orientalism’s Great Achievements

Bassam Michael Madany

The in-depth study of Asian societies in the 18th and 19th Centuries came to be known as Orientalism and the scholars who worked in the field known as Orientalists. It was a large undertaking by many eminent scholars in Western countries. By the second half of the 20th Century Orientalists came under attack by some in the academic community They were accused of being agents of Western Imperialism.

Encyclopedia Britannica’s definition of Orientalism begins with an objective and factual statement about the works of Western Orientalists; but then it brings into its definition the controversial scholar Edward Said who was the main academic leading the charge that the scholarly research and conclusions by such Orientalists were suspect because all such Orientalists served the interests of Western Imperialism:

Orientalism, Western scholarly discipline of the 18th and 19th centuries that encompassed the study of the languages, literatures, religions, philosophies, histories, art, and laws of Asian societies, especially ancient ones. More recently, mainly through the work of the Palestinian American scholar Edward Said, the term has been used disparagingly to refer to the allegedly simplistic, stereotyped, and demeaning conceptions of Arab and Asian cultures generally held by Western scholars.”i

Said’s highly influential book “Orientalism” published in 1978, was an extremely biased work. The late Malcolm Hooper Kerrii,  himself an Orientalist, wrote a review of the work. Here are passages from the review that pointed to Edward Said’s faulty views:

“[Edward Said’s] conviction [was] that Orientalist scholarship has acted as a servant of imperialism …Thus conceived, Said's selection of European authors leaves out a veritable army of luminaries familiar to every graduate student in Islamics: Goldziher, Snouck Hurgronje, Becker, Nöldeke, Wellhausen, Gabrieli, Levi Della Vida, Schacht, Rosenthal, and Goitein… also omitted are the most distinguished contemporary Oriental scholars even in Britain and France: Arberry, Hourani, Watt, Coulson, Gellner, Evans-Pritchard, Cahen, Brunschwig, Le Tourneau, Laoust, Gardet, Rodinson, Miquel, and Berque, which is rather a lot. In the United States, where he assails the Middle East studies establishment for propping up American neocolonial interests in the Muslim world, he confines his citations to a handful of figures, such as Bernard Lewis and Gustave von Grunebaum (both of them European emigrants), along with Morroe Berger, Manfred Halpern, and Leonard Binder as well as an irrelevant sprinkling of Israelis—Patai,  Harkabi—to establish the presence of an anti-Muslim or anti-Arab animus.”

Despite Edward Said’s attempt to denigrate the highly valuable studies undertaken by the Western Orientalists their research and conclusions about the societies they studied have been of immense help to all those interested in Oriental cultures. One such scholar in particular was the German Orientalist, Theodor Nöldeke. His study of the Arab Islamic civilization resulted in a book entitled “The History of the Qurʾān.”iii
Several other books by Orientalists have been of particular interest to me. The first one is authored by Bat Ye’or whose field of research has been the study of Eastern Christianity under Islamic rule. “The Decline of Eastern Christianity under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude.” iv

Here are some pertinent quotes from the Introduction of her book:

“This is not a book about Islam; it examines neither its expansion nor its civilization.  Its object is to study the large number of peoples subjugated by Islam and to determine, as far as possible, the complex processes – both endogenous and exogenous – that brought about their gradual extinction. A phenomenon of dissolution, when all is said and done, which is hardly exceptional and part and parcel of the evolutionary cycles of human societies.

“These dhimmi peoples – that is to say, ‘protected peoples’ – represent those populations, custodians of scriptural revelations, who were conquered by Islam.  In Iran and the Mediterranean basin, these populations englobed Zoroastrians, Christians and Jews.

“I am indebted to Bashir Gemayelv  for the term "dhimmitude", which he mentioned on two occasions.  This word could not better express the actual subject of my research (begun in 1971), on the manifold and contradictory aspects of a human experience which millions of individuals endured over the centuries, sometimes for more than a millennium. The specific world of dhimmitude emerged from the documents, and the book itself – with its thematic reflections, landmarks and stages – was constructed in relation to, and with the aid of, the sources.  If they differ somewhat on the chronology of dates – often dubious – they nevertheless agree on essential points.  If witnesses, in different contexts and at different periods, describe certain facts based on the special provisions of jurist-theologians, such as the regulations concerning dress, these data can be regarded as a constant element in the status of the dhimmi.”

As important as these words are in understanding the plight of Eastern Christians and others under Islamic dhimmitude, it is noteworthy that the author is Jewish and was born and brought up in Egypt. Her father was of Italian origin, while her mother was French. She adopted the pen name, Bat Ye’or (Daughter of the Nile.) The family was forced out of Egypt in 1957 during the Nasser era, and lived as stateless refugees in Britain. By marrying David Littman, Bat Ye’or became a British citizen. Eventually, the couple moved to Switzerland and continued to write on topics relating to the status and treatment of Jews and Christians in Islamic lands.

The second work of importance to me is by the Orientalist Dr. Harvey Staal, entitled “MT. SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151.” 

At the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, is found the imposing St. Catherine's Monastery founded by the Emperor St. Justinian the Great in AD 527. Its library contains thousands of precious manuscripts. Among them is the MT SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151. It has been microfilmed by a team of experts and is available at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

When Dr. Harvey Staal, a Reformed Church missionary in the Middle East, was taking advanced Arabic studies, at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, one of his professors was Dr. Aziz Suriyal Atiya. Prof. Atiya was closely associated with the microfilming of the manuscripts, which was completed in the 1950s. Sensing that he had a potential scholar on his hands, Prof. Atiya encouraged Harvey Staal to work on the Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151.

Thus, began a lifetime project which culminated in the publication in 1985 of the manuscript in a two-volume work (English and Arabic).  Printed in Louvain, Belgium, the new volumes are part of a renowned series of Christian Oriental texts.

The Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151 was indeed a most exciting discovery.  It appears to be the oldest Arabic translation of the New Testament in existence.  The original manuscript was completed in Damascus, Syria, some 1000 years before the Smith/Van Dyck translation of the Bible appeared in Beirut in 1865.  Codex 151 consists of the Book of Acts, the Pauline and the General Epistles. The translator was Bishr Ibn Al Sirri, an Eastern Christian living in Damascus.  It is truly amazing to contemplate that segments of an Arabic manuscript of portions of the Christian scriptures from the 9th Century have now become available for translation into other languages. . Al Sirri chose to start the translation with Romans. 

In his introduction to the English translation of Codex 151, Dr. Staal makes the following observation:

“This has been a most interesting, inspiring, and profitable study, especially from two aspects—word study and interpretation.  There are several translations of individual words that add additional insight to our understanding of some of our basic Christian concepts.  It is also most interesting to read the comments made by Middle Eastern Christians of a thousand years ago, reflecting the theology of people from a cultural background very similar to that of our Lord.”  

Dr. Staal recalls that he needed two hours to decipher just two lines when he first started on Philippians.  “It was like working with a code. The dots, which ordinarily distinguish various letters of the Arabic alphabet, were omitted.  Evidently, they were not considered necessary for people educated enough to read the Bible! For an example, consider that one particular mark ("stroke" in Arabic) like the bottom half of a circle could be taken for the letter "n", "b", "t", "th", or "y" according to where the dots were placed.  The translation work became easier only after Harvey became completely familiar with Al Sirri's script.”

He spoke with great appreciation of the invaluable help of Dr. Jibrail S. Jabbur, of the American University of Beirut, who joined him in the labor of proofreading every word.  Dr. Jabbur was able to help him greatly with some almost undecipherable words.

The Al Sirri manuscript from A.D. 867 takes on immense importance by revealing the tremendous roots of Middle Eastern Christianity. Thoughts of Eastern Christians living under Islamic rule can be gleaned from the comments on the NT passages in the footnotes. It should be a boost to the self-image of Eastern Christians as they face overwhelming problems, especially in Syria, where the Civil War has been going on unabated, since March 2011! 

The third work is A DICTIONARY OF MODERN WRITTEN ARABIC by HANS WEHR 4TH EDITION, 1979 ENLARGED & IMPROVED, PUBLISHED IN THE USA, BY SPOKEN LANGUAGES SERVICES, URBANA, IL 61801
ISBN 0-87950-003-4 By Permission of Otto Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden, Germany

The dictionary’s original content is by the Germain Orientalist, Hans Wehr. An English edition has served as an excellent and indispensable tool in translating modern written Arabic, (known also as Classical Arabic,) into English. 

The three above-mentioned works represent a small fraction of the books produced by Western Orientalists whose concern has been the spread of accurate information. They were not harboring any imperialistic motif, as claimed by the late Edward Said.

Finally, I would like to point to a new development in the field that was traditionally a domain of Western Orientalists. A new generation of Arab scholars are contributing serious works in the field of Islamics, notably the Tunisian, Héla Ouardi, the Moroccan, Muhammad Al-Musayeh, and the German-Egyptian, Hamed Abdel-Samad.

Dr. Héla Ouardi earned her degree at the Sorbonne, in Paris, France. She has specialized in the early History of Islam. One of her books, Les Derniers Jours de Muhammad, relates details of Muhammad’s last days.

Dr. Héla Ouardi delivered a keynote address at the International Qur’anic Studies Association's International Qur'an Conference in 2019 hosted by the Tangier Global Forum at the University of New England’s Tangier Campus in Morocco. Her subject was. “The Orientalists and the Qur’an: Four Centuries of its Translation into Western Languages” (Lecture was delivered in French)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Qb8ehUsINA

The Moroccan scholar, Muhammad Al-Musayeh, published in October 2017 “An Introduction to the Manuscripts of the Qur’an” The 324-pages work is in Arabic and represents the latest information on the various manuscripts of the sacred text of Islam. 

In the Introduction to the book, he acknowledges with gratitude his indebtedness to his family and to the scholars under whom he did his studies: Dr. Christoph Luxenberg, Dr. Gerd Puin, Dr. Elizabeth Puin, Dr. François Déroche, professor at the Collège de France, and the Moroccan scholar Sheikh Muhammad ben Ahmed Mellouli (1920-1992) of Fes.

This work is indispensable for the study of the history of the manuscripts of the Qur’an. The traditional account claims that the third Caliph, Uthman (644-652,) gathered the various manuscripts, choosing one and destroyed the rest; leaving one official “Textus Receptus.” In fact, other manuscripts did exist, and have survived to the present day. Professor Al-Musayeh’s book deals with this subject and with sundry matters connected with the evolution of the Arabic script over the years.

Information in English, on the various Qur’anic manuscripts, is available online. 

“What may be the world's oldest fragments of the Koran have been found by the University of Birmingham. Radiocarbon dating found the manuscript to be at least 1,370 years old, making it among the earliest in existence. The pages of the Muslim holy text had remained unrecognised in the university library for almost a century.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jowQond7_UE

Another example is Hamed Abdel-Samad, a German-Egyptian political scientist who has written and lectured a great deal, about Islam, its history, beliefs, and its impact on the world today. He distinguishes himself from Héla Ouardi and Muhammad Al-Musayeh, by assuming a highly polemical approach vis-à-vis Islam.

“Speaking at a conference held by the Moroccan Organization for Human Rights,  Hamed Abdel-Samad called on members of the organization to stop trying to please the Islamists and said that ‘whoever wants to embrace the heritage, along with its representatives and theoreticians, and to incorporate them in the enlightenment game is perpetrating a crime.’ He enumerated the principles of enlightenment and said that solutions should not be sought within jurisprudence as these are ‘nothing but plastic surgery for a lifeless corpse.’ It is like an elastic band, he said. ‘We pull away with our thinking, but then we are pulled back by our fear, of taboos, our fear of prohibitions, and our fear of being punished by the law or by society. There can be no enlightenment where there is fear.’" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BA6v1Z1zuuA

__________________________________________________________

i https://www.britannica.com/science/Orientalism-cultural-field-of-study

ii Dr. Kerr served as President of the American University of Beirut (1931 – 1984) until he was assassinated by an Islamist terrorist, reviewed Said’s book “Orientalism” for International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, vol. 12 (December 1980), pp. 544-547. 

iii The History of the Qur’an,  by Theodor Nöldeke, Texts and Studies on the Qurʾān, Volume: 8
Authors: Theodor Nöldeke, Friedrich Schwally, Gotthelf Bergsträßer and Otto Pretzl
This first complete translation of Theodor Nöldeke’s The History of the Qurʾān offers a foundational work of modern Qurʾānic studies to the English-speaking public. Nöldeke’s original publication, as revised and expanded over nearly three quarters of a century by his scholarly successors, Friedrich Schwally, Gotthelf Bergsträsser and Otto Pretzl, remains an indispensable resource for any scholarly work on the text of the Qurʾān. Nöldeke’s segmentation of the surahs into three Meccan periods and a Medinan one has shaped all subsequent discussions of the chronology of the Qurʾān. The revisions and expansions of Nöldeke’s initial discussions of the orthography and variant readings of the text have found a new audience among those contemporary scholars who seek to create a more sophisticated understanding of the Qurʾān’s textual development.

iv The Decline of Eastern Christianity under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude. By Bat Ye’or, 1996, Forward by Jacques Ellul. Associated University Presses, 440 Forsgate Drive, Cranbury NJ 08512.

v Bashir Gemayel was assassinated in September 1982, soon after being elected as President of Lebanon. In a speech he delivered in Beirut, he had used the term “Dhimmitude” derived from an Arabic term, “Dhimmi” that referred to Jews and Christians living under Islamic rule.

                                                                                                                                    

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A Salute to the Algerian Christians Resisting the Government’s Attack on Their Freedom

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Salute to the Algerian Christians Resisting the Government’s Attack on Their Freedom

Bassam Michael Madany

 

On 24 October 2019, Human Rights Watch released a bulletin regarding the Algerian government crackdown on the Christian churches in the country. The following are excerpts from the account, followed by eye-witness testimonies of Algerian Christians who experienced the persecution.                                                                            

“(Beirut) – The recent closure of three Protestant churches and a police assault on worshipers at one church are the latest examples of the repression of this tiny religious minority in Algeria, Human Rights Watch said today. The government should immediately reopen the churches and publicly commit to protecting freedom for all religious communities in Algeria.

“Police raided and shut the biggest Protestant church in the country, the Full Gospel Church, in Tizi Ouzou, on October 15, 2019, and assaulted worshipers, including Salah Chalah, the church’s pastor and president of the Protestant Church of Algeria (Eglise Protestante d’Algérie, EPA), Chalah told Human Rights Watch. The following day, police sealed two other churches in Tizi Ouzou province. On October 17, police arrested, and later released, dozens of Protestants who were protesting the crackdown in front of the Tizi Ouzou governorate.

“The three closures bring to 12 the number of Protestant churches the authorities have closed since November 2018, the Protestant Church of Algeria said, mostly on the grounds that the state has not granted permission for these sites to be used as places of worship, as required by Ordinance 06-03 of 2006, ‘Governing the Practice of Religions other than Islam.’ The Protestant Church of Algeria said that the authorities rarely approve their applications, putting their churches at constant risk of closure. The authorities have also declined to renew the Protestant Church of Algeria’s status as a legally recognized association, which it has had since 1974. A 2012 law requires associations to re-register. 

“Chalah said that he received a summons from the Tizi Ouzou police on October 12, 2019. When he presented himself the following day, an officer asked him to sign an order from the governor to close his church, which he refused to do. On October 15, at around 5 p.m., shortly after the afternoon prayers, police entered the church and forced around 15 worshipers out, Chalah told Human Rights Watch. He said they used batons and injured him and several others. He obtained a medical certificate from the Nedir Mohamed Hospital in Tizi Ouzou, which Human Rights Watch reviewed, stating that he suffered trauma to his left leg that requires eight days of rest. 

“Human Rights Watch reviewed the sealing order placed on the door of the Full Gospel Church. Dated October 9, 2019, it states that the authorities decided to close the church until the pastor, Salah Challah, regularizes his status according to Ordinance 06-03 and the Law on Associations.

“Under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Algeria ratified, governments must ensure the right to freedom of religion, thought, and conscience of everyone under their jurisdiction, and in particular religious minorities. This right includes the freedom to exercise the religion or belief of one’s choice publicly or privately, alone or with others.”   https://www.hrw.org/print/334972

On 31 October 2019, Brother Rachid referred to “Algeria’s Closure of Christian Churches,” in his weekly program on Satellite TV Al-Karma.

The following is a translation of the main points from the 58-minute program that includes testimonies of Algerian pastors who underwent persecution. Brother Rachid began by referring to a statement issued by the Algerian Interior Minister bragging about the action of his government, “We have closed 49 Stables that were operating illegally!” An arrogant and shameful manner for describing Christian churches.

Thanks to the modern means of communication, Brother Rachid talked to Pastor Salah Chalah, the minister of the largest Christian Church in the country, with 1200 to 1400 members. The church was issued a permit by the Algerian government in 2014. It’s important to note that Christian churches are to be found not only among the Kabylesi, but throughout Algeria. Members of the church had taken photos of worship services showing men, women, and children sitting together, dressed in their best, and listening to the pastor’s sermon. When the authorities decided to close the church, photos were taken by members of the congregation showing policemen and policewomen forcefully evicting worshippers by dragging them away from the sanctuary. Church doors were sealed, with notices explaining the reason for the closure ordered by the Interior Ministry. When a member of the congregation erected a make-shift tent outside the building, he was arrested, and fined.

Brother Rachid engaged the pastor in a series of questions. “What do you do in your churches?” “We preach the Injeel (Good News),” responded, adding several quotations from the Sermon of the Mount. By the way, added the pastor, “our worship services are usually attended by informers who report about our church meetings. The authorities are quite aware of the type of messages and teachings that go on at the church. We are peaceful, we love Algeria, and pray for those in authority over us, as the Bible commands.”

In contrast with the repressive actions of the authorities, several members of the Algerian society sympathized with Algerian Christians. In fact, Algerian Muslims and Mulhidun (Arabic for Unbelievers or Atheists) manifested their solidarity with the Christians and encouraged them to fight for their rights.

Brother Rachid spoke with another minister, Pastor Ali who reported about the closure of 12 to 13 churches in his part of the country. When asked, why was the persecution happening at this time, he gave the following answer:

“During most of 2019, mass demonstrations have been going on protesting the attempt of the ailing President Bouteflika (who had served in this position since 1999) to run for another term. Eventually, he handed his position to the Algerian Army High Command, This arrangement was unacceptable to the people who demanded a regime change. So, the Government’s attack on the Christians was meant to deflect the attention of the demonstrators from their legitimate goal and prove the Government’s readiness to defend of Islam against the encroachment by alien faiths.” 
Further information came to light during Brother Rachid’s communication with the Algerian Christian leadership. The number of Christian Algerians stands around 100,000. Half-way during the telecast, comments from the audience came from North Africa, Western Europe and the USA. One Algerian pointed to the fact that Muslims living in the West enjoy freedom of worship and of propagating their faith without any hindrance. Why then, he asked, there exists no Quid Pro Quo treatment for Christians and for other religious groups, such as the Ahmadisii, Bahaisiii, and Shi’ites, in North African lands! Indeed.

Sadly, Western governments show little or no concern for this anomaly, and seldom raise questions with Muslim governments about the mistreatment of their Christian citizens. I’m thankful that Human Watch and Brother Rachid have brought this tragic situation to our attention, so that we may join them in an effort to spread information on this vital subject, with the hope that religious discrimination and persecution end worldwide. 


To watch Brother Rachid’s program on Algeria, please follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sdWQJOX9_o&feature=youtu.be

____________________________________________

Kabyles is a term used by the French colonialists to refer to Algerians of non-Arab background, i.e. to the original inhabitants of North Africa known as the Amazigh. Prior to the Islamic conquest, some Amazigh were Christian, among them Saint Augustine, the Bishop of Hippo. In recent years, Amazigh have achieved governmental recognition of their language and culture, in Algeria and Morocco.

ii Ahmadis are followers of the Ahmadiyya sect, an Islamic revival or messianic movement founded in Punjab, British India, in the late 19th century. It originated with the life and teachings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, who claimed to have been divinely appointed as both the promised Mahdi and Messiah expected by Muslims to appear towards the end times.

iii The Bahá'í Faith teaches the essential worth of all religions, and the unity and equality of all people. Established by Bahá'u'lláh in 1863, it initially grew in Persia and parts of the Middle East, where it has faced ongoing persecution since its inception. Its leader is buried in Haifa, Israel; a Bahai Temple is found in Wilmette, Illinois, USA.

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The West’s Urgent Need to Understand the True Nature of

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The West’s Urgent Need to Understand the True Nature of Islam

By Bassam Michael Madany
9 July 2018

The 12 June 2018 issue of Crisis Magazine published an article by William Kilpatrick entitled, “The Burqa, the Baker, and the Bishops.” [i] He explained that leaders of the Catholic Church, beginning with Pope Francis himself all the way down to his bishops in the West, regard Islam merely as a religious faith. Yet the history of the last fourteen centuries proves that Islam is an amalgam of religion and state in one indivisible entity. 

In our study of various cultures, we tend to see them through the prism of our own worldview. The proper way, however, is to look at them from within their own worldviews. In his Introduction to The Arabs in History the late Bernard Lewis (31 May 1916 – 19 May 2018,) cautioned against using Western categories of thought, when studying the history of the Arabs and of Islam.

“The European writer on Islamic history labours under a special disability. Writing in a Western language, he necessarily uses Western terms. But these terms are based on Western categories of thought and analysis, themselves deriving in the main from Western history. Their application to the conditions of another society formed by different influences and living in different ways of life can at best be an analogy and may be dangerously misleading. To take an example: such pairs of words as Church and State, spiritual and temporal, ecclesiastical and lay, had no real equivalents in Arabic until modern times, when they were created to translate modern ideas; for the dichotomy which they express was unknown to mediaeval Muslim society and unarticulated in the mediaeval Muslim mind. The community of Islam was Church and State in one, with the two indistinguishably interwoven; its titular head, the Caliph, was at once a secular and religious chief. Such words as ‘religion,’ state, ’sovereignty,’ democracy,’ mean very different things in Islamic context and indeed varying meanings from one part of Europe to another. The use of such words, however, is inevitable in writing in English and for that matter in writing in the modern languages of the Orient, influenced for close on a century by Western modes of thought and classification. In the following pages they are to be understood at all times in their Islamic context and should not be taken as implying any greater degree of resemblance to corresponding Western institutions than is specifically stated” (pp. 19, 20).

Kilpatrick referred to the Danish Government’s ban of the Islamic full-face veil in public, and asked, “what if a burqa ban was proposed in the U.S.? How would American Catholics respond? Answer: even if a bishop should have personal qualms about the burqa, he would still likely defend the right to wear it. That’s because the USCCB’s policy on religious liberty is more or less the same as Ben Franklin’s policy for resisting the British—namely, ‘If we don’t all hang together, we shall all hang separately.’” He then concluded, “Muslims have few of the rights enjoyed by citizens in the West. Moreover, many of the stipulations of sharia law are outright violations of the Bill of Rights.” 

Even though some Western ideologues might accuse Professor Kilpatrick for spreading Islamophobia when he speaks like that, they would be off the mark. His evaluation of Islam is identical with what certain Arab-Muslim intellectuals are saying and they should not be overlooked. In fact, several Arabs are dismissing Islam altogether, regarding it as irrelevant for our time.

Lately, thanks to the Internet, I have been able to “attend” some public presentations in Egypt and in Tunisia, where men and women gather to listen to lecturers who boldly assert that Islam is outdated; and that such slogans as “al-Islam saleh li culli zaman wa makan” (Islam is valid for all time and in all places,) must be relegated to the dustbin of history. To illustrate my point, I cite the views of two Arab scholars, the Tunisian Youssef Seddik, and the Egyptian Sayyid Al-Qemany.

Dr. Youssef Seddik was born in Tozeur, Tunisia in 1943. He has several academic degrees and has lectured at prestigious French universities on modern Islamic philosophy. In 2004, he published “Nous n'avons jamais lu le Coran,” (We have never read the Qur’an,) in which he questioned the politics of Islam. He has appeared on the TV Channel Al-Hurra, where he advocated the theory that the printed copy of the Qur’an, known in Arabic as the “Mus-haf” was a human product, and must not be equated with the original manuscript of the Qur’an. [ii] Therefore, the printed text may be studied with the tools of modern scientific and philosophical principles. 

Among other things, Dr. Seddik calls for the abolition of the prestigious one thousand-year old Al-Azhar University Mosque in Cairo, Egypt, and its equivalent Tunisian center, Al-Zaytuna Mosque in Tunis. 

Speaking on Al-Hurra on 13 June 2018, Dr. Seddik claimed that “from the death of the Prophet Muhammad and to this day, our history has been a pack of lies." He discussed the incompatibility of the Quran with modern man-made laws, which rendered the religious texts obsolete.”  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxIe9zoViDc

In another interview, he said, “Every Muslim Believes the Entire Earth Must Become Muslim. But I Like the American Moderation and Coexistence - Something You Rarely Find in Non-Western Countries.” 
https://www.memri.org/tv/paris-based-tunisian-philosopher-youssef-seddik-our-history-pack-of-lies/transcript

In Egypt Dr. Sayyid Al-Qemany has been campaigning for a radical reinterpretation of Islam. He heads a secular political party in Egypt and has clashed with the officials at Al-Azhar. As a result, they declared him as a Kaffir (Unbeliever.) He agrees with that designation, since he doesn’t believe in the injunctions of the Sharia, nor in the mythological aspects of the Qur’an. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4c3vhgqFOY

Recently, at a meeting with his supporters he stated, “We Have Tried Islamic Rule for 1,400 Years and It Has Failed.
https://www.memri.org/tv/egyptian-author-sayyid-al-qimni-we-have-tried-islamic-rule-1400-years-and-it-has-failed/transcript

In referring to the radical critique of Islam by these two prominent Arab scholars, I am not implying that their views have become generally acceptable among the overall Arab communities. I am simply drawing attention to these movements, to highlight that change has become an important feature of Arab societies in the 21st century; even though it has impacted mainly the young educated classes. 

At the same time, to keep our understanding of contemporaneous Islam balanced, it is necessary to consider the impact of some retrograde movements occurring in two Muslim-majority lands: Turkey and Indonesia. 

On Sunday, the 24th of June 2018, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s victory in Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections became clear. The process of the re-Islamization of the Turkish Republic will gather momentum. Gradually, Erdoğan will attempt to dismantle the secular edifice that was built by Ataturk, which functioned well for decades, thanks to the Officer Corps and the independent Judiciary. 

Two weeks later, The Wall Street Journal reported that “Turkish authorities dismissed more than 18,000 state employees for alleged ties to terror groups Sunday, a dramatic extension of mass purges launched after the 2016 failed military coup as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is about begin a new term with vastly expanded executive powers.” 

The changes that have been happening in Indonesia must also be noted. It has the largest Muslim population of any country and has had a tumultuous history since its independence from Dutch colonial rule in the aftermath of WWII. Its first leader, Sukarno was a secular activist and a major leader in the Non-Aligned Movement.[iii]

In October of 1965, a coup attempt resulted in General Suharto assuming absolute powers in the country. It was followed by a well-organized plan to purge the country of the Communist threat. A month after taking power the military began slaughtering communists and alleged communists in Java and in Bali. Some claim that as many as one million people were killed. It was a veritable blood bath. For several years after the purge of communists, the persecution of alleged communists went on.

With the destruction of the secularist system initiated by Sukarno, Indonesia has experienced a revival of a rigid and fundamentalist Islam. On 9 May 2017, an Indonesian court found the Christian governor of the country’s capital, Jakarta, guilty of blasphemy against Islam, sentencing him to two years in prison. The case is widely seen as a test of religious tolerance and free speech. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/09/world/asia/indonesia-governor-ahok-basuki-tjahaja-purnama-blasphemy-islam.html

These major events have not seemed to dent the West’s prevailing idea that Islam is purely a religious faith. On the other hand, it should be obvious that for the last 1400 years, the Futuhat (Arabic term for the Islamic conquests that began in 632 A.D.) have proved that Islam is much more than a religion. It did not persuade adherents by the strength of its teachings alone but conquered by the sword not the word.  The historical amnesia that afflicts so many Western leaders about the true nature of Islam is reflected in the policies their governments have adopted.  Muslim communities are shown deference when governments allow them to practice their beliefs and traditions even when they conflict with Western law.  As a British blogger recently put it,

“The steady influx of Islamic people is beginning to have a deleterious effect on British society, in some areas more than others, but a ‘foothold’ has been gained by Islam in the UK. A great many people in the UK are deeply concerned about the effect Islamic people are having on their homeland.”
https://www.quora.com/Are-the-people-of-UK-concerned-about-the-rise-in-Muslim-population 

Lately, however, there have been signs of change on the continent. Germany's new interior minister, Horst Seehofer, in his first interview since being sworn in on 14 March 2018, has said that "Islam does not belong to Germany." 

In a March 16 interview with Bild, Germany's largest daily newspaper, Seehofer was asked if Islam belongs to Germany. He responded: "No. Islam does not belong to Germany. Germany is shaped by Christianity. This tradition includes work-free Sundays and church holidays and rituals such as Easter, Pentecost and Christmas."

Seehofer added that Muslims living in Germany are "of course" part of Germany. But that does not mean, he said, "that we therefore, out of false deference, give up our country's traditions and customs." He added: "My message is that Muslims have to live with us, not next to or against us. To achieve that, we need mutual understanding and consideration, which is only achieved by talking to one another."
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/12040/german-interior-minister-islam-does-not-belong-to

As some Western government officials are beginning to recognize the true nature of Islam, and deal with it realistically, we may expect an improvement in this area of International relations. Similarly, as more Western people become acquainted with the thoughts of Arab-Muslim intellectuals who have analyzed the complex problems of their societies, and offered bold solutions, there is room for guarded optimism. The West would benefit greatly from their insights and proposals, and rescue its leaders and opinion makers, from their Utopian fantasies about the true nature of Islam. 


[i] https://www.crisismagazine.com/2018/burqa-baker-bishops

[ii] Professor Youssef Seddik was referring to the decision of the Third Caliph, Uthman (644 – 656) who gathered several Qur’anic manuscripts that were circulating at the time, kept one version, and burned the rest. His “textus receptus,” known as the “Uthman Qur’an,” is the one used throughout the Muslim world. It must be added that other manuscripts, or fragments of the Qur’an, have been discovered, such as the Sanaa, Yemen, manuscript, whose contents differ somewhat from the Uthman version.  

[iii] The chief architects of the Non-aligned Movement (NAM) were Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru of India; Ahmed Sukarno, the President of Indonesia; Gamal Abdel Nasser, the President of Egypt; Marshall Tito, the President of Yugoslavia; and Kwame Nkrumah, the President of Ghana. 

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What’s Needed: Radical Reforms, Not a Revision of Public Discourse

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

What’s Needed: Radical Reforms, Not a Revision of Public Discourse

A Call to Add Marginal Notes to Passages in the Qur’an
(Al-Islahat al-Jidhriyyat, La Tajdid al-Khitab al-Dini) 

By Bassam Michael Madany
21 June 2018  

Introduction

Al-Awan is a liberal/reformist online journal that calls for the de-coupling of the Islamic faith from the Public Square, via a process of radical reforms in the interpretation of the Qur’an. On two previous occasions, I had translated and commented on this topic: “Modernity and the Qur’an,” and “What is the Qur’an?” 

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/modernity-and-the-quran.cfm
https://www.answering-islam.org/authors/madany/what_is_quran.html

Many reformist intellectuals have concluded that any genuine reformation in the Islamic religion must start with the adoption of a new hermeneutic that takes into consideration and critiques the time and circumstances for the “descent” of each Qur’anic Surah. Such an approach runs counter to the historic Muslim belief that the sacred text is “uncreated,” and remains normative for all time, and in all places! Notwithstanding this belief, liberal Muslims are working hard to initiate radical reforms, realizing that unless these changes take place, the exodus from Islam will only accelerate among future generations.[i]

The following excerpts from the Arabic on-line article present the case for such a radical hermeneutical venture:

“The Qur’an declares that, the only acceptable religion to Allah is Islam (3:19) This Ayah implies that Islam is the most complete and worthy faith to follow. Islamists, most Muslims, even so-called ‘Moderates,’ regard all other religions as false.  

“Can we claim then that Islam is a tolerant religion; or, are its detractors right, when they assert that Islam, is the most intolerant faith? When Muslim radicals commit crimes against humanity, the conclusion is obvious: Islam is a violent and belligerent religion. 

“On the other hand, when we study the early chapters of the Qur’an (the Meccan Surahs 610-622,) we encounter Ayas that breathe a tolerant faith, with emphasis on freedom and mercy toward all human beings. 

Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things. 2:256

O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). 49:13

“Don’t these texts breathe a spirit of love and a view of a humanity living in harmony; where all people enjoy equal status; created to get acquainted with one another, and becoming friends, without reservation or preconditions, and regardless of differences in beliefs?
“However, it’s both painful and unfortunate when we encounter in the Medinan Surahs (622-630) Ayas that contradict the view of a peaceful Islam! 

Therefore, when ye meet the Unbelievers (in fight), smite at their necks; At length, when ye have thoroughly subdued them, bind a bond firmly (on them): thereafter (is the time for) either generosity or ransom: Until the war lays down its burdens. Thus (are ye commanded): but if it had been Allah’s Will, He could certainly have exacted retribution from them (Himself); but (He lets you fight) in order to test you, some with others. But those who are slain in the Way of Allah,- He will never let their deeds be lost. 47:4 

“Actually, the Qur’an reveals two ‘faces’ of Islam: an Islam of love, mercy, and tolerance; as when the Prophet was at peace with the Jews. On the other hand, there is an Islam of murder and intolerance. As one Hadith recounts Muhammad as saying, I’ve come to slaughter; another Hadith, where he describes himself as laughing while killing; and that Jihad is the apex of faith

“There are around 500 Ayas in the Qur’an calling for violence and intolerance vis-à-vis  non-Muslims; while those calling for tolerance, have been marginalized in the religious discourse. In contrast, the violent Ayas are clear, detailed, and form an essential part of the regular Khutbahs (sermons) of the Friday services at the mosques! 

“We urgently need radical reforms. To attain this goal, marginal notes must be added to the Mus’haf (the printed copy of the Qur’an) where combative and intolerant Ayas, are explained, and declared as no longer normative.

“As an example, we may refer to The First Chapter of the Quran, Al-Fatiha. [ii]

Al-Fatiha constitutes the text for the five-daily prayers; it has seven Ayas, the seventh Aya, as historically expounded by Muslim exegetes, refers to the Jews, as being under the wrath of Allah; and to the Christians, as those who had gone astray. This Aya  requires a complete re-interpretation. 

“Arab intellectuals must learn from the Europeans who made radical reforms in their culture, when their theologians employed textual criticism in the study of their sacred texts. They rediscovered that the Bible taught a separation, or a distinction between the role of the church and that of the state; each having its own sphere of authority. The distinction between religion and governance, secured the integrity of religion; at the same time, it allowed the state to deal with the affairs of the social life. 

“When we come to Islam, the developments that took place in Europe are completely absent. Furthermore, it must be added that it was Western scholars who initiated serious and scholarly research of the early manuscripts of the Qur’an. While they encountered opposition from certain academic circles, yet they persisted in their ventures. We may mention among them, Patricia Crone, Christof Luxembourg, and Tom Holland. Some were forced to hide their identities, lest the radical Islamic authorities might issue fatwas legitimizing their assassination! The discipline of Orientalism was depicted as a Western colonialist anti-Islamic plan to spread Islamophobia, a term employed by Islamists, to silence opposition to their cause. 

“As an example of this Islamist attitude, we may refer to the silencing of the documentary, Islam: The Untold Story, by the British historian Tom Holland. It was aired only once on the BBC Chanel 4 due to the pressure exerted on the channel by the Gulf States. In contrast, the same channel had aired programs critical of Christianity’s basic beliefs; however, neither the Christian Church, nor Christian groups, attempted to stop their airing!

“Nowadays, Islamists have become a global active force, thanks to millions of dollars they receive from governments to spread their propaganda among the Muslim communities living throughout of the world. Qatar is one of these states; its TV Station Al-Jazeera, works hard to stifle any reform movement in the Muslim world, while  spreading archaic teachings about Islamist governance, and ethics. Its goal is to defend Salafism, based on the views of the late Sayed Qutb [iii], the notorious ideologue of the Muslin Brotherhood.

“They employ all types of dissimulation in their polemics against reform in Islam, including criticism of Western democratic values that some Muslim states had adopted, based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. [iv]

“The totalitarian Islamist system is like Nazism. It goes beyond authoritarianism, as it seeks absolute control over every aspect of life, leaving no room for individual freedom. It subjects people’s morals, politics, economics, education, literature, and science to its worldview. In fact, it possesses a genocidal nature! 

“For example, Kemal Ataturk’s authoritarianism led to the rise of modern Turkey, where secularism pervaded every aspect of life. Turkey became one of the advanced societies in the world. However, this Kemalist renaissance began to decline and wither, when Erdogan’s Islamist Justice and Development Party took over the reins of government, and began a ‘creeping Islamization’ policy, as some Turkish intellectuals have called it. He has succeeded in striking at the roots of Turkey’s secular tradition, by altering the Constitution through a series of plebiscites, the prosecution of journalists, and by weakening the two basic supports of Turkey’s secularism: an independent Judiciary and the Army.

“Adding to that, Erdogan initiated a campaign to denigrate secularism, while he began to glorify the history of the Ottoman Caliphate, aided by the neo-Ottomans headed by his foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu. Erdogan’s interest has shifted from an attempt to join the European Union, to his dream of reviving the Ottoman Sultanate, and control over the Arab world.  

“In order to overcome the Islamist plague, with its debilitating illnesses, such as underdevelopment, and Irhab; it is necessary to embark on radical reforms. The West has already given us the tools and methods, by which we can accomplish the work. Now it’s our responsibility as Muslims who understand the dimension of the challenge, to take the required measures for the rise of a tolerant Islam, that’s utterly distinct from the violent Islam of the radical movements!” 

Analysis  

This lengthy essay is a very bold call for radical reforms in Islam. The writers are suggesting that marginal notes be added to passages in the Qur’an that they deem incompatible with modernity. It requires the adoption of a new hermeneutic in interpreting Surahs of the sacred text that were “revealed” in Medina (622 – 630) The combative Ayas known in Arabic as “Ayat al-Sayf” (The Sword Verses) would be regarded as time-conditioned, and relevant only to the circumstances that Muhammad faced in Medina. They should no longer be valid in this age of globalization, especially nowadays, as Muslim communities reside permanently in several parts of the West. 

Comments 

The case for radical reforms in contemporary Islam has taken on new urgency as the Third Millennium begins. The spread of radical Islamist movements such as Al-Qaeda and Da’esh (ISIS) have troubled moderate Muslims. The biggest problem facing any genuine reform in Islam is the entrenched belief in the divine origin and applicability of the Qur’an for all time and in all places. 

The rise of the Internet has spurred on both the radicals and the moderates.  The radicals use it with evil intent to propagandize young people and urge them to join various causes against the Infidel. The moderates have also used it to good effect in an attempt to rescue their religion from its extremist interpreters.   Even for those who just want to live in peace, freedom of thought and action is infectious. The “Arab Spring” wouldn’t have spread from Tunisia to Egypt, without this new medium of communication. The events at Tahrir Square in Cairo serve as an example of how masses of young people gathered at the Square and succeeded in toppling the autocratic regime of Hosni Mubarak! 

The fear of an acceleration of the exodus of young Egyptians from the faith, and the growth of Ilhad (Unbelief) make it an urgent matter to “save” Islam from an extremely serious condition. This fear is accentuated by the rise of Ilhad movements that are gaining strength by using YouTube, where interviews with leaders of secular worldviews, present their critique of the Islamic sacred texts, such as the activities of the Egyptian Dr. Sayyid al-Qimni [v]

It's very hard to forecast what the future holds for the much-needed reformation in Islam. One thing is certain, there can be no return to the past, to an era when discussions and articles on such topics could not have taken place! In all areas of life, and among all civilizations, history is accelerating toward an unknown future!  

The “radical reform” essay was posted on Al-Awan website, on the First of February 2018 and can be found at: https://www.alawan.org


[i] The spread of disbelief in the Arab world
https://newrepublic.com/article/121559/rise-arab-atheists

[ii] Al-Fatiha The First Chapter of the Quran
1 In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. 2 Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, 3 The Beneficent, the Merciful. 4 Master of the Day of Judgment, 5 Thee (alone) we worship; Thee (alone) we ask for help. 6 Show us the straight path, 7 The path of those whom Thou hast favoured; Not the (path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who go astray. The Meaning of the Glorious Qur’an, by M.M. Pickthall

[iii] Sayyid Qutb was a member of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood in the 1950s and 1960s. His major book, “Milestones on the Way,” (published in 1964) has become the textbook for Jihadism. In 1966, he was convicted of plotting the assassination of Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser and was executed by hanging.

[iv] The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a historic document that was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly at its third session on 10 December 1948 as Resolution 217 at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. Of the then 58 members of the United Nations, 48 voted in favor, none against, eight abstained, and two did not vote.

Charles Habib Malik was a Lebanese academic, diplomat, and philosopher. He served as the Lebanese representative to the United Nations, the President of the Commission on Human Rights and the United Nations General Assembly, a member of the Lebanese Cabinet, a national minister of Education and the Arts, and of Foreign Affairs and Emigration, and theologian. He was responsible for the drafting and adoption of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

[v] Sayyid al-Qimni is an Egyptian scholar who subscribes to a secularist worldview of all religions, denying their supernatural origin. He has waged ideological battles with Al-Azhar University Mosque, that had declared him a Kafir. The following is one of his many interviews that takes place in Arabic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDodqUcwwTk&t=51s

Posted in Articles

The Accelerating Exodus from Islam

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany
30 May 2018

There is no dearth of news in the print and online media regarding the Arab world.  When I glanced this morning at the headlines of the Wall Street Journal, I saw this report date-lined 24 May 2018, “Iran’s Push for Influence Meets Resistance in Iraq and Syria: Efforts to limit Tehran’s sway add to the pressure facing Iran after Trump’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal.

On 29 May, a follow-up article reported, “Rising Tensions in Syria’s Southwest Complicate Moscow’s Ties with Tehran.

From across the Atlantic, the French Television Network, France-24, gave details on 29 May, about the negotiations going on in Paris, between factions of the Libyan leadership, and on the continuing clashes in Gaza, “Libyan factions commit to Dec. 10 elections at Paris talks.” “Gaza militants fire barrages over border, Israel replies with air strikes.

On the other hand, there is hardly any information in the regular media about developments in Arab societies that indicate an accelerating “Exodus” from Islam, among the young generation. Perhaps Western media consider this topic is too delicate, or inappropriate to deal with! 

I had watched Brother Rachid’s “A Daring Question” telecast on the Satellite TV station Al-Hayat,  on the 10th of May. He dealt with “the waves of Muslims throughout the Arab world, who are leaving Islam;” adding that “it was a veritable Exodus.”

He wondered whether it was going to be a steady “Exodus,” and about the reasons impelling some Muslims to leave Islam, in such great numbers! Was it due to the impact of the new Media: The Internet, YouTube, Facebook, and Pal Talk?! Furthermore, this “Exodus” of  young Arab Muslims continues unabated, despite all types of pressures, persecutions, threats, and imprisonments!  Was there any way to stop this trend? 

http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/VideoPlayer/VideoId/1376/537

I realize that such information may surprise people whose sources of information are limited to the traditional online and print media; perhaps information about social changes in the Arab world, doesn’t carry the importance it deserves. 

Brother Rachid began his program by referring to a recently published book in Morocco with the title, “Magharibat La-Deeniyoun” (“Moroccans without Religion.”) The author related stories of young Moroccans who have openly declared their unbelief, and their “liberation from 1400 years of an oppressive tradition.

An eighteen-year old Moroccan explained the reason for his unbelief: “I’ve discovered that modern science disproves the main Islamic beliefs.” A young lady Safa, explained that what turned her off from Islam, was the doctrine of Qadr, (the Arabic for fate.) “That everything had been pre-ordained or pre-destined for our life, is illogical, I can’t accept it! Now I consider myself as an agnostic; soon I may become an atheist.”   

Another youthful Moroccan explained, “now that we have more sources of knowledge, and the wall that kept these sources unavailable has been torn down by the Internet, I’m able to compare Islamic beliefs with other teachings; which led me to forsake my traditional faith.” 

A sensitive young student found the Qur’anic Ayahs (texts) that set forth the punitive Shariah laws unacceptable, such as amputating the limbs of thieves, “that led me to leave Islam.”   

Having introduced the show with these quotations from the book that gave testimonies of Moroccans who had left Islam, Brother Rachid asked the audience to participate in the show. Telephone calls came from various parts of the Arab world. 

The following are excerpts from their phone calls.

Laila’s Story, a Moroccan living outside the Arab world.

“I used to be a believing Muslim; and had lived four years in Saudi Arabia. Somehow, I missed out on getting married. Yet I had a strong desire to be a mother. I sought to adopt a child back home. I discovered that Morocco, like other Islamic lands, forbids adoption! I was surprised to learn that, so I consulted the Qur’an (Surah al-Ahzab 33/37) and found out the reason.

“Muhamad’s desired to marry Zaynab, the wife of his adopted son, Zayd. So, a special message descended to allow him to marry Zaynab. Then, he dissolved his adoption of Zayd, so that it couldn’t be considered that he had married his daughter-in-law. Then, he decreed that adoption was haram (forbidden) in Islam! 

This is the Qur’anic Ayah (quite difficult to comprehend) that forbids adoption:

Behold! Thou didst say to one who had received the grace of Allah and thy favour: "Retain thou (in wedlock) thy wife, and fear Allah." But thou didst hide in thy heart that which Allah was about to make manifest: thou didst fear the people, but it is more fitting that thou shouldest fear Allah. Then when Zaid had dissolved (his marriage) with her, with the necessary (formality), We joined her in marriage to thee: in order that (in future) there may be no difficulty to the Believers in (the matter of) marriage with the wives of their adopted sons, when the latter have dissolved with the necessary (formality) (their marriage) with them. And Allah’s command must be fulfilled.
Quran33:37 Translation of Yusuf Ali

Laila continued, “one day, I watched a TV program where the Muslim scholar Adnan Ibrahim was giving a rebuttal to Brother Rachid’s program. Then, I heard about Daesh’s (ISIS) execution of 21 Copts in Libya. I felt ashamed of myself being a Muslima (the feminine for Muslim.) I began watching Brother Rachid’s “A Daring Question.” In program number 315, he compared the Gospel with the Quran. At first, I refused to believe him, in fact I had hoped he was wrong. Yet, when I consulted the sources, I found he was right 100%.” 

“All my Islamic views of God began to change. Allah appears as a mighty deity, haughty, and uncaring for mankind. I began to read the Injil (the New Testament) but couldn’t make out its teachings. 

“Living in Europe, I sought the help of a minister who enabled me to understand the Christian faith. In 2017, I was baptized and chose the name of Hannah, Samuel’s mother. I hadn’t experienced dreams or revelations; I was changed inwardly, and experienced peace of mind. Now I feel close to God, I pray that many in the Muslim world would discover that Christianity is a heavenly message. My testimony to those watching the program is:  “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men, by which we must be saved.
Acts 4: 12 (ESV)

Ahmad’s Story

Ahmad is from Iraq, born a Shi’ite . Towards the end of 2016, as Daesh entered Mosul and began its destructive and hateful activities, Ahmad was shocked. “I began my research in the Medinan Surahs of the Quran (622 to 632) and found out that the radicals were applying those teachings literally. For example, Surah al-Tawba (Repentance) 9:5, commands Muslims to fight unbelievers: 

“But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practise regular charity, then open the way for them: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.”

Same Surah, Ayah 111 states:

Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the Law, the Gospel, and the Qur'an: and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah. then rejoice in the bargain which ye have concluded: that is the achievement supreme.

“I needed no further research, as these verses encouraged warfare and embellish it, as if it were a ‘bargain!’ So, I began to watch Christian TV channels such as “A Daring Question” and Father Zakaria’s program. They showed me how wrong Islam has been. As I began contacting Christian believers in Algeria and in Britain, I discovered that  waves of Muslims are exiting Islam.”

The story of Elizabeth from Tunis.

Elizabeth gave this account of her journey to the Christian faith.

“I believe that God has called me from my earliest days to the Christian faith. I was very impressed by the Christians’ walk; their life was so different from ours! Why do Muslims call them “Kuffar” (Infidels)?  When I considered what was going on in the Muslim world, all the killings and the civil wars, I became alarmed! I suffered greatly from nightmares! Thanks to Christian TV channels, I came to know Jesus Christ, I believed in Him as the Crucified and Risen Savior. What a joy to get rid of those iron chains that had kept me in Islam!”

Maryam’s story from Morocco 

“From my earliest days, I felt attracted to the Christian Faith. Living in Casablanca, I saw foreign Christians go to church. Sometimes, I would slip into a church to learn about what Christians believed. Once I listened to a speaker on a TV channel who was criticizing an apostate called Brother Rachid; the speaker did his utmost to show how Brother Rachid was wrong in criticizing the Quranic teachings. When I did research on the subject, I found out that Brother Rachid  was right. That led me to look for an alternative to Islam, and thus came to believe in the Messiah.”

Near the end of the show, Brother Rachid listed several websites that had been created by ex-Muslims, all indicating the extent of the wave of Muslims “exiting” Islam.  He singled out Iran, as the country that has witnessed high numbers of young people turning to Christ, by referring to a book published in 2014, TOO MANY TO JAIL

In addition to Brother Rachid’s information about the “Exodus,” I discovered another source that illustrated the rebellion that’s going on among the Arab young generation. On Monday, 28 May 2018, the French online channel France 24, published a report about a group of young Tunisians who demonstrated in the heart of Tunis, for the freedom to eat and drink (water) publicly during Ramadan! One banner carried these two words, Bila Sayf,  (without the sword,) pleading with the government to refrain from enforcing a law forbidding eating or drinking water in public, between dawn and sunset, during the month of fasting. 

This event was a repetition of what happened in Ramadan 2017! In fact, this time one demonstrator was drinking from a water bottle, another young unveiled woman, was eating a sandwich!

Perhaps we may be reading too much into these events; yet such manifestations of a rebellion against the Islamic faith, are taking place openly! Prior to the advent of the Internet, Muslims had been living in a “box,” as the Egyptian-German scholar and activist Hamed Abdel-Samad, puts it. Now, many are exiting from the “Box!” As Brother Rachid mentioned, “the Internet is the worst thing that has happened to Islam, since its founding 1400 years ago!” The new media are accomplishing changes that no one had ever dreamt of since the 7th century A.D.!   


1    Author Mark Bradley documents the remarkable rise of the Iranian church, despite fierce persecution, as Iranians grow disillusioned with Islam. In 1979, there were fewer than 500 known Christians from a Muslim background in Iran. Today there are at least 100,000 new believers. Church leaders believe that millions can be added to the church in the next few years--such is the spiritual hunger that exists. The religious violence that accompanied the reign of President Ahmadinejad drained its perpetrators of political and religious legitimacy and has opened the door to other faiths.
 
https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B00PQTGEZU&tag=bing08-20&linkCode=kpp&reshareId=YFP2ZWVRXEX1TX33DEB8&reshareChannel=system

Posted in Articles

The Veiled Genocide: A forgotten Historic Tragedy

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany
22 May 2018

In 2008, Editions Gallimard[i] , published Le Génocide Voilé. The author, Tidiane N’Diaye, is a Senegalese anthropologist and economist, living in Dakar, the capital of  Senegal. The book was introduced with this summary:

« Les Arabes ont razzié l'Afrique subsaharienne pendant treize siècles sans interruption. La plupart des millions d'hommes qu'ils ont déportés ont disparu du fait des traitements inhumains. Cette douloureuse page de l'histoire des peuples noirs n'est apparemment pas définitivement tournée. La traite négrière a commencé lorsque l'émir et général arabe Abdallah ben Saïd a imposé aux Soudanais un bakht (accord), conclu en 652, les obligeant à livrer annuellement des centaines d'esclaves. La majorité de ces hommes était prélevée sur les populations du Darfour. Et ce fut le point de départ d'une énorme ponction humaine qui devait s'arrêter officiellement au début du XXe siècle. » 

The following is my translation of the summary:

“The Arabs have raided sub-Saharan Africa for thirteen centuries without interruption. Most of the men they deported have disappeared, due to their inhuman treatments. This painful page of the history of Black people does not seem to have been completely ended. The beginning of this treatment of the Blacks began when the Arab Emir and general Abdallah ben Saïd, imposed upon the Sudanese a “Bakht” (an agreement) in 652, forcing them to furnish hundreds of slaves annually. Most of them were men who were taken from the people of Darfur. That became the point of departure for an enormous human operation that continued officially until early in the 20th century.”

To the best of my knowledge, this book is only available in French. Interest in the subject is quite high in the Francophone world. 

Philippe Triay, a French writer, sent questions about this subject to Mr. Tidiane N’Diaye, who graciously answered them. They were posted on 30 April 2015,  under the following title

« L’autre esclavage : un aperçu de la traite arabo-musulmane » 

“The Other Slavery : An Overview of the Arab-Muslim Slave-Trade.”
https://la1ere.francetvinfo.fr/2014/04/29/l-autre-esclavage-un-apercu-de-la-traite-arabo-musulmane-147531.html  

The following are excerpts from Tidiane N’Diaye’s responses:

“To date, the most analyzed and documented forms of slavery and the slave-trade, have been the Trans-Atlantic ones. Several essays, novels, and movies have dealt with the subject, allowing the public to learn about this tragic history.

“However, Europe did not have a monopoly on the slave-trade. There were others, like the East African and trans-Saharan trades organized by the Arabs. Those were violent and devastating for Africans and their descendants, as were the Trans-Atlantic ones, that were supported by Islam and Christianity, for a long time.

“My main concern is with the East African and Trans-Saharan trades. The reason for calling my book, “The Veiled Genocide,” is due to the massive castration of the African captives during the Arab-Muslim slave-trade. 

“While slavery has been known throughout history among all nations, and on all continents, what is less known is that the African slave-trade was inaugurated by the Arab-Muslims; it lasted around thirteen centuries without interruption. It was accompanied by a generalized castration of incalculable numbers of Black captives. Its impact was greater than the Trans-Atlantic slave-trade. The saddest thing about this historic tragedy is that most of the deported people were deprived of having any descendants, due to the policy adopted by the Arabs.   

“The Trans-Atlantic slave-trade lasted for four hundred years. Despite its monstrosity, and the humiliations that befell the captives, a slave had an inherent monetary value. His master wanted him to be productive in the long term. Thus, the goal was not the extermination of a people. Furthermore, the Arab-Muslim trade went on for thirteen centuries. Most of the men they had deported have disappeared from history. From the moment Africa had become the main source for the provision of slaves, in the collective Arab consciousness a Black person became also a symbol, or a synonym, of slavery.  

“In the Arab world, the notion of the basic inferiority of Black people took deep root, which explains the acceptance of the ill-treatment of Black captives, and the means used to deny them any descendants. The result is that in our day they have almost disappeared in Turkey, Yemen, and Iraq; and very few survivors can be found in North Africa and Saudi Arabia. 

“To learn about the heavy toll of that slave-trade, I compared the archives of these countries with the testimonies of explorers like Cameron, Stanley, Dr. Livingstone, and  Mgrs. Lavigerie. I read as well, the horrific descriptions of the Arab slave-traders at the castration centers. I concluded that between 70% to 80% of the slaves perished. Combining the Trans-Saharan and East African trades, we arrive at a total of 17 million who were castrated. Some of them died or were brought alive to the Arab world and beyond.  

The Arab-Muslim slave-trade was a veritable genocide of Black people. By way of comparison, around 70 million African descendants of the Trans-Atlantic slave-trade now live in the Americas; mainly in the United States, Brazil, and the Caribbean islands; while only a tiny minority of Africans have survived in the Arab-Muslim lands.   

“While there are no degrees in the classification of horrors, or a monopoly of cruelties perpetrated on human beings, yet the Arab-Muslim slave-trade was far more devastating for Black Africa than the Trans-Atlantic trade.

“It is unfortunate that the Arab-Muslim slave-trade is little known or studied. It is puzzling that many would like the subject to be covered-up under a veil of forgetfulness for religious or ideological solidarity. It’s as if a virtual pact had been concluded between the victims’ descendants and their tormentors, leading to this denial. This silence, or the underestimation of the extent of the Arab slave-trade, results in a unique attention being focused on the Trans-Atlantic slave-trade.

“Furthermore, Arab-Muslim intellectuals attempt to erase the very memory of this infamy, as if it had never happened! They fail to consider critically their own history and to debate such issues with their compatriots. African-Americans who convert to Islam seem to be oblivious of the Arab-Muslim slave-trade; as if any mention of this subject is an attempt to minimize the evils of the Trans-Atlantic slave-trade! 

“Thus, a veil of silence has for a long time covered-up a dark page of our common history, as we also observe this strange amnesia on the part of Black elites. They are wrong to ignore the memory of this genocide. Equally, it’s unscientific, when they concentrate their attention, on the Trans-Atlantic slave-trade. By writing my book, I lift the veil over this dark page of our history. My book is a memorial for this martyrdom of Black people; their descendants must no longer remain hypocritically selective, focusing  exclusively on Western crimes’’       

Analysis

While the Trans-Atlantic slave-trade has received proper attention in the West, the East-African and Trans-Saharan slave-trades conducted by Arab-Muslims over a long period of time, have been ignored. The West African scholar Tidiane N’Diaye, seeks to remedy that neglect, by publishing the results of his research. His conclusion: this slave-trade was a genocide; as it has remained relatively unknown, he entitled the book, “The Veiled Genocide.”

Comments

It was back in 2008, that Tidiane N’Diaye’s book was published in Paris, France. Ten years later, the book is available in French only! In a sense, the veil has been lifted only in the Francophone world! Thanks to the interest and labors of West African scholars in Francophone Africa the subject has been frequently discussed at international conferences and taught at universities in West Africa and in France. I have posted  links to these events that have been archived on YouTube. The proceedings and discussions are in French.

As I reflect on this matter, I wonder whether the reticence to publish an English translation was to avoid promoting a negative view of the Arab-Muslim history. Such a theory might have been plausible, had the author and speakers been Westerners. In fact, all were Africans such as Tidiane N’Diaye, Salah Trabelsi, Muhammad Ennaji, Ibrahim Thiabe. They presented well-researched lectures, in impeccable French; a testimony to the maturity achieved by Francophone Africans, since the end of French colonialism, in the early 1950s. 

Having listened to the presentations several times, I was impressed by the passion and sincerity of the African scholars. Their goal was to give a truthful narrative of one of the most shocking events in African history. Their professional standing coupled with the zeal to unveil a historic tragedy, could be felt in the delivery of their papers.  

For me personally, to publish this information is a sacred duty. Having grown up in the Levant as an Eastern Christian, whose ancestors lived as Dhimmis under Islamic colonialism for centuries I am happy to see the publication of this book and hope many people will read it . The humiliations and deprivations inflicted on my forefathers, pale into insignificance when compared with the sufferings of Black Africans! The least I can do for the memory of East-African and Trans-Saharan captives, is to share this information, gleaned from French-language presentations, of trustworthy, honorable, and brave African scholars!

Postscript

The following interview on YouTube is with Tidiane N’Diaye (dated 17 January 2015) where the author refers to the main points of his book. The audio is in French and lasts 9 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wbn2bAqMIZQ

Tidiane N’Diaye, Salah Trabelsi, Muhammad Ennaji, Ibrahim Thioub, discuss the Arab-Slave Trade. The audio is in French and lasts 15 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DaXgrPgsNY

Professor Salah Trabelsi, of the University of Lyons, France, opens a conference on Arab-Muslim slave-trade. The audio is in French and lasts one hour. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qcqp5m_Ztl4

An Interview with Tidiane N’Diaye Published on 10 May 2017 Jean-Pierre Elkabbach reçoit tous les matins un invité politique dans #LaMatinaleInfo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgUGNdXOjC8&t=262s


[i] Éditions Gallimard is one of the leading French publishers of books. The Guardian has described it as having "the best backlist in the world". In 2003 it and its subsidiaries published 1,418 titles.
http://www.gallimard.fr/

Posted in Articles

From Radical Islam to a Servant of Christ

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany


9 April 2018


On 29 March 2018, Brother Rachid introduced his weekly program, “A Daring Question” with these remarks: 


Every conversion story has a lesson to teach us. There are various explanations as to why and how Muslims are converted to Jesus Christ. When they cross over from Islam to Christianity, their lives are radically changed, especially in the fact that they experience peace with God, a gift that Islam had failed to provide.


The following are excerpts from the conversion story of Muhammad.


“Muhammad was raised in a non-practicing Lebanese Muslim family. Due to the troubled conditions in Lebanon, the family moved to Kuwait, where his father found a good job. He attended school in Kuwait but remained attached to his homeland.


“When Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, the family returned to their village in south Lebanon, a few miles from Sidon. The area was very close to Israel. Muhammad’s  father was a committed Pan-Arab nationalist, and an ardent supporter of Gamal Abdel-Nasser, president of Egypt (1952 – 1970.) Growing up in such an environment, the boy hated Israel and its main supporter, America.


“September 11, 2001, was a turning point in his life. Watching a local TV station, he witnessed the attacks on the World Trade Center. He was thrilled by what happened and began spreading the news throughout his village.


“Becoming aware that it was a group of committed Islamists who had planned and executed the attack on America, triggered his interest to study Islam. He had never read the Qur’an; the only  thing he knew was the “Fatihah,”[1]  the first chapter of the sacred text that he had learned at school in Kuwait.


“Now Muhammad began listening to the Du’at (Propagandists of radical Islam) on        Al-Jazeera TV. In Sidon, he attended a mosque where two divergent groups met, one was Salafist, and the other was Sufi, i.e., mystical. He aligned himself with the Salafists who advocated Jihad against the Kuffar (unbelievers.) Once, a delegation of Sufi members of the mosque went to his father and warned him about the consequences of his son’s decision.


“Alarmed by the information, Muhammad’s father sent him to Dubai, to live with his married sister. Having finished High School in Lebanon, he enrolled at the American University in Dubai, while holding a job. Now that he had  become a committed Muslim, he began observing the daily routine of the Salat (Ritual prayers.) It didn’t take him long to discover that it was impossible to work, attend school, and do five sessions of ritual prayers daily, as it left him only four hours to sleep!


“That led him to neglect his devotional life, which in turn led to a strong feeling of guilt. In his quest for a solution to his predicament, he went to Mecca in 2007, to perform the “minor” pilgrimage, i.e., in a season other than the official time for the Hajj. He stayed in the holy city for two weeks, praying at the Kaaba to Allah for guidance and forgiveness!


“Back to Dubai; his search on the Internet led him to discover “The World Islamic Resistance Movement,” which claimed that the struggle against the World Order began in Israel. He went back to Lebanon, with a plan to recruit Jihadists in the mosques of Beirut, Tripoli, and Sidon.
“An integral part of the Jihadist ideology is the restoration of the Caliphate, and Muhammad began a serious study of the early years of Islam. He was shocked to find that those days were far from ideal. Of the first four Caliphs, three were assassinated by other Muslims. The assassination of Ali, the fourth Caliph, precipitated the great schism in Islam (661.) Now two Muslim camps, Sunnis and Shi’ites, began their opposition to each other, that has lasted for the last 1400  years. The first Sunni dynastic Caliphate, the Umayyad, ended in a blood bath (750). The founder of the second dynasty, the Abbasid Caliphate, was known as Al-Saffah, the Blood-letter. His successors masterminded the murder of all those who had supported the rise of the new Caliphate!


“Coming to the present, Muhammad noticed the existence of a fierce rivalry among the  Jihadists, with some planning to eliminate their opponents! Then, in Egypt, one year after President Morsi came to power through the assistance of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egyptians repudiated his Islamist regime.


“So, Muhammad concluded that the Utopian dream for the restoration of the Caliphate has led to untold disappointments and sufferings to Muslims worldwide. His disillusionment let him to Agnosticism. But he clung to the hope that there must be a God other than the Allah of the Qur’an, somehow a God that would reveal Himself as Personal and truly concerned about the plight of man.
“A friend suggested to him to watch the weekly programs of the Egyptian-German, Hamed Abdel-Samad, “The Box of Islam.”   Mr. Abdel-Samad was born in Cairo, the son of an Imam, had learned Islam from his earliest days, and was very conversant with the Qur’an, Hadith, and the Sunna (Life of the Prophet.) He went to study in Germany and eventually discovered the true nature of Islam. He wrote several critical books, in Arabic and in German; went on lecturing tours in Europe and initiated his weekly television show in Arabic, “The Box of Islam.” Muhammad watched several of these archived shows on YouTube. In one show,  Abdel-Samad announced that the following week, he would be interviewing a former Muslim, Brother Rachid, whose Thursday shows were telecast on the Satellite TV “Al-Hayat.” Muhammad waited eagerly for the Interview and began watching “A Daring Question,” as Brother Rachid’s program is called. He was thrilled to find another former Muslim, now expounding the beliefs of the Christian faith. 


“As Brother Rachid’s programs were archived on YouTube, Muhammad started watching several of his shows, that led him to the Christian Faith. He discovered that  Christianity didn’t proclaim a hidden deity, highly exalted above mankind, as Islam did. The God revealed in the Holy Bible, was both transcendent and immanent. The Trinity wasn’t “Tri-theism,” as Muslims claimed, but affirmed both the Oneness of God, in Three Persons. What finally convinced him to adopt the Christian faith, was his reading of the First Chapter of the Gospel according to John. Wow! The Logos that had existed from all eternity, who was with God, and through Him all things were created; the Eternal Word became flesh, assuming our human nature. He did all that to atone for our sins! Muhammad’s eyes were open to the Truth, and for the first time in his life, he experienced peace. It was the tenth of March 2016. He began attending church services, took instructions in the Christian faith, and was baptized in June 2016. He was no longer to be called Muhammad; he chose Mark, the name of the Evangelist Mark!”


 Comments


As Brother Rachid had pointed out, “there are various ways leading to the  conversion of Muslims to Jesus Christ.” Having watched several of these conversions on “A Daring Question,” I noticed that there were certain common factors that surfaced in all of them. I consider them quite relevant in the Evangelization of Muslims.


The first is the belief in the existence of objective Truth. Islam teaches that God’s previous Revelations to the Jews and the Christians have been corrupted. Finally, God chose Muhammad as the recipient of authentic revelation, which may be accessed through the reading of the Arabic text of the Qur’an.   


A second feature of Islam is the incomprehensibility of the Divine. Allah is “bila shabah,”  an important theological doctrine in Islam. It means, “Allah cannot be likened to anyone.” Allah is wholly Other; or supremely transcendent; all His attributes are incommunicable! Islam doesn’t refer to the Person of God, thus leading to Allah being impersonal. A Muslim cannot know God, he can only know the will or Shariah of Allah. The Qur’an consists of “Commanding the Right and Forbidding the Wrong.” This explains why there are few theological subjects that are discussed in Islam; while the exegesis of the Shariah, known as the Science of “Fiqh,” is extremely important. Among Sunnis, there are four accepted Schools for the Interpretation of the Law; and are considered orthodox. In Shi’ite Islam, “Fiqh” is the domain of the official clergy, known as Ayatollahs.


Because of the extreme legalism of Islam, Sufism arose among early Muslims, impacted by Christian monasticism and Buddhism, and sometimes flourished. We noticed in the account of the Sidon mosque, that both Salafists and Sufis that met there for worship!
Another feature of Islam, as in all legalistic religions, human beings can never be sure of their eternal status; they have no assurance of getting to heaven. Since making it to Paradise depends on Good Works being far more than the Bad Works, a Muslim must wait for the Judgment Day to learn about his or her, eternal state. Assurance of salvation belongs only to those who are martyred “In the Pathway of Allah;” in other words, only those who have taken part in Jihad, can be sure of possession the joys of the Islamic Heaven!
Thus, any radical Muslim who discovers that the Jihadist Utopia had been a mirage, turns away from his dreams, and becomes either a Mulhid (atheist), or a convert to Jesus Christ, as Brother Rachid did, and many others who are now at peace with God, and assured of their eternal security.


A final note is in order.


Enumerating the several factors that play a role in the conversion of Muslims, does not tell the whole story. Ultimately, salvation is a gift of God freely bestowed on His elect. This is the plain teaching of Holy Scripture. The best way I can describe it, is to quote the following passage from Ephesians 2.


And you were dead in the trespasses and sins  in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—  among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—  and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. 1 – 10 ESV  

                                                 
On the other hand, God also uses what is known as the “Means of Grace” to fulfill His purposes; a major one is the preaching of the Gospel, as Paul wrote in his First Letter to the Church in Corinth, Greece.


 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach  to save those who believe.  For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom,  but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,  but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. I Corinthians 1: 21 – 25  ESV  


 [1] 1 In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. 2 Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, 3 The Beneficent, the Merciful. 4 Master of the Day of Judgment, 5 Thee (alone) we worship; Thee (alone) we ask for help. 6 Show us the straight path, 7 The path of those whom Thou hast favoured; Not the (path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who go astray. The Opening Surah of the Qur’an

Muslim commentators agree on the meaning of verses 6 and 7; the “straight path” is Islam, the absolute truth. The first part of verse 7, “the path of those who earned Allah’s anger,” are the Jews, while the second half, “those who have gone astray” are the Christians.” Only Muslims possess the Truth, while all other faiths are in error.

URLs for studies in Islamics 


Hamed Abdel-Samad’s website includes materials in Arabic, German, and English. They are polemical in nature 

https://plus.google.com/115940793490537236777


Brother Rachid’s website includes a few programs in English, most are in Arabic


http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/


Review of Brother Rachid’s Book by Bassam Michael Madany


“ISIS and Islam: Through the Eyes of a Former Muslim”


http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/review-brother-rachids-book.cfm 


Free online books of Middle East Resources 


The Bible and Islam: A Basic Guide to Sharing God's Word with a Muslim


by Bassam M. Madany, http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/bible_islam_online.cfm


An Introduction to Islam: by Bassam and Shirley Madany.  http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/intro-islam-online.cfm


The Missiology of Kamil Abdul Messiah: By Rev. Bassam Michael Madany


PDF Download
 

Posted in Articles

Re-Visiting the “Common Word” Initiative

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

17 February 2018

Twelve years ago, Pope Benedict XVI referred critically to Islam, in his Regensburg address on 13 September 2006. A month later, 138 Muslim scholars responded to the Pope’s words. The text of their answer can be accessed on the website of a Jordanian organization, http://www.acommonword.com/

Continuing their campaign to win the good will of the West, Muslim scholars addressed the Christian World in a message entitled, “A Common Word Between Us and You.” The following excerpts from this message, illustrate the Muslims’ concept and purpose of this initiative: 

“The final form of the letter was presented at a conference in September 2007, held under the theme of “Love in the Quran,” by the Royal Academy of The Royal Aal al-Bayt[i] Institute for Islamic Thought in Jordan, under the Patronage of H.M. King Abdullah II. Indeed, the most fundamental common ground between Islam and Christianity, and the best basis for future dialogue and understanding, is the love of God and the love of the neighbor.

“Never before have Muslims delivered this kind of definitive consensus statement on Christianity. Rather than engage in polemic, the signatories have adopted the traditional and mainstream Islamic position of respecting the Christian scripture and calling Christians to be more, not less, faithful to it. 

“It is hoped that this document will provide a common constitution for the many worthy organizations and individuals who are carrying out interfaith dialogue all over the world. Often these groups are unaware of each other and duplicate each other’s efforts. Not only can ‘A Common Word Between Us and You’ give them a starting point for cooperation and worldwide co-ordination, but it does so on the most solid theological ground possible: the teachings of the Qur’an and the Prophet, and the commandments described by Jesus Christ in the Bible. Thus, despite their differences, Islam and Christianity not only share the same Divine Origin and the same Abrahamic heritage, but the same two greatest commandments.” 

Quoted from “The Amman Message Islamica Magazine,” The Great Tafsir Project of the Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute R.I.S.S.C. 2007 C.E. 1428 A.H. 

One Christian response to the “Common Word” overture came from scholars of the Yale Divinity School. They released a statement “warmly embracing the open letter ‘A Common Word between Us and You.’”  It was entitled, “Loving God and Neighbor Together: A Christian Response to A Common Word between Us and You.” Here are excerpts:

“We receive it [A Common Word] as a Muslim hand of conviviality and cooperation extended to Christians world-wide. In this response we extend our own Christian hand in return, so that together with all other human beings, we may live in peace and justice as we seek to love God and our neighbors." 

“The statement was issued by Harold Attridge, dean of Yale Divinity School and Lillian Claus Prof of New Testament, Miroslav Volf, director of the Yale Center for Faith & Culture, and Henry B. Wright Professor of Systematic Theology, Joseph Cumming, director of the Reconciliation Program at the Yale Center for Faith & Culture, and Emilie M. Townes, the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of African American Religion and Theology, and president-elect of the American Academy of Religion. More scholars are expected to endorse the statement as it is circulated at Yale Divinity School and at other academic institutions across the country.”

The Yale Divinity School Response gathered many signatures throughout the USA, including some who are associated with conservative Protestants. Since that time, a controversy has surfaced among the Evangelical circles, leading some signatories to announce the withdrawal of their support for the Yale Response.

Mark Tooley, the director of United Methodist Action at the Institute for Religion and Democracy, contributed an article entitled, A Dialogue in Bad Faith, on 10 January 2008. Here are excerpts:  http://archive.frontpagemag.com/readArticle.aspx?ARTID=29463

“Controversy continues to swirl around the predominantly Religious Left and Evangelical Left response to ‘A Common Word Between Us and You,’ the statement issued by 138 Islamic authorities in October. 

“The Muslim declaration was relatively moderate and invited dialogue with Christians. Mostly left-leaning religious studies faculty from the Ivy League organized ‘Loving God and Neighbor Together’ as a ‘Christian Response.’ It offered regrets for the Crusades and the War on Terror, while eagerly accepting the invite to dialogue with Islam. The Muslim statement, of course, offered no apologies for Islamist conquests or terror.

“Predictable Evangelical Left activists such as Jim Wallis signed as well as more moderate Evangelicals, including the president of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) Leith Anderson and the NAE's increasingly left-leaning Washington spokesman, Richard Cizik. Rev. Anderson hoped that his signature would be ‘especially helpful to Christians who live and minister in Muslim-majority countries.’ And he likewise expressed concern that ‘not signing could be damaging to these Christian brothers and sisters who live among Muslims.’

“On January 3, a publication of James Dobson’s conservative ‘Focus on the Family’ criticized evangelicals who endorsed ‘Loving God and Neighbor Together.’ It quoted Southern Baptist theologian Albert Mohler, who slammed the statement's ‘naiveté,’ including the Crusades apology. ‘I just have to wonder how intellectually honest this is,’ he said. ‘Are these people suggesting that they wish the military conflict with Islam had ended differently - that Islam had conquered Europe?’

“In response to the ‘Focus on the Family’ critique, ‘emerging church’ guru Brian McLaren vigorously responded with his own op-ed for Jim Wallis’ Sojourners. He likened the troubles between Christendom and Islam to an unpleasant domestic dispute between spouses who are in need of good counseling.

“McLaren wondered about his fellow Christians: ‘How can we not apologize for our sins? Should we claim we have no sins? Or should we knowingly refuse to acknowledge them? Isn’t the humility to confess sins a Christian virtue?’ In an analogy that would surprise persecuted Christian minorities in Islamic countries, he portrayed Muslims as ostracized outsiders in need of Christian inclusion: ‘I’m sorry when anyone feels alienated by those of us who try to follow Jesus' command to be peacemakers and to treat others as we would be treated, but didn't Jesus, when faced with a choice of reaching out to those considered untouchable outsiders by the Pharisees, side with the excluded?’

“Was McLaren implying moral equivalence between the U.S. and al Qaeda’s radical Islamist allies? If so, he would not be entirely alone among many signers of ‘Loving God and Neighbor Together,’ who are desperately anxious to separate themselves from U.S. policies or conservative evangelicals who support them. Many of these signers are pacifist absolutists and genuinely see no ethical distinctions between terrorist strikes and a U.S. military response to them.

“The NAE’s Leith Anderson admitted ‘there were lines in the Christian letter that were not quite what I would write’ and ‘sometimes we all sign onto things that are not all that we would like them to be.’ But he hoped that the Christian response to the Islamic overture would foster ‘mutual respect between the two largest religions on the globe’ and broader religious liberty.

“Anderson expressed fear that Christians in Muslim lands might suffer if he declined to sign. Endorsing Christian apologies to Islam to protect Christians from being persecuted or killed by Islamic authorities or mobs, hardly bodes well for constructive Christian-Islamic dialogue.”

Having begun their initiative of dialogue with Christians, the Muslim side continued their efforts, by sending “Seasons’ Greetings to Christians.” On the last day of December 2007, they purchased a half-page ad in The Wall Street Journal, that ran as follows:

A Muslim Message of Thanks and of Christmas and New Year Greetings,
December 2007

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
May God bless Muhammad and his kin and bless Abraham and his kin
Al-Salaam Aleikum; Peace be upon you; Pax Vobiscum

Peace be upon Jesus Christ who says: Peace is upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected
(Chapter of Mary; the Holy Qur’an, 19:33).

During these joyful holidays we write to you, our Christian neighbors all over the world, to express our thanks for the beautiful and gracious responses that we Muslims have been receiving from the very first day we issued our invitation to come together to ‘A Common Word’ based on ‘Love of God and love of Neighbor’ 

We thank you and wish you all a joyous and peaceful Christmas Holiday Season commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, may peace be upon him.

We Muslims bear witness that: There is no god but God, without associate, and that Muhammad is Servant and Messenger, and that Jesus Christ is His Servant, His Messenger, His Word cast to Mary, and a Spirit from Him …
(Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya’)

The Christmas and New Year Greetings, continued by referring to the coincidence in 2007, between Muslim and Christian feasts: (Hajj, Christmas and New Year), and called attention to the patriarch Abraham who was not allowed by God to sacrifice his son, thus affirming and proclaiming the sanctity of human life. Then in an attempt to assume a moral high ground by making Islam eminently “Pro Life,” it referred to those “Muslim scholars who issued a historic declaration affirming the sanctity of human life – of every human life – as an essential and foundational teaching in Islam upon which all Muslim scholars are in unanimous agreement (see details at www.duaatalislam.com).” The “Message” ended with these words:

“May the coming year be one in which the sanctity and dignity of human life is upheld by all. May it be a year of humble repentance before God, and mutual forgiveness within and between communities.

“Praise be to God, the Lord of the world.”

The WSJ advertisement coming on 31 December 2007, claimed to be a “Season’s Greetings” addressed to the Christian World. It was prompted by “the beautiful and gracious responses that we Muslims have been receiving from the very first day we issued our invitation to come together to ‘A Common Word’ based on ‘Love of God and love of Neighbor.’ 

At this point, I would like to address the translation of the Qur’anic words, ‘kalimaton sawa’ as “A Common Word.” While ‘kalimaton’ means a word, the choice of ‘common’ for ‘sawa’ is debatable. Reading the Arabic text does not lead to the choice of the term, “common.” The standard Hans Wehr’s “A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic,” (edited by J. Milton Cowan, and published in 1961 by Otto Harrassowitz, in Wiesbaden, Germany) translates ‘Sawa’ as: equal, equality, equally, indiscriminately, without distinction, in like manner, evenly. The word ‘common’ is not among them.

I realize that no word, in any language, can be understood simply based on its etymology. According to the universally accepted rules of hermeneutics, the context is extremely important in determining the exact meaning of a word. This is especially the case, as we attempt to translate a word from Arabic into a European language. Thus, to understand the meaning of the Muslim’s “Christmas and New Year Greeting,” it is necessary to reflect on the context of the “Common Word” message, taken from Chapter 3 of the Qur’an, Surat Al- ‘Imran. This passage sets forth “The Conditions for Dialogue” between Muslims and Christians. Reading Chapter 3 makes it clear that dialogue with non-Muslims can only take place based on the normative teachings of the Qur’an. 

Here are some verses from Surat Al- ‘Imran, in Arberry’s Translation of the Qur’an

Say: 'People of the Book! Come now to a word common between us and you, that we serve none but God, and that we associate not aught with Him, and do not some of us take others as Lords, apart from God.’ And if they turn their backs, say: 'Bear witness that we are Muslims.’ V. 64

No; Abraham in truth was not a Jew, neither a Christian; but he was a Muslim and one pure of faith; certainly, he was never of the idolaters. V. 67

People of the Book! Why do you disbelieve in God’s signs, which you yourselves witness? People of the Book! Why do you confound the truth with vanity, and conceal the truth and that wittingly? V. 70,71

Whoso desires another religion than Islam, it shall not be accepted of him; in the next world he shall be among the losers. V.85

Those Muslims who issued the invitation to dialogue, and adopted the term, “A Common Word” (kalimaton sawa’on baynana wa-baynakom,) from the Qur’an, declared their complete adherence to the teachings of their sacred book.  Furthermore, it must be noted that the tone of the texts from Chapter III is decidedly polemical. Christians are charged with the sin of shirk, i.e. in claiming that Allah had associates! Then they are exhorted to “serve none but God.” Thus, if Christians engaged in dialogue with Muslims, they are expected first to renounce their belief in the Trinity. 

Another Islamic requirement is to accept the authenticity of the Qur’anic version of Sacred History. This implies the rejection, for example, of the Biblical accounts of Abraham’s life. Thus verse 67 of Chapter III, categorically states: “ma kana Ibraheemu Yahudiyyan wala Nasraniyyan, walaken kana Hanifan Musliman …” (Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Nazarene, but he was a Hanif, and a Muslim…) [Translation mine][ii]

Hanif, a term that refers to Arabs living before the rise of Islam, who rejected idolatry, and professed the unity of God.

Verses 70 and 71 address the Christians, as those who mix truth with vanity, and who refuse to believe in Allah’s signs. A bad trait for those who are to dialogue with Muslims! 

Finally, the exclusivist nature of Islam is seen in verse 85: 

“Waman yabtaghi ghayr’l Islami deenan, falan yuqbala minhu, wahua fil’akhirati min’al khasereen.” (He who seeks a religion other than Islam, that will not be acceptable of him, and at the Last Day, he will be among the Lost.)  [Translation mine]

Having dealt with the Qur’anic context of “A Common Word,” I turn to the text of the 31 December “Greeting.” I find it very difficult to receive it as a bona fide “Season’s Greetings.” While its title seems genuine, as one proceeds to analyze its contents, it reveals expressions and views that are thoroughly alien to the history of Christianity as recorded in the Bible, a book that antedates the Qur’an by several centuries.   

For example, the reference to Jesus Christ is taken from the text of the Qur’an. It naively assumes that Christians would gladly accept it, rather than stick to the authentic accounts of the life of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament. These words from Surat Maryam 19:33, make Jesus say, “Peace is upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected.” It is rather ludicrous to quote from this chapter regarding Jesus Christ. Among other things it recounts a Mary who was alone under a palm tree, about to give birth to Jesus; who after he was born, addressed the critics of his mother for her supposedly immoral conduct, while yet a baby! Did those who drafted the “Message” really expect Christians to be that gullible and prefer that bizarre account, to the ones given in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke?!

The “Message” continued, “We Muslims bear witness that: There is no god but God, without associate, and that Muhammad is Servant and Messenger, and that Jesus Christ is His Servant, His Messenger, His Word cast to Mary, and a Spirit from Him[iii] (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya’)

All Christians (Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant,) subscribe to the doctrine of the Trinity, and the deity of Jesus Christ. Arabic-speaking Christians begin their prayers by invoking the name of God in this way: “Bismil Aab, wal Ibn, wal Ruh al Qodos, Ilah Wahed, Amen.” (In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God, Amen.”) They would not regard it as a compliment, or a basis for dialogue, that Muslims consider Jesus Christ merely as “Servant, or as Messenger.” 

The “Muslim Message of Thanks and of Christmas and New Year Greetings,” was a genre of Islamic propaganda aimed at Western people. The drafters of the “Season’s Greetings” hoped that their attempt would bear fruit among Christians. After all, who would ignore at that time of the year, such a gesture of good will? Here are Muslims who publicly declare that they honor and recognize Jesus as a prophet, isn’t that great? But who is this Jesus they honor? He is certainly not the Jesus Christ whose birth Christians celebrate on the 25th day of December. He is a pale shadow of the Biblical Christ; in fact, he is a pseudo-Messiah. He is the Messiah of Surat Maryam (19) that contains an intensive polemic against the historical Messiah of the Bible.

I don’t know how many readers of the 31 December 2007 Wall Street Journal received the “Message of Thanks” at its face value! Some may have welcomed it as an expression of good will. On the other hand, readers who have done their homework on the history and sacred texts of Islam, would have realized that the ad, is contradicted by the concrete facts of history. 

Postscript 

On 29 January 2018, William Kilpatrick published an article on “The Common Word Initiative” in Crisis Magazine. Here are excerpts showing the continued relevance of the subject:

“What Catholic leaders need to ponder is why they’ve allowed themselves to get roped into what might be called the “common word” approach to Christian-Islamic relations. The Common Word Initiative began in 2007 with an open letter to the Christian world signed by 138 Muslim scholars. The letter was entitled “A Common Word Between Us and You,” and its purpose was “to declare the common ground between Christianity and Islam.” As the Common Ground website maintains, “despite their differences, Islam and Christianity not only share the same Divine Origin and the same Abrahamic heritage, but the same two greatest commandments.”
 
Mr. Kilpatrick summed up his article with these trenchant words: 
“Listen, Christians! Agree with us that Jesus is not the Son of God, and that God is not a Trinity, and then we can talk. That is the price of entry into the Common Word club.”

https://www.crisismagazine.com/2018/common-word-versus-common-sense
 


[i] Royal Academy of The Royal Aal al-Bayt: A Jordanian academy under the auspices of King Abdullah II. The term, Aal al-Bayt, refers to descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, who was of the Hashem clan, of the Quraysh tribe. Literally, Aal al-Bayt, signifies, Members of the House, of Hashem. The kings of Jordan are descendants of Sharif Hussein of Mecca, who claimed descent from Muhammad. During WWI, he allied himself with the British against the Ottoman Turks. After the war, his son Faysal became king of Iraq, and his son, Abdullah, prince of Transjordan. After the birth of Israel in 1948, Abdullah became king of “The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan."

[ii] http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/the-myth-of-the-three-abrahamic-religions.cfm
Muslims claim Abraham as their ancestor, however this belief is not substantiated according to the research of two Arab scholars mentioned in the above article.

[iii] Sahih Bukhari: Refers to a collection of Hadiths (Traditions of Muhammad’s life and sayings) that are regarded as authentic. Many of the collected Traditions were spurious. Bukhari’s collection is considered as containing authentic (in Arabic, Sahih,) sayings of Muhammad.

Posted in Articles

Euro-Islam, or Islamized Europe?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

January 2018

The presence of millions of Muslims in Western Europe, is a relatively new phenomenon. Prior to the Second World War, Muslims lived almost exclusively, in Daru’l Islam (the Household of Islam.) The now decades-long Muslim presence in Europe and elsewhere in the West has shown that their move from the Household of Islam to the secular, democratic West has proven more problematic for their assimilation than it has for other immigrants in the same position. Their Islamic belief system keeps them from wanting to be a part of the total personal freedom that the democratic spirit of the West fosters. And who could blame them when we witness daily how our free societies have deteriorated morally and spiritually. The secular democratic nations have fostered the personal autonomy that is wreaking havoc. Drugs, addictions, sexual immorality, political corruption run rampant because the West has for the most part rejected the Christian faith, whose principles formerly held sway over Western cultures. One can understand why the Muslims believe their own religion and faith are superior to what they see around them and not want to assimilate to it.

Yet, they are captive to a religion that is authoritarian and espouses beliefs that have wrought terror and mayhem all over the world. But there is dissent among the “believers.”

Works on Islam in Western languages, are mostly authored by non-Muslim scholars. Lately however, certain Arab writers, writing from within Islamic culture, have dealt with some of its underlying concepts and issues arising from them. Two such authors, Dr. Bassam Tibi[i] and Hamed Abdel-Samad[ii], have much to contribute to Westerner’s understanding of Muslims and their culture. Their works are available in Arabic, German, English, and French.

Tibi and Abdel-Samad met recently at the Berlin Museum of Modern Culture, and shared their views on European Islam. A few months later, they spoke at a conference in Germany on the same subject. Their dialogue in Berlin, and their presentations at the conference, are archived on YouTube. Here is a summary of their views, followed by my analysis and comments.

At the Berlin Museum

While Dr. Tibi and author Abdel-Samad knew each other through their writings, in Berlin they met face-to-face. The meeting was arranged by Nazan Gökdemir, a reporter for a French - German Television Station. Since the reporter was not conversant in Arabic, the conversation took place in German. On the archived YouTube edition, Abdel-Samad, provided an Arabic translation of their dialogue.

At the outset, Abdel-Samad expressed his doubts about the possibility of reforming European Islam, by relating the following anecdote:

A “Westernized” Muslim lady of Turkish background, organized a “reformed” mosque in Berlin. Sunnis, Shi’ites, Sufis, Alawis, Ahmadis, men, and women; all could worship at this venue! She also acted as the Imam of the mosque!

World-wide reactions were predictable. The Egyptian House of Fatwa[iii], declared the mosque illegal, and un-Islamic; the Turkish Government’s Department of Religious Affairs, didn’t merely disapprove of the project, but hurled its maledictions on the person who dared to organize such a mosque! The Islamic Associations of Germany denounced it, charging that the mosque had “disfigured” Islam!

Following Abdel-Samad’s introduction of this inauspicious event in Berlin, Dr. Tibi spoke of his opposition to Radical Islam, calling it “Islamism.” Years ago, he had warned the Europeans about the coming of an “Islamic Deluge” that would engulf Europe, due to the impact of Salafist mosques, financed by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the Gulf Arab States. He denounced the Turkish Government’s involvement in the mosques of the large Turkish community in Germany.

Dr. Tibi referred to the Islamist ideology of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who while mayor of Istanbul, had said: “Democracy is our train to get us to power, the mosques are our fortresses, and the minarets are our spears!

Unfortunately, the Left in Germany had been very critical of anyone who spoke about the dangers of Islamism, added Dr. Tibi. They considered such talk “racism;” thus blunting the warnings about the great dangers resulting from the spread of Salafist movements.

Following the Islamists’ September 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, they targeted Britain, France, Belgium, Germany, and Spain. These events changed the minds of the Leftist German detractors of Dr. Tibi. At last, they were ready to listen to his warnings, and consider the merits of his reformist project, “Euro-Islam.” Dr. Tibi declared that there should be no place for Islamists in Europe, as their views are contrary to Western Constitutions; adding that Salafist imams should not be admitted into Europe!

At the Berlin Conference on Euro-Islam

Author Hamed Abdel-Samad and Dr. Bassam Tibi participated in the Berlin Conference on Euro-Islam. The discussion turned around the subject of “who would change whom;” would a Euro-Islam emerge as a democratic, and pluralist faith (Tibi’s view); or, would Europe be Islamized (Abdel-Samad’s view)?

Hamed pointed to the great mistake, even to the stupidity of European Governments, in their dealing with Muslims. He reminded the audience that European constitutions and laws, had been drafted for their citizens, who accept and live by them. However, they did not consider the possibility that people from other civilizations, having settled in the West, might not be willing to abide by Western principles! He shared this anecdote to illustrate how Western societies’ lifestyles, are deeply-ingrained from childhood.

“I was at a supermarket in Copenhagen, Denmark. I noticed a mother shopping with her young son. The boy stopped at an ice cream counter, opened its cover, and took time to make up his mind about what to choose. Right away, his mother reminded him that he should have first made his choice, before opening the cover; otherwise, the entire stock would start melting!

“The boy got a lesson in the proper way of shopping, and the importance of conserving energy. Such an outlook doesn’t exist among the Muslim migrants in Europe. In fact, added Abdel-Samad, “they have come over here, with an alternative project for Europe. Muslims have superior laws derived from Allah’s revelation; valid for all time and for all places!”

“The Islamization of Europe is happening through the multiplicity of Islamic institutions: Islamic pre-schools and secondary schools, Islamic homes for the aged, Islamic banks; Islamists actually control Muslim communities from the cradle to the grave!”

Dr. Tibi defended his “Euro-Islam Project.” Addressing author Abdel-Samad and the audience, he countered:

“I offer a different outlook and system. Yes, we can work for the emergence of a European Islam that accepts the fruits of the European Enlightenment: personal freedoms, equality between men and women, religious tolerance, and pluralism.

Abdel-Samad asked, “Are any of these principles derived from Islam?” speaking this time in English, “How much Islam, and how much European Democracy is in Euro-Islam?” Reforming a faith implies retaining at least, a few of its teachings. Would any principles in ‘Euro-Islam’ claim an Islamic origin?!”

Analysis

Two experts on Islam and Islamism, both of Middle Eastern background, who had studied in Germany, arrived at divergent views, about the future of Islam in Europe.

Hamed Abdel-Samad, an Egyptian Muslim, concluded that Islam could not be reformed, if it is tied to its sacred texts: the Qur’an, Hadith, and the Sunna. His books and archived programs on YouTube, set forth his thesis, clearly and forcefully.

Bassam Tibi, a Syrian who grew up in Damascus, came to Germany where he studied at prestigious universities, entertains the hope for the rise of a democratic and tolerant Islam, in Western Europe.

Comments

Abdel-Samad approaches Islam, as a “Higher Critic.” He doesn’t follow the traditional Muslim’s presupposition, that the Qur’an is a divinely-inspired text. His analysis of the normative teachings of Islam, convinced him that it is not reformable. When he is reminded of the Reformation in the Western Church, and the suggestion that a similar Reformation could take place in Islam, he explains that the situation in Islam is utterly different from the state of the Church in sixteenth century Europe. Martin Luther had the backing of the Bible, in his attempt to reform the Church. To spread the teachings of Holy Scripture, he translated the New Testament into German, allowing the laity to see for themselves, the rightness of his stand against the Pope.

Abdel-Samad argues that going back to the authoritative texts of Islam, would confirm the position of the Islamists, whose goal is none other than the application of the Shariah (which is derived from the Qur’an and Hadith) into every area of life.

“Islam and Islamism”

My acquaintance with Hamed Abdel-Samad is based on his weekly Monday evening 30-minute shows, and his debates archived on YouTube. My knowledge of Dr. Bassam Tibi’s thought, is derived primarily, from his book, “Islamism and Islam.”

Chapter One of “Islamism and Islam” bears the title: “Islamism is not Islam” He asks, “What is the difference between Islamism and Islam? The essential answer is that Islamism is not mere politics, but religionized politics.

A study of the history of Islam, from its earliest days, does not support Bassam Tibi’s thesis. In 610, at the age of forty, Muhammad proclaimed his message in Mecca, without gaining many adherents. Those who accepted his mission were persecuted; some sought refuge in Ethiopia. In 622, he moved to Medina, where he assumed the role of “Prophet and Statesman.” The Qur’anic revelations underwent radical change, as they dealt with more than mere religious themes. They included legislation relating to family life, war and peace, etc. Military campaigns against his Meccan foes, became numerous. Finally, Muhammad entered Mecca as a triumphant hero, in 630 A.D.

Christians and Jews were banished forever from living in Arabia. Muhammad conceived his mission as applying universally. Letters were sent to nearby rulers inviting them to Islamize, or face the conquests of their homelands! One hundred years after Muhammad’s passing in 632, Islam had spread to western India, the Middle East, North Africa, and the Iberian Peninsula. Islamic expansion was arrested by Charles Martel, at the Battle of Tours, near Poitiers, in southern France, in 732.

After the conversion of the Turks, they expanded the territory of Islam by defeating the Byzantine Empire, conquering the Balkans, and parts of central Europe. Twice they laid siege to Vienna: first in 1529, and 150 years later. Their defeat in 1683, marked the end of Islamic expansion into Europe.

It’s hard to understand Bassam Tibi’s thesis that “Islamism is not mere politics, but religionized politics.” But what has Islam been, for the last 1400 years, if not “religionized politics?” Islamic wars were conducted “Fi Sabeel Allah!” (In the Pathway of Allah.) Among the major religions of the world, Judaism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shinto; Islam has distinguished itself by the fact that it spread primarily by force! Dr. Tibi glosses over Islam’s basic imperialist motif. In Chapter Five, “Islamism and Violence - New World Disorder” he writes:

Some in the West have an image of Islam as a ‘religion of the sword.’ This distorted view ---supported by such examples as the Saudi Arabian flag and the name of Muammar Gadhafi’s son, Saif-ul-Islam, which means ‘Sword of Islam’ --- represents a misperception of Islam that affects any inquiry into jihadism. The idea that religiously inspired violence is historically central to Islam, encourages the conflation of modern jihadism with traditional jihad.” P. 137

In the same chapter, he differentiates between “Jihadism” and “Classical Jihad.”

The history of jihad begins not in Mecca, with the commencement of Islamic revelation in 610, but rather with the establishment of the new Islamic polity in Medina in 622 --- the polity that modern Islamists, in an invention of tradition, have upgraded to an ‘Islamic state.’ In the Islamic calendar following the hijra, the migration of the Prophet, this is the Year One. After 622, and in particular after 632 --- in the aftermath of the death of the Prophet --- the new religion was spread by a combination of peaceful proselytization, trade, and jihad wars.” P. 141

Traditional Arab sources on early Islam give a different narrative. When Muhammad entered Mecca in 630, Meccans had no choice but to “embrace” Islam. Following the Prophet’s death in 632, some Arab tribes attempted to turn back from Islam, the first Caliph, Abu Bakr, waged “Huroob al-Radda” (Wars Against Apostasy), forcing their return to the fold.

I find the statement that “the new religion was spread by a combination of peaceful proselytization, trade, and jihad wars,” contrary to well-established historical facts. Islamic “Futuhat” (Conquests) were accomplished by military campaigns, not by the so-called “peaceful proselytization.” Jews and Christians had the option to Islamize, or pay the exorbitant Jizya tax, and accepting the status of “Dhimmis,” with their freedoms greatly proscribed.[iv]

A different view of Islam is offered in Ephraim Karsh’s book, “Islamic Imperialism: A History.”[v] Professor Karsh writes in the Introduction:

The worlds of Christianity and Islam, however, have developed differently in one fundamental respect. The Christian faith won over an existing empire in an extremely slow and painful process and its universalism was originally conceived in spiritual terms that made a clear distinction between God and Caesar. By the time it was embraced by the Byzantine emperors as a tool for buttressing their imperial claims, three centuries after its foundation, Christianity had in place a countervailing ecclesiastical institution with an abiding authority over the wills and actions of all believers. The birth of Islam, by contrast, was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Muhammad, who derived his authority directly from Allah and acted at one and the same time as head of the state and head of the church. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religious aura and to channel Islam’s energies into ‘its instruments of aggressive expansion, there [being] no internal organism of equal force to counterbalance it.’” (P. 5)

Having reflected on the two opposition views about the future of Islam in Europe, we may ask: Would a “Euro-Islam,” a gentler and tolerant genre, rise among the millions of Muslims, or, would Western Europe be Islamized?

Author Hamed Abdel-Samad’s forecast casts doubt on the possibility of reform among European Muslims. Professor Bassam Tibi is hopeful; provided European governments stop the flow of Islamist Imams, whose Friday sermons stoke up the fires of exclusivism and intolerance of others and their faiths among the faithful!

At the end of 2017, several Islamic homelands, from Afghanistan to Iran, Yemen, Syria, the Palestinian territory, and the Sinai, were experiencing the struggles and conflicts that have afflicted Islam, since the days of “The Rightly Guided” Caliphs. The consequences of the schism between Sunnis and Shi’ites that began in 661, are still with us today, adding fuel, to the inter-Islamic conflicts.

However, one hopeful factor must not be left out; namely, the impact of the Internet on millions of Muslims world-wide. While the news media keep us informed about the political situation in the Arab/Muslim world, there is very little reporting on the cultural ferments going on among the young generation. But changes are coming.

Abdel-Samad’s choice of “Box of Islam” as the name of his weekly Arabic program, is to remind us that Muslims can no longer be kept inside “The Box.” Islam’s hold on the young generation is loosening. Many declare publicly their turn to Ilhad (Unbelief). Some are opting for the Christian faith, as we learn from Brother Rachid’s Thursday evening shows![vi] The Muslim World will never be the same! So, notwithstanding the tragedies caused by Islamists in 2017, let’s hope for a better, and relatively peaceful A.D. 2018, throughout the Arab/Muslim world!

Appendix

On a related subject, read “Time is Not on Europe’s Side,” by William Kilpatrick.

http://www.crisismagazine.com/2017/times-not-side-europes-population-problem


[i] Bassam Tibi is a Syrian scholar who settled in Germany in 1962, taking German citizenship in 1976. He studied at Goethe University in Frankfurt, and at the University of Hamburg. He taught at German and American universities. In 2012, he authored “Islamism and Islam,” published by Yale University Press, New Haven and London. Dr. Tibi looks forward to the rise of “Euro-Islam,” a genre of Islam that can coexist with Western democratic values.

[ii] Hamed Abdel-Samad is a German-Egyptian political scientist and author. He was born the third of five children, the son of a Muslim Sunni Imam. He came to Germany in 1995 at the age of 23. Abdel-Samad studied Japanese, English and French in Cairo, as well as political science in Augsburg. He worked as a scholar in Erfurt and Braunschweig. He taught and conducted research until the end of 2009, at the Institute for Jewish History and Culture at the University of Munich; his dissertation topic was: “Bild der Juden in ägyptischen Schulbüchern.” “Depiction of Jews in Egyptian textbooks.” Subsequently he decided to become a full-time professional writer. His works have been printed in German, Arabic, English, and in French. His lectures are archived on YouTube. Abdel-Samad does not believe in the possibility of reforming Islam!

“Box of Islam” is the Official YouTube Channel of Abdel-Samad. As of December 2017, there were 118 shows that can be accessed at: https://plus.google.com/115940793490537236777

[iii] Fatwa is an Islamic legal pronouncement, based on Shari’ah, that decides whether an action or a statement, is in conformity with Islam. Every Islamic country has a “Dar al-Fatwa” (House of Fatwa,) and an appointed scholar, known as Mufti.

[iv] The Onerous Rules & Regulations Imposed on the People of the Book http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/thomas/pact_of_umar.html

[v] “Islamic Imperialism: A History,” Ephraim Karsh, Professor and Head of the Mediterranean Studies Programme, King’s College, University of London, published by Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2006.

[vi]Accounts of conversions to the Christian faith through the ministry of Brother Rachid

Crossing Over from Darkness into Light: Sister Maryam’s Journey

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/crossingoverfromdarknessintolight.cfm

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/memberofroyalmoroccanguardsembraceschristianfaith.cfm

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/conversion-testimony-sister-naomi.cfm

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/brother-rachid-interviews-brother-jibril-saleh.cfm

Posted in Articles

The Myth of the Three Abrahamic Religions

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

30 November 2017

Nowadays, it has become fashionable to regard Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as the “The Three Abrahamic Religions.” The assumption is that all these theistic faiths, have one spiritual ancestor; and notwithstanding some differences in details, Jews, Christians, and Muslims, worship the same God.

For example, in the website of Enotes, we read: “Christianity, Islam, and Judaism have many similarities and many differences. They are all Abrahamic religions and worship the same God. Each religion requires its followers to adhere to a certain moral code and show devotion to God through prayer. One area of difference is in their view of Jesus Christ. Christians believe Jesus to be the messiah and son of God. Muslims consider him to be a prophet, though they do not believe in his resurrection. In Judaism, Jesus is not believed to be the messiah or the son of God.”

https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/compare-contrast-judaism-christianity-islam-475652

“The Three Abrahamic Religions” is considered as an undisputed fact in certain academic circles. As an example, I refer to comments made by Dr. Peter Kreeft, professor of philosophy at Boston College. In his debate with the writer Robert Spencer, on the 4th of November 2010, at Thomas More College, he quoted approvingly from Article 841 of “The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)”: “Muslims … profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.” The catechism promulgated in 1992, was a fruit of the Second Vatican Council and its policy of Aggiornamento (renewal and modernization) To read the full account of the debate: http://www.thomasmorecollege.edu/blog/2010/11/08/peter-kreeft-and-robert-spencer-engage-in-lively-debate-on-islam/

When Christians accept the thesis of the ‘three Abrahamic faiths,’ they give credence to an unsubstantiated myth, namely that Abraham was the father of the Arabs, as well as the spiritual ancestor of Muslims.

In fact, there are no historical or archeological grounds for asserting, as Muslims do, that Abraham had gone to Mecca with Ishmael and his mother, Hagar; or that they built the Kaaba, as the center of pilgrimage.

The Book of Genesis informs us about the journeys of Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees, in southern Mesopotamia, to the land of Haran (in present-day Syria); from there he continued his journey to the south, and lived as a nomad in Hebron. Due to famine in the land of Canaan, Abraham went down to Egypt, but eventually, he returned to the land of Promise.

After Abraham sent away Hagar and her young son Ishmael, we learn from the Biblical account that “God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.” Genesis 21(ESV)

The wilderness of Paran is in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt; the area became the home for Ishmael’s descendants.

It is important to realize that the term, “The Three Abrahamic Religions” is of recent origin, and is used mostly among English-speaking people. Before it became popular, the exact designation was the “Three Theistic Religions;” which set Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, apart from the Asiatic faiths, which are, either polytheistic, or pantheistic.

Nowadays, thanks to the momentous changes that have taken place in communications, brought about by the Internet, it is possible to consult some Arab scholars about their views regarding the “Three Abrahamic Religions.”

According to the works of Hamed Abdel-Samad, a political scientist[i], and his colleague, Professor Muhammad al-Musayeh[ii], a Moroccan expert on Islamic History, and the manuscripts of the Qur’an, there is no mention of the existence of Mecca, prior to the Third Century A.D!

Furthermore, there were in the Arabian Peninsula, several Kaaba’s, almost one for every tribe; there was even a Christian Kaaba at Najran! The Mecca that existed in Muhammad’s days, wasn’t there in Abraham’s time.[iii] Both Hamed Abdel-Samad and Muhammad al Musayeh, have discussed this subject at length. Their opinion is that the Prophet Muhammad invented the account that Abraham, accompanied by Hagar and Ishmael, came to Mecca, and built the Kaaba.

Now, even if Mecca had existed 1800 years B. C., Abraham, a very old person, couldn’t have made the arduous journey of 1200 kilometers, from Hebron to Mecca, with Hagar and her young son. The Genesis narrative makes sense, since a move of 150 km., from Hebron to Paran, where Hagar and her son settled, was both possible and practical.

While the concept of the “Three Abrahamic Religions” has found currency in the West, both in academia, and in an official document of the Roman Catholic Church, it remains, a myth. Two Arab scholars, Abdel-Samad and al-Musayeh, have proven their case. No one would benefit from perpetuating a religious myth that blurs the differences between Islam on the one hand, and Judaism and Christianity!


[i] Hamed Abdel-Samad is a German-Egyptian political scientist and author. He was born as the third of five children, the son of a Muslim Sunni Imam. He came to Germany in 1995 at the age of 23. Abdel-Samad studied Japanese, English and French in Cairo as well as political science in Augsburg. He worked as a scholar in Erfurt and Braunschweig. He taught and conducted research until the end of 2009, at the Institute for Jewish History and Culture at the University of Munich; his dissertation topic was: “Bild der Juden in ägyptischen Schulbüchern.” “Image of Jews in Egyptian textbooks.” Subsequently he decided to become a full-time professional writer. His works have been printed in German, Arabic, English, and in French. His lectures are archived on YouTube.

[ii] Professor Muhammad al-Musayeh, is a Moroccan scholar, specialized in the Qur’anic manuscripts; he worked with the German expert on the Qur’an, Christof Luxemburg; In this dialogue with Abdel-Samad, we learn about the various manuscripts of the Qur’an. http://ar.le360.ma/culture/103741

[iii] Hamed Abdel Samad & Professor Muhammad al-Musayeh on the History of Mecca, Sunduq al-Islam #101 on YouTube

 

Posted in Articles

Crossing Over from Darkness into Light Sister Maryam’s Journey

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Sister Maryam’s Journey

By Bassam Michael Madany

14 September 2017

On one of Brother Rachid’s recent “Daring Question” programs, he interviewed a young Egyptian lady who has “crossed over” to the Christian faith, after going through some very difficult times. Her testimony is riveting as well as instructive. It reveals the various factors that go into the decision of a young Muslim, to leave an all-embracing religion that had controlled every aspect of her life.

Brother Rachid introduced her as follows: “She changed her name, and chose Maryam Saliba (Mary of the Cross). A few years before, she was a young Muslim lady; her life began to change as she began the quest to learn about Jesus, the Messiah. She will share with us her story. It isn’t hers only, but like several other Muslims who were looking for a true spiritual life that would give them inward peace. Perhaps, it will enable you to begin a quest that would enable you to exit from Islam’s prison”

In a day when various theories on missions to Muslims are being offered, it is good to “listen” to an account of a Muslim-born-Believer (MBB) about her Uboor (Crossing). We may be surprised by the convert’s maturity and faithfulness to her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

This is a translation of the story of Sister Maryam, in a dialogue format, telecast on          Al-Hayat” satellite station, on Thursday, the 17th of August 2017.

Brother Rachid addressing Sister Maryam:       

Welcome to “Daring Question!” Please introduce yourself to the audience.

Maryam: I was born and brought up in Alexandria, Egypt, in a moderate, average Muslim family. A serious problem existed in the family, as my father and mother were not enjoying good relations with each other. From my earliest days, I craved to see conditions improve between my parents; unfortunately, that did not happen.

BR

Was there anything in those days that attracted you to Christianity?

M

I received my education at a private school run by Catholic nuns. They planted in us a spirit of tolerance and love. However, they did not engage in any overt attempt to evangelize Muslim students; that wouldn’t have been allowed by the Government.  I noticed quite early that the school’s atmosphere was very different from the one that existed in the society at large.

BR

Then, how did you develop an attraction to the Christian faith?

M

A Christian student befriended me; I saw in her a better lifestyle that attracted me. At the time, I was fifteen. I had always been inquisitive, so I began to ask my Christian friend questions about her faith. Another factor was the existence in the hallways of the school, several pictorial representations of the lives of the saints, many of them had been martyred for their faith in the Messiah. My curiosity was heightened; who was Jesus, the Messiah? We Muslims believe in ‘Issa al-Massih, who was one of the Prophets. Our Qur’an tells has that he wasn’t crucified, Allah rescued him and took him to heaven. Our Prophet, Muhammad was the last of the Apostles of Allah.

Early on, my questions were sincere, as a young Muslim eager to learn about my friend’s beliefs. She was careful in not pushing her personal convictions on me; she knew that wouldn’t have been appropriate, or permitted. But when I kept on in my questions, she did respond. I didn’t understand the importance of the Cross for Christians; I kept on asking for its meaning.

One day, I asked: “How do you pray?”  She told me about the Lord’s Prayer. I was stunned by the opening words, “Our Father.” Spontaneously, I began to recite the prayer with her. “Do you call Allah, Abana, (Our Father?) I was eager to know more about the Christian’s view of God. I asked for a copy of the “Injeel,” (the Arabic term for Evangel, it refers also to the New Testament.) She hesitated, eventually she gave me a copy. I took it home, and began to read it in secret in the bathroom, during the night! I began with Matthew, and got to the “Sermon on the Mount.” I couldn’t believe what I was reading! “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Does God really do all that for believers? Is He that concerned with me? These truths are utterly different from Islam, where faith and sword, always go together.

Reading more, I got to the Passover, the Cross, and the Trinity. I became scared; still I would go back to my friend and ask more questions. After all, I was taught that the Bible had been corrupted, the Messiah wasn’t crucified, and showing interest in other religions was Kufr (Unbelief!) But I kept on with my questions.

BR

 So, what did you do?

M

Thanks to modern technology, I started visiting Christian websites, including Pope Shenodah’s site. (He is the Head of the Coptic Church in Egypt)

BR

Weren’t you afraid?

M                      

My mother warned about such activities; still I would go to some churches and borrow books, attended also worship services. This allowed me to develop different views of the Messiah, convinced that the Bible wasn’t altered.

I added a new dimension to my activities, by using Pal Talk. I listened to several discussions and lectures that added to my knowledge of the Christian faith. One day, I discovered “A Daring Question,” a Christian program hosted by Brother Rachid; a convert from a Moroccan Muslim background. There was a Muslim who had changed his religion; that must have been very hard, since Islam isn’t just a religious faith; it’s a complete way of life, it’s one’s culture and embraces all aspects of society. 

I discovered several people who had “crossed-over” from the darkness of Islam to the light of the Messiah. Programs of Brother Rachid showed me a side of Islam I hadn’t known previously.

BR

What happened next?

M

I underwent a total change of outlook. I began to do research about subjects that were mentioned in the weekly program. At first, I had difficulty to listen to someone who was causing me to doubt Islam, and the Prophet. How could he be right; my reaction to him became negative.

BR

And then?

M

Still, I kept on searching for the truth. I would go to a church oftener; that gave me an unusual sense of peace whose source I didn’t know. I kept borrowing books and hiding them under my bed.

My parents noticed a change in my life; they confiscated my cellular phone, and forbad me to leave home without permission. That lasted for a year and seven months. They decided to work on my return to Islam.  My sister was a very religious person, she performed all the five daily prayers. They asked me to join her and utter mine in a loud fashion, so they could hear them. When I failed to begin with the Shahadah, my father would beat me on my back with a leather belt. I would plead with God, “O Lord, thou dost see what’s happening to me; am I to go on performing these rituals while I don’t believe in them?!” (The Shahadah, is the Islamic confession of faith: a belief in Allah as the only God, and in Muhamad as His Messenger.)

I complied with acting as a believer, I did the prayers, read the Qur’an, and fasted during Ramadan. I was submitted to a strict regime of surveillance. But once, I managed to get out; I went to a church and asked to be baptized; they refused. They were scared to baptize a young Muslim girl.

I “met” a foreign clergyman on the Internet and explained my plight. He told me he would help, once he got to Egypt. We met at a church, and he baptized me, on the 4th of April 2015. However, the church’s priest refused to give me an official baptismal certificate. After my baptism, I felt a light burst within me, I had a new life; I owned a Bible, and before too long, I would wear a cross, as other Christian women do!

I managed to get a passport on 24 August 2015 and hid it outside my home. My first attempt to escape failed when my mother noticed me at the front door leaving with a suitcase. Right away, she and my father, whizzed me in a taxi to the “Investigative Branch” of the Police Department. En route, I uttered a silent prayer from Psalm 23, “I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.” At the station, my father beat me in front of the police.

I was ushered into an interrogation room. The investigator, “Tell us who helped you change your religion? Tell us about the organization!”  He continued with a barrage of intimidating queries. “We know, you’ve already married a Christian; we know everything; don’t hide the truth.” The policemen kept beating me!

BR

As our time is limited, would you please tell us how you finally managed to leave Egypt?

M

Three months later, I managed to leave Egypt, and find refuge in another country.

BR

Do you have some words of advice and encouragement for people looking for truth and peace with God?

M

To all of you in search for the truth, don’t relent in your quest to arrive at objective Truth. Islam has failed me; its teachers and defenders didn’t satisfy me with their responses. But God is faithful; He will lead you into the Truth. He has a wonderful plan of salvation. Accept the plan and do what His Word tells you. Once you believe in the Messiah as your Lord and Savior, and reach a safe country, please don’t neglect your parents. Send them messages. Tell them you still love them, and would like them to enjoy forgiveness and assurance of eternal life by faith in the Messiah.

BR

Thank you, Maryam. I’m proud of you for sharing your difficult “Cross-over” experience. It will be of great help to several people who are crossing over to the light of the Messiah!

http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/VideoPlayer/VideoId/280/501              

Even if the reader does not understand Arabic, it would be very helpful to watch some part of the Interview to see Brother Rachid and Maryam dialoguing!

Comments

The quest for truth is a common theme in the testimonies of Muslims who have “crossed-over” from Islam to Christianity. One of the names listed in the “Ninety-Nine Beautiful Names of Allah;” is “Al-Haq” “The Truth.” 

The following testimonies of a Moroccan, an Iraqi, and a Yemeni, point to the special role their quest for the truth played in each of their spiritual pilgrimages.       

“My quest for the truth intensified. I began to pray, ‘O God, please reveal thyself to me.’ I yearned to know the true God! One day, after making this petition, I became convinced that the Messiah was Himself the Truth. From then on, that conviction intensified. Yet, I did not make public my conversion to the Christian faith.” (Royal Moroccan Guard)

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/memberofroyalmoroccanguardsembraceschristianfaith.cfm

 “I’ve often cried out to Allah, ‘please help me find the Truth! When I would ask Christians about the subject, they referred to Jesus as ‘the Way, the Truth, and the Life.’ Another of his saying was, ‘You shall know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.’     I was looking for the Truth, and I found it in Jesus, the Messiah. He is revealed in the Holy Bible; I put my trust in Him. He saved me, and has given me peace of mind, and assurance about my eternal life in Heaven. (Sister Naomi)

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/conversion-testimony-sister-naomi.cfm               

 “I left Islam and became an unbeliever. I thought all religions were the same. I had in my possession a copy of the Holy Bible that I had not read. One day, I decided to read it beginning with the Gospel of Matthew. I found these words of Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount. They showed me that I had been following the wrong path. I went on reading the Gospel and came across these words of Jesus Christ: ‘Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  Ye shall know them by their fruits’ I had found the Truth in Christianity, and declared my conversion on Facebook.  (Brother Jibril)

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/brother-rachid-interviews-brother-jibril-saleh.cfm

Posted in Articles

Member of Royal Moroccan Guard Embraces Christian Faith

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

5 August 2017

On Thursday evening, the 27th of July 2017, Brother Rachid interviewed a fellow-Moroccan who had embraced the Christian faith. It was telecast on Al-Hayat Satellite TV Station, and archived on YouTube.

It was riveting to listen to the calm and joyful testimony of a Moroccan convert, who had served on a special unit of the Royal Moroccan Guards, which was charged with the safety of the King of Morocco, his family, and the Royal Palace in Rabat.

Brother Ali to introduced himself with these words:

“I’m a Moroccan Christian; I was born of Muslim parents in Sale, a suburb of Rabat. I grew up in a moderate Muslim family, as most Moroccans were at the time. I attended the services at the local mosques, and took special courses in Islam and in Classical Arabic. In my early years, I began to memorize chapters of the Qur’an.

“It was in 1997, at the age of twenty, that I learned for the first time that there were Moroccan Christians! I met a Christian at the boarding school in Sale and we became friends. It was a shock to learn that he was born in a Moroccan Christian family. We exchanged views of each other’s faith. At first, I felt sorry for him for not knowing the truth. I attempted to convert him to Islam.

“Actually, I had known very little about Christianity; what I knew was from the Qur’an. I believed that the Holy Bible had been corrupted, and that the Messiah was not crucified, as the Christians claim. Our conversations continued; he would ask me to explain certain passages of the Qur’an. When I read commentaries on our Book, I noticed that Muslims are discouraged from asking deep questions about their faith. I was puzzled by the story about Allah’s announcement to the angles regarding his plan to create man. They protested immediately because man would stray from the Right Path. But how did the angles know the future? Wasn’t that the exclusive prerogative of Allah?

“My Christian friend gave me a copy of the Bible in Arabic. I began to read it; several historical accounts were like those related in the Qur’an. However, the Bible had more humane teachings, in comparison with the Qur’an. For example, the Bible exhorts believers to love their enemies, and to be kind and merciful to fellow human beings, regardless of their ethnic origin. While the Qur’an teaches the very opposite about all non-Muslims.

“I began to have problems with my faith in Islam; it wasn’t an easy struggle! After all, Islam isn’t merely a religious faith; it’s one identity, it impacts one’s entire life. I had been a Muslim for 25 years. Add to that, my doubts were happening while I was an active member of the Royal Guards involved in activities that quite often, took me away from Rabat.

“I continued my study of the Holy Bible and marked with a red pen passages that were contrary to the teachings of the Qur’an. By 1996, after two years of serious study, I concluded that the Qur’an couldn’t be of divine origin!

“The events of September 2001, jolted me immensely. How could Allah have allowed the horrific death of 3000 innocent people in New York City! Where was He? I didn’t become an atheist, but continued to believe in the existence God; now my quest became a strong desire to know the true God.

“Once while I was on duty with a unit of the Royal Guards inspecting the route that the king would be taking through the city, I noticed a large plastic bag by the side of the road. Stopping to inspect its contents, I discovered several Arabic books expounding the Christian faith! I couldn’t believe my eyes. How could that be, right here in Morocco?!

“My quest for the truth intensified. I began to pray, ‘O God, please reveal thyself to me.’ I yearned to know the true God! One day, after making this petition, I became convinced that the Messiah was Himself the Truth. From then on, that conviction intensified. Yet, I did not make public my conversion to the Christian faith.

“What triggered my confession was a very serious health problem. One day, a severe abdominal pain forced me to enter the military hospital. However, there was a delay in the diagnosis, ending with a rupture in my appendix. For 24 hours, my life was in the balance. I remained at the hospital for a week during which I pondered about my eternal destiny. It was then that I decided to declare my conversion. All my privileges as a member of the Royal Guards, my family, my reputation, all that meant nothing to me in comparison with the Truth that I had found.

“In September 2002, I professed my conversion to Christ. Immediately, I was transferred to a Moroccan Army barrack; with no official duty to perform. Once, I was whisked to the office of a scholarly religious authority for a meeting that might lead me back to Islam. He was a kindly person; and was puzzled by my decision to embrace the Christian faith. He remarked that some people do it for material gain; obviously, that wasn’t my case! Before too long, I was dismissed from the Moroccan Army.

“My goal in life is to share my faith with fellow-Moroccans. The authorities regard us converts as evil people; they do everything in their power to make life difficult for us. We do love our country, we are Moroccans; we should have the freedom to choose our faith, and to express it publicly.”

Comments

It’s refreshing to see and hear Muslims tell about their journey to the truth. Ali’s conversion included several factors that merit attention. A Moroccan Christian witnessed to him in an amicable way, and gave him the Bible. This allowed Ali to discover the stark difference between the Christian sacred text and the Qur’an.

Another factor was the illness Ali went through causing him to think seriously about his eternal destiny. It is well-known fact that Muslims don’t have assurance of making it to heaven, since the Qur’an teaches that depends on their good deeds outweighing the evil ones. Only martyrs are assured of instant entry into Paradise. In contrast, a believer in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior is assured of eternal life, as John 3:16 teaches.

What is extremely significant in Ali’s testimony, was his quest for Truth, i.e., for the True God. When he lost his faith in Allah, he did not turn to atheism, as several Muslims have done. He continued to believe in the existence of a Divine Being that was other than the Allah of Islam. He prayed to him asking for guidance; he persisted in praying, until he received the inner conviction that Jesus the Messiah, was the Truth he was looking for.

Ali’s pilgrimage indicated that Truth, objective Truth, remains a basic functioning motif in the traditional Islamic worldview. Islam claims to be God’s final message to mankind; it charges the two previous theistic religions, Judaism and Christianity, with having corrupted their Scriptures, and thus are not guides for the Truth.

Thanks to his acquaintance with a Moroccan Christian, and his serious study of the Christian Scriptures, Ali discovered the real source of Truth, and experienced the love and compassion of his Heavenly Father.

Unfortunately, contemporary Western secular society largely denies the existence of objective truth. As a result, it has nothing to offer to those Muslims in search of the Truth. But thanks to the Internet, and to Brother Rachid’s weekly program, “Daring Question,” we learn about men and women, who like Brother Ali, have found peace and salvation in Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

I don’t presume that every reader may be familiar with the Arabic language, still, I recommend that you click on this link, and watch a section of the dialogue between Brothers Rachid and Ali.

http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/VideoPlayer/VideoId/270/UseHtml5/True

Posted in Articles

SUBMISSION - What Every Christian Needs to Know About Islam

May 05, 2023
By Marvin W. Heyboer

SUBMISSION

What Every Christian Needs to Know About Islam

Marvin W. Heyboer

Submission contributes an essential guide for Christians concerned about Islam’s impact on our world. Heyboer’s thorough research and documentation from the authoritative texts of Christianity and Islam --- should make it clear to the reader an unvarnished view of Islam, of both its faith and its aggressive worldview.

Bassam Michael Madany, author/contributor at https://independent.academia.edu/BassamMichaelMadany

& www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org

Dr. Marvin W. Heyboer has earned degrees at Calvin College, Calvin Seminary, and San Francisco Theological Seminary. He has dedicated his life in defense of the poor and the oppressed. For the last fifteen years, he ministered onsite to numerous subjugated Christian minorities suffering under the authority of Islam, in Africa, the Near East, and the Far East, authored Journeys into the Heart and the heartland of Islam, served as guest speaker across the United States, and to international conferences convened in defense of persecuted minorities hosted by the International Christian Union, and is founder of African Widow and Orphan Support, a non-profit ministry to widow and orphan victims of militant jihadists in northern Nigeria.

To purchase a copy of “Submission”, please send a request to

drmarvinw@yahoo.com

Posted in Articles

Two Australian Muslims Debate the Manchester Attack

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Two Australian Muslims Debate the Manchester Attack

By Bassam Michael Madany

31 May 2017

The weekly Swiss French website “Antipresse” reported about a debate that took place in Australia, on 25 May 2017, moderated by an Australian host, between two Muslim leaders, dealing with the Massacre in Manchester.

I was struck by the headline: “Faut-il que les Imams nous disent ce qu’est l’Islam?” (“Do We Need Muslim Clerics to Tell Us the Truth About Islam?”) The editor, writing for his French-speaking audience, added parenthetically, regarding the link for the show, “malheureusement en anglais.” (Unfortunately, in English), i.e. only people who understood English, would benefit from the interview/debate, on the Australian “Sunrise Television Network.”

Two Australian Muslims participated in the debate: Dr. Jamal Rifi, a lay Sunni Muslim of Lebanese background, and a Shi’ite cleric, Sheikh Imam Tawhidi, of Iraqi origin. The following is a summary of the encounter between the two Australian Muslim leaders.

Addressing Imam Tawhidi, the moderator asked about his assessment of the tragic events in Manchester, England, on Monday, 22 May 2017. I was utterly surprised to hear these words of Imam Tawhid: “Ultimately, the holy texts of Islam must be held responsible for the attack!” Continuing, “We have to tell the truth about Islam. The perpetrator was born in Manchester, after listening to two or three sermons at the mosque, he got radicalized. Here in Australia, a twenty-two-year-old Muslim female was arrested in Adelaide, for her ties with ISIS. These young people instead of leading normal lives, are becoming extremists.”

“It’s the Books we have [reference to the sacred texts] that push the Muslim youth to kill the infidel and gain paradise. We have many active radical clerics in Australia.” When asked about the moderate clerics’ role in correcting the teachings of the radicals, he responded, “It’s very hard to be moderate in a radicalized atmosphere. In fact, Muslim youth are purchasing the ISIS Black Flags, and displaying them on their cars.”

Asked about the Authorities getting rid of the radical clerics, Imam Tawhidi explained “that while the Authorities had good relations with the Muslim communities, that didn’t imply they had control over them.”

By this time, Dr. Jamal Rifi could hardly restrain himself. Responding to a question by the Moderator about Imam Tawhidi’s words, he answered in a most indignant manner, “I don’t know where the Imam took his information. We’ve had our Scriptuers for the last 1400 years; they don’t incite to violence. It’s the ideology of the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) that attracts vulnerable young people to such teachings. The Prime Minister expressed the whole nation’s condemnation of the act; and that includes Australian Muslims. The Grand Mufti (of Australia) did as well.”

At this point, the moderator turned to the Imam, “You’ve been shaking your head!”

Imam Tawhidi responded, “There is hardly a month that goes by, without an Islamist terrorist attack takes place. Islam is a religion of war. Islam spread by the sword, I’m not inventing it. How did Islam spread from Saudi Arabia to Indonesia and Bosnia? I don’t know how you can say that Islamic Scriptures have nothing to do with all that! These are facts and they are true. The young man who perpetrated the crime in Manchester believed that he would be with Prophet Muhammad that very night.”

Dr. Jamal attempting to interrupt, “You can’t go on deceiving the Australian people with your lies! Suicide bombers are going to hell; nothing in our religion supports the killing of innocent people.”

Imam Tawhidi responds, “I never lied in my life.”

Dr. Jamal, “This suicide bomber is going to hell, his act was horrific. It had nothing to do with our religion which doesn’t support the killing of innocent people.”

At the end of the debate, the moderator spoke briefly with a reporter at the TV station. She mentioned that some Australian Muslims have harassed the Imam for his outspoken opinions on Islam.

To view the TV program, please follow this link:

https://au.tv.yahoo.com/sunrise/video/watch/35631801/heated-argument-erupts-as-australias-muslim-leaders-address-manchester-attack/?cmp=st#page2

Rather than add my commentary on the debate, the following is my translation of the comments of the Editor of “Antipresse.”

“Evidently, Dr. Jamal Rifi and Imam Tawhidi don’t share the same opinion on the subject; indeed, they informed us about their differences. It’s very useful to hear a turbaned Imam* telling us that violence had always been the way Islamic expansion occurred!”

To read the French text, please follow this link:

http://log.antipresse.net/post/islam-faut-il-que-les-imams-nous-le-disent

*Turbaned Imam, is reference to the special head turban that a Shi’ite cleric wears, it’s altogether different from the turban worn by a Sunni cleric.

Posted in Articles

The Return of “Religion” Among the Young Is a Time-Bomb

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Hamid Zanaz : Le retour du religieux parmi les jeunes est « une bombe à retardement »

Publié par Mireille Vallette le 8 décembre 2016

 

Translation & Comments by Bassam Michael Madany

April 2017

The Swiss human rights activist, Mireille Valette, published her Interview with Hamid Zanaz, an Algerian essayist and philosopher, on the 8th of December 2016. The following is my translation of the Interview, posted on Ms. Vallette’s website.

In his new book, Hamid Zanaz covers themes related to the future of Islam. Both for Algeria and France, the outlook looks dim. This work is a pot-pourri of interviews, done in French or in Arabic, between 2009 and 2016. Even after Wafa Sultan’s book[i], it’s not out of place. Rather than citing texts from the Qur’an and the Hadith, he focuses his analysis on Islam, as a faith and a political ideology.

The combat theater, as Hamid Zanaz informed me during the brief interview, is the Arab world. In his book, “In Praise of Reason,” he targets Islam with virulence. In France, the book was completely ignored by the “virtuous” circle of the media! In contrast, the Algerian press reviewed it with great praise, even in a newspaper of Le Monde’s type. What a strange paradox!

Zanaz was in Algeria recently to introduce his book. Oh, how he loved the warm weather, the sea, his family. I asked him if he walked around without fear; and were his father, mother, brothers, and sisters, exposed to any persecution on his account?

“No, and then added, Algeria’s Islamization is in a sense, of a ‘sweet’ type. There are no assassinations for religious reasons. Violence is not physical, but moral. After the many years of killings that the population lived through, this tranquility is very welcome.”[ii]  

The book is dedicated to the victims of the Civil War: “In Remembrance of the victims of barbaric Jihadism, and to all who are fighting the Islamization of our existence.”

Other themes are covered, such as the Algeria where he once had lived before moving to France, the impossibility of reforming Islam, and the otherworldliness of the political authorities. Analyzing the situation in the Islamized Algeria, one gets the impression of being inside a mosque. Nothing against religion, nothing outside religion, everything within religion!

If a Muslim is proud, it’s because of who he is, and not because of what he does. Instead of striving to be what he should become, he would rather remain as he had always been. He leads a life of an arrested development. He is just a survivor.

Reflecting on his past and his upbringing, Hamid’s analysis becomes radical!

Over my lifetime, I’ve learned everything! How to perform my ablutions, how to pray, to fast, to defend Islam, even how to wash the dead before their burial. I really wonder how I’ve ever escaped falling into Islamism, after all that brainwashing!

Every good Muslim is guilt-ridden for failing to establish the Islamic State, either by persuasion, or through violence. A Muslim remains mired in the sacred, in the forbidden, in the halal, in Paradise, in Hell; and paralyzed by the mere thought of the torments of the tomb. What a miserable conscience to carry!           

In a previous book, “Reforming Islam? An Autopsy of a Characterized Illusion,” Zanaz stated: A Reformed Islam, is the End of Islam. To be a fundamentalist, is to go to the extreme of one’s faith. Islam is in its essence, a totalitarian religion. Therefore, it’s difficult to differentiate between Islamism and moderate Islam.

For example, who among the moderates is calling for the abrogation of the texts that are hostile to Jews, to atheists, and to Christians? Moderate Islamism is a chimera. Is there such a thing as a moderate Fascism? Can we talk about Nazism lite? The source of all the problems, and the impossibility to reform Islam, remains the concept of the Qur’an as a direct word of God.[iii]

Commenting about Islam’s presence in the West, Zanaz states:

In the West, the mosque is not simply a place of worship. It’s a place to make of the young Muslims true believers, preparing them to become soldiers of Islam. Advocating the expansion of Islam, is its key role. If nothing is done to stop this expansion, and if concessions by the West, continue to be made, Muslims’ demands would grow, including polygamy, application of the Qur’anic penal laws in areas where Muslims have become a majority. To sum up: the return to religion among the young is a “Time-Bomb” ready to explode in the face of all those unwilling to say no to the mounting demands of the Islamists.

Back to his native Algeria, Zanaz states: By re-discovering Islam, Algeria has rejected modernity. Until the end of the 1980s, Algerians were still living within modernity. The Algeria of my youth was so different from today’s Algeria. Now that Algerians have encountered Islam in its sacred books, and in the radicals’ teachings, they attempt to re-Islamize their lives. Thus, they’ve rejected modernity, since it’s opposed to true Islam. Religion and irrationality have taken over their lives. Nothing less than a mental revolution would be able to diffuse the time-bomb of the Sharia, which has been ticking for a long time, ready to explode in the very heart of all the Islamic countries.                                                                 

Right for reproduction : Reproduction autorisée avec la mention suivante : © Mireille Vallette pour Dreuz.info.

Comments

There is no dearth of books or articles dealing with radical Islam, written by Western authors. What distinguishes the work of the nationals’ analysis and critique of Islamism, is the fact that they write from within their experienced cultural milieu. They can’t be charged with bias that has often been leveled against Orientalists. For example, Hamid Zanaz has such colleagues as the Moroccan, Sa’eed Nasheed, author of “Modernity and the Qur’an. "

Mr. Nasheed sets forth two important theses: First, while he accepts the Qur’an as divine revelation, he rejects the commonly accepted view that the sacred Arabic text is to be equated with Allah’s very words. Rather, the divine revelation was “filtered” through Muhammad’s personality. Second, the author offers a narrow and limited concept of Islam, namely that it consists “in the call for “Tawhid” (Strict unity of Allah) and the adoption of an ethic of love and tolerance.” Nasheed denies that the role of revelation is to legislate laws; rather it functions as a guide “in the worship of Allah.”

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/modernity-and-the-quran.cfm

Going back to the thoughts of Hamid Zanaz, you can read a previous Interview by Mireille Valette, “The Impact of Islam on European Life.”

http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/thomas/islamism_valette.html

In 2014, Hamid Zanaz published a book in French,

Islamism as Told (Explained) to My Daughter” It is reviewed on:

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/islamism-explained.cfm


[i] A God Who Hates: The Courageous Woman Who Inflamed the Muslim World Speaks Out Against the Evils of Islam. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-312-53836-1.

 

[ii] The Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian Government and various Islamic rebel groups which began in 1991 following a coup negating an Islamist electoral victory. It lasted for several years and cos the lives of thousands of Algerians. The rebels adopted the name of, FRONT ISLAMIQUE DU SALUT (FIS) Islamic Salvation Front.

 

[iii] Then, when the sacred months are drawn away, slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them, and confine them, and lie in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they repent, and perform the prayer, and pay the alms, then let them go their way; God is All-forgiving, All-compassionate.

Translation of Arberry. Qur’an, Surah Repentance 9:5

Posted in Articles

Islamic Eschatology: A Source for Da’esh’s Ideology and Strategy

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Islamic Eschatology: A Source for Da’esh’s Ideology and Strategy

By Bassam Michael Madany

March 2016

In Chapter 15 of his book, “ISIS and Islam: Through the Eyes of a Former Muslim,” Brother Rachid has made a valuable contribution to the subject of Islamic Eschatology as a source for the Ideology and Strategy of the Caliphate Movement, known by its Arabic acronym as “Da’esh,” and in English as “ISIS.”

“Da’esh” is a term the Western world is being made more familiar with. The media have covered it in some degree in general, noting its beginnings, the brutal character of its adherents, it various campaigns throughout the Middle East, and the international character of its fighters. But the source of its ideology has been covered to a lesser degree and does deserve more attention.

Eschatology, a Greek term that refers to the “End Times,” is a basic theological category in all theistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam but differently defined and understood. Its cosmology is linear. History has had a beginning at Creation, and will one day end at the Consummation of all things. How these three world religions interpret eschatology, of course, is very different.

In Christianity, the “End Times” refers to the resurrection of the dead, the final judgment and the eternal state where there will be a final separation of believers from unbelievers in Hell or Heaven. Judaism, from which Christianity came, differs with it particularly on Christology. The same holds true about eschatology

Islam also has concepts like resurrection, judgment and an eternal state incorporated into an “End Times” category. But theology takes a back seat to ideology. Throughout history, doctrinal matters were not so prominent in the thinking of practicing Muslims.

The Qur’an on the End Times

The Meccan Surahs of the Qur’an (610 – 622) are replete with appeals to Arabs to believe in Allah and His Apostle, as a pre-requisite for entry into Jannah (Paradise,) and escape the unending and horrific sufferings of Jahannam (Hell)

The 75th Surah of the Qur’an known as “The Resurrection” has 40 Ayahs (verses.) The first 15 Ayas give an adequate idea of what would transpire on “Yawm al-Qiyamat,” (Resurrection Day)

“I do call to witness the Resurrection Day; And I do call to witness the self-reproaching spirit: (Eschew Evil). Does man think that We cannot assemble his bones? Nay, we are able to put together in perfect order the very tips of his fingers. But man, wishes to do wrong (even) in the time in front of him. He questions: ‘When is the Day of Resurrection?’ At length, when the sight is dazed, And the moon is buried in darkness.

And the sun and moon are joined together, That Day will Man say: ‘Where is the refuge?’ By no means! No place of safety! Before thy Lord (alone), that Day will be the place of rest, that Day will Man be told (all) that he put forward, and all that he put back.

Nay, man will be evidence against himself, even though he were to put up his excuses.”

Other Qur’anic passages give dreadful descriptions of the sufferings of Unbelievers:

“Lo! We have prepared for disbelievers Fire. Its tent encloseth them. If they ask for showers, they will be showered with water like to molten lead which burneth the faces. Calamitous the drink and ill the resting-place!” (Surah 18:29)

“These twain (the believers and the disbelievers) are two opponents who contend concerning their Lord. But as for those who disbelieve, garments of fire will be cut out for them; boiling fluid will be poured down on their heads. Whereby that which is in their bellies, and their skins too, will be melted; And for them are hooked rods of iron. Whenever, in their anguish, they would go forth from thence they are driven back therein and (it is said unto them): Taste the doom of burning” (Surah 22:19-22)

Hadith, Sirat, and Commentaries 

Islamic prophecies about the future dominate the consciousness of Muslims. From their earliest years, they are taught that Islam is a victorious faith and will ultimately prevail over the Kuffar (Forces of Unbelief.) The Final Battle will be at Dabeq which is just north of modern day Aleppo. There are several Hadiths that support this scenario. Sermons delievered on Fridays from Sunni mosques, often quote enthusiastically from these Hadiths, predicting the approach of the Last Days.

Studying Da’esh’s propaganda reveals that it heavily foucuses on the prophecies of the End Times, in the Qur’an, Hadith, Sirat Muhammad (Life of Muhammad), and Tafsir (Commentries). These accounts furnish the propagandists with a justification for the warfare they foment against Islamic regimes that fail to apply the Sharia, and, of course, the Kuffar are included as beyond the pale. Da’esh holds to a firm belief in the fulfillment of the Eschatalogical teachings as determined by their interpretation of the faith, and the ultimate victory of Islam.

Prior to the End, certain signs must appear. They would take place at Bilad al-Sham, the Arabic term for Greater Syria; in Damascus and the surrounding region.This locality is extremely important, since Damascus was the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate (661-750) when most of the Islamic Futuhat (Conquests) occurred. By 732, the Caliphate’s territory had spread from India to Spain!

Another major event will be the appearance of “Massih al-Dajjal” (The False Messiah) in a region between Iraq and Syria. On his forehead, the word “Kafir” is engraved! He will be killed by “Al-Massih ibn-Maryam,” (i.e. the Qur’anic Messiah) upon his return to earth.

Dabeq is where the Final Battle will take place ushering the END of history. Da’esh’s fascination with Dabeq is great; the first American killed by this Jihadi group, was buried there. The video made of that decapitation, was followed by a speech in which the perpetrator forecast that more killings would happen, ending with the occupation of Rome!

The rapid occupation of the Christian lands by the Umayyads, gives the basis for Da’esh to dream of a repetition of those early victories. They refer to Mu’awiya, the first Umayyad Caliph who had camped at Dabeq on his march to Constantinople. He and his son Yazid, continued in their attempt to capture the capital of the Byzantine Empire, but failed. Another Umayyad Caliph, Suleiman ibn-Abdulmalek, vowed not to return to Damascus until he had conquered Constantinople. He camped at Dabeq for a long time but instead of victory he died and was buried there!

It is interesting that Da’esh appears to be losing its control of Mosul in Iraq. And it is happening at the hands of their rivals, the Shi’ites, together with the forces of the Iraqi army. So, the ideological battles alive and active within Islam continue. Most Muslims, Sunnis and Shi’ites, cling to their triumphalism, dreaming of re-enacting their early Conquests. This Utopian dream is kept alive by sermons proclaimed from the pulpits of several mosques, during the Friday morning gatherings at the mosques. It is inconceivable for them to relinquish their eschatological dreams of world conquest.

While it is difficult to forecast a jettisoning of this Islamic motif or impulse, yet there is hope arising from within the House of Islam. For example, Hassan Radwan, a resident of the United Kingdom, who taught for fifteen years at the Islamic Primary School in London, and has written four books for Muslim children. He wrote an article in The Guardian in late December 2015 entitled “Muslims can reinterpret their faith - it’s the best answer to Isis”

Here are exceprts showing how some Musim intellectuals are fighting the Ideology of ISIS:

“In my opinion we Muslims need to take the bold step of challenging the very idea that the Qur’an and Sunna are infallible. This will come as a shock to those of us brought up on the idea that the Qur’an is the perfect word of God, but some Muslims are already doing this. Thinkers such as Abdul Karim Soroush from Iran, Sayyed Ahmad Al-Qabbanji from Iraq and Saeed Nasheed from Morocco are questioning traditional views about the Qur’an.

“Saeed Nasheed, in his recent book, Modernity & the Qur’an, said: “The Qur’an is not the speech of God, just as the loaf of bread is not the work of the farmer. God produced the raw material, which was inspiration, just as the farmer produces the raw material, which is wheat. But it is the baker who turns the wheat or flour into bread according to his own unique way, artistic expertise and creative ability. Thus, it is the Prophet who was responsible for interpreting the inspiration and turning it into actual phrases and words according to his own unique view.”

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/dec/16/muslims-faith-isis-religion-islam

It is not only encouraging that Mr. Radwan advocates a re-interpretation of the Qur’an and other authoritative Islamic texts, but he refers to another Muslim, the Moroccan author and reformist, Saeed Nasheed, who dealt with this subject, in his book “Modernity & the Qur’an” published in Beirut, Lebanon. Books and articles of this sort are very effective, coming from within Muslim circles. It is hoped that they would have a lasting impact on the minds of the young Muslim generation, immunizing them against the deadly “virus” emanating from Jihadi circles, such as Da’esh and Al-Qaeda.

Posted in Articles

The Arab Rationalists’ Attempt to Modernize Islam

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

In 2007, a group of Arab intellectuals founded the online journal, Alawan[i] As the 10th Anniversary for the launching of this bold initiative approached, a leading member of the group, Sadeq Jalal al-Adhm, passed away.

Al-Awan published the obituary of Dr. al-Adhm that detailed the role he played in the founding of the “Association of Arab Rationalists” in 1997.

“The goal of the Association was “to explain in a rational way, the causes that led to destruction of the Arab civilization; and to attempt to repair that devastation.”

Sadeq Jalal al-Adhm was born in Damascus in 1934. He belonged to an aristocratic Sunni family; some of its members held high government positions during the French Mandate (1920-1946) and in the early years of independence.

“Mr. al-Adhm studied philosophy at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and at Yale University. After graduation, he taught at the University of Damascus, at the University of Jordan, in Amman; at the AUB, at Princeton University, and in Germany.”

(While teaching at the AUB, Dr. al-Adhm published in 1969, “Naqd al-Fikr al-Deeni” (A Critique of Religious Thought). The book consisted of a critique of theistic religions, and especially of Islam. The Lebanese Government brought charges against him for defaming the religious beliefs of the citizens of Lebanon. He was acquitted by the Lebanese courts, but felt the need to pursue his career elsewhere.) Paragraph is mine.

“Mr. al-Adhm settled permanently in the US, and continued his literary activities. He became a respected leader of Arab intellectuals who sought to deliver the new Arab generation from the hegemony of irrationalism that had impacted the Arab world in politics, law, economics, and education. Freedoms had disappeared, giving way to backwardness, the expansion of political and religious authoritarianism.

“Sadeq Jalal al-Adhm was a great champion of liberty as a basic value, a foundation of modernity and secularism. Freedom is of the essence of citizenship; should it disappear, human rights would disappear as well.

“Rationalism has been besieged by a sacred past, and by “sacred” rulers. The Arab mind has been unable to free itself from the structures of the past. Religious thought was unable to engage in self-evaluation, or to explain the world. Thus, a critique of religious thought, which is a basic component of rational thinking, was forced to retreat, notwithstanding the efforts of Dr. al-Adhm, a pioneer of this venture.”

There are several contributors to Al-Awan who have been active in dealing with the sad state of Arab civilization. For example, the Algerian intellectual Hamid Zanaz, published in 2014 a book in French under the title of “L’islamisme raconté à ma fille” (Islamism as Told (Explained) to My Daughter) He posted an Arabic summary of the book on Al-Awan, on 21 May, 2014.

https://editionstatamis.com/2014/05/19/lislamisme-raconte-a-ma-fille-dhamid-zanaz-sortie-le-9-mai-2014/

Date de parution : 09/05/2014 200 pages – Prix : 15.00 €

In a dialogue with his daughter, Mr. Zanaz explains how difficult it is, to reform and modernize Islam.

Daughter: Aren’t there serious efforts of some Muslims in Europe to bring about reconciliation between ‘spiritual and secular’ Islam?

Father: Indeed, however these attempts remain formal and lead nowhere as in L’Islam sans soumission: Pour un existentialisme musulman,’ by Abdennour Bidar published in 2008. [Islam without Submission: Toward an Islamic Existentialism]

“In his attempt to expound the sacred texts, Abdennour goes to the length of abrogating some. He believes in the possibility of modernizing Islam, to make it compatible with the present age. He hopes to be able to liberate the Muslim from submitting to those texts he considers irrational. However, he forgets that Islam is above all a recognition of, and submission to the will of Allah.’ We cannot harmonize Islam and modernity without altering Islam itself. The Islamic mind is incapable of modernizing itself.

Daughter: Is there an explanation for that?

“Father: Muslims consider their religion as an intellectual system that must be applied in all areas of life, both social and personal. In other words, the religious belief-system must be incorporated within the very core of the governing political system. The Islamist parties have exploited this point of view in their struggle against the ruling regimes, promising people that they, and they alone, can govern Muslims in a peaceful and democratic way, as Islamists had failed to accomplish that through violence.

“Daughter: Well, wouldn’t that lead to a Reformation in Islam, and to the rise of a genuine democracy?

“Father: Let’s say that Islamists manage to save us from the old regimes; but who would then help us to get rid of the Islamists, should they fail to deliver on their promises? This is the real dilemma. Once Islamists arrive at power through democratic means, they consider democracy as the ships that Tariq Bin Ziyad set on fire upon landing in Spain, to prevent the invaders from returning to North Africa, as one critic put it.[ii]

Hamid Zanaz’s dialogue ended without much hope for a beneficial change in Islamic teachings that would foster the rise of a humane relationship among Muslims, and with the rest of mankind. His personal “jihad” against Islamism goes on unabated, as one may read any of the 622 articles and essays he had posted on Al-Awan. In his latest posting, he manifested his exasperation with the Muslims’ inconsistencies, in these words:

“Oh, why are Muslims so quick and eager to appropriate and use the latest models of cellular phones, while at the same time remain unwilling to ‘digest’ the simplest forms of human rights; just because they consider them as ‘Western’ inventions?!”

 

Another reformist contributor to Al-Awan, is the Moroccan, Sa’eed Nasheed, the author of “Modernity and the Qur’an.” It was published in Beirut, Lebanon, and reviewed in Al-Awan by Khaled Ghazal on 16 May, 2015. Five years earlier, Mr. Nasheed had posted What Is the Qur’an?” dealing with the same topic.

“In Modernity and the Qur’an’ Sa’eed Nasheed starts with the nature of the Qur’an, whether it is in fact Allah’s words, i.e., a text which was dictated by Heaven! In his answer, he doesn’t deny that God is the author of the “Wahy”[iii] (revelation); however, it was formulated or redacted by the Prophet. This was accomplished by Muhammad within the context of his culture, language, personality, and his time. Therefore, the Qur’an is, in a sense, a human text par excellence!

“On the other hand, as Islam spread, a rational view of the Qur’an changed to such an extent, that the Prophet became like a “Second Person” next to the Divine Being, sometimes even superseding Him. The (Arabic) text of the Qur’an became a closed text based solely on ‘Uthman’s Qur’an, which is regarded by the various Islamic communions, as the Authorized Version; while all other copies were forcefully destroyed.[iv]

“By juxtaposing the “Qur’an with Modernity,” the author set forth a very important thesis: ‘Unless a revised view of the nature of Revelation is adopted by Muslims, they would never be able to adapt to Modernity.’ Such a revised view requires nothing less than jettisoning the notion that every word in the original Arabic text is literally, a divine speech. On the other hand, if the belief in the ‘Uncreatedness of the Qur’an is maintained,’ one is left with the historical view of Orthodox Islam that the text is eternal and cannot be revised, or re-interpreted.”

Unlike Al-Adhm whose adherence to Marxist ideology remained much alive with its total rejection of theism, Mr. Nasheed, like many previous reformers, is pleading with his contemporaries to realize that maintaining the traditional view of the Qur’an, will hold Muslims captive to an irrational and obscurantist worldview. By allowing the human factor to play a role in Revelation, and limiting its scope, he would like his contemporaries to reflect on his modest proposal. His concern is very real, since the number of young Muslims leaving Islam, and adopting unbelief, is growing rapidly.

Sa’eed Nasheed’s book offers a radical concept of “Wahy,” (Revelation.) Other than stating that Muhammad’s original mission was to announce and defend the Oneness of Allah, Mr. Nasheed hardly dealt further with the doctrine of Allah. While one may not expect him to write an entire book on Theology, yet the importance of the concept of God cannot be overstated.

The official Muslim view of the Qur’an is its “Un-Createdness.” The only way Muslim theologians could maintain that it doesn’t conflict with the Oneness of Allah, was to discourage theologizing, and to adopt the concept of “Bila Shabah,” i.e. “No Similarity.” Allah is the “Wholly Other.” His attributes are incommunicable. Thus, the Biblical doctrine of Man being created in the image of God and after his likeness[v] is unthinkable to Muslims. On the other hand, it means that a Muslim can never know Allah; he or she, can know Allah’s will as revealed in the Qur’an. The relation between Allah and a believer is that of a Master to a slave (‘abd), which explains the multiplicity of Muslim names in which the term ‘abd forms the first part of a man’s name, such as ‘Abdul-Ilah, Abdallah, ‘Abdul-Karim, Abdul-Rahman, etc.

The lack of a possibility for a closer fellowship with Allah, led some Muslim intellectuals to unbelief (Ilhad). This was the case of the Saudi scholar, Abdallah al-Quseimi! He began his intellectual career as a defender of the faith, but died as an unbeliever! One Arab writer offered this startling explanation: “Islam possesses a unique motif or impulse that makes it the most likely religion to cause unbelief. Several other religions contain the promise of an eschatological salvation at the end of time, such as in Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Zoroastrianism. However, in Islam, there is neither a place, nor a need for a Savior.” http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/faith-to-unbelief.cfm

Sa'eed Nasheed’s “Modernity and the Qur’an” has offered a solution for a serious problem that besets Islam, namely its inability to cope with Modernity. The Caliphate Movement, Da’esh (ISIS) and its success in occupying large parts of Syria and Iraq, the civil wars raging in Libya and Yemen, are just two concrete examples of this serious malaise in Daru’l Islam. Unfortunately, there is little hope that Mr. Nasheed’s proposal would find acceptance. The past, with all its unresolved doctrinal issues and schisms, still weighs heavy on a civilization that seems to be unable to break its shackles, and chart a new course, that will insure peace and prosperity for its peoples, as well as for the rest of mankind.


[i] Al-Awan signifies the right time, like the Greek term, Kairos. Another way of conveying the meaning of the Arabic word is “It’s High Time.”

[ii] In 710, the Arab Islamic armies crossed the narrow strait separating North Africa from Spain, under the command of Tariq Bin Ziyad. It is claimed by Muslim historians, that after the landing, Tariq told his soldiers, after burning the ships: “the enemy is before you, and the sea is behind you; there is no choice but to attack.” In European languages Gibraltar became the name of the Strait, based on the Arabic phrase: “Jebel Tariq,” Tariq’s Mountain, reference to the giant Rock on the Spanish side.

[iii] The Islamic doctrine of Wahy is quite different from the Biblical view of revelation. In Islam, the prophet is totally passive as he receives the divine message in the form of a Kitab (Book) that “descends” on him. His unique role is to deliver message.

[iv] According to Islamic historiographers, it was ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan, (644-656) the third Caliph, who ordered that only one copy of the Qur’an be preserved and the rest be destroyed. This explains why the Arabic text is usually known as ‘Uthman’s Qur’an.

[v] So, God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 (ESV)

Posted in Articles

The Arab Spring & the New World Disorder

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam Michael Madany

Rev. Bassam Michael Madany

What was hailed as the “Arab Spring” in 2011, turned five years later, into a horrific nightmare impacting the Middle East, and Western Europe. Scholarly books and essays have been published seeking to explain the failure of the rise of democratic regimes to replace the authoritarian governments that had plagued Mideastern countries, since the end of WWII.[i]

The New Yorker Magazine published on 3 January, 2017, “All Roads Lead to Aleppo” by Jon Lee Anderson. It’s one of the best essays that I’ve read about the Syrian “Intifada” that began spontaneously in March, 2011, at Der’a, a city south of Damascus.[ii]   

Mr. Anderson summed up the “Fall of Aleppo” in the opening paragraph:

“With the evacuation of the last of its armed rebels and their families, last month, the Syrian city of Aleppo is once again in the hands of the Assad government. Aleppo had a prewar population of more than two million people; it was not only Syria’s largest city and its industrial powerhouse but had an iconic place as one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, with a history dating back some eight thousand years. Before the war, Aleppo’s wealth of ancient buildings and its cosmopolitan mix of sects and peoples—Sunni Arabs, Shiites, Kurds, Turkmen, Alawites, Circassians, Chechens, Greeks, Assyrian and Armenian Christians, and even a few Jews—made it a matchless place in the modern Middle East. It remains to be seen what, of all that, has survived.”

I’ve known Aleppo for a long time. Living in Alexandretta, in northwest Syria, in my early days, I remember how well-to-do Aleppo families, used to spend their summers at our resorts in the province.[iii]  

I can add a few more details about Aleppo. Syrians claim that Abraham stopped at Aleppo, on his way from Ur of the Chaldees, to the Promised Land. Besides being a commercial and industrial city, Aleppo was known for its educational institutions. One was “Aleppo College,” an American institution that served as a preparatory school for Syrians who eventually completed their education, at the AUB (American University of Beirut.)

The Jewish presence in Aleppo was the largest in Syria. Most of the Jews ran businesses that supplied Syrian merchants with needed goods, imported from Europe and the USA. After the birth of the State of Israel in May, 1948, most of the Syrian Jews left Aleppo.

I applaud Mr. Anderson who braved many dangers, to give us eye-witness accounts of the battles. His description of the savagery of some of the combatants, is blood-curdling.

Much as I appreciated the essay, I was greatly disappointed with the last paragraph:

“Indeed, partly because of the Syrian conflict and its ongoing fallout, the future of the European Union itself is now in question. With the mass influx of refugees has come an upsurge in anti-immigrant sentiment in Europe that mirrors that of the American alt-right in its bigotry and sectarian hatred, especially toward Muslims. The killing of civilians—in Europe and elsewhere (Tunisia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Turkey)—by Islamist terrorists has, at the same time, become a terrifyingly frequent occurrence. Throughout the West, a mood of ugly xenophobia is spreading. Thus far, it has given us Brexit and Trump. In the upcoming French elections, will Marine Le Pen be the victor? Will the next terrorist outrage in Germany be the end of Angela Merkel and usher in a mood of social intolerance?”

I’m mystified by Mr. Anderson’s outbursts and strong critique of Europeans and Americans and their anti-immigrant sentiments, their bigotry and hatred for Muslims, as he claimed.

Indeed, Europeans and Americans are scared for their lives. Air travel has become a burdensome adventure, since 9/11! Do I need to make a catalogue of all the Jihadist attacks in France, Belgium, Germany and the USA? As to, “Hatred for Muslims?” I would like to learn where have Muslims been attacked in Europe or in the Americas? It’s not “hatred,” it’s a genuine concern for one’s life and safety!

Ever since the end of WWII, when large Islamic communities have settled in the West, there is an indisputable proof that Muslims, far from assimilating, make demands on the societies that had welcomed them; demands if accepted, would alter the Western traditions of tolerance and pluralism, that have marked Western civilization for the last two centuries.

A liberal Kuwaiti columnist wrote on 9 July, 2010 (months before the Arab Spring,) a frank and thought-provoking article about the Muslim communities of Western Europe. He exhibited a very sympathetic understanding of the Europeans’ concerns about the Muslims’ unwillingness to assimilate. Rather, they form alternative communities that replicate the very culture of the lands they had fled from!

The article was published in the daily newspaper, al-Qabas, and entitled, “The Islamization of Europe.”  It criticized those Europeans who defended the rights of the Muslim communities to live in harmony with their own traditions; even though Muslim countries do not accord religious minorities these same rights.

He continued, “some call Europe the ‘Aged Continent;’ however, Europe is the mother of modern civilization, the center of its culture, and its living conscience. Europe has always been willing to welcome refugees, and political dissidents who could no longer live freely in their homelands. Why should we Arabs, criticize Europeans, when they want to maintain their democratic identity and their freedoms, by protecting themselves against the inroads of the Islamic mind? 

“We need a sense of impartiality and balance, to understand the reason for the reaction of Westerners, vis-à-vis the growing number of Muslims who have settled among them. It has become a veritable Islamic cultural and demographic invasion. At the same time, Europeans find themselves unable to deal with this situation, in a proper and democratic manner.

“The number of ‘Islamic Ghettos’ keeps increasing around European capitals. In some historic cities, these ghettos occupy around one fourth of Amsterdam, Marseille, and Malmo [Sweden]! The Hijab (head covering) and the Niqab (complete body covering) have become familiar sites. Mosques grow as mushroom on every corner; with the number of their attendees exceeding those worshipping at churches! The unemployed in the Muslim areas, keep increasing. Migrants are contributing nothing positive to the country’s economy; while at the same time, they’ve become a burden on the social services! I’m not writing these lines against anyone specifically; I simply question the wisdom of some Europeans who defend the rights of Muslims not to assimilate, and keep on living as if they were still in their former homelands.”

Having read these comments of the Kuwaiti columnist, I may add that had the author of “All Roads Lead to Aleppo” consulted some reformist/liberal Arab sources, he might not have made those wholesale accusations against Westerners in the concluding paragraph of the article. In fact, other Arab intellectuals have dealt with the incompatibility of Islam with Western civilization.

In the final analysis, to be concerned about one’s own life and security, ought not to be equated with xenophobia! No one in the West claims that all Muslims are terrorists; but most terrorists tend to be Muslims. Daily they murder fellow-Muslims, in Syria, Iraq, Yemen. One becomes numbed by the reports from Baghdad, or Sana’a, Yemen, of another car-bomb exploding in a crowded place, killing and maiming innocent by-standers. As I am about to conclude this article on Saturday, the 7th of January, the Associated Press reported about another tragedy in Syria:

“At least 43 people were killed Saturday when a car bomb went off in a busy market in a rebel-held Syrian town along the Turkish border, activists and rescue workers said.”

There is an urgent need to delve into Islamic history, to discover the root cause for the disorders and convulsions that have plagued the Arab world since 2011. The problem didn’t begin during in this century; it goes back to the 7th century.

Muhammad’s migration to Medina, in AD 622, changed Islam from a purely religious faith, into a political regime that claimed its governing principles came from God. That sanctioned the Prophet’s raids of the Meccan caravans. Ultimately, it enabled him to vanquish his opponents in Mecca in 630, two years before his death.

The history of the Caliphates in Medina, Damascus, Baghdad, and Istanbul, were marked by world conquests, intrigues and violence. Sacred texts from the Qur’an, glorify “Death in the Cause of Allah![iv] It is this ingrained motif, or impetus that motivates Jihadists in their senseless attacks against innocent Muslims and non-Muslims alike. To ignore these facts, doesn’t help our world to properly confront this “New World Disorder.”

The URL for the Kuwaiti article: http://aafaq.org/news.aspx?id_news=8549#


[i] Andrew J. Bacevich’s AMERICA’S WAR FOR THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST: A MILITARY HISTORY. New York: Random House, 2016

Marc Lynch’s THE NEW ARAB WARSS: UPRISINGS AND ANARCH IN THE MIDDLE EAST. New York: Public Affairs, 2016

[iii] Alexandretta Province was in northwest Syria during the early years of the French Mandate. Its main cities were Alexandretta, Antioch, and Seleucia. Turkey claimed that most of its inhabitants were Turks, an unsubstantiated claim. The majority were Arabic-speaking Christians and survivors of the Armenian Genocide of WWI. In 1938, France acceded to the demands of Ataturk, by allowing Turkish forces to invade the province. By June, 1939, most of the population left the province for other parts of Syria, while some settled in Lebanon. The Turks renamed the province, Hatay. Very few of the original inhabitants remained after the Turkish occupation.

Iv Indeed, Allah (has) purchased from the believers their lives and their wealth, because for them (is) Paradise. They fight in (the) way (of) Allah, they slay and they are slain. A promise upon Him true, in the Taurat and the Injeel and the Quran. And who (is) more faithful to his promise than Allah? So, rejoice in your transaction which you have contracted [with it]. And that it (is) the success the great.

Surat At-Tawba 9 (Repentance) Ayah:111

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Moroccan Christians Cautiously Celebrate Christmas

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

26 December, 2016

Bassam Michael Madany

In Morocco, the online dailywww.hespress.com. had an interesting item on the 26th of December, 2016.It reported how Moroccan Christians had “Celebrated Christmas in a Cautious Manner.”  A Westerner might wonder why the word “cautious” needed to be used to define any Christmas celebration which is one of the most joyous times of the year. But Islamic countries in general are slow to extend the right to practice a religion other than the state imposed one. So these brave Christians were going against the tide and we can all hope that the political authorities will not make things difficult for them in the future. Here are some excerpts outlining the various celebrations.

“In Casablanca, a few kilometers away from shops that exhibited Christmas trees, while many Moroccans were buying presents for the coming New Year.  Several Moroccan who have embraced the Christian faith, were meeting secretly at a house church to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, according to the Christian religion.

Prayers & Hymns

“It was 4 in the afternoon, when celebrants began arriving, from Rabat, Casablanca, Agadir, and Marrakech. The Christian guide who accompanied Hespress’ reporter explained, “I don’t know most of them, and probably they don’t know me either; but soon, we’ll all get acquainted and feel quite at home!

“Worshippers sat at tables that were decked with flowers and candles. Copies of the Bible and Christmas hymns were available. The meeting was officially begun with a season of prayers by ‘believers’ who praised the Lord for his many blessings; followed with supplications for the spread of peace throughout the world. Another person offered a prayer for forgiveness, and for the safety of the country.

“With the prayers, over, a tall young man stood up, he had a rather dark skin; his accent revealed that he was an Amazigh, (a descendent of the original inhabitants of North Africa.) He held a copy of the Bible in his hand, and began extolling the virtues of Jesus Christ, and the wonderful things he had brought to mankind. He ended by exhorting the worshippers to spread love and compassion among mankind.

“Three young men stood up accompanied by a young lady; they lead the congregation in the singing of Gospel hymns. This gave impetus to some members to offer supplications in colloquial Arabic: ‘O precious Jesus, hasten the day when our land would praise thy name! O Most High God, bless Morocco, thy church implores Thee to have mercy on our country, and keep evil from it, and shower thy blessings on its people.

Cautious Celebrations

“This year’s celebrations took on a special form. Moroccan Christians from several churches in the kingdom, decided to go public and meet in a large hotel for the occasion. They asked the authorities for a permit to hold their Christmas celebrations; however, it was denied, without any reason being given! This did not stop some Christians from bringing their cause to the attention of the media. For example, M. S. explained to Hespress, ‘Christianity in Morocco is still young; this leads believers to be secretive in their worship services. Some, on the other hand, have decided to go public and fight for their rights.’

“Going public isn’t an easy matter. For example, Sarah is married to a Moroccan Christian; they have three sons, and have undergone a great deal of persecution after their conversion. Their children had a rough time at school. Finally, the family moved to another town seeking peace and a better life. Sarah and her friends share their bitter experiences with one another. Some had lost their jobs, while others, were shunned by their own people.    

God Is Love

“The experiences of converts are varied; their persistence in their faith is anchored in the belief that ‘God Is Love.’ This is based on the Gospel’s teaching about God’s love for mankind. 

“As R. put it: ‘I was converted 12 years ago; I grew up in a practicing Muslim family, but there were certain things didn’t sit well with me, such as discrimination between rich and poor. For some time, I led a life of uncertainty. A critical point was reached with the rise of Irhab (Terrorism.) How could a God command the killing of people!? That led me to begin a study of religions; finally, I chose Christianity whose God is Love.’ Following his conversion, he began to witness among his neighbors, and formed a group of similar believers. They met at his home on Sundays for prayers; both individuals and families have joined the house-church, they number sixty souls!

“The story of forty-eight-year old H. F.  is quite different. At present, he sells fruits in an area of Casablanca. Back in 1994, he was an active member of an Islamist organization in Morocco. At one point, he was contemplating going to Afghanistan for Jihad against the Russian invaders. ‘I changed my mind about that plan; but continued to perform my duties by doing the Five Daily Prayers until 2004. By chance, I met some converts to Christianity; I put some questions to them about their faith. Months later, I met other Christians who were meeting at a coffee house. I put further questions to them. Their responses brought me to faith in this heavenly religion. In August, 2008, I was baptized, received forgiveness of sins, and began a new life.’”

Christians around the world who read such accounts are thrilled that the Christian faith has penetrated into this part of the Arab world!  Amid all the mayhem occurring in the Middle East and Europe perpetrated by Jihadis, there is still good news to report and thanks to Hespress, for reporting it. 

Western missionaries had labored for decades in many parts of Morocco, from Tangiers in the north to Marrakech and Fes, in the south. I personally have many fond memories of visiting some of such missionary endeavors in this beautiful country.   In what seems ages ago in 1975 I flew to Malaga, Spain, to visit the recording studios of the Gospel Missionary Union which had a mission organization in a suburb of the city. From there, I traveled by ship to Tangiers for a brief visit with mission workers. I continued by bus south to Casablanca, Rabat, and to Meknes, having fellowship with Christian workers all along the way, many of whom had labored in Morocco for years. I’ll never forget an experience on the long bus ride from Meknes back to Tangiers.  Before leaving the station, for what I knew would be a very long ride, I was trying to decipher the Moroccan dialect being spoken by the families on the bus, always hoping for possibilities to communicate. Amidst all the children, parents, and luggage, and chickens squawking in cages on the roof of the bus, there came suddenly into the bus a blind beggar asking for alms.  He was chanting in perfect Classical Arabic the praises of the Prophet Muhammad!  I wondered how much the passengers understood the beautiful Arabic this blind man was chanting!  They listened intently, without uttering any word, while their faces manifested approval of that litany of praise!

In 1977, while in Malaga, I was invited to speak at a conference of resident Christian missionaries in Casablanca.  I gave a lecture on my own radio ministry in the Arabic-language, which also included sending out Christian literature all over the Arab world It was a wonderful occasion to meet brothers and sisters who were engaging in Christian evangelizing and works of mercy especially noteworthy in the various orphanages they had built and operated. 

At the time, it did not appear that missions in Morocco were threatened.   But as the Islamic religious authorities’ influence continued to gain traction, more roadblocks were put in the way of the Christian communities’ projects in the country.  The Moroccan king, who is the head and guardian of the Muslim community was no doubt feeling pressure to heed the religious authorities.

Thus, it was that beginning in the late 1980s, restrictions were placed on Christian missions, particularly its orphanages, which eventually led to the closing of all them. This was particularly traumatic, not only for the many children, some of whom had only known the orphanage experience, but also for the Christians who cared so deeply for them. But all foreign missionaries were forced out in March, 2010.

But the seed of God’s word had been sown. With the onset of new communication tools including the Internet and other social media, the Gospel is making inroads all over the earth.  A Moroccan convert known as Brother Rachid has been an effective new voice in missions via the new communication technology. We witness now the rebirth of the Church in North Africa. I am reminded of my favorite passage of Scripture, where Saint Paul reminded Timothy, that despite all opposition and various setbacks, no force can ever frustrate God’s plan for the salvation of His people.

“Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! Therefore, I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. The saying is trustworthy, for:

“If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.” II Timothy 2: 8 - 13

Note

Brother Rachid’s ministry is televised every Thursday on Satellite TV station, Al-Hayat. It is archived on YouTube, and may be watched on: http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/. While most of the shows are in Arabic, some are in English.

Brother Rachid authored “ISIS and Islam: Through the Eyes of a Former Muslim” A review of the book is available on: http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/review-brother-rachids-book.cfm

For information about the closing of the Christian Orphanages in Morocco:

https://theagetocome.wordpress.com/2010/03/09/christian-orphanage-forcibly-shut-down-in-morocco/

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The Conversion and Testimony of Sister Naomi

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Report by Bassam Michael Madany on

12 November 2016

Brother Rachid, a former Muslim who became a Christian believer, desired to communicate the Christian faith to Muslims in particular.  He began his effort to do so by hosting a television program on Al-Hayat Satellite Television. It commenced in the middle of February 2007. The program is called “A Daring Question” and consists of a 90-minute Interview conducted in Arabic.  He often has an expert on Islam on hand to discuss the belief system and followers of Islam.  He also has interviews with converts from Islam to Christianity. By mid-November, 2016, 468 shows have been telecast and archived. They may be accessed on: http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/

It is interesting that many Muslim women have been attracted to the Christian faith and to date Brother Rachid has aired 19 Interviews with such women. Islam’s authoritative texts claim that women possess "small or deficient minds," and exist mainly for men's physical pleasures, both in this world and the next!  It is therefore not surprising that the women interviewed were attracted to Christ’s high regard for them

Almost every convert speaks about his/her quest for the Truth. Muslims are brought up to believe that Islam is the only true and final religion. Some of them who become disillusioned with its teachings, begin their search for the Truth, which they ultimately find in Jesus Christ

Another common feature among converts is their love for the Bible, and a desire to memorize much of it. Prior to their conversion, Muslims would have memorized Surahs and Ayas of the Qur'an. Now they freely quote from sections of the Arabic Bible: “The Sermon on the Mount,” and Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman. Converts consider themselves as having "crossed over" from darkness into the Light of Christ. The Arabic word for "Crossed-over" is 'Abir, pl. 'Abiroon (for men) and 'Abira, pl. 'Abiraat (for women)!

The following is a transcript of the testimony of Sister Naomi. She appeared in a telecast with Brother Rachid on the 17th of May, 2007, three months after his “A Daring Question” was launched on “Al-Hayat,” Satellite TV Station.

Brother Rachid

Welcome Sister Naomi. Let me ask first, in short, what brought you to the Christian faith?

Sister Naomi

It was my search for the Truth that I found in Jesus Christ.

BR

Could you please tell us something about your background?

SN

I grew up in a Muslim family of nine children; five sons, and four daughters. From my earliest days, I developed an inquisitive mind. Mother used to read for us from the Qur’an. She liked to tell us about the events of ‘Ashura when Imam Hussein and his company were massacred at Karbala, Iraq, (680 AD). The accounts of the conflicts of the early years of Islam about the Caliphate bothered me very much! As you know, three of the first four Caliphs were assassinated!

As a girl, I faced more problems in our society. Reading the Qur’an increased my questions.

Why should a man be allowed to marry four wives? And why can he so easily divorce his wife, or even beat her? Whenever I sought for answers, I got no convincing responses.  For example, there is a Hadith that relates the Prophet as saying: “The most hated thing before Allah is divorce.”  Now if that was the case, why did Allah allow it? It didn’t make sense!

Whenever I asked Sheikhs to explain a difficult question, the answer was always the same, “Allah A’lam,” Allah knows best!

BR

What were some other questions for which you found no answers?

SN

I was haunted by the world’s attitude toward the Arabs? Why aren’t we liked? What’s wrong with us?

Then, in matters of worship, I reasoned, if Allah was everywhere, why should I have to face Mecca in my five daily prayers?

My older brother had converted to Christianity; he wanted to help but I resisted, I clung to my Islamic faith.

After moving to Europe, I couldn’t deny the difference between European and Islamic societies. In the West, people helped one another. It isn’t so in our Muslim societies. All that perplexed me! I noticed genuine love between Christians; they spoke the truth; without exaggeration!

And yet, I regarded Christians as Kuffar (Infidels), so when I put some questions to them, my purpose was to fight them, since they believed Allah was Three beings. Yet, throughout all that time, there was an awful emptiness in my soul.

BR

Can you tell us more details about your quest for the Truth?

SN

I’ve often cried out to Allah, “please help me find the Truth!” When I would ask Christians about the subject, they referred to Jesus as “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” Another of his saying was, “You shall know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.”

Another matter had perplexed me very much. Muhammad ordered us “to do good, and to refrain from evil.” However, even after I had attempted to do that, I could never be certain of making it to heaven! Assurance and security were lacking!

I also fretted about the status of Muslim women; their lot was worse off than women in the rest of the world. There was nothing fair in polygamy; no man can equally treat his wives; he’ll always have his favorite!  

Muhammad married more than four wives; yet he was firmly against his cousin Ali, who had married Fatima (the only daughter of the Prophet from his first wife, Khadijah) to take another wife!

Divorce has always been a threat and a nightmare for a Muslim wife; her husband may divorce her any time by declaring publicly his decision! Add to add, the Qur’an allows a husband to beat his wife if she disobeys his whims!

Half-way during the telecasts, phone calls and emails come from listeners/viewers. A caller claimed that Naomi was not a genuine convert; she was playing that role to deceive the Muslim audience!

BR

What’s your answer to that caller?

SN

Certainly, I am a convert; I was looking for the Truth, and I found it in Jesus, the Messiah. He is revealed in the Holy Bible; I put my trust in Him. He saved me, and has given me peace of mind, and assurance about my eternal life in Heaven.

I appeal to every Muslim listening to this program, no one can answer your perplexing questions, but Jesus Christ. He is appealing to you,"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”

Remember that the Bible reveals God as a loving Heavenly Father. He demonstrated that to us by sending Jesus to save us from our sons. This is the true Injeel, the Gospel of salvation:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

End of the Interview.

One cannot but be moved with such a testimony. Here is a lady from Iraq who had grown up a Muslim; and from her earliest days became aware of certain problems with her inherited faith. She began questioning Islamic teachings regarding women; and was puzzled by the view that Christians were “Infidels”. When seeking answers, she met with responses that didn’t satisfy her. As she got acquainted with the Christian faith, she realized that she discovered the truth she had been seeking!

As we study Brother Rachid’s weekly shows, we find that Sister Naomi’s experience is duplicated among other Muslims, both men and women. This phenomenon may surprise many experts on Islam, but it cannot be denied or ignored. The mass media and the ease of communications across continents, have made it possible for Muslims to learn about other faiths and worldviews. While changing one’s faith for a Muslim is forbidden by the tenets of Islam, some Muslims, fully aware of rules regarding apostasy, are crossing over to Christianity. We thank God for these new opportunities to spread the Gospel, and nourish new Christians with the teachings of the Holy Scriptures.

Posted in Articles

Brother Rachid Interviews Brother Jibril Saleh, A Yemeni Convert

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Brother Rachid Interviews Brother Jibril Saleh, A Yemeni Convert

Introduction

Bassam Michael Madany

My radio, literature, and correspondence ministry began in June, 1958. It was directed to the Arabic-speaking world stretching from Morocco to Iraq. When I retired in 1994, my taped messages continued to be aired for an additional five more years.

In the aftermath of the Second World war, radio broadcasting became a powerful and necessary means to spread the Gospel, as newly-independent Arab countries put restrictions on conventional missions. Another tool, the transistor radio made it possible for Arabs living in remote areas that lacked electricity, to use battery-run radios to listen to broadcasts coming from distant lands. During the thirty-six years of the radio ministry, around 200.000 letters were received from every Arab country, as well as from Arabic-speaking people living in the Diaspora. Half of the letters came from Eastern Christians; the other half from Muslims who were interested to learn about the Christian Scriptures.    

After our retirement in 1994, my late wife Shirley and I began a new ministry on the Internet. This time, it was done in English; its goal was “The Christian Response to the Global Challenge of Islam.” The URL for the website of Middle East Resources is www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org

Just as Greek was the international language in the New Testament times, English now plays the same role. Thanks to the Stat-Counter that monitors “hits” or “visits” to our website, posted materials reach a global readership! Our former ministry may be described as an intensive daily work of “sowing” the Gospel. Our support came from the Christian Reformed Church in North America, through its Back-to-God Hour radio ministry.

The 21st century has ushered a new era in missions to Muslims. The Internet, and Satellite Television are powerful means for the spread and defense of the Gospel. New Christians, or Muslim-born believers (MBB) have now joined as heralds of the Good News!

Recently, I met Brother Rachid, a Moroccan convert; he preached at Bethel Christian Reformed Church, in Lansing, Illinois, on the 17th of July, 2016. I was overwhelmed with joy as I listened to him expounding the Gospel and describing his weekly ministry on Al-Hayat (LIFE) Satellite TV. We had a wonderful visit on the following Friday. He gave me a copy of his book in Arabic, and asked me to review it. The Review is posted on my website:                                                       

“ISIS and Islam: Through the Eyes of a Former Muslim”

http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/review-brother-rachids-book.cfm

The telecasts of Brother Rachid began in 2007; they are archived on YouTube, and can be watched anytime. The program consists of an Interview with an expert on Islam, or with a convert from Islam. It lasts for 90 minutes; halfway in the telecast, listeners can contact Brother Rachid by telephone, or by email.

As of October, 2016, there are 450 archived shows. They are mostly in Arabic, and may be accessed through the following URL:

http://islamexplained.com/UVG_0_ar/UVG_video_list_0_ar/TabId/90/CategoryId/5/-.aspx

I have had the great joy of watching a few of the programs that are known as Sou’al Jaree’     (A Daring Question) Converts from Islam are called ‘Abiroon, an Arabic term that signifies those who have “crossed over” to the light and freedom of Jesus Christ!

What reasons they give for “Crossing Over” to Christianity?

Muslims grow up being taught that both Judaism and Christianity that had a “Heavenly Origin” had become corrupt; their Books, the Torah and the Gospel, have been altered, and are no longer trustworthy. Allah sent his last Messenger, Muhammad, and gave him by direct revelation, the Qur’an.

Islam is engraved on the Muslims’ mind, from their earliest days. Allah is high and lofty; he is unknowable, he is “wholly other.” He commands the good, and forbids evil. Man, is a “slave” of Allah. Muslims develop a great fear of Allah, a phobia that is accentuated by the horrors of Hell.

“Crossing over” takes place when a Muslim, man or woman, becomes disillusioned with Allah. He or she, may meet a Christian witness, or read a copy of the Bible in Arabic. The discovery of Allah, as a loving Heavenly Father is such a contrast with the Qur’anic despotic Allah!

Converts, having memorized portions of the Qur’an in their youth, now become avid memorizers of the Bible, such as “The Sermon of the Mount,” and parts of John’s Gospel.

The Person of Jesus the Messiah (Al-Massih) captivates their souls; what a contrast with the person of Muhammad! ‘Abiroon seek membership in Arabic-speaking churches in the Diaspora, and are in raptures after they receive Baptism.

Having listened/heard/watched several shows of Brother Rachid, I can’t help but feel sorry for those Western missions’ experts (known as Missiologists) who have concocted un-Biblical theories for Missions to Muslims, such as advocating that converts need not join national churches, but return to their cultures, and witness for the Messiah from within the culture!

Such theory sounds attractive to Westerners who want quick results in missions. However, no convert who had tasted salvation by faith in the Savior, has ever “bought” into such fanciful and purely abstract theories!

Converts love their Arabic Bible! It was the greatest gift to the Arab World, by the pioneer Presbyterian Missionaries. We praise God for the Rev. Elie Smith, and the Rev. Cornelius Van Dyck who did one of the greatest translations of God’s Word! What a thrill to listen to the ‘Abiroon, reading portions of Matthew 5 – 7, and John 5, 6, and 14! 

The following is based on a dialogue in Arabic, between Brother Rachid and Brother Jibril Saleh, on the 10th of June, 2016, and telecast on Al-Hayat TV:

Brother Jibril Saleh is from Sana’a, Yemen. Growing up as a practicing Muslim, he eventually entertained several doubts about Islam. After listening to the program of “Daring Question” of Brother Rachid, on the Satellite TV Station, Al-Hayat, he left Islam and adopted faith in the Messiah of the Holy Scriptures.

http://islamexplained.com/UVG_0_ar/UVG_video_player_0_ar/TabId/89/VideoId/1776/464-----.aspx

Brother Rachid
Welcome Brother Jibril Saleh, this is my first interview with a convert from Yemen. Please, give us information about your background, and journey to the Christian faith.

Brother Jibril 
I was born into a Sunni family in Sana’a, the capital of Yemen. My family was rather conservative. I began attending the local mosque early in my life. After the Salaat al-Maghreb (Service at the Mosque at sunset), I took part in special meetings known as Halaqat, where we memorized Surahs from the Qur’an, and discussed religious subjects.

BR
Who led the Halaqat?

BJ
They were conducted under Sheikhs, with each Halaqat bearing the name of one of the Sahaba of the Prophet, such as Halaqat Ali, or Halaqat Mus’ab, etc. (Sahaba denotes those followers of Muhammad who left Mecca with him in 622, and settled in Medina)

BR
How old were you at the time?  

BJ 
I was in my early teens. I had several questions in my mind about the subjects being discussed; but I dared not ask them openly. We were warned not to ask deep questions. One question was, “Who created Allah?” I feared Allah, especially the punishments of hell, and the torments that begin after death in the grave. Still, I clung to my faith in the Qur’an; in fact, I developed a way by which I would not accept a Hadith if it conflicted with the plain teachings of the Qur’an.

BR
What was the incident that sparked your quest to think deeply about life issues?

BJ
It happened in 2011; I was living in western Yemen. A hurricane hit the town causing lots of destructions, including several casualties. Prior to that event, I had not reflected on any existential issue; however now, I wondered about my future. In fact, as the powerful storm hit the town, I imagined the Hour of Judgment had come. I became terribly scared! My questions increased. I wasn’t sure that, had I been killed, I would have made it to Heaven! What if my good works were outweighed by my transgressions?  It was very hard to live with a lack of assurance regarding my eternal destiny!

BR
Did you share your questions and doubts with anyone?

BJ
I used the Internet and Facebook; I became more religious. Working at a gas station, I asked for permission to do my 5 prayers, at the appointed times. Eventually, my devotions did not help; the ritualistic prayers became meaningless, due to their repetitious nature. So, I embarked on a quest of comparing Islam with other religions; and began dialoging with Christians and with Malahidat (those who left Islam, and had become unbelievers.) My quest was for my eternal fate and for the truth. I became bolder in my questions on Facebook: ‘Did the Apostle Muhammad really marry a woman, just after killing her husband and her son?’

Muslims invoke divine maledictions on the Kuffar; nevertheless, their conditions remain worse than those of those Infidels who prosper and do much better in life!

One day, I came upon the satellite TV Station, Al-Hayat airing “A Daring Question” that was critical of Islam. At first, I thought the speaker was wrong, interpreting Qur’anic passages out of their historical context. Yet, when he referred to those violent texts such as striking the necks men, they were the very passages that Da’esh (ISIS) quote when they commit their violent acts.

I continued my research in the Qur’an, I found Surah 9, Al-Tawba (Repentance) Ayah 29, sanctioning violence:

“Fight those who believe not in Allah nor in the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.”

Then I came across Surah 47, Ayah 4, that convinced me that Islam cannot be the Truth! These words encourage horrific acts of violence, and cannot proceed from Allah!

“So when you meet those who disbelieve [in battle], strike [their] necks until, when you have inflicted slaughter upon them, then secure their bonds, and either [confer] favor afterwards or ransom [them] until the war lays down its burdens. That [is the command]. And if Allah had willed, He could have taken vengeance upon them [Himself], but [He ordered armed struggle] to test some of you by means of others. And those who are killed in the cause of Allah – never will He waste their deeds.”

So, I left Islam and became an unbeliever. I thought at the time, that all religions were the same. I had in my possession a copy of the Holy Bible that I had not read. One day, I decided to read it beginning with the Gospel of Matthew. I found these words of Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount. They showed me that I had been following the wrong path. I went on reading the Gospel and came across these words of Jesus Christ: “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  Ye shall know them by their fruits.”

And this advice from the Messiah about prayer:

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as he heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.”

I had found the Truth in Christianity, and made known my conversion on Facebook.

BR 
What was the reaction of your family, friends and acquaintances?

BJ 
I was threatened with death. ‘Should you ever returned to Yemen, we’ll kill you!’ I was shocked! My former friends turned into implacable enemies!

Then, adding to my horror was what happened to a 17-year old acquaintance who had placed on Facebook some of his free meditations, such as, ‘I see Allah in flowers, and not in tombs.’ Islamists considered that as blasphemy. He was abducted and murdered in Aden. Not only that, but they made a video of him breathing his last! They wanted to terrorize anyone who strays from the Path!

BR
What are some of your present activities?

BJ
I have discovered several Yemeni believers, both inside and outside Yemen. I’m in touch with them, strengthening their faith. Several Yemenis have left Islam, and are living as unbelievers. Having been disappointed in Islam, they imagine that all religions are the same!

BR
What about your growth in your new-found faith?

BJ
Having managed to immigrate to America, I looked for an Arabic-speaking church. I found one, and joined it. The first thing I asked for was to be baptized.

BR
How did you feel after your baptism?

BJ
It was the best day of my life. It was a wonderful spiritual event. I said goodbye to my past, I found the real Allah, I sensed the love of Christ.  Our God is love; while in Islam’s 99 names of Allah, not one is Love! I learned how to live my faith and to love my enemies; not to swear in my speech! Of course, the change is taking place gradually, having lived so long in Islam!

BR
Are your parents and relatives aware of your conversion?

BJ
Everybody knows about my becoming a Christian. Mother tried to bring me back to Islam, and warns me, ‘Don’t ever say Christ is Allah.’ She pleads with me to return to Islam! My brother calls me ‘majnoon’ (insane), adding that had I opted for unbelief, he would still respect me; but not for becoming a Christian! A young cousin told me that I deserved to be killed for my apostasy!

BR
What about the future?

BJ
I am hopeful about the future. The Lord willing, change is coming. Many Arabs are now critiquing Islam. Nowadays, it’s much easier than in the past. Several young Arabs acknowledge that Muhammad was a pretender, not a true prophet. He led a life of violence, raids, and captivity of innocent women and children; he couldn’t have been a true prophet of Allah.

Of course, Yemen has its insurmountable problems. Illiteracy rate is around 50%; marriage of young girls is very high. A relative of mine has organized a shelter in Aden for young brides who had managed to escape their deplorable conditions! It’s very difficult to combat this awful custom, since Muhammad had married Aisha when she was 6 years old!

BR
What’s your message to the ‘Abiroon? (An Arabic term, it refers to those who have crossed over from their past condition, and arrived safely at their destination with their Lord and Savior Christ Jesus!)

BJ
Hold fast to your faith, be of one mind, work together, be patient. Be wise in the use of the Internet and Facebook. Manifest the fruits of your faith by living in love and in peace.

END OF INTERVIEW

http://islamexplained.com/UVG_0_ar/UVG_video_player_0_ar/TabId/89/VideoId/1776/464-----.aspx

Posted in Articles

It’s High Time for Shi’ites to Change Their Spirit of Victimhood

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

It’s High Time for Shi’ites to Change

Their Spirit of Victimhood

Bassam Michael Madany

14 September, 2016

The reformist/liberal online journal Al-Awan (Kairos[i]) published on 6 September, 2016, an impassioned essay by an Arab intellectual addressed to the Shi’ites in their homelands, pleading with them to change, and stop hanging on to their age-long “Spirit of Victimhood.”

Before I share a translation of this thought-provoking essay, I find it necessary to relate certain historical facts about the rise of schism in the Islamic Umma. This will take us back to the very beginnings Islam. It will reveal that the earliest divisions among Muslims were not related to religious themes. They were political, and had to do with issues of governance.

Muhammad’s victory over his Meccan enemies was completed by 630 A.D. He returned to Medina triumphantly as Prophet and Ruler.  In June, 632, he became very ill and died without having made any arrangements for his succession as Head of State.

While Ali, cousin and son-law of Muhammad, was busy making preparations for the burial of the Prophet, other members of the Sahaba (Inner Circle of Muslim leaders) met under the leadership of Abu Bakr, the father of Aisha[ii] and a strong military commander. They came up with the system of governance called the Caliphate; Abu Bakr becoming the First Caliph. The very day Abu Bakr died in 634, Umar a military hero, succeeded him. Under his rule, the expansion of the Islamic Empire gathered speed with the conquests of Palestine, Syria, Mesopotamia, and Persia. When Umar was assassinated in 644; he was succeeded by ‘Uthman whose Caliphate lasted until his assassination in 656. While both Umar and ‘Uthman were from the Quraish Tribe, neither came from the Hisham Clan of both Muhammad and Ali. In fact, ‘Uthman’s Clan of Umayya, had been a strong opponent to Muhammad; and were partly responsible for his decision to leave for Medina in 622!

Between 632 to 656, the transition from one Caliph to another went on, more or less smoothly. When Ali assumed the position of Caliph upon the death of ‘Uthman, he faced many opponents. ‘Aisha joined the opposition group. Mu’awiya, the governor of Syria and relative of ‘Uthman, led the opposition, claiming that Ali was involved in the plot that led to ‘Uthman’s murder.

Civil war broke out between Ali and Mu’awiya; arbitration was suggested and accepted by the two sides; even though Ali’s chance for victory was greater than that of his opponent. Some of Ali’s supporters rebelled, and murdered him in 661. They are known as the Khawarej.

That insured Mu’awiya’s victory! He assumed the role of Caliph in 661, moved the capital from Medina to Damascus, Syria. The Caliphate became dynastic and is known as the Umayyad Caliphate that lasted until 750.

Ali’s two sons by Fatima, were Hassan and Hussein. Hassan manifested no interest in politics; Hussein assumed the leadership of his father’s cause. Muslims who joined him, were known as “Shi’ite Ali,” i.e. Ali’s Party; later on, the term was abbreviated into “Shi’ite.” Muslims who had sided with the Umayyads, claimed they were true followers of the Path of the Prophet; in Arabic the term was “Sunnat al-Nabi.”  They are known as Sunnis, and have been the majority among Muslims during the last 1400 years.

Within three decades after the death of Muhammad, Islam had three contending parties: Sunnis, Shi’ites, and Khawarej! The latter became notorious for their crimes against other Muslims. Gradually, they faded from history; the term Khawarej, becoming a pejorative word attached to any dissident group within Islam!

For most of history, Sunnis had the power of the state on their side, while the Shi’ites remained as the Opposition Party, and went underground. When the founder of the Umayyad Dynasty died in 680 (61 A.H.), he was succeeded by his son Yazid. The people in Kufa, Iraq, did not swear allegiance to the new caliph, but sent letters to Hussein pledging allegiance to him and asking for help.

Unfortunately for Hussein, his small group of followers were no match to the large army of Yazid. The battle scene was at Karbala, where Hussein was killed with most of his family and supporters.

That tragedy is known as ‘Ashura, the date was 10 October, 680 A.D. corresponding to the tenth day of the month of Muharram, according to the Islamic lunar calendar. The term ‘Ashura is derived from the Arabic word for ten, ‘Ashrah.

I trust that this background information is helpful for the understanding of the essay that an Arab intellectual addressed to Shi’ites in September, 2016, “to stop hanging on to their age-long ‘Spirit of Victimhood.’”

The following is a summary of the Arabic text:

“Shi’ism has been based on two foundations: Suffering from Victimhood and Asking for Justice. With the passing of time, these basic principles became deeply embedded and accentuated. The tragedy morphed into a catastrophe accompanied by an unbearable weight. The resulting sadness turned into a melancholy transcending time and space. (Emphasis added)

“Wherever Shi’ites live has become Karbala, and all time is now ‘Ashura. The main purpose of the believer has become an act of bemoaning the historic Event, and transforming it into a contemporary Event that must be both actualized and condemned. (Emphasis added)

“A leading Shi’ite authority has declared that even in Paradise, they would be still mourning the death of Hussein!

“Furthermore, requesting Justice has changed into a powerful quest for vengeance. It has become the source of dreams, anticipating with alacrity, the execution of the demands for justice. This powerful motif is then passed on to the following generations.  (Emphasis added)

“The Shi’ite Eschatology has these unique features: at the return of the Twelfth Imam, he will be accompanied by Ali and his sons, as well as by their enemies; now resuscitated, in order to receive the just retribution they deserve!

“Thus, instead of seeking justice, Shi’ites dream of a grotesque vendetta. For example, Aisha, the youthful wife of Muhammad and an enemy of Ali’s Caliphate, would be publicly lashed; Abu Bakr and Umar, will be crucified and burned!

“Such Shi’ite tales that describe horrific methods of torture would surpass Dante’s description of the Inferno in his Divine Comedy!”  (Emphasis added)

“What a wonderful day that would be when Shi’ism would have transcended a legacy that has become integral to their acts of worship; and would adopt an ethic of forgiveness and reconciliation!”

The author of the essay lives in Iserlohn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Epilogue

My purpose in translating this essay was its relevance to the present situation in the Middle East, and throughout the World. This unresolved animosity and rivalry between Sunnis and Shi’ites has caused unprecedented problems to our contemporary world.

Personally, as a Levantine Christian, the unresolved “Sunni/Shi’ite divide” has had dire consequences for the lands of my youth. The Civil War in Syria, now in its fifth year, is a glaring example for that animosity.

In March, 2011, Sunnis in Syria rose up against decades of authoritarian rule by the Assad dynasty, members of a splinter Shi’ite sect. The regime would have crumbled without the assistance of Iran, and its Lebanese surrogates, the Shi’ite Hezbollah. Millions of Syrians, both Sunnis and Christians, have had to migrate to neighboring countries; with some attempting to reach European lands!

In neighboring Iraq, the chaos that followed the U.S. invasion, eventually morphed into an unending struggle between Sunni and Shi’ite groups. That gave occasion for the rise of Da’esh[iii] (ISIS). The official announcement for the re-birth of a Sunni Caliphate took place at the Grand Mosque of Mosul, when Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, declared himself as the Caliph, choosing the very name of the First Caliph who took over the leadership of the Islamic State in 632 A.D.

The rest is history. All Christians in Mosul numbering around 100,000, had to leave their homeland, to find shelter elsewhere. The Caliphate territory expanded into Syria, with the city of Raqqa becoming Da’esh’s capital.

Repercussions from the rise of Da’esh have impacted the world. Just think of those horrible massacres in 2016 that took place in Orlando and Nice, to realize that this movement has become ubiquitous with no end to its Global Jihad!

URL for the Arabic text:

http://www.alawan.org/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%B7%D9%88%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%91%D9%8E%D8%AA%D9%8A-%D9%8A%D8%AD%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%AC%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D9%91%D9%8E%D8%B4%D9%8A%D9%91%D9%8F%D8%B9.html


[i] Kairos is a Greek word that indicates a specific time for the accomplishment or the fulfillment of an important matter; it is different from “Chronos” (Xronos) another Greek word that refers to the time in a day. Kairos corresponds to the Arabic “Awan”

[ii] ‘Aisha was the young bride of Muhammad. She became a very powerful person in early Islam, and played an important role as a source for the compilation of Hadith. She got deeply involved in the early controversies among Muslims!

[iii] Da’esh is an Arabic acronym for “The Islamic State of Syria and Iraq.” It corresponds to the English acronym, ISIS

Posted in Articles

Fifteen Years After 9/11: Has the West Learned Its Lesson?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Fifteen Years After 9/11: Has the West Learned Its Lesson?

Bassam Michael Madany

10 September, 2016

Judging by the way Western political leaders look at Islam and its global challenge fifteen years after 9/11, hardly any changes can be observed. Neither President Barack Obama, nor Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, nor their colleagues in the UK, France, and Germany, speak and act as if they have learned the nature of Islam. As long as they regard it as a religion like the rest of the major World Religions, they prove their ignorance. Islam began as a religious faith, that was in 610 A.D. Beginning in 622 A.D., when Muhammad moved to Medina, Islam became a religion fused into a political system with global imperial ambitions. 

Nowadays, Muslims have perfected the art of propaganda. They portray a tolerant face that’s willing to work out a “peaceful coexistence” with Western civilization. It’s nothing else than the practice of their age-long “Taqiyya.” This was typified in 2008 at a meeting that took place in Yale Divinity School, New Haven, Connecticut.

The following is the text of an article I wrote at the time; it demonstrates that quite often, when a Christian-Muslim encounter takes place, it’s the Christian side that compromises, while the Muslim side manifests its usual intransigence.

On Sunday, 16 November, 2008, an article appeared in the online edition of the Wall Street Journal with this headline: “A Common What?  Yale hosts a Christian-Muslim ‘reconciliation’ conference – behind closed doors.” The author, Sarah Ruden, who is a visiting scholar at Yale Divinity School (YDS), expressed shock at the school's requirement that everybody on the campus behave properly during the Conference toward its Muslim guests by exhibiting deference to their sensitivities!

Before I comment on her article, some necessary background about the conference is needed.

Back on 13 September, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI made a reference to Islam in his address at Regensburg, Germany. A month later, 138 Muslim scholars addressed the Christian World in an open letter entitled, “A Common Word Between Us and You.” One Christian response to the “Common Word” overture came from scholars of the Yale Divinity School. They released a statement “warmly embracing the open letter ‘A Common Word between Us and You.’”  It was entitled,Loving God and Neighbor Together: A Christian Response to A Common Word between Us and You.” Here is a sample of the flowery language used in that response:

 “‘Let this common ground’—the dual common ground of love of God and of neighbour – ‘be the basis of all future interfaith dialogue between us,’ your courageous letter urges.  Indeed, in the generosity with which the letter is written you embody what you call for.  We most heartily agree.”

The authors of the Yale Divinity School Response asked others to sign on to its “Response” and gathered many signatures throughout the USA.  Some responses were surprising because they came from conservative Protestant institutions that typically are not willing to cooperate with organizations like YDS which they deem to be theologically liberal. But other Christian leaders saw through the YDS Response, regarding it as a weak and evasive document that served only the Islamic cause and did not reflect even basic Christian points of doctrinal difference with Islam. The YDS Response was seen as submitting needlessly to the Muslim scholar’s terms of engagement.  Even without expressly stating it, they brought to light the fact that those signing on to the Response acted just like dhimmis, meekly and obediently agreeing to the terms for dialogue set forth by the Islamic scholars.

The July, 2008 “Christian-Muslim ‘reconciliation’ conference” was the first formal meeting since the “Common Word” initiative was launched in October, 2006.  The WSJ article, offered a needed critique from one woman’s dissident standpoint of a Conference that was definitely less than stellar.  Once again, apparently, the fundamental issues that separate Christianity from Islam were not sufficiently on display.

What now follows is Sarah Ruden’s thoughts on the Conference, about which I will reflect in due course:

“I'm a visiting scholar at Yale Divinity School, not a student, and as a Quaker I can't be ordained, so I delete most of the institutional email notices unread. But I eagerly read the announcement that came in July of this year about the first conference to follow from the document called “A Common Word between Us and You.” That public expression by Muslim leaders of their solidarity with Christians had received a warm response from Western churches and universities, and now the conference was warmly entitled "Loving God and Neighbor in Word and Deed: Implications for Christians and Muslims."

“I recalled my excitement about the many luminaries' denial that there was any need for Christians and Muslims to be at each other's throats; I had been proud of the role played by Yale religious scholars. I now wanted to attend the conference and help to assure the guests of Christian goodwill, but also ask some of the hard questions that Quakers in South Africa, my second home, had been asking for decades, especially since the failures of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

“But as I learned to my anger, neither I nor any other ordinary members of the Divinity School community could attend any panels of "Loving God and Neighbor." All of them were closed—extremely unusual for this institution. The purpose of Dean Harold Attridge’s email was not invitation but warning: "I am writing today to let you know how these events might impact life on the [Yale Divinity School] Quad" (his emphasis).

He continued in normal font. "Firstly, some of you have been asking about any adjustments regarding dress or behavior that might make both you and our guests feel more comfortable during their visit here. I have attached for your information a document prepared by the Reconciliation Program at YCFC [Yale Center for Faith and Culture] to guide all staff directly associated with the upcoming workshop and conference in regard to dress and behavior."

“My anger grew as I read the attachment …

“Because we seek to have a ministry of reconciliation, it is our aim to defer to our guests' [author's emphasis] sense of propriety whenever possible, by behaving and dressing in a manner that reflects the honor and dignity we wish to bestow upon our guests. In this specific context, Muslims and Christians are working together to organize this conference, but Christians are the primary hosts, meaning that during this conference we deferentially choose to define "decency," "honor" and "modesty" by what our Muslim guests consider "decent," "honorable" and "modest" (rather than by our own culture's definitions), giving new cultural expression to the dignity and respectability with which we normally conduct ourselves.”

“[H]ere we were being asked to ‘defer’ in all ‘definitions’—not just in our actions, that is, but in our thoughts. … We were to do this merely to allow meetings between some of our associates and people who would not, for fear of defilement, enter the same building we entered in our usual clothes and with our usual manners.

“But it isn't simply that I was ticked off (though I was) at being asked not to wear sandals or speak at any length to any male or even smile at one or shake one's hand, in order to accommodate a gathering, I was excluded from, though it was held in my workplace. It’s that the Western leaders of what may be the major push for Christian-Muslim reconciliation appear to be so single-mindedly zealous, so prone to create impressions in conflict with reality, and so oblivious of what this could lead to, that a mere waste of time and money might be the best outcome.

“It is natural to suspect (especially because of the much greater secrecy) that both sides of the ‘Common Word’ project have motivations—if only careerism—beyond the desire to see Christians and Muslims kill each other less often. And it somehow makes sense that ordinary people world-wide are not gushing in letters to the editor and in coffee houses, ‘Thank goodness that they're talking to each other! Now everything will be OK.’

“The cost of a phony love-fest between Christian and Muslim leaders could be high. There is already a great imbalance in knowledge or respect, if not both. As part of our confirmation course, when I was a teenage Methodist in rural Ohio in the 1970s, we were taken not only to a synagogue but to a mosque and learned the basics of both faiths. But the Muslim cleric who lectured to us clearly disapproved of Christianity, and the minister misled him to keep the peace. We don't want to be called Mohammedans, the Muslim huffed; we don't worship Mohammed, who was a man. The minister jumped in to assure him that we were just the same—we didn't call ourselves Jesus-ans or anything like that. I nearly gasped at the lie, but I wasn't bold enough to challenge it.

“I'm bolder now. And truth in theology while theology approaches politics is worth a bold defense. Essential to Muslim extremism is the notion that the West is decadent and not attached to its professed values. Not to speak up for Christianity with complete honesty sends our Muslim interlocutors home with a time-bomb version of us: either that we have no objection to being like them, or that we are in essence like them already. America has made the mistake of assuming our values are universal, and we may be encouraging the same kind of assumption about ourselves.”

Perhaps Ms. Ruden was not the best person to reflect on this conference because her arguments are not as effective as they could be.  She exhibits some flippancy and over-personalizes the situation and appears to be a theological liberal.  She was perturbed about the demand that all the westerners show decency, modesty and honor in their attire at the Conference based on Islamic terms.  Not being allowed to wear “sandals” bothered her as well.  It should be noted, however, that conservative Christians also believe in dressing with decency, modesty and honor.  Of course, that would not mean being forced to wear a hijab in the presence of a Muslim, but there should be no undue concern about wanting to honor guests by dressing appropriately.  For instance, I would hope Ms. Ruden would agree that one wouldn’t go into the presence of the Queen of England in shorts and sandals.  What is worth noting about the issue though is that the YDS seems quite willing to overlook such virtues in the Christian theological tradition by making no similar code for its own scholars in their normal daily attire on the campus.  Yet it is willing to impose such a code upon its scholars if they wish to attend the Conference because they must show deference to Muslims.  So they are not really as interested in decency, modesty and honor as they are in being politically correct and deferential to Islam. 

A more serious flaw, however, was the YDS demand that the American women at the Conference had to be careful how they interacted with male Muslims.  Doesn’t this attempt by the YDS to placate Muslim malehood indicate an almost amusing example of Dhimmitude in action?  What the YDS would never for a moment dare to implement at its own school it has allowed Muslim scholars to achieve.  To placate the Muslim Men’s Islamic faith, the YDS allowed them to show their utter disrespect for Western women, particularly Americans, by making sure Muslims weren’t offended by having to interact with free, Western women at the Conference by any supposed misstep any such women might make in interrelating with them.  What an egregious view of women these Islamic scholars hold!  Why were they allowed to practice their peculiar disrespect toward women while the hosts set aside their own codes of honor toward women that apply in all other instances on the Yale campus?  The hosts truly make themselves look ridiculous, showing an almost criminal disregard for and disobedience of all the rules of decency, dignity and honor toward women which they so willingly comply with at all other times.   

Of even more significant concern, however, is the attitude the Yale Divinity School displays when dialoguing with representatives of Islamic organizations.  They almost totally gloss over the real obstacles standing in the way of genuine dialogue.  There are numerous theological differences that are simply incapable of being softened or toned down to comport with Islamic demands.  But the YDS is representative of a type of Christianity that does not necessarily hold to the historic Christian faith and is open to the idea that all religions are equally valid.  Most Christians would not agree with the YDS interpretation of Christianity.  Therefore, they are not considered the best types of people to even be dialoguing with Muslims.

In the “Common Word initiative” Muslims were insistent on attempting to prove that there were subjects that are supposedly “common” to both faiths.  This is a theory needing much elaboration and explanation before one can note “common” themes in both religions.  Certainly, some simple things are similar but when explaining the overall beliefs of Christianity, most serious issues are definitely not “common”.  This Conference gave Muslims another opportunity to press their claims in this regard and perhaps even go further in attempting to ever more subtly put the YDS types of liberal Christians into more compromising positions.  And the Christian hosts of the Conference showed their willingness to bow down to the demands of their Muslim guests in creating a campus milieu at Yale University that would abide by Islamic rules.  This attitude is reminiscent of others throughout history that were subjected to and complied with the Qur’anic requirement that dhimmis must not only pay the Jizya tax, but should do so with utter humility and self-abnegation!

I wonder! Are these Western scholars, who regard themselves as representatives of Christianity, really aware of the authoritative texts of Islam that require submission of all non-Muslims to Allah’s religion? And what about their knowledge of the history of the last 1400 years when the Islamic Futuhat brought into the orbit of Daru’l Islam, large areas of the world from Indonesia to Morocco? And if the American hosts at YDS don’t yet feel the pressure of the Muslim population in the USA, would a visit to Paris, Marseilles, Amsterdam, Brussels, London, and Berlin open their eyes as they observe how the growing Muslim populations are making ever more strident demands that, if heeded, would alter forever the democratic nature of those societies?  

I write these words mindful of two recent Arabic articles, one from the Alawan, and the other from the Elaph sites telling the unbelievable accounts of ethnic-religious cleansing that is going on in Mosul, Iraq, against Christian communities.  Christians are being driven from their homes and forced to flee for their lives by organized Islamist gangs.

In the rarified atmosphere of Yale Divinity School, such present-day tragedies are ignored because they don’t fit the alternative reality the YDS is attempting to instill on those gullible enough to accept them. Christians are forever reminded of and must apologize for the Crusades but the long, bloody history of Islam’s attempt at world domination is downplayed, if not totally ignored.

The scholars of YDS, while claiming that they are in the forefront of a movement that will bring reconciliation between Christians and Muslims, close their eyes to the fact that, throughout history, aggression has more often come from the Islamic side. Honesty must always surround discussions between opposing parties. Ignoring the lessons of history, and covering over the radical differences between Christianity and Islam, does not advance the cause of peace. Rather it increases the sufferings of Christians who live within Daru’l Islam.

Let us hope there will be more people like Sarah Ruden willing to critique the inroads of political correctness on divinity school campuses and elsewhere in America.  We need to be cognizant of any future conversations between those who launched the “Common Word” initiative and their gullible friends among the YDS faculty and elsewhere.

Epilogue

This article was written in November, 2008. It referred to the “blindness” of some religious leaders in America. While it did not refer to politicians and educators, it reflected the general cultural ignorance of Islam. During the last eight years, the destructive power of radical Islam has continued to grow on both sides of the Atlantic. Still no responsible politician has shown courage to break the embargo on the criticism of Islam, forced upon us by Political Correctness. It’s beyond belief! How blind can people be as they ignore the equally destructive side Islam as the carnage goes on unabated in Syria since mid-March, 2011! It’s Sunnis and Shi’ites who have been battling each other, with neither side achieving victory. I’m reminded of the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s, whose wounds are still with us today!


Further reading

A Common Word Between Us and You — Evaluating the Muslim Open Letter

Posted in Articles

Moroccan Christians Declare Publicly their Faith

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

June 30, 2016

With all the turmoil that is constantly erupting in the Arab world, it was refreshing to see a different news story which appeared recently in the online Arabic daily Elaph:

Dateline 14 June, 2016, Rabat, Morocco: “Moroccan Christians Declare Publically their Faith.”

My translation of this happy report follows, after which I will make some brief comments about this positive moment in time.

“Moroccan Christians are speaking publicly for the first time about their religious beliefs, having done so on Facebook and on the Internet. A TV channel in Rabat telecasts a special program titled, “Moroccan & Christian.” It consists of brief testimonies by young Moroccan men and women who have converted to Christianity. They testify about their new-found faith, and respond to some false accusations levelled against Christianity. This television program presents Moroccans speaking in colloquial Arabic and saying, “My name is ‘Atiqa, my name is Youssef, my name is Zubeir, my name is Iman, my name is Zainab;” then each one boldly ads, Ana Massihi[i] wa Maghrebi” (I’m a Christian and a Moroccan.)

“A young Moroccan man “Brother Rachid” then appears on the screen following these “confessions.” He had embraced the Christian faith for some time, and is well-known as a broadcaster on a satellite TV station, “Al-Hayat” (Life.) He hosts a weekly show, “Sou’al Jaree’” (A Daring Question), where he discusses current and historical Islamic themes in the light of his Christian faith.

“According to the Moroccan Criminal Justice Law, anyone who uses ways and means of enticing Muslims to question their faith, or embrace another religion by promising them free education or medical assistance, faces a prison sentence from six months to three years. In 2015, Mustapha al-Ramid, minister of Justice claimed that Moroccan law does not punish anyone who changes his religion; adding that only those who use enticements for converting Moroccans, would be liable to punishment. He added that Moroccan criminal law does not punish those who embrace Christianity or Ilhad (Atheism). To support his claim, he referred to the Qur’anic Surah 18 al-Kahf (the Cave) Ayah 29من شاء فليؤمن ومن شاء فليكفر “And say, ‘The truth is from your Lord, so whoever wills – let him believe; and whoever wills – let him disbelieve.’”

This is not the first time that Elaph has reported on the spread of the Christian faith in Morocco and neighboring Algeria. I wrote on this phenomenon a few years ago.[ii] And it is truly heartwarming to notice the progress that has taken place in Morocco, such that converts now feel they can openly declare their allegiance to Jesus Christ. In fact, the subject received special mention in the February, 2016, issue of the New English Review[iii]

To the best of my knowledge, such news seldom receives attention in the Western print and online media.  The focus is usually on the latest terrorist attacks on Islamic and Western targets. It is thanks to Elaph that a story such as this is covered.  It raises awareness of the Moroccan converts and their bold witness and public confession of their new-found faith.!

The reference to Brother Rachid’s telecasts on Al-Hayat Satellite TV station caught my attention. I was able to watch several of his weekly programs which are archived on YouTube.

The usual format begins with words of welcome to the viewers, and then he announces the topic of the day under the general and thought-provoking rubric of “Sou’al Jaree’” (A Daring Question). Rachid’s telecasts are done in semi-Classical or journalistic Arabic; a few are in English. Viewers may email questions and comments, or contact the show through telephone calls. To give you an idea of the format and contents of Brother Rachid’s work, here are samples.

Brother Rachid addresses President Obama in English, about the true nature of ISIS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iZ6u-vqUxc

In this show, Brother Rachid interviews Dr. Daniel Pipes on the general theme of "Islam in the West" on 25 March, 2015. This show is in Arabic and in English.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdLoLz_Pd34

To learn about Brother Rachid’s conversion, you can listen to an interview that IŞIK ABLA (a Turkish Muslim convert to Christianity) conducted with him on 6 March, 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEEv6NitNgY

Watching Rachid’s weekly shows is informative if only because one becomes aware of new thinking among many in the Muslim world. The Internet has been an effective means to get this moderating and more tolerating mindset into wider view. Old barriers to the exchange of ideas and worldviews have broken down. It’s possible nowadays to engage in open discussions with Muslims about their faith, its history, and the mounting problems many Muslims have in coping with modernity.  What’s new is that many of the intellectuals who are grappling with these challenges are Muslims, or Ex-Muslims. They speak from within the Islamic culture after becoming fully acquainted with Western civilization. They aren’t liable to be regarded as prejudiced imperialistic Orientalists like many in the past were.  Al-Hayat TV station is giving these “native critics” the opportunity to publish their much-needed analyses to cure Islam from its over-fascination with its history, and with the Utopian dream of resurrecting the institution of the Caliphate!

I don’t expect that great changes are about to take place in the vast Islamic world. However, we may not discount the impact of the new media on the minds of the young generation who are no longer living within the old confines of Daru’l Islam. The Elaph article precipitated a good deal of commenting from the readers. While most were very critical of the boldness of the young Moroccan Christians and flung out charges of apostasy, yet some were sympathetic. Listening to the live comments on Brother Rachid’s program, I was impressed by the number of positive remarks, as well as by the vast audience that watches this weekly program. In a certain sense, we’re witnessing today an acceleration in the march of history, an acceleration due to technological advances that abolishes borders and barriers! Perhaps we may entertain a better hope for the future!

The URL for the Arabic text of the Elaph report follows
http://elaph.com/Web/News/2016/6/1093130.html#sthash.wvnp62kq.dpuf


[i] Massihi is the Arabic equivalent of “Christian;” it’s the term used by Arabic-speaking Christians, and is derived from the Arabic translation of the Bible. However, the Qur’an refers to Christians by the pejorative term of Nasarah (derived from Nazareth). Muslims who convert to Christianity use “Massihi” to show their solidarity with Eastern Christians!

[ii] Learning from the “New” Maghrebi Christians   http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/learning_new_maghrebi_christians.cfm                                                                            

Algerians Alienated from Islam Are Turning to Christ        http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/algeriansalienatedfromisl.cfm        

Posted in Articles

Toward a Proper Understanding of Islam

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

The recent attack in Paris by Islamic jihadists followed by one perpetrated by a Muslim couple in San Bernardino, California, have brought the subject of Islam into the headlines once again. Shortly after the California murders one of the Republican presidential candidates suggested that Muslim immigration to the United States should be restricted or halted, at least for a time.   There was a flurry of denunciations from all sides of the political scene.

Throughout the history of immigration to the United States, various pieces of legislation have been passed by Congress that limited immigration.  Restriction was not on the basis of religion, but on the basis of national origin.  But in practical terms it was harder for certain religious groups to immigrate to America.

For example, in May 1921, the First Quota Act became law allowed immigration based on

 “3 percent of the number of foreign-born of such nationalities residing here when the 1910 census was taken... This law accomplished two things. (1) It reduced the total number of immigrants coming to this country... (2) It favored and stimulated the immigration of Protestant northwestern Europeans and excluded most of the Catholic southern and eastern Europeans."

Three years later on May 26, 1924, the Johnson-Reed Immigration Act Reduced Quotas for all nationalities.

The most drastic change in immigration law took place in 1965 and resulted in the gradual fading away of the United States being known as a “White Anglo-Saxon Protestant” (WASP) country. The law is known as the “Hart-Celler Immigration and Nationality Act” which “Abolished Immigration Criteria Based on Nation of Origin and Race.” A pertinent part of the Act is as follows:


"In 1965, the United States passed the landmark Hart-Celler [Immigration and Nationality] Act abolishing nation-of-origin restrictions. Effective June 30, 1968, immigration and naturalization exclusion on the basis of race, sex, or nationality was prohibited. Under the Hart-Celler Act, new immigration criteria was based on kinship ties, refugee status, and 'needed skills.' Between 1820 and 1960, 34.5 million Europeans immigrated to the U.S., while only one million Asians—mostly Chinese and Japanese—immigrated. An unintended, unanticipated, and highly evident effect of Hart-Celler was the burgeoning of Asian immigration. Between 1870-1965, a total of 16,013 Indians immigrated to the United States. In the first decade following the passage of the 1965 Hart-Celler Act, 96,735 Indians immigrated. For the most part, these new Indian immigrants entered under the needed skills preference of the 1965 law."[i]

To any casual observer the aim of the 1965 Act seems to have been a desire by egalitarian ruling elites to correct an imbalance in immigration policy that prior to 1965 favored northern European nations.  One could ask whether the government bureaucrats who administer immigration programs have gone overboard in an opposite direction, now favoring Middle Eastern regions.  Whatever one believes about that, there is no doubt that a growing number of these newer immigrants practice the Islamic faith which its adherents claim supersedes all other faiths and should be submitted to by all people on earth.  “Islam” after all means submission.  Such believers in general have a difficult time assimilating into secular cultures, like Western Europe and America, which separate church and state.  

Have any prominent political figures, of any party carefully considered what democratic societies need to understand about Islam and those that embrace it?  And what about those who indoctrinate students in our institutions of higher education that produce our future leaders?  The inroads that Muslim sympathizers have made in academia are stunning.  Scholars bend over backwards to promote and defend all things Islamic helped along by huge endowments from Muslim countries like Saudia Arabia to their institutions.  The information is readily available to all who would seek it.

Politicians can perhaps be forgiven for not having seriously studied Islam’s sacred texts: Qur’an, Hadith, and Sirat Muhammad (Life of the Prophet), or the history of the last 1400 years of world history. Americans tolerate all faiths, or none, and can make distinctions between private faith, or lack thereof, and living out their beliefs in a free society that has allowed for such freedoms in its very Constitution.  Islam does not fit very easily, if at all, into this precious freedom.  Proof of this is seen all over the world wherever Islamic believers interact with others.  Terror, slaughter and general mayhem are occurring wherever Islamists control regions and countries. Too often when Islam is being discussed by Western political leaders and some in the media, the general conclusion is usually that Islam is merely a religious faith like any other.   It is not, plain and simple.  Islam is inseparable from a believer’s total persona.  While that in itself is not a negative (Christians too in general believe their faith takes precedence over everything,) it becomes so when its practice entails forcing everyone else to submit to it or suffer the consequences.  The Christian faith teaches conversion by persuasion not force, as does Islam    

Recently, Dr. Mark Durie, an authority on Islam, referred to this topic in an article on his blog entitled “Love is not enough.”[ii] He was responding to an Australian media commentator, Waleed Aly, whose video he linked to (in footnote below) who claimed ISIS wanted to instill fear and instigate hatred between Muslims and non-Muslims.  He called for responding to such an ideology in a loving way. Durie has another perspective on that and ended his article with these cautionary words:

“Truth without love can cause endless heartache.  This is true. But love without truth can cause a naive blindness which meekly tolerates abuse and leads to suicidal submission. This is likely to be a very long war.  Relationships will be strained.  And yes, we will all need a lot of compassion.  But without truth to strengthen it, love alone will not save us.” 

Civil wars in the Middle East and Africa and terrorist activities by Muslims against those they deem “the infidel” all over the world where they have power, money and weapons, and now more often in Western countries, stem from the particular view peculiar to Islam that there is no separation of “Church and State”, “Religion and Governance”. Muslim-majority countries stipulate in their constitutions that the sovereign, whether king or president, must be a Muslim.

Books have been written on this subject, but Western leaders for the most part pay no heed to what they are saying.  One historian who did is Efraim Karsh in his book “Islamic Imperialism: A History” published by Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2006

Writing in his Introduction, Professor Karsh contrasts Christianity with Islam,

 “The worlds of Christianity and Islam, however, have developed differently in one fundamental respect. The Christian faith won over an existing empire in an extremely slow and painful process and its universalism was originally conceived in spiritual terms that made a clear distinction between God and Caesar. By the time it was embraced by the Byzantine emperors as a tool for buttressing their imperial claims, three centuries after its foundation, Christianity had in place a countervailing ecclesiastical institution with an abiding authority over the wills and actions of all believers. The birth of Islam, by contrast, was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Muhammad, who derived his authority directly from Allah and acted at one and the same time as head of the state and head of the church. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religious aura and to channel Islam’s energies into ‘its instruments of aggressive expansion, there [being] no internal organism of equal force to counterbalance it.’” P. 5

In his Epilogue, Professor Karsh, noted:

“Political cooperation, however, has not meant accepting Western doctrines or values, as the events of September, 11, 2001, amply demonstrate. Contrary to widespread assumptions, these attacks, and for that matter Arab and Muslim anti-Americanism, have little to do with US international behavior or its Middle Eastern policy. America’s position as the pre-eminent world power blocks Arab and Islamic imperialist aspirations. As such, it is a natural target for aggression. Osama bin Laden and other Islamists’s war is not against America per se, but is rather the most recent manifestation of the millenarian jihad for a universal Islamic empire (or umma.) This is a vision by no means confined to an extremist fringe of Islam, as illustrated by the overwhelming support for the 9/11 attack throughout the Arab and Islamic worlds.”  P. 228

Before the 1950s, Muslims lived in exclusively Islamic countries. As of the middle of the 20th century, millions of Muslims have settled in Western Europe and North America. This is a completely new phenomenon. By now, Muslims have achieved a high degree of visibility in their adopted Western contexts, and have begun to demand rights for themselves that their native lands would never allow to Westerners.  A look at Saudi Arabia’s persecution of Christians is one obvious example.  Western ruling authorities more often than not bow to the demands of the Muslims in their societies at the same time they are treating their own citizens with disdain, if not worse.  Witness “hate speech” accusations, and law suits against Christians wearing crosses, intimidation when political correct speech codes are breached.  And even starting to look favorably upon Sharia law possibly being enforced in Muslim communities. 

To write and speak honestly about the topic of Islam isn’t easy. It goes against the spirit of multiculturalism and pluralism that pervade our modern Western civilization. We believe in freedom of religion, and the U.S. Constitution guarantees this freedom to citizens and residents alike. This is a cornerstone of our way of life. But what if a specific religion, in this case Islam, asserts that faith and politics are inseparable? Will there be eventual conflict between the true believers in Sharia with our Constitution? This reality needs to be discussed openly, without fear of being called Islamophobic?[iii]

The rise in 2014 of the Islamic Caliphate Movement, Da’esh (known also as ISIS/ISIL) has not improved Western leaders’ understanding of the sources of its ideology, namely the sacred texts of Islam. In fact, the present-day resumption of an active Jihad is far more dangerous than the 70 year-attempt of the USSR to conquer the world for Marxism. To ignore this subject is tantamount to burying our heads in the sand, and to invite more terror attacks in the future. During the Cold War, President Raegan didn’t hesitate to call the Soviet Union “an Evil Empire.” Why does our President find it so difficult to even use the term “Islamic terror”? As former New York City mayor, Rudolph W. Giuliani wrote in the Wall Street Journal, on 10 December, 2015, “Call Islamic Terrorism by Its Name: Why ignoring the religious beliefs behind the threat is foolish—and dangerous.”

http://www.wsj.com/articles/call-islamic-terrorism-by-its-name-1449792556


[i] http://immigration.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000023

© 2015 ProCon.org, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit | 233 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 200, Santa Monica, CA 90401 | Tel: 310-451-9596

[ii] Friday, November 20, 2015

Love alone is not enough”

http://blog.markdurie.com/2015/11/love-alone-is-not-enough.html?utm_
source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&
utm_campaign=Feed%3A+MarkduriecomBlog+%28markdurie.com+blog%29

Mark Durie is the pastor of an Anglican church, a Shillman-Ginsburg Writing Fellow at the Middle East Forum, and Founder of the Institute for Spiritual Awareness.

Posted in Articles

What if Islam Is More Than a Religion?

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

President Obama at the G20 meeting in Antalya, Turkey, affirmed that there won’t be a religious test for Syrian refugees coming to the USA. On Wednesday, 18 November, he reiterated his stand on the issue, in Manilla, the Philippines. This was in response to some Republicans who wanted only Christian refugees to be admitted. While no one should minimize the plight of all Syrian refugees, it is important to realize that no matter where Muslims settle, they bring with them a political “baggage” that Christian refugees don’t carry. As the online Spiegel reported on Tuesday, 17 November, “It has now been confirmed that one of the Paris suicide bombers reached Europe disguised as a refugee.”

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/paris-attacks-raise-questions-on-dangers-posed-by-refugees-a-1063026.html#ref=nl-international

American political leaders shouldn’t assume that Islam is just a religion like the other major religions such as Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, and Shinto. Actually, Islam has always been a synthesis of religion and politics in one indivisible entity. History bears this out for all with eyes to see. More importantly, the synthesis is supported by the authoritative texts of Islam: the Qur’an and the Hadith.

Muhammad believed that in A.D.  610, Allah called him to be a prophet to all mankind. He soon began preaching the Oneness of Allah, and the vanity of idol worship. Revelations “descended” upon him while he lived in Mecca. However, opposition arose from the leaders of that city forcing him to move to Medina in the year 622. This year is known as Anno Hejira, i.e. the Year of the Migration. Muhammad in Medina steadily fostered a distinctively political and juridical course of action. Opposition to him was then seen to be opposition to Allah. Some of the Surahs (Chapters) of the Qur’an sanctioned the use of force in opposing the enemies of the Prophet. And force was used so that by 630, Muhammad had vanquished his enemies, and returned in triumph to Mecca. Thus, before his death in 632, Muhammad had become both a Prophet and Political Leader of the New Community of Believers, known as the Umma.

The history of Islam proves the thesis that Islam is different from all other faiths. Here are the facts:

  1. Several Arab tribes gave their allegiance to Muhammad while he lived, but went back on Islam after he died. The first Caliph, Abu Bakr, waged war against them and forced them back into Islam. In Islamic history, they are known as “Huroob al-Radda,” i.e., the wars against Apostasy.
  2. The expansion of Islam took place by military force. Between 632 and 732, Muslim armies successfully overran the Persian Empire, and took Syria, Egypt, and North Africa from the Byzantine Empire. They were prevented from making even further expansion into Europe at the Battle of Tours/Poitiers that was fought on October 10, 732, between forces under the Frankish leader Charles Martel and a massive invading Islamic army led by Emir Abdul Rahman Al-Ghafiqi. During the battle, the Franks defeated the Islamic army and Emir Abdul Rahman was killed. This battle stopped the northward advance of Islam from the Iberian Peninsula.
  3. It must be noted that all the early and very deadly disputes among Muslims were of a political, and not of a religious nature:
    1. Caliphs Umar and Uthman were assassinated by disgruntled Muslims.
    2. Third Caliph Ali (cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad) had to face an insurrection by the Governor of Damascus, and was murdered by one of his own followers for having accepted arbitration with his opponent.
    3. A new dynastic Caliphate, the Umayyad, came into existence in 661, and made Damascus the capital of the expanding Islamic Empire. Enemies of this Umayyad dynasty brought it to an end, in a blood bath in 750.
    4. The Umayyads were followed by the Abbasid dynasty which moved the capital of the Islamic empire to Baghdad. It was mainly during the Abbasid’s relatively long history that Muslims engaged for a time in discussing theological and juridical subjects.
  4. The Turks took on the mantle of spreading Islam after the fall of Baghdad in the 13th century. They succeeded in expanding the Islamic Empire at the expense of the remnants of the Byzantine Empire. In 1453, the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople, and renamed it Istanbul. In 1529, they laid their first siege of Vienna. Then, in 1683 a huge Turkish army under Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa surrounded Vienna. The Ottomans failed for the second time to conquer Vienna, as John III, king of Poland, came to the help of the Austrians. A decade later, the Treaty of Karlowitz cost Turkey Hungary and other territories.
  5. The fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1918, and the abolishing of the Caliphate in 1924, caused a great crisis in Islamic history. But it did not change the basic beliefs of Islam. Islam remains a religious-political ideology which animates the radicals in the Arab-Muslim world, and gives legitimacy to the Taliban in Afghanistan, and al-Qaeda as well as Da’esh, known also as ISIS/ISIL.
  6. One little-known by-product of Islamic Jihadism was the struggle between the Algerian government and the radical Islamist group, FIS (Front Islamique de Salut) Islamic Salvation Front. During the 1990s, around 200,000 Algerian civilians were murdered by members of FIS.

These facts of history should make it clear what the true nature of Islam is. Actually, it should be seen as a thoroughly ideological synthesis of religion & politics in one indivisible entity.

The “War on Terror” as declared by President Bush in the aftermath of 11 September, 2001, evaded the true nature of the war. “Terror” is an abstract concept; one cannot fight abstractions. Muhammad Atta & his colleagues attacked vital centers and symbols of America by super-violent means due to their political-religious beliefs. It is unfortunate that political correctness has overtaken political discourse in the United States and the West in general, such that the authorities refuse to see the true identity of the enemy: Islamic Jihadism, which stems from the teachings of the Islamic faith. There is no logical or legitimate reason to keep using the meaningless term, “The War against Terror.” It is as a struggle against Islamist Jihadism! And this particular vision of Islam which is espoused by violent extremists needs to be understood. Is it reformable one might ask? There is reason for some hope. Arabic-language websites, operated by reform-minded intellectuals, denounce Islamism and Islamists as well. They are not afraid to propose far-reaching proposals on how to view certain passages from the Qur’an, particularly those known as the Sword Verses, by suggesting they should no longer be considered normative!

I would like to end by quoting from two articles by a reformist/liberal Arab Muslim intellectual as a sample of a heroic attempt to bring about a genuine reform in the Arab-Muslim mind. I salute him and his colleagues throughout the Arab world who are untiringly laboring in the cause of peace and harmony among the nations of the world.

The Arab States & Irhab [Terrorism]

Dr. Abdelkhaleq Hassan

Tuesday, 13 June, 2006

It is evident that Irhab didn’t arise from vacuum; rather it’s a result of destructive and inciting ideas clothed with religious attire and supported by reference to sacred texts. After they had germinated in the Irhabis’ minds, it changed them into explosives, having been convinced they are engaged in their actions in the Pathway of Allah; their fate would be either victory or martyrdom!  These thoughts are not of recent origin but a byproduct of brainwashed minds, a process that’s has been going on for decades, resulting in their violent and destructive acts during the last two decades.

Is Islam a Tolerant Religion?

Dr. Abdelkhaleq Hassan

Sunday, 18 June, 2006

Nowadays, this question is being repeated quite often: Is Islam a Tolerant Religion? Am I allowed to pose this question, or would many Muslims rise up against me hurling their curses and charging me with kufr, Ilhad, heresy? In fact, my previous article of last Tuesday, The Aab States & Irhab elicited a sharp rebuke from an irate reader who wrote addressing me, “O you enemy of the Creator!” [The author’s first name, Abdelkhaleq is composed of two Arabic words: Abd (Slave) and Khaleq (Creator)]

Did that indicate a tolerant spirit when dealing with a fellow-Muslim who holds a different opinion? In fact, that response was not simply one man’s negative thought; rather it’s indicative of the general attitude of Muslims. Islamic history has been bloody specifically on account of an intolerant attitude vis-à-vis anyone holding a divergent point of view! Once all theistic religions had been intolerant, it’s enough to mention the Inquisition.  At present, aren’t we allowed just to ask this question, especially as we address it to the Islamists?

http://www.elaph.com/ElaphWeb/ElaphWriter/2006/6/155489.htm

Posted in Articles

“Was Huntington Wrong in his ‘Clash of Civilizations?’”

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

“Was Huntington Wrong in his ‘Clash of Civilizations?’”

هل أخطا هانتينجتون في صراع الحضارات؟

Bassam Michael Madany

Friday, the 13th of November, 2015 has been called, the 9/11 of France. As I write these words five days later, the news from France are still dominated by the continued search for the accomplices of the Irhabis who perpetrated their infamous acts in Paris.

In analyzing the impact of the attacks on France and the rest of Europe, some Western world leaders continue to ignore the relation between Islamist Irhab and the basic authoritative texts of Islam. What’s enlightening though is that some Arab intellectuals who are working hard on the modernization of Islam, don’t hesitate to side with the late Samuel Huntington’s views on the subject. At this critical moment in history, I now publish my comments on an Arabic essay that appeared on the online daily Elaph: “Was Huntington Wrong in his ‘Clash of Civilizations?’”   

Things are moving fast in the Middle East. What had begun in 2011 as an “Arab Spring” has turned into a nightmare four years later. Internal civil wars are going on in Syria and Iraq; the Palestinian-Israeli front is getting extremely dangerous with unending Israel air attacks in response to almost continuous rocket attacks from Gaza aimed deep into Israel. Add to that mix we now face a new and extremely dangerous phase of Jihad. This is how it was reported in the weekend edition of The Wall Street Journal, on 12 July, 2014. I quote from the first paragraph of this valuable essay, “The New Jihad”:

“Last week, a self-described heir to the Prophet Muhammad declared himself the supreme leader of a new Islamic state stretching from eastern Syria to northern Iraq. How did Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the nom de guerre of a mediocre Iraqi religious scholar in his mid-40s, outmaneuver al Qaeda as the new vanguard of jihadist ideology? How did he and his followers—armed with Kalashnikovs, smart phones and their ominous black banner—so suddenly take over the campaign to rid the Muslim world of Western and secular influence?”

http://online.wsj.com/articles/why-the-new-jihadists-in-iraq-and-syria-see-al-qaeda-as-too-passive-1405096590

Many people in the West were completely taken by surprise at the rise of this new Jihadist army that plans to be more aggressive and violent than al-Qaeda.  Yet we have been warned by experts in the history of Islam about its historic hostility to all other civilizations.   In fact, two decades ago Foreign Affairs journal published “The Clash of Civilizations” by Samuel Huntington. It occasioned a great deal of discussion; some agreeing with his thesis, while others strongly disagreeing with it. 

 “Huntington pointed specifically to Muslims who would be clashing with the West, unlike the followers of other civilizations such as Confucianism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. His proof was that Muslims are basically antagonistic to the concept of nationalism. Their traditions are antithetical to the very basis of Western democratic ideals, such as freedom to choose unbelief, or change one’s religion, the separation of religion from politics that would lead to the protection of minorities from the tyranny of the majority.[i]

“Huntington’s article caused a great deal of controversy, especially after his thesis was expanded into a book, where the question mark was eliminated from its title. The book was considered as extremely polemical work filled with a spirit of hatred, and calling for religious wars. The author was charged with using two different standards of measurement, by singling out Muslims as the only enemies of freedom and of democratic values. But now, in the light of the various Intifadas taking place in the Arab world, it is time to ‘re-examine Huntington’s Clashes.’

“For example, the New York Times published on 3 March 2011 ‘Huntington’s Clash Revisited’ by Op-Ed Columnist, David Brooks, who wrote: ‘Huntington argued that people in Arab lands are intrinsically not nationalistic. He argued that they do not hunger for pluralism and democracy in the way these things are understood in the West.’   http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/04/opinion/04brooks.html?_r=1&

The article in Elaph continued:

“In fact, David Brook’s critique was not justified. After all, it was not Huntington who invented the primacy of the Islamic Umma over the individual nation. During the last few decades, it has been the source of animosity between Arab nationalists and Islamists, with the latter emphasizing the primacy of the Umma. When the Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood declared that he would prefer Egypt to be governed by a Muslim from any other country, rather than by a non-Muslim Egyptian, he was not expressing a merely personal opinion, but that of the majority of Egyptians. The same attitude explains the antagonism toward personal freedom, and democracy as practised by the Kuffar (Infidels). Recently, a poll taken in Egypt showed that 41% of the population did not believe that democracy was the best system of government; and 84% were in favor of killing a Murtad (apostate).

“And when Brooks writes, ‘But it seems clear that many people in Arab nations do share a universal hunger for liberty,’ he was not contradicting Huntington, since the latter had not denied the existence of some Muslims who do yearn for freedom; Huntington was referring to the majority. Now who can make the claim that the majority of those who took part in the demonstrations at Tahrir Square actually believed in freedom and democracy, in the universally accepted meaning of these terms?  At the time, the disciples of Sheikh al-Qaradawi silenced a young man, Wael Ghanem, who wanted to make a speech at the square, since he did not share their views .The followers of Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun (Muslim Brotherhood) do not believe in a democracy that might bring a woman or a Christian to the position of head of state. Neither would they accept any legislation passed by parliament, unless it had first been approved by ‘Majles al-Fuqaha’ (Assembly of Sharia Experts). They posted all this about their program on the Internet. Therefore, was Huntington wrong, or was he right?”

Analysis

The Arab intellectual who posted “Was Huntington Wrong in his ‘Clash of Civilizations?’” did not agree with David Brooks’ analysis and critique that “Huntington argued that people in Arab lands are intrinsically not nationalistic .... They do not hunger for pluralism and democracy in the way these things are understood in the West.”

The New York Times’ op-ed did not address the fact that several Arabic-language articles that appeared in March and early April, 2011, pointed to those ‘constants’ that are still afflicting the Arab-Muslim world, namely the fact that Islam’s worldview still dominates the outlook of the vast majorities of the common people, and progress in the cause of personal freedom, and all that stems from it, has not yet been achieved.

Comments

It is very encouraging that Arab intellectuals are interacting with the late Professor Samuel Huntington’s “Clash of Civilizations” thesis especially that it appeared on the daily online Elaph, the most widely-read Internet medium in the Arab world. The author was fully aware of the great needs of the Arab world, namely to face realistically the challenges of our globalized world. Responding to a New York Times opinion writer was refreshing in its candor and insight. After all, the author possesses first-hand knowledge and experience of Arab culture!

For an Arab writer to take the defense of Huntington’s thesis shows an act of courage and maturity; he acknowledged Islam’s basic animosity toward all other civilizations. While not minimizing the sudden changes in the political climate emerging in Tunisia and Egypt, since the beginning of 2011, he reminded Mr. Brooks that fundamentally, not much has changed in the Muslim mind.

The most heartening and positive part of the article “Was Huntington Wrong in his ‘Clash of Civilizations?’” was the author’s statement “In fact, it would be far more important and useful if Arabs would reconsider and take to heart those points where Huntington was absolutely right in his diagnosis of their ills. I refer to those factors that caused Arabs to be quite different from all other civilizations, thus delaying for decades their uprisings in the cause of freedom and democracy. After all, the animosity of Islam toward all other worldviews has been a major stumbling-block in keeping Muslims from catching up with the rest of the world.”

In closing, I would suggest that Mr. Brooks would do better to re-visit his own thoughts about Samuel Huntington’s “Clash of Civilizations,” and reflect seriously on what certain Arab intellectuals think about the Harvard professor’s diagnosis of Islam’s problems with the rest of mankind. A final suggestion: he might place on his reading list, Professor Lewis’ latest book, “The End of Modern History in the Middle East” (HOOVER INSTITUTE PRESS PUBLICATION), published in May, 2011. [ii]


[i] The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order by Samuel P. Huntington

Published in 1996, Simon & Schuster, New York, NY 10020

Samuel Huntington’s emphasis on the unique nature of Islamic civilization, being at its core imperialistic; not only in its fusion of religion and politics, but in its expansionist motif or impulse, that of achieving world dominance, is explained in Chapter 10: 

From Transition Wars to Fault Line Wars

In all these places, [reference is to Middle East and Africa] the relations between Muslims and peoples of other civilizations --- Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Hindu, Chinese, Buddhist, Jewish --- have been generally antagonistic; most of these relations have been violent at some point in the past; many have been violent in the 1990s. Wherever one looks at the perimeter of Islam, Muslims have problems living peaceably with their neighbors. The question naturally rises as to whether this pattern of late- twentieth-century conflict between Muslim and non-Muslim groups is equally true of relations between groups from other civilizations. In fact, it is not. Muslims make up about one-fifth of the world’s population but in the 1990s they have been far more involved in intergroup violence than the people of any other civilization. The evidence is overwhelming.

(P. 256) 

[ii]  From a description of the book: “With the ending of global strategic confrontation between superpowers, those in the Middle East must adjust to a new reality: to accept final responsibility for their own affairs, to make and recognize their mistakes, and to accept the consequences. In The End of Modern History in the Middle East, Bernard Lewis discusses the future of the region in this new, postimperialist era. For each and every country and for the region as a whole, he explains, there is a range of alternative futures: at one end, cooperation and progress; at the other, a vicious circle of poverty and ignorance.”

Posted in Articles

Placing ISIS in Broader Islamic Historical Context

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

On 18 October, 2015, C-SPAN 2/BookTV telecast a review of the book, ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror,” by the American journalist, Michael Weiss, who had co-authored the work with Syrian analyst, Hassan Hassan.  Mr. Weiss spoke in a spirited manner for almost one hour and explained “how these violent extremists evolved from a nearly defeated Iraqi insurgent group into a jihadi army of international volunteers who behead Western hostages in slickly produced videos and have conquered territory equal to the size of Great Britain.”

The review was one of the most lucid and forthright exposition of a warrior organization that dreams of restoring an Islamic Caliphate that would continue its mission of conquests “in the Pathway of Allah.” I encourage everyone to listen to the program on                               http://www.c-span.org/video/?328702-4/michael-weiss-isis

Authors Weiss and Hassan covered the recent history in the Levant and Iraq in a thorough manner. I would like to place the ISIS (known in its Arabic acronym as داعش Da’esh) in a broader context of Islamic history. The leadership of this Caliphate movement takes their inspiration from certain historical events of the last 1400 years, where violence played a decisive role in settling controversies at several stages in Islam’s history.

Civil wars have marked Islam from the dawn of its history. In June, 632 A.D., after Muhammad’s death, the Islamic Umma in Medina urgently needed a new head of state.

Abu Bakr, Muhammad’s father-in-law, came up with a solution; he proposed that a Khalifa (Caliph) be chosen by the leadership in Medina which consisted of the Muhajiroun (those who accompanied the Prophet to Medina in 622) and the Ansar (the Partisans from Medina.) The proposal was accepted; and he became the first Khalifa. When he died two years later, another Caliph was chosen: Umar ibn al-Khattab. The Futuhat (Conquests) continued vigorously under his leadership with the occupation of Syria, Egypt, and Persia.

 

Umar was assassinated in 644, and was succeeded by Uthman ibn ‘Affan, who presided over the further expansion of Islam to the East. In 656, some disgruntled Muslim soldiers who had participated in the campaign for the occupation of Egypt, returned to Medina and assassinated UthmanAli, the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad succeeded him. Unfortunately for Ali, there was no consensus about his choice. Mu’awiya, a cousin of Uthman and governor of Syria, claimed that Ali was involved in the plot that resulted in the death of Uthman. War broke out between the two. Ali’s side was winning, when he was prevailed upon to accept arbitration and seek a peaceful settlement of the conflict.  Some within Ali’s army were outraged by this decision, since victory was at hand; they left his side, and assassinated him in 661. They are known as the “Khawarej” (Dissenters.) Ali’s death marked the end of the unity of Islam, and the period of the “Rightly Guided Caliphs.”

 

Mu’awiya assumed the position of Caliph, moved the capital to Damascus. He sought appeasement with Hassan and Hussein, the two sons of Ali. Hassan accepted a settlement with the new Caliph, and retired to Arabia; however his young brother Hussein refused any compromise. He became the leader of Ali’s Party. In Arabic, the term “Shi’a” signifies “party”; his group was first called “Shi’ite Ali,” eventually it was abbreviated into “Shi’a.”

 

It is important to know that both Muhammad and Ali were members of the Hisham clan of the tribe of Quraysh in Mecca; on the other hand, Mu’awiya was member of the “Umayyah” clan that had initially vehemently opposed the Prophet. This fact gave a solid reason for Hussein and his followers not to accept the legitimacy of an Umayyad Caliphate. Muslims who acquiesced to the rise of the Umayyad Dynasty were called “Sunnis.” In 680, Hussein arrived with a small group of his followers at Kufa, in Iraq. His plan was to make it a center for an active opposition to the Umayyad Caliph Yazid. He was met by a superior force, was defeated, and killed at Karbala. The martyrdom of Hussein is now celebrated annually at Karbala, Iraq, in Iran, and at other centers of Shi’ism such as at Nabatiyya, in south Lebanon. 

 

For some time, the Umayyads felt secure as leaders of an expanding empire. In 710, they invaded Spain, and by 732 they reached southern France where they were stopped by Charles Martel, at the Battle of Tours, near Poitiers.  However, several factors conspired to bring an end to the hegemony of the Umayyads. The Shi’ite Underground, the disgruntled Mawalis (non-Arab converts to Islam) and followers of Muhammad’s uncle, Ibn ‘Abbas, were united in their opposition to the Umayyads.  The revolt began at Khorasan, in eastern Persia, led by Abu Muslim al-Khorasani, who defeated the Umayyad-appointed governor of the province and marched westward. The end of the Umayyads came in 750 when all the members of the caliph’s house were killed, leaving a young son who managed to flee the carnage, and made his way to Andalusia (Arabic name of Spain) where he established a rival Umayyad caliphate at Cordoba.

 

All hope for the descendants of Hussein to inherit the Caliphate were dashed. The Abbasids succeeded the Umayyads by establishing their own Caliphate in 750. The Shi’ites remained on the sidelines, regarded as a despised minority. During the 800s, Baghdad the new capital of the Abbasids became the cultural center of the Muslim world. Several important accomplishments took place: the compilation of the Hadith, the establishment of the Four Sunni Schools for the interpretation of Shariah, and the rise of the Mu’tazilites, an intellectual elite that dealt with theological themes such as the nature of the Qur’an and Predestination. Eventually, this movement lost its appeal; a noted philosopher, al-Ghazzali, put an end to “Ijtihad” (theologizing.) The “door of Ijtihad” in Sunni Islam has remained closed ever since!

The leader of the Shi’ites is called an Imam. Ali is considered as the First Imam, Hussein is the Second Imam. The Twelfth Imam disappeared mysteriously; most likely he was murdered by the authorities. However, in Shi’ism, he is considered to be alive but hidden; he will return at the end of time to establish a world-wide Islamic Empire. In the meantime, his representatives, the Ayatollahs assume the role of guides to the Shi’ite community. In Sunni Islam, an Imam is any leader in charge of the Salaat i.e. Prayer (worship) at the mosque.

Sunni-Shi’ite Rivalry in Islam 

While Iran is today a stronghold of Shi’ite Islam, it did not achieve this position until the 16th century during the Safavid dynasty. Other concentrations of Shi’ite communities live in Iraq and southern Lebanon. The Ottoman Turks were champions of Sunni orthodoxy, and sought to limit, and often to interdict any Persian influence among the Shi’ites of Iraq and Lebanon. That policy intensified the animosity between Sunnis and Shi’ites, keeping past disputes between the two groups very much alive.

The situation did not improve after the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. Britain governed Iraq for several decades, and enthroned Prince Faisal, son of Sherif Hussein of Hejaz, in Western Arabia, as king. Sunnis continued to dominate the Shi’ite majority. The same happened in Lebanon, where the French gave primacy to Christians and Sunni Muslims, with the third place given to the Shi’ites.

After WWII, the region underwent radical changes. Iraq witnessed a bloody coup in 1958, when the army murdered King Faisal II and his family, installing a succession of republican regimes, culminating with the rise of Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Iraqi. Soon after the rise of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Saddam launched an attack on his neighbor, in a war that lasted for eight years, causing the death and maiming of over a million Iranian and Iraqi soldiers and civilians.

The leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran began to influence their coreligionists in Iraq and Lebanon. They sponsored the formation of Hezbollah, a Shi’ite Militia in Lebanon, a move that alarmed the Sunni powers in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States.

The civil war in Syria began in mid-March, 2011, when the Syrians rose up against the forty-year Assad dynasty’s regime. As the war dragged on, Iran gave orders to Hezbollah to join the side of Bashar Assad, seeking to bolster a dictator whose connection to Shi’ism is dubious. The Assad family comes from an obscure Syrian sect of Islam that is neither Sunni, nor Shi’ite. During the French Mandate over Syria and Lebanon (1918-1946), they honored this sect with the title of “Alaouites” conferring legitimacy upon them as if they were a branch of Shi’ite Islam!

The Islamic world faces today several economic and demographic challenges. Unemployment is very high, natural resources, other than oil, are few, desertification is rising, and water supplies are not keeping up with agricultural needs. Rather than concentrate on finding solutions for these growing problems, some Islamic leaders have been preoccupied with ancient hatreds, unsolved religious and political issues at home, and often supporting violent aggressions of various sorts on the Western World.

In my attempt to place the rise of ISIS within the broader Islamic history I pointed to certain similarities between the activities of this radical movement and those of early Islamic movements such as the Khawarej, and other groups who sought to violently force regime changes.  I think for example of Abu Muslim al-Khorasani who raised the Black Flag of his rebellion in favor of the Abbasids, and succeeded to end the Umayyad Caliphate. Nowadays, the soldiers of   داعش Da’esh fly a black flag with the Islamic Shahada (Creed) emblazoned on it!

I don’t believe that in the end, Da’esh’s Utopian dream will be realized.  There are indications that certain Muslim leaders, aided by some reformist and liberal intellectuals, are doing their utmost to build societies where freedom and justice are the rule. One may point to President Al-Sissi of Egypt who recently went to Al-Azhar University Mosque in Cairo and presented its scholars with the challenge of modernizing and temporizing Islam. The movement for reform is very much alive in Tunisia, the most secularized society in the Arab world.

As the authors of ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror,” pointed out, there were certain specific causes for the rise and spread of this movement in Iraq and in Syria. Not until the unsettled conditions in these two lands have been normalized, peace will continue to be elusive, especially in Syria. In the near future, the prospects are dim. President Putin of Russia has brought his forces into the fray in order to bolster the Assad regime. Rather than attacking ISIS, Russian war planes have been bombing areas of the Free Syrian Army. The West, on both sides of the Atlantic, has been immobilized by indecision.  Perhaps present-day Western leaders have never studied the history of Islam, and thus have no clue as to the real nature of Islamic civil wars. In the meantime, the destruction of Syria goes on relentlessly, with thousands of Syrian migrants continuing their trek across Turkey, the Balkans, Central Europe, hoping to reach their destination in Mother Merkel’s Land!

Posted in Articles

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES - The West Faces a Refugee Dilemma

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES 

The West Faces a Refugee Dilemma 

Bassam Michael Madany 

As Western Europe endeavors to deal with the flood of Muslim migrants coming from the Middle East and Africa, it would be helpful to grasp this new phenomenon from the perspective of 1400 years of Islamic history. 

Islam spread by Futuhat (the Arabic term for Conquests).  Muslims glory in military exploits that gave them mastery of the Middle East, North Africa, and the Iberian Peninsula just 100 years after the death of Muhammad in 632 AD.  The conquests continued unabated for over 1000 years under various Islamic regimes, especially under the Ottoman Turks, who embraced Islam and succeeded in bringing about the end of the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453, when Constantinople was conquered after a long siege.  The Turkish conqueror of the city, which was renamed Istanbul, is celebrated as Muhammad the Conqueror.

The siege of Vienna in 1529 (only 12 years after the beginning of the Protestant Reformation) was repeated 150 years later.  Its failure marked the beginning of the weakening of this Islamic Empire.  By the 19th Century several areas of Eastern and Central Europe that had been under Ottoman rule began to break away.  Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, and parts of Russia were once parts of the Ottoman Empire.  This fact is not well known in the Western world. 

For several years I taught a semester course on “Middle East History since the Rise of Islam” at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, near Chicago, Illinois.  What often surprised me was that students who had graduated from high school and had already been in college for two years knew so little about Islam.  Sad to say, the historical facts about Islam are not being disseminated properly in the West! 

For example, in the spring of 2001, PBS stations in the United States telecast a documentary called “Islam: Empire of Faith,” which was then repeated in January of 2002.  The documentary was filled with propaganda rather than accurate information about the spread of Islam.  It is ironic if not tragic, that between these two dates the terrorist attack on the United States took place in September of 2001.  One would have expected that a re-broadcast of this disinformation about Islam after that horrific event would not have taken place. 

The very title of “Islam Empire of Faith” is also historically inaccurate, and the juxtaposition of “Empire” and “Faith” is illogical.  No empire, beginning with the Assyrian Empire and all the way down to the modern era, has spread by faith, unless is was referring specifically to the ardent faith of the Muslim conquerors “engaged in Jihad in the Pathway of Allah.”  It should be noted that both European and American scholars participated in the narration.  One of the most unbelievable narratives dealt with “The Ottoman Institution of the Devshirme.” 

This institution was begun by the Ottoman rulers in Eastern Europe.  Every year a detachment of Turkish military soldiers would descend on a Christian town or village, stopping first at the Orthodox Church.  They would request the priest to produce the baptismal list, and they would look for the names and addresses of boys who had been baptized and would have reached the age of five.  Their goal was to take away these young boys from their families and bring them to the Turkish mainland where they were Islamized and later enrolled in the elite army corps of the Janissaries, who fought for the expansion of the Ottoman rule.  I was stupefied when an American professor narrating that part of the documentary described this inhuman tradition with a tone of full approval, and a face that manifested no sorrow whatsoever that the Ottomans “recruited Christian children.”  Was “recruited” the proper term to use here?  What a blatant camouflage of an evil system that lasted so long in Eastern Europe and that has left scars on its inhabitants to this very day. 

ISLAM AND THE REST 

Islamic legal authorities have divided the world into two realms: Dar al-Islam (the household of Islam), and Dar al-Harb (the household of war).  Dar el-Islam is that part of the world which is completely under the rule of Islam, but that may be expanded through warfare.  Non-Muslim lands belong to the Household of War and may be invaded and made an integral part of the Household of Islam.

Throughout history, Muslims, Muslims lived within their own territories.  Once they conquered a land it must remain Islamic, and if lost, it must be regained.  This explains the vigorous Islamic resistance to the Crusades during the early years of the second millennium.  To Muslims, Conquista (Conquests) are always right, while Reconquista (recovering lands held by Muslims) as took place in Spain and Portugal in 1492, is still lamented centuries later!  Muslims in Andalusia, who did not accept Catholicism, were evicted from the newly reconquered lands. 

It is important therefore, to realize that the presence of large Muslim communities in Dar al-Harb is a new phenomenon that began after the Second World War.  Due to the loss of manpower in Europe after two world wars, along with the failure to reproduce demographically, it became necessary to “import” manpower from elsewhere.  France opened its doors to people form its former colonies in North Africa, Britain encouraged migrants from India, Pakistan, and Southeast Asia.  Germany invited Turks, their old allies from the First World War, to work in its factories.  Vast numbers of Muslim migrants settled in the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Scandinavia. 

In the early stages of this migration, only men were allowed to come and work in the host countries.  This policy was abandoned as wives and families of the “guest workers” were later included in the migration process.  This explains the rise of Muslim areas in the big cities of Europe, which they claim as their own. 

During the last 75 years enough facts have been accumulated that should not be ignored.  Non-Muslims who have settled in the West have assimilated since nothing in their cultural baggage was antithetical to Western traditions. However, this has not been the case with Muslim migrants!

The first generation Muslims in the West did not make political demands on their host countries; but second and third generation Muslims insisted on keeping their Islamic way of life. They don’t hesitate to make demands on Western societies expecting them to restrict freedoms of speech and of expression, such as in the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris in 2014. 

I was prompted to write this article after reading an article by Salem Ben Ammar, a Tunisian scholar who lives in France and who seeks to modernize his fellow Muslims in Tunisia.  Early in September 2015, he contributed a brief article entitled: “Le problème avec les migrants musulmans: réfugiés d’un jour conquérants pour toujours” (The Problem with Muslim Migrants: Refugees for one Day; Conquerors for All Time). 

https://salembenammar.wordpress.com/2015/09/14/loccident-na-pas-compris-quen-chaque-migrant-sommeille-un-djihadiste-en-puissance/

Here are some pertinent quotes from Ben Ammar’s article: 

“The challenge we face above all is how to deal with the arrival of masses of people whose values have been formed by an imperialistic and ultra-reactionary worldview.  As Muslims they have no respect except for the laws of their own religion, with the ultimate goal of imposing them on the societies that have welcomed them!  In the final analysis, their allegiance can only be to the Islamic Umma (worldwide Islamic community).” [Translation mine]

Taking all the above mentioned factors, I conclude that the end result of the influx of thousands of Muslim migrants into Western Europe will eventually lead to the weakening of the countries where they have settled.  At the moment they look only for shelter, food, their future and that of their children.  But as Muslims always cling to their religious identity and traditions, as we have learned from the last 65 to 70 years from the presence of large Muslim communities in Western Europe and North America, we must give serious attention to the unintended consequences of this event. 

How should Christians approach this problem?  We certainly face a dilemma.  We cannot ignore the plight of fellow human beings who are on the march, fleeing from oppressive regimes and unending civil wars.  And yet we cannot ignore the cost to the host countries. 

This phenomenon is quite different from the plight of refugees in the Second World War.  Millions of Germans from East Prussia, which was annexed to Poland, had to settle in West Germany.  As far as the remnant of the Jewish Holocaust is concerned, their home became the newly created state of Israel.  It must be noted that both Germans and Jews settled within lands of a similar culture.  As we noted above, this is not the same for Muslims who settled in the West. 

The unending wave of mostly Muslim migrants flooding Europe is a new phenomenon which is catching the West by surprise. To date it is being dealt with in an ad hoc manner without considering the consequences.  Personally, I have no easy solution to this dilemma.  That these refugees need shelter as well as the necessities of daily life is not debatable.  However, to find a sizable migration of people from the Middle East and Africa whose worldview is totally different from that of the host countries would inevitably have unintended consequences which cannot be considered as salutary.  To ignore the problem would only postpone a realistic solution, or to use a newly invented adage: “To kick the can down the road.” 

Post Script (October, 2015)

I wrote this article in September; it dealt primarily with the long-range consequences of the flow of Muslim migrants from the Middle East to Europe. Since then, more information has become available on the short-term impact of this unsettling phenomenon in several parts of Western Europe, specifically Germany. Last month, I remember seeing photos taken near the Hungarian border where migrants were seeking to get to Germany. Placards appeared such as “We Love Mother Merkel” and other similar clichés, both in English and in Arabic. Somehow, rumors had gotten to them prior to their leaving Syria and other areas of the Middle East that once they managed to get into Germany, all would be fine. Germany was that generous “Mother” that would welcome them with shelter and with jobs in its thriving factories. Unfortunately for both migrants and German citizens, things are not rosy at all. On 9 October, 2015, Spiegel Online reported the following:

“Ingolstadt's Stadttheater is typically a place for light entertainment. At the end of the month, for example, the theater will be staging "Tartuffe," Molière's comedy about religion and hypocrisy during the period of French absolutism. But last Wednesday, the 85 municipal politicians from Bavaria who gathered there were in no mood for fun. They were there for a meeting with Bavarian Governor Horst Seehofer and to report to him about how their communities are handling the many refugees who are currently flowing into Bavaria across the state's border with Austria.

“Unsurprisingly, the complaints began immediately. One participant complained that capacity had been reached while others vented their anger with Austria for simply waving the refugees through to Germany. Ultimately, though, the spotlight was shone squarely on Angela Merkel and her refusal thus far to place an upper limit on the number of migrants Germany could accept.”

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/merkel-under-fire-from-political-allies-in-refugee-crisis-a-1057066.html

To emphasize the gravity of the situation in Germany, the same issue of the journal carried a guest-editorial by Germany's foreign minister and vice chancellor, both of whom are from the center-left Social Democrats.  They argued that Germany cannot accept an unlimited number of refugees. Here are a few opening lines from the editorial:

“What do we owe those who are threatened by war and violence? What and how much can we ultimately handle? At what point do we reach limits of what we can endure? Each of these questions is a legitimate one. But if the debate only runs between two poles -- "We can do it" on the one side and "The boat is full" on the other -- then the issue of refugees will split our society. We need an honest discussion about realistic approaches.”

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/german-cabinet-members-argue-against-unlimited-immigration-a-1057099-druck.html

Most likely the debate will go on, both in Germany and in the rest of Western Europe. This problem cannot be solved easily; it only points out that rather than enjoying a “New World Order” we are witnessing an unprecedented “New World Disorder” of a great magnitude that affects our entire globalized and inter-dependent world!

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Lessons from Luther’s Reformation Dr. Hashem Saleh’s Reflections on Martin Luther

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

Dr. Hashem Saleh’s Reflections on Martin Luther

By Bassam Michael Madany

Al-Awan is an Arabic-language website that posts articles and book reviews contributed by reformist Arab authors and intellectuals. On 4 June, 2015, it published an article by Idris Sheroud about Hashem Saleh’s view of the German reformer, Martin Luther.

Hashem Saleh is a Syrian writer and translator; after graduating from the University of Damascus in 1975, he attended the Sorbonne University in Paris, and received his Ph.D. in Modern Literary Criticism, in 1982. He authored three books that were published by the “Arab Rationalist League.”

Everyone in the Middle East and the Islamic world is identified by their religious faith.  Dr. Saleh is a Muslim.  I am a Christian and my formative years and education took place in the Levant, where I mastered both Arabic and French. From my youth I was aware of European authors critical of the Christian faith. Muslim dismissal of it was simply an understood reality.  Therefore, when I learned of Dr. Saleh’s positive views of Martin Luther’s life and work I was intrigued.  I cannot recall any Muslim writer ever offering a positive appreciation of a Christian leader.

As I look over the titles of the books Dr. Saleh has published it seems clear to me that  he has become disappointed, perhaps even disillusioned, with the Arabs’ inability to modernize or connect in even the most basic ways with the modern world.   These titled are telling: “The Failure of the Arab Intifadas” (reference to the “Arab Spring”); “Orientalism: Between Its Supports and Its Detractors”; “Islam and the Closing of Its Theology”; and “The Problem of Islamist Fundamentalism.” 

I have taken excerpts from Mr. Sheroud’s review of Hashem Saleh’s article on Martin Luther to illustrate how some Arab’s minds are proving to be more open to modern realities than many others in their Islamic communities.

“Hashem Saleh contributed three articles on the German reformer, Martin Luther, in which he highlighted the importance and the genius of a man who became the new conscience of Europe, the leader of the Reformation, and the defender of the doctrine ‘Justification by faith.’ This doctrine served as an answer to the angst that had impacted Europe at that period in history.  Mr. Saleh regarded Luther as the one who had provided the healing of his contemporaries, after finding his own “healing” through the forgiveness of sinners by faith. That constituted Luther’s gift to his contemporaries.

“According to Mr. Saleh, it was Luther’s personal “anxiety”, that is his frantic search for peace of mind, due to his consciousness of his sins, that explains the Reformation he launched and its impact on both the German and the European peoples. Luther’s personal condition was symptomatic of the “anxiety” of his age, which explains the success of his reform movement.

“The religious leaders of his day had become very corrupt; Luther’s call for the reformation of the church resonated with the believers who had become weary of the accumulated traditions that added to the spiritual burdens laid upon them by the church authorities. Thus the intersection of the age’s angst with that of Luther’s required an urgent solution. Aware of this condition, Luther managed to change the relation between a Christian and his Lord; instead of dreading God, the believer learned of forgiveness, faith and love. Luther replaced the Medieval theology with a reformed or Lutheran theology.

“According to Mr. Saleh, this fact gave birth to the “European Conscience,” where each believer becomes personally responsible for his actions; so that whenever he disobeys the will of God, he seeks God directly for His forgiveness. That constituted the corner stone of the spiritual and intellectual structure which Luther founded, including a new hermeneutic of the Bible that differed drastically from the one that had reigned in the Medieval Church. Luther insisted on the primacy of the Bible as the source for faith and life; he rejected the traditions that contradicted the plain meaning of the Word of God.”

“Luther’s Reformation may be summarized as follows:

“First, it enabled the believer to understand the essence of the faith by distinguishing the Law from the Gospel.

“Second, it replaced the previously-held view of a severe and harsh God with that of a loving Father.

“Third, it enabled each believer to examine his/her own conscience, and to assume personal responsibility for his/her own actions.”      

Analysis

It is refreshing to read the reflections of a Syrian Muslim scholar on Martin Luther and the Reformation he initiated. Dr. Saleh understood the spiritual problem that made the Roman Catholic monk anxious. Luther wanted the assurance of God’s forgiveness; however the Church’s remedy was cumbersome and failed to provide Luther what he longed for. The monk’s anxiety, referred to as “illness” in the Arabic text, I took for “spiritual” illness. It was also the same “illness” that afflicted the German laity. Luther’s success in finding the “cure” based on the Holy Scriptures, was appropriated by the Germans as well as other Europeans.

Comments

As an Eastern Christian, I trace the roots of my faith back to the First century.  Over the years since that time much turmoil between Muslims and Christians has occurred.  Even more is occurring at the present time as Christians are being murdered by Islamic extremists all around the world.  Christians and Jews and other religious minorities have, more often than not, been the recipients of very harsh treatment by the adherents of Islam.  Therefore it is gratifying to read such a sympathetic analysis of the great event that happened in the Christian world of the Sixteenth century when the German monk, Martin Luther launched the Protestant reformation! Dr. Saleh’s interest doesn’t happen in a vacuum. He is one of several Arab intellectuals who are struggling with the challenge of reforming and modernizing Islam. In fact, I consulted Al-Awan’s website and found 4700 entries by various Arab writers who are dealing with this subject.  On 27 June, 2015 Hashem Saleh’s column had this title: “Why Don’t They Stop Making Car Bombs in Ramadan?  

The six-page article is a plea from a man hoping against hope that someday, the Arabs will overcome their ancient, unbending Islamist mentality! But how is that dream to be fulfilled? In the case of Martin Luther, he solved his personal “anxiety” by going back to the Scriptures of the Christian faith. Specifically, he studied Saint Paul’s Letter to the Church in Rome, written in the middle of the First Century, A.D. The teaching of Chapter 1: 16, 17 suddenly became clear to him, and his personal appropriation of its truth enabled him to preach it to others.  And so it was that the Protestant Reformation began and changed the Western World.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’ (ESV)

“The just, or the righteous shall live by faith.” That’s the heart of the Christian Good News. Luther declared all the teachings of the Church that contradicted this plain truth, must be rejected. Good works, penance, purchasing indulgencies won’t avail.

When it comes to Islam, returning to its sacred text, the Qur’an, won’t solve the problems faced by adherents to this religion. Salafism, more commonly referred to as Wahhabism or Fundamentalism takes its cues from the Qur’an, the Hadith, and Sunnah. These sacred documents will only re-inforce the beliefs of the radicals and motivate them even further. The Da’esh revolutionaries[i]  are waging war all over the Middle East and elsewhere, claim to be the true representatives of Islam.  Their attempt to re-establish the Caliphate indicates the seriousness of their purpose, if not to others, at least to themselves, and is a highly motivating feature of their total worldview.

It is not my intention to dampen the hope of Dr. Saleh for a bright Arab and Islamic future. Nor do I want to diminish the importance of his book on Martin Luther, or Mr. Sheroud’s review of it. Having studied the writings of other Arab reformists, there definitely is a desire of many of them to demand a new hermeneutics of the Qur’an. For example, those violent texts, known as “Ayaat al-Sayf” (The Sword Verses), must be seriously confronted, and their relevance declared as no longer normative for the present day. When that basic step is taken, the reformation of Islam would have seriously begun!

Postscript  

I have discussed the topic of the need for a new hermeneutics of the Qur’an in two previous articles: Toward a Tanweeri (Enlightened) Hermeneutics of the Qur’an

http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/madany/hermeneutics1.html

An Example of the New Enlightened Hermeneutics of the Qur’an

http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/madany/hermeneutics2.html


[i] Da’esh is the Arabic acronym for “Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.” It evokes the memory of the early Islamic caliphates that were centered in Syria and Iraq. Its flag is similar to the black flag of the revolutionaries who toppled the Umayyad Caliphate in 750 AD, ushering in the rule of the Abbasid Caliphate whose capital was Baghdad. In the Western media, Da’esh is represented by the acronyms of ISIS or ISIL!  

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Lessons We Need to Face the Global Islamist Threat

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

“Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”  -  George Santayana

The year 2014 marked the 100th anniversary of the Great War; the war that was meant to end all wars, but turned out to be as prelude to a more devastating WWII. Three years later, two other anniversaries: “The February Revolution,” when the Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government. That was followed by “The October Revolution” when a Bolshevik (Communist) government was established under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin. The Civil War followed between the Red Bolshevik and White anti-Bolshevik armies, ending with the defeat of the White Russians and the rise of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

For the rest of the twentieth century, the Communist triumph in the former Russian Empire led to the rise of Communist regimes in Europe (after WWII), in South-East Asia (Vietnam), and in the Far East (China and North Korea). While the USSR imploded in the 1990s, Marxist regimes still exist in China, Vietnam, and North Korea. However, in both China and Vietnam, the dictatorial aspect of their regimes remains in place, but their economies no longer follow Marxist economics.

What has puzzled me about the triumph of Communism in the USSR was the spectacular speed by which the Soviets spread their ideology through “The Communist International” (Comintern) in just two years following the October Revolution. The Comintern was intended to “fight by all available means, including armed force, for the overthrow of the international bourgeoisie for the creation of an international Soviet republic as a transition stage to the complete abolition of the State.” In the following lines, I’ll restrict myself to the activities of the Comintern in the USA.

At this point, I should mention that the purpose of my article is not primarily to give a lesson on Communist aggressiveness and expansionism during the past century, but to draw lessons that would highlight the similarities between the Marxist Challenge of the past, and the renewed Islamic Challenge on the global scene, that has intensified in the twenty-first century.

By the mid-twenties, the Communist Party of the United States had been organized, and began its subversive activities during the difficult economic times of the Great Depression. During this era, the USSR established secret underground organizations whose task was to infiltrate governmental and cultural circles and initiate direct acts of espionage.

The infiltration gathered momentum during President Roosevelt’s Administration that lasted from 4 March, 1933 until his passing on 12 April, 1945. Almost every branch of the Federal Government had someone who was helping himself or herself to classified documents in order to hand them to Soviet agents. The most celebrated case was the Whittaker Chambers-Alger Hiss Affair in 1948.

If it were not for the conservative members of the House of Representatives, the Americans who had betrayed their country would have never been convicted for their crimes. The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) carried long hearings to ferret out the truth of the allegations of Whittaker Chambers, (a former Soviet agent who had seen the light and left the Marxist Utopia) who claimed under oath, that Alger Hiss, who held a high position at the Department of State, was a member of an underground spy-ring working for the USSR.

The country was shocked by these revelations; but many in high positions came to the defense of Mr. Hiss, including the Assistant Secretary of State, Dean Acheson! There were calls by the Democrats in the House to discontinue the work of HUAC; if it were not for Richard Nixon, a junior member of the House from California, nothing further would have happened. There were some moves in the Justice Department to charge Mr. Chambers with perjury for alleging under oath, that Alger Hiss was a Soviet Spy.

Alger Hiss, in his attempt to clear himself of the charges that Mr. Chambers had made, went to the length of denying that he had ever known or seen him. What saved the case was the fact that some years before, Alger Hiss had brought some micro-filmed documents from the Department of State to the home of Whittaker Chambers; they were intended to be given to the Soviets. By that time, Mr. Chambers had lost faith in Marxism; so instead of completing the task, he hid them in a large cleaned-pumpkin at his farm. It was these documents that were used to convict Alger Hiss on 21 January, 1950, of “having perjured himself in regards to testimony about his alleged involvement in a Soviet spy ring before and during World War II, but he steadfastly protested his innocence during and after his incarceration.” For his crime, he spent only four years in jail!

Liberals continued their defense of Alger Hiss until the case was finally closed with the fall of the USSR. During the early 1990s, the Stalin-era KGB files were made available, and they definitely proved that Alger Hiss was a paid agent of the Soviet Military Intelligence.

As mentioned above, my detailing the story of Soviet infiltration of US government agencies and the giving classified documents to Soviet agents is meant to show that, almost fifty years later, these same agencies failed to recognize the immensity of the Islamist threat to America. This applies equally to Canada, and to Western Europe. This threat is aimed the very foundations of the American Way of Life. Islam can accomplish its goal by claiming that it is just a religion whose followers must enjoy the same rights and privileges that members of other religions enjoy.

The truth is that of all the major world religions, Islam is the only faith where religion and politics, mosque and state, are fused in one indivisible entity, and that it harbors an imperialistic motif.

In spite of all the incontestable facts of history, both ancient and modern, most politicians on both sides of the Atlantic, parrot the mantra that Islam is a peaceful religion. The trouble isn’t in the adjective “peaceful” but in the noun, “Religion.” The Islamic “religion,” has never operated merely as a religion, like Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and Shinto. No sooner than Muhammad settled in Medina in 622 A.D., an Islamic State came into being, with its army, its lunar calendar, and its distinctive vocabulary! Just glance at the flag of Saudi Arabia: Two Swords and the Islamic Credo: “La Ilaha Illa Allah, Muhammad Rasool Allah.” Within one hundred years after the death of Muhammad in 632 AD, the Islamic Empire stretched from Western India to southern France.

Prior to WWII, Muslims lived almost exclusively within Daru’l Islam. After the war, due to the lack of manpower in Western Europe, Muslim men were invited to work in the factories of France, West Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the United Kingdom. Before too long, these workers bought their families to join them, and within six decades millions of Muslims now live in these countries.

During the first sixty years of the twentieth century, the United States Immigration Law favored immigrants from Europe; while quotas for people from the rest of the world, allowed only a few numbers to settle in America. That changed drastically during and after the Kennedy administration. As a result, large numbers of immigrants from Islamic countries have settled in the US. Unlike other immigrants from South Korea, India, and sub-Saharan Africa, Muslims do not assimilate. They bring with them, in their cultural-religious baggage, a robust allegiance to the Ecumenical Islamic Ummah. Therefore, a Muslim’s ultimate allegiance is to Islam, no matter where he lives. Muslims love to proclaim: “Al-Islam Hua al-Hall,” (Islam is the solution!) Unfortunately, it hasn’t solved any of the problems that plague their homelands.

Muslim immigrants have formed political action organizations like CAIR (Council on American Islamic Relations) and ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) headquartered in Plainfield, Indiana. They are extremely active seeking to silence any criticism of Islam. Recently, CAIR took the initiative to force Brandeis University to dis-invite Ayaan Hirsi Ali from giving the commencement address and receive an honorary doctorate. The irony is that Brandeis is a Jewish University that feared the charge of Islamophobia, should it have allowed a former Muslim lady to tell the truth about Islam!

As an indication that some American-born Muslims fail to evidence a genuine love for their country, I mention three examples: Major Nidal Hassan, and Anwar al-Awlaki, and Mohammad Youssef Abdulaziz.

Major Hasan was an American-born Muslim, whose Palestinian parents came to the USA to find a better life. I’ve always wondered about his name! Why did his parents name him ‘Nidal” (Struggle) It’s a rare name for a Muslim boy. Usually, Muslims give their sons Islamic names: Muhammad, Ali, Hasan, Hussein, Abdallah, etc. Nidal attended grade school, high school, joined the US Army that put him through medical school. He became a major in the army, and must have sworn allegiance to the Constitution when he was commissioned as an officer. It appears that none of all those experiences filled his psyche with love for America! When he perpetrated his horrible crimes at Fort Hood, it was reported that he shouted “Allahu Akbar” words that have become a militaristic war cry chanted before a Muslim attacks Infidels! When Major Nidal was in the Washington, D.C. area, he mouthed some hostile words about non-Muslims. Political Correctness prevented his colleagues to bring his strange behavior to the attention of the higher authorities. Even then, they might have failed to consider his inordinate anger a sign of something terrible brewing in his brain.

Another sign of the authorities blindness to the re-Islamization of Major Nidal’s mind, was his closeness to Anwar al-Awlaki, the former Imam at Dar el-Hijra mosque in Falls Church in Virginia, who once preached to two of the 9/11 hijackers. Al-Awlaki praised the murderer by saying on his blog, “Nidal Hasan Did the Right Thing.” This American-born Muslim cleric was well-educated and had pursued doctoral studies at George Washington University. He left the U. S. in 2002 heading first to England, and from there, he traveled to his parents’ homeland, Yemen. He kept busy in his terrorist activities, and guided Faisal Shahzad, the Times Square bomber in the planning of his murderous plot. In 2009, he helped the man who attempted to bring down the Detroit-bound plane by suggesting that he hide explosives in his underwear! Eventually, he was killed in Yemen, by a U. S. drone strike in September, 2011.

Muhammad Youssef Abdulaziz, who though not American-born, had benefited greatly from living in his host country, manifested his ingratitude in Chattanooga, Tennessee, by gunning down in mid-July, 2015, four Marines, wounding three others, one of whom died early Saturday,18 July, 2015 .

As long as the media, our cultural elites, and our representatives in the national government manifest short-term memories of the past, and appear that they haven’t learnt much from the history of the Communist infiltration and spy activities in the 1930s and 1940s, they remain ill-equipped to deal with radical Islam that has been waging unconventional wars against us, at home, and overseas. Unless we change our understanding of the true nature of Islamism, our future will be fraught with unforeseen dangers, since the Islamist worldview is both imperialistic and Utopian; that makes it an extremely “flammable” combination.

 

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Modernity & the Qur’an

May 05, 2023
By Sa’eed Nasheed, Published by Dar al-Tanweer, Beirut, Lebanon

الحداثة والقرآن

“Religious Freedom: A Foundation for Individual Freedom”

By Sa’eed Nasheed, Published by Dar al-Tanweer, Beirut, Lebanon

Reviewed by Khaled Ghazal

With Analysis & Comments by Bassam Michael Madany

The Moroccan author, Sa’eed Nasheed has written a small book dealing with “Modernity & the Qur’an.”[i] In this work, he embarks on a difficult task of how to deal with the Qur’an’s many ambiguities, a topic that has caused many disputes, sometimes peaceful, while others quite violent. This may be a good reason to discuss this problem; as most of the conflicts that are occurring in the Arab and Islamic world, are due to the claims by some, that they are the ones who are defending the faith against the attacks of the secularists. The Salafists’ claim requires a response to their manner of using the Qur’anic text as a tool in their fights against the reformists. This is what our author plans to accomplish in his book that regards the Qur’an as a basis for a strictly religious life, whose ultimate goal is to bring about comfort and peace to the believer’s soul! If and when this thesis be accepted and applied, it would shield the sacred text from being employed as a political and ideological tool, that quite often, has led to hatred, oppression, and radicalism among Muslims. 

Nasheed begins his book by asking about the nature of the Qur’an, and whether it is in fact Allah’s words, the text of which was dictated by Heaven! His answer doesn’t deny that God is the author of the “Wahy”[ii] (revelation), but it was formulated or redacted by the Prophet. This was accomplished by Muhammad within the context of his culture, language, personality, and his time; thus it is, in a sense, a human text par excellence! On the other hand, as Islam spread, a rational view of the Qur’an changed to such an extent that the Prophet became like a “Second Person” next to the Divine Being, sometimes even superseding Him. The (Arabic) text of the Qur’an became a closed text based solely on ‘Uthman’s Qur’an, the Third Caliph (644-656) regarded by the various Islamic communions as the Authorized Version, while all other copies were forcefully destroyed.[iii]

Dealing with the Qur’anic text and interpreting its Suras and Ayas has occasioned several religious, cultural, and political problems that continue to this day. To conceive of the Qur’an, as well as the previous revealed Books as sacred, and as the unique guide for mankind in matters of faith and life, means that any interpretation other than a strictly literal one is regarded as heretical!

In other words, the Qur’anic text remains as it has been since the seventh century; its exposition must not take into account the time of its first appearance, or the cultural context of contemporaneous Arabia. There can be no new interpretation of the sacred text. The evidence is not hard to find as we witness nowadays the rise of Salafist and Fundamentalist movements that call for a return to the views and actions of past centuries. The interpretation of the Qur’an adopted by these movements turns Islam into a religion that legitimizes Irhab (terrorism) and violence. Their exegesis of the text fails to take into account that those Ayas “descended” during the days when Muslims at the dawn of their faith, were involved in the spread of their faith, and have no relevance in the 21st century. The Salafists ignore that the essence of Islam consists in the call for “Tawhid” (Strict unity of Allah) and the spread of an ethic of love and tolerance.  

The closing of the Muslim mind led to a terrible admixture between the ethical and humanitarian essence of the faith with those Qur’anic narratives that are mostly mythological. Having ascribed a divine nature to the Qur’an, and refusing to exegete it according to the evolution of Muslim societies led to the result, as Nasheed wrote, that “The text changed from an instruction in the worship of Allah, into a long list of commands that must be observed; leading eventually to the paralysis of the human will, and standing against any attempt at modernization.”

It is important to remember that in the early years of his mission Muhammad confronted several regulations and customs that belonged to the pre-Islamic era. His response was to endorse some of them, and change others. In other words, those regulations reflected the specific circumstances that Muslims faced in their dealing with one another, as well as with non-Muslims who were living among them. They could not have been valid beyond the formative period of Islam.

One of the important matters that face the Muslims today are the Qur’anic Ayas related to Jihad. The Islamic Da’wa (Mission) confronted in its early years several forces that endeavored to stop its spread. That led to several wars that were mostly led by the Prophet. It was during that era that those Ayas “descended” specifically to deal with Muhammad’s opponents. This explains the presence of texts that encourage killing the Kuffar (non-believers.)

Now it is true that several Muslim Fuqaha (Jurists) claim that Islam is against violence, that it is a religion of love and mercy. However, they are not willing to declare that those Qur’anic Ayas are no longer normative for the present age. Thus the actions and activities of the Islamist movements have branded Islam as advocating Irhab (Terrorism) and as a religion of violence and murder. Referring to this subject, Nasheed writes: “When the Qur’an encouraged killing, no matter what its motives may have been, it cannot be equated with Allah’s will; rather it reflected the Prophet’s own interpretation of the divine revelation. Such rules were in harmony with the Prophet’s milieu, and not a lasting divine legislation.”

Regarding the linguistic superiority of the Qur’an, Muslims claim that its language is the highest and most elegant form of Classical Arabic, and the final authority in matters of grammar and syntax. There are volumes that have extolled the “I ‘Jaz” (linguistic uniqueness and superiority) of the Arabic text, and the impossibility of human beings being able to compose anything that might approximate it! On the other hand, several scholars who have examined the Arabic text of the Qur’an could not but admit that it has several grammatical mistakes.[iv]

Muslim jurists insist on considering the Qur’an as the source for the Shariah with its Hudud (criminal laws) that sanction flogging, stoning, cutting off of limbs, and burning! These are punishments that are being followed in our days by the Salafists asserting boldly that Allah had promulgated these punishments, and thus, they ought to be observed!

The greatest contradiction between the logic of the Qur’an and Modernity is in the area of human rights. As Nasheed puts it: “In the world of Modernity, the individual does not regard his life as pre-ordained, he need not follow the “Sirat”[v] (the Right Path) given by Allah as guidance. An individual’s relation with the community must be based on association and participation, not on blind obedience. The history of modernity is a history of freedom.”

The most important contribution of modernity is the right of every person to embrace the religion of his choice, or not embrace any. Modern societies have accomplished this state of affairs after going through many years of religious wars that caused the death of thousands of human beings. The Qur’an insists on regarding “Islam as the only acceptable religion with Allah,[vi] and that “Muslims belong to the best nation among men”[vii]. Such notions are the very antithesis of Modernity which regards religious freedom as sacred, and as a basic aspect of the individual’s freedom. None of the Islamic states recognize a Muslim’s right of conversion to another faith. In fact the Law of Apostasy remains in force, and the only way for a Muslim convert is to flee to a country where freedom of religion is acknowledged.

In these days as Arab and Islamic lands are beset by religious and factional wars, as we witness the use of Islam as a tool in political and confessional disputes, Sa’eed Nasheed’s book, “Al-Hadatha wa’l-Qur’an” (Modernity & the Qur’an) occupies a central place in the heart of battle. It’s a book that calls for religious reformation, a much-needed event by our Arab and Islamic societies! http://www.alawan.org/article14053.html

This ends my translation from the Arabic text of Khaled Ghazal’s review of Sa’eed Nasheed’s book “Modernity and the Qur’an”.  Mr. Ghazal is a Lebanese author, graduate of the Lebanese University in Beirut (1969). He is well-known for his book reviews that appear in several newspapers in the Arab world. His reviews on Al-Awan’s website deal mostly with the reform of Islam and the Arab civilization.

I was intrigued with this review because I had become acquainted with Sa’eed Nasheed’s thought about the Qur’an in 2010 after reading his essay: What is the Qur’an?  I wrote a review of that essay at the time; and reading Mr. Ghazal’s current review of this latest offering by Mr. Nasheed, lead me to the conclusion that he is still thinking about his subject and amplifying and refining the conclusions he had reached in his former essay.  Khaled Ghazal is to be commended for so faithfully conveying Nasheed’s thoughts.

Analysis

Mr. Nasheed sets forth two important theses: First, while he accepts the Qur’an as divine revelation, he rejects the commonly accepted view that the sacred Arabic text is to be equated with Allah’s very words. Rather, the divine revelation was “filtered” through Muhammad’s personality.

Second, the author offers a narrow and limited concept of Islam, namely that it consists “in the call for “Tawhid” (Strict unity of Allah) and the adoption of an ethic of love and tolerance.” Nasheed denies that the role of revelation is to legislate laws; rather it functions as a guide “in the worship of Allah.” 

Comments

What exactly is the nature of the Qur’an one might ask?  One theory surfaced very early in the history of Islamic theology. In the 9th century A. D., the Mu’tazilites in Baghdad, advocated the “Createdness of the Qur’an.” Their view received the blessing and support of Caliph Al-Ma’mun, but was bitterly opposed by Imam Hanbal, (a leader of one of the Four Schools for the Interpretation of Shariah) who advocated the doctrine of the “Uncreatedness” of the Qur’an. As professor W. Montgomery Watt, of Edinburgh University put it:

“[The Mu’tazilites’] outstanding service to Islamic thought was the assimilation of a large number of Greek ideas and methods of arguments … The Greek ideas thus introduced by the Mu’tazilites came to dominate one great wing of Islamic theology, namely, rational or philosophical theology. Since the Mu’tazilites were regarded as heretics, however, by the Sunnites, their ideas and doctrines could not simply be taken over, but exercised an influence indirectly.” The Formative Period of Islamic Thought: Edinburgh University Press, 1973, pp. 249, 250)

Early in the past century, Taha Hussein, a graduate of al-Azhar University in Cairo, and the Sorbonne in Paris, wrote a critical work on pre-Islamic Arabic literature, which brought him into conflict with the religious authorities in Egypt.  They regarded his work as a threat to the integrity and uniqueness of the Qur’an as the very word of Allah. In his book, Hussein had pointed to similarities in the vocabulary and style between the Qur’an, and the rich poetic Arabic literature of the days of “Al-Jahiliyya,” a term reserved by Muslim historiographers for pre-Islamic times, which literally means “The Days of Ignorance.” Orthodox Muslim teaching insists that the Qur’an is unique, not only in its divine origin, but equally in the very words of the text. For anyone to connect in any way Arabic poetry from the “Days of Ignorance”, written by mere mortals, to their holy book, was offensive and seen as a threat to orthodoxy.

Following World War II, some young Muslims, who went abroad for their higher education, were heavily influenced by Marxist and secularist ideologies. Jalal Sadeq al-Adhm, a member of a prominent Damascus Sunni family, published in 1969 “Naqd al Fikr al-Deeni” (A Critique of Religious Thought). Unlike the reformers of the 19th century who sought the modernization of Islam, he attacked the sacred texts of all theistic religions. This marked the beginning of a new genre of writings by Muslim intellectuals who called for radical reappraisal of their religious and cultural heritage. Al-Adhm got the attention of governmental authorities in Beirut, Lebanon with his Marxist ideology and criticism of theistic religions, particularly Islam. They sought to forbid the publication of his book. Al-Adhm, who at that time was teaching at the American University of Beirut, succeeded to clear himself of the charges that were brought against him. His book was eventually published in Lebanon.

With the advent of the Internet, several Arabic-language websites now facilitate the publication of critical articles that escape the shackles of governmental censorship. Articles and essays are posted on such subjects as the “Need for a New Hermeneutics” of the Qur’an.  So it was that in 2010 Nasheed was able to publish his essay “What Is the Qur’an?”

It is rather surprising, to say the least, that a publishing House in Beirut, Lebanon, has now published, “Modernity and the Qur’an.” Even the name of the publishers, Dar al-Tanweer (House of Enlightenment) indicates its avant-garde outlook. Despite the turbulent political environment in Lebanon, it is good to see Dar al-Tanweer publishing a book on such a sensitive theme!

By juxtaposing the “Qur’an with Modernity,” the author set forth a very important thesis: “Unless a revised view of the nature of Revelation is adopted by Muslims, they would never be able to adapt to Modernity.” Such a revised view requires nothing less than jettisoning the notion that every word in the original Arabic text of the Qur’an, is literally, a divine speech. On the other hand, if the belief in the “Uncreatedness of the Qur’an” is maintained, there can be no choice but to accept the historical view of Orthodox Islam that the text is eternal and cannot be revised, or re-interpreted.

Unlike Al-Adhm whose adherence to Marxist ideology remains much alive with its total rejection of theism, Mr. Nasheed, like many previous reformers, is pleading with his contemporaries to realize that maintaining the traditional view of the Qur’an will hold Muslims captive to an irrational and obscurantist worldview. By allowing the human factor to play a role in Revelation, and limiting its scope, he would like his contemporaries to reflect on his modest proposal. His concern is very real, since the number of young Muslims leaving Islam, and adopting unbelief is growing rapidly.

My reflections on this subject are based on my faith in the final authority of the Bible which I believe is a necessary belief for any Christian. Sa’eed Nasheed’s book offers a radical concept of “Wahy,” (Revelation.) Other than stating that Muhammad’s original mission was to announce and defend the Oneness of Allah, he hardly dealt with the doctrine of Allah. While one would not expect him to write an entire book on Theology, yet the importance of the doctrine cannot be overstated.

As I pointed out earlier, the view of the “Un-Createdness of the Qur’an” prevailed eventually; Imam Hanbal was released from incarceration, and the whole affair known as “Mihnat al-Qur’an” (The Ordeal of the Qur’an) was settled. The only way Muslim theologians could maintain that the doctrine did not contradict the Oneness of Allah was to resort to a concept known as “Bila Shabah,” (No Similarity). The term means that Allah is the “Wholly Other.” His attributes are incommunicable. Thus, the Biblical doctrine of Man being created in the image of God and after his likeness[viii] becomes unthinkable to Muslims. On the other hand, it meant that a Muslim can never know Allah; he or she, can know Allah’s will as revealed in the Qur’an. The relation between Allah and a believer is that of a Master to a slave (‘abd) which explains the multiplicity of names in which the term ‘abd forms the first part of a man’s name such as ‘Abdul-Allah, ‘Abdul-Ilah; ‘Abdul-Karim, etc.

The lack of the possibility of a closer fellowship with Allah, led some serious Muslim intellectuals to unbelief (Ilhad). This was the case of the Saudi scholar, Abdallah al-Quseimi!  He began his intellectual career as a defender of the faith, but died an unbeliever! One Arab writer offered this startling comment: “Islam possesses a unique impulse that makes it the most likely religion to cause unbelief. For several other religions contain the promise of an eschatological salvation at the end of time, as in Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Zoroastrianism. However, in Islam, there is no place or room for a Savior.” http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/faith-to-unbelief.cfm

Sa’eed Nasheed’s “Modernity and the Qur’an” has offered a solution to the very serious problem that besets Islam, namely its inability to cope with Modernity. The Caliphate Movement’s (Da’esh) success in occupying large parts of Syria and Iraq, the civil wars raging in Libya and Yemen, are just two concrete examples of this serious malaise in Daru’l Islam. Unfortunately, there is little hope that his proposal will find acceptance. The past, with all its unresolved doctrinal issues and schisms, still weighs heavy on a civilization that seems to be unable to break its shackles, and chart a new course that will insure peace and prosperity for its peoples, as well as for the rest of the world.  


[i] On 12 September 2010 www.alawan.org posted an essay entitled “What Is the Qur’an?”  ما هو القرآن؟  written by Sa’eed Nasheed, a Moroccan intellectual which dealt with the nature and authority of the Qur’an for our times. http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/madany/what_is_quran.html

Five years later, Mr. Nasheed dealt with the same subject in the book under consideration

[ii] The Islamic doctrine of wahy is quite different from the Biblical view of revelation. In Islam, the prophet is totally passive as he receives the divine message in the form of a Kitab (Book) that “descends” on him.  His unique role is to deliver message.

[iii] According to Islamic historiographers, it was ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan the third Caliph, who ordered that only one copy of the Qur’an be preserved and the rest be destroyed.  This explains why the Arabic text is usually known as ‘Uthman’s Qur’an.

[iv] The author of the Review enumerated 17 grammatical mistakes that have been discovered in the Qur’an. Since the Arabic language is constructed quite differently from Indo-European languages, it’s impossible for me to translate those grammatical errors as there is nothing in English, or French (languages I’m familiar with) that is comparable with Arabic grammar and syntax. For example, all Arabic words are traced back to a tri-literal verb in the past tense, which when conjugated according to a standard scale, yield words with different meanings.

[v] Al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem is an important term that denotes the Right Path leading to eternal bliss in Paradise promised to all believers in Allah and his Apostle (Muhammad). It appears in the first chapter of the Qur’an, Surat al-Fatiha (The Exordium) in the form of a petition addressed to Allah for his indispensable guidance.

[vi] Qur’an 3:19 “The Religion before Allah is Islam (submission to His Will)” Translation of Yusuf Ali                            “The true religion with God is Islam.” Translation of A. J. Arberry  It is interesting that Muslim interpreters of the Qur’an (most are non-Arabs) endeavor to soften the meaning of the Ayah by rendering “Islam” as “Submission” I’m thankful that Arberry gives the text exactly what it means to anyone with an “Arab ear,” I translate the text as: “The only acceptable religion with Allah is Islam”

[vii] You are the best nation ever brought forth to men” 3:105

[viii] So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 (ESV)

 

Posted in Articles

The Rise and Spread of Ilhad (Atheism) in the Arab World

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

The Rise and Spread of Ilhad (Atheism) in the Arab World

A Serious and Troubling Phenomenon

By Bassam Michael Madany

The Wall Street Journal of 7 June, 2015 reported that the Supreme Court of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia “upheld the verdict against Raif Badawi, a Saudi human rights activist and a blogger, who had insulted Islam.” He had been imprisoned since 2012; in January, 2015, he received the first session of lashings outside a mosque in the port city of Jeddah, with subsequent floggings to come later.

The Raif Badawi “affair” is receiving world attention with demonstrations in Western cities showing solidarity with this young Saudi, whose wife and family have already found shelter in Montreal, Quebec. The reports about this case in the Western Media have failed to place it in a broader context, namely, “The Rise and Spread of Ilhad (Arabic for Atheism) throughout the Arab world.”

In fact, the topic of Ilhad is receiving a great deal of attention in the Arab world. The following is my translation of a report about this phenomenon posted on the online daily Elaph, on Thursday, 4 June, 2015. It dealt with the case of a well-known Algerian intellectual who had publicly made known his Ilhad. Here follows a summary of the article, followed by my analysis and comments.

“The Algerian playwright, Rachid Bou Jadra, who announced his unbelief on a television station, claimed that Muhammad was not a Prophet, but a revolutionary! That made him the object of severe criticisms; on the other hand, some bloggers came to his defence, claiming that freedom of belief in Algeria, entitled him to make known his position.

“The Society of Algerian ‘Ulema (Religious Authorities) announced ‘that a public declaration about his Ilhad must be regarded as a very serious matter. It added, ‘Bou Jadra should be deprived of the privileges accorded to Muslims at their death. [Thus being excommunicated] it would be unlawful, upon his passing, to give him the ritual washing; no sermon should be given at his funeral, and in no way may he be buried in an Islamic cemetery. Furthermore, the ‘Ulema called on Rachid Bou Jadra to repent and return to the fold of Islam.’

Bou Jadra’s public declaration on the television screen precipitated a good deal of discussions on the social media. Specifically shocking was his renouncing of faith in Allah and his Messenger. ‘Had he not become an atheist,’ he declared, ‘he would have embraced Buddhism as his religion.’

“Comments on Bou Jadra’s statements varied. Some Algerian activists hurled their curses on him; others opined that the Algerian Authorities were the real beneficiaries from this controversy, since it diverted the attention of Algerians from the severe political, economic, and social problems that plague them!

“The Interviewer, Ms. Madiha ‘Alalou asked him: ‘Do you believe in Allah?’ He answered, ‘No! ‘Do you accept Islam as your religion?’ He said, No! ‘Do you believe that Muhammad was a Prophet? ‘No, he said, ‘I consider him as a revolutionary man.’”

“Several viewers were puzzled by Bou Jadra’s claim that many Algerians had actually embraced atheism, but are reluctant to make that public.

“The playwright was born in 1941; he writes both in Arabic and in French, and is considered one of the most prominent authors in Algeria. He studied in Tunisia, before going to France where he majored in philosophy at the Sorbonne, in Paris. He serves as General Secretary of the Human Rights Organization, and as General Secretary of the Union of Algerian Writers. He has lectured at well-known Western Universities, and has received literary prizes from Spain, Germany, and Italy.”

Analysis

For some time, Arabic-language media have been reporting on the necessity of reform, especially the need for the adoption of an “Enlightened Hermeneutics” of the Qur’an as a pre-requisite for warding off the spread of atheism among the rising generation. I have already referred to the subject in several articles that were posted on this website.

What’s worth noticing is the rapid growth of the number of Arab youth who are opting for Ilhad; and who advertise their new “faith” on the social media. Prior to the Internet era, I remember reading one major book, authored by the Syrian intellectual, Jalal Sadeq al-Adhm who manifested his Ilhad in his “A Critique of Religious Thought” published in Beirut, Lebanon, in the late 1960s. As a confirmed Marxist, he attacked all theistic faiths, including Islam!

The 21st century ushered in Globalization, precipitating the disappearance of intellectual frontiers, and the rapid spread of ideologies that challenge old beliefs. Most shocking was the declaration of the well-known Rachid Bou Jadra of his Ilhad on TV.

Comments

In the same, Elaph, posted links to related topics such as, “Egypt suffers equally from Islamic radicalism as well as from Ilhad!”; “To Announce one’s Ilhad in Egypt would lead to prison.”

There was the story of “Karim el-Banna, an engineering student in Cairo, who was sentenced to a three-year prison term, for announcing his Ilhad on Facebook. Egyptian Law forbids criticism of the three ‘heavenly’ religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.”

Another report on Elaph highlighted the measures taken by the Saudi authorities to combat the spread of Ilhad among the young generation! Even in an ultra-conservative Saudi culture, some youth are getting “infected” with the “virus” of Ilhad!  “Saudi Arabia has launched a website to “immunize” the young generation against Ilhad whose propagandists attract unsuspecting youth via Facebook and Twitter. The website is known by the name of ‘Yaqeen’ (Conviction) where arguments defending Islamic beliefs are offered, and the fallacies of atheism are exposed.”

Responsible authorities in both Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been reflecting on the factors that may have contributed to the defection of some of their youth from Islam. A spokesman for the authoritative center of Islamic learning, Al-Azhar University in Cairo, blamed the rise of religious extremism as manifested in Irhab (terrorism), the ruthless and barbaric actions of Islamists such as beheadings, and the persecution and expulsions of religious and ethnic minorities from their homelands.”

Another report referred to a poll conducted by the Arabic Division of the BBC on Twitter. It dealt with the topic “The Reasons We Reject the Application of Shariah.” On the very first day, 5000 young people from Egypt and Saudi Arabia responded; they stated that “the Shariah was neither suitable, nor relevant to modern life!”

What becomes evident from these reports on Arabic-language sources is that the Arab world faces both the spread of violent movements such as ISIS, as well as the rise of unbelief among the youth. Western news media keep us well-informed about conflicts in the Middle East: the advances of ISIS in Syria and Iraq and the Yemeni Civil War now spilling into southern Saudi Arabia. But there is hardly any reporting on American or European media about the phenomenon of “The Rise and Spread of Ilhad in the Arab world.” Indeed, the plight of Raif Badawi has been well-covered, but his case is not unique; other Arab young men and women suffer on account of forsaking their Islamic faith. To make known their plight becomes the responsibility of the Western Press!

Postscript

The publication and comments on this report must not be construed as my endorsement, or approval of any “flight” into atheism. My work during the last two decades has consisted of translating and commenting on themes and issues that appear on online reformist Arabic-language sources. The past century witnessed the most shocking and unimaginable atrocities committed by atheistic regimes in Nazi Germany, the USSR, People’s Republic of China, Cambodia, and North Korea; where millions of innocent men, women, and children were sacrificed on the altar of atheistic ideologies. Atheistic worldviews do not solve problems, but exacerbate them. It is my hope that the emergence of this crisis of faith among the youth of the Arab world, would act as an incentive for the ‘Ulema’ and the political leaders to consider seriously the subject of reform. They need to take measures that would lead to the spread of a tolerant spirit in society.  

Posted in Articles

Radical Theories in Missiology

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Replacing Christology with Jesuology

Rev. Bassam M. Madany

In the May, 2015 issue of The Banner, a monthly publication of the Christian Reformed Church, an article appeared with the title, “Leaving the Baggage Behind.” The following are excerpts that advocate a new approach in missions among Muslims in West Africa.

“Various experiences and encounters with the Fulani would push us to ask ourselves, what is the essential thing the Fulani needed to know to have salvation in Jesus?” Larry said. “We asked ourselves this question every so often and each time we would throw away a few more ‘suitcases’.” Finally there was only one thing left: Jesus.
Looking back on his conversation with Aamadu, Larry realized something. Yes, the imam had asked him to stop trying to make him become a Christian. But he never asked Larry to stop sharing about Jesus.

“It may sound strange,” said Larry, “but we realized that if Muslims were going to be able to really see Jesus, we would have to extract him from Christianity.”

http://www.thebanner.org/together/2015/04/leaving-our-baggage-behind

After 1400 years of Christian-Muslim encounters, a group of young American missionaries have discovered THE way to convert Muslims, not to the Christian Faith, but to Jesus only; their mission is clear:  “They would have to extract Jesus from Christianity.” In other words, Christology, the doctrine of the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ, is to be replaced with Jesuology[i], a mystical Jesus who is experienced through the contemplation of the lives of Western missionaries who had lived and adapted to the local culture.

This Missiology has not been a sudden development; it’s the ultimate point reached by the Contextualization Movement that emerged in the 1970s, primarily among non-confessional Evangelicals. Their presupposition was that the Missionary Enterprise, especially among Muslims, had not been successful because missionaries had failed to   contextualize their message.

Eventually, the Movement morphed into the Insider Movement that advocated converts from Islam, need not join a local church, but remain within their Islamic milieu where they would witness about Jesus, having “extracted Him from Christianity.”  This is tantamount to the rejection of the Pauline Epistles with their high doctrine of Soteriology and the Johannine writings with their high doctrine of Christology. This is what I meant by the term “Jesuology”

I am indebted to Professor Gerald Bray of Samford University, who dealt with the importance of the creedal heritage of Christianity, in “Creeds, Council and Christ: Did the early Christians misrepresent Jesus?”[ii] Here are some pertinent quotations from this work:

“The question: 'Did the early Christians misrepresent Jesus?' has dominated modern theological discussion to such an extent that the history and development of the Church is widely regarded as a corruption of the original gospel message. The doctrines and practices of the first Christian communities have come under suspicion, and in some quarters they have been quite openly rejected by those who want a fundamentally different kind of Christianity. The purpose of this book is to explain in simple terms what the Early Church believed, and why it developed its theology in the way that it did.

“It is a defense of the classical orthodox beliefs contained in the major creeds and the statements of the General Councils of the first five centuries. Far from being innovations, these documents are re-statements of the teaching of scripture, which were worked out in the mission field of the Roman Empire. As such they have always commanded the allegiance of the vast majority of Christians, and they must still be the basis for any future reunion of the churches. Modern Christians need to learn about their heritage and understand its importance, as well as its relevance to today's debate. This book is a contribution to that understanding, and it is written in the same spirit and with the same missionary purpose as that which guided the Fathers of the Church whose work forms the subject of its pages.” From the Introduction

My late wife, Shirley and I dealt with this subject some two decades ago, in an article that I’m reproducing in order to show that in our globalized world, the term “Western Baggage” has become obsolete, thus it exists only in the minds of some Westerners who seem to be unaware of the tremendous changes in our world, especially thanks to the ubiquity of the Internet!

Western Baggage

The term “Western baggage” is frequently used in missiological circles. Some missionaries and missionary theorists torture themselves as they try to figure out just how much they should adapt to the customs and cultures of the people to whom they are bringing the Gospel. Likewise they question how much of their own culture they may safely share.

In a recent issue of AL-HAWADETH, a weekly Arabic-language magazine published in London, England, the subject of Westernization was tackled from the Arab viewpoint. Arab thinkers today are grappling with the challenge of modernization. How to catch up with the new world and not lose their culture in the process is the burning question for Arab and Muslim intellectuals from Indonesia to Morocco.

AL-HAWADETH, like other Arabic magazines published in Western Europe, has contributions from many talented Arab writers who do not enjoy the freedom of the press in their homelands. In her weekly column, Ghada As-Samman wrote a sparkling bit of prose as she addresses this thorny question. She considers it to be a most important issue. What really annoys her is that the blame is so often directed at “women” in the Arab/Islamic world, as if they were the only guilty ones, as if their wearing of Western garb, for example, was the greatest crime!

Her title was catching and was taken from the well-known children’s story about the king who had no clothes. It was: “We Are All Naked, and People Have Eyes.” In other words, she wanted to make it perfectly clear that this matter of Western culture weighs on the shoulders of every Arab man and woman, and that there is an urgent need to find a workable solution. She believes it vitally important for Arabs (and Muslims as well) to discover just how to have a healthy interaction with the world without losing their identity.

As a woman, she had a particular bone of contention. She was furious over a column in an Arabic newspaper in which a certain public speaker had shown demonstrably biased feelings towards women. Evidently, a lady in his audience one evening, attired in Western dress, had asked him a question about the rights and place of women in Islam. He was not ashamed to brag that he had certainly put her in her place. He had told her that because she was dressed in a Western dress, she had become a woman without identity. She was like a creation made by Dracula! This latter comment, Miss As-Samman noted sarcastically, was a slip of the tongue because obviously he meant Frankenstein, not Dracula. Even in translation you get the full feeling of her reaction:

“As if Arab men who had come to the occasion were wearing Arabian clothes and as if our esteemed fellow-writer came in his Egyptian Gallabiyya! As if he had not shaved that morning with an English blade and used French- made after-shave lotion! As if he did not listen to the news on an American-made radio! As if he had not taken his German Mercedes and gone to his office filled with Italian furniture! As if his own wife made clothes of Egyptian cotton and Syrian silk! As if she put her food in a refrigerator of Arab origin and his children watched television on a non-imported set! As if he did not write his lines to abuse that woman, using an American or Polish-made pen, but wrote it with an Arabian reed!”

She went on to note how much time is wasted in the discussions among some Arab intellectuals whether to find new words to describe things like telephone, television, and sandwiches. As she pointed out, to give these items Arabic names would never alter the fact that they had been invented and produced in foreign lands.

She was very critical of the current habit of spending money on Western products and on vacations in Western lands, and then returning home to heap abuse on these so-called decadent countries. She had detected that the real problem lay in their secret admiration of the fruits of Western civilization, and a craving for its freedoms.

Certainly this Arab writer is not concerned at all about who is guilty of bringing all the above-mentioned symbols of the West into Arab and Muslim lives. The interdependence of the world has reached a level that such questions are almost ridiculous. Television, radio, advertising, travel, computers, education abroad, and other things, have made absorption of other people’s tools and customs inevitable.

While modern Muslims like Ghada were decrying this hypocritical denunciation of the West, at the same time she was calling for some kind of co-existence between Islam and the world.

It will help you appreciate the magnitude of the problem from the Arab standpoint. The Arabs have a glorious history. There is no doubt about that. During the European Middle Ages, the Arabs enjoyed their golden age when they were the ones exporting arts and crafts to Europe. You have only to visit the cities of Spain, such as Seville, Granada and Cordoba, or read the history of Arab scholarship in centers like Baghdad in the ninth century, to realize that this is a tremendous reversal for them--to be on the receiving end of every great invention of modern times. In our globalized world it is inevitable that the world cultures impact each other.

There is a parallel here which bears mentioning. There may be a lesson for Western Christians. In some Christian circles, we have detected a persistent criticism of the pioneer missionaries regarding their so- called “Western baggage” and their part in bringing it into the mission fields.

At present the dominant culture is Western. Followers of the other major world cultures, especially Islam, find it very threatening. But they cannot avoid it while living in such an interdependent world. Meanwhile those who criticize the pioneer missionaries for taking with them their “Western baggage” are actually manifesting a basic misunderstanding of the Christian faith. The baggage they would be referring to would be everything that is typical of our Christian heritage. They would see the liturgy and style of worship as decidedly Western and they would have doubts about the singing of western hymns or western hymn tunes. They forget the deep roots of the historic Christian faith, springing out of the very Middle East to which it is now being brought.

While it is obvious that the Western world was Christianized, the Gospel did not originate, geographically, in the West. The apostles and evangelists (with the exception of Luke) were of Jewish background, but they wrote the New Testament in Greek, the universal language of their time. The Great Commission propelled them into the world. During the First Millennium, the Ecumenical Councils defined and defended Christian orthodoxy by summarizing for us the Faith, in the Creeds of Nicea and Chalcedon. We call them Ecumenical Councils.

As Reformed Christians, we believe that the Reformation was the result of the work of the Holy Spirit in leading men like Luther and Calvin to rediscover the Gospel and reform the faith and life of the church. Their works brought to light especially the Biblical doctrines of salvation and the church. Eventually, they were summarized in the catechisms and confessions of the Protestant Churches. When the missionaries took the Good News to Africa and Asia beginning in the late eighteenth century, their first agenda was to give the converts the Bible in their own languages. But it would have been utterly irresponsible, if Reformed missionaries had refrained from sharing with the young churches, translations of the wealth of the Reformation.

For example, heroes of the faith, the missionaries of the 19th and early 20th century, spent a lifetime in service to the Arabic-speaking world. They learned the language with such skill that they could produce the Smith/Van Dyke version of the Bible in 1865. Some of them were gifted enough to write Arabic hymns. Others wrote books, which would be a guide to worship. Many of these treasures are almost lost from sight.

Thus, as we deal with the subject of “Western baggage,” we should distinguish between that which is an integral part of the universal Christian heritage of the last two millennia, and the “Western” secular worldview that has dominated so many aspects of the Western culture in the twentieth century. It is certainly our mandate as Western Christians, to take the Good News of Christianity to our divided and tortured world, along with all the fullness of our truly Christian heritage. At the same time, we should make it clear to the followers of other faiths that, as Christians, we deplore the dominant Western secular worldview. We base our faith on the unchanging Word of God, and we are eager to share with others, the glorious Good News of Jesus Christ.


[i] Jesuology is a term I use, borrowed from French, to designate an attempt to jettison the historic doctrines of the Person and Work of Jesus Christ, as expounded in Holy Scripture, and formulated in the Ecumenical Creeds of the Church Universal.

Posted in Articles

The Muslim Brotherhood’s Infiltration of the West

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

A Review Article by Bassam Michael Madany

Introduction

Arab Nationalism suffered a severe blow following the Hazima (Defeat) of the Six Day War in June, 1967. President Gamal Abdu-Nasser who had promised to utterly defeat Israel, found its armies occupying the Sinai Peninsula, and stationed at the east bank of the Suez Canal. That Hazima had far-reaching consequences, and became a major factor in the rebirth of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, and in other parts of the Arab world.

The founder of the Muslim Brotherhood (Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimoon) was Hassan al-Banna            (1906 – 1949.) His father Ahmad al-Banna was an Imam at a mosque in a small town north of Cairo. The family moved to Cairo, where Hassan studied at Dar al-Uloom school. At the young age of 22, he founded the Brotherhood to combat the impact of Western secularism on Egyptian life, as it was very evident in the capital.  By 1930, there were branches of the Ikhwan in every province, and eight years later, it counted 500,000 active members drawn from several strands of the Egyptian society.

Hassan al-Banna did more than writing and speaking; he manifested his activism by sending a contingent of Ikhwan to fight in southern Palestine, alongside the Egyptian Army in May, 1948. King Faruq’s Prime Minister Mahmoud al-Nukrashi Pasha claimed that the Brotherhood was plotting a coup, and disbanded the organization in December, 1948. Soon after that, he was assassinated.  Al-Banna condemned the assassination; however that did not convince the authorities. On 12 February, 1949, he and his brother-in-law Abdul Karim were shot dead on a Cairo street, as they stood waiting for a taxi.

The Brotherhood was severely impacted by the death of its founder. He became a Shaheed, a martyr for the cause of re-vitalizing Islamic society in Egypt. Not long after the assassination, another leader of the Ikhwan appeared, Sayyid Qutb. Interestingly, he was born in a town in Upper Egypt, on 9 October, 1906, five days prior to Al-Banna’s birth!

Qutb is considered the ideologue of the Brotherhood, and may be counted as one of the fathers of Islamism.  In the late 1940s, he spent two years studying in America.  At Colorado State University in Greely, he became extremely critical of the students’ life, especially the mingling between young students of the two sexes. Returning home, he wrote two major books: “Milestones on the Way” and a commentary on the Qur’an: “In the Shade of the Qur’an.” On 26 October, 1954, when President Nasser was delivering a speech at Alexandria,[i] there was an attempt to assassinate him; but the plot failed. Members of the Brotherhood were arrested, a mob in Cairo burnt their offices; Sayyid Qutb was tried and executed on 29 August, 1966.

As a result of the crackdown on the members of “Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimoon,” several of its members left Egypt and went to Europe and the United States. At a speaking engagement in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in March 1959, I remember meeting four Egyptian students who were attending the University of Michigan. I learnt that they were “refugees” from their homeland because they were members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

One prominent member of the Brotherhood was Said Ramadan, the son-in-law of Hassan al-Banna. He had settled in Switzerland, and played a major role in the infiltration of the organization in Germany. This has been well documented by Ian Johnson, a Pulitzer Prize winning American author. He relates that story, and reveals some little known events in a book entitled: “A MOSQUE IN MUNICH: NAZIS, THE CIA, AND THE RISE OF THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD IN THE WEST.”[ii]

The following is my review of the book; it’s an intriguing story with many international actors. It explains how “The Muslim Brotherhood Infiltrated Western Europe and the United States of America.” I must add that I know Mr. Johnson personally; as I met him in Seattle, Washington, during one of his book tours.

In the winter of 2003, Mr. Johnson, as he often did, was browsing the latest offerings of a Muslim bookstore in London.  Prominently displayed amidst the highly radical literature was a colorful map.  It highlighted important centers of Islamic influence around the world.  His curiosity was piqued in particular by a reference to “The Islamic Center of Munich.”  Mr. Johnson at first assumed its prominence on the map had something to do with meeting the needs of the vast number of Muslim immigrants who, since the 1960’s, were living in Germany and in Munich specifically.  But why, he wondered, was it up there along with only three other world-famous mosques including the one in Mecca?  What was so special about it that it could garner such attention?  Mr. Johnson spent the next several years researching the answer, combing through countless archives and interviewing people connected to the Mosque project.  The result is this excellent book chronicling events surrounding the Mosque’s creation decades ago and what it has become at this moment in time – a vehicle for spreading the principles of the Muslim Brotherhood into the West.  The story is a sharp reminder of the risk of unintended consequences that often result from even well-intentioned aims. 

In the first chapters, the reader is introduced to the post-World War II setting in West Germany and a particularly important character named Gerhard von Mende.  Among the many displaced persons inhabiting Germany after the war were Muslim minorities who had lived under Soviet domination in the Caucasus, as well as the Muslims of the Central Asian republics of the USSR.  Former Nazi von Mende believed there was a special place for them, many of whom had fought for the Nazis, in post-war Germany. Von Mende had been a brilliant scholar with expertise on the Turkic peoples living in the Caucasus and Central Asia when Hitler found a task for him in his Third Reich.  He was put in charge of “the ‘Ostministerium’ where he developed plans for harnessing Islam, a strategy that would last long after the Nazi defeat.” (p. 21) Von Mende was a very willing and effective tool in Hitler’s Third Reich goals.  He had no qualms about the pogroms being conducted against the Jews, yet he was very proactive in the ‘Ostministerium’ on behalf of the Muslim minorities of the USSR. Throughout the war, he dealt with captured Muslim soldiers from the Caucasus regions who had been conscripted to fight on behalf of the Soviets against the Germans.  Like von Mende, they hated the Soviets and became willing collaborators with the Germans.  An important ally of von Mende during the War was a Palestinian cleric named Haj Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem.  As early as 1933, al-Husseini evidenced his hatred of Jews by advising the Nazis to “get rid of Jewish influence in economics and politics.”  (p. 112) Al-Husseini cooperated with the Nazis in their propaganda efforts to woo the Muslim World into fighting for the Third Reich.  Hatred of the Jews is not only a major theme running through Islamic thought, but has also proved to be a deadly principle of action for its Jihadists.  Whether Western leaders have learned from this dynamic is still an open question.

At war’s end the United States, first under Trueman and then Eisenhower, began serious efforts to combat the influence and expansion of the Soviet Union around the world.  They also saw a use for the Muslim minorities in West Germany.  Johnson relates how the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Council were formed soon after the war. (p. 40) “Psychological warfare” was a highly popular tool with the new agencies and with Eisenhower, and it would be used in future CIA intelligence work.  In Europe the CIA created the American Committee for Liberation (Amcomlib) and Radio Liberty and Radio Free Europe were two of its propaganda operations targeting the Soviets and their satellites.  Many of the Muslim minorities were employed in the daily operations of the stations, and rivalry began between those working for the Americans and those for the West Germans.

Von Mende’s plans for using the former Muslim soldiers to benefit West Germany were also taking shape.  His Nazi past was no detriment to him in the post-war years.  Both the new West German government and the United States were willing to work with him and benefit from his various areas of expertise.  He was given a nice office in Dusseldorf and put in charge of the “House of the Homeless Aliens.”  Cooperation between the two allies became more strained, however, as West German confidence increased over the years. Each feared losing the Muslim minorities to the other.  Johnson, in a particularly revealing chapter on how the Mosque was conceived, (pp. 91-103) relates growing tension in U.S.-German relations centering around West Germany’s desire for reunification with East Germany.  Things got complicated when another former Nazi named Theodore Oberländer came into the picture.  Chancellor Adenauer appointed him “cabinet minister in charge of refugees.”  (p. 93) As such, he pushed the particular idea that Germany should recover those “vast stretches of German land lost to Poland and the Soviet Union after the war.”  (p. 91) Oberländer was baulking at the fait accompli that had occurred when the Oder-Neisse border had been fixed at war’s end by the allies.  He wanted von Mende to help him get the border redrawn so as to redress the East Prussians’ grievances at being made homeless by the Allied post-war remapping.  He made common cause with the “expellees” now living in West Germany (p. 92) in an attempt to fulfill his pipedream and keep the issue before the public eye. 

Johnson details the intricate maneuvering that occurred as the Americans were becoming alarmed at this turn of events and their belief that the West German government might make a deal with the Soviets to get reunification with East Germany in return for remaining a neutral power.  They also needed the Muslim minorities for their propaganda work at the radio stations and other projects necessitating the wooing of Muslim “agents”.  The Germans needed the Muslims for their aims as well, but didn’t have quite the resources the U.S. did to sway the minorities.  However, they did conceive what proved to be a very clever chess move.  Why not, thought they, both control and unite their Muslim assets by building them a Mosque.

There were two important leaders of Munich’s Muslims at the time: an imam named Ibrahim Gacaoglu who worked for the Americans, and another imam, Nurredin Namangani, a personal friend of von Mende, who worked for the Germans.  The latter had been a “survivor of the Soviet gulag, imam of an SS division, holder of high military awards, he was an ideal choice to bring Munich’s Muslims into line.” (p. 96) He also was a man the likes of which future years would see a lot more of coming out of Islam: a dedicated Islamic true believer.

Ibrahim Gacaoglu was mellower and considered the elder statesman and popular leader of the rank and file Muslims still displaced in Germany, and was solidly with the Americans and their efforts against the Soviets.  Von Mende and the Bonn government, however, said Gacaoglu was an “American stooge” and “the only issue for them was how to knock out Gacaoglu and the Americans.” (p. 99) They wanted their man to be the Muslim unifier. They succeeded.  A small group of Caucasus Muslims met in a beer cellar in March of 1958, chose Namangani their imam, and created the “Ecclesiastical Administration of Moslem Refugees in the German Federal Republic” which was promptly recognized by the Bonn government and put on its payroll.  Bonn appropriated $30,000 in today’s money to help run the office. The Mosque project took off that same year, 1958, but was not completed until August 1973.  Over the years, money to fund the Mosque came from different sources, especially Saudi ones.  One Saudi businessman donated “one million marks.”  (p. 159)

Meanwhile, in 1956, a young man from Cairo named Said Ramadan also entered into the Mosque story.  With him came another element– the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood.  Ramadan had already made a name for himself in the Brotherhood, traveling all over the Arab world lecturing and exerting his charismatic personality for the cause of Muslim unity.  He also founded The Muslim World League.  As a young man, he had been attracted to Hasan al-Banna, the founder, in 1928, of the Muslim Brotherhood. He became al-Banna’s secretary, and married one of his daughters.

Johnson details (p. 116-119) a most interesting incident in 1953 when Ramadan went to America with a group of Muslims for a Symposium at Princeton University and took a side trip to Washington to meet with President Eisenhower as well.  The White House and State Department wanted to work with the Muslim world and thought they could impress the Symposium delegates and Ramadan about U.S. moral superiority over the Soviets.  A CIA analyst reporting on the meeting had a less sanguine opinion of Ramadan than did the White House and State calling him a “political agitator. . . a political reactionary, a Phalangist or Fascist type. . . interested in the grouping of individuals for power.” (p. 118)

In 1956 Ramadan went to Cologne, Germany for doctoral studies under Dr. Gerhard Kegel.  His thesis was how to implement Sharia Islamic Law.  Dr. Kegel told Johnson in an interview that Ramadan was “intelligent if also fanatical.” (p. 121) Besides working on his thesis, he was traveling all over the Muslim world promoting Islamic interests, including the Mosque. The CIA was supportive and even sponsored some of his conferences.  He was also successful in swaying Muslim students in Germany to his Brotherhood perspective and succeeded in taking control of the Mosque project away from von Mende and his Muslim soldiers.  But his influence eventually waned.  He had helped organize the Muslim World League but lost control of it to the Saudis, who not only funded its projects but came to control its governance.  He was soon to lose control of the Mosque as well.  When it was completed in August of 1973, Ramadan didn’t even attend the celebration ceremonies as he “had left the project in disgust…” (p.182)  He continued his work on Muslim causes from his home in Switzerland and even got involved in various controversies in his final years.  His son Tariq would become well-known as a European model of a moderate Muslim!  As some readers may no doubt remember, Tariq Ramadan was given an appointment to teach at Notre Dame University in Indiana; however, as the Bush Administration denied him visa rights for his questionable ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, he did not assumed his teaching position.[iii]

Even without Ramadan, Muslim Brotherhood influence over the Mosque via its “politically expansionist, Saudi-financed wing” (p. 185) only intensified as other men came on the scene to run it.  Its name even changed as the years went on reflecting its expanding commitments beyond a mere meeting place for local believers. Ghaleb Himmat, in particular, a Syrian and strong Muslim Brotherhood man, “was able to lead the Islamic Center of Munich down an adventurous path…” (p.188)  Youssef Nada, another wealthy Egyptian businessman, was his right hand man who knew where the contacts and money were and “helped guide the Mosque into the Saudi Brotherhood network.” (p. 190).  Even though they headed up the Munich project and the growing number of other German Islamic Centers, they both owned swanky homes near Lake Lugano in Italy from where they spread the Muslim Brotherhood ideology.  Nada lived in the U.S. for a while where his three daughters were born.  So it was that the “marriage of Saudi money and the Muslim Brotherhood’s ideology set the stage for the spread of Islamist thinking, not only across the Muslim world, but into the West too. Nada, Himmat, and the Islamic Center of Munich would be its epicenter.” (p. 191) Its ideology became more stridently provocative as it took up Jihadist thinking.  No wonder it would become a haven for future terrorists.  Even Himmat became suspect and had to resign the leadership because of accusations of helping finance Al Qaeda.    (p. 188)

Western leaders are slow learners, if they learn at all.  Recent trends are disturbing.  American officials both criticize and work with the Muslim Brotherhood, mostly the latter.  In 2005 the State Department sponsored a Conference paid for by American taxpayers to implement the idea that “the United States had better Muslim leadership” (p. 223) and could teach their European counterparts a thing or two.  And the teachers were all Muslim Brotherhood men.  So in effect, the “State Department was importing Muslim Brotherhood Islamists with roots in Europe to tell European Muslims how to organize and integrate.”  (p. 223) “This paralleled U. S. efforts in the 1950s to enlist Muslims in Munich for similar public relations purposes…. Just as in the 1950s and ‘60’s, the United States opted for the Brotherhood.” (p. 225) 

In the final chapters Johnson sets forth how the Muslim Brotherhood has exhibited a vastly expanded world-wide influence.  It can be pragmatic when necessary.  It has shown great organizational finesse in starting Islamic entities, with much Saudi financing, in democratic countries, particularly the United States.  It has a freer range of action in America and Europe than in its home country, Egypt, ironically “using” the free world’s media, governmental and academic institutions in perhaps a more effective way than ever the West “used” the Muslim minorities Johnson elucidates.  Iraqis in America founded the Muslim Student Association in 1962.  Ismail Faruqi took charge of the Brotherhood’s International Institute of Islamic Thought near Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he taught.  The Brotherhood’s goal “to provide the theoretical underpinnings for the spread of Islamism in the West” was its organizing principle.  (p. 195) Many Islamist leaders are suave and charming peddlers of the Brotherhood message, and adept at downplaying the harsher aspects of its unbending ideology. Gullible Western leaders in their desire to bend to the demands of “political correctness” are willing to overlook those harsher aspects as well.  The impression is given that they don’t really understand the religion and ideology opposing them.  Such submissive acceptance looks like self-imposed Dhimmitude.

In our post-911 world, the West has no excuse for not educating itself on the beliefs and aims of the Muslim Brotherhood and its desire to implement Islamist goals world-wide. What the Brotherhood has wrought for Islamism on a global scale through that one Mosque in Munich, is frightfully impressive.  Western politicians and intellectual elites would do well to take note of Johnson’s reminder that the Muslim Brotherhood is not just “an Egyptian political party” but “an ideological universe.” (p. 231) So much has been accomplished by the Islamists from events surrounding that small MOSQUE IN MUNICH.  Ian Johnson’s digging into the past for those background events has produced an impressive book.  Now we know how former Nazis, CIA operatives, heads of governments and a colorful cast of other characters used those Muslim minorities left in limbo after WWII for their own political ends.  And in the process the tables got turned.  We can only conclude that by insisting on bringing the Muslim Brotherhood to “educate” the Muslim refugees of the Caucasus and Central Asia, the Americans and West Germans paved the way for an irreversible “Islamic Infiltration of Europe,” which may well transform it into part of Daru’l Islam, i.e., the House of Islam. 

Back to Egypt, the birthplace of Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimoon. During the one-year rule of President Muhammad Morsi, the Brotherhood almost took over the Egyptian State institutions.  Ironically, prior to Morsi election, the U. S. State Department, under Secretary Hillary Clinton, rooted for the Ikhwan. The thirty-million Egyptians, who demonstrated against him, were much wiser and realistic than the American Administration. We are thankful that President al-Sissi has reversed the course of his predecessor.  He is battling the remnants of the Brotherhood’s believers, and seeking to blunt their underground activities.  He has a great challenge to face in the wilds of the Sinai Peninsula, where an Islamist insurgency is still going on.

What will happen in America is hard to predict.  Perhaps, the next Administration in the USA, would have learnt from the mistakes of the past, and shed the dominant political correctness that afflicted the present Administration.  Let’s hope that our political leaders would become wise as well as prudent, in dealing with the growing international threats to peace and security!


[i] This event remains vivid in my memory. It so happened that on that day, when I was living in the Middle East, I was listening to Radio Cairo. It was broadcasting President Nasser’s speech at Alexandria. Shots were heard; Nasser stopped for a moment, then he raised his voice almost an octave high, and began to shout and denounce the murderer who was apprehended instantly. 

[ii]A MOSQUE IN MUNICH: NAZIS, THE CIA, AND THE RISE OF THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD IN THE WEST”

Hardcover: 336 pages. Publication Date: 05/04/2010, ISBN-10: 0151014183, HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN, and HARCOURT, NEW YORK

[iii] Tariq Ramadan, after failing to come to America, he received the position of Professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies in the Faculty of Oriental Studies at Oxford University. He also teaches at the Oxford Faculty of Theology. He is Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Islamic Studies,

Posted in Articles

Islamic Imperialism: A Neglected Topic

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

By Bassam M. Madany

Most Arab and Muslim writers, even those who claim to be moderate, hardly ever admit that Islam was responsible for the rise of a unique imperialistic venture in the history of mankind. No other major world religion combined religion with politics, church and state, as Islam has done during the last 1400 years. And no other religion spread primarily through the sword, as Islam has done. In fact, Muslims glorify their early futuhat or conquests, claiming that they were accomplished with the approval of Allah, who gave them the right to bring mankind under their rule.

I am fully aware that the West has been imperialistic; in fact I lived under the French presence in the Levant during my formative years. In the school I attended, almost all subjects were taught in French. While we did study the history of the Near East, the emphasis was on “Histoire de France.”  The title of our geography book was “La France et ses Colonies.” However, when the French departed, they left no lasting impact on the area. The same applies to the other European Empires: they began in the 19th century, and spread for 150 years, to disappear soon after WWII. An important feature about Western Empires is that they were all “Overseas.” Not so with Islam, it spread contiguously as a land empire, coupled with colonization of the occupied areas, thus  producing  a lasting impact on the native populations.  

To illustrate this fact, I would like to quote from the works of a British writer, V. S. Naipaul. Soon after the Islamic revolution in Iran, Naipaul visited Iran, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Indonesia. He met with people from all walks of life, and listened to them as they responded to his questions about the impact of their faith on their daily life. As a result of his research, he published “Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey,” (Random House, New York, 1982)

Reflecting on the impact of Islam on Iran, Naipaul wrote “Islam in Iran was even more complicated. It was a divergence from the main belief; and this divergence had its roots in the political-racial dispute about the succession to the Prophet, who died in 632 A.D. Islam, almost from the start, had been an imperialism as well as a religion, with an early history remarkably like a speeded-up version of the history of Rome, developing from city-state to peninsular overlord to empire, with corresponding stresses at every stage. P. 7 [Emphasis mine]

Almost two decades later, Naipaul re-visited these four Islamic countries, and managed to meet with some of the persons he had talked to in the 1970s. He produced a follow-up book, “Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions among the Converted People.” It was published by Random House in 1998

The author returned to the theme of his previous book, and pointed to the unique nature of Islamic imperialism, namely to make “the Converted People” forget their entire past, as if history began with the Islamic futuhat of their countries! In the Prologue, he wrote:

“Islam is in its origins an Arab religion. Everyone not an Arab who is a Muslim is a convert. Islam is not simply a matter of conscience or private belief. It makes imperial demands. A convert’s worldview alters. His holy places are in Arab lands; his language is Arabic. His idea of history alters. He rejects his own; he becomes, whether he likes it or not, a part of the Arab story. The convert has to turn away from everything that is his. The disturbance for societies is immense, and even after a thousand years can remain unresolved; the turning away has to be done again and again. People develop fantasies about who and what they are; and in the Islam of the converted countries there is an element of neurosis and nihilism. These countries can be easily set on the boil.” P. xi [Emphasis mine]

As I mentioned earlier, when I refer to the uniqueness of Islamic imperialism, I have in mind the fact that other imperialist powers like Britain and France did control many parts of the world, including Islamic countries. But when their empires came to an end; their former colonies had not been made over in the image of Britain or France. For example, France, after having established a permanent foothold in Algeria that lasted around 150 years, finally had to give up the attempt after a costly and bloody struggle that cost the lives of around one million Algerians.  Most Europeans settlers who began to live in Algeria since 1849 moved to France, or to other parts of Europe.  In contrast, Islam’s grip on the lands they conquered, with the exception of Spain, Portugal, and lands in Central and Eastern Europe, has remained to this day. 

The historian Efraim Karsh dealt with this subject. In his book “Islamic Imperialism: A History” published by Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2006

Writing in his Introduction, Professor Karsh contrasts Christianity with Islam, “The worlds of Christianity and Islam, however, have developed differently in one fundamental respect. The Christian faith won over an existing empire in an extremely slow and painful process and its universalism was originally conceived in spiritual terms that made a clear distinction between God and Caesar. By the time it was embraced by the Byzantine emperors as a tool for buttressing their imperial claims, three centuries after its foundation, Christianity had in place a countervailing ecclesiastical institution with an abiding authority over the wills and actions of all believers. The birth of Islam, by contrast, was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Muhammad, who derived his authority directly from Allah and acted at one and the same time as head of the state and head of the church. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religious aura and to channel Islam’s energies into ‘its instruments of aggressive expansion, there [being] no internal organism of equal force to counterbalance it.’” P. 5 [Emphasis mine]

While many Muslims continue to rail against Western imperialism, and especially against the United States, it is important not to forget the basic truths about Islam, as observed and commented on by V. S. Naipaul and Efraim Karsh. These men have drawn our attention to the inherently imperialistic nature of Islam.

In his Epilogue, Professor Karsh, noted:

“Political cooperation, however, has not meant accepting Western doctrines or values, as the events of September, 11, 2001, amply demonstrate. Contrary to widespread assumptions, these attacks, and for that matter Arab and Muslim, anti-Americanism, have little to do with US international behavior or its Middle Eastern policy. America’s position as the pre-eminent world power blocks Arab and Islamic imperialist aspirations. As such, it is a natural target for aggression. Osama bin Laden and other Islamists’s war is not against America per se, but is rather the most recent manifestation of the millenarian jihad for a universal Islamic empire (or umma). This is a vision by no means confined to an extremist fringe in Islam, as illustrated by the overwhelming support for the 9/11 attacks throughout the Arab and Islamic worlds. In the historical imagination of many Muslims and Arabs, bin Laden represents nothing short of the new incarnation of Saladin.” P. 234

One may add that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s quest to become a nuclear power will facilitate the spread of its hegemony beyond its borders. Inevitably, that would bring it into conflict with the Sunni powers of the Middle East. It has already been taking place in the Iranian support for President al-Assad of Syria, the Hezbollah Shiite Militia in Lebanon, and as its now happening, in Iran’s involvement in Yemen, by taking the side of the Hawthis, (a Yemeni brand of Shiism,) who have conquered most of Yemen by early April, 2015.  Once Iran has achieved the ambition of acquiring its nuclear weapons and developing its ballistic missiles, we can hardly imagine its awful consequences, not only in the Muslim world, but way beyond Daru’l Islam!  

Posted in Articles

The Myth of Islamophobia

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

The Myth of Islamophobia

“Khurafat al-Islamophobia” Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Over the years, I have kept files on relevant articles posted on Arabic online journals, for later use. Lately, the subject of “Islamophobia” is being discussed among some Christians who are involved in bringing the Gospel to Muslims. It is helpful to read the view of a reformist/liberal Arab intellectual, who dealt with this topic back on 23 July, 2007. He posted it on the Kuwaiti website of www.kwtanweer.com[i] with this title: “Khurafat al-Islamophobia?” The Myth of Islamophobia?

Here are excerpts from this article, followed by my analysis and comments.

The author began with these introductory words:

“We have heard and read a great deal about “Islamophobia,” i.e. the fear of Islam. It is claimed that Western Intelligence Services have invented this term to generate fear of Islam among their peoples. This was necessary, we are told, after the end of the Cold War, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the Socialist camp in Eastern Europe. This theory claims that the West has always needed a common enemy to maintain its cohesion and its alliances. The Communist threat served that purpose for around half a century, and now it is Islam’s role to do the same.

“Let’s be realistic: how did the term “Islamophobia” originate? And, who benefits from it? Who is threatening whom? Is it true that the West is afraid of Islam? If there is a fear of Islam in the West, which Islam is the West afraid of? Is it Islam as a religion, or is it rather political Islam, that has produced Irhab[ii], and continues to commit its ugly crimes against humanity in the name of Islam? Which side suffers the most from these crimes, is it the West, or the Islamic peoples? ”

“Now, if the West is truly afraid of Islam, who caused the rise of this phobia? Aren’t Muslims themselves responsible for that? Arabs suffer from an incurable disease known as the “Conspiracy Theory of History.” They know they are terribly underdeveloped, but at the same time, they resist joining modern civilization. They have nothing to offer save oil, Irhab, and destruction. And notwithstanding their backwardness, as their illiteracy (reading ability) stands around 60%, while their cultural illiteracy is around 90%; Arabs believe they are the best people on earth! They regard the West, with all its sciences, technology, modernity, philosophy, democracy, and human rights; as living in the days of Jahiliyya,[iii] according to the theory of Sayyid Qutb.[iv]

“So, if you tell Muslims they are underdeveloped, they will respond loudly and tell you that Western imperialism, Zionism, and Crusaderism are responsible for their underdevelopment. They add that the West wants nothing less than the destruction of Islam and to appropriate the Muslims’ possessions! This theory has contributed to filling the minds of Muslim youth with hatred and enmity for the West, and has encouraged them to join the ranks of Irhabis.

“Unfortunately, such theories do not emanate only from the propagandists of political Islam, but equally from some liberal-minded writers. For example, the columnist Ouled Abahu contributed an article to the online daily, Al Sharq al-Awsat on 20 July 2007, in which he blamed the rise of Islamophobia on the West. He wrote: ‘It is clear that this negative picture [of Islam] has been fashioned by the Neo-Conservative Movement in the United States, the new British Literary Movement, and the French Conservative-Leftist intellectuals who supported the new Rightist French President Sarkozy.’ ”

This writer went on blaming these groups for “regarding Islam as the greatest threat facing Western civilization.’ ” To prove his point, he referred to two recently-published novels that dealt with Islamic subjects. The one was Salman Rushdie’s ‘Shalimar.’ Its Muslim hero had only one goal: forcing people to build mosques, and hiding women under chadors. The second novel, ‘The Last Days of Muhammad Atta’[v]  depicts Atta as a woman-hater who acquired this attitude from the Qur’an and the Sirat [Life] of the Prophet of Islam’

“The question remains: Do these quotations from the aforesaid novels accurately describe the actions of Muslims, or were they false accusations of Islam? Aren’t Muslims those who require women to wear the hijab? Don’t they also claim that women are mentally and religiously deficient, and are therefore inferior to men? Don’t Muslims quote various Hadiths attributed to the Prophet Muhammad as having said, ‘No man should embark on a project without seeking another man’s advice; but if he fails to find a man, let him ask a woman’s advice, and then do exactly the very opposite of what she had advised?’ Another Hadith shows the low esteem for women in Islam: ‘When you obey women, you’ll soon regret it!’ Another similar Hadith: ‘Men have perished when they obeyed women!’

“As for Muslims’ attitude toward non-Muslims, the Fuqaha [legal authorities] of Irhab love to quote this Hadith: ‘I have been commanded to fight people until they say La Ilaha illa’l Allah; when they utter these words, they have my promise that I would not shed their blood, or acquire their possessions.’ Isn’t it political Islam that urges young men to kill innocent non-Muslims, as well as Muslims who don’t agree with them? Aren’t Muslim religious leaders who use texts from the Qur’an and Hadith, to blame for transforming Muslim doctors living in the West, into Irhabis? If all that I have detailed is true, why then blame Westerners for inventing the term, “Islamophobia?”

“Had the West been really afraid of Islam as a religion, Western governments would not have allowed Muslim communities to settle in their countries, or offered financial aid in building their mosques, or allowed them to bring Imams [preachers and leaders of mosques] from Muslim lands. If the West was truly afraid of Islam, why were some propagandists of political Islam allowed to settle in Western countries? Millions of Muslims come to the ‘Infidel West’ and live in it, in peace and tranquility. In fact the proportional number of mosques in the West is greater than in Islamic lands. For example there are more than one thousand mosques in Britain, while the number of Muslims living there is around two million! At the same time, Copts in Egypt are not allowed to build new churches unless they get permission from the President; and obtaining the needed permit for that is almost an impossibility.  Furthermore, when a Christian comes to Saudi Arabia, he is not allowed to bring his Bible with him; if he has one, it is confiscated at the airport!

“Muslims enjoy complete freedom of worship in the West; in fact they have more freedom in Western lands than in Islamic countries. Actually, religious freedom for Muslims is granted only and uniquely to the type of Islam that is sanctioned by the state. Thus, Shi’ites living in Wahhabi Saudi Arabia don’t enjoy the freedom to express their own type of Islam. As for Iran, the case is reversed, since Shi’ism is the official religion of the state, Sunni Muslims do not enjoy complete freedom. It is a fact that no mosque has been bombed in any Western country, whereas attacks on mosques, [both Sunni and Shi’ite mosques] often happen in Islamic countries. ”

“It was the followers of political Islam who invented the term “Islamophobia” and they are the ones who benefit from it. Their goal is to place the Muslim communities in the West in a state of confrontation with the host nations; pushing them to adopt a radical form of Islam, and thus, inflaming the struggle with the West. They have succeeded, up to a point, to gain the sympathy of some moderate Muslims who criticize the West, and rail against its “Islamophobia.”

“For example, after the failed terrorist attacks in London and Glasgow, an Arab organization in Britain issued a statement criticizing the terrorist attack, while at the same time, it blamed Britain’s foreign policy as a possible reason for that attack. But such a claim is nothing but a pack of lies! There can be no justification whatsoever for any act of terror. Let’s never forget that those who were involved in the terrorist attack were medical doctors who betrayed the honor of the medical profession. It was a religious ideology that changed Muslim doctors into Irhabis. Now, aren’t Westerners justified if they fear people like them? After all, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the second in command in al-Qaida, is a doctor and the son of a doctor! ”

“Yes, political Islam is a threat to the world. The majority of terrorists are Muslim, who have been brainwashed and made to hate the West and its civilizational values. Those who encourage this attitude rely on religious texts to convince would-be terrorists to commit their terrible crimes. Thus, it is the duty of reasonable Muslims to save Islam from those who have high jacked it and use it to reach their goal, namely to recreate the Islamic Caliphate. But such a dream can only be realized within their sick minds. What is needed is to bring certain Islamic texts, the Ayat al-Sayf wal-Qital (The Qur’anic Sword Texts) in line with the conditions of the present time. Unless peaceful coexistence with the rest of mankind is advocated, Islam and Muslims would find themselves in a perpetual confrontation with the rest of the civilized world. The results would be catastrophic for Muslims themselves. Actually, in the West, there is no fear of Islam as a religion; but there is fear of political Islam, the source of Islamic Irhab, whose danger is greater for Muslims than for the West.”

Analysis

The writer is at pains to explain that the West did not invent “Islamophobia” as a means to combat Islam and Muslim nations in this new century. It is radical Muslims and their fellow-travelers who use this term, in order to silence any honest and needed critique of certain aspects of Islam. He points to the fact that many Muslims have settled in the Western world, where they enjoy freedom of worship, and an opportunity to earn a decent livelihood. If there is a fear of Islam, it is of “Political Islam.” He holds it responsible for the spread of the fear of Islam, in other words, “Islamophobia.” He insists that radical Islam, and not the West, is responsible for the rise and spread of this term.

Comments

Indeed it is refreshing to read such an article on a widely-visited website. The author is very frank and extremely bold in telling a truth that is seldom heard from the side of Arab and Muslim writers.

My problem with the article is that the distinction the author makes between Islam as religion, and political Islam, can be sustained only on a theoretical level. In reality, however, it is Islam as religion that eventually gave birth to Islam as a state with its political ideology. This is the verdict of the history of the last 1400 years.

Islam began in 610 A.D. as a religious movement. Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, claimed that Allah was giving him a definitive word for mankind. The revelations that “descended” on Muhammad in Mecca (610-622) dealt with purely religious themes: the unity of God, the vanity of idols, and the necessity to submit to Allah according to His holy Shariah or law. As one begins to read the Qur’an in Arabic, he will notice at the head of every chapter a superscription that gives its name, and the place of its “descent.” For example, Surat al-Fatiha (Chapter One) is “Makkiya wa-Ayatuha Sab’a” (It is Meccan, and has Seven Verses); while Surat al-Baqarah (Chapter Two) has 281 verses, and was the first to “descend” in Medina.

It was during his sojourn in Medina (622-632) that Muhammad became both  andProphet Statesman. The revelations “descending” upon him in this new place dealt with both religious and political issues. When he died in 632, his successors, the Caliphs, began their futuhat or conquests of the world. They built within one hundred years, a huge empire stretching from Spain in the West to India in the East. It is very doubtful that Islam, as a religion (or the Islam of the Meccan chapters of the Qur’an) would have spread as it actually did, without the aid of the political-military complex it had become.

Not long ago, an Islamic Caliphate or Empire still existed. I have in mind the Ottoman Empire that had once succeeded in finishing off the Byzantine Empire in 1453. It controlled the Middle East, the Balkans, several parts of Central Europe, and twice reached the gates of Vienna (1529 and 1683.) But since the abolishing of the Caliphate in 1924, by the Turkish strongman Mustapha Kemal Ataturk, a powerful malaise has set in within Daru’l Islam. Muslim intellectuals kept asking, “What Went Wrong?” The dream of resurrecting the old glory of the Caliphate has never died. Soon after the end of Western colonialism and the various nationalistic-socialist experiments in the Arab world proved their utter bankruptcy, attempts to revive Islam as a political power have gained momentum. It is at this point that Islamic triumphalist ideologies gained popularity among Arab and Muslim young men. Thus, what is now called political Islam, or Islamism, was born. It is not, however, entirely unconnected with Islam per se. For this faith, unlike all other religious faiths, constitutes a religious, political, and cultural entity.

It is next to impossible to bring in line or modify the warlike Qur’anic texts, known as Ayat al-Sayf, wal-Qital (the Sword and Fighting texts)! Such a project requires the “re-opening of the door of Ijtihad [vi]  and the rise of a new hermeneutic that would consider as non-normative, many parts of the Medinan Chapters of the Qur’an.

I don’t want to be pessimistic, but the forecast for the future remains rather disturbing. As long as Islamic Terrorism continues to threaten the world, non-Muslims are justified in being afraid of Islam. On the other hand, no one should charge the West for inventing “Islamophobia” as a means to subjugate the Islamic world. It’s high time to bury this dangerous myth that plays into the hands of the Irhabis.


[i] This website is no longer active; most likely, the Kuwaiti authorities did not appreciate the kind and tone of the articles that were posted on the website! It is unfortunate that we have been deprived of this source of information.

[ii] Irhab: terrorism

[iii] Jahiliyya: In Islamic historiography, the period that preceded the rise of Islam in Arabia is regarded as the Days of Jahiliyya (Ignorance).  Nowadays, it is a term used by Islamists to denigrate and vilify their opponents.

[iv] Sayyid Qutb: A prominent member of the Muslim Brotherhood. Because of his opposition to President Nasser, he was tried and executed, by hanging, on 29 August, 1966. He is considered as the intellectual “father” of radical Islam.

[v] Muhammad Atta was the leader of the 19 hijackers who attacked the World Trade Center Towers, in New York, and Washington, D.C. on 9/11 

[vi] Ijtihad is an Arabic word that designates a theological activity, especially in interpreting the sacred texts of Islam. It is generally agreed that the early activities or endeavors in theology (Kalam) and jurisprudence (fiqh).  Imam al-Ghazzali (died in 1111 A.D.) is regarded as the Muslim scholar played a major role in the “Closing of the Door of Ijtihad.”  To re-open the Door of Ijtihad requires nothing less than the adoption of a new hermeneutic for the interpretation of the Qur’an!

Posted in Articles

Islamism as Told (Explained) to My Daughter

May 05, 2023
By Hamid Zanaz

By Hamid Zanaz
Translation & Comments by Rev. Bassam Madany
 

Hamid Zanaz is an Algerian intellectual who posts articles on the Arabic online journal, Al-Awan. He has taught in Algeria and in France; he represents a number of Arab intellectuals who very critical of Islamism, known as Political Islam. On 21 May, 2014, Mr. Zanaz published

 

 


Islamism as Told (Explained) to My Daughter

“L’islamisme raconté à ma fille,” de Hamid Zanaz aux éditions Tatamis

http://www.enquete-debat.fr/archives/lislamisme-raconte-a-ma-fille-de-hamid-zanaz-aux-editions-tatamis-76402

 

 

 


Mr. Zanaz chose a section of the book, and posted its Arabic version on Al-Awan’s website. 

The following is my summary of this dialogue between father and daughter.

Daughter: Dad, once you told me that Arab regimes experienced something similar to what happened to Dr. Frankenstein, who created someone, but was unable to control him!

Father: Exactly my dear! I’m very glad that our conversations which have been going on since you were quite young, haven’t been in vain. However, we must add that what has turned out to be out of control had its beginnings at the dawn of Islam. It assumed its present form during the middle of the twentieth century, as the Salafist movement. Your description is quite apropos! I remember once telling you that the Algerian regime “had nursed a viper within its floating robe” as the popular Algerian proverb puts it! [Reference is to the military regime FLN (Front de Liberation Nationale) that governed Algeria since its independence and whose policies led to the rise of the Islamist FIS (Front Islamique de Salut) [Islamic Salvation Front)].

Daughter: Does Islamism rise out of poverty and a feeling of hopelessness?

Father: No, I didn’t say that; it’s not that simple. I did say that the bad living conditions had contributed to its rise in certain countries; however it’s a much more complicated topic. Radical Islamism exists in rich Arab countries; in fact there are rich Salafist terrorists who have enjoyed a high degree of education.

Daughter: Like Osma ben Laden?

Father: Exactly my dear. Let’s not forget that Ayman al-Zawahiri, his lieutenant, studied medicine and is now the leader of al-Qaeda. Neither riches, nor education can immunize a person against the virus of Islamism.    

Daughter: Would you please explain what you once said “that it was inevitable for Islamism to rise in Algeria?”

Father: I didn’t mean that it was predestinated; I simply referred to the conditions that accelerated the appearance of Islamism in its violent and barbaric form. Salafism [i.e. FIS] has been responsible for the violent death of more than 200,000 Algerians. It still has its victims nowadays, even though the military phase of Islamism has come to an end.

Daughter: Do you mean that Islamism’s defeat wasn’t total?

Father: Sorry, my dear, the matter is much more complicated. Let’s reflect on how Islamism had risen in Algeria. The vast majority of Algerians were actually leading a traditional non-strict type of Islam. They were, to a great extent, pragmatists in their daily life.

Daughter: I can hardly believe that; so what happened then?

Father: They were spontaneously leading a modern life style; in other words they were unaware of that type of Islam as expounded by the classical Islamic jurists. Your forefathers possessed a popular folkloric genre of Islam that had been handed down orally from generation to generation. After independence, as education became universal, the post-colonial Algerians became acquainted with the contents of “textual” Islam [Qur’an, Hadith, and Sirat Muhammad]. That encounter led to a powerful quest for the Islamization of all areas of life.

Daughter: Were you saying that Islamism had been taught in the government schools?

Father: Yes, Islamism is still being taught, not only in Algeria, but all over the Arab countries, except Tunisia, a country you admire so much for its beaches and its Jasmine bushes!  As the emphasis on the demands of the Sharia progressed, pressure was placed on young women to “bury” themselves under hijab, and thus live within darkness. It all happened within two decades! I must add that the observance of the Fast of Ramadan became extremely strict, whereas in the past, very few Algerians observed the Fast.

Daughter: What’s the difference between a radical Muslim and a moderate Muslim?

Father: A radical Muslim, i.e. an Islamist, endeavors to pattern his or her life, according to the demands of the Sharia; on the other hand, a moderate Muslim is one who distances himself from that tradition as much as he can. Nowadays, however this attempt is very hard to accomplish. Islamists insist that Islam consists of a religious belief and a way of life based on that belief; it’s quite difficult, if not impossible, to separate the two.

There are some who claim that Islamism would disappear with the spread education and standards of living. Unfortunately the facts don’t support this thesis. Have Muslims now living in the West and enjoying a higher standard of living, been secularized? What has happened is the very opposite; most Muslims living in Europe and America are becoming more attached to traditional Islam. And let’s not forget that several rich Gulf Muslims have been great supporters of Salafism! 

 Daughter: Aren’t there serious efforts of some Muslims in Europe to bring about reconciliation between “spiritual and secular” Islam?

Father: Indeed, however these attempts remain formal and lead nowhere as in “L’Islam sans soumission: Pour un existentialisme musulman,” by Abdennour Bidar published in 2008. [Islam without Submission: Toward an Islamic Existentialism]

Abdennour goes far in his attempt to expound the sacred texts, even to the length of abrogating some. He believes in the possibility of modernizing Islam in order to make it compatible with the present age. He hopes to be able to liberate the Muslim from submitting to those texts he considers irrational. However, he forgets that Islam is above all a “recognition of, and submission to the will of Allah.” We cannot harmonize Islam and modernity without altering Islam itself.  The Islamic mind is not capable of modernizing itself.

Daughter: Is there an explanation for that?

Father: Muslims consider their religion as an intellectual system that must be applicable to all areas of life: both social and personal. In other words, the religious belief-system must be incorporated within the very core of the governing political system. The Islamist parties have exploited this point of view in their struggle against the ruling regimes; promising people that they and they alone, can govern Muslims in a peaceful and democratic way, having failed to accomplish that through violence.

Daughter: Well, wouldn’t that lead to a Reformation in Islam and to the rise of a genuine democracy?

Father: Let’s say that Islamists manage to save us from the old regimes; but who would then help us to get rid of the Islamists should they fail to deliver on their promises? This is the real dilemma. Once Islamists arrive at power through democratic means, they consider democracy as the ships that Tariq Bin Ziyad set on fire upon landing in Spain, so that none of the invaders would think of going back, as one critic put it.

[In 710, the Arab Islamic armies crossed the narrow strait separating North Africa from Spain, under the command of Tariq Bin Ziyad. It is claimed by Muslim historians, that after the landing, Tariq told his soldiers, after burning the ships: “the enemy is before you, and the sea is behind you; there is no choice but to attack.” In European languages Gibraltar became the name of the Strait, based on the Arabic phrase: “Jebel Tariq,” Tariq’s Mountain, reference to the giant Rock on the Spanish side.]

Daughter: Let’s go back to Muslims living in the West. Haven’t they been influenced by their modern environment to the extent that they managed to transcend those obstacles placed on them by their religious beliefs, and become assimilated in Western societies? Didn’t the freedoms they enjoyed in the West afford them the opportunity to reconcile Islam with modernity?

Father: I guess it may be possible to work out such a solution, an idea that’s current among many Muslims. However, modernity is essentially quite different from Islam for anyone who cares to acknowledge the difference. According to the Islamic worldview, man’s life is to be spent under Allah’s surveillance; it is He who guarantees man’s freedom. On the other hand, according to modernity, man makes the rules for his life; he relies only on his mind, using his critical faculties, and bears his own responsibilities. Has Islamic jurisprudence ever encouraged this type of thinking and championed freedom of thought? The real question remains: would the Islamic mind be ever willing to accept the basic principles of modernity?”

Analysis

Hamid Zanaz’s dialogue ended without much hope for a beneficial change in Islam’s teachings that would foster the rise of a humane relationship with its own people, and with the rest of mankind. His personal “jihad” against Islamism goes on unabated as one may read any of the 622 articles and essays he had posted on Al-Awan. In his latest posting, he manifested his exasperation with the Muslims’ inconsistencies:

لماذا يتبنّى المسلمون بيسر وسرور الجيل الرابع من الهواتف الخلوية

!ويعسر عليهم هضم الجيل الأول من حقوق الإنسان، بدعوى أنها غربية؟

“Oh why are Muslims so quick and eager to appropriate and use the latest models of cellular phones, while at the same time are unwilling to “digest” the simplest forms of human rights, just because they consider them as Western inventions?!”

Comments

The dialogue between Hamid Zanaz and his daughter has been enlightening even though inconclusive!  He speaks as a secularist who notes that Islam’s God surveilled people.  It is an interesting point to make because Islam’s unitary god, unlike the Trinitarian God of Christians, is quite incapable of personal interaction with his creatures or has the capacity to love.  No doubt this can explain why so many of Islam’s radical true believers bow down in total submission to such a malevolent dictator of the universe as they have determined him to be from their holy book, the Quran, and want to make sure everyone else becomes submissive to their vision about the deity too.  Mr. Zanaz does not get into theological ruminations per se but we can read between the lines to determine for ourselves what motivates Jihadists.  We learned that the rise of Islamism since the second half of the 20th century was in a sense inevitable. Islam’s encounter with Western modernity began quite early in the 19th century, and lasted during the colonial era until the 1950s.  Colonialism fostered Arab nationalism leading to rudimentary constitutional regimes.  Most did not have success in these more democratic undertakings and coups and upheavals followed in Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. The eventual failure of these revolutionary regimes resulted in economic and political instability which had a part in the rise and spread of Islamism or Jihadism. In more recent days, hope was engendered by the “Arab Spring” but such hopes have for the most part vanished only to be replaced with ruthless jihadis and terrorists taking over the movement.  The popular Intifada of the Syrian people that began spontaneously in mid-March, 2011, was met with a brutality that’s hard to describe. It’s reminiscent of the savagery of Saddam Hussein, or the horrific rule of Romania’s Ceausescu. 

The civil war in Syria is now in its third year and the hopes of the more democratic elements of the uprising for a change in the ruling party have all but died.  Instead almost every imaginable type of Jihadist group such as Jabhat al-Nusra (The Victory Front and the ISIL Caliphate which is doing its utmost to spread its hegemony throughout the rest of the Arab world. Its ideology is shared by the radical Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and by other terrorist groups in Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia.

While all the ongoing turmoil goes on in several Islamic lands, European and American political leaders and some intellectuals keep telling us that Islam has nothing to do with Islamism! The media keeps repeating the same mantra!

In conclusion, I would like to quote from an article I published on the Fourth of July, 2014:

“Lessons the West Should Remember from the History of the Past Century As We Face the Resurgence of an Islamic Caliphate.”

“In spite of all the incontestable facts of history regarding the expansion of Islam through conquests and the assimilation of conquered lands under one imperial regime, most politicians on both sides of the Atlantic, parrot the mantra that Islam is a peaceful religion. The trouble is not with the adjective “peaceful” but with the noun, “Religion” The Islamic “religion,” has never operated merely as a religion, like Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and Shinto. No sooner than Muhammad settled in Medina in 622 A.D., an Islamic State came into being, with its army, its lunar calendar, and its distinctive vocabulary! The flag of Saudi Arabia testifies to this fact with its two swords and the Islamic Credo: La Ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasool Allah. Lately, the Jihadist ISIS that has metamorphosed into the Islamic Caliphate flies its black flag with the same words in calligraphic Arabic.

To read the article please follow this link:

https://www.academia.edu/8702895/Lessons_We_Should_Have_Learned_from_the_
Communist_Infiltration_of_the_West_as_We_Face_the_Resurgence_of_an_Islamic_Caliphate

The URL for the Arabic text of the dialogue between Hamid Zanaz and his daughter

http://www.alawan.org/article13180.html

Posted in Articles

The Muslims’ Captivity to their Tragic History

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

By Bassam M. Madany

Everyone who is following international events can see that dreadful things are taking place in the countries impacted by the Islamic faith.  When I began writing this article on June 16, 2014 news reports out of Iraq were dire.  The terror forces making up the ultra-radical Islamist group known as ISIS are seeking to establish a Caliphate in Iraq and the Levant.  Baghdad is now in ISIS’ sights after they successfully seized Mosul and a growing number of other Iraqi cities. The army of the Kurdish Province in Northern Iraq has occupied Kirkuk. The U. S. Government has been caught off guard. In its online edition of June 15, The Wall Street Journal reported:

“The radical Sunni militia that has plunged Iraq into chaos bragged on Sunday that it had executed hundreds of Shiite Iraqi soldiers, even as the Obama administration said it is preparing to open direct talks with Iran on how the two longtime foes can counter the insurgents.”

Scenes of flight, mayhem, random killings and beheadings are all over the media.  These scenes are bewildering to the Western World. It’s hard to understand why Muslims are killing each other, not only in Iraq, but also in neighboring Syria. In this article, I assert that one of the reasons why Muslims, both Sunnis and Shi’ites,” are so often at each other’s throats with such unimaginable ferocity is because they suffer from the remembrance of their tragic past.

Civil wars have marked Islam from the dawn of its history. In June, 632 A.D., after Muhammad’s death the Islamic Umma in Medina faced a serious problem. Their prophet had made no arrangements for his succession. His followers believed he was the last Messenger sent by Allah to guide all of mankind. Muhammad had migrated to Medina in 622, where he became a political leader as well as the so-called last “prophet”. He governed the local community of believers, and led them in campaigns against his Meccan enemies. By 630, he had vanquished all opposition, and entered Mecca triumphantly. The Muslim Umma urgently needed another head of state to fill the vacuum after Muhammad’s death.

Abu Bakr, Muhammad’s father-in-law, came up with a solution; he proposed that a Khalifa (Caliph) be chosen by the leadership of the Umma. That was accepted, and he was chosen as the first Khalifa. When he died two years later, another Caliph was chosen: Umar ibn al-Khattab. The Futuhat (Conquests) continued vigorously under his leadership with the occupation of Syria, Egypt, and Persia.

Umar was assassinated in 644, and was succeeded by Uthman ibn ‘Affan, who presided over the further expansion of Islam to the East. In 656, some disgruntled Muslim soldiers who had participated in the campaign for the occupation of Egypt, returned to Medina and assassinated UthmanAli, the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad succeeded him. Unfortunately for Ali, there was no consensus about his choice. Mu’awiya, a cousin of Uthman and governor of Syria, charged that Ali was involved in the plot that resulted in the death of Uthman; war broke out between the two. Ali’s side was winning, when he was prevailed upon to accept arbitration and seek a peaceful solution of the conflict. Some within Ali’s army were outraged by this decision, since victory was at hand; they left his side, and assassinated him in 661. They are known as the “Khawarej” (Dissenters.) Ali’s death marked the end of the unity of Islam, and the period of the “Rightly Guided Caliphs.”

Mu’awiya assumed the position of Caliph, moved the capital of the Islamic Umma to Damascus. He sought appeasement with Hassan and Hussein, the two sons of Ali. Hassan accepted a settlement with the new Caliph, and retired to Arabia; however his young brother Hussein refused any compromise. He became the leader of Ali’s Party. In Arabic, the term “Shi’a” signifies “party”; his group was first called “Shi’ite Ali” and eventually was abbreviated into “Shi’a.”

Muhammad, Ali, and his two sons, were members of the Hisham clan of the tribe of Quraysh in Mecca; while Mu’awiya was member of the “Umayyah” clan that had vehemently opposed Muhammad. This fact gave a solid reason for Hussein and his followers not to accept the legitimacy of an Umayyad to become a Caliph. Muslims who acquiesced to the rise of the Umayyad Dynasty were called “Sunnis,” but Muslims who sided with Hussein were known as “Shi’ites.” They remained an active underground opposition movement for years to come.

In 680, Hussein arrived with a small group of his followers at Kufa, in Iraq, hoping to make it a center for an active opposition to the Umayyad Caliph Yazid. He was met by a superior force, was defeated, and killed at Karbala. The martyrdom of Hussein is now celebrated annually at Karbala, and at other centers of Shi’ism such as at Nabatiyya, in south Lebanon. 

For some time, the Umayyads felt that they had secured the leadership of Islam. In 710, they invaded Spain, and by 732 they reached southern France where they were stopped by Charles Martel, at the Battle of Tours, near Poitiers.

However, several factors conspired to bring to an end the hegemony of the Umayyads. The Shi’ite Underground, the disgruntled Mawalis (non-Arab converts to Islam) and followers of Muhammad’s uncle, Ibn ‘Abbas, were united in their opposition to the Umayyads.  The revolt began at Khorasan, in eastern Persia, led by Abu Muslim al-Khorasani, who defeated the governor of the province and marched westward. The end of the Umayyads came in 750 when all the members of the caliph’s house were killed, leaving a young son who managed to flee the carnage, and made his way to Andalusia (Arabic name of Spain) where he established a rival Umayyad caliphate at Cordoba.

All hope for the descendants of Hussein to inherit the Caliphate were dashed. The Abbasids succeeded the Umayyads by establishing their own dynasty. The Shi’ites remained on the sidelines, regarded as a despised minority. During the 800s, Baghdad the new capital of the Abbasids became the cultural center of the Muslim world. Several important accomplishments took place: the compilation of the Hadith, the establishment of the Four Sunni Schools for the interpretation of Shariah, and the rise of the Mu’tazilites, an intellectual elite that dealt with theological themes such as the nature of the Qur’an. Eventually, this movement lost its appeal, and a noted philosopher, al-Ghazzali, put an end to “Ijtihad” (theologizing.) The “door of Ijtihad” in Sunni Islam has remained closed ever since!

The leader of the Shi’ites is called an Imam. Ali is considered as the First Imam, Hussein is the Second Imam. The Twelfth Imam disappeared mysteriously; most likely he was murdered by the authorities. However, in Shi’ism, he is considered to still be alive but hidden, and will return at the end of time. In the meantime, his representatives, the Ayatollahs assume the role of guides to the Shi’ite community. In Sunni Islam, an Imam is any leader in charge of the Salaat i.e. Prayer (worship) at the mosque.

 

Sunni - Shi’ite Rivalry in Islam 

While Iran is today a stronghold of Shi’ite Islam, it did not achieve this position until the 16th century during the Safavid dynasty. Other concentrations of Shi’ite communities live in Iraq and southern Lebanon. The Ottoman Turks were champions of Sunni orthodoxy, and sought to limit, and often to interdict, any Persian influence among the Shi’ites of Iraq and Lebanon. That policy intensified the animosity between Sunnis and Shi’ites, keeping past disputes between the two groups very much alive.

The situation did not improve after the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. Britain governed Iraq for several decades, and enthroned Prince Faisal, son of Sherif Hussein of Hejaz, as king. Sunnis continued to dominate the Shi’ite majority. The same happened in Lebanon, where the French gave primacy to Christians and Sunni Muslims, with the third place given to the Shi’ites.

After WWII, the region underwent radical changes. Iraq witnessed a bloody coup in 1958, when the army murdered King Faisal II and his family, installing a succession of republican regimes, culminating with the rise of Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Iraqi. Soon after the rise of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Saddam launched an attack on his neighbor, in a war that lasted for several years, occasioning the death and maiming of over a million Iranian and Iraqi soldiers and civilians.

The leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran began to influence their coreligionists in Iraq and Lebanon. They sponsored the formation of Hezbollah, a Shi’ite Militia in Lebanon, a move that alarmed the Sunni powers in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States.

The civil war in Syria began in mid-March, 2011, when the Syrians rose up against the forty-year Assad dynasty’s regime. As the war dragged on, Iran gave orders to Hezbollah to join the side of Bashar Assad, seeking to bolster a dictator whose connection to Shi’ism is dubious. The Assad family comes from an obscure Syrian sect of Islam that is neither Sunni, nor Shi’ite. During the French Mandate over Syria and Lebanon (1918-1946), they honored the Assad family with the title of “Alaouites” conferring legitimacy upon them as if they were a true branch of Shi’ite Islam! The leaders of Iran believed it advantageous to help the Assad regime in this current civil war, and sent units of their Revolutionary Guards to help Assad fight his own people, most of whom are Sunnis!

As we contemplate the state of the various world civilizations, we notice that the Islamic world faces several economic and demographic challenges. Unemployment is very high, natural resources, other than oil, are few, desertification is rising, and water supplies are not keeping up with agricultural needs. Rather than concentrate on finding solutions for these growing problems, the Islamic world’s leaders are preoccupied with ancient hatreds amongst themselves, unsolved religious and political issues at home and too often support violent aggressions of various sorts toward the Western World.

Among Sunni Muslims, a number of intellectuals seek to reform Islam, and liberate it from its captivity to the past. Unfortunately, their efforts are countered by radicals such as the Muslim Brotherhood that call for a return to the beliefs and actions of the “Salaf” (an Arabic term for “Ancestors) in order to face the challenges of the present.

On the other hand, Shi’ite Muslims, live primarily in Iran and Iraq. A minority of them are found in eastern Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.  They follow charismatic leaders who claim to be the true interpreters of the faith. Iran has established a powerful Shi’a political regime which aspires to become a nuclear power and expand its hegemony throughout the Middle East. Its major source of income is exporting oil. The vast majority of its people were born after the Islamic Revolution of 1979; they resent the authoritarianism of the ruling class and yearn for freedom and for opportunity to advance themselves.

For those of us who live outside the Islamic world, much as we had hoped that some rational Sunni and Shi’ite leaders, would hasten to settle their old controversies, and bury their past conflicts forever, it’s becoming clear that this is not forthcoming. Attempts to bring democracy to these countries seem to have failed despite the vast expense in lives and dollars by Americans and others who tried. One fears that Islam will continue to experience civil wars, and clashes with its neighbors. The late Samuel Huntington commented on this tendency with these words:

“Wherever one looks at the perimeter of Islam, Muslims have problems living peaceably with their neighbors. The question naturally rises as to whether this pattern of late-twentieth-century conflict between Muslim and non-Muslim groups is equally true of relations between groups from other civilizations. In fact, it is not. Muslims make up about one-fifth of the world’s population but in the 1990s they have been far more involved in intergroup violence than the people of any other civilization. The evidence is overwhelming.” P. 256

“The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order” by Samuel P. Huntington, Published in 1996 by Simon & Schuster, New York, NY 10020

A similar view was expressed by the late Middle Eastern scholar Fouad Ajami, who passed away on 22 June, at the age of 68. In an article published in The Wall Street Journal, on 16 October, 2011, "Arabs Have Nobody to Blame but Themselves", he wrote:

“A darkness, a long winter, has descended on the Arabs. Nothing grows in the middle between an authoritarian political order and populations given to perennial flings with dictators, abandoned to their most malignant hatreds. Something is amiss in an Arab world that besieges American embassies for visas and at the same time celebrates America's calamities. Something has gone terribly wrong in a world where young men strap themselves with explosives, only to be hailed as ‘martyrs’ and avengers.”

Updated on Monday, 30 June, 2014

According to the Arabic online daily, Elaph, an Islamist Mujahid, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, assumed the role of Caliph on Sunday, the 29th of June, 2014. He decreed that the old designation (ISIS) was no longer valid, the new name is: The Universal Islamic Caliphate. He chose the name of the first Islamic Caliph, Abu Bakr (632-634) to indicate that he would act with utter severity in dealing with opposition to his Caliphate. It should be noted that it was Abu Bakr (632-634) who waged “Huroob al-Radda” (Wars against Apostates) in 632, to force those Arab tribes that had left Islam to return to the fold. He is credited with establishing “The Law of Apostasy” which stipulates that a “Murtad” (apostate) faces capital punishment, unless he or she repents!

http://www.elaph.com/Web/Politics/2014/6/918575.html

Posted in Articles

Dr. Peter Kreeft’s Interpretation of Islam

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam Michael Madany

By Rev. Bassam Michael Madany

 

Recently, I watched a debate on Islam between Robert Spencer and Professor Peter Kreeft that had taken place at the New Hampshire campus of Thomas More College on 4 November, 2010. Since the subject of Islam and the West remains quite relevant, I am writing this review to illustrate the inability, or unwillingness of some Western intellectuals to recognize the true nature of Islam, namely that it is much more than a religion!

Robert Spencer’s credentials in the study and reporting of Islam are well known. He also has detractors who are unwilling to accept the truth of his analyses.  Peter Kreeft is a popular philosophy teacher at Boston College as well as outside the academic community. Here are excerpts from the debate as it was posted on Thomas More College website.[i]

“The authors came at the invitation of Thomas More College’s Edmund Campion Debate Society, which sponsors regular student debates on philosophical and theological issues—most recently the morality of the 18th (Prohibition) Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and the “just war” credentials of the American Revolution.

“On Nov. 4 the topic was “Is the Only Good Muslim a Bad Muslim?” Mr. Spencer came to argue that Islam as codified in the Qur'an and explicated by all authoritative sources aspires to subjugate and oppress ‘unbelievers’ and impose sharia law throughout the world; because sharia law is inimical to religious freedom and to human dignity, we as Catholics should hope that Muslims are not devout enough to advocate it, (as their own faith says they must) by either warlike or peaceful means.)

“Dr. Kreeft came to offer his own perspective on the religion of Islam. In his latest book, Between Allah and Jesus (Nottingham, England: IVP Books, 2010), Prof. Kreeft uses the figure of ‘Isa, a devout Muslim studying at Boston College, to highlight the commonalities Kreeft sees between Islamic and Catholic piety, and point up all that we can learn from truly devout adherents of Islam—set in stark contrast to the post-modern, dissenting Catholicism widely accepted at secularized Catholic colleges. Through ‘Isa (whose name is the Arabic form of Jesus, accepted by Muslims as merely a prophet), Kreeft argues that terrorism, military jihad, and the aspiration to subjugate “unbelievers” such as Jews and Christians, are not necessarily germane to the religious lives of Muslims. Isa insists that such manifestations of Islam are perversions of its true spirit, as witch-burnings, inquisitions, and religious wars were distortions of Christian faith.

“Spencer agreed with Kreeft that since Islam is the faith of more than a billion people, he would also like to find a version of that religion which renounces religious oppression, the suppression and mistreatment of women, and the use of violence. ‘Having studied the source materials—the Qur’an, the authentic Hadiths accepted by all Muslims and the teachings of the most authoritative scholars across the Islamic world, I regret that I must say: Such an Islam does not exist. I wish it did. So does Dr. Kreeft. But we must not settle for wishful thinking. There are many peaceful Muslims who do not engage in violent jihad and who support religious freedom, but in doing so they are acting like Catholics who practice birth control or support legal abortion. ‘They are defying their religion, because they do not have the authority to reform it,’ Spencer said.”

This much are my excerpts from the textual account of the debate.

To begin with, I regret the wording of the topic that was debated by Dr. Kreeft and Mr. Spencer: “Is the Only Good Muslim a Bad Muslim”? It is rather confusing and sounds prejudicial; I would have much preferred a simpler topic such as: “Is the Good Muslim the one who no longer takes the Qur’an, and the authentic Hadiths, as normative for the here and now?”

I find myself in complete agreement with Robert Spencer’s understanding of Islam, as a worldview that has combined religion, politics, and culture, in one indivisible entity. This has been the view of authorities on Islam like Philip Hitti, Bernard Lewis, Samuel Huntington, Bat Ye’or, Jacques Ellul, Daniel Pipes, Efraim Karsh, Fuad Ajami, Ibn Warraq, John Kelsay, and many others. Anyone who has studied the history of Islam would not hesitate to say that it spread primarily by conquest. In fact, Arabs are extremely fond of their Futuhat (Conquests) and point proudly to the fact that within one hundred years after the death of Muhammad in 632 A.D., their Empire had spread eastward to the western parts of India, and westward all the way to the Iberian Peninsula. Following the conversion of the Turks to Islam in 10th century, they expanded Daru’l Islam, into the heartland of the Byzantine Empire, and eventually added the Balkans, and parts of Eastern and Central Europe, to their domain. It was during the 19th century that the retreat of Islam began.  The Ottomans lost a good deal of their territories in Eastern Europe, and with the British conquest of Islamic-dominated India, the military Futuhat came to an end.

Having studied the history of Islam from its primary sources, and focusing lately on the writings of Arab reformist intellectuals, I find Dr. Kreeft’s view of Islam flawed. He seems to be unacquainted with the tremendous changes that have occurred in the Islamic world since the end of Western colonialism. The many articles and essays of reformist and liberal Arab intellectuals, that have been available on the Internet and elsewhere are exhibiting critical views of Islam and appraising it more honestly than most of its defenders.  For instance, recently a Moroccan writer did not hesitate to declare that the Qur’an was only relevant to Muhammad and the early days Islam; but for the present, its teachings are mostly irrelevant. Another intellectual Arab offered a reformist hermeneutical theory that would regard as normative only the Meccan Surahs (610-620), while considering those parts of the Medinan Surahs (622-632), known as “Ayat al-Sayf” (The Sword verses) as no longer applicable to our globalized world!

Peter Kreeft does not mention any such critical insights of Arab intellectuals. I don’t deny that he may have done much reading in Islamic source material. He has a grasp understanding of Sufism and has praise for it. He interacts with many Muslim students at Boston College.  But I would venture that such relationships while no doubt pleasant and informative, are not representative of the beliefs of world-wide Islam as a whole.  Building an opinion of Islam from such a limited data base fails to offer a truer portrait of Islamic belief, whether ancient, or contemporary. Muslim students in an American academic community also may have learned some Western tolerance and may not want to appear as intolerant or radical as so many Muslims elsewhere in the world.

An attitude that came across in the debate from Dr. Kreeft irritated my sense of propriety to some degree.  Often in sparring with Robert Spencer, Dr. Kreeft’s jovial manner of expression and disarming remarks lent a less than serious tone to the gravity of the subject at hand. The vast differences in world view and belief of Western Catholic Christians and Muslims wasn’t given the seriousness it deserved.

Dr. Kreeft attempted to balance Catholic and Islamic centers of authority.  While it is true that there is no religious structure in Islam that compares with the Magisterium of the Catholic Church as centered in the Pope and the College of Cardinals, Islam is not lacking authoritative centers either. In the ninth century A. D., during the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad, four schools for the interpretation of Islamic Shari’a came into existence among Sunni Muslims. The University-Mosque of Al-Azhar in Cairo, a one thousand-year institution, has been highly regarded as a major source of orthodox Sunni jurisprudence.  As for the Shi’a Muslims, they have their Ayatollahs and Mullahs who expound matters of faith and practice for the believers.

Regarding the issue of whether Christian and Muslims worshipped the same God, Kreeft had a definite opinion. With a triumphant smile on his face, he reached for the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) and read Article 841[ii] This official doctrinal source clearly states: “Muslims … profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.” Peter Kreeft the philosopher chose to refer to a redacted Catholic work promulgated in 1992, which was a fruit of the Second Vatican Council and its policy of Aggiornamento (renewal and modernization). The Roman Catholic Church by publishing this doctrinal document endeavored to bring the faith up-to-date, and make it relevant in the post-WWII era. And in the process made statements about God and Allah that are seriously wanting.  And this is a problem for those of us who want to remain true to the scriptural witness.  The Protestant way of discussing the issue of God and His nature and worship starts with the Bible as determinative in all matters.  Thus biblical theology always trumps philosophical analysis.  Said succinctly and simply put, God and Allah are not the same.  Christians and Muslims do not worship the same God.

Catholic theology was not always thus.  Having studied in French Catholic schools during my formative years in Syria, I do not recall any teacher or priest who gave the impression that Christians and Muslims worshipped the same God. Eastern Christians throughout the Middle East tenaciously cling to their respective traditions, whether Orthodox, Catholic, Coptic, Nestorians, or Protestant. They hear the Islamic Azan (Call to Prayer) intoned from the Minarets of mosques. The Muslim hearing this daily intonation is legitimating in his mind the superiority of Allah to all other gods, and the idea that Muhammad is his final prophet.  This is anathema to true Christian believers.  Eastern Christians in years past, including Catholics knew instinctively that the “Allah” (the first word in the Azan,) is not the same as the ever-blessed one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  What has been slowly happening, however, in certain areas of Christendom today is that syncretism is creeping into too many areas of Christian witness.

My rejection of the thesis of the Catechism of the Catholic Church is based on Scripture. In     St. Paul’s First Letter to the Church at Corinth, Chapter 8, he set forth the following principle about how Christians must regard the deities of non-Christian faiths. 

“Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that ‘all of us possess knowledge.’ This ‘knowledge’ puffs up, but love builds up. If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.  Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that ‘an idol has no real existence,’ and that ‘there is no God but one.’ For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many ‘gods’ and many ‘lords’— yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. 8:1-6 (ESV)

Paul’s teaching is clear; non-Christians believe in many “gods” and many “lords;” however, these “gods” and “lords” don’t possess real existence. It is true that Muslims claim to worship one god, and claim he is the same as the Christian’s God. But it must be made clear that their one god Allah is not the same as the Christian Triune God, revealed in Scripture.   Paul’s words “yet for us,” as far as Christians are concerned is a verity. There “is one God, the Father, and one Lord, Jesus Christ…” This Pauline formula can be grasped by the learned and unlearned, and is utterly different from this complicated verbiage of the CCC: “Muslims … profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.”

It is extremely important to realize that once a Christian accepts the concept of the ‘three Abrahamic faiths,’ he is giving credence to a myth that allows Muslims to claim a lineage to the Biblical Abraham. In fact, there is no reliable historical or archeological ground for asserting, as Muslims do, that Abraham had gone to Mecca with Ishmael, or that the latter is the father of the Arabs. Prior to Islam coming on the scene, the Northern Arabs had no written language, and their culture was exclusively an oral one. The Biblical record relates the journeys of Abraham from southern Mesopotamia, to the land of Haran (in present-day Syria); from there he continued his journey to the south and lived as a nomad in Hebron. Due to famine in the land of Canaan, Abraham went down to Egypt, but he eventually returned to the land of Promise.

The Book of Genesis relates the life of the Patriarch in eleven long chapters 12-25. He died at the age of 175, and his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in Hebron. Ishmael died at the age of 137 according to Genesis 25: 17; the biblical text tells us that his children “settled from Havilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt in the direction of Assyria.” An Abrahamic connection to Islam, while firmly believed by Muslims, is bogus to biblical Christians.  The likelihood is that Muhammad was influenced by the various interpretations of Christianity extant in the world he inhabited and he picked and chose, and fancifully elaborated on, parts of the story that fit what he wanted to convey in his newly minted “religion.” It is a stretch for Catholics like Kreeft, or other Christians, to see truly meaningful similarities between Christianity and Islam simply on the idea that they both have something to say about Abraham.

Near the end of the debate, Dr. Kreeft propounded a highly speculative theory of “revelation” that concedes a rather vague legitimacy to Muhammad’s claim. “Private revelations have happened all through Christian history, and the devil loves to get in there and distort the message, to filter it through human fallenness and fill it with flaws. Perhaps that is what happened—that God really did have a message He intended Muhammad to transmit to the Arabs, and a lot it got through, but it was admixed with other things, that were purely human and even sinful. I don’t claim to know. But large elements of Islam are identical with Judaism and Christianity—because that’s where Mohammad got them. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, all three of us worship the same God.” Dr. Kreeft’s claim that “large elements of Islam are identical with Judaism and Christianity” is highly speculative, and cannot not substantiated by a serious study of the Qur’an, Hadith, and Sirat Muhammad (Life of the Prophet). Had he engaged in reading these authoritative documents, he would have discovered that they are utterly different. Unfortunately, his attempt to settle the matter by referring to the Catechism of the Catholic Church is unconvincing,   

I conclude my article by referring to an excellent discussion of the topic “Do Christians and Muslims Worship the Same God?[iii] It is available on the website of www.answering-islam.org

This five-part scholarly work sums up the discussion with these words:

“Based upon the Scriptural data and the historical evidence the only logical and consistent answer that can be given is that Muslims and Christians do not worship the same God.  These Gods have acted and spoken in contradiction.  It is these opposites, in command, in statement, and in nature that are grounds for rejecting the proposal that we worship the same God.  They are not one and the same Person or Divinity.   “A” cannot be “non-A.”  Islam’s Allah is not the same as Christianity’s Allah.  They are not the same God!

“Muslims may believe that they worship the same God.  However the Quran’s description of Allah’s attributes and characteristics are distinct and different from the Bible’s description of God.  While both refer to a One All-Powerful Creator-God their portrayals and characterizations of that God contradict each other.”


[ii] 841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."[

http://carm.org/catholic-catechisms-view-muslim-god-wrong

 

Posted in Articles

Dawn and Sunset of Modern Missions

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Introduction

Rev. Bassam M. Madany

 

During my ministry in the Levant in the early 1950s, I witnessed the collapse of most of the schools that foreign missionaries had established during the 19th century. That took place due to the rise of Arab nationalism which resulted in the nationalization of all foreign-run schools. Since those educational institutions formed the backbone of the missionary enterprise, no basis or reason for the existence of Christian missions remained. The only institutions that “survived” were those that made no pretense of spreading the Christian message, or engaged in propagating a Christian worldview.

            In my studies and reflection on this new state of affairs, I came across an excellent analysis of the “Modern Missionary Enterprise,” in an article by Dr. Harry R. Boer in the August, 1953 issue of The Reformed Journal, published in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Dr. Boer described the methodology of the foreign missionaries that manifested unwarranted “Paternalism” and a reliance on institutions such as “mission schools” as a tool for the spread of the Gospel.

            Harry Boer was a missionary-scholar, and lived and labored in days when the terms “Missiology” and “Missiologist” were not in vogue. His analysis and critique of “Modern Missions” were solidly based on the Scriptures and the history of the Church. He lived and died before such novel missiological approaches such as the “Insider Movement” had arisen and spread within Evangelical circles. By posting this article, I trust that Harry Boer’s views on the proper ways of conducting Christian Missions, be taken seriously. He, and the British Anglican missionary in China, Roland Allen*, has much to teach us in the early years of the Third Millennium.

 

DAWN AND SUNSET OF MODERN MISSIONS

The Reformed Journal

August 1953

By Harry R. Boer

 

            Early one day in 1944, I stepped out of my tent on the island of Hawaii into the thinning night of a tropical morning.  As I stood alone under a heaven still bright with stars an unforgettable sight met my eyes which seemed to bring together in one majestic vision the distant reaches of God’s great creation.  I saw in the southern sky the five stars that constitute the Southern Cross, and in the northern sky I saw the Great Bear.  Here a sort of infinity seemed to concentrate itself in the time and space in which I was standing and I have never been able to forget it.  When subsequent to that something of large symbolic significance came to my attention it always reminded me of that early morning in Hawaii.

            A few weeks ago an experience of this sort again overtook me.  This time it was not two constellations in the heavens, but two booklets in my hands that gave me long, long thoughts.  I held in one hand William Carey’s An Enquiry Into The Obligations Of Christians To Use Means For the Conversion Of The Heathen. It was published in 1792.  In the other hand I held Christian Missions And The Judgment Of God, by David M. Paton.  It was published in 1953.  Both are English, both were printed in London.  Between them lie the century and six decades which history will record as the massive effort of European and American Protestantism to proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth.  This period begins with the publication of Carey’s book, and it finds a decisive historical turning point in the expulsion of the missionaries from China.  To the analysis of this last significant and tragic event Mr. Paton’s book is devoted.  It will be good and sobering for us to place ourselves between the dawn and the sunset of modern missions and contemplate the lessons which this spectacle can teach us.

Dawn

            Carey’s booklet is probably the most significant if not the most influential publication in the history of the modern missionary movement.  Its author was a Baptist by profession and a humble cobbler by trade.  His eyes were opened to the need of Christless millions by the accounts of Captain Cook, the great English explorer.  Though an unschooled man, Carey had a keen and inquisitive intellect, he read omnivorously and found a special interest in the study of botany, geography, languages and the Bible.  His universal mind was struck particularly by the universalism of God’s promises in Scripture.  His study of these promises and of the universality of the Gospel led him to take sharp issue with a reigning misconception held by nearly all orthodox theologians from Calvin and Luther to the men of his time – the idea that the command of our Lord “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature” was binding only on the apostles.  From their day on this command was not valid for the Church, it was believed; there remain now only the responsibilities of the local pastor. The spread of the Gospel must follow the processes of normal growth at home, of conquest and commerce abroad, and of such providential openings for witness as God may clearly indicate.

            So strongly was this notion entrenched in a significant Protestant area like Germany that when in the 1660’s one Baron von Welz pleaded for the continuing character of the mandate given in the Great Commission he was so opposed by the Lutheran theologians that he had to flee the country and hear his plea called “of the devil.”  Nearly a century and a half later large sections of English Christianity were ready to heed Carey and other spokesmen after him, and from England the vision spread to Holland, Germany, Switzerland, France and America.  Societies were organized, funds were raised, men and women volunteered, ships bearing missionaries sailed across the seas, and known and unknown heroes of faith gave their strength, their talents, their lives to plant the Christian flag in unknown lands and on the islands of the sea.  At this time begins the record whose pages are bright and awesome with names like Carey (who followed word with deed by going to India), Morrison, Vander Kemp, Mary Slessor, Moffat, Livingstone, Nommensen, Verbeck, Adriani, Keyser – giants all in conception, in daring, in devotion.  These all did their work in what Latourette has rightly called “The Great Century,” and some lived to see the beginning of the next period, “Advance Through Storm.”  It has fallen to our lot to see the day which at least on some fronts speaks of retreat before the storm.  It is about this that Paton writes.  But before we can speak about this let us look at some of the characteristics that have marked the missionary movement during the past century and a half.

            Carey pleaded for a world-wide preaching of the Gospel.  He was not indifferent to the need of the heathen with respect to education, health, and science, but there is no evidence in his book that he regarded the meeting of these needs as a “preaching of the Gospel.”  Rather he expected these needs to be met as a result of the preaching of the Gospel.  In one remarkable passage he writes:

After all, the uncivilized state of the heathen, instead of affording an objection against preaching the gospel to them, ought to furnish an argument for it.  Can we as men, or as Christians, hear that a great part of our fellow creatures, whose souls are as immortal as ours, and who are as capable as ourselves, of adorning the Gospel, and contributing by their preaching, writings, or practices to the glory of our Redeemer’s name, and good of his Church, are enveloped in ignorance and barbarism? Can we hear that they are without the Gospel, without government, without laws, and without arts, and sciences; and not exert ourselves to introduce amongst them the sentiments of men, and of Christians?  Would not the spread of the Gospel be the most effectual means of their civilization?  Would not that make them useful members of society?  We know that such effects did in a measure follow the afore-mentioned efforts of Eliot, Brainerd, and others amongst the American Indians; and if similar attempts were made in other parts of the world, and succeeded with a divine blessing (which we have every reason to think they would) might we not expect to see able Divines, or read well-conducted treatises in defence of the truth, even amongst those who at present seem to be scarcely human?

What attitude Carey would have taken to the later development of large-scale educational, medical, agricultural and other types of mission work I do not know, but in the thesis posited above he expects the blessings of civilization to follow upon the acceptance of the Gospel.  “Would not the spread of the Gospel be the most effectual means of their civilization?”  There is no evidence here that the introduction of all manner of Christian activity into a heathen society is to be regarded as a “preaching of the Gospel” and therefore a carrying out of the Great Commission.  But this was to characterize missions nearly universally when the sun stood higher in the missionary day.

High Noon

            The Christian West was not content with a program of proclamation.  It was deeply convinced of the superior quality of its civilization, it shared the sentiment that it was the “White Man’s Burden” to transmit its culture to the Orient and to Africa, and it showed little appreciation and often a great deal of contempt for the culture of the people it sought to Christianize.  Pity was from the beginning a substantial element in missionary motivation and the pity often amounted to this: the heathen do not have the knowledge, the comforts and skills that we enjoy.  As a consequence they suffer.  Let us therefore lift them to a higher level of existence.  This current ran in and through and alongside the true motivation for missionary effort.  The result of this total motivation complex was a mission activity that was often as much intent on civilizing as on evangelizing.

            In China particularly was it felt that the social structure must be so influenced as to create an atmosphere favorable to the Church’s growth not only, but also to make increasingly possible the introduction of the general benefits of Christianity and civilization enjoyed by the West.  Not all Protestant missions were agreed as to this, it is true.  The large China Inland Mission did not accept this point of view, and others expressed dissent from what was known as the Social Gospel.  Nevertheless the movement was imposing and was characteristic to a marked degree of Protestant missions in China and in other areas at the turn of the century and later.

            A leading exponent of this view was Timothy Richard, the secretary of the Society for the Diffusion of Christian and General Knowledge among the Chinese.  In 1891 he outlined a comprehensive program including the publication of periodicals, literature showing the bearing of education and religion on the national life, prizes for essays in national progress, the stimulation of lectures, museums for the enlightenment of China, and the like Robert Mateer spoke of preparing men “to take the lead in introducing to China the science and arts of western civilization,” the purpose of which he qualified as “the best means of gaining access to the higher classes in China.”  The growth of the new emphasis did not mean that evangelization was ignored, but it did mean that a large proportion of the total Protestant missionary effort was given to social services and did not aim directly at conversion and at the building of the Church.  In this respect the Roman Catholics have been more conservative than the Protestants.

            What has been the result of this policy?  Has it built a strong church in China? Has it gained for us the respect of Chinese people? Can we contemplate the total result with a measure of satisfaction?  We are not here called to evaluate the result of the Social Gospel simply, but also the results of orthodox missionary effort which availed itself of education and hospitals and rural reconstruction and the like.  The answer seems to be, not that the sun rose higher, but rather that the shadows lengthened until at last the missionary sun disappeared behind the Communist horizon.

Sunset

            It is beyond dispute that the reason for the missionary withdrawal from China is a political one, namely the Communist victory and the Communist attitude to the Christian mission.  But already before that there were serious doubts in the minds of some missionary leaders about the validity of the missionary policies that had been followed in the past.  Paton says that in the months preceding the missionary exodus “it became evident to some of us, and to many more of our Chinese friends, that our mandate had been withdrawn; that the time for missions as we had known them was past; that the end of the missionary era was the will of God.”  The foreign mission that the writer knew “is now not only out of date but was in important respects wrongly conceived.”  What brings Paton to this conclusion?

            The more important charge that the writer levels against Chinese missions is that “whatever may have been the formal aim of missions, their actual policy was such as not to foster but to preclude the development of a genuinely dynamic self-governing, self-supporting and expanding Church.”[1]  I shall now let Mr. Paton develop this thought at some length in his own words.  I do not do so to save myself the time of analysis and reproduction of his thought, but rather to present the very words of a disillusioned but eloquent spokesman of a missionary community that would follow other policies if it had it in its power to make yesterday again today.  But when the day is done and the sun has set we can only contemplate what was done between dawn and sundown.

            Writes Paton (pp. 37ff.): “The entire structure and ethos of the Church in China was, with minor much-paraded exceptions, Western.  Prayer-books are in the main direct, not to say crudely literal translations of the original.  The union hymn-book in general use contains 62 original Chinese hymns out of 512, and 72 Chinese tunes.  Church architecture is mainly a matter of brick boxes, with odds and ends of embellishment from the Gothic revival.  One could not expect high office – succeed a missionary or become a bishop – unless he had at least a Western-style education and preferably rejoiced in a Western degree.  The structure of diocesan organization and accounts was based on western models, and is grotesquely complicated for the numbers involved, and the relative simplicity of Church life.  Missionaries, with few exceptions, maintained a Western style and standard of living, in which they were joined by those of their national colleagues who had attained the education and the financial means to do so.  Chinese Christian leaders with some exceptions, have been notorious for their poor grasp of Chinese literature and philosophy, and have often been more at home in the English language and in Western culture . . .

            “The educated Christian leaders were inevitably regarded by the Communist authorities as mainly a reactionary force; they were, however, known to be very discontented; and they possessed a high degree of acquaintance with and mastery of western scientific and technological methods.  They are therefore in need of indoctrination and reform, and because of their potential contribution, worth a good deal of attention.  In those facts lie the principal causes of the pressure upon the Church in China today.

            “It is not otherwise with the Church’s institutions.  Our schools were started to produce subordinate professional workers for the Church; they expanded to become the principal training grounds from which were recruited those who filled positions in the world of the compradore – the Customs Service, the Salt Gabelle, the Postal Administration, and the foreign firms, and the Chinese banks and business houses which were associated with them.  Many of the more ardent spirits were stirred by their shame at their country’s weakness and their anger at the wrongs it suffered at the hands of foreigners . . .   They went over in the end to the Communist Party, in which there are surprisingly large numbers of people with this close but extremely partial acquaintance with Christian missions.   Others, again, became Christians.  But the Church has been mainly among the poor and ignorant, and the rank and file of the ministry not such as are able to attract and hold educated young people; moreover, the schools and colleges have been dominated for the most part by a highly liberal version of Protestantism, which the Churches have been mainly fundamentalist.  Few educated young people have found a permanent and satisfying home in the churches.  Last of all, some of the most zealous Christians among the alumni of our schools have joined and become leaders in the indigenous sects which are nationalist, in reaction against missionaries, and pentecostalist and millenarist, in reaction against the sterility of the Church and the badness of the times.

            “Whether they are viewed therefore from the angle of their creative contribution to the needs of Chinese society, or their provision of leadership from the Chinese church, the educational institutions on which we have lavished so much time, money, and loving hard work, seem for the most part to have made a poor return.  The case of the hospitals is not substantially different.  They have of course healed very large numbers; but they have not created a Chinese medical profession with a conception of its task relative to Chinese conditions, nor have they been an effective sign of the Christian passion that men and women should have wholeness of life . . .  The real need of China, however, medically speaking, is for basic work in public health, the control of epidemics, and the reduction of malnutrition – a program requiring much larger numbers of workers, with a substantially lower standard of training, stationed in villages and market towns all over the country.  This is the programme of the Communists, not of the Christians.  The public health programme of the Church hospitals when there has been one, has too often been centered upon the hospital, and to be effective outside a narrow radius has required vast expenditure of foreign money on transport . . .

            “This picture is doubtless somewhat overdrawn for emphasis; any missionary could point to exceptions in his own experience.  As the writer reflects on his own experience – chairman of a hospital board of managers, secretary of a college board of managers, and concerned with several schools and another hospital – he cannot feel that it is more than a modest exaggeration of a real truth.”

Reflections at Twilight

            These excerpts may serve to indicate the nature of the indictment that Paton levels against missions as they have been pursued in China.  Even though the author speaks only about the Chinese situation his words are eminently worth universal attention.  It is significant that Paton writes, “And can a China missionary be free of the fear that what was true of China is still true of India and Africa?”  China was but a massive expression of what the western missionary enterprise was everywhere doing in greater or less degree.  We know how thoroughly these policies have been pursued on our own Indian field for decades, and one wonders what to make of the proposal laid before Synod this year, without prior publication in the Agenda, for the erection of a $100,000 hospital at Lupwe on our Nigerian field.

            In any case, Paton’s booklet, searching and honest, drives us back to the question, Why this flight of missions into institutionalism in the first place?  It has already been suggested that an important reason was the desire of the West to communicate its culture to the Orient and to Africa.  No doubt other reasons could be mentioned.  Beyond question one was the implicit individualism in the title of Carey’s book, The Obligations of Christians to Use Means For the Conversion of the Heathen.  Note well: of Christians: Not, of the Church; but, of Christians.  This conception lies at the bottom of the rise of missionary societies rather than Church missions, and the activities in which individuals may engage are limitless.  But it cannot be denied that when the churches themselves took up the missionary task, as is largely the case in America, they followed almost the identical pattern the European societies pursued in their mission methods.  The cause goes deeper, therefore, and I believe that it is ultimately traceable to the conception that one entertains of the Church and of the Gospel.  If the preaching of the Gospel is conceived so broadly that it includes everything from preaching and Bible classes to conducting schools, hospitals and experimental farms, and if the Church be regarded as the agency through which all these activities are to be carried out, then clearly the Gospel has become something more than the Gospel and the Church has become something more than the Church.  And when missions are based on such a conception of the Gospel and of the Church, then we are equally clearly inviting missionary disaster.  It is not a light matter when Mr. Paton describes that which happened to the missionary enterprise in China as Judgment.

            It is necessary again to think our way clearly and deeply into the nature of the Church and of the Gospel.  It is very true that the hour is late.  We do not know how much longer we shall be able to be missionarily engaged in many mission areas.  But perhaps we can render this service to the Younger Churches: that we come to a clearer understanding of the problem, a firmer grasp of the missionary task, and convey this understanding of problem and task to the Younger Churches to guide them in the huge missionary labors that lie before them in their several homelands.  If we can show them that the task of the Church is a very limited one, but that that limited task is so demanding, and so rewarding when conscientiously pursued, that there is no time for side activities, we shall have performed no small service.  They must learn that it is no more the function of the Church to offer a general education on the mission field than it is the function of schools to build furniture.  If schools were to go into the furniture manufacturing business I do not doubt that they could turn out a great deal of eminently useful furniture.  We all know what has been done in vocational schools.  But in the long run this fine furniture would be found to be a rather poor substitute for a citizenry that has a fair understanding of the humanities and the sciences.  We must impress on the Younger Churches that our missions have been too busy “building furniture.”  We have done a lot of good work in this direction no doubt.  We have made acceptable bank clerks and school teachers, have produced better strains of rice, have sent many fine influences into the public life of China, Japan, India, Africa and so many other places.  But in it all the building of the Church of Christ, the faithful preaching of the Gospel, the patient nurture in faith, knowledge, and grace has lagged sadly behind.  So much of what we have done looked like Christianity but it turned out to be something less than Christianity because we looked for the fruit before the tree was mature and sometimes before it was even planted.  Such an inversion of the divine order invites the divine judgment, and in one large missionary area it has come and that quite unmistakable.

            The 1953 Synod of the Christian Reformed Church adopted “in spirit and general content” the Minority Report on Education on the mission field.  The type of mission method which Paton so strongly criticizes both as to its results and because it was “wrongly conceived” is criticized by the Minority Report on grounds of the Reformed conception of the Church.  We must not suppose, however, that the adoption of this report is a guarantee against following methods in the future that have been weighed and found wanting.  We have made fine declarations on the indigenous method of mission work before and have often paid little attention to them in our missionary practice.  We shall need to retain our vigilance, continue our study of mission principles, and in all this we will find it most helpful to listen carefully as men of experience reflect on the missionary labors that have been performed by other bodies.  There is, I think, no better place to start than Paton’s book.  You can have it by sending a check of $1.00 to SCM Press, Ltd., 56 Bloomsbury St., London.         

"This article was first published in the August, 1953 issue of The Reformed Journal, and is "Reprinted by permission of the publisher; all rights reserved" Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2140 Oak Industrial Drive, NE  Grand Rapids, MI 49505

Dr. Harry R. Boer (1913-1999)

 Dr. Harry Boer graduated from Calvin College in 1938, and from Calvin Seminary in 1942. During WWII, he served as chaplain in the U. S. Marine Corps, in the Pacific region.  After the war, he continued his theological and missions studies. His doctoral dissertation at the Free University, Amsterdam, was later published by Eerdmans under the title of “Pentecost and Missions.” He served as a missionary of the Christian Reformed Church in Northern Nigeria, and was professor and director of the Theological College of Northern Nigeria. He wrote for The Banner, and The Reformed Journal.

*Roland Allen wrote two major books on missions: “Missionary Methods: Saint Paul or Ours?” and “The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church and the Causes which Hinder It.” His Paper: “Education in the Native Church” was a thorough critique of the use of mission schools as a tool to convert non-Christian children. Among his insights are these statements in Chapter 3: “Christian education is far more the education of Christians than education given by Christians ... teaching received by a non-Christian from a Christian is non-Christian in the non-Christian mind….Therefore non-Christians cannot receive Christian education in a Christian school even if they are compulsorily taught much Christian doctrine and Gospel history,”


[1] Words strangely reminiscent of many Christian Reformed mission policy declarations with respect to the Indian field.  It has been officially announced policy to endeavor to secure an “indigenous Church” on the Indian field.  But during all the years that this announcement was made and repeated we went all out on an educational and medical program which used up the larger part of more than a quarter million dollars a year for this small field. Meanwhile the missionaries retain complete control of such church development as manifested itself.

 

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Toward Understanding the Turmoil in Islamic Lands

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

This review and commentary on three works by Bernard Lewis provides background information on the situation in North Africa, and the Middle East

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

 “The Multiple Identities of the Middle East”
“The Political Language of Islam”
“What Went Wrong? Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response”

Needless to say, the Arab world has been going through cataclysmic events since the beginning of 2011. The first political fire broke out in Tunisia, ending with the ouster of a long governing dictator through the action of the brave citizenry of that most secularized North African country. Then came the turn of Egypt. Having suffered under three successive military regimes since 1952, finally the masses rose up and acted on the slogan, Kifaya, i.e. Enough. Yes, enough of Hosni Mubarak, the modern Pharaoh who was about to hand over the presidency to his son Gamal. No sooner had Mubarak left Cairo for an unknown destination than the winds of change moved westward. This time, the fires began burning the tragi-comedy Libyan Jamahiriyya, that unusual Arabic nomenclature for “republic” invented by the semi-rational Colonel Qaddafi. (The normal Arabic word for republic is “jumhuriyya,” with its equivalent in Turkish, “cumhuriyet.”) As of the writing of this review article, 24 February, 2011, the situation in Libya remains unclear as to the outcome of the struggle against the mad man of Tripoli.

Unlike the rest of the nations in Africa and Asia, the Islamic nations are unable to cope with their multiplying problems of the post-colonial era, as the rest of the world has managed to do. The dilemmas that confront Islam today have been well treated in three books of Bernard Lewis that I would like to briefly review and comment on.

I start with his “Multiple Identities of the Middle East.” It offers a much-needed background for our understanding of the people and politics of the Middle East. One of its main themes deals with a complexity that arises from the fact that Middle Easterners identify themselves both ethnically and religiously. However, the religious element remains the dominant one. Within the vast Islamic empire, the conquerors classified people according to their religions affiliation. One was either a Muslim or a follower of one of the earlier religions. Muslims enjoyed all the rights and privileges accorded to them by the Islamic Shari’a Law. As for others, such as Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians, they were given the status of dhimmis, i.e., the protected ones.” This “protection” was actually a euphemism as it entailed many restrictions imposed on non-Muslims. Thus, one’s identity was not primarily defined by an ethnic or geographic factor, but by one’s religious faith. This classification continues to the present day. A Middle Easterner’s primary identity resides in his or her religious faith; secondarily it is defined by the state within which he happens to live.

For example, early in my days when I was living in the Middle East, my Lebanese Identity Card identified me as a Protestant Christian. In the 99-member Lebanese Parliament (before the upheavals of 1975), we had one Protestant representative in that chamber! The president of the republic had to be Maronite, i.e., of the Roman Catholic faith, the prime minister, a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the Parliament, a Shi’ite Muslim. Usually, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs went to a Christian of the Orthodox Church! This way of identifying people created a serious crisis whenever relations between the various religiously-defined groups were strained. Quite often, Muslims even though living within a distinct country such as Lebanon, felt that their ultimate identity (and therefore loyalty) resided elsewhere, within the Islamic Umma. That kind of allegiance practically nullified the modus vivendi that had existed in Lebanon since the 1920s, and that led eventually to the upheavals that lasted from 1975 until the early 1990s, in a land that used to be known as the Switzerland of the Middle East.

Bernard Lewis has been much more than a historian. His method of teaching the history of Islam has distinguished itself by his interpretive approach. The rest of my review-article will consist mainly of excerpts from his recent works that I hope would shed a great light on what appears to be a very confused situation in the Arab World.

I begin with the following quotation from the “Multiple Identities of the Middle East”:

During the centuries-long confrontation between the states of Europe and the Ottoman Empire, the Europeans always saw and discussed their relations in terms of Austrians, Frenchmen, Germans, Englishmen, and other nationalities versus Turks; the Turks saw it in terms of Muslims versus Christians. In pre-modern Muslim writings, the parochial subdivisions of Christendom are given scant importance. In the worldview of Muslims, which they naturally also ascribed to others, religion was the determinant factor of identity, the focus of loyalty and, not less important, the source of authority. (P. 22)

In these words, we notice how the religious factor is of utmost importance in our relations with the Middle East or any nations within the vast Islamic world that surrounds it. Secular Western writers tend to ignore the critical importance of religion in Islam and what constitutes a Muslim’s ultimate loyalty. They tend to forget that, in contrast with Christianity, Islam is an amalgam of religion, politics, and culture, in one indivisible entity. If this thesis is correct, and I believe that the history of the last 1400 years supports it, then we must ask: why do some writers and politicians continue to ignore this fundamental fact about Islam?

The history of Pakistan affords us an example of why Muslims believe that they ought to live in an environment that is officially and legally Islamic. Before the end of the British rule, the most outspoken representatives of Indian Muslims requested the Raj to partition the subcontinent between Muslims and Hindus; and thus the Islamic state of Pakistan was born. That event signified that at the end of European colonial presence in Asia and Africa, Muslims would not tolerate living under non-Muslim rule. Since they identify themselves primarily as Muslims, their first loyalty goes to the Islamic Umma. Muslims feel at home only within Daru’l Islam.

Back to Bernard Lewis.

In the modern world, the political role of Islam, internationally as well as domestically, differs significantly from that of its peer and rival, Christianity. The heads of state or ministers of foreign affairs of the Scandinavian countries and Germany do not from time to time foregather in a Lutheran summit conference. Nor was it customary, when the Soviet Union still existed, for its rulers to join with those of Greece and Yugoslavia and, temporarily forgetting their political and ideological differences, to hold regular meetings on the basis of their current or previous adherence to the Orthodox Church. Similarly, the Buddhist nations of East and Southeast Asia, the Catholic nations of southern Europe and South America, do not constitute Buddhist or Catholic blocs at the United Nations, nor for that matter in any other political activities.

The very idea of such a grouping, based on religious identity, might seem to many modern Western observers absurd or even comic. But it is neither absurd nor comic in relation to Islam. Some fifty-five Muslim governments, including monarchies and republics, conservatives and revolutionaries, practitioners of capitalism and disciples of various kinds of socialism, friends and enemies of the United States, and exponents of whole spectrum of shades of neutrality, have built an elaborate apparatus of international consultation and even, on some issues, of cooperation. They hold regular high-level conferences, and, despite differences of structure, ideology, and policy, have achieved a significant measure of agreement and common action. (P. 26)

In another work by Bernard Lewis, “The Political Language of Islam,” he refers to the problems that continue to impact the Islamic nations and make them ill at ease in our modern world:

The second half of the twentieth century brought great disappointments and much soul searching. The talismans from the mysterious Occident worked no magic; the nostrums offered by various foreign hucksters brought no cure to the ills of Islamic lands and peoples. Constitutional governments, contrary to expectations, did not make them healthy, wealthy, and strong. Independence solved few problems and brought many more, while freedom — now meaning the freedom of the individual against his own compatriots and coreligionists — seemed further away than ever. Many imported remedies were tried — from eastern as well as western Europe, from South as well as North America. None of them have worked very well, and increasing numbers of Muslims have begun to look to their own past, or what they perceive as their own past, to find a diagnosis for their present ills and a prescription for their future well-being. The revolution in Iran has shown one way, and there are men and women in every Muslim country today who seek to follow the Iranian way, or to find a better alternative, in order to return to the true, original, and authentic Islam of the Prophet and his companions. The political language of Islam is acquiring a new relevance and a new significance.

It is also acquiring a new content. A revised or reconstructed past is never the same as the past as it was, and the Ayatollah Khomeini’s revolution owes more to the outside world than just guns, direct dialing, and cassettes, important as they were in his seizure of power. Among fundamentalist circles in Iran, Egypt, and elsewhere, a new Islamic political language is emerging, which owes an unacknowledged debt to the westernizers and secularists of the past century and their foreign sources, as well as to prophetic and classical Islam. Much will depend on their ability to harmonize these different traditions. (Pp. 115, 116)

The third book of Professor Lewis that deals with the continual unrest in the Islamic world was written before the attack on the World Trade Center and Washington, on 11 September, 2011. However, it was published in 2002, “What Went Wrong? Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response.”

Rather than excerpt large portions from this valuable work, I end the review with a few lines from the Introduction, and the Conclusion. They give us his scholarly insight into the continuing malaise that pervades the world of Islam in general, and especially the lands between Morocco on the Atlantic, and Iraq on the Gulf.

What went wrong? For a long time the people in the Islamic world, especially but not exclusively in the Middle East, have been asking this question. The content and formulation of the question, provoked primarily by their encounter with the West, vary greatly according to the circumstances, extent, and duration of that encounter, and the events that first made them conscious, by comparison, that all was not well in their own society. But whatever the form and manner of the question and of the answers that it evokes, there is no mistaking the growing anguish, the mounting urgency, and of late the seething anger with which both question and answers are expressed. (P. 3)

In the final chapter, “Conclusion,” Mr. Lewis gives his prescription for the age-long malady of the Islamic world. He pleads for the intellectuals to lead their world in shedding the question, “Who did this to us?” that has “led only to neurotic fantasies and conspiracy theories” and to begin asking “What did we do wrong?” that would lead them “naturally to a second question: “How do we put it together? In that question, and in the various answers that are being found, lie the best hopes for the future.”      (P. 159)

Footnotes

 “The Multiple Identities of the Middle East,” by Bernard Lewis. Random House, NY, 1998

“The Political Language of Islam,” by Bernard Lewis. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago and London, 1988

“What Went Wrong? Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response,” by Bernard Lewis. Oxford University Press, New York, NY 2002

The latest book by Bernard Lewis published in May, 2011, is:

“The End of Modern History in the Middle East,” HOOVER INSTITUTION PRESS,

Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6010

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Alarming Trends in Christian Witness to Muslims

May 05, 2023
By Leon F. Blosser

Leon F. Blosser

In the July 1898 issue of the Presbyterian Quarterly, an article appeared under the title Some Perils of Missionary Life. It was the text of an address given by Dr. B. B. Warfield to ‘a body of prospective missionaries’. In his address Warfield comments on five distinct perils that attend mission work. Failure to recognize any one of them usually proves fatal to the missionary and to the church as well.

Among those perils cited are the dangers of the missionary himself being converted to the religion of his hearers, and the possibility ‘that in striving to commend Christianity to the heathen and to remove their stubborn and abounding difficulties in accepting it, we really accommodate Christianity to heathen thought – in a word, we simply explain Christianity away’. Warfield continues:

I have met more than one missionary from Mohammedan lands, for example, who had learned to state the doctrine of the Trinity ‘so genially and so winningly’ (as they express it), that it roused little or no opposition in the Mohammedan mind. And when I heard how they state it, I did not wonder; they had so stated it as to leave the idea of the Trinity out. The method of conversion by concession is really, at bottom, an attempt to deceive men into a profession of Christianity; to make them believe that Christianity is not what it appears to be, and does not involve in its profession all that it seems; that it is much ‘easier to take’ than men have been accustomed to think.

Dr. Warfield’s remarks are as timely today as they were when he spoke them over eighty years ago. There are ominous signs that the movement which we have come to know as contextualization is in danger of succumbing to the dangers just cited.

The movement in its current form first gained impetus among evangelicals at the Lausanne Congress of World Evangelism in 1974. The theme of that congress was ‘Gospel and Culture’. In January 1978 thirty-three men who were either signatories of The Lausanne Covenant or committed to its framework met at Willowbank, Somerset Bridge, Bermuda, to carry forward the work begun at Lausanne. The papers read at the Lausanne Congress and the Willowbank Report were published in 1980.

At issue is the question, “How can I, who was born and brought up in one culture, take truth out of the Bible which was addressed to people in a second culture, and communicate it to people who belong to a third culture, without either falsifying the message or rendering it unintelligible? . . . and then when the message has been understood and received . . . how should they (i.e. the recipients) relate to their own culture in their conversion . . . ethical lifestyle, and . . . church life?’ ‘Contextualization’ was coined to embody the answers to these questions.

Statements intended to safeguard the movement were incorporated into the Willowbank report. The dangers of syncretism were noted; acknowledgement of the authority and inspiration of the Bible was also made. How, then, can it be said that we are in any great danger?

A clue is found in the attempt of the contextualization movement to equate the task of Bible translation with the work of cross-cultural evangelism. The Willowbank Report states in Section 8b, ‘Just as a “dynamic equivalence” translation . . . seeks to convey to contemporary readers meanings equivalent to those conveyed to the original readers, by using appropriate cultural forms, so would a “dynamic equivalence” church.’

In the application of this principle, proponents of contextualization have proceeded to treat divinely appointed aspects of the church on the same level as incidental and cultural forms which merely give personality to a local congregation. We shall see this clearly at another point in our discussion. For the moment, however, let us be clear that there is a vast difference between deciding to drop or alter the Trinitarian formula in baptism or redefine or eliminate the sacrament of the Lord’s table, and considering whether or not the congregation should sit on the floor or on benches, sing eastern or western tunes, or use a particular form of architecture in building a place of worship!

Therefore, it is fallacious to assume there is always a direct analogy between dynamic equivalency in translation and contextualization in evangelism. Rather, there is a continuum from a point of no analogy to a point of complete identity.

A missionary who learns the language of his hearers but chooses to adopt as few of their customs as possible is at the one end of the continuum. He who tries to adopt not only the language but the dress, customs, and total lifestyle of his hearers is at the other end of the continuum. At the mid-point between these two we find the missionary who, in mastering the language, strives to selectively adopt customs and elements of lifestyle into which can be poured content consistent with a Christian world view. Since all culture is expression of belief, adaption to, or adoption of many cultural elements may well be prohibitive. However, mastery of language is of supreme importance and must be attained if the Gospel is to be understood, translated and communicated cross-culturally.

In translation, a dynamic equivalent has as its ultimate goal a ‘rendering that means what the original means, both in denotation and connotation’. In other words, the object of Bible translation work is to communicate specific content in thought from one language to another, and that content is theological and propositional by the very nature of the case. (For example: “In the beginning God created; I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come; Anyone who comes to God must believe that He exists; I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through me; There is one God and one mediator between God and man . . .” etc.)

Conversely, we may say that Bible translation is not an attempt to accommodate the Scriptures to what in the recipient language appears to suggest a religious idea approximating to the original.

The object is not to stimulate men to think their own thoughts about God in addition to what others have thought about him in cultures reflected in Scripture. (cf: Isaiah 45:7, ‘I do these things’ – that is, I, the Lord, and not the dualistic forces of Zoroaster’s teaching, Cyrus!) Rather, man is directed, as Cornelius Van Till has pointed out, to think God’s thoughts after him. He is to ‘forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts’ and to ‘turn to the Lord’. ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord’. Similarly, great care must be taken in translating the Gospel into other languages so as not to dilute it and/or remove all that may offend or be difficult to comprehend in a different culture.
Therefore, the Reformed tradition has always laid a strong emphasis upon (1) an educated ministry with training in the Biblical languages and, (2) expository preaching, because the noetic effect of sin upon man makes it so easy to convey error to our hearers or readers.

The starting point for communicating God’s interpretation of reality to man is found in the unchangeable God who has revealed his truth in history in human language for man in all ages and cultures. Man is created in God’s image and, therefore, among other things he has a mind and a facility for communication pretuned to deal with reality as it is. However, man also has a facility for decision-making which we call his will, and that will, since the Fall, has been preadjusted to force the mind to distort any knowledge of God which it receives. The will forces man’s communication centre to use language forms that detract from the glory of the creator and becloud the knowledge of God. ‘In all his thoughts there is no room for God.’ All non-Biblically oriented thought becomes an attempt to turn the truth of God into a lie. All non-Christian religion (or culture) at its best is an exercise in suppressing the knowledge of God. It is not neutral!

Now it has become apparent that in following the dynamic equivalent analogy which it has adopted from the field of translation, the contextualization movement has taken an entirely new direction. Charles Tabor’s assertion that faith precedes theology so that all systematic theology is culture-conditioned is most alarming. This has at once reduced the uniqueness of the content of Biblical revelation to the level of general revelation. Systematic theology has suddenly become an entirely relativistic discipline, and it is asserted that it ought to be disengaged from any attempt at cross-cultural communication of the Scripture. After all, systematic theology is only a collection of cultural expressions that reflect what men think the Bible ought to say!

Alas! ‘What has been will be again; what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.’
In 1905 Geerhardus Vos delivered an address at Princeton which examined the forces which at that time were influencing people ‘to ask themselves whether it may not after all be possible to escape from the wear and tear of endless controversies by construing a Christianity which shall be independent of the facts of history’. Vos says that the leading force was not historical criticism’s ferocious attacks on the validity of Scripture. ‘Equal, if not more influence must be attributed to the dislike of dogma and theology which is so widespread in our days. The present religious mind has a veritable dread of everything that is not immediately practical or experimental’. This latter influence, Vos points out, is Adolph Harnack’s legacy to the church. Harnack (1851-1930) taught that Christianity should be practical and therefore theological elements must be kept to a minimum.

In commenting upon Mr. Taber’s position paper referred to above, Carl Henry had this to say. ‘After stripping theology of any right to speak transculturally, Taber as an anthropologist seems on numerous occasions in his paper to take to himself the very prerogative he disallows the theologians. He presumes to tell us what is the case with theology and hermeneutics in all cultures. And it is not without significance that he salutes Harnack in insisting on the transitional significance of doctrinal affirmations. To say these foundations arose in a specific cultural context is one thing, to suggest they have no fixed cognitive import in the form of divine truth is quite another, and a viewpoint that the evangelical community properly rejects.’ Unfortunately, however, what has been written since the Willowbank Report with its rather weak safeguard does not reflect the perception of Dr. Henry. Instead, it appears that the evangelical community has decided to endorse, embrace and develop contextualization as defined by Mr. Taber. Although we are assured by Taber that ‘to relativize is not to destroy it is becoming alarmingly clear that exactly the opposite is the case.

In a recent book, ISLAM – A SURVEY OF THE MUSLIM FAITH (Baker Book House), co-authored by George Fry and James King we see a complete reversal of opinion – at least on Mr. Fry’s part – from evangelicalism to relativism. In that reversal of opinion Mr. Fry has moved to a position so sympathetic to Islam that it is dangerously close to the syncretism of Arnold Toynbee (whom Fry quotes on page 39). Toynbee suggested that to resolve the conflict between Christianity and other religions the ‘non-Christian chaff’ (i.e. theology) must be winnowed from the wheat of Christianity. This includes the claim to the uniqueness of Christ and the scriptures. Mr. Taber’s assurances notwithstanding, to relativize does indeed destroy!

In 1963 Mr. Fry wrote,

From its inception, therefore, Islam has been Christianity’s most dangerous doctrinal challenge. It offers ‘another Christ’, ‘another gospel’, another way of salvation. With a peculiar Christology, a divergent revelation, and an alternative presentation of the prophetic succession, Islam holds up to the world an interpretation of holy history and the life of Christ radically different from that reported in the Scriptures. For this reason some of the medieval fathers regarded Islam as a Christian heresy. It was a doctrinal deviation similar to Arianism. Regardless of the merits of that position, the danger is obvious. Islam takes the principles, personalities, events, and promises of sacred history and revises and uses this familiar material in a manner foreign to the spirit and letter of primitive Christianity. This new synthesis is presented to the world as the pristine revelation of God. It is precisely at this point that Islam becomes Christianity’s greatest theological challenge, for it is the oldest and most widespread surviving revision of the Gospel.

However, in Islam – A Survey of the Muslim Faith we are introduced by Fry to a Kantian Theory of knowledge which creates a distinct division between the dimension of time and space and the dimension to which belong, according to the authors, ‘religion, theology, and inspiration of great men and women, literature . . . customs and rituals, various mystical experiences.’ We are told that ‘no understanding of Islam is possible without some appreciation of these issues’. In other words, to effectively preach the Gospel to Muslims we must begin with Kant’s theory of knowledge!

Where does this lead us in our understanding? First, the authors tell us that ‘all scholars seem agreed that there is no difference in meaning between the Islamic concept represented by “Allah”, the Christian concept represented by “God”, and the Hebrew concept of “Yahweh”. The view of God is the same among all so-called people of the Book’. This is in sharp contrast to Mr. Fry’s 1969 article. Moreover, it is alarming that such generalizations are made as ‘all scholars seem to agree’ when this is precisely the point of disagreement. Islam, in spite of all its monotheistic appearance is in reality pantheistic fatalism.

At another point it is suggested that there is a striking parallel between an illiterate prophet in Islam giving birth to the Arabic Word and the Virgin Mary giving birth to Christ the Word of God.

Such mental exercises are filled with danger. As a matter of fact any such analogies prove only the Satanic and counterfeit nature of Islam.

Now, lest our remarks appear unduly critical, or lest anyone feel that the trends we have noted are of no consequence, we must point out what are perhaps the most alarming statements of all which have been set forth by proponents of contextualization.

1. From The Willowbank Report, Section 5(e): ‘Although there are in Islam elements which are incompatible with the gospel, there are also elements with a degree of what has been called ‘convertibility’. For instance, our Christian understanding of God, expressed in Luther’s great cry related to justification, “Let God be God”, might well serve as an inclusive definition of Islam. The Islamic faith in divine unity, the emphasis on man’s obligation to render God a right worship, and the utter rejection of idolatry could also be regarded as being in line with God’s purpose for human life as revealed in Jesus Christ.’

Were Luther alive today, his response to this section of the Willowbank Report would undoubtedly be a mighty and thunderous, ‘Let God be God and not Allah!’ To assume that similar words refer to similar realities is to argue for the credence of Islam! The Allah of Islam is a non-entity. Worship in Islam is meritorious work. Man, according to Islam, is a moral tabula rasa, a Pelagian able-to-do-good, and the rejection of idolatry is merely legalistic form. Although the words might be convertible, the concepts which they convey are utterly foreign to Christianity.

2. From Phil Parshall, - veteran missionary – ‘In view of the fact that baptism is so misunderstood in Muslim lands, would it be feasible to construct a functional substitute for baptism that would retain the meaning, but change the form? This ceremony would take place upon one’s profession of faith in Jesus Christ. It would be preceded by a time of specific instruction concerning conversion and holiness. This very special service would be attended by believers who would pledge their love and loyalty to the new member of the body. Such a ceremony of initiation would retain the scriptural meaning of baptism and reduce offense to the onlooking Muslim community. The theological implications of such a departure from the universal biblical practice of water baptism should be thoroughly investigated. While not personally advocating such a position, I would be interested in seeing further research done in this general area.’

Proponents of contextualization trace the seeds of the movement to Richard Niebuhr and Eugene Nida. However, a suggestion as radical as Parshall has put forth in the name of evangelicalism is a radical departure from Nida who states, ‘Some missionaries . . . have not fully appreciated the revolutionary character of their ministry. Their desire to share with others has kept them from perceiving clearly the significance of Jesus’ words, “I have not come to bring peace, but a sword”, etc. [Matt 10:34-37]. One missionary was so appalled by the social consequences of a decision for Jesus Christ in the Mohammedan World that he said quite frankly that if a young lady in his school declared her intention to become a Christian he would plead with her not to do so. But missionary work is not truly Christian unless it implies a radical change, both for the individual and the society.’

It is quite forgivable if Parshall has missed Nida’s admonition, but it is deeply disturbing that he has spurned the clear teaching of our Lord and is now encouraging us to devise a more convenient rite than God’s appointed means of grace.

3. From veteran Professors George Fry and James King . . . ‘The posture of evangelicals is that the Christian mission is not to communicate a culture (usually Western), or a creed, or a church, or a moral code and commandments, or customs. Rather, dialogue-witness for them is to share a person, Jesus Christ, who has been for them a transforming power and a Saviour-Friend. What the consequences of Christ will be for Muslims, in terms of their culture, creed, mosques, code, commandments, and customs, evangelicals do not pretend to know. There have been spontaneous Jesus Muslim movements in both Anatolia and West Africa; but no Westerner knows, or can even pretend to know, what the person and power of Jesus will mean for Muslims.’

One must certainly ask what remains of the Biblical Gospel if we are not allowed to communicate beliefs, the moral law of God, or commandments. It is a pity the Apostle John was so uninformed when he wrote in his first epistle that the love of God is known and defined through obedience to his commands [1 John 5:2, 3].

The Jesus Muslim movement, like a similar movement among some Jewish folk, ignores the theological content of Biblical terms by replacing it with whatever cultural or tradition-oriented meanings one may wish to impose. If Fry and King are correct in stating that no evangelical knows or can pretend to know ‘what the consequences of Christ will be for the Muslims, in terms of their culture, creed, mosques, codes, commandments’. . . one wonders what distinguishes evangelicals from liberals!

The time has come to sound an alarm that will alert pastors and missionaries to the dangers inherent in the contextualization movement. Let us return to the faith once delivered to the saints and continue as that great apostle to Islam, Samuel Zwemer, admonished us. ‘Preach to the Moslem, not as a Moslem, but as a man . . . as a sinner in need of a Saviour.’


This article first appeared in the February 1982 issue of The Banner of Truth magazine, published by The Banner of Truth Trust, 3 Murrayfield Road, Edinburgh EH12 6EL U.K. and is re-published here by permission and with our thanks to the Trust. Please visit their website at http://www.banneroftruth.org/pages/home.php

Leon Blosser is a native of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and a graduate of Elizabethtown College (BA) and Reformed Episcopal Seminary (BD). He and his wife, Margaret are parents of four children. They lived in the Middle East from 1964 through 1976 and from 1990 through 2000. Mr. Blosser taught apologetics in Trinity Ministerial Academy, and served as Associate Pastor and Headmaster of the Christian School of Grace Baptist Church in Carlisle during the years 1977 through 1984, and then became the first coordinator of Reformed Baptist Mission Services. He has taught Arabic to both non-literate Arabic-speaking people, as well as to expatriate medical workers in the Middle East, and recently retired from teaching Arabic in Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Posted in Articles

From Religion to No Religion “Mina’l-Deen ilal-Ladeen” A Syrian Muslim’s Retreat into Unbelief

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

“Mina’l-Deen ilal-Ladeen”

A Syrian Muslim’s Retreat into Unbelief

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

On 21 June, 2005, the reformist Kuwaiti website kwtanweer [1] posted a very short, but important, autobiography of a Syrian intellectual by the name of Shehab al-Dimashqi (Shehab of Damascus). In this personal history the reader is given an account of a man’s gradual alienation from Islam and the factors leading to it. In the end he became a murtad (an apostate).

Five years later, comments on the autobiographic testimony are still appearing, indicating the interest it has generated among the wide readership of kwtanweer. To be precise, as of 26 October, 2010, 4,691 people have read Shehab’s “Confession of Unbelief.” It should be noted that the majority of the topics discussed on the kwtanweer website deal with the modernization, renewal, and reform of Islam; seldom do they touch on the outright rejection of Islam. So this fairly large number of readers is of some interest.

Who is Shehab al-Dimashqi? My research on Arab reformist websites garnered the following information about this Syrian intellectual:

Shehab, (which is his pseudonym) was born in Damascus, in 1971. He hopes one day to disclose his true identity. Judging by my own personal experience, having studied at a Syrian academy in the late 1940s, I calculate that he probably finished his primary and secondary education around 1988. He has a Law Degree from the University of Damascus. Again my calculations are that he probably enrolled at the College of Law at the University of Damascus around 1989. So he would have earned his law degree in 1993, and started practicing law shortly thereafter .

His alienation from Islam became public on 28 September, 2003, when he published, “Al-Naz’a al-Tabaqiyya fi’l-Islam” The Class Impulse in Islam,” in which he castigated the practice of slavery and concubinage in Islam, which have become institutionalized. He played a major role in the organization of “The Union of Arab Rationalists”. On 23 October, 2003, the website he created, www.ahewar.org, went public. The full name of the website is: “Al-Hewar al-Mutamadden,” means “Civilized Dialogue.” From 2003 to 2010 Shehab posted on this website 29 of his essays. Kwtanweer in turn has posted seven of them. The one receiving the greatest attention is “From Religion to No Religion”. Following are excerpts from this essay:

No one chooses his religion or his beliefs. Religion is similar to the names that are imposed upon us without our participation in the choice. I, like other Muslims, was born and grew up in a Muslim society, within a Muslim milieu, and in a Muslim family. I was a Muslim as a matter of tradition. Had I ever been asked: “do you expect that some day you might become a person without religion?” such a question would have been beyond consideration! During my days of commitment to Islam, I used to repeat the words of the late Sheikh Muhammad al-Ghazzali: “Unbelief is stupidity! All that is in the universe proclaims loudly the existence of God.” People around me kept reinforcing my faith by telling me: “Islam is the true and eternal religion; Islam performs miracles; Islam opens minds and hearts; etc.”

I grew up with Islamic illusions. I belonged to a religious family; and was totally committed to Islamic teachings, and faithful in the performance of all the duties of my faith. I defended my faith emotionally, and with great zeal. But at the same time, I began to contend with doubts and questions without finding any convincing answers.

The ‘Ulemas, (the religious authorities,) kept telling me: “Everything in the Qur’an is true, and anything that did not agree with its teachings, was wrong and false. As for your doubts and suspicions, they proceed from Satan. When these doubts assail you, seek refuge in Allah and implore Him to defend you from the wiles of Satan.”

I believed, and I grew up. The intensity of my clinging to Islam led me to read all kinds of Islamic books, ancient and modern, ultra conservative as well as reformist. The more I read Islamic thought, the more my doubts increased. My mind became filled with questions that had no answers.

At this point in my life, I found refuge, in the idea that I would embark on a spiritual quest for Allah. I convinced myself that all my doubts had originated from Satan. It was my duty as a believer, when assailed by doubts and questions, to implore Allah for forgiveness, and seek to forget them. In fact, I forced myself to ignore these questions as if they did not exist. After all, no human being is capable of understanding the deep secrets of religion! And as a committed believer, I kept forcing my mind to surrender to this line of reasoning and to accept the simplistic answers of the ‘ulema. However, this method did not work. In fact, my doubts remained embedded in some dark corners of my mind waiting for an appropriate moment to reappear with vigor and to confront me anew.

One day, I decided to assume the role of an atheist and confront a group of religious men with my arguments. Actually, my real aim was to strengthen my ability to engage in apologetics, and to discover areas of weakness in the position of the atheists through such encounter. I went to the College for the study of Shari’ah which was close to the University of Damascus where I was studying. I chose a bunch of bearded men and sat among them. I engaged them in discussion, setting forth my arguments for unbelief, waxing eloquent with all kinds of proofs for my position. To my surprise, they were unable to deal with my arguments! I repeated this experiment several times with other people who were wiser than the first group, but the result was the same.

My old doubts increased. For the first time, I began to study Islam as a critic, and not as a believer. I started to neglect my ritual prayers, all the while feeling guilty for doing so. I haltingly adopted the position of irreligion, but finally decided to leave Islam and all religion. I have been asked, “What were those doubts and questions that occasioned your intellectual crisis and forced you to forsake religion?”

It is very difficult to summarize the multitude of my readings and reflections in a few lines. That would require several pages. Some samples of my critique of religion can be found in my articles that are posted on a network of ‘Non-Religious Arabs’ (www.ladeeni.net).

It is rather too early to expect that any critique of religious thought would get published in the Arab world. I am convinced that the Internet has tremendous value as it allows anyone with an idea to defend, a place to do so. It has opened for us, ‘Non-Religious’ Arabs, a limitless space to openly and freely express our views. In fact, if it were not for the Internet, no one would have been aware of our existence, let alone our literary products! Perhaps the day is coming when I will be able to speak openly and boldly using my real name, and declare: “Yes, I am a non-religious person, and here are my reasons.” (Translation mine)

Analysis

Shehab’s account of his journey from belief into unbelief is quite riveting, especially when one reads it in the original Arabic text. While his experience is not unique in the contemporary Arab world, still publicizing his radda required an unusual boldness. His inability to accept the Islamic faith as a modern, educated Arab, led him ultimately to become a leader in a secularist group of young intellectuals.

Comments

Shehab ended his article with these words: “Yes, I am a non-religious person, and here are my reasons.” It is puzzling that he refrained from spelling out in more detail those reasons in his article on kwtanweer, of June of 2005. Researching the website “Al-Hewar al-Mutamadden” led to an earlier contribution of Shehab’s dealing with the same topic. It was dated 12 November, 2003, and was titled: “Why I Am Non-Religious?” In this article he listed a number of doctrinal questions which have haunted him and for which he has found no answers.

Why did Allah create Iblis (the Devil)? And why did Iblis refuse to worship Adam when the Lord ordered him to do so?

Why does Islam oppress women and treat them as inferior creatures? Why is a woman’s share of the inheritance half of a man’s share, when she works just as hard as he does? Also, why is an educated woman’s testimony worth only half of the testimony of an illiterate man? Why does a man have the right to marry two, three, and even four wives, as well as a number of concubines, while a woman is deprived of all that?

If it is indispensable for man to embrace a religion, why does it have to be Islam?

Why should my obedience to Allah be motivated by fear, or by the attractions of the sensual pleasures provided by the Houriyyat of Paradise? (Arabic source, translation mine)

When reflecting on the Qur’anic account of the fall of Iblis, he questioned why Allah would even create the Devil. Of additional concern was why Iblis refused the Lord’s ordering him to worship Adam. He is not alone in his concern. This topic has been an embarrassing doctrinal problem to Muslim intellectuals for some time. In 1969, Dr. Sadeq Jalal al-Adhm, a member of a prominent Sunni family from Damascus, published in Beirut his, “Naqd al-Fikr al-Deeni” (A Critique of Religious Thought) questioning the reasonableness of the Qur’anic account of the Fall of Iblis. This got him into trouble with the Lebanese authorities, who ordered him to prison for one week. His crime was “defaming” Islam!

Both Sadeq and Shehab couldn’t fathom why the Creator would order a creature (who was an angel before his fall) to prostrate himself and worship Adam! It was and remains an illogical request from a supposedly wise Creator. [2]

Another subject that troubled the young intellectual was the status of women in Islam. It is enshrined in the Qur’an that women are definitely inferior to men. A woman is considered as half the worth of a man. Her very humanity is questioned. The sensitive young lawyer was appalled at such a concept and found it intolerable. He believed in the equality of men and women.

The practice of polygamy troubled him as well it should. Many a Muslim wife, once she has reached her forties or fifties has experienced its humiliation. Many are cast aside by husbands who take up with young dirras (an Arabic term for a second wife). Such young women are conceivably the same age as some of their own children!

Another vexing subject was disturbing Shehab’s mind. Why the absence of freedom of religion, or as he put it, “If it is indispensable for man to embrace a religion, why does it have to be Islam?”


These were just a couple of the reasons that led Shehab to break with his past and adopt an entirely non-religious worldview. From time to time, he contributes essays of a critical nature on websites. The last one was dated 1 July, 2010 and dealt with the subject of “Mythologies in Islam and Christianity.” He and his colleagues have awakened to the importance of freedom of expression. They are diligently attempting to bring their contemporaries in the Muslim world to recognize the futility of accepting blindly or uncritically the claims of Islam, or any other faith. The status and treatment of women in Islam appears to have been one of the turning points in their intellectual journey as well. They are definitely questioning everything in their tradition.

Christian missionaries and lay people who encounter Muslims at work or in institutions of higher education need to be aware of the turmoil that is going on in the minds and lives of young Muslim intellectuals, both men and women. The Internet, globalization, and migration, have opened their minds to see the utter contrast between their closed and antiquated culture, and that of the rest of the world. To understand and sympathize with their plight and turmoil is of utmost importance. Being cognizant of a story like “Shehab’s Retreat into Unbelief” should make us compassionate and eager to witness to Muslims, fully armed with the belief that our Gospel remains the only hope in our confused and complex world.

Notes

1. The website kwtanweer.com with this page was available at least until 28 October 2010. During the editorial process for this article, we realized that this site apparently disappeared at the beginning of November (because they forgot to pay their domain name fees?).

2. The account for the fall of Iblis is found in three chapters of the Qur’an, I have used only two references taken from Surat al-Baqara, and Surat Al-?ijr, and the translations of Sahih International and Muhsin Khan (source).

Surat al-Baqara (The Cow) 2:34


And [mention] when We said to the angels, "Prostrate before Adam"; so they prostrated, except for Iblees. He refused and was arrogant and became of the disbelievers. Sahih International

And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves before Adam.” And they prostrated except Iblis (Satan), he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allah). Muhsin Khan


Surat Al-Hijr (The Rocky Tract) 15:30-34

"And when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration. So the angels prostrated - all of them entirely. Except Iblees, he refused to be with those who prostrated. [Allah] said, O Iblees, what is [the matter] with you that you are not with those who prostrate?" He said, "Never would I prostrate to a human whom You created out of clay from an altered black mud." [Allah] said, "Then get out of it, for indeed, you are expelled. And indeed, upon you is the curse until the Day of Recompense." Sahih International

"So, when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) the soul which I created for him, then fall (you) down prostrating yourselves unto him. So, the angels prostrated themselves, all of them together. Except Iblis (Satan), - he refused to be among the prostrators. (Allah) said: "O Iblis (Satan)! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators?" [Iblis (Satan)] said: "I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud." (Allah) said: "Then, get out from here, for verily, you are Rajim (an outcast or a cursed one)." [Tafsir At-Tabari] "And verily, the curse shall be upon you till the Day of Recompense (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)." Muhsin Khan 

Posted in Articles

From Faith to Unbelief “Mina’l-I’tiqad il’l-Ilhad” The Journey of a Saudi Intellectual

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

“Mina’l-I’tiqad il’l-Ilhad” 
The Journey of a Saudi Intellectual

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Over the years, I have been interested in the lives of Muslim reformers. It started in my student days, when I took a course in Arabic on “The History of the Arab-Islamic Civilization.” My interest grew after my Arabic-language radio ministry began in 1958, as I needed to remain abreast of the reform movements in the Arab world. That led me to acquire more books dealing with the subject of “Reformation” and “Renewal” in Islam.

Not long after the Caliphate moved to Iraq in 750 A.D, the Mu’tazilites 1. appeared on the scene. They may be considered as the first reformers in Islam. They lived predominantly in Baghdad and Basra during the early years of the Abbasid Caliphate. Major concepts like “Predestination and Free Will,” “The Attributes of God” and the “Nature of the Qur’anic Revelation” were being scrutinized by Islamic philosophers at the time. The Mu’tazilites were noteworthy for bringing Greek philosophical thought into these discussions. Initially some Abbasid caliphs even supported Mu’tazilite attempts to correct the teachings of Imam Hanbal, which they claimed were antithetical to the strict monotheism of Islam. 

Unfortunately for the Mu’tazilites, their movement remained within the confines of elite intellectual circles, and eventually, Imam Hanbal’s views triumphed and became the standard Islamic orthodoxy, especially with respect to the doctrine of the “Uncreatedness of the Qur’an.” Around two hundred years later, Imam al-Ghazzali (d. 1111 A.D.) is credited with “closing the door of Ijtihad,” which brought an end to the theological discussions among Muslim scholars. The door remained closed for several centuries, during which juridical and theological subjects were reduced to numbingly repetitious writings of the themes and positions of traditional Sunni Islam. 

Napoleon’s expedition into Egypt in the early 1800s, and the subsequent British involvement in the affairs of the country, stimulated Arab intellectuals to seriously reflect on the progress that had been taking place in Europe, in contrast with their own Islamic world, which was in a state of “Inhitat” (stagnation and decline.) Early reformers such as Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (1838-1897,) and his disciple Muhammad Abduh (1849-1905), were among the pioneers attempting to reform Islam. 

In the 20th century, Taha Hussein was considered to be a leading reformer. In spite of being afflicted with blindness, he was able to secure higher education degrees at al-Azhar University in Cairo, and also in France. His critical work on pre-Islamic Arabic literature brought him into conflict with the religious authorities in Egypt who saw his work as a threat to the integrity of the Qur’an. 

In more recent years, Zaki Naguib Mahmoud has become a powerful reformer of Arab-Islamic culture. He has authored several books dealing with Tajdeed (Renewal) and Tahdeeth (Modernization) of the Arab-Muslim mind.

A more radical genre of Muslim writings also began to appear attacking the very idea of a theistic faith. Men like Jalal Sadeq al-Adhm, influenced by radical Western thought, authored “Naqd al-Fiqr al-Deeni” (A Critique of Religious Thought). It was like a bombshell, and brought him into conflict with both religious and government circles in Lebanon during the 1960s. 

During the 1990s, would-be reformers and critics of Islam began using the Internet to propagate their ideas. On websites such as, www.kwtanweer.com, www.al-awan.org and www.aafaq.org both reformers and apostates defended their thoughts with vigor and passion. For example, in 2008, kwtanweer published two articles by a lady journalist from Kuwait that dealt with the topic of “Why Do Our Young People Become Apostates?” “Limadha Yulhidu al-Shabab?” http://www.kwtanweer.com/articles/readarticle.php?articleID=1989

With that very limited historical background as an introduction, I bring to your attention an article that appeared on 17 March, 2010, in kwtanweer entitled “Mina’l I’tiqaad il’l Ilhad” “From Faith to Unbelief.” It relates the journey of a Saudi intellectual from Islam to unbelief. Here are excerpts, followed by my analysis and comments. 

“How wonderful it would be, to have men like Abdallah al-Quseimi! At first, he was noted for his defense of Islam, its beliefs and practices. On the other hand, he also wrote in defense of those who have chosen unbelief, thus demonstrating his firm attachment to freedom of religion! 

“In one of his books, al-Quseimi wrote: ‘Ours is a scary and backward society. You are afraid lest someone charges you with unbelief; or you may become the source of fear, should you point to other men and say that they have embraced unbelief. Our society grants any hypocrite, ignorant or stupid person, the freedom to accuse others as having departed from the right path!’ 

“This man [al-Quseimi] did not change his skin the way snakes do theirs, as some religious leaders have charged, when he forsook his Islamic faith and adopted Ilhad, (unbelief.) In fact, his journey from faith to unbelief was a long one; several ‘traffic’ signs appeared on the road warning him of difficult and tortuous curves lying ahead. However, he persisted in his journey, and managed to finish it peacefully and resolutely. 

Al-Quseimi’s journey has baffled many Muslim scholars who tried to find a cause for his ‘radda’ (apostasy.) Some claimed it was due to the influence of the devil that targets human beings, and especially Muslim religious scholars. Others attributed his fall to the reading of too many philosophical works! Still others were content to pray for his re-conversion, hoping it would take place before his death. He died in 1996, without having returned to Islam. What surprised many critics was the fact that when he crossed from the side of faith to the other side, he was not going through any radical personal crisis. Al-Quseimi passed away confirmed in his Ilhad. Many people hoped they would find some document he may have left behind, indicating his repentance at the eleventh hour! Sad to say, nothing of the sort was discovered. On the contrary, several people in his own country (Saudi Arabia,) now respect his decision to apostatize! 

“One wonders whether the events of 9/11 might have contributed to a revival of interest in al-Quseimi’s life! A daily newspaper, al-Riyadh has begun publishing a series of articles by Saudi intellectuals about this ‘apostate.’ In the first article, he was praised for his noble character, as a person who preferred to be called a ‘zindeeq’ (heretic,) keeping company with free intellectuals, rather than to live as a hypocrite, among the religious leaders of Saudi Arabia. The article added, ‘After his passing, very few newspapers published the news of his death. Now however, his stature is growing; he is being regarded as a modern intellectual on par with some of the well-known Western intellectuals.’ 

“Before al-Quseimi’s Ilhad, he had contributed several works in defence of orthodox Islam. He was well-known for responding to critics of the faith. One of his books dealt with ‘the Wahhabi Revolution;’ another dealt with ‘the Struggle between Islam and Paganism.’ He had finished the first two volumes of this magnum opus, with the promise of a third and final volume to follow. However, that was not to take place, since his journey on the path of faith stopped, being replaced by his journey on the new path of Ilhad

“How did al-Quseimi change from being a man of religion (Rajol deen) to becoming a propagandist (Dai’ya) for Ilhad? Some have attempted to give a convincing answer. They couldn’t find anything in his gentle personality that would explain the change from obeying to disobeying al-Haq (the Truth) of the Islamic revelation. Neither could they find any external factors that might have played a decisive role in his apostasy. On the other hand, no one has sought to look for a convincing answer by investigating al-Quseimi’s internal religious experience, as if unbelief occurs due to simply external factors. This is a serious error resulting from a misunderstanding of the spirit and essence of Islam. 

“We cannot understand the gradual and quiet change that took place in al-Quseimi’s life, unless we subscribe to the proposition that Islam itself facilitates the transition from religion to unbelief, more so even than most other religions do. [Emphasis mine] 

“The essence of the religious works of al-Quseimi, including the unpublished Volume III, ‘the Struggle between Islam and Paganism,’ revolved around Islam’s rebellion against all attempts to posit a likeness or similarity between the Creator and his creatures, as well as all aspects of love, and immanence. In other words, this Islamic penchant for negativity manifests itself in the very first word of the Shahadah: La 2. According to the French intellectual Jacques Attali 3. this transforms Islam into the most abstract of religions, thus facilitating its faith to turn into Ilhad

“Indeed, Islam possesses a unique impulse that makes it the most likely religion to cause unbelief. For several other religions contain the promise of an eschatological salvation at the end of time, as in Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Zoroastrianism. However, in Islam, there is no place or room for a Savior, or for salvation (except in Shi’ite Islam.) In lieu of salvation, there is the contrary principle of annihilation, al-Fana’. It is this very principle that led Ibn Jahm 4. long ago to the extreme position that in the End, both Heaven and Hell will be annihilated! “The centrality of annihilationism in Islamic thought over against the centrality of salvation in most other religions is the point of weakness in Islam. However, it could become its point of strength, if Islam became an open religion, open to the possibility of being liberated from the illusion of immortality, and the delusion of an eternal existence, which is the source of all delusions!”

Analysis

Al-Quseimi’s apostasy, according to the author of the article, was probably due to certain Islamic doctrines that referred to God in a totally negative way. In contrast with the Christian doctrine of the transcendence and immanence of God, Islam simply asserts and teaches that man can know the will of God, but cannot know Him as a Person. In fact, the Arabic word for person is shakhs, and it may not be used in reference to God, because it connotes a finite and fallible human being!

Comments

The way the author of the article summed up the probable reason for al-Quseimi’s defection from the faith he first set out to defend, indicates that he has grasped a very important and fundamental weakness in Islamic theology and anthropology. As he put it, “Islam’s rebellion against all attempts to posit a likeness or similarity between the Creator and the creatures, as well as all aspects of love, and immanence, transforms Islam into the most abstract of religions, thus facilitating its faith to turn into Ilhad!” In Islam, God remains the unknown Supreme Being. He is and remains, bila tashbeeh, (he cannot be similar to, or likened, to anyone.) Search as you might in the Suras of the Qur’an, you will find nothing that approximates these words of Genesis 1:26a “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness…’ or of Genesis 9: 6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man.” (NIV)

Added to the traditional Islamic doctrine of God as the “Wholly Other” is the absence of the hope of salvation. The article correctly pointed out that “Islam possesses a unique impulse or motif that makes it the most likely religion to cause unbelief. For several other religions contain the promise of an eschatological salvation, as in Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Zoroastrianism. However, in Islam, there is no place or room for a Savior, or for salvation (except in Shi’ite Islam.)” A Muslim, having confessed the “Shahadah,” is left with many duties to perform, and evil acts to avoid, in order to gain entrance into Paradise.

The discussion about al-Quseimi’s apostasy rightly pointed to a serious deficiency in Islamic theology, thus allowing the Christian missionary to offer, in contrast, the Biblical doctrine of God, as a heavenly Father who sent the Messiah on a mission of redemption. It is sad that the author ended his essay by manifesting a strong criticism not only of Islam, but of all theistic religions; and he looked forward “to the possibility of being liberated from the illusion of immortality, and the delusion of an eternal existence, which is the source of all delusions!”

His preference for a type of nirvana, i.e. the end of all individual and personal existence, is indeed a shocking denouement of an otherwise very instructive article that attempted to explain the radda of a well-known Saudi intellectual whose journey began in complete faith, but ended in total unbelief!

1. “[The Mu’tazilites’] outstanding service to Islamic thought was the assimilation of a large number of Greek ideas and methods of arguments... The Greek ideas thus introduced by the Mu’tazilites came to dominate one great wing of Islamic theology, namely, rational or philosophical theology. Since the Mu’tazilites were regarded as heretics, however, by the Sunnites, their ideas and doctrines could not simply be taken over, but exercised an influence indirectly”

Pp.249, 250, From “The Formative Period of Islamic Thought,” by W. Montgomery Watt. Edinburgh University Press, 1973

2. The Islamic creed: “La Ilaha illa’l Allah, Muhammad rasool Allah. No God but Allah, Muhammad is Apostle of Allah” 

3. Jacques Attali, Le Sens des Choses, Robert Laffont, Paris 2009, p: 36

Jacques Attali was born in 1943 in Algiers, Algeria. He is a French economist and scholar. From 1981 to 1991, he was an advisor to President François Mitterrand. 

4. Ibn Jahm was born in Kufah, Iraq. He was the first major propagator of the createdness of the Qur'?n. He believed that the Speech of God is created, since all attributes that are ascribed to God and which are shared by the creation, are created too. There can be no sharing in name or attribute, according to Jahm, for that would necessitate assimilation, al-Tashbih. He therefore denied each and every attribute mentioned in the scriptures, for fear of anthropomorphism. The only attributes he accepted and described God with were two: creating and power. He based his theology upon the early Greek philosophers.

The URL for “From Faith to Unbelief” “Mina’l I’tiqaad il’l Ilhad”: 
http://www.kwtanweer.com/articles/readarticle.php?articleID=2434#

An Addendum to "From Faith to Unbelief"

For too long, perhaps since the publishing of “Customs and Cultures: Anthropology for Christian Missions”, by Eugene A. Nida, (Harper & Brothers, 1954), missionary theory has been dominated by the discipline of cultural anthropology, rather than by Christian theology. In “Down to Earth: Studies in Christianity and Culture,” edited by John R. Stott and Robert Coote, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, MI 1980, the editors wrote:

“Although different answers are given to these questions, they are basically cultural. The major challenge to the world-wide Christian mission today is whether we are willing to pay the cost of following in the footsteps of our incarnate Lord in order to contextualize the Gospel. Our failure of communication is a failure of contextualization.” P. viii

These words constitute an inaccurate assessment for the lack of “results” in missions among Muslims. Stott and Coote did not consider the formidable difficulties encountered when presenting the Gospel to Muslims. Neither did they focus on the inadequacy of the Islamic doctrine of God, as a way for presenting the Christian view of God, as both Creator and Redeemer.

This explains why I was very pleased with the article about a Saudi intellectual's
defection from Islam. It pointed to those inherent deficiencies in the Islamic doctrine of God, as well as to the lack of a hope of salvation, as a possible motif for al-Quseimi's “Ilhad” (unbelief.).

Missiologists should pay more attention to the critique of Islam by Muslims and ex-Muslims, now that it has become rather widespread and can be easily accessed, thanks to the Internet. It would facilitate the “re-theologizing of missiology” and the emergence of a Biblical theology of missions, and a renewed emphasis on the unique role of the Holy Spirit in conversions.

Posted in Articles

The Absence of Freedom of Religion in Islam

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany
The Absence of Freedom of Religion in Islam
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany
 
It is customary for Muslims to say that Islam allows freedom of religion. In support of this claim, they quote Qur'an 2:256 “There is no compulsion in religion.” The facts of history contradict that notion. From its earliest days, once a person adopted Islam, there was no way for him or her, to convert to another religion. A Murtad (an apostate) must repent or face the sentence of death.
 
Having this undisputed fact in mind, I was very impressed by an article that was posted on 30 May, 2010, by an Arab intellectual on a Kuwaiti website: “The Call to Embrace a Religion or to Leave it: Is a Freedom We Don’t Understand.” It was occasioned by an advertisement in the United States that appeared on buses, calling on Muslims to apostatize. Here are excerpts from the article, followed by my analysis and comments.
 
“When I read the news about certain advertisements that appeared in America on buses calling on Muslims to forsake Islam, I was very disturbed. I couldn’t understand why Americans would manifest such a hostile attitude toward Islam by calling on Muslims to leave their faith! When my emotions subsided, I reflected on the subject and concluded that it was a reaction to the acts of violence that Muslims had perpetrated lately within “Christian” lands. Who can forget the events of 11 September, 2001? 
 
“Ever since that day, the West has been asking: ‘Why do Muslims want to attack innocent people? And why Muslims forbid Christians to engage in mission work in their homeland, when Muslims living in Western countries freely call on people to Islamize? And, why do Muslims enjoy freedom of religion in the West, while adamantly opposing some of their own people the use that freedom and embrace another faith?’
 
“The fact remains that we, Muslims have always been in conflict with other religions, and have initiated unjustified wars especially against the West. Muslims are obsessed by this antagonism, and are unable to understand the true meaning of the word “hurriyya” (freedom); since it is absent from our dictionaries. So how can we appreciate its value in Western societies? Historically, we have been antagonistic to the concept of liberty; our faith has an ambiguous attitude toward it. The West believes in your freedom to spread your religion in their lands; shouldn’t this imply that you allow them the same freedom? And why be angry when they place ads on buses that call on Muslims to forsake their faith, while you possess complete freedom to call Westerners to convert to Islam?
 
“Actually, we get quickly upset by any criticism of Islam. This reveals that Islam is weak, and unable to withstand criticism. Whether those ads on American buses succeeded or failed to accomplish their goal, at least those who sponsored them were exercising their freedom of expression. In the final analysis, let’s admit that Islam has always been the beneficiary of Western tolerance; while Christianity has not received any reciprocal treatment from Islam. This is the verdict of history.”
The author of the article deplored the total absence of a quid pro quo in the West’s relation with Islam. While Muslims in the West enjoy complete freedom of religion, including the right to propagate their faith; Christians in Daru’l Islam are forbidden to call on Muslims to convert to Christianity.
 
It is seldom that an Arab intellectual would go public and point to this anomaly within Muslim lands. I applaud his courage and integrity, and thank the Kuwaiti website for posting it.
 
Around two months, news regarding the harsh treatment received lately by Christian workers in Morocco began to circulate. Then on 6 July, 2010, this editorial appeared in the Wall Street Journal, “Expelled in Morocco: A U.S. ally mistreats American Christians.”
 
Here are excerpts:
 
“Morocco has long been considered a bastion of relative religious tolerance in the Muslim world, but since March the government has summarily expelled dozens of Americans for Christian proselytizing. Most were denied any semblance of due process, and some were given only a few hours to pack their bags. The government has provided little or no evidence of proselytizing, which is illegal in Morocco.
 
“Eddie and Lynn Padilla had been foster parents in the Village of Hope, an orphanage located in the Atlas Mountains east of the capital of Rabat, where they were raising two Moroccan orphan boys under the age of two. The government has long known they are Christians and had granted them a 10-year visa.
 
“That changed on March 9. After three days of police inspection and interrogation, the Padillas were given a few hours to gather their belongings. ‘It happened so fast that you didn't even really have time to feel the shock of it until later,’ Mrs. Padilla told us in an interview. ‘The worst moment of it all was handing over the boys. . . . These children were abandoned by their birth mothers. We were their parents.’” [Emphasis mine]
 
On 9 July, 2010, the Moroccan Embassy in Washington, D.C., responded: 
 
“Your editorial "Expelled in Morocco" (July 6) is wrong about Morocco's recent actions to enforce its laws against religious proselytism. Morocco guarantees its tradition of freedom of worship in its constitution and it applies equally to Muslims, Jews and Christians, people of faith who have lived and worked together for generations. To maintain the balance in its society and protect the public order. Moroccan law also prohibits proselytizing. 
 
“After a thorough investigation, Moroccan authorities were obligated to enforce these laws. Those who want to challenge their repatriations are free to use the legal means at their disposal, including the right to appeal.
 
“Morocco remains committed to interfaith dialogue, tolerance, freedom of expression, worship and openness.” 
                                                                                             
Typical with all Muslim apologetics, the Moroccan ambassador evaded the main issue of freedom of religion, by claiming that those strong measures against some American Christians had to be taken in order “To maintain the balance in its society and protect the public order. Moroccan law also prohibits proselytizing.”  
 
In fact, Morocco’s action directed against Eddie and Lynn Padilla, contradict the claim that “Morocco remains committed to interfaith dialogue, tolerance, freedom of expression, worship and openness.” Their hasty expulsion proved the very opposite; actually, true freedom of religion is nowhere to be found in the Household of Islam.  As the author of the kwtanweer article was put it, “The Call to Embrace a Religion or to Leave it: Is a Freedom We Don’t Understand.”   
 
 
 
Posted in Articles

The Trinity and Christian Missions to Muslims

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

By Bassam Michael Madany

 

Islam has engaged the attention of Christians ever since its rise in Arabia in the seventh century. One obvious reason is the fact that most early Muslim conquests took place within Christian lands. “The People of the Book,” as Jews and Christians were called, faced the choice of adopting the faith of their conquerors, or of remaining in their particular religion. Those who persisted in their Christian commitment gave a reason for this decision. They could not, and would not forsake the Biblical Messiah, their Lord and Savior. By implication, they refused to believe in the “heavenly” mission of Muhammad as God’s final Messenger commissioned to call the world to Islam. From the beginning of the Christian-Muslim encounter, the main debate centered upon these fundamental doctrines: the person and work of Jesus Christ, and the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. Some time later, when the irreconcilable differences between the teachings of the Bible and the Qur'an were recognized, the authenticity of the Christian Scriptures became another core issue of controversy.

The Qur’an refers to Jesus as the son of Mary who was sent by God to proclaim a specific message to the people of Israel. The details of the birth of Christ, his teachings, and miracles, as recorded in the Qur’an, are apocryphal. What were Muhammad’s sources for his accounts of the person and mission of the Messiah? In dealing with this subject, Professor Neal Robinson, a British scholar, wrote in his book, Christ in Islam and Christianity:

“Despite our extensive knowledge of Byzantine Orthodoxy and of the principal forms of Christianity which flourished in Syria and Persia, we know all too little about Christianity as practised in Najran [a city in Arabia inhabited by Christian Arabs] and Abyssinia [another name for Ethiopia] in the seventh century and even less about Arab tribal Christianity. The external evidence and the evidence of the Qur'an itself both point to a predominantly heterodox influence on the early environment of Islam. Although the external evidence would favour Nestorianism and Monophysitism, the internal evidence is equally indicative of some form of Jewish Christianity. We should probably think in terms of a variety of rival sects some of which may have vanished without trace.” [1]

As Islam developed over the centuries, so did its intolerant attitude towards Christianity. Its polemics were primarily directed against the Christian doctrine of God as Triune. Muslim theologians ridiculed the doctrine of the Holy Trinity because it had no basis in Allah’s “true” revelation in the Qur’an.  Furthermore, it was irrational. They also attacked the Christian doctrine of the Messiahship of Jesus, as revealed in the Christian Holy Scriptures, and confessed by the Church in the Nicene Creed. Therefore, these words of the Nicene Creed are abhorrent to the ears of Muslims:

“We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten not made; of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made. And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, and with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified.”

Denying this Trinitarian affirmation of the Fatherhood of God, the deity of Jesus Christ, and the personality of the Holy Spirit, the Qur’an responds:

“Qol hua Allah ahad, Allah assamad, lam yalid, wa-lam youlad, wa-lam yakon lahu kuf’on ahad.”  

“Say: Allah is one, Allah the Eternal One, He begot none, nor was He begotten, and no one is equal to Him.” [2] [Translation mine]

Basically, Muslims cannot accept the deity of Christ in the Trinitarian formulation and it inevitably leads to their rejection of the Trinity.  Muslims charge Christians with the sin of “shirk,” i.e., associating a mere creature with the Creator. In Islam, this is the unforgivable sin.

When this theological context is fully grasped, the challenge facing Christian missionaries in Muslim lands becomes apparent in all its starkness. How can the saving message of the Gospel break through the obstacle of Islamic theological intransigence toward one of Christianity’s main tenets? When preaching the Word of God to Muslims, should missionaries downplay the importance of the Trinity, or the deity of Jesus Christ?

Lately, some Western experts on world religions, having adopted theological pluralism, minimize the great gulf separating Christianity from Islam.  In his book “Jesus in the Qur'an,” Geoffrey Parrinder, Professor Emeritus of the Comparative Study of Religions at the University of London wrote:

“The encounter of the world religions is a major fact of our times and it demands a restatement of traditional theological expression. This restatement must take account of all the new knowledge available.” [3]

His “restatement” of the Christian religion illustrates how some Western scholars have downplayed the sharp differences between Christianity and Islam. Should their views achieve a wide acceptance among Western Christians, it would mark the end of their mission work among Muslims.

It is evident that Parrinder seeks to make inter-faith dialogue a fruitful enterprise and his book concludes with a radical reappraisal of fundamental Christian principles:

“It is too easily assumed that all traditional doctrines are firmly based on the Bible. The Semitic view of God may need to be cleared of some Greek theories that have overlaid it. ... Terms like Son of God, Trinity and Salvation need to be re-shaped and given new point. Concepts of prophecy, inspiration and revelation must be re-examined in view of the undoubted revelation of God in Muhammad and in the Qur'an” [4]

At the same time he deplores and denigrates the orthodox Christian view of the Atonement:

“There is no doubt that Christians hold firmly to the Cross as a historical fact, but they are not bound to accept theories that would interpret it in terms of legal satisfaction or sacrificial substitution.” [5]

Such examples are cited to emphasize the fact that the consensus that had prevailed among Western Christian missionaries from the days of William Carey (1792) to the early years of the twentieth-century, no longer exists today.  In the past, regardless of certain doctrinal differences that prevailed among Protestant churches, they affirmed the supreme and final authority of the Bible, the Trinity, and the uniqueness, finality, and superiority of the Lord Jesus Christ and his substitutionary work on the cross. The consensus no longer exists as was well documented by Professor S. Mark Heim, of Andover-Newton Theological School, in his article, “Pluralism and the Otherness of World Religions,” published in FIRST THINGS, August/September,1992 [6]

What should be the Christian reaction to these developments? Parrinder’s thinking reflects the mindset of secular, pluralistic Western societies.  He seeks to bring Christian categories and doctrine into its orbit. But the tenets of the historic Christian faith must never be compromised in any way regardless of how unbendingly doctrinaire it appears to pluralistic secularists.  Do the Western modernist theologians ever stop to think that their Islamic counterparts will not bend to such categories either?  By suggesting that Christian theologians should gives Islam victory by default.

In the remaining part of this article, I would like to share with the readers of the Journal, how I dealt with this the doctrine of the Ontological Trinity in my radio and literature ministry among Arabic-speaking people over a period that spanned thirty six years.

I began proclaiming the Gospel in Arabic in 1958 over radio station ELWA, of Monrovia, Liberia. Later on, the Lord opened other avenues for the broadcasting of the Word on radio stations in Europe, and in the Middle East.

Even though I spent most of my active ministerial life in Canada and USA, I kept in touch with my field of endeavor through short wave radio, Arabic language publications, and frequent visits to the Arab world. The potential audience in the Arabic-speaking world is predominantly Islamic. How was I to do the work of an evangelist proclaiming the saving message of the Biblical Gospel?

Upon hearing a Christian radio program, most listeners would not have been sympathetic to its contents.  Sooner or later, they would discover that the purpose of the broadcast messages was to call them to faith in the Biblical Messiah, who was not only the son of Mary, but equally the Son of God. And this God was a triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It meant that I was asking them to change their loyalty from Islam to Christianity; from being followers of Muhammad to being believers in Christ and all that it entailed.  That was tantamount to asking them to apostatize. In their tradition, apostasy is a sin punishable by death. By what authority did I call people to make such a radical decision?

Ultimately, it was the Bible that gave me the authority, and the boldness to herald the Good News of Jesus the Messiah. As a member of the community known to Muslims as “The People of the Book,” I proclaimed the Good News that called for “repentance toward God, and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts 20 (AV)

Realizing, therefore, the absolute necessity of proclaiming a Biblical message every time I recorded a radio program, what specific approach did I use? Both my Christian heritage and my knowledge of Islam, led me to adopt the evangelistic system Paul used in his Letter to the Romans. Theologically speaking, it meant that I would begin with an emphasis on Biblical anthropology, followed by an exposition of Biblical Christology and soteriology. Then, I would go on to explain that salvation proceeded from the plan and unmerited love of the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I would further explain that the existence of this God, i.e., of the Holy Trinity, pre-dated the formulation of Trinitarian doctrine at Nicea (325 AD). The Trinity was a living reality, before the creation of the cosmos. A further reference to Ephesians 1, helped expound the role of the three persons of the Trinity in planning, procuring, and securing our redemption.

Continuing study of Islamic doctrine reinforced my decision to follow such a course of exposition. For notwithstanding the strong criticisms that have been leveled by Muslims against the Bible’s authenticity, the Trinity, and the deity of Jesus Christ, their greatest objection is to Biblical anthropology. Whereas the Christian view of man’s predicament is marked by recognition of the drastic results of the Fall, the Muslim view of man’s present condition is very optimistic. It may be described as a thoroughly Pelagian point of view.

This was articulated well in a 1959 article appearing in the quarterly The Muslim World (Volume 49, No. 1, January 1959), in which the Islamic doctrine of man was discussed. It contained a quotation from a paper read by a Muslim professor in 1957, at a gathering of some Christian and Muslim scholars that was held in Morocco. The Muslim professor said:

“The possibility of man’s deliverance and the way to follow have been indicated by the Qur’an in its address to sinners, fathers of the human race: ‘Go forth all of you from hence and if there comes to you guidance from Me then he who follows my guidance shall have nothing to fear, nor shall they know distress.” (Surah 2:38) By this solemn affirmation God Himself takes action for the salvation of man in the path of right. Islamic tradition then has the means to lead man to final perfection, the effect of which is liberation from the fear and from the sadness which prevent man from attaining the eternal blessedness which is life in God and for God.”

In commenting on the paper, Edwin Calverley, the then editor of The Muslim World wrote:

[This] exposition of Muslim theology and its concepts of man and his salvation raises several deep questions. The Christian must always be perplexed about its ready confidence that ‘to know is to do,’ that man’s salvation happens under purely revelatory auspices and that through the law given in the Divine communication is the path that man will follow once he knows and sees it. The whole mystery of human recalcitrance and ‘hardness of heart’ seems to be overlooked.” [7] [Emphasis mine]

According to Muslim anthropology, man has no need for a divine Savior; he needs only to know in order to do the will of Allah. By performing the requirements of Allah’s Shari’a (Law,) man achieves the goal of his existence and gains entrance to Paradise.

Following is a brief description of the approach used in the radio messages beamed to the Arabic-speaking Muslim world. My starting point, following the order of the Letter to the Romans, was to expound the Biblical anthropology showing the lost condition of man, and his inability to please God by his own efforts.  Actually, the Qur’an follows Rabbinical Judaism in teaching that humans, by their own efforts, can achieve righteousness. The critique of Judaism in Romans 9-11, supplies us with a similar critique of Muslim “soteriology.” Read Romans 10 and imagine Paul addressing a Muslim attempting to establish his own righteousness by works rather than believing in God’s righteousness.

“Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God, and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.” Romans 10:1-4 (NIV)

In Chapter 2, Paul stressed the fact that a mere knowledge of God’s revealed will was not sufficient to achieve reconciliation with Him. Muslims regard themselves as enlightened, since they believe they possess God’s final revelation of His Law in the Qur’an. They believe the followers of other religions are living in ignorance. The strong words of Paul in unmasking the superficiality of Rabbinical Judaism fit Islam as well. But lest the bearer of the Good News be perceived as exhibiting racial arrogance or superiority, Paul announces the fact that None Is Righteous.

“What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? No, not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under of sin … Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced, and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.” Romans 3:19, 20 (NIV)

It must be a shattering experience for a Muslim to hear such words proclaiming man’s inability to justify himself by the “deeds prescribed” in God’s sacred law. When the Holy Spirit opens his heart to receive the teaching in Romans (1-3), then he is ready to welcome the proclamation of the Gospel and its exposition in chapters 3:21-8.

“But now, a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement through faith in his blood.” Romans 3:21-25a (NIV)

Once a Muslim accepts the Biblical teaching that the law, far from being a means for man’s justification, manifests his enslavement to sin, he is open to accept the Gospel as expounded in the Letter to the Romans. Patiently and methodically, the Christian messenger must teach the Scriptures. Teach how they witness to Jesus Christ, who was both the son of David, and the Lord of David. Teach how he alone could fulfill the law on our behalf, how he healed the sick, and restored some to life, revealing his Messiahship and his primary mission to seek and to save the lost.

According to Hebrews 1, our Lord brought about the completion of God’s revelation; but he did more than that:

“After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, ‘You are my son; today I have become your Father?’ To which of the angels did God ever say, ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’?” Hebrews 1:3b, 4, 5, 13 (NIV)

Thus far, I have outlined my approach in teaching the Holy Trinity, the Fatherhood of God, the deity of Jesus Christ, and the personality of the Holy Spirit, in my radio ministry to Muslims. I would like to reiterate, that the Trinity must be proclaimed from the Scriptures, and by following the way it was gradually revealed within the Bible.

During my years of radio broadcasting, one episode remains fresh in my mind. Early in the nineties, I received a letter from a Muslim merchant who was residing in London, England. After commenting on my command of the Arabic language, he wondered how I could believe in the Trinity. The letter did not surprise me; after all, he was sharing with me the classical Islamic critique of the Christian doctrine of God.

The following is roughly a summary of my response to this honest inquirer:

“I appreciated very much your letter and its tone. I realize that you, as a Muslim believer, do not accept the Bible’s testimony about God. But let me assure you, at the outset, that what I have been broadcasting over the years is a faithful exposition of the teachings of the Holy Scriptures. There is nothing in my radio and literature work that is contrary to God’s revelation.

“I am not surprised that you have a great difficulty in understanding this Biblical teaching about the Trinity The reason I believe in the triune God is the fact it is part and parcel of God’s revelation. I trust that you will agree with me that when we deal with such doctrines as the attributes of God, and His nature, we cannot fully comprehend them. As believers in God, we are summoned to receive what His revelation teaches. So, we should not be surprised if in a revealed religion, there are mysteries that transcend the human mind.

“May I remind you of a theological controversy that took place in the ninth century in Baghdad regarding the Qur’an? Some Muslim theologians taught that the Qur’an was created at the time of its revelation to Muhammad, (610-632 A.D.) That was necessary to safeguard the unity of Allah. However, an influential theologian and expert in the Shariah Law, Imam Hanbal, refused to accept that formulation and declared that the Qur’an was eternal. He was persecuted and imprisoned by the caliph. As you may well know, that event in your history is known as “The Ordeal of the Qur’an.” Several years later, it was the Hanbalite view that prevailed. To this day, it continues to be the official teaching of Sunni Islam.

“Muslims believe that Allah is eternal, but they confess that the Qur’an is also eternal. I do know that this is your own belief, but I do not jump to the conclusion that you confess the existence of two gods. I realize that there are mysteries that transcend our capacity to comprehend.  Should you not treat me in the same way, and not charge me with believing in three gods?”

What I pointed out to the Muslim correspondent was his obligation, as a fellow human being, to deal with me “quid pro quo.” Just as I do not accuse Islam with dualism, Muslims should refrain from regarding Christians as propounding a plurality of gods.

When we study the history of Islamic teachings, we become aware of deficiencies inherent in its doctrine of God. For example, Muslims teach that God is the “wholly Other.” He is a transcendent Being. There is no similarity whatsoever between the Creator and man, the crown of creation. Muslim theologians have devised the notion that “Allah huwa bila kayf” i.e. Allah is unlike anyone else. Neither in the Qur’an, nor in the Tradition (Hadith), is there anything close to the teaching of Genesis 1:26a, 27: “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness … So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (NIV)

The doctrine of the image of God in man is another fundamental Biblical teaching. In the radio broadcasts I referred to it often, not only when dealing with creation, but also when teaching the doctrine of redemption. But I would never mention the fact that man is made in the image of God and after His likeness, without saying immediately, that I was actually quoting from the Pentateuch, or as the Muslims call it, “Tawrat Moussa.”

Since Islam propounds the doctrine of a solitary and transcendent God, it follows that no Muslim claims that he or she, can know Allah. Muslims study Allah’s Shariah and seek to conform to its demands or prohibitions; but they cannot “know” Him. Nothing in their tradition approximates these words of Paul: “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection …” Philippians 3:10a NIV

It was this teaching about an impersonal God in Islam that contributed to the rise of the mystical movement known as Sufism. The Sufis played an active role in Islamic history as they tried to fill a spiritual vacuum created by the strict unitarianism of Islam. Over against the teaching that Allah could not be approached except through obedience to the demands of the Shariah, they pointed to a different way of pleasing the Almighty and thus attaining the bliss of Paradise.  Sufi leaders taught that through meditation and a strict discipline, a Muslim might arrive at the goal of existence. One such spiritual exercise they advocated was the recitation by a group of assembled men, of the Beautiful or Ninety-nine names of Allah.

Eventually, Sufism departed further and further from Orthodox Islam.  As an Egyptian scholar put it, “Sufis tended to be heretical. They taught that intuition was the way to understanding. Some of them advocated monism, while others went as far as pantheism, and claiming that there was no difference between good and evil.” [8]

The basic problem with the Islamic doctrine of God is that He remains an impersonal and remote being. A Muslim’s relation to his creator is that of a slave (‘abd) to his master. This explains the frequently given name of ‘Abdallah among Muslims. On the other hand, the doctrine of the Trinity reveals the centrality of God’s attribute of love, as we notice in Christ’s prayer on the eve of his passion. “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.” John 17:24 (NIV)

In conclusion, the relevance of the doctrine of the Trinity in Missions to Muslims and to followers of other religions can appreciated by converts who find comfort and power to persist in their new-found faith, by tracing it back to the actions of the three Persons of the Trinity, as Paul taught in the opening words of Ephesians 1:

3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

11In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory. (NIV)


Notes

1. Christ in Islam and Christianity by Neal Robinson. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, Albany, New York, 1991. p.22

2. The Qur’an. Surah #112

3. Jesus in the Qur’an by Geoffrey Parrinder. Rockport, MA: Oneworld Publications, 1995. p. 14

4. Parrinder, p. 173

5. Parrinder, p. 169

6. From the introduction: “We have witnessed in recent years the flowering of various Christian pluralistic theologies calling for unequivocal affirmation of the equal validity of all world faiths. It is argued that Christianity (and to some extent other traditions) has been infected by a virulent exclusivist virus, the disease of imagining its religious truth superior to all others and its path to salvation the only one. Advocates of pluralistic theology maintain that there is no antidote to this virus but a consistent reconstruction of the fundamentals of Christian faith.” Pp. 29-35

7. The Muslim World, Vol. 49, No. 1, January 1959

8. “The Rational and the Irrational in Our Cultural Heritage,” by Dr. Zaki Naguib Mahmoud, Dar Al-Shurouq, Beirut, Lebanon (This book is available in Arabic only, it shows no publication date; most likely, it was published in the 1970s.)

Posted in Articles

The New Christians of North Africa & The Insider Movement

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

St Francis Magazine, a missiological journal dedicated to the study of “Religions and mission in the Arab world,” devoted its August 2009 issue to the subject of the Insider Movement. The Rev Dr John Stringer, editor of the magazine, wrote this Introduction to the ten articles that dealt with this subject:

“The Insider Movement, also called C5 or Messianic Islam, has been a pervasive, outspoken presence in the world of missions for the last three decades. Missiological journals, Christian magazines and newspapers have been awash in anecdotes from the field extolling this purportedly new, biblical, approach to ministry. At times, it has seemed almost unthinkable to offer criticism of this broad movement. That is why this entire issue is dedicated to a detailed examination of the Insider Movement, its theology, methodology and tactics.

“Is the heart of the Christian faith a matter of making an individual choice? Is it fundamentally just a matter of having a personal love for Jesus? Or is the Church, organized and visible, at the heart of God's plan for the world? The subject sounds alarm bells. Evangelical Christians become increasingly susceptible to the siren song of post-structuralist (some might say anti-) postmodernism and liberalism, lacking a foundation in a theology that biblically respects the historic Church as the body of the Lord Jesus Christ.”  
http://www.stfrancismagazine.info/ja/

I would like to contribute a further perspective to the discussion of the Insider Movement, which would shed light on the way Muslims who convert to the Christian faith view themselves. Materials that have been appearing lately on reformist Arabic websites reporting on this phenomenon are quite intriguing. The European media have picked up on the conversion stories as well. One might ask why those promoting the Insider Movement seem so unaware of these reports about converts from Islam to Christianity. The conversion stories they document, do not fit the schematics of their own paradigm. The reformist Arabic websites and the European press indicate that the converts are bold and forthright in their marturia and enthusiasm for their new-found faith.

It was around three years ago, that I came across the use of the term “Masihiyyoo al-Maghreb” (The Christians of North Africa,) in the Arab media. That indicated the presence of a considerable number of North African Muslims who have embraced the Christian faith. In March of 2007, a conference was convened in Zurich, Switzerland, by “Copts United,” under the leadership of an Egyptian Christian engineer named Adli Yousef Abadir, and chaired by Dr. Shaker al-Nabulsi, a Jordanian Muslim intellectual. The theme of the conference was “The Defense of Minorities and Women.” The Arabic online daily Elaph reported on the proceedings of the conference.

One of the lectures was entitled “The Christians of the Maghreb under the Rule of Islamists,” where it must be noted that the Maghrebi converts to Christianity were called, “Masihiyyoo al-Maghreb” and not “followers of ‘Issa,” the way the Insider Movement likes to refer to converts from Islam. Another term referred to them as “Al-Masihyyoon al-Judod” i.e. the New Christians in the countries of the Arab Maghreb. Here are translated excerpts from that lecture delivered in 2007 at the Zurich Conference. 

“The New Christians’ phenomenon throughout the Arab Maghreb has come to the attention of the media. For example, the weekly journal, Jeune Afrique, devoted three reports on this subject with respect to Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. In March 2005, the French daily Le Monde devoted a complete report about this topic. And Al-‘Arabiyya TV channel telecast two reports on the subject that had been recorded in the Kabyle district of Algeria.

Jeune Afrique estimated that the number of people who have embraced Christianity in Tunisia was around 500, belonging to three churches. A report on the website of “Al-Islam al-Yawm” prepared by Lidriss el-Kenbouri, and dated 23 April 2005, estimated the number of European evangelists in Morocco to be around 800, and that quite often, their evangelistic efforts are successful. The report further added that around 1,000 Moroccans had left Islam during 2004. The magazine “Al-Majalla,” in its No. 1394 issue, claimed that the number of New Christians in Morocco was around 7,000; perhaps the exact number may be as high as 30,000.

“The report that appeared in the French daily Le Monde claimed that during 1992, between 4,000 and 6,000 Algerians embraced Christianity in the Kabyle region of Algeria. By now, their numbers may be in the tens of thousands. However, the authorities are mum about this subject, as an Algerian government official put it; ‘the number of those who embraced Christianity is a state secret.’”

The lecturer went on to refer to the newspaper report and mentioned several factors that led people to convert to Christianity:

“When we enquired from those who had come over to the Christian faith to learn about the factors that led to their conversion, they mentioned several factors, among them was ‘The violence of the fundamentalist Islamist movements.’ A Christian evangelist working in Algeria reported: ‘These terrible events shocked people greatly. It proved that Islam was capable of unleashing all that terror, and those horrific massacres! Even children were not spared during the uprising of the Islamists! Women were raped! Many people began to ask: Where is Allah? Some Algerians committed suicide! Others lost their minds; others became atheists, and still others chose the Messiah!’”  

“Quite often, the ‘New Christians’ testified to the fact that what they discovered in their new faith was love; it formed another factor in their conversion. These are some of their words: ‘We found out that in Christianity, God is love.’ ‘God loves all people.’ ‘What attracted us to Christianity is its teaching that God is love.’”

It is quite evident that the testimonies of these new Maghrebi Christians are extremely important. The Christian message came to them through various means, but it struck them as a word of a loving God in search for His lost sheep. They embraced the Messiah who died on the cross, and rose again for their justification. Notwithstanding all the difficulties that they were to face in the future, they clung to the Biblical Injil that had brought them peace with God, and the gift of eternal life.

The link to this Arabic-language report that dealt with the plight of Maghrebi Christians should the Islamists succeed in taking over the reigns of government is: http://www.elaph.com/ElaphWeb/ElaphWriter/2007/4/225336.htm.

Almost two years after the Zurich Conference that dealt with the plight of Maghrebi Christians should the Islamists succeed in taking over the reigns of government; I read the following report posted on 22 January, 2009, on the Arabic-language Aafaq (Horizons) website. It detailed the news of young Algerians who have converted to Christianity because they had become disaffected with Islam. Here are excerpts from the report datelined Algiers:

“Some Amazigh websites have disclosed that many Algerian young people have left Islam and adopted Christianity. They confessed that they did so due to the ugliness of the crimes perpetrated by the Salafist ‘Da’wa and Combat Movement’ against civilians. They were tremendously disappointed and disenchanted with Islam, claiming that it was responsible for nurturing these Jihadists who have been terrorizing and murdering innocent people.

“The website noted that the spread of Christianity in Algeria has even reached areas that were entirely under the influence of the Islamists, such as in eastern Algeria. Furthermore, the Christian expansion in the country was not due exclusively to missionary organizations, as certain Islamic groups claim. The reason is to be found in Islam itself. It has been associated in the minds of the youth with Irhab, assassinations, and crimes against innocent people. They remember that many of the crimes were committed during the 1990s, and occurred in distant villages of Algeria when young women were abducted, taken to the mountains as “captives,” gang-raped, and then killed by having their throats slit. Such horrific scenes took place in Algeria over several years and resulted in the very word “Islamic” becoming synonymous with Irhab!

“The report added that in Islam a woman is regarded as an enemy that must be fought with all means. She must be punished for the simplest mistake, while men go unpunished when they commit similar misdeeds. Thus, a woman is held responsible for the simplest act, and is liable to be put to death, since she is by nature a “Shaytana” i.e. a female Satan. This seriously misguided and misogynist view of women causes young men to worry about their own sisters, and be anxious about their future daughters as well.

“It went on to explain that the Irhabis who committed those awful crimes against women held to a view of Islam that took for granted that discrimination between the sexes is normal. They believe in the notion that the bed is the sole reason for a woman’s existence. In northern Algeria alone, 5,000 women were raped. This Amazigh source regards these radicals as ‘Allah’s guards on earth’ who refuse to act as civilized human beings.”

The website ended its comments on the alienation of Algerian youth by stating “that as long as Islam is unable to get out of its closed circle, and evolve according to the requirements of a civil society that is open to love, tolerance, and coexistence with others; it will continue to alienate more young people. In the Providence of God it has transpired that the despicable actions of the Irhabis in the bloody and dark decade of the 1990s have contributed to more than 20,000 Algerians converting to the Christian faith.”

Reporting on the same topic of conversions to Christianity that are taking place in Algeria, on 24 April, 2009, the Aafaq website posted an article, with this headline: Religious Leaders in Algeria Are Demanding the Punishment of the Apostates.

Here is my translation of the news item:

“An Algerian policeman and his daughter have made a public confession that they have embraced Christianity. The policeman’s announcement precipitated a tremendous amount of discussion and argument in Algeria, causing the religious authorities to demand that the police department dismiss him from his position since his actions proved him to be an Apostate, a Murtad.

“The policemen declared to the Algerian newspaper al-Nahar that his previous life as a Muslim was filled with anxieties and the absence of peace of mind. He added that the radical Islamist movements that had massacred women and children caused him to become fearful of Islam which he held responsible for the bloodshed. His life was caught up in a deep struggle that eventually led him to embrace Christianity, that according to him, ‘has given me peace of mind.’

“As to the daughter of the policeman, she explained that the reason she embraced Christianity was due to her feeling that Islam treated women as maids and concubines, only to be sexually exploited by men. Muslim men regard women only from a physical point of view. Now, having embraced Christianity, she began to feel as a dignified human being. Her decision is final, and she does not regret it at all.

“The Algerian religious authority reacted swiftly by declaring that Irtidad (Apostasy) is tantamount to becoming a Kafir (Unbeliever,) and thus becomes subject to capital punishment unless an apostate repents by returning to Islam. It is estimated that there are around 10,000 Christians, most of whom live in the Kabyle district of Tizi Ouzou. Some unofficial sources claim that the number of Christians in Algeria is more than 100,000; they are to be found all over the country, especially in the west of Algeria around Oran and Mostaganem, most of these converts are young men and women. They claim that the reason that prompted them to embrace Christianity was Islam’s responsibility for murder, terror, and rape, as perpetrated by the Islamist groups who, in 1992 started their Jihad against civilians with the hope of getting closer to Allah!”

It is noteworthy that both the policeman and his daughter openly confessed that they had embraced Christianity, using the Arabic word al-Masihiyya and not another Arabic term such as the Qur’anic “Nasraniyya.” The word Masihiyya is used by Arabic-speaking Christians throughout the Middle East. To embrace Christianity and publicly announce it is a courageous act of the “New Maghrebi Christians!”

The information gleaned from Arabic-language sources on the phenomenon of the “New Maghrebi Christians,” is extremely important. Western Christians are being told by some “missiologists,” that Muslims converting to the Lord Jesus Christ, need not call themselves “Masihiyyoon,” nor stop their former Islamic practices such as attending the Friday services at the mosque, or fasting during Ramadan. This novel “missionary” theory is being offered as a “quick fix” to solve the problem of the paucity of fruits in missions to Muslims.

I risk being regarded as an extremely judgmental person when I describe the Insider’s missiology as a purely Western construct, that manifests a radical discontinuity with the missiology of the great missionaries of the past, from St. Francis of Assisi and Raymond Lull in the Middle Ages, down to the days of the pioneers of the 19th and 20th centuries such as Henry Jessup, Cornelius Van Dyck, Eli Smith, Samuel Zwemer, and J. W. Sweetman. As an Eastern Christian who spent most of my life bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the followers of Islam, I find it ironic that the Insider Movement, while intending to be “culturally sensitive”, becomes in the final analysis a rather imperialistic, even hegemonic effort. Yet, this attempt to sell a new genre of missionary theory is being implicitly rejected by those brave New Maghrebi Christians. Both they and those who report about them in the Arab press, use the term “Masihiyyoon,” as a testimony to their solidarity with other Arabic-speaking Christians, and as full members of the “One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church,” in the words of the Nicene Creed.

It is my fervent hope that we pay more attention to the Biblical directives on missions, at the very time when they are being undermined by the advocates of the Insider Movement. We should never forget that notwithstanding the Jewish and Gentile outright rejection of the gospel of the cross, Paul did not hesitate to proclaim it. “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but for us who are being saved, it is the power of God, (dunamis Theou estin.)” (I Corinthians 1:18) The basis of our salvation is the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ; and its instrumental means is the kerygma, i.e., the Word of the Cross, whether it is formally preached by a minister of the Gospel, or given as a marturia (testimony) by a Christian. Paul expanded on this basic missionary doctrine in verse 21: “For since in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know Him, it pleased God, through the foolishness of the preached message (kerygmatos) to save those who believe.”

Indeed, I cannot hide my joy when I hear news about the rebirth of the Christian Church in North Africa. I praise God for the boldness of these new Christians who are not ashamed of the Cross of their Savior, but place its symbol in the humble meeting rooms where they worship Him. They show in a concrete manner that they are “unashamed of the Injeel,” since it is the power of God that they had experienced in their own lives when He enabled them to leave Islam, and join the great company of the Masihiyyoon (Christians). He will also preserve them should the Islamist forces manage to take over the lands of the Maghreb.

Posted in Articles

An Example of the New "Enlightened" Hermeneutics

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

In my previous article dealing with the reform of Islam, “Toward a Tanweeri (Enlightened) Hermeneutics of the Qur’an,” I referred to an essay by a Muslim reformist scholar who advocated a complete break with the hermeneutical principles of orthodox Islam. On 31 May, 2009 he posted an article with this intriguing title: “So That Islam Might Not Die” Hatta la Yamutu’l Islam.
http://www.kwtanweer.com/articles/articleforprint.php?articleID=2242

The writer is very concerned about the lack of development in the Islamic world, attributing it to the Muslims’ inability to break from their traditional interpretation of the Qur’an. In order to cope with the challenges of modernity, he called on Muslims to adopt an enlightened hermeneutics of the Qur’an, a prescription that is actually quite a revolutionary one. Still, he did not hesitate to propose it, and expressed the urgency of the matter in these words: “For unless such a step was taken, Islam will not survive!” It was this strong conviction that made him choose the shocking title for his essay!

Here are excerpts translated from that essay:

“This is my concluding article in a series that dealt with the subject of development. To achieve this goal requires an open mind and liberation from those fixed and fanciful positions that offered ready-made solutions to all types of human problems. We must acknowledge that traditional Islam, with its totalitarian worldview is standing in the way of progress and development. The Muslim world is in dire need for the rise and development of a progressive and non-totalitarian Islam. A genuine and serious reformation can only happen by adopting a complete separation between Allah and Muhammad; Allah is an absolute and unchanging Being, while the Prophet is not. Doubtless, Muhammad was the primary founder of the Umma, but as a human being, he acted within the cultural and political contexts of his days. Therefore, all the texts which the Prophet brought, including the Qur’an, are purely historical texts, and as such, cannot be considered absolutely authentic or accurate.”

In a follow-up article dated 10 June, 2009, our author offered examples of his reformist hermeneutics, and gave it a title based on a Qur’anic Ayat that has been translated as: “A Scripture with Clearer Guidance,” or as “A Better Revelation.” Qur’an 28:49 Surat Al-Qasas (Stories)?????
http://www.kwtanweer.com/articles/readarticle.php?articleID=2254

First a word of explanation is necessary about Surat Al-Qasas, which relates the story of Moses that corresponds, up to a point, to the Biblical narrative in Exodus 2. I consulted a standard Arabic commentary on the Qur’an, Tafsir al-Qur’an: al-Jelalain, published in Cairo, Egypt, in 1906. The following is a summary of the comments on Ayat 49; with the highlighted parts being quotations from the Qur’an:

“This chapter in the Qur’an gives us an account of the negative response of Muhammad’s contemporaries to the message he brought them from Allah. They complained saying, “Why is he not given the like of what was given unto Moses?” After all, Moses had performed several miracles, but Muhammad had done none. In response to their challenge and unbelief, Allah told the Prophet: “Say unto them, O Muhammad: Then bring a scripture from the presence of Allah that giveth clearer guidance” So Muhammad in his turn challenged them to bring forth a “better revelation” than the Torah and the Qur’an, so that he would follow it.”

Therefore, taking his point of departure from Qur’an 28:49, our essayist offers his readers a revolutionary hermeneutics. He claims that in our days, there exists a “better and clearer guidance” to deal with moral and legal issues than what was provided by the time-bound and Arab milieu of the Qur’anic revelation. This is how he develops his argument:

“This Qur’anic Ayat being normative, no one may dispute its relevance to our subject. Furthermore, it is reasonable to suggest that at that time and in that place, (i.e. in 7th century Arabia,) no one could have brought forth a better revelation than in either the Torah, or the Qur’an. But that’s not the case today.

“Here is a list of Qur’anic laws and regulations. Are they still to be considered valid and applicable in the 21st century?

1. Cutting the hand of a thief versus the punishment for murder

“In Islam, the punishment for stealing is much more severe than the punishment for murder! For example, should the next in kin of the murdered person be willing to forgive the murderer, his punishment would simply be a monetary payment as prescribed by the Shari’ah. On the other hand, the punishment for stealing requires the amputation of the hand of the thief!”

2. Flogging the adulterer

“When a rich man commits adultery, he is protected by the code that requires four witnesses who have witnessed the act. If and when proven guilty, he is flogged for his action! Whereas a woman caught in adultery, is punished by stoning!”

3. Multiplicity of wives, up to four in number.

4. Multiplicity of concubines.

5. Legality of sexual relations with female slaves.

6. Killing of prisoners of war or their enslavement.

7. The testimony of a woman is worth half of the testimony of a man.

8. A woman’s inheritance is only half of a man’s inheritance.

9. The alternate amputation of limbs (a right hand’s amputation with a left foot’s amputation.)

10. Inequality with respect to the value of human life: a Muslim may not receive capital punishment if he has murdered an unbeliever or a slave. Also, a Muslim man does not receive capital punishment for the murder of a Muslim woman Qur’an 2:178

“Now can we consider these Qur’anic rules as ‘the best revelation or guidance’ for human beings? It is probable that the above mentioned regulations were valid for those ancient times; but for the present, no one may or should consider them as the best possible guidance for human beings. Of course, there are some people who do believe that such laws are valid; however they need to reflect seriously about the fairness of such rules of conduct and punishment.

“While many Muslims oppose the French government banning Muslim women wearing the hijab in public, they have no qualms about the application of capital punishment on a non-Muslim, simply because he is not a believer!

“At the beginning of my article, I quoted the following Qur’anic Ayat:

‘Say: ‘Then bring ye a Book from Allah, which is a better guide than either of them, that I may follow it! (do), if ye are truthful!’ Translation of Yusuf Ali

‘Say (unto them, O Muhammad): Then bring a scripture from the presence of Allah that giveth clearer guidance than these two (that) I may follow it, if ye are truthful.’ Translation of Marmaduke Pickthal

“Doesn’t this Ayat allow me to adopt the best of all revelations or regulations? Are we not allowed to revise the laws that we have followed for the last hundreds of years in order to bring them in line with modern concepts of justice and equity?”

Analysis

The author of the essay regarding the urgent need for the adoption of an enlightened hermeneutics for the interpretation of the Qur’an is fully aware that, in our globalized world, Islam should no longer practice its harsh criminal laws. So, in order to provide humane principles for Islamic jurisprudence, it is necessary no longer to regard the Qur’an as the eternal and uncreated word of Allah, but as he put it, “Therefore, all the texts which the Prophet brought, including the Qur’an, are purely historical texts, and as such, cannot be considered absolutely authentic or accurate.”

Comments

Our brave essayist’s “modest proposal” for saving Islam, offers a hermeneutical principle that has far-reaching consequences. In the ten examples he mentioned where the Shari’a dictates the rules governing “crimes and punishments,” he pointed out its inhumane sanctions and provisions.

The subject that was left unanswered remains: when the orthodox sources for Islamic jurisprudence are set aside, what alternative sources should be adopted, and where are they to be found? The author kept silence about this important subject. But if his prescription for a higher criticism of the Qur’an, the Hadith, and the Life of the Prophet, be adopted, would the entire edifice of Islam be able to withstand the radical reconstruction that would inevitably ensue? In other words, what kind of a “reformed” or “enlightened” Islam would replace the fourteen-century tradition of Sunni Islam? I look forward with eagerness to the publication of his next step in the development of an “Enlightened Islamic Hermeneutics.” 

Posted in Articles

Toward a Tanweeri (Enlightened) Hermeneutics of the Qur'an

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

 

 

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

 

Muslims have been grappling with the problem of tahdith (modernization) and tajdid (renewal) for around two centuries. Several attempts have been made to reform Islam, beginning with Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (1838-1897.) Some reformers have called for a reinterpretation of the Qur’an so that its harsh parts, such as Ayat al-Sayf (the Sword Verses) are no longer considered normative for the present.

 

During the decades of the 1970s and 1980s, Dar al-Shurook Publishing House (Beirut & Cairo) published four books by the Egyptian reformist scholar, Dr. Zaki Naguib Mahmoud that dealt with the modernization of the Arab-Islamic Culture: “Tajdid al-Fikr al-‘Arabi,” (The Renewal of the Arab Mind,) “Fi Tahdith al-Thaqafa al-‘Arabiyya,” (The Modernization of Arab Culture,) “Al-Ma’qool wa-Lama’qool fi Tirathina al-Fikri” (The Rational and the Irrational in our Cultural Heritage,) and “Ru’ya Islamiyya” (An Islamic Vision.)

 

Dr. Mahmoud suggested a hermeneutical principle in line with the 9th century Mu’tazilites of Baghdad who championed a rational approach in the formulation of Islamic doctrines. As I wrote in my book, The Bible and Islam (Part II, Chapter 7):

 

“Dr. Mahmoud summarizes his research by stressing the importance of rejecting the irrational aspect of the heritage. Only the rational outlook must be retained. But often, in his rejection of irrationalism, one gets the strong impression that our author is rejecting supernaturalism! To work for the renewal of a theistic religion by emphasizing only the horizontal relevance of the faith is to bring about a deistic faith that is something altogether different from Islamic theism.” P. 78 
http://www.levant.info/BAI-II.3.html

 

Thanks to the growing use of the Internet among Arab intellectuals, a number of Arabic-language websites are now dedicated to the reformation of Islam, such as www.kwtanweer.com On 31 May, 2009 they posted an article with this intriguing title: “So That Islam Might Not Die” Hatta la Yamutu’l Islam.

 

The writer showed a great concern about the lack of development in the Islamic world, attributing it to the Muslims’ inability to break from their traditional interpretation of the Qur’an. So, in order to cope with the challenges of modernity, he called on Muslims to adopt an enlightened hermeneutics of the Qur’an, a prescription that is actually quite revolutionary. Still, he did not hesitate to propose it, for unless such a step is taken, Islam will not survive! It was this strong conviction that made him choose the shocking title for his essay!

 

Here are excerpts translated from our author’s essay [emphasis in bold font is mine]:

 

“This is my concluding article in a series that dealt with the subject of development. To achieve this goal requires an open mind and liberation from those fixed and fanciful positions that offered ready-made solutions to all types of human problems. We must acknowledge that traditional Islam, with its totalitarian worldview is standing in the way of progress and development. The Muslim world is in dire need for the rise and development of a progressive and non-totalitarian Islam. A genuine and serious reformation can only happen by adopting a complete separation between Allah and Muhammad; Allah is an absolute and unchanging Being, while the Prophet is not. Doubtless, Muhammad was the primary founder of the Umma, but as a human being, he acted within the cultural and political contexts of his days. Therefore, all the texts which the Prophet brought, including the Qur’an, are purely historical texts, and as such, cannot be considered absolutely authentic or accurate.

 

“As I have mentioned in my previous articles, the problem does not reside in a belief in the existence of God. A person may be a believer and free at the same time. The real problem is that belief in a person or a group of people who act as representatives of the Divine. This type of faith must be rejected before any true reform can take place. For example, Protestant Christianity confesses the divinity of Christ and at the same time does not acknowledge any person that acts as his representative on earth. This has enabled Protestants to worship Christ according to their convictions, while at the same time leaving earthly matters to be dealt with in a secular fashion. We conclude that a separation of Religion from Politics, is the basic condition, or the sine qua non, for the rise of a progressive and non-totalitarian religion.

 

“To sum up my thesis; it would be difficult and unthinkable for Muslims to reject or abandon their religion in order to achieve progress and development. The best solution for their predicament is to strip Islam of all its totalitarian impulses.”

 

It is refreshing to read articles by Muslim intellectuals who are very eager to see Islam delivered from the shackles of its slavish attachment to those rigid and irrational elements of their religious heritage. The only way for Arab nations to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century is to break loose from their traditional Qur’anic hermeneutics.

 

But what struck me the most about our author’s essay was his view of the Qur’an itself. As he put it, “Therefore, all the texts which the Prophet brought, including the Qur’an, are purely historical texts, and as such, cannot be considered absolutely authentic or accurate.”

 

For anyone who is familiar with Arabic, and the history of Islamic theology, these words sound extremely radical, even revolutionary. Notice how he formulated his view of the Qur’an, not as a book that descended upon Muhammad, but as a book that the Prophet brought, and which is on par with his other sacred texts of Islam the Hadiths! The writer has gone beyond the views of the Mu’tazilites who denied the eternal nature of the Qur’an, and stressed its historical nature. But what he suggested is a hermeneutic that would allow for a “higher criticism” of the Qur’an, and the development of a kinder and more compassionate Islam!

 

At this point I realize that a Westerner reading my translation of this article may not be struck by its full impact. But to read it in Arabic is nothing less than feeling the full impact of a mega-ton bomb that shatters a foundational tenet of Islam, namely that Muhammad was the recipient of the very words of Allah. For an orthodox Muslim, whether Sunni or Shi’ite, the prescription of our author is unthinkable and amounts to kufr, i.e. utter blasphemy.

 

In the final analysis, the dilemma for Islam can only be solved by Muslims. Non-Muslims can study and reflect on the history and challenges that have faced Islam across the last fourteen centuries. We cannot but sympathize with the author and appreciate his “modest proposal” for Islam’s survival in our globalized world. He is absolutely convinced that unless Muslims adopt a new and open-minded hermeneutics, their future remains in doubt.

 

Note

 

The following is a transliteration of the author’s words [quoted four paragraphs above] about his view of the nature of the Qur’an. 

“Fa-inna kaffat al-nusoos allati ja’a biha al-Nabi, bima feeha al-Qur’an, hiya nusoos tarikhiyya bahtat, wa-laysat nusoos sahihat bishaklen mutlaq.

The link for the 31 May, 2009 article is:
http://www.kwtanweer.com/articles/articleforprint.php?articleID=2242

Posted in Articles

Jacques Ellul's View of Islam & Dhimmitude

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

During the latter part of the twentieth century, I became aware of the writings of the French scholar Jacques Ellul. Two of his works, “The Technological Society” (reflecting his sociological analysis) and “The Meaning of the City” (his Christian testimony,) illustrate his deep convictions in the two fields of sociology and theology.

However, I am more deeply indebted to the late Professor Ellul for his invaluable exposition of the global challenge of Islam, which he enunciated in two “Introductions” to books by Bat Ye’or. Most recently he wrote a Foreword to her book “The Decline of Eastern Christianity under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude,” which was published in 1996. He gave a brief, but poignant analysis of a subject that, prior to the publishing of Ye’or’s books, had received very little attention in the West.

A decade earlier, Professor Ellul contributed a frank analysis of the shocking nature of Dhimmitude in a Preface to Bat Ye’or’s “The Dhimmi: Jews and Christians under Islam” published in 1985. It is this Preface that I will review below.

Prior to my “discovery” of Bat Ye’or’s works, I had read three books in English on the plight of Dhimmis (Christians and Jews) under Islam. One was Edward Wakin’s, “A Lonely Minority: The Modern Story of Egypt's Copts.” New York: William Morrow & Company, 1963.

Fifteen years later, I read with appreciation Robert B. Betts’ book, “Christians in the Arab East: A Political Study,” Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1978, in which he described the desperate condition of the Arabic-speaking Christians in the Middle East.

Then, the Anglican Bishop and Arabist, Kenneth Cragg, dealt at length with the subject in “The Arab Christian: A History in the Middle East.” Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1991.

Professor Ellul began his discussion of Dhimmitude by pointing to the sensitive nature of the subject. Islam’s leaders have never regarded their treatment of non-Muslims as a problem. In fact they claim that the populations which were overcome by the Futuhat (conquests) were treated in a kindly manner and granted “protection,” i.e. “Dhimma.”

Furthermore, until recent times, this whole topic was rather academic, since it dealt with the past when Islam ruled great areas of the world under the successive caliphates of the Umayyads, the Abbasids, and the Ottoman Turks. But soon after WWII, things began to change. As Professor Ellul put it,

“That which was related to Islam and the Muslim world was believed to belong to a past that, if not dead, was certainly no more alive than medieval Christianity… And then, suddenly, since 1950, everything changed completely.”

It is true that Kemal Ataturk abolished the Caliphate in 1924, and established the secular Republic of Turkey, but his action was not well-received throughout the rest of the Muslim world. In India, for example, the movement of Khilafat, i.e. the re-establishment of the Caliphate arose; a phenomenon that showed the unwillingness of Indian Islam to live without the symbol of the unity of the Umma. So, when the British Raj was about to grant independence to India, its Muslim leaders demanded that the country be partitioned between Muslims and Hindus. Jacques Ellul pointed to the tragic events that accompanied the birth of Pakistan, an event of tremendous importance in the modern renaissance of political Islam:

“One ought not to forget that the terrible war of 1947 in India between the Muslims and Hindus was fought on a purely religious basis. More than one million people died, and since massacres had not taken place when the Muslims had lived within the Hindu-Buddhist orbit, one may presume that the war was caused by the attempt to set up an independent Islamic republic.”

This latent Islamic imperialistic impulse expressed itself as Muslims began to flex their economic muscles thanks to their control and exploitation of the major sources of petroleum.

“It has transformed the face of the world in less than half a century. And we are now witnessing a vast program to propagate Islam, involving the building of mosques everywhere.”

At present, to speak about the evils of Dhimmitude is no longer acceptable. The moment one broaches this subject strong feelings are easily aroused among Muslims. Nevertheless, we cannot remain silent about an institution that has impacted the lives of millions of non-Muslims during the last 1400 years. Having set forth the context for the discussion of Dhimmitude, Jacques Ellul proceeded to explain the value of Bat Ye’or’s book:

“It is within this context that Bat Ye’or’s book, The Dhimmi should be placed: and it is an exemplary contribution to this crucial discussion that concerns us all. Here I shall neither give an account of the book nor praise its merits, but shall simply indicate its importance. The dhimmi is someone who lives in a Muslim society without being a Muslim (Jews, Christians, and occasionally "animists"). He has a particular social, political, and economic status, and it is essential for us to know how this "refractory" person has been treated.”

The trouble with Dhimmitude is that it is rooted in a Qur’anic tradition, and was codified in the legal arrangements that covered every aspect of the lives of non-Muslims living within Daru’l Islam. It cannot be altered or changed without doing violence to the very essence of Islam. Non-Muslims do not and cannot have the same rights as Muslims. By their very persistence in remaining as non-believers living under the rule of their Muslim conquerors, they give evidence to their stubbornness and faithlessness. Thus a non-Muslim is regarded as a Kafir (non-believer) or a Mushrik (a term reserved for Christians who, in the Muslims’ view, believe in three gods.)

When writing on the subject of Dhimmis and Dhimmitude, one has to do more than discuss the etymological meaning of the Arabic word; for it is inaccurate to claim that it designates the status of “protection” for Christians and Jews living under Islam. It is not an inherent right for a Christian, a Jew, or a Zoroastrian; in Islam, it remains a given or a granted right that can be revoked any time! This is a very important point that Ellul makes:

“However, the dhimmi itself is a controversial subject. This word actually means “protégé” or “protected person.” This is one of the arguments of the modern defenders of Islam: the dhimmi has never been persecuted or maltreated (except accidentally); on the contrary, he was a protected person. What better example could illustrate Islam’s liberalism. Here are people who do not accept Islam and, instead of being expelled, they are protected…When this “stranger” lives in Islamic countries, the answer can only be:[protected] against the Muslims themselves.”

After dealing with the criticisms of some Western scholars of Bat Ye’or’s “The Dhimmi: Jews and Christians under Islam,” Professor Ellul ended his Preface with these words:

“If I have dealt with the criticisms at some length, it is because I feel that is important in order to establish the “scholarly” nature of this book. For my part, I consider this study to be very honest, hardly polemical at all, and as objective as possible (always bearing in mind the fact that I belong to the school of historians for whom pure objectivity, in the absolute sense, cannot exist). The Dhimmi contains a rich selection of source material, makes a correct use of documents, and displays a concern to place each situation in its proper historical context… The Muslim world has not evolved in its manner of considering the non-Muslim, which is a reminder of the fate in store for those who may one day be submerged within it. It is a source of enlightenment for our time.”

Jacques Ellul’s concluding words sounded an alarm not only for his fellow-French citizens, but for all the European states where large numbers of Muslims have settled, and altered the social and political landscape. He died in 1994 at the age of 82, before seeing Ye’or’s latest book, “Eurabia,” another great work on the subject of Islam and the West. Nevertheless, we remain greatly indebted to the introductory “essays” he contributed to the two books of our expert on “Dhimmitude,” the indefatigable Bat Ye’or. I look forward to more writing from her. Her output thus far has been most enlightening and has helped immensely in informing her readers about one of the most important subjects of our twenty-first century.

Notes

Jacques ELLUL died in 1994 at 82. A jurist, historian, theologian and sociologist, he published more than 600 articles and 48 books, many of which were translated into a dozen languages (more than 20 into English). From 1950-70 he was a member of the National Council of the Protestant Reformed Church of France. Professor at the University of Bordeaux, his oeuvre includes studies on medieval European institutions, the effect of modern technology on contemporary society, and moral theology. In American academic circles, he was widely known for "The Technological Society" written in the 1950's (English edition, 1964) and recognized as one of the most prominent of contemporary thinkers.

Books on Dhimmis and Dhimmitude by Bat Ye’or:

The Dhimmi: Jews and Christians under Islam, by Bat Ye’or, Preface by Jacques Ellul. Published in 1985 by Associated University Presses, 440 Forsgate Drive, Cranbury, NJ 08512

The Decline of Eastern Christianity under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude, by Bat Ye’or, Foreword by Jacques Ellul. Published in 1996 by Associated University Presses, 440 Forsgate Drive, Cranbury, NJ 08512

Islam and Dhimmitude: Where Civilizations Collide, by Bat Ye’or. Published in 2002 by Associated University Presses, 440 Forsgate Drive, Cranbury, NJ 08512

Eurabia: The Euro-Arab Axis, (Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, January 30, 2005), is about the transformation of Europe into “Eurabia,” a cultural and political appendage of the Arab/Muslim world. Eurabia is fundamentally anti-Christian, anti-Western, anti-American, and antisemitic.

For information on the works of Bat Ye’or, please go to: http://www.dhimmitude.org

Posted in Articles

The Law of Apostasy in Islam Must Change

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Very early in the history of Islam, a radical position became solidified against anyone who dared to go back on his or her Muslim faith. It had its origin in the defection of several Arab tribes from the Islamic Umma, soon after news about the death of Muhammad had reached them. In the summer of 632 A.D., Abu Bakr, the first caliph, and father of the Prophet’s favorite wife, Aisha, mounted military campaigns against the rebels and forced them back into the fold of Islam. Abu Bakr’s campaigns are known in Arabic as Huroob al-Radda, i.e. the wars against apostasy.

Eventually, the four Sunni Schools for the interpretation of the Shari’ah codified the rules regarding the sin of apostasy (radda) and declared that, unless an apostate repents, he or she is to be punished with death. This harsh attitude towards Muslims who convert to other religions is based on the belief that Muhammad was Allah’s last messenger to mankind. To go back on Islam and renounce the Shahadah (Islamic confession of the radical unity of Allah, and the Prophethood of Muhammad) is tantamount to committing the unpardonable sin. Several Qur’anic verses can be adduced as a basis for this harsh treatment of the apostates, sufficient here is the following ayah from Surat Aal ‘Imran, a Medinan Chapter 3:85

"And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it shall not be accepted from him, and in the life to come he shall be among the losers.”

“Waman yabtaghi ghair’l Islami deenan, flan yuqbala minhu, wa Huwa fi’l akhirati 
mina’l khasireen.”

This rigid and unbending attitude vis-à-vis Muslims who adopt the Christian faith is being discussed in the Arab online press. The following report appeared in the daily Aafaq on 24 April, 2009:

“Religious Leaders in Algeria Are Demanding the Punishment of the Apostates”

http://www.aafaq.org/news.aspx?id_news=8191

Here are excerpts from the report, followed by my comments.

“An Algerian policeman and his daughter announced that they have embraced Christianity. This news has precipitated a tremendous amount of discussions and arguments in Algeria, causing the religious authorities to demand that the police department should dismiss him from his position, now that he has become a Murtadd (Apostate).

“The policemen explained to the Algerian newspaper al-Nahar that his previous life, as a Muslim, was filled with anxieties and a corresponding absence of peace of mind. He added that the radical Islamist movements that had massacred many women and children caused him to become fearful of Islam which he held responsible for the bloodshed. His life was caught up in a deep struggle that eventually led him to embrace Christianity which, according to him, “has given me peace of mind.”

“As to the daughter of the policeman, she explained that her reason for embracing Christianity was due to the fact that Islam treated women as maids and concubines, only to be sexually exploited by men. Muslim men regard women only from a physical point of view. Now, having adopted Christianity, she began to feel as a dignified human being. Her decision was final, and she does not regret it at all.

“The Algerian religious authorities reacted swiftly by declaring that a Murtad (Apostate) is now a Kafir (Unbeliever ;) and is subject to capital punishment, unless he or she repents by returning to Islam.

“It is estimated that there are around 10,000 Christians; most of them live in the Kabyle district of Tizi Ouzou. Some unofficial sources claim that the number of Christians in Algeria is more than 100,000; they are to be found all over the country, especially in the west of Algeria around the cities of Oran and Mostaganem. Most of these converts are young men and women. They claim that the reason that prompted them to embrace Christianity was Islam’s responsibility for murder, terror, and rape, as perpetrated by the Islamist groups who, in 1992 started their Jihad against civilians with the hope of getting closer to Allah!”

[Reference in the above paragraph is to the annulment in 1992, by the Military Government of the elections that were won by FIS (Front Islamique du Salut,) a Salafist organization. In response to the government’s action, FIS declared Jihad and began its Irhab against innocent civilians all over Algeria; the number of Algerians and foreigners killed during the civil war stands somewhere between 70,000 and 200,000]

The Law of Apostasy in Islam needs to be thoroughly aired on a global basis. For the first time in history, a great number of Muslims reside outside Daru’l Islam. They bring with them their religious baggage, and act as if their Shariah, including the punishment of a murtad (apostate,) should be enforced everywhere! Even though Western laws guarantee the freedom of religion, many Muslims do not respect these laws when their relatives embrace Christianity. In fact most converts are persecuted severely, and are often threatened with death. At the same time, these very Muslims engage in their Da’wah, calling Westerners to embrace Islam!

There is a total lack of quid pro quo in the relations between Muslims and non-Muslims. On the one hand, no missionary activities may take place in Daru’l Islam; and when Muslims convert to Christianity, the Law of Apostasy is applied. On the other hand, Muslims see no inconsistency at all as they arrogate to themselves the right to propagate Islam wherever they have settled in the world!

Non-Muslim nations and governments do not get actively involved in pointing to Muslim nations this total lack of reciprocity. The U. S. Department of Sate is to be applauded for publishing its annual report on Freedom of Religion.1 For example, when we take time to read the reports on the Middle East, we receive accurate information about the status and plight of non-Muslim minorities living in such countries as Egypt and Saudi Arabia. 2.

However, what is needed is much more than publishing objective information about the lack of religious freedom within Islamic lands. Non-Muslim governments and societies should point out to their Muslim counterparts that freedom of religion and conversion is always to be respected in all nations as a universal human right. It is a shocking anomaly, that while Muslims enjoy complete freedom when they settle in lands with religious freedom, the same right is absent for Christians and other non-Muslims living and working in Muslim lands. Those governments that do very little or nothing to address this issue in their dealings with Muslim nations, exhibit a deplorable weakness in a matter that should be manifestly obvious to all.
Recently, I was told by a Western Christian couple who had worked in Saudi Arabia for five long years, that when they met with other Christians for fellowship, they gave the impression to the Saudi authorities, that the sole purpose of their get-together was simply “to exchange recipes!”

It is indeed a very tragic situation that this total lack of religious freedom in Islam hardly receives any proper attention in the world press. On the other hand, it was a reformist Arabic-language website that drew attention to this deplorable tradition when it reported that “Religions Leaders in Algeria Are Demanding the Punishment of the Apostates.” Most Algerians have relatives in France who are free to practice and propagate their Muslim faith. And when French people convert to Islam neither church nor state begins proceedings of persecution. It’s high time for freedom of religion to be respected by Muslims in our globalized and interdependent world.

Notes

  1. The Annual Report to Congress on International Religious Freedom describes the status of religious freedom in each foreign country, government policies violating religious belief and practices of groups, religious denominations, and individuals, and U.S. policies to promote religious freedom around the world. It is submitted in compliance with the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
  2. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108481.htm
Posted in Articles

Reflections on Carl Trueman's Fascination With Edward Said

May 05, 2023
By June Engdahl

Reflections on Carl Trueman’s Fascination With Edward Said
By June Engdahl
March 1, 2009

In the December 2008 issue of Tabletalk magazine, published by Ligonier Ministries, a review of Carl Trueman’s book, Minority Report appeared. The reviewer noted that one of the chapters dealt with the subject of what Carl Henry’s followers could learn from the late Edward Said. This got my attention because I knew Edward Said was a highly controversial scholar. What, I wondered, could Trueman possibly be suggesting. A Google search located an essay that sounded like the chapter in question. It can be downloaded from The Gospel Coalition website at http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/publications under “Archived Themelios Issues”, Issue 30-2. The essay is entitled “Uneasy Consciences and Critical Minds: What the Followers of Carl Henry Can Learn from Edward Said.”
http://s3.amazonaws.com/tgc-documents/journal-issues/30.2_Trueman.pdf

I do not know if the essay was edited or updated for publication in the book. This paper will interact only with the essay as it appears in Themelios. I believe a response to this controversial essay is needed. Its thesis is questionable and Trueman’s argument for it unconvincing. Even to suggest that Christians should take lessons from a leftist whose mentors were Marxists and revolutionaries is lamentable. This paper will highlight and discuss Trueman’s criticisms of Evangelicalism and also take issue with his main thesis that Evangelicals should learn from Edward Said.

Carl Trueman is a young, but already highly esteemed, academic who teaches Historical Theology and Church History at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, as well as holding other positions there. I have profited from his writings, his Reformation 21 blog entries, Internet interviews, sermons and lectures. Therefore, it is difficult to have to take very serious issue with this 2005 Themelios article, now reprinted in his book Minority Report.

Trueman is from the United Kingdom and describes himself elsewhere as being “center-left” on the political spectrum. The Themelios article leaves the impression that he is more than a little “left” of the “center”. His high regard for Edward Said and the other scholars who influenced him is puzzling. None of them are Christian. They are enemies of Christianity. They are leftists, Marxists and post-modernists. They despise the West while they enjoy its benefits and freedoms. To suggest that Carl Henry’s followers can learn from Edward Said and his friends is disconcerting to say the least, especially coming from a Reformed academic. Trueman himself said Henry and Said were “strange bedfellows.” Neither “would appreciate the company of the other” (p. 45). Why then such a provocative essay?

The first half of Trueman’s essay is very interesting and with few exceptions non-controversial. Trueman claims Evangelicals are heirs of Carl Henry in putting into practice his initial vision for cultural engagement. Trueman believes Henry’s most influential book was The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Fundamentalism. It was instrumental in helping bring about a “new Evangelicalism” out of the “cultural and moral legalism” of fundamentalism. Henry and those new Evangelicals around him sought to be “less polemical,” and urged the like-minded among them to get rid of their apathy, become activists in a common Evangelical front, and rise above differing theological traditions to confront and engage modern secularity.

Trueman rightly points out that getting Christian influence into the culture is especially difficult because doctrinal distinctives of individual churches must be downplayed in some respects in order to get a general consensus. A case in point is the deterioration of Christianity Today magazine. It began with high theological standards and serious articles. It now makes its appeal to ever broader segments of the Christian culture. As Trueman so well states: CT gravitates “towards lowest common denominator themes.” It can be said to even manufacture “consensus.”

Trueman makes a good point in stating that Henry’s vision needs “to be modified, indeed radicalized, to include careful reflection upon how Evangelicalism is to be held accountable to the church.” This subject, however, was not adequately pursued. More effort was given to show the shortcomings of much of the political involvement of Evangelicals. How that related to the problem of accountability to the church was left unclear.

I believe Trueman gets off the track when he starts discussing the political engagement of Evangelicals. He criticizes them with misstatements and hyperbole worthy of a politician: They practice “right-wing politics of a fairly radical kind.” There is “fierce loyalty to the Republicans being exhibited by most white Christians.” He claims “[w]hen individuals from other countries and cultures, with different political convictions, come to America, they are disenfranchised because the church has created unnecessary barriers to evangelism” (p. 40). This is an odd assertion and makes no sense.

Trueman must be unaware of the 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States which specify the rules for citizenship. Only persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens. Immigrants are not disenfranchised when they come to America. They simply are non-citizens and do not have the same rights and benefits that citizens have. The franchise has not been taken from them. It simply has not been given to them. That would happen if and when they satisfactorily complete the citizenship application process and pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United States of America. Thus Trueman is accusing Evangelicals of something totally outside their prerogative.

It is not clear what Trueman meant to convey with this odd statement. He uses the phrase “the church has created unnecessary barriers to evangelism.” Does he mean that the church discriminates against immigrants “with different political convictions” and that this makes it more difficult for them to go through the citizenship process? If he were to take a look around him at all the wonderful things Evangelicals and other Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) do for legal immigrants in this country he would realize he spoke too hastily. The many ESL (English as a Second Language) programs offered by Christian churches and para-church organizations are a case in point. There are other services Christians perform which help immigrants. Even though Trueman implies it, Evangelicals do not discriminate against immigrants for holding to “different political convictions.” Most of them espouse different religious beliefs as well. The immigrants and their convictions and beliefs are treated with dignity and respect. The good work that the churches and other organizations do for immigrants is actually lowering barriers for their assimilation into American society, not raising them as Trueman claims.

Trueman goes on to suggest that there is a “colour bar which runs through American church life, particularly as it relates to whites and African Americans” and that the “white churches’ record on slavery” causes economic and “class divisions” (p. 41). These accusations of racism and classism were not backed up with any reasoned argument, and are similar to those Edward Said hurled against imperialistic societies. Trueman is here unilaterally charging one group (white churches) and society (America) with sins that are universal. While not denying the fact of racial discrimination in the history of the American church, a more nuanced discussion of this subject would have been helpful.

The American church is not acting “as the nation’s conscience” as Carl Henry stressed it should (p. 39). Henry would not have approved its “black and white, simplistic politics.” Certainly Henry could be critical of certain aspects of Christian political involvement, but does anyone doubt that certain issues would indeed be “black and white” issues for him, abortion being just one. Evangelicals and other pro-life individuals have been attempting for decades to instruct the nation’s conscience on the abortion issue and have succeeded, at least thus far, in keeping a pro-life position in the platform of one of the political parties. Even though Trueman said Henry’s vision needed to be “radicalized” he didn’t apply that radicalism to the fight against abortion:

“The current function, however, of abortion as the card which trumps everything has killed meaningful political thinking on other issues in many Evangelical circles” (p. 39).

“The relationship between the church and politics is always going to be complicated. This is not least because political thinking is a culturally specific, occasional activity, where the black and white moral categories of right and wrong do not always, or even often, apply” (p. 40, emphasis supplied).

“Only the crudest of Bible-thumping simpletons can possibly correlate the teaching of the Bible in a direct, no-nonsense way with the party political platforms of the early twenty-first century. . . . Yes, God hates the slaughter of infants – but abortion is merely the most obvious way in which this takes place” (p. 40, emphasis supplied).

Trueman then sets forth the typical leftist litany of other political issues and causes that should be part of any Evangelical political agenda because, he says, “they kill infants too.”

But it is patently obvious that AIDS, famine, war, pollution, and the rest of the litany of leftist issues and causes he lists do sometimes kill infants. But it is always after they are born. Babies who are aborted don’t get out of the abortion clinic alive. The right of “choice” was established by judicial fiat to allow women to murder their unborn if they so desire. And abortion happens all over the world not just in America. It is not a “culturally specific, occasional activity.” It is odd that a Christian theologian is unable to see it as a black and white issue that “always” applies. Christians should always oppose it and seek to stop it in every non-violent way possible.

If any issue should be a defining issue for the Christian community it is the abortion issue. Yet Trueman believes Evangelicals are overzealous and polarizing for giving it so much attention. There must be “root and branch criticism of the culture” and there are worthier causes in Trueman’s “wider world” (p. 43):

“[t]he enemy at the moment is consumerism, reinforced by the old mythology of Western superiority. These foes are deadlier in many ways than the Red menace if only because they are that much more insidious and seductive . . . . The prophetic voice must speak to this in the coming years if the church is not to become a religious form of wholly secular substance . . . . Evangelicals need to heed the cultural criticism of a Said if they are to avoid a simplistic and idolatrous identification of Christianity with a particular political project, whether of the right or of the left” (p. 44).

Granted, consumerism is a problem but it doesn’t rise to the level of importance that surrounds the issues of abortion and homosexuality. It is acceptable in most contexts to speak negatively about consumerism. The same cannot be said for speaking negatively about abortion and homosexuality. And to say that the myth of “Western superiority” reinforces consumerism is only partially true. Greed and lust are part and parcel of human depravity, which includes everyone, whether living in the “superior” West or in countries ruled by tyrants, most of whose citizens lack sufficient money and opportunity to indulge the consumeristic habit. If given the money and opportunity, would inhabitants of these countries be any different? Christians have Jesus’ command not to lay up treasures on earth (Matt. 6:19) as a guide when dealing with a problem like consumerism. Why is Jesus’ command not enough? When Trueman demands that “the prophetic voice must speak to this in the coming years” he wants the “cultural criticism of a Said”, his prophet extraordinaire, to inform that prophetic voice.

Yes, consumerism is a menace and Christians are guilty of its attractions as well as unbelievers. The West is particularly prone to self-absorption, luxury and concupiscence. Christians are guilty of these sins as well. The economic stresses the West is now suffering are in part a direct consequence of the foolishness of idolizing and hoarding up earthly treasures. The Bible speaks to these sins. When Christians do not heed its guidance they falter. Christians have Jesus as their instructor in how to live righteously in the context of a materialistic culture. It shows the strength of the leftist categories that govern Trueman’s social analysis, at least in this essay, that he finds the “cultural criticism” of Edward Said more compelling in speaking to these problems than the teachings of Jesus Christ in the Sermon on the Mount.

It is also noteworthy that in 2005 there was no deadly “Red menace” but there was, and still is, an Islamic menace, which Trueman does not mention at all, even though America was involved in two wars against Islamic terrorists at the time of his original essay. His high regard for Said, who was vociferously against the United States policy in these conflicts1, may have influenced his decision to remain silent. Also his belief that Christians need to be critical of the culture in which they live may have played a part. In any case, Trueman did not bring up any kind of criticism of the religion that motivates people to maim and kill in its name.

Trueman is also critical of what he calls American “myths.” Particularly unsettling to him is the “insidious” myth that many Evangelicals believe “America has a special place in God’s providential care.” This is to harbor the error of “manifest destiny.” Myths are everywhere in America, especially the myth of “superiority.” The “mythologies” began with the Founding Fathers (never explained or qualified), are taken up by Hollywood, and carried forward by a media obsessed with “strength, beauty and superiority.” Christians identify “America and the American way, with its freedom, democracy and free market philosophy as identical with God’s way.” This all stems from “a basic human pride in anything that allows one to feel superior to others” (p. 40).

This sweeping denunciation of so-called American “myths” which Evangelical Christians are caught up in is unjustified. Why brand America as peculiarly “obsessed” with the “myth” of “strength and beauty” when this is a world-wide phenomenon. Trueman’s sniping at freedom, democracy and free market capitalism is also unjustified. People privileged to live in the Western world should be thankful to God for the freedom and democracy of their governmental systems. In the providence of God, Americans are further blessed with having had Founding Fathers who preserved our people’s rights in a Constitution and Bill of Rights. Why Trueman would castigate Evangelicals for believing that their own and other free and democratic governments are “superior” to, for instance, Socialist, Marxist or Islamofascist ones is amazing. He then adds insult to injury by accusing them of harboring a “basic human pride in anything that allows one to feel superior to others.” In actuality, American Evangelicals would be happy if the entire world were so blessed to live in democracies with Constitutions allowing those under its protections to live in freedom and dignity.

Generally speaking all Christians, but perhaps even more so the Reformed, believe in God’s special providence over their lives as individuals, and over all countries and mankind in general. Why Trueman would call this an “insidious” myth is odd. He even wrote a scholarly book on John Owen, the great Puritan divine, who had a highly developed sense of his country’s special place in the providence of God during the English Civil War, the Cromwellian Protectorate and the eventual restoration of the monarchy. God is sovereign over all. He has a sovereign plan for every country. Why should not Christians pray for and desire and strive to accomplish God’s known will in every area of their lives, personally, professionally and politically? That God might also bring unexpected judgment to individual Christians, churches and nations is also part of what it means to hold to the principle of having a “special place” in God’s providence. John Owen certainly understood that in his historical context.

Trueman’s harsh portrayal of Evangelicals culminates with a final indictment that they regard “a particular brand of politics as of the essence of the gospel.” He says:

“[m]ost white evangelicals are Republicans, while most African Americans are Democrats. Bluntly put, if I have to buy your political manifesto in order to buy your gospel, then your church is indulging in a dangerous confusion of categories and excluding individuals and groups from its congregation. They are excluded on grounds other than that of simply being outside of Christ. A gospel that is too American in this sense is no gospel at all” (p. 41).

While some Evangelicals hold strong political positions and actively work for various causes it doesn’t follow that they believe their political beliefs and activism are “of the essence of the gospel.” Trueman needed to give some examples before making such a strong criticism. Likewise, he should have told us which churches are asking people to “buy” a “political manifesto” before they can “buy” their gospel. This charge is totally unwarranted. Of the various faith commitments, and ethical and doctrinal standards that potential members are expected to submit to before joining a Christian church, fealty to “political manifestos” would not be included among them.

After setting forth all the ways Trueman thinks Evangelicals fall short in their cultural engagement, the last half of his essay is spent discussing ways they can improve their prospects for success, if they heed his advice and seek the insight that he claims can be found in the ideas of the famous Palestinian/American academic Edward Said. However, Trueman did not tell us enough about this man’s ideas or his character, and those who influenced him, information Christians need to know before they can endorse him or his ideas as being worthy of the Christian’s attention.

Edward Said was born in Palestine into a wealthy, nominally Christian Palestinian/Lebanese family. He spent more of his youth in Egypt than in Palestine. He had the best of private school education all through college. He became ardently pro-Palestinian and was a hearty PLO supporter but broke with Arafat when the latter made concessions to Israel. Said wrote his memoir Out of Place2 late in life. In it he reflects upon his childhood and early adult years in a highly interpretive way bringing to bear on his childhood and youth his mature worldview.3 Almost every reference to Christianity is negative. He was a highly regarded scholar at Columbia University where he taught English and Comparative Literature. He authored many books. His most successful and controversial one was Orientalism,4 which propounded a thesis on how the West views the Orient that has become the standard “doctrine” in most university Middle East Studies departments. As Trueman so well puts it: Said claimed “that ‘the Orient’ was a construct of Western ideology and thus part of the mechanism of Western imperial power” (p. 41). Trueman does not take issue with this thesis. He appears to agree with Said, who took his thesis further and applied it to famous English writers, most notably Jane Austen. One of her characters had a plantation in Antigua and Said attempts to implicate her in having favorable views of the slave trade.5

In an article written shortly after the events of 9-11, Stanley Kurtz in The Weekly Standard had this to say about Edward Said and his very successful “Orientalism” thesis:

“The public knows Edward Said as the most prominent American supporter of the Palestinian cause . . . who was famously and incongruously photographed – a Columbia professor in southern Lebanon – hurling a rock at a guardhouse on the Israeli border. But Said’s real influence has been as the founder of ‘post-colonial theory,’ arguably the dominant intellectual paradigm in those sections of the academy dedicated to the study of non-Western cultures.”

“At a stroke, Said’s 1978 book Orientalism created post-colonial theory. . . . Orientalism is built upon the supposition that there is no such thing as disinterested knowledge, that all knowledge is contaminated by its entanglement with power. It follows that all Western knowledge of, say, the Middle East or south Asia must wittingly or unwittingly serve the purposes of imperialist (or present-day ‘neo-imperialist’) domination.”

“But the cleverest twist in Said’s theory is his claim that even the most sophisticated and respectful Western accounts of foreign cultures are actually tools of imperialist oppression. Just by treating Islamic societies as different from the West, scholars commit an act of highhanded condescension. The insinuation hiding behind even the most respectful study of cultural difference, Said claims, is that the people who practice exotic customs, however intriguing or complex they may be, are sufficiently irrational as to be unfit to rule themselves.” See http://www.travelbrochuregraphics.com/extra/edward_Said_imperialist.htm.

David Zarnett, a scholar at King’s College, University of London, wrote an article in 2007 entitled “Edward Said and the Iranian Revolution.” It appeared in Democratiya, an online journal and can be found at http://www.democratiya.com/review.asp?reviews_id=92. Zarnett set forth how badly flawed was Edward Said’s analysis of the Iranian Revolution. So convinced was Said of his own thesis in Orientalism that he viewed the Iranian Revolution through its lens. In doing so he misinterpreted that Revolution’s true character. Zarnett specifies two points which led to Said’s errors: (1) Said was not an expert on Islam, Iran, the Shah or Farsi and thus believed the Western press’s portrayal of the Revolution had to be “inherently wrong”; and (2) Said didn’t take seriously what Khomeini said about the Jews and Shari’a law. As Zarnett states:

“What irked Said most was the idea that the Iranian revolution symbolized a ‘Return to Islam’. Contrary to how the media reported it, Said saw the Iranian revolution as unrelated to Islam. The real roots of the revolution, and of resentment towards the West throughout the Middle East, he thought, lay not within Islamic culture or society but rather Western treatment of the region.”

“After his years of research and writing for his book Orientalism (1978), Said thought he knew exactly what was going on. His analysis of systematic Western misperceptions of Islam – orientalism – was to be vindicated by a stinging critique of this orientalist discourse about the Iranian revolution.”

“His out-of-hand rejection of the media’s characterization of the revolution as ‘Islamic’ resulted from his a priori hostility to all American mainstream media discussions of Islam. His method blocked a more nuanced approach that might have seen the Islamic and the political dimensions of the revolution. It would have served Said well to consider one of George Orwell’s dictums: ‘Just because you read something in the Daily Telegraph doesn’t mean it’s wrong’.”

“The irony is that while Said made his career criticizing the West for denying Muslims or Arabs their own fully autonomous existence, his own thought – as Kanan Makiya has pointed out [citing Makiya’s Cruelty and Silence: War, Tyranny, Uprising and The Arab World] contributed to that very denial. Through the distorting lens of ‘orientalism’ key Muslim and Arab personalities and movements are routinely denied their identity, their words ignored, and an alternative and self-serving image is thrust upon them (and us).”

Zarnett’s well documented essay makes it clear that Said was not a trustworthy guide in truthfully deciphering and interpreting the Iranian Revolution. The traits of character Said displayed throughout his involvement in the Iranian issue and the quality of his interpretation of the whole project were not praiseworthy. If Christians can “learn” anything from Edward Said it would be not to emulate him or subscribe to his ideas.

In Out of Place Said often portrays himself as a victim in all areas of his privileged existence. He creates a narrative that is captivating and full of detailed observations of events spanning decades, family members and conversations and people who passed through his life and how he interacted with them. One can’t help but wonder how such minute details could be remembered by anyone, even a brilliant man like Said, especially when they are decades removed from the actual occurrences. Some, (see Endnote 3), have questioned some aspects of his narrative’s veracity.

The circumstances surrounding Said’s birth are telling. After having lost one baby because of the Egyptian hospital’s inability to properly treat an infection it contracted at birth, Said’s parents went to Palestine in 1935, so Said could be born in a hospital more advanced than what Cairo offered. To the end of his days, even after becoming totally Americanized, he promoted and acted as an apologist for the Palestinian cause and denigrated Israel accordingly. He spent more of his youth in Egypt than in Palestine, yet the way he goes back and forth with such details in his memoir the reader never gets a clear picture of that truth. He became such a proponent of the Palestinian cause that claiming deeper Palestinian roots than he actually had could only help enhance his personal narrative and standing among his compatriots in Palestine, even while enjoying all the privileges and comforts of an influential university professorship at Columbia.

Of interest to Christians is Said’s reference to his great-grandfather, Yusef Badr, who is mentioned in American missionary Henry Jessup’s memoir as the first native Protestant minister in Lebanon, around 1880. Said was referring to Jessup’s Fifty-Three Years in Syria published by Fleming H. Revell Company, in 1910. Said claims in Out of Place that Badr and other Protestants in Lebanon:

“[h]ad an embattled, even belligerent, sense of what it meant to be Christian in a Muslim part of the world. My mother’s first cousins and her uncles were educated at the American University (formerly the Syrian Protestant College), and all had been or were still avidly religious, and further developed these affiliations through frequent trips to the United States and graduate studies there, plus, in my later view, too close an identification with American views on Islam as a depraved and unregenerate religion6 (emphasis supplied).

Even though Trueman initially gives generally high praise to both Henry and Said, the impression might be left that they are on an even keel in his thinking. But upon closer reflection a different picture emerges. Trueman says that Said had the “greatest influence on his thinking of all non-Christian writers” (p. 43). Evangelicals need to learn from this “dazzlingly brilliant and eclectic thinker” who has “something with which Christians should familiarize themselves” (p. 41). This one-sided lofty praise, alongside the overall critical depiction of Henry’s followers, diminishes Henry himself and elevates Said disproportionately. The latter was “a polymathic scholar who also wrote widely on Middle Eastern affairs in a passionate and engaged way.” Henry, however, “was a high-class journalist who, though undoubtedly very clever and accomplished, really devoted much of his life to a popular explication and application of the Christian faith in the contemporary world” (p. 32). Such a portrayal of Henry sounds rather pedestrian when compared to Said’s pristine erudition and style. Henry’s scholarly attributes, and whether they encompassed the “great learning,” viz. “polymathic” qualities of Said’s scholarship, are left for others to plumb. Even a cursory look into Said’s vast writings proves he is indeed a very learned, well read scholar. But are his passionately held opinions and analyses valid?

Other writers and scholars have lower opinions of Said. Martin Kramer writes that after the 1960’s the institutions of higher education turned ever more leftward:

“Academization translated radical political agendas into the theoretical framework of postmodernism, which postulated the subjectivity and relativity of all knowledge. In a time of diminishing opportunities in academe, this challenge increasingly took the form of an insurgency, which ultimately overran university departments in the humanities and social sciences.

“Said’s Orientalism far from bucking convention, actually rode the crest of this immensely successful academic uprising.”7

In the years following the publication of this book it became acceptable for scholars to

“spell out their own political commitments as a preface to anything they wrote or did. More than that, it also enshrined an acceptable hierarchy of political commitments, with Palestine at the top, followed by the Arab nation and the Islamic world. They were the long-suffering victims of Western racism, American imperialism, and Israeli Zionism – the three legs of the orientalist school.”8

Trueman’s essay shows that he has imbibed at least some of the academic thinking Kramer describes above. Another trait worth noting in Said’s character is his McCarthyist tactics. Here is how Kramer described it:

“The analogy to McCarthyism, an American phenomenon, rested upon Said’s tendency to list his protagonists and antagonists. Listing was a consistent feature of his style – a favorable reviewer of a later book noted Said’s tendency to run together ‘a string of names, as if that in itself constituted an argument’ [citing a review in the New York Times of Culture and Imperialism by Michael Gorra, Feb. 28, 1993] – and when he listed his orientalists, this effectively became a blacklist.”9

Should not Trueman have made his readers aware of such negative traits in his hero before he suggested Christians learn from him? It is also important to know a little about the men from whom Said himself took lessons. In Evangelical circles they are not usually viewed as legitimate sources of wisdom, nor should they be. Antonio Gramsci was an Italian Marxist; Michel Foucault, who agreed with Ayatollah Khomeini’s revolutionary politics, was a French homosexual leftist activist; Frantz Fanon grew up in Martinique and wrote The Wretched of the Earth (1961), called by its publisher "the handbook for the black revolution." Trueman offers no caveats of these men’s ideas or character. One has to ask: Why would a Christian theologian give credence of any kind to such men? Here’s why Trueman thinks they are worth listening to:

“From these he learned both the ways in which established power uses all aspects of wider culture in order to extend its own project of control and manipulation, and the need therefore to be critical of the culture in which one lives lest one be unwittingly co-opted into its wider agenda” (p. 41).

It is obvious that the “established power” he speaks of is Western. Would Said and his Marxist mentors have been as critical of the power structures of the Palestinian Authority for instance? Or the power structure of the Iranian Ayatollahs? Of course not. This criticism is meant to apply to the governments of the free world, particularly the United States.

When commenting on colonialism’s legacy, Said quoted Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth approvingly:

“We should flatly refuse the situation to which the Western countries wish to condemn us. Colonialism and imperialism have not paid their score when they withdraw their flags and their police forces from our territories. For centuries the [foreign] capitalists have behaved in the underdeveloped world like nothing more than criminals.”10

So even though the European colonialists have left their colonies, often in better shape than they found them; and even though many of those same colonies now find themselves suffering under the terrible conditions imposed on them by their own ruthless dictators; yet the West is still being blamed for all those “wretched of the earth” having to exist in such miserable conditions. This is the social analysis Trueman suggests is relevant in critiquing imperialistic institutions and power structures, i.e. America’s, and right-wing political activism of American Evangelicals by necessary inference.

Said is praised especially for criticizing the “cult of specialization” (p. 42) in the academy. This is a practice that prevents those who have competence in some specialized calling from then making statements outside their specialty. Those who do so are accused of “speaking out of their hats” as Trueman so Britishly puts it. Said claimed that “academic specialization is being used by a political establishment to marginalize a dissenting voice.” When, if ever, does the political establishment marginalize dissenting voices of leftist academics? While he was alive, Edward Said’s voice was heard in many venues outside his Columbia classroom. The academy is chock full of scholars speaking outside of their specialties. And they are definitely not hectoring from a “right-wing” perspective. The only people the political establishment tries incessantly to marginalize are Evangelical Christians.

One “specialist” Trueman admires and made a point to mention in his essay is Noam Chomsky.11 He claims Chomsky made “significant . . . contributions” to the ‘theoretical linguistics’ field yet what he says outside his specialty is “often denigrated.” Trueman applauds Chomsky for making “major contributions to understanding how propaganda functions, how the West has frequently played a duplicitous game with regard to human rights abuses and geopolitical issues” (p. 42).

Does specialist Chomsky have anything to say about how propaganda functions in Iran, Sudan, China, North Korea, Putin’s Russia, the Gaza Strip, and in other terrorist states? What about human rights abuses in these tyrannical states? Did Said have anything to say about them? No, the criticism is all one way – against the democratic West. And Trueman acquiesces in this totally unbalanced view. He wrote his initial essay post-911 yet made no reference to that terrible event. Nor did he mention the continuing murderous acts of terror perpetrated by Islamists like those who committed the atrocities against America on 9-11. What caused such an oversight? Was it a concern about not wanting to be considered an “orientalist” or to be overcritical of Muslims and Islam?

Certainly people should be allowed to speak outside of their particular areas of expertise. But why does such a concept need Edward Said to commend it and Noam Chomsky to model it? Christians have examples from the Bible. The New Testament is a record of lowly, humble people speaking outside their areas of “expertise.” The disciples of Jesus spoke outside their professions of fishing and tax collecting as they brought God’s truth to the worldly powers of their day. And Priscilla and Aquila spoke outside of their profession of tentmaking contending for Gospel truths. And the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 1: 21, 25, 27 teaches believers to be wary of worldly-wise specialists, operating in any era, when Christians have the Word of God to guide them:

“For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those that believe.”

“For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

“But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. . .”

Some of the great Christian missionaries of the past lived during the days of the British Empire, including William Carey, Reginald Heber, Henry Martyn and Samuel Zwemer, to name just a few. According to Edward Said’s thesis, they would never be able to truly understand the Orient. Carey, Heber and Martyn because they were part of the British Empire. Zwemer because he was from America, which had no foreign colonies but did have international influence. Yet these were godly men, who believed they were instruments in God’s hand to spread the Gospel, not instruments of the governments from which they came. Said was only partly correct when he stated the following:

“Even the legendary American missionaries to the Near East during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries took their role as set not so much by God as by their God, their culture, and their destiny. The early missionary institutions – printing presses, schools, universities, hospitals, and the like – contributed of course to the area’s well-being, but in their specifically imperial character and their support by the United States government, these institutions were no different from their French and British counterparts in the Orient.”12

It is true the good works done by the missionaries were a fact and much appreciated by the people benefiting from them. But Said is wrong to attribute “imperialistic” motives on behalf of America for what they did among the people they truly loved. Robert Kaplan saw things a little differently:

“In marked contrast to the conduct of European colonials in the underdeveloped world or American expatriates in the Panama Canal Zone and the Pacific holdings, imperialism and commercial exploitation were entirely missing from the baggage carried by the missionaries in Lebanon. Nor did the Americans even present a threat to the local religious culture, as the missionary colonies in India, China, Burma, and Siam would. For if truth be told, compared to the missionaries in the Far East, who won over significant numbers of Chinese to Protestant Christianity, the American missionaries in the Middle East were complete failures. The intractability of Islam quickly forced them to give up any hope of converting souls to Christ.

“It would be only as purveyors of Western education that the Americans in Lebanon were to succeed. And for that the local Arabs would learn to love them.”13

Kaplan portrays the early 19th century American Christian missionaries very sympathetically. He makes clear that they did not have the imperialistic “baggage” Said attributes to them. They learned the languages and identified with the people. But Kaplan sees them more “like romantic explorers and Peace Corps workers than real missionaries.”14 However, to claim the Christians were “complete failures” in “converting souls to Christ” is perhaps too strong an indictment. Even if few, we are aware that Jesus does tell us there is “joy in heaven” over even one sinner who repents (Luke 15: 4, 8, 10).

Kaplan writes that “by 1860 the American missionaries were operating thirty-three schools in Syria.”15 They wanted to “civilize” Syria and were downplaying proselytization and replacing it with education. Their one enduring success was the creation of The Syrian Protestant College in Beirut. It was founded in 1866 with 16 students. Kaplan described its importance this way:

“The Syrian Protestant College . . . was probably the most inspired idea in the history of foreign aid. Not only was it a quintessential cottage industry project for filtering Western values into the Arab world over time, but it also provided a permanent aesthetic monument to America in the region, a monument that posed no threat to anyone else’s sovereignty. In fact, the school became an agent for the promotion of Arab sovereignty.”16

Christians might not be satisfied with the missionaries’ decision to be more concerned with education than with evangelization. Said’s adherents might continue to view the Protestant College as another example of American imperialistic meddling where it did not belong. But it still was a force for good in the region. It eventually became the American University of Beirut. It actually helped foster Arab nationalism, the outcome of which has not always had positive results. The ensuing years of turmoil in Lebanon had effects on the University also. The new Islamists were using Said’s Orientalism to stir up strife. As Martin Kramer explains:

“[I]n Orientalism, Said determined that American hospitals and universities in the Middle East were tainted by ‘their specifically imperial character and their support by the United States government’ [citing Said, Orientalism, p. 294] . . . . It was a telling coincidence that when a militant Islamist movement arose among the Shi’ites of Lebanon in the 1980s, its zealots saw these institutions in just this light and deliberately targeted university and hospital personnel. . . .

“AUB drew much of the fire. In 1982, the university’s president became the first American taken hostage in Lebanon. After the abduction, Malcolm Kerr arrived in Beirut to serve as president. Kerr was a son of AUB, a founder and past president of MESA [Middle East Studies Association of North America], a supporter of Arab causes – and the lone American critic of Said’s Orientalism. That he continued to reject Said’s premises was obvious from his inaugural address in Beirut. In it, he pointed to the evolution of AUB ‘from a university offering Western culture to the Arabs, to one that promotes both Western and Arab cultures and implicitly looks for a symbiotic relation between them, in the best tradition of European Orientalism.’ In 1984, Kerr was gunned down outside his office, by assassins who must have seen this symbiosis and its best tradition as forms of imperialism.

“There was much irony in the fact that Said and the ‘progressive’ scholars, from the safety of American universities, should have delegitimized the one university in the Arab world where academic freedom had meaning thanks to its American antecedents.”17

In a footnote to his remarks Kramer said that another irony was Said’s complete reversal of his former view of American universities in the Middle East, telling an interviewer in 1997 they were the “last utopian place.”

There are several reasons why I have given so much attention in this paper to probing into and exposing Edward Said’s dangerous beliefs and criticizing Trueman for praising the man so highly. First, Said’s influence is still dominant in the academy even though many scholars disagree with his ideas and the political positions he held. He did not always tell the truth. Trueman’s high praise indicates there are Christians willing to give his opinions acceptance. Yet the post-colonial, postmodern agenda espoused by Said is detrimental to Christianity. His Orientalism thesis pervaded all of his thinking. If applied to modern missions it could have deleterious effects. Christians should be wary of giving it credence.

Another reason for this paper is to register amazement that a Reformed scholar could suggest that unbelievers, leftists and post-modernists are proper teachers for Evangelicals, or anyone else for that matter. It jars one’s sensibilities. Obviously, learning what these people think and say is necessary in order to understand and refute them. But to view them as valid arbiters of Christianity’s flaws is absurd. The truth claims of their various writings in themselves are questionable. And the flaws that Trueman asserts are attributable to Evangelical political activism over the past decades are themselves open to more debate than Trueman’s one-sided negative discussion gave them. That the worthy Christian Carl Henry, and his bumbling followers, had to be brought in as foils to the leftist Palestinian ideologue, Edward Said, and his Marxist mentors, is a quite remarkable slice of chutzpah.

The Christian church has the authority of the Word of God to bring to bear on its own who overstep biblical boundaries. American Christianity is a mixed bag, full of all kinds of egregious sins and shortcomings and needs to be confronted when in error, which is often enough. There are biblical principles which speak to Evangelicalism’s sins. There is also a vast treasury of Christian wisdom to be found in Luther, Calvin, Owen and Edwards to name just four. That Trueman chose to make a case for accepting the criticisms of Said, Foucault, Fanon, and Chomsky against Evangelicals is simply incredible.

One of the most common slogans offered up in praise of Edward Said was that “he spoke truth to power.” It is ironical that in all of Trueman’s suggestions that Evangelicals learn from leftists and their social theories against power structures (understood, of course, as Western power structures), it is actually Carl Henry and those Evangelicals he influenced who actually did speak truth to power. Despite their many sins and foibles, Evangelicals have for many years been an influence in the public square. They have confronted political parties, legislative bodies, academics, the media and, when needed, even the churches. Whatever errors and theological weaknesses were, and are, connected to such efforts, at least the attempt to make Christian principles known and respected, if not heeded, is admirable. The best of those efforts would have pleased the late Westminster scholar John Murray, who wrote:

“God alone is sovereign. His authority alone is absolute and universal. All men and spheres are subject to God. The civil magistrate derives his authority from God. Apart from divine institution and sanction, civil government has no right to exist. ‘The powers that be are ordained of God’ (Rom. 13:1). Since civil government derives its authority from God, it is responsible to God and therefore obligated to conduct its affairs in accordance with God’s will. The infallible revelation of his will God has deposited in the Scriptures. It will surely be granted that there is much in the Scriptures that has to do with the conduct of civil government. And this simply means that the Word of God bears upon civil authority with all the stringency that belongs to God’s Word.

“Furthermore, the Word of God reveals that Christ is head over all things, that he has been given all authority in heaven and in earth. The civil magistrate is under obligation to acknowledge this headship and therefore to conduct his affairs, not only in subjection to the sovereignty of God, but also in subjection to the mediatorial sovereignty of Christ, and must therefore obey his will as it is revealed for the discharge of that authority which the civil magistrate exercises in subjection to Christ. . . . To recede from this position or to abandon it, either as conception or as goal, is to reject in principle the sovereignty of God and of his Christ”18 (emphasis supplied).

In these days, when the complete secularization of the West is almost accomplished, and militant Islam is posing an ever greater danger not only to the West, but to the entire world, Evangelicals need to remain engaged in cultural confrontation according to biblical norms and imperatives. They would do well to remember John Murray’s words and ponder how to understand and implement what he said about not abandoning the headship of Christ “over all things” either as “conception or as goal.”


ENDNOTES
1 See Edward W. Said, From Oslo to Iraq and the Road Map, Pantheon Books, New York, 2004, by the Estate of Edward W. Said, which incorporates many of Said’s essays in Arabic media publications between December 2000 and July 2003, to get a flavor of how he presents his case against the United States and Israel to the Arab world.

2 Edward W. Said, Out of Place, A Memoir, Alfred A. Knoph, New York, 1999.

3 A very interesting article appeared in the magazine Commentary in September 1999 entitled “’My Beautiful Old House’ and Other Fabrications by Edward Said”, written by Justus Reid Weiner, an Israeli scholar, who meticulously researched claims Said had been making in different venues over many years about his so-called home in Jerusalem. It is most illuminating. Said was capable of creating a highly inventive personal narrative. In Out of Place published after Weiner’s massively researched exposé, Said left out his former fanciful narratives about this “house” which proves Weiner’s efforts at truth-telling bore fruit. The article has proof of many more discrepancies in Said’s memory and can be found here: http://www.commentarymagazine.com/viewarticle.cfm/-my-beautiful-old-house--and-other-fabrications-by-edward-said-9062 for a fee; and here also in different formatting: http://cosmos.ucc.ie/cs1064/jabowen/IPSC/glosses/weinerAttackOnSaid.html; a further response from Weiner to critics of this article is found here http://www.meforum.org/article/191.

4 Edward W. Said, Orientalism, Vintage Books a Division of Random House, New York, October 1979.

5 Mansfield Park illustrates this in Said’s view. See Edward W. Said, Culture and Imperialism, Alfred A. Knopf/New York, 1993, pages 80-97 for his reasoning. For a critique of Said’s view of Austen see Ibn Warraq’s July 2007 essay entitled “Jane Austen and Slavery” in the online journal New English Review located at: http://www.newenglishreview.org/custpage.cfm/frm/8722/sec_id/8722.

6 Said, Out of Place, pp. 168-169.

7 Martin Kramer, Ivory Towers on Sand: The Failure of Middle Eastern Studies in America, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2001, p. 31.

8 Ibid., p. 37.

9 Ibid., p. 38.

10 Said, Culture and Imperialism, p. 12.

11 For more on Chomsky see the following http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=7A71842F-32D5-4401-9D64-276122F38563 which is the Introduction to The Chomsky Reader by David Horowitz and Peter Collier. Here is a brief excerpt of Collier’s Introduction: “Some of the ideas on his intellectual curriculum vitae that are discussed in the following pages—his defense of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge; his support of holocaust revisionism—may surprise those who know Chomsky only generally as a critic of U.S. foreign policy. Other of his commitments—the assertion that the U.S. as a world power is continuing the program of Nazi Germany and his fierce hatred of Israel—will, unfortunately, be more familiar. But either way, as Chomskyism continues to grow at home and abroad, it is clearly time for a reckoning.”

12 Said, Orientalism, p. 294.

13 Robert D. Kaplan, The Arabists: The Romance of an American Elite, The Free Press, A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1993, 1995, p. 16.

14 Ibid., p. 25.

15 Ibid., p. 33.

16 Ibid., p. 37.

17 Kramer, Ivory Towers on Sand, p. 46.

18 Collected Writings of John Murray, Volume One: The Claims of Truth, The Banner of Truth Trust, 1976 Valerie Murray, pp. 364-365.

__________________________

June Engdahl, the writer of this paper, is a retired legal secretary. She began her career in Minnesota and later moved to San Francisco where, for 27 years until retirement, she worked for a large San Francisco law firm. Ms. Engdahl enjoys reading history and biography, especially relating to the English and American Puritan era. Since September 2008 she has edited Rev. Bassam M. Madany’s various writings dealing with the global challenge of Islam. They appear on this and several other websites.

Posted in Articles

The Status of Women in Islam

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

The Status of Women in Islam
According to the Qur’an
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

On Sunday, October 12, 2008, an ex-Muslims website published an article with this title,
The Reasons for the Backwardness of Muslims “Asbab Takhallof al-Muslimeen” It listed eight reasons for that “backwardness”. Of particular interest was number seven,

“The Qur’an addressed the wives of the Prophet requiring them to remain in their homes and not to adorn themselves like the women of the Jahilyya (pre-Islamic era.) The legal authorities interpreted this specific command as normative for all Muslim women. This led to the weakening of Islamic societies, adding to their backwardness and poverty.”

Then on Friday, October 24, it dealt with the following subject:
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN THE QUR’AN AS EXEMPLIFIED IN THEIR BEATING

The article was written by a Muslim intellectual who, because of the freedom of the Internet, was able to express his radical views about Islam and its treatment of women without the fear of reprisal. What follows are significant excerpts translated from the Arabic:

“The Qur’an represents itself as the last Holy Book of a monotheistic religion, namely, Islam. The divine origin of the Qur’an --- according to the claim of Muslims --- implies that it should exhibit the highest levels of maturity, wholeness, and righteousness with respect to human relations in general, and to the relations between men and women, in particular.

“Now if Islam is the apex of the Divine revelations, and if Muhammad is the seal of the Messengers and Prophets of Allah, does the Qur’an actually manifest a level of maturity that would offer solutions to the problems between men and women within the context of marriage? And does the Message possess those conditions of acceptability in its original milieu, as well as for all time and all places? Or has its Message become a victim of various illegitimate and novel readings and interpretations that are totally at variance with Allah’s intentions?!!”

“One of the clearest examples of the teachings of the Qur’an is the subject of “wife-beating” as it appears in Surat Al-Nisa’ (Women) verses 34, 35.

As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them.
Marmaduke’s Translation

As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (Next), refuse to share their beds, (And last) beat them (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).
Yusuf Ali’s Translation

“While the ‘Divine’ text appears very clear, Muslim receptors of the message have offered different and varied interpretations of this Ayat. Some agree with its obvious meaning, others try to minimize the intensity of the punishment by suggesting that some women would repent merely by being kept away from the conjugal bed. Others insist that some form of beating must take place. Both Sunni and Shi’ite exegetes have agreed that “beating” is clearly taught in the text, and is necessary to make women reasonable in their conduct. They only disagree as to the degree or kind of the ‘beating.’

“In the Old Testament we have very strict standards regarding sexual sins, such as in the Book of Leviticus 21: 9

“Also the daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by harlotry, she profanes her father; she shall be burned with fire.”
New American Standard Bible (©1995)

“And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.”
King James Bible

“Now when we come to the New Testament we notice a tremendous progress in the teachings regarding husband-wife relations, where we find a marked improvement in the status of women. We think, for example, of Jesus’ attitude towards a woman caught in adultery as related in the Gospel according to John 8:

3 And the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst, 4 they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 "Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?" 6 And they were saying this, testing Him, in order that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground. 7 But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."

“In the Gospel according to Matthew, chapter 19, we read the following account:

3 The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? 4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

“We may also refer to the Letter of Paul to the Church in the city of Ephesus, Chapter 5: verses 22-25, and notice the progress in husband-wife relations,

22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. 24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. 25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.

“As we study the texts of the Jewish and Christian holy books, we find no clear reference to a physical punishment such as “beating” that should be inflicted on a wife. Now, it is true that the Old Testament books do relate severe punishments for misbehaving women, but when we come to the New Testament, we find that those punishments have totally disappeared.

“But as we come to the Qur’an, do we find a higher level of evolution and maturity in the laws that govern husband-wife relations? Not at all! In contrast, do we find the duty of “beating” a wife in the teachings of Jesus Christ, or of his disciples after him? On the contrary, we discover this teaching as related in Mathew 5:17 “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.”

“Had the Qur’an been a fulfillment of the previously-given “Heavenly Messages,” as the reasonable solutions to all of mankind’s problems, including the proper way of treating Muslims claim, it would have evidenced a higher degree of maturity, imparting final and reasonable solutions to all of mankind’s problems, including the proper way of treating women. Therefore, we may conclude that the Qur’anic discourse was actually a purely Muhammadan message destined to offer solutions to those contemporary conditions that existed in the days of the Prophet. They derived their understanding of their society from their cultural environment. Thus, they were normative for their own time and place.”

This article exposes the violent attitudes toward women reflected in the Qur’an. It is good to find reformist Muslim intellectuals who are troubled by these attitudes. They believe the lack of progress in their societies is reflected in the status of women and their mistreatment by the men in their lives all over the Muslim world. And the main culprit is their own sacred text – the Qur’an.

The writer does not hesitate to refer to the Chapter on Women (#4) in the Qur’an that allows a husband to inflict bodily discipline on his wife when she disobeys him, or merely gives the impression that she does not want to do his bidding.

But even more surprising is when a Muslim refers positively to the previously revealed Scriptures of the Jews and Christians and their teachings about husband-wife relations. The writer evidently believes in the progression of truth claiming there was “progress” from the teachings of the Old Testament to those of the New Testament regarding the status and treatment of women. This was especially true for those who sinned against the moral law. The author stressed that there is no trace of such “progress” in the Qur’an. On the contrary, the Islamic sacred book manifests a serious regression in this area.

One needs to realize how Muslims think of their Qur’an. They consider its authority final and its existence eternal! So when this author penned his shocking criticism of a supposedly eternal book in Arabic on a Kuwaiti website he was being very brave. Granted, the website is dedicated to the Reformation of Islam, but one wonders how long such ideas as his will be tolerated, even on a reformist Islamic website with worldwide exposure!

Moreover, it is a pleasant surprise to note the author’s general acquaintance with the Bible. He quotes from both the Old and New Testament.. He noted the Pauline injunction “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.” (Ephesians 5:25) No doubt this text was purposely used to counter the Qur’an’s abusive stance toward women. Whether the author understands the deeper theological content behind this passage is unknown. We understand that the passage reminds Christian husbands to model their love for their wives as Christ in his death “gave himself” for the church. One can only hope and pray that the writer understood Paul’s words as referring to our Lord’s redemptive and sacrificial love. Yet the importance of this reference cannot be underestimated.

It is my hope that with the impact of the Internet on the Arab-Muslim world, more of its people will realize the higher and nobler standards of the Gospel that govern husband-wife relations. And not only that, but my prayer is that thinking Muslims would understand that the ethical standards of the Christian faith are firmly grounded in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, who died on the cross, rose again on the third day, is coming at the end of time to judge the living and death, and to inaugurate the eternal Kingdom of God.

Posted in Articles

Joseph Ernest Renan: A Type of 19th Century Ration JOSEPH ERNEST RENAN A Type of 19th Century Ration

May 05, 2023
By Bassam Michael Madany

JOSEPH ERNEST RENAN

A Type of 
19th Century Rationalism 

 

By Bassam Michael Madany

During the academic years, 1950-1953, I attended The Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in preparation for the Gospel Ministry   This term paper dealt with the 19th century rationalism that spread throughout Europe, and North America.

Introduction

            One of the distinctive features of 19th Century religious thought was the prominence of Rationalism.  To assign undue authority to reason in matters of religion was not something new that emerged in the last century, for that had existed throughout the history of the Christian Church. The different sects and heresies that arose in the beginnings of Christianity are but one example of the natural inclination of man, when not guided by the Holy Spirit, to find the seat of authority in himself, and not in the revelation of God.  But the 19th century distinguishes itself by the fact that most of the leading church historians, exegetes, and theologians of many Christian countries, yielded to the influence of a deistic rationalistic philosophy.  Their outlook regarding many long-accepted teachings of the Christian Church was radically modified.  Most of the rationalists revolted completely against the cardinal doctrines of Christianity, and tried to offer their own explanation of the facts of religion.  In this they differed from the course followed by the Reformers who accepted the authority of the Bible, as the infallible Word of God.  They followed different ways and methods in showing the supremacy of reason on the positive side, and in destroying the belief in the Bible as an inerrant revelation of God on the negative side.

            Many “solutions” were offered by the rationalists or “Higher Critics” of the last century in order to account for the impact of the person of Christ on the Church, its growth and its victory over the heathen world.  For them the Bible was not to be counted as a reliable source for the explanation of the life of Christ, nor of the early Apostolic Church.  The biblical accounts of the life of Christ, for example, are to be judged critically so as to ascertain the true from the false ones.  Each rationalist, when dealing with Christianity, had his own preconceived ideas and system of thought, and it was through that colored glass of one’s own philosophy that facts were viewed.  Skepticism was rather common to most of those rationalists, and their finished products of writings in the field of religion, differed only in the degree of doubt and uncertainty their minds were enveloped in.

            The destructive criticism of the rationalists dealt with different subjects of the Bible, sparing not even the holiest in the eyes of Orthodox Christians.  A special interest arose concerning the Christian Church and the founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ.  In the year 1835 appeared the Life of Christ by D.F. Strauss, a professor at Tübingen, Germany.  He advocated the mythical theory was so outrageous and contradictory to facts universally acknowledged, that it did not please many of the most thorough going rationalists.  Twenty five years later, appeared another book on the life of Christ, this time written by a French orientalist, Joseph Ernest Rénan.  The book was written according to the legend theory of Christ; and as soon as published and read, a flood of comments from Roman Catholics and Protestants alike, gave the book a distinction which it did not merit.  Without further delay we shall pass now to J.E. Rénan and his work.

A Short Biography of Rénan 
 

            Rénan was born at Tréguier, in Brittany, on February 27, 1823.  He lost his father at the age of five.  He received his early training from his mother and his sister Henriette, who was eleven years older than him. He grew in the pious atmosphere that characterized a Breton home, and felt that he was called to be a priest in the Roman Catholic Church.  Leaving home at the age of 15, he went to Paris and studied theology for four years in the séminaire of St. Nicholas de Chardonnet.  After that, in 1842 he studied philosophy at the  séminaire of Issy, where he stayed for two years, following which he spent one year at the famous séminaire de St. Sulpice.

            In his studies of philosophy and theology, the arguments of the rationalists Locke, Leibnitz, Malebranche, Cousin, Jouffrey and others, seemed to Rénan more valid than the arguments advanced against them by his teachers.  He studied oriental philology and the books of the liberal German theologians, all the while his revolt was growing stronger and stronger against the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.  He developed a great enthusiasm for German thought, which was not natural for French people.  The time of his ordination was drawing nigh, but Rénan did not take the final step, notwithstanding   the entreaties of his mother and his teacher, who did all they could to convince him to remain in the Church.  At last, he left the seminary of St. Sulpice at the age of 22, on October 6, 1845.  He went and taught at a small school two hours daily, in return for free board and lodging. This gave him ample time to prepare for the examination of the University.  He was granted a degree of “agrégé de philosophie” at his completion of a dissertation on the medieval study of Greek.  During this time, he studied the following subjects: Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac and Sanskrit, worked in mythology and in German theology.  In 1857 he was nominated for the professorship of Hebrew at the Collège de France, this appointment was confirmed by the government five years later, through the direct intervention of Napoleon III.

            Henriette, Rénan’s sister, has been sympathetic with the views of her brother; she had even offered to help him financially when he left St. Sulpice.  In 1860, Ernest and Henriette went to Palestine, and while visiting in Lebanon, his sister took ill and died at Byblos, 20 miles south of Tripoli.  Rénan had decided to write a series on the Origins of Christianity (Origine du Christianisme), and he found it opportune to start on the first volume while still in Lebanon.  He went to Mt. Lebanon and, living in a native hut, he wrote The Life of Christ (Vie de Jésus)

            The rest of the books in the series of the Origins of Christianity are: The Apostles (Les Apôtres), Saint Paul (Saint Paul), The Antichrist (L’Anté-christ), The Gospels and The Second Christian Generation (Les Evangiles et La Seconde Génération Chrétienne), The Christian Church (L’Eglise Chrétienne), Marcus-Aurelius and The End of The Old World (Marc-Auréle et La Fin du Monde Antique).

            After delivering his inaugural address at the Collège de France on February 21, 1862, he was suspended.  Two years later he was recalled to his chair at the University.  In 1879, he became a member of the famous Académie Française.  From 1884 to 1892, the year of his death, Rénan was administrator of the Collège de France.

Rénan was born at Tréguier, in Brittany, on February 27, 1823.  He lost his father at the age of five.  He received his early training from his mother and his sister Henriette, who was eleven years older than him. He grew in the pious atmosphere that characterized a Breton home, and felt that he was called to be a priest in the Roman Catholic Church.  Leaving home at the age of 15, he went to Paris and studied theology for four years in the séminaire of St. Nicholas de Chardonnet.  After that, in 1842 he studied philosophy at the  séminaire of Issy, where he stayed for two years, following which he spent one year at the famous séminaire de St. Sulpice.

            In his studies of philosophy and theology, the arguments of the rationalists Locke, Leibnitz, Malebranche, Cousin, Jouffrey and others, seemed to Rénan more valid than the arguments advanced against them by his teachers.  He studied oriental philology and the books of the liberal German theologians, all the while his revolt was growing stronger and stronger against the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.  He developed a great enthusiasm for German thought, which was not natural for French people.  The time of his ordination was drawing nigh, but Rénan did not take the final step, notwithstanding   the entreaties of his mother and his teacher, who did all they could to convince him to remain in the Church.  At last, he left the seminary of St. Sulpice at the age of 22, on October 6, 1845.  He went and taught at a small school two hours daily, in return for free board and lodging. This gave him ample time to prepare for the examination of the University.  He was granted a degree of “agrégé de philosophie” at his completion of a dissertation on the medieval study of Greek.  During this time, he studied the following subjects: Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac and Sanskrit, worked in mythology and in German theology.  In 1857 he was nominated for the professorship of Hebrew at the Collège de France, this appointment was confirmed by the government five years later, through the direct intervention of Napoleon III.

            Henriette, Rénan’s sister, has been sympathetic with the views of her brother; she had even offered to help him financially when he left St. Sulpice.  In 1860, Ernest and Henriette went to Palestine, and while visiting in Lebanon, his sister took ill and died at Byblos, 20 miles south of Tripoli.  Rénan had decided to write a series on the Origins of Christianity (Origine du Christianisme), and he found it opportune to start on the first volume while still in Lebanon.  He went to Mt. Lebanon and, living in a native hut, he wrote The Life of Christ (Vie de Jésus).

            The rest of the books in the series of the Origins of Christianity are: The Apostles (Les Apôtres), Saint Paul (Saint Paul), The Antichrist (L’Anté-christ), The Gospels and The Second Christian Generation (Les Evangiles et La Seconde Génération Chrétienne), The Christian Church (L’Eglise Chrétienne), Marcus-Aurelius and The End of The Old World (Marc-Auréle et La Fin du Monde Antique).

            After delivering his inaugural address at the Collège de France on February 21, 1862, he was suspended.  Two years later he was recalled to his chair at the University.  In 1879, he became a member of the famous Académie Française.  From 1884 to 1892, the year of his death, Rénan was administrator of the Collège de France.

Rénan’s Works and Their Influence on Religion 
 

            According to the publishers of “Vie de Jesus,” Calmann-Levy, Paris, the complete works of Rénan number 42 books dealing with religion, philosophy, philology, science, literature, etc.  Besides the books mentioned above on the Origins of Christianity, he had translated from Hebrew the books of Job, The Song of Solomon and Ecclesiastes.  It is difficult to make an estimate of all his religious books, and to evaluate them in the light of modern scholarship.  Sufficient it is to examine two of his most important books, Life of Christ and Saint Paul; once we know his idea of Jesus Christ and of the apostle, we can see the general trend of his theology, and detect at the same time, his influence on the Church in France and abroad. 
  
            It is not easy to reproduce Rénan’s ideas of Christ, for they are very shocking, most unreal, and devoid of any historical background.  Yet, in order to show the extreme to which he went, and the futility of depicting Christ outside of the record of the Bible, I will deal with his book, Life of Christ.

            With the most unbridled license in the treatment of his sources, Rénan produced romance around the life of Jesus.  To him Christ was a gentle Galilean, the darling of women, and an exquisite preacher of morality, dreaming of no other than the paradise of a fraternal fellowship of the children of God on earth  But this Jesus was also filled with ambition, vanity, sensual love, and undisguised deceit.  The Baptist transformed him into a religious revolutionary, a minister and a prophet, who assumed the role of the Messiah, accommodating the desire for the miraculous of his simple disciples, and perishing in the battle with Orthodox Judaism.

            The great mistake of Jesus, according to Rénan, was to forget that the ideal is fundamentally a utopia and is in constant conflict with the material.  The moment Jesus entered the battle with evil and sought to reclaim souls for the kingdom of God, Rénan’s understanding and sympathy ceased.


An Appraisal of “The Life of Jesus

           In Volume One of History of the Christian Church, Philip Schaff wrote of Rénan’s “Vie de Jésus”: “This book created even a greater sensation than the “Leben Jesu” of Strauss, but is very superficial and turns the Gospel history into a novel with a contradictory and impossible hero.”  P. 46 

            Basing his writings on the unhistorical method of presenting the origin of Christianity upon the scheme of Hegelian philosophy, Rénan sought to depict the personality of Christ from the geographical, social, cultural, and religious conditions under which he lived and worked.  But in this he failed, as he did not so much depend on his philological ability as upon that vague esthetic motive and his preconceived philosophy.  Religion as he represented it --- an ineradicable longing of the human soul --- was the esthetic and sensationalistic impulse toward the infinite, whether expressed in the renunciations of great ascetics or in the mystical effusions of lovely Magdalene.  What is beautiful is good; what pleases is beautiful.  He did travel far in the lands of primitive Christianity, he carried with him his keen curiosity, but we must not forget that he viewed everything through his philosophy.  He did not start out with the decision of being an honest investigator of the truth, a witness who will tell the truth, all the truth, and nothing but the truth; for then he would have seen otherwise.  Though the people he saw in the Holy Lands, might have resembled a great deal the people in the time of Christ, yet that resemblance was only superficial.  Great changes have taken place by the advent of a foreign Muslim civilization to thee countries, so that one may not rely very much on what he sees there, in order to discover the right idea of Christ.

            A pertinent question is, how far did Rénan’s knowledge extend into the Jewish traditions and teachings, seeing that he did not reach to the same conclusions that other Hebrew scholars have attained?  I cannot see that Rénan, according to the most reliable books, lacked knowledge of Semitics. The fault must lie in his attitude of mind which closed him in a shell strongly opposed to orthodox Christianity.

            In studying the Life of Jesus Christ, and comparing it to the historical, geographical, and religious background of Palestine, all honest investigators have reached a conclusion quite contrary to the one reached by Rénan or any other rationalistic historian.  The narratives of the Gospels do give us a real, historical scene, which can always be confirmed by works outside the Holy Writ.  As Alfred Edersheim ably puts it in his Preface to the first edition of The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah:

“The men and the circumstances to which we are introduced are real – not a fancy picture, but such as we know and now recognize them, and would expect them, to have spoken, or to have been.  Again we shall thus vividly realize another and most important aspect of the words of Christ.  We shall perceive that their form is wholly of the times, their cast Jewish – while by the side of this similarity of form THERE IS NOT ONLY ESSENTIAL DIFFERENCE BUT ABSOLUTE CONTRARIETY OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT. . . . And this contrariety of spirit with manifest similarity of form is, to my mind, one of the strongest evidences of the claims of Christ, since it raises the all-important question, whence the Teacher of Nazareth?” Volume I, P. xiii

The historical analysis has proved that “Jesus Christ was, alike in the fundamental direction of His teaching and work, and in its details, antithetic to the Synagogue in its doctrine, practice, and expectancies” Ibid. xvii

Liberals in the Protestant Churches used some ideas of Rénan’s book in formulating their own shadowy beliefs, and in their works in the field of New Testament criticism.  According to Fisher, History of the Christian Church, p. 544,

“The publication of Rénan’s Life of Christ, and the commotion induced by it, were not without effect in hastening this crisis (Fisher was referring here to the controversy between the orthodox and the rationalists in the French Reformed Church.)  In 1872, the 30th national synod of the Reformed Church was permitted to meet in Paris.  A short confession of faith was sanctioned, the adoption of which was advocated by Guizot. About two-thirds of the members were on the conservative side.  The adverse party  strenuously opposed the proceeding, on the ground that no creed should be made obligatory. . . .”

            So far, we have been dealing specifically with the ideas of Rénan concerning the person of Christ.  We have seen that his interpretation, if it deserves that name, is altogether superficial and unreal, and a vain attempt to set aside personal difficulties arising from the opinions of the author.  Though there are still some people who will adopt that method of telling the story of Jesus, yet it does not have any real significance in this age that is searching after a solid foundation of faith, and for the real solution of the problems of modern civilization.

            The other volumes of the “Origins of Christianity” have more scientific value, since Rénan was less swayed by personal sympathy or antipathy.  Of these the third one, Saint Paul, is the most significant, for in this book we see not only Rénan’s personal method in approaching the books of the New Testament, but also the general method of the destructive higher criticisms of the 19th Century.

            I shall be as fair as possible with Rénan, so as to give him all the credit he deserves.  No one would deny the value of the descriptions that we find in the pages of Saint Paul, and we can see all the pain that Rénan had gone through, in order to give us the geographical setting of the voyages of the Apostle.  Here is a picture showing us Paul travelling in 45 A.D.:

“Paul walked in most of his journeys, living without doubt, on bread, vegetables, and milk.  And in this life of an errant, how many privations, how many trials! The police were either neglectful or brutal.”  P. 5

            Rénan knew the Scriptures, i.e., his quotations from many passages to prove his points are very numerous, though not necessarily proving his explanations.  We admire the knowledge that he had of the Classics and the many references to secular literature in order to give us a better setting for the accounts of Acts or the Epistles of Paul.  Rénan’s style is easy and very seldom involved.  And once one has begun reading of his books, it is very hard to stop, because of that strange attraction they have. This is not uncommon in 19th Century French literature  which has exerted a strong influence beyond the borders of France.

            But Rénan is not dealing with secular matters, or merely trying to write novels in the “romantic” style.  So let us examine some of his criticisms of the Pauline Epistles, and try to see at the same time his estimate of Paul.

             Before starting on the life of Paul, Rénan devoted 77 pages for his “Introduction” which has this subtitle: “Criticism of The Original Documents”.  Here is how he begins his “critique”:

“The fifteen or sixteen years – that this volume contains their religious history, are in the embryonic age of Christianity, those that we know the best.  Jesus and the primitive Church of Jerusalem resemble the image of a far-off paradise, lost in (the) a mysterious fog.”

This will suffice us to know the exact idea of Rénan’s attitude to the genuineness and historicity of the four Gospels.

As to the Epistles that are attributed to Paul, Rénan adopted this view:

           “1. Indisputable and undisputed epistles: Galatians, the two epistles to the Corinthians, and Romans.

            2. Certain, though some criticisms have been put forth against them: the two epistles to the Thessalonians and Philippians.

            3. Though some grave objections are against them, yet they have a probable authenticity: Colossians and Philemon.

            4. A doubtful epistle: Ephesians.

            5. False epistles: the two epistles to Timothy and Titus.”

Beside this general criticism of Rénan, we have to note the more subtle one, that which is found in his main work on the life of Paul.  Here we see that main trait which is common to all Rationalists when dealing with the Word of God: the elimination of all traces of the supernatural.  This is done as Rénan goes with Paul, examining the accounts of Acts or the Epistles, and then deciding what can be trusted as true and historical, and what is declared legendary.  Thus, while we are still in the beginning of Paul’s first voyage, and as Paul enters the city of Neapolis, the seat of the Roman Proconsul, Rénan uses his critical sense to clear the text, and separate the “wheat from the chaff.”  Thus, he decides that what we have in Acts 13: 6-12 is “a thing absolutely inadmissible”.  According to Rénan, who lived 18 centuries after the conversion of Sergius Paulus, the latter was only joking when he pretended to believe in Christ, and Paul, as all Orientals, did not understand the irony of that Western man!

            As we continue reading the life of Paul as edited by Rénan, we find here and there the main purpose that the author had in mind, when starting on the series of the Origins of Christianity.  After all, the religion of Christ and Paul is only a natural one, nothing has come from above, and nothing is absolutely true in the supposed revelation, according the Rénan.  Some more references will give us an insight into the favorite criticisms of the Rationalists:

“(The Apostles) . . . . Not having the spirit, the finesse, the elevation of Jesus, they have fallen after his death in a kind of a heavy bigotry, like the one their master had so strongly combated.  They were not capable of irony; they have nearly forgotten the eloquent invectives of Jesus against the hypocrites.”

            When coming to tell about the Jerusalem meeting of the Apostles in order to solve the problem of the Gentiles and their relationship to the ceremonial law, Rénan does not accept the fact that the question was finally settled, as far as the Church was concerned.  He gives his imagination all the liberty into creating some details that Luke never recorded, and as showing us Paul reaching out a compromise with the rest of the Apostles.  Even the decision of Paul to go and preach to the Gentiles, was according to Rénan, made in secret so that none but Peter knew of it.  What the New Testament record attributes to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, our author believes it to be “un bon sens profond”, (a profound common sense!) The cause for the dream in which Paul saw the vision of the Macedonian was just the talk that Paul had with an enthusiastic Gentile Christian, Luke! And so on . . .

            Chapter XXII, is the last one in Saint Paul, and it is devoted to a “bird’s eye view of the work of Paul.”  Some extracts are useful to the formation of our final estimate of Rénan’s religious works:

“A man who has contributed more than anyone else, to the rapid extension of Christianity. . . . To say that this man merits to be placed in a very high rank in history, is to say something evident; but we should not call him the founder.  Paul has well said, he was inferior to the other apostles.  He has not seen Jesus, neither has he heard his word.  The divine logia, the parables, he hardly knows them.  The Christ who makes personal revelations to him is his personal ghost; it is to himself that he listens, while believing that he listens to Jesus. . . .”

            Rénan went on then to claim that Paul was never admired in the Western Church, until the Reformation.  “The Reformation opened to Saint Paul a new era of glory and authority.”

“I persist therefore to find that, in the creation of Christianity, the part of Paul must be made much inferior to that of Jesus . . . . The Son of God is unique.  To appear for a moment, to throw a glow sweet and profound, to die very young, here is the life of a god.  To fight, to dispute, to conquer, here is the life of a man.  After having seen the Christian docteur par excellence, owing to orthodox Protestantism, Paul sees in our days the end of his reign; Jesus, on the contrary, is more living than ever.  It is not any more that the epistle to the Romans is the résumé of Christianity, but rather the Sermon on the Mount.  The true Christianity, which will endure forever, comes from the Gospels, not from the Epistles of Paul.  The writings of Paul have been a danger and a stumbling-block, the cause of the principal defect of the Christian theology; Paul is the father of the subtle Augustinian, the dry Thomas D’Aquin, the somber Calvinist, the quarrelsome Jansenists, of the ferocious theology which damns and predestines to damnation.  Jesus is the father of all who seek in the dreams of the ideal the rest of their souls.  What makes Christianity live, is the little we know about the word and the person of Jesus.  The ideal man, the divine poet, the great artist defies alone the times and the revolutions.  Alone he is sitting on the right hand of God the Father to all eternity.             Humanity, sometimes thou art just, and certain of thy judgments are good!”

            The Jesus that Rénan depicts and his faulty concept of Paul may not be accepted as the result of an honest, sincere criticism.  As Strauss and the other Rationalists of the 19th Century, Rénan formed his own philosophy and system of thinking before embarking on his works.  As shown by his biography, he had only one essay written when still fresh out of the prestigious Séminaire de St. Sulpice.  It was only after he had imbibed the prejudices and misconceptions of the German higher critics that he started on his major works.  We can ascribe to him originality in some minor deviations in his writings, but the core of his works is similar to any Rationalist of the second half of the 19th century.  Neither should we forget the influence of his Roman Catholic education in the three seminaries he frequented before making his final break with Rome.  His revolt against the excesses of Roman Catholicism did not lead him to the Evangelical camp, but clear out into the skeptical critical field.

            At the root of the predicament of Rénan and his confrères lay the character peculiar to Christianity: an uncontested supernatural revealed religion.  He lost faith in that foundation of Christianity or in theism, generally speaking.  As a perfect example of 19th century Rationalists, Rénan denies God in nature and God in history, a denial whose ultimate consequence is atheism and extreme pessimism.  He is extremely opposed to the miraculous, and by his simple a priori philosophical prejudice, he disposed of miracle in the New Testament.  Thus he tried to eliminate all the miracles of Christ, and to separate Him from his work on the cross.  He did the same to get rid of the supernatural in the Apostolic Church.  But what becomes of Paul if we deny his conversion, and how shall we account for his conversion without the resurrection and ascension?  What Schaff said of “unbelieving criticism” we can say of Rénan:

“[He] sees only the outside surface of the greatest movement in history, and is blind to the spiritual forces working from within or refuses to acknowledge them as truly divine.” History of the Christian Church, Vol. I, p. 858.

Dr. Schaff continued his critique of Rénan:

            “Strong as the external evidence is, the internal evidence of the truth and credibility of the apostolic writings is still stronger, and may be felt to this day by the unlearned as well as the scholar. . .

            “The first century is the life and light of history and the turning point of the ages.  If ever God revealed Himself to man, if ever heaven appeared on earth, it was in the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth. . . .  No power on earth or in hell can extinguish that sun (facts and truths of New Testament).  There it shines on the horizon, the king of day, obscured at times by clouds great or small, but breaking through again and again, and shedding light and life from east to west, until the darkest corners of the globe shall be illuminated.  The past is secure; God will take care of the future.
            MAGNA EST VERITAS ET PRAEVALEBIT.” Ibid. Pp. 862 and 863.

            And God did take care of that future.  Ninety-two years have passed since Rénan published for the first time his Vie de Jésus.  Though the caricature of Christ he depicted is still holding its sway on the minds of some liberals, yet there has been a complete revolt against that school of interpretation he represented among the Rationalists:  “The Jesus who sought in the dreams of the ideal a rest for his soul” and for the souls of men like Rénan, did not build a Christian Germany, nor was able to stop three major wars between the European powers.  And the great preaching of justification by the blood of Christ is still heard all over the globe, and Paul did not see his “dying days” in the 19th century.  If the return to the father’s house has been incomplete, as in the case of Neo-Orthodoxy, yet there has been ample proof to show the fallacy of Rénan’s speculations.  Sin is still a problem to be tackled, mankind cannot live without a Saviour, and thank God we have a Saviour in His Son and our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us on Calvary, and rose on the third day for our justification.  The mythical Christ of Strauss, or the legendary Jesus of Rénan, cannot save, cannot be preached, and must not be believed.  But we worship a risen and ever-living Christ, and we owe our very existence to Him.

            We orthodox Christians need to learn a lesson from all this.  We must ask: “how consistent is our witness to our Lord, and how much are we laboring for His glory? We cannot minimize the challenge of the Rationalists and semi- penitent liberals; neither should we ignore some of their criticism.  Our constant desire and aim should be our willingness to exhibit a living Christianity, so that we disprove the oft-heard charge of our clinging to a dead and fruitless orthodoxy.

            As Christians, who have experienced the power of the Gospel in our hearts, we need not fear to challenge the Modernists.   We are as sure of the regenerating and converting power of the Holy Spirit and the saving efficacy of Christ, as of our own existence.  “The fortress of our personal experience is impregnable; the logic of stubborn facts is more cogent than the logic of reason.”  (Schaff)

            In the final analysis, having read the works of 19th century rationalists who have rejected the historic Christian faith, we may still hear the words of our beloved Lord: “Will ye also go away?” May we all say with Peter: “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life.  And we believe and are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of the Living God.” John 6:67-69

Bibliography

The Bible, A.V.

History of the Christian Church,  P. Schaff, Vol. I.

History of the Christian Church, G.P. Fisher

The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge: Vol. 9  Art. Rénan

E. Rénan, Saint Paul (French).

Posted in Articles

My Appreciation and Critique of Bernard Lewis

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

My Appreciation and Critique of Bernard Lewis

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

I got acquainted with the writings of the British scholar, Bernard Lewis, when in the 1970’s I taught a semester course on the History of the Middle East, at Trinity Christian College, in Palos Heights, a suburb of Chicago. When I undertook this challenge, I used a textbook written by a professor from an American state university. Having studied this subject when I was living in the Middle East, I became disappointed with this textbook, as it paid little attention to the religious motifs that are basic for a proper understanding of Islam. I was glad to discover Bernard Lewis’ “The Arabs in History.” Instantly, I was attracted to his interpretive approach for the study of the Middle East. In his Introduction to this book, he wrote:

“The European writer on Islamic history labours under a special disability. Writing in a Western language, he necessarily uses Western terms. But these terms are based on Western categories of thought and analysis, themselves deriving in the main from Western history. Their application to the conditions of another society formed by different influences and living in different way of life can at best be only an analogy and may be dangerously misleading. To take an example: such pairs of words as Church and State, spiritual and temporal, ecclesiastical and lay, had no real equivalents in Arabic until modern times, when they were created --- or borrowed from the Arab Christians --- to translate modern ideas; for the dichotomy which they express was unknown to mediaeval Muslim society and unarticulated in the mediaeval Muslim mind. The community of Islam was Church and State in one, with the two indistinguishably interwoven; its titular head, the Caliph, was at once a secular and a religious chief.”*

As mentioned above, an important feature of Lewis’ historiography is his paying due attention to the religious factors that are the predominant characteristics of the Arab and Muslim peoples and which help us to understand their history. For example, in accounting for Islam’s lack of interest in the world of Christendom, Professor Lewis offered two principal explanations, one historical, and the other theological. I will discuss the theological reason for such disinterest. It derives from the politico-religious character of Islam. For the followers of Muhammad, Islam is the final dispensation of a revealed truth. As such it engenders among its followers a sense of ultimate fulfillment in being chosen to receive Allah’s final revelation through his Messenger, the Prophet Muhammad. As Professor Lewis suggested:

“The Muslim doctrine of successive revelations culminating in the final mission of Muhammad led the Muslim to reject Christianity as an earlier and imperfect form of something which he, himself, possessed in the final, perfect form, and to discount Christian thought and Christian civilization accordingly. After the initial impact of eastern Christianity on Islam in the earliest period, Christian influences, even from the high civilization of Byzantium, were reduced to a minimum. Later, by the time that the advance of Christendom and, the retreat of Islam had created a new relationship, Islam was crystallized in its ways of thought and behavior and had become impervious to external stimuli, especially those coming from the millennial adversary in the West. Walled off by the military might of the Ottoman Empire, still a formidable barrier even in its decline, the peoples of Islam continued until the dawn of the modern age to cherish --- as some of us in the West still do today --- the conviction of the immeasurable and immutable superiority of their own civilization to all others. For the medieval Muslim, from Andalusia to Persia, Europe was a backward land of ignorant infidels. It was a point of view which might perhaps have been justified at one time; by the end of the Middle Ages it was becoming dangerously obsolete.” **

I could go on and on and mention some other books of Professor Lewis that have been of great help to me in my teaching and writing on Islam and the Middle East. To mention only a few: “What Went Wrong?” “Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response” “The Political Language of Islam” and “The Middle East: A Brief History of the Last 2,000 Years.” I remain grateful and indebted to his interpretive method of teaching history.

Why then, would I want to critique this great historian? My reason is that Professor Lewis tends to draw moral and religious equivalence between Christianity and Islam. Let me explain.

The online version of Foreign Policy Magazine of Tuesday, September 9, 2008, published an article with this title: “Seven Questions: Bernard Lewis on the Two Biggest Myths About Islam.” http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4455

First, he responded to the question “What do you see as the biggest misperception about Islam?” The next question was: “Do you believe in the ‘clash of civilizations’ theory of Samuel P. Huntington*** that the Islamic world and the West are destined to butt heads?
Bernard Lewis answered:

“Well, I don’t go into destiny; I’m a historian and I deal with the past. But I certainly think there is something in the ‘clash of civilizations.’ What brought Islam and Christendom into conflict was not so much their differences as their resemblances. There are many religions in the world, but almost all of them are regional, local, ethnic, or whatever you choose to call it. Christianity and Islam are the only religions that claim universal truth. Christians and Muslims are the only people who claim they are the fortunate recipients of God’s final message to humanity, which it is their duty not to keep selfishly to themselves—like the Jews or the Hindus or the Buddhists—but to bring to the rest of mankind, removing whatever obstacles there may be in the way. So, we have two religions with a similar self-perception, a similar historical background, living side by side, and conflict becomes inevitable.”

Unlike Samuel Huntington who dealt with the possible “clash” between several civilizations, Professor Lewis singled out only two, Christianity and Islam, as the ones that are uniquely bent on provoking and maintaining “a clash of civilizations.”

As a historian who excels in his interpretive methodology, Mr. Lewis should have distinguished between the methodological reasons between Christianity and Islam in spreading their own versions of what constitutes “universal truth.” The Christian religion propagated its message by peaceful means. On the other hand, Islam spread by the sword.

Arabs and Muslims revel in telling the accounts of the Futuhat, i.e. the conquests of the Levant, Persia, Egypt, North Africa, and the Andalus (Spain.) The Turks continued the expansion of Islam by destroying the Byzantine Empire, and conquering Eastern and Central Europe. Twelve years after Martin Luther began the Reformation; the Ottomans besieged Vienna, in 1529, but failed to conquer it.

It is not enough to point to the fact that both Christianity and Islam make universal claims for their truth systems, as Bernard Lewis did. He should also have pointed out the fact that Christians seek converts to what they believe is the only true religion, through persuasion, while Muslims compel belief in their system by the sword.

I may be accused of reacting too strongly to the response of Professor Lewis to the question put forth by FP. I don’t think so. Professor Lewis seems to be impatient with these two theistic religions because of their universal claims. At the end of my quotation above, he said: “So, we have two religions with a similar self-perception, a similar historical background, living side by side, and conflict becomes inevitable.”

But the fact is that the “self-perception,” which Professor Lewis considers to be similar in both Islam and Christianity, is not at all identical. Other than both religions claiming that their religion is the only universal truth, nothing else about them is the same. Their perception of themselves is neither morally, theologically, or practically the same. While in Islam “church” and state are inextricably interwoven, there is no such thing at present within Christendom.

As for conflict, it is true that any religion that claims to be the only true one will, ipso facto, be in conflict with all other religions who do not agree. But this need not cause havoc, domination and destruction, if the religion claiming to be the only true one seeks to gain adherents through persuasion and not compulsion. Even though history has shown that some Christian leaders did attempt to enforce orthodoxy through force. That was a departure from the Scriptural norms. The same cannot be said for Islam, which brooks no opposition, and seeks to bring the entire world under its domination, through any means possible, especially by the sword. Professor Lewis should have delineated these differences when talking about “conflict.” Christianity and the Western nations where it is predominantly practiced, are not seeking any conflict with Islam. Proof of this is that millions of Muslims, who have moved to Western Europe and the Americas since the middle of the twentieth century, enjoy complete freedom of worship and expression. But this is not so for Christians living in Muslim lands. The original Christian populations of the Middle East are still being persecuted in lands under Islamic domination, and many have been forced to migrate to Europe, Australia, and North and South America.

I am writing these lines on the seventh anniversary of the Islamist terrorist attack on the United States, usually called, Nine-One-One. This murderous attack on America is proof positive that the conflict is completely one-sided and stems from religious principles in Islam itself. The perpetrators of this evil claimed to be true believers in the Islamic faith.
Another reason for my being very “sensitive” to the thesis of Bernard Lewis stems from his tendency to repeat his “impatience” with any faith that makes universal claims. It seems apparent that he would like to see relativism reign supreme because he thinks that peace, harmony, and tolerance could be ultimately achieved. Religions making universal claims and seeking converts prevent this outcome.

As soon as I read the Q & A in the Foreign Policy Magazine, it reminded me of a lengthy article Mr. Lewis wrote for the May, 2003 issue of The Atlantic Monthly magazine, which attempted to further his thesis that relativism promotes tolerance, and universal religious claims cause endless intolerance, and often, bloody conflict. Its title was, “I'm Right, You're Wrong, Go To Hell: Religions and the Meeting of Civilization.”

I would like to quote excerpts from an article I wrote five years ago, in response to the thesis of Professor Lewis. The URL for the full text of my article is: http://www.www.unashamedofthegospel.org/bernard_lewis_triumphalis.cfm

“In the Atlantic Monthly article, Bernard Lewis reminds us that, ‘only two civilizations have been defined by religion. Others have had religions but are identified primarily by region and ethnicity. These two religions are Christianity and Islam, they ‘are the two religions that define civilizations, and they have much in common, along with some differences.’

“Having set Christianity and Islam apart from the rest of world religions such as Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism, professor Lewis classifies the latter as relativist religions, while the former two as triumphalist religions.

“‘For some religions, just as civilization means us, and the rest are barbarians, so religion means ours, and the rest are infidels. Other religions, such as Judaism and most of the religions of Asia, concede that human beings may use different religions to speak to God, as they use different languages to speak to one another. God understands them all… The relativist view was condemned and rejected by both Christians and Muslims, who shared the conviction that there was only one true faith, theirs, which it was their duty to bring to all humankind. The triumphalist view is increasingly under attack in Christendom, and is disavowed by significant numbers of Christian clerics. There is little sign as yet of a parallel development in Islam.’”

“Professor Lewis regards Islam and Christianity as triumphalist religions. Both faiths consider all ‘others’ as infidels. While, according to him, some Christian leaders are nowadays ‘disavowing’ the triumphalism that has marked Christianity throughout history, there is no such parallel movement among Muslim leaders. In our globalized world, triumphalism (whether Christian or Muslim) is not conducive to world peace. In order to put across his thesis in the clearest way, Bernard Lewis sums up his disapproval of triumphalism, both in Islam and Christianity, with these words:

“‘For those taking the triumphalist approach (classically summed up in the formula ‘I'm right, you're wrong, go to hell), tolerance is a problem. Because the triumphalist’s is the only true and complete religion, all other religions are at best incomplete and more probably false and evil; and since he is the privileged recipient of God’s final message to humankind, it is surely his duty to bring it to others rather than keep it selfishly for himself.’”

“The first point I would like to make is that, great as the scholarship of Bernard Lewis is, his lumping together of the ‘triumphalism’ of the two religions is neither proper, nor objective. An author of the caliber of Mr. Lewis should have been more careful in categorizing the faith of others. As a Christian, I find the title of his article very offensive. It is a caricature of Christianity to sum up its attitude to the ‘other’ as being, ‘I'm Right, You're Wrong. Go to Hell.’

“Throughout history, Christians, beginning with the apostolic age, sought to win converts through preaching and witnessing. It was none other than the Risen Lord that gave his church its marching orders: ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I will be with you always, to the very end of the age.’
Matthew 28:18b-20 (NIV)

“The greatest missionary of the First Century was Paul. After his conversion, his life was dedicated entirely to the spread of the faith and the organization of churches in the Mediterranean world. He described his mandate in the opening words of his Letter to the Romans: ‘I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.’
Romans 1:16 (NIV)

“In his First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote, ‘For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.’
1 Corinthians 1:21 (NIV)

“In contrast with this peaceful spread of Christianity, Islam spread primarily through conquest.”

“The second point in my criticism of the article of Bernard Lewis is that he fails to see the great contrast between what he calls the "triumphalism" of the two religions. Yes, Christians do believe in the ultimate triumph of the Gospel. Their faith is summarized in these great words of Revelation 11:15b ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.’ (NIV) And in one of the most familiar passages of this NT book, we hear the heavenly choir sing these triumphant words: ‘Hallelujah! For Lord God Almighty reigns.’ 19:6b (NIV)

“Islam has always been a triumphalist faith. Notwithstanding its many setbacks throughout the last century, especially after the founder of the Turkish Republic Kemal Ataturk, abolished the age-long caliphate, Muslims have not ceased to believe in the final triumph of their faith. Today this is the core belief of the radical Islamists. They do not hesitate to use any means, including violence, to reach their ultimate goal; even if that meant a confrontation with the rest of the world.
“On the other hand, when Christianity is described as a triumphalist faith, its triumphalism is related to an eschatological event****. While the gospel has many implications and applications for the here and now, its complete fulfillment takes place beyond the horizon of the present world order.” [End of my quotation from my 2003 article]

It is not my intention to “quarrel” with the dean of Middle East historians. But I must take issue with him when he misrepresents the true nature of historic Christianity, and points to some superficial similarities between Islam and Christianity. I would still recommend the study of his books, but with the caution that his attitude vis-à-vis the Christian faith is marked by a pluralistic motif which would deny the uniqueness, finality, and superiority of the Lord Jesus Christ.

*The Arabs in History, by Bernard Lewis. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993 p.13

**The Muslim Discovery of Europe, By Bernard Lewis. New York: W. W. Norton, 1982 pp. 300, 301

***The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, By Samuel P. Huntington. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996

****Eschatological, a term that points to the End Times; to the final epoch that follows the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.

Posted in Articles

Denials of Armenian Genocide

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

On Thursday morning, October 27, 2005, I picked up my copy of the Wall Street Journal and noticed on its front page this eye-catching headline: Turk-Armenian Fight Over WWI History Goes to a U.S. Court. Massachusetts Law Sparks a Free-Speech Debate about Teaching ‘Genocide.’

The article brought back childhood memories that go back to the 1930s. My father moved the family from Seleucia, near Antioch, to Alexandretta in 1934, to assume his new position as pastor of the Reformed Presbyterian church in that city. Unlike Seleucia, known by its Arabic name as Souedia, Alexandretta was a cosmopolitan city with various ethnic groups and missionary organizations. The R. P. Mission from Northern Ireland operated a mission school there, and this is where I began my education. There were also two Roman Catholic mission schools: one run by the French order known as Brothers of Christian Schools, and the other by an Italian order whose name now escapes me.

Being built near the Gulf of Alexandretta in northwest Syria, the city by that name had attracted Europeans from many lands. Its port was busy, as it was linked by railroad to the famous Berlin-Baghdad line.

One of the features of Alexandretta was that anyone growing up there would hear several languages being spoken. Of course the major language was Arabic, but Turkish and Armenian were also spoken, due to the presence of a sizeable refugee population that had escaped the massacres of WWI. This fact would be the occasion for my father to speak of his war experiences, including that terrible event that befell the Armenians living within the Ottoman Turkish Empire.

When WWI broke out between the Allies and GermanyTurkey joined the war against the Allies. Many young men living within the Ottoman lands were drafted into the Turkish army, including my father. Most of his fellow Syrians were sent to the front near Egypt as Turkey was trying to wrest that land from the British presence. Thousands perished in the Sinai; and even those who came back were in such weakened condition, like Uncle John Nicholas Madany, who died soon after reaching home. My father upon his conscription passed a language test in Turkish and was posted to serve at an army HQ in Mersine, Cilicia (Asia Minor.) Mersine was not far from the Biblical Tarsus, the birthplace of Saint Paul. Dad used to regale us with many stories about the Turkish and German officers he had to deal with. Such anecdotes were amusing; but there were some very disturbing accounts that he shared with us. Those had to do with the plight of the Armenians who lived in and around the province of Cilicia. Most of them were deported to the eastern part of the Empire, and reports were reaching Mersine that the vast majority of those Armenians perished.

It was after the end of WWI that the full story of the fate of the Armenians became known to the world. Thousands upon thousands of them driven from their homes were massacred, their churches destroyed, and those who managed to escape death, became refugees and scattered into many parts of the Middle East after the war.

Alexandretta, being not far from the Turkish mainland took in many Armenian refugees. Even a decade or more after the war, several of these people lived in what was known as the “camps.” The city was almost below sea level, and surrounded by several marshlands. They became the breeding grounds of swarms of malaria-carrying mosquitoes. Early in June, schools closed and most of the people would move to the near-by villages that dotted the mountains around the city. My father, the Irish Missionaries, and the majority of the congregation would move to an Armenian populated village for the three summer months. We rented rooms from the local people, and heard from them more eye-witness accounts of what they called, “Sefer Berlik,” (Turkish for Wanderings in the Wilderness.) Actually, these words were a strange euphemism for the Genocide of the Armenians.

Back to Alexandretta in September, and the school year brought me in daily contacts with my fellow Armenian students. We had to study in three languages at school: the primary ones were Arabic and English, and French was required as well. What often intrigued me was the fact that when Armenians students conversed with one another, they spoke in Turkish or in Armenian. This became the occasion for my learning a few Turkish words, even though I must add that both my father and mother quite often would speak Turkish. They would also quote certain Turkish proverbs.

So why do I write an article about the Armenian Genocide ninety years later? Specifically, because that horrible episode has never, ever been acknowledged for what it was by Turkey. You must have noticed the title of the WSJ article in my first paragraph, and realized that the subject is not a dead issue. I will quote a few lines from the article and then add some comments:

“Nearly a century ago, perhaps a million or more Christian Armenians were slaughtered by Muslim Turks. It ranks among history’s major instances of genocide.

Or is “genocide” the wrong word?

For generations, Turks and Armenians have argued the point. Armenians say it was genocide, pure and simple. Some Turks respond that the deaths were a tragic byproduct of World War I and that both Turks and Armenians died.

Now, a Turkish group wants to settle the issue, American style: in court.

Yesterday in U.S. District Court in Boston, two public high-school teachers, one student and the Assembly of Turkish-American Associations filed suit challenging a Massachusetts statute that uses the word “genocide” to describe the Armenian deaths. The law sets guidelines for teaching about human rights in the state. The lawsuit argues that the state violates the plaintiffs’ free-speech rights by excluding from the curriculum a view of events more favorable to the Turks.”

For nine decades, Turkey has played down the real story of “sefer berlik” claiming that for military reasons, large numbers of Armenians living near the Russian border in Eastern Turkey had to be removed from their homes. So it was “inevitable” that some, or may be even many, perished during the harsh winter of 1915! So goes the Turkish account.

However, this is not an honest and objective account of what happened during WWI to the large Armenian population that had lived in that part of the world for centuries. The heartland of the Ottoman Turkish Empire was the home of Turks, Armenians, Assyrians, Syrians, and Greeks. The non-Muslim population enjoyed a degree of freedom and autonomy. However, during the nineteenth century, as the Ottoman Empire began to lose its grip over several areas in the Balkans, a nationalistic movement came into being known as the Young Turks. It spread especially among the Ottoman officer corps. This led to the abridgement of the freedoms that Christian ethnic groups had enjoyed. WWI gave the Young Turks within the Ottoman Government the chance to eliminate a sizable ethnic group such as the Armenians. The mass deportations that began in 1915, escalated into a veritable Genocide. Around one million Armenians perished due to hunger, disease, attacks and murderous acts by brigands, and soldiers of the Ottoman Army.

Now what pains me most is not only the persistence of the Turkish Governments over the years in their denial of the Genocide, but to note that this denial has been exported to the USA. And here at the end of October in the year of our Lord 2005, we read about the attempt of Turkish American Associations in Massachusetts to involve a U.S. federal court in this denial! This is shocking indeed.

Another troubling issue that this WSJ report reveals is that Turks who have immigrated to the United States, and I presume, have become naturalized American citizens, have carried with them a baggage that should have been left behind in the old country. In America, it is not part of our culture to hide terrible aspects of the past. We do not shy from confessing our national sins.

At this point, I would like to refer to the example of Germany and its involvement, during the Nazi era, in the persecution and eventual elimination of six million Jewish people. This crime against humanity is indescribable and utterly horrific. After the war, not only many Nazi officials were properly judged at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal, but West Germany assumed responsibility for the Holocaust of the Jews, and paid millions of German Marks to Israel and to individual Jews who had suffered from the Nazi persecution. (By the way, East Germany, under Soviet control, did not participate in any restitution plan.)

I don’t imply at all that money can ever atone for the sins of the Holocaust. The Nazi crimes will always be remembered as a manifestation of human depravity. But one aspect of the reparations that Germany paid to the victims of the Holocaust is very important: it exhibits a confession of the guilt and of the reality and authenticity of the Holocaust event. This is extremely important, not only for the Germans, but for the entire world.

Thus, it is shocking that Turkey persists after almost one century in denying the Genocide of the Armenians, and even more shocking to learn that Turkish immigrants who have established their home in America, have joined in this denial. What a pity! I certainly hope that the U.S. District Court in Boston will throw out the case, as an attempt to further falsify history, thus denying students in Massachusetts an opportunity to learn about a horrible event that took place during WWI in far away Turkey.

Posted in Articles

Bernard Lewis on Triumphalist Religions

May 05, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Bassam M. Madany

In the June 2003 issue of WRFNET.com web journal, I shared a summary of “An In-Depth Interview” with Bernard Lewis, the well-known scholar on Islam and the Middle East, which had appeared on the cable channel C-Span 2, in April 6, 2003. I ended my article, with an analysis of the interview and some critical remarks. Much as I have admired this author’s way of telling the story of Islam across the last fourteen centuries, I was dismayed by his silence on certain dark aspects of this civilization, especially its treatment of the conquered peoples. I had hardly finished my work on that article, when I noticed that the May 2003, issue of The Atlantic Monthly, had an article by Bernard Lewis with the rather shocking title, “I'm Right, You're Wrong, Go To Hell: Religions and the Meeting of Civilization.”

Again, I must reiterate how much I like the works of Bernard Lewis. His style, whether in writing, or in speaking, is gripping. He excels in telling the story of different peoples and their specific civilization. His goal is to explain, elucidate, and instruct. This is very praiseworthy at this juncture in world history when so many trouble spots in the world happen to be within the household of Islam.

Having said this, I am both chagrinned and disappointed that this great scholar tends, in this Atlantic Monthly article, to posit equivalence, between Christianity and Islam, in their respective outlook on the world, and more specifically, as they sought and still seek, to win converts to their specific faiths.

To begin with, Bernard Lewis reminds us that, “only two civilizations have been defined by religion. Others have had religions but are identified primarily by region and ethnicity.” These two religions are Christianity and Islam, they “are the two religions that define civilizations, and they have much in common, along with some differences.” 

Having thus set Christianity and Islam apart from the rest of world religions such as Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism, professor Lewis classifies the latter as relativist religions, while the former two as triumphalist religions. “For some religions, just as ‘civilization’ means us, and the rest are barbarians, so ‘religion’ means ours, and the rest are infidels. Other religions, such as Judaism and most of the religions of Asia, concede that human beings may use different religions to speak to God, as they use different languages to speak to one another. God understands them all… The relativist view was condemned and rejected by both Christians and Muslims, who shared the conviction that there was only one true faith, theirs, which it was their duty to bring to all humankind. The triumphalist view is increasingly under attack in Christendom, and is disavowed by significant numbers of Christian clerics. There is little sign as yet of a parallel development in Islam.”

Professor Lewis regards Islam and Christianity as triumphalist religions. Both faiths consider all “others” as infidels. While, according to him, some Christian leaders are nowadays “disavowing” the triumphalism that has marked Christianity throughout history, there is no such parallel movement among Muslim leaders.  In our globalized world, triumphalism (whether Christian or Muslim) is not conducive to world peace. In order to put across his thesis in the clearest way, Bernard Lewis sums up his disapproval of triumphalism, both in Islam and Christianity, with these words:

“For those taking the triumphalist approach (classically summed up in the formula "I’m right, you’re wrong, go to hell”), tolerance is a problem. Because the triumphalist’s is the only true and complete religion, all other religions are at best incomplete and more probably false and evil; and since he is the privileged recipient of God’s final message to humankind, it is surely his duty to bring it to others rather than keep it selfishly for himself.”

The first point I would like to make is that, great as the scholarship of Bernard Lewis is, his lumping together of the “triumphalism” of the two religions is neither proper, nor objective. One has to be careful in categorizing the faith of others. As a Christian, I find the title of his article very offensive. It is a caricature of Christianity to sum up its attitude to the “other” as being, “I’m Right, You’re Wrong. Go to Hell.”

Throughout history, Christians, beginning with the apostolic age, sought to win converts through preaching and witnessing. It was none other than the Risen Lord that gave his church the marching orders: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I will be with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:18b-20 (NIV)

The greatest missionary of the First Century was Paul. After his conversion, his life was dedicated entirely to the spread of the faith and the organization of churches in the Mediterranean world. He described his mandate in the opening words of his Letter to the Romans: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”

Romans 1:16 (NIV)

Paul’s message consumed him. He was absolutely convinced that the Risen Savior had entrusted with the message that brings salvation to all kinds of people regardless of their ethnic or religious background. As to the primary means for converting “others,” God had ordained the preaching of the Gospel. In his First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote, “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” 1:21 (NIV)

In contrast with this peaceful spread of Christianity, Islam spread primarily through conquest. When studying the history of Islam back in Syria in the late forties, my teachers at the Syrian College used to glory in the “Futuhat” (Conquests) of the Arabs.  By 732 A.D., one century after the death of Muhammad, Islam had conquered territories stretching from Spain in the west, to India in the east. While Christians and Jews were allowed to remain in their respective religions, pagans were forced to Islamize. Furthermore, the People of the Book (as Christians and Jews were called) had to submit to some stringent rules that greatly limited their freedoms. Originally, the Christian populations of the Middle East formed the majority of the population, but a few centuries later, they became minorities in such areas as Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. 

Professor Lewis should not have posited equivalence between Christianity and Islam as far as the method for gaining converts. As a historian, he should know better than that!

The second point in my criticism of the article of Bernard Lewis is that he fails to see the great contrast between what he calls the “triumphalism” of the two religions. Yes, Christians do believe in the ultimate triumph of the Gospel. Their faith is summarized in these great words of Revelation 11:15b “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.” (NIV) And in one of the most familiar passages of this NT book, we hear the heavenly choir sing these triumphant words: “Hallelujah! For Lord God Almighty reigns.” 19:6b (NIV)

Islam, throughout history, has been triumphalist. Notwithstanding its many setbacks, especially after the leader of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk, abolished the caliphate, Muslims have never ceased to believe in the final triumph of their faith. I still remember reading a poster in the window of a Palestinian grocery store in a suburb of Chicago, these Arabic words: “Al-Islam li-sa’adat al-bashariyya” i.e., Islam is for the happiness of all mankind.

Today, the inevitable triumph of Islam remains the core belief of the radical Islamists. They do not and would not hesitate to use any means to bring about the triumph of Islam, even if that meant total confrontation with the rest of the world.

On the other hand, if Christianity is described as a triumphalist faith, its triumphalism is related to an eschatological event. While the gospel has many implications and applications for the here and now, its complete fulfillment takes place beyond the horizon of this world order. Nowhere is this made plainer than in Romans 8. Let’s listen to that great confession of Paul as he describes the ultimate triumph of the Christian faith:

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits with eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. … For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. For who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.”

Romans 8:18-21,24,25 (NIV)

I was on the air for thirty-six years preaching and teaching the Word of God in Arabic. I was fully aware that most of my audience in North Africa and the Middle East were Muslims. I heard from many, many of them, mostly appreciating what I was teaching on the basis of the Book that their tradition praises. Throughout all these years, both in broadcasting and in correspondence with Muslims, it never, ever, entered my mind that my approach or attitude could have been summed up in the strange formula used by Bernard Lewis in his Atlantic Monthly article. My personal commitment to the Augustinian and Calvinist traditions kept me from ever resorting to such a crude formulation of the Christian message. I could have never even thought of “I’m Right, You’re Wrong. Go to Hell.” My method was irenical, and not confrontational, as I proclaimed the “Injeel,” the Good News of salvation. My preaching was summed up in the familiar words of John 3:16, “For God so loved the world…” My responsibility has always been to be faithful to the Biblical message. I did not coerce listeners to faith in Jesus Christ, since I believe that conversions are the sole prerogative of the Holy Spirit. He is, as the Nicene Creed puts it “the Lord and Giver of life.”

Yes, I do believe in the ultimate triumph of my Christian faith. But I know that this triumph will not come because of any military campaign, or through any worldly means. The victory of Christ over the world will become visible to all at his Second Coming. Paul described the triumph of Jesus Christ in this memorable words: “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father.” Philippians 2: 9-11 (NIV)

Therefore, there is no equivalence between Christianity and Islam, neither in their core beliefs, nor in the way they conceive of history, and its End. Much as I still appreciate the works of Bernard Lewis, I was compelled to write this article because his thesis in this article is flawed, both historically and theologically.

Posted in Articles

Distinctively Christian Lifestyle

May 05, 2023
By Shirley W. Madany
Shirley W. Madany

From a translation from the Arabic version of “The Christian Heritage in North Africa: An Historical Study from the First Century to the Middle Ages” by Robin Daniel (Originally published in English as THIS HOLY SEED, 1991)

“Why did the pagan society react so violently against the Christians in this fashion? (Reference here is made concerning the sufferings and martyrdom of thousands of North African Christians)? And what harm did these peace-loving people inflict upon the citizens of the Roman Empire? To answer this question we must face the fact that Christians were “different” from the others. They did not behave as ordinary people and thus, their lives were surrounded by an aura that set them apart from the rest of the citizenry in Rome and Carthage. This brought suspicion upon them, whether from the rulers or their fellow citizens… And since the meetings of the Christians were held behind closed doors, and non-Christians were not allowed to enter such meetings, they were suspected as planning revolts against the emperor. But the most important reason for the popular hatred that was directed against the Christians, was their unwillingness to participate in the public occasions such as the holy days of paganism. What really bothered their contemporaries was not so much what they did, but what they refused to do.  Tertullian defended the Christians, when he said, “we don’t want to go to the noisy games, nor to observe the lasciviousness of the plays, nor applaud the awful things that took place in the public arenas.” (It was Tertullian, a North African convert, who made the statement: the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church.)

“This does not mean that Christians practiced world flight. They were to be found among the shopkeepers and merchants. There were Christian laborers and artisans. They ate in the same restaurants, they wore the same clothes and they did not refrain from helping their neighbors. But on account of the different way they lived, the non-Christians began to look upon them as enemies.” (Chapter 10, p 122)

Certainly those early Christians were not lacking in courage. No one had to ask them to live in a distinctly Christian way. They could not help but be different once they had decided to follow Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

In 1977,  we visited Tunisia. We heard the story of Perpetua and Felicita, a North African lady and her maid, who refused to recant their Christian faith and were thrown to the lions in the amphitheater at Carthage. This was part of the popular “noisy” entertainment of those days. Is it any wonder that no Christians had a taste for such events and that they steered as clear as they could from those gatherings? Today, if you visit the lovely little Anglican Church in the city of Tunis, you will be shown four stained glass windows honoring the memories of Perpetua and Felicita, along with two famous church fathers, St. Cyprian and St. Augustine.

Is it fair to look all the way back to the days of the early church for guidance in the year 1999? After all, we don’t throw people to the lions any more, do we? Rather, Christians today are more likely to be harmed by their own tolerance and apathy. We prefer to steer clear of questions of ethics and morals that are part and parcel of the total Christian revelation.

Considering the secular aura which surrounds Christians living in Western lands, perhaps it doesn’t hurt for those of us who are engaged in missions to Muslims to take another look at how the early Christians behaved in the face of the environment which had held them in chains. Like the Ephesians we need to be reminded that we too, live in a dark world. It was the Gospel that brought us into the light. Now that we want to share our salvation with those who have never heard the Gospel, how can our style of living be improved? Regarding this subject let me make another quote:

“When we take these facts into account, we conclude that in planning for missions to Muslims in the next century, it becomes the responsibility of all Christians to fight tenaciously the steady advance of secularism into the various spheres of their life and communities.

“ The credibility of the Christians' missionary endeavors, at home within a pluralistic society, and overseas, depends on their distancing themselves from the norms and the lifestyles of the secular societies which surround them. Unless Christians lead lives, which are concretely different from the lifestyles of the secularized citizenry, no Muslim will consider seriously what Christianity has to offer. We have so much to learn from the history of the first three hundred years of the Christian era when to be a Christian meant both a marked separation from the corrupt heathen environment and, at the same time, engaging it with the bold Christian word-and-life testimony: Jesus is Lord.” From “Christian Missions to Muslims in the 21st Century,” convocation address given at Westminster Seminary, Escondido, CA, in January 1997, by Rev. Bassam Madany.  

In discussing the need for a consistently Christian lifestyle, some people tend to think that we are simply talking about how Christians ought to dress. Naturally we aren’t. We do not suggest that we should copy the Muslim or Amish dress code. Lifestyle is much more than that. The Christian worldview embraces all areas of life. What we are talking about has to do with morals and daily walk.   

Still it seems necessary at times to spell things right out.

In the early years of this century, evangelical Christians in the Middle East were regarded in a special way because of their reputation. They could be trusted to not steal, or lie or cheat.   My husband remembers how Muslim neighbors would come to the missionaries seeking their advice and help. They would entrust them with money because there were no banks in those days. Christians lived soberly and worked hard for their living. The missionaries had brought the Gospel as well as education and medical help to the neglected lands that had suffered for centuries under oppressive Ottoman rule. 

In the USA, people who practice a different lifestyle intrigue us. The Amish are a great favorite. Their communities become tourist attractions and their home style food and craft-oriented markets, are popular with the average American. Another group, which gets annual news coverage, is the growing Islamic community within our borders. The latest celebration of Ramadan, early in 1999, was such an occasion. Our local newspaper ran two lengthy feature pages on both the religion of Islam and the fasting of Ramadan, and also about the rise of Islamic schools. In this latter article in The Star Tribune of January 3rd, there was a glowing account of the Universal School in Bridgeview, IL, an Islamic private school where 500 students learn about their faith and Muslim heritage in addition to reading, writing and arithmetic.

Julie Zasadny, who wrote the article was impressed. She noted that above the chalkboard in a classroom there was a sign which read: “We are Muslims, different and proud of it!” How succinct! 

We are not suggesting that we should copy the dress code of the newly arrived Muslims, but we do wonder if Christian schools ought not to emulate this attitude: “We are Christians, and we are different.” Then perhaps we would be obliged to point out the differences. Perhaps we should consider just how eager we are to tell our children that we are “different.” Different from what and from whom. Do we dare to be Daniels in this day and age? We aren’t getting very good vibrations from Washington, DC about the morals of our country. We could start with that aspect, as it becomes obvious that the expression, “the American people,” does not necessarily represent the Christian population of America.

One of the teachers at the Islamic school, formerly a public school teacher, said that the two schools were worlds apart. The reporter commented: “Prayer time is built into the school day at Islamic schools, which makes it easy to follow the required five prayers a day. Students learn how to behave starting in the earliest grades. Kindergartners push their chairs in when leaving the table, and they learn to sit quietly, hands folded on the desk.”   Islamic school students wear uniforms and older girls wear long dark robes over their clothes and they must wear scarves, called the “hijab,” over their hair starting in seventh grade. The scarf is optional outside of school, but even some young girls at Universal choose to wear it.”

We could give more thought to applying God’s Word to our life’s walk. The Apostle Paul devotes several chapters in Romans to the implications of the Gospel into every area of life. And the aged Apostle John, in his three letters, insists that faith and life must go hand in hand. “This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” I John 2:6

In Islamic countries, as individual converts from Islam begin to find Christian mates, create Christian homes and gather together for worship, they experience exactly what the early Christians must have experienced. They find out just how difficult it is to shed their old habits and live according to the Word of God. Some national characteristics keep standing in the way of harmony. One such group voiced a request for prayer recently over the matter of pride which is shattering their unity. They find it difficult to admit a wrong or to forgive what they think is a wrong. This is what we mean by lifestyle. We are all familiar with the words that were uttered by the neighbors of the early Christian, “look how they love one another!” It takes grace and courage to forgive, but how else is a body of Christians going to witness to those who live around them?

Difficult words, but there they are. As the apostle John put it, “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

1 John 1:7

Some time ago, I wrote an article on the subject of women’s attire for a women’s magazine and decided to use the phrase, “if the shoe doesn’t fit, don’t wear it.” Presuming that all Christians would want to bring the Gospel to our Muslim neighbors, it grieves us constantly to observe the inappropriate dress of certain young girls and even their mothers, when they are attending worship services. Because of our life work, we see them empathetically through the eyes of Muslims who might be enquiring into the Gospel. We shudder at the conclusion they must draw when they see young women with inadequate clothing—especially skirts, which reach barely to mid-point between thigh and knee! Where is the modest dress of a Christian woman? What a confusing witness this is, in the light of the Muslim’s over-accentuation of modesty. We well remember an incident in Istanbul, Turkey, when we were entering one of those famous mosques with a group of tourists. Everyone had to remove his or her shoes. And those men and women who were ill clad, had to put on some temporary covering to satisfy the need for proper attire within a Muslim house of worship. 

Consider the lifestyle of the martyrs of the early church. If they had not been strong in their faith, do you think the church would have survived 2000 years?

Posted in Articles

Fifty-three Years in Syria

May 05, 2023
By Henry Jessup

The Arabic Bible - Its Translation and the Translators (1848 - 1865)

"And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations" Revelation 22:2

Foreign missionaries have moved mountains. Grain by grain, rock by rock, by steady work, year after year, toiling, delving, tunneling, the giant mountain obstacles have been gradually melted away. After years of silent, unseen, prayerful, agonizing work, suddenly a new version of the sacred Scriptures is announced, and millions find the door of knowledge and salvation suddenly opened to them. It is easy to read in a Bible society report that the Bible has been translated into Mandingo for eight millions, into Panjabi for fourteen millions, into Marathi for seventeen millions, into Cantones for twenty millions, into Japanese for fifty millions, into Bengali for thirty-nine millions, into Arabic for fifty millions, into Hindi for eighty-two millions, and into Mandarin Chinese for two hundred millions. But who can comprehend what it all means? To those who claim that missionaries are, or should be, only men who are failures at home, who are unable to fill home pulpits, but are good enough for Asiatic or African mission work, such a statement must be an unsolved and unsolvable riddle.

Translation is an art, a science, one of the most difficult of all literary undertakings. To translate an ordinary newspaper editorial from English into French, German or Italian, would cost most scholars many hours of work. It is easier to compose in a foreign tongue than to translate into it, adhering conscientiously to the meaning, yet casting it so perfectly into the native idiom as to conceal the fact of its foreign origin. Few natives of Asia can translate from English into their own tongue without revealing the stiff foreign unoriental source from which the material was taken.

Dr. Thomas Laurie in his able work "Missions and Science," p. 245, says, "If any wonder why so much pains should be taken to make a version not only accurate but idiomatic, et him read the following words of Luther in 1530: " In translating, I have striven to give pure and clear German, and it has verily happened that we have sought, a fortnight, three or four weeks, for a single word, and yet it was not always found. In Job we so laboured, Philip Melanchthon, Aurogalius and I, that in four days we sometimes barely finished three lines." Again he writes, "We must not ask the Latinizes how to speak German, but we must ask the mother in the house, the children in the lanes, the common man in the market place and read in their mouths how thy speak and translate accordingly."

If it was thus difficult for the learned Luther to translate from the Hebrew and Greek into his own mother German, how much more to translate from them into an Oriental tongue like the Arabic! And few foreign missionaries can translate ordinary tracts and books into the vernacular of their adopted country. Men must have a peculiar mental bent and devote yeas to studying and practicing the vulgar talk of the populace, and the pure classical language of the local literature, if there be a literature, and if not, it identify himself with those who are to read what he writes, before he can translate with success. But when you add to all this the work of translating a book of 960 pages from the ancient Hebrew, the Old Testament, and another of 270 pages from the ancient Greek, the New Testament, so as to give your readers the exact literal idea of the original, and this into a language utterly different in spirit, ideals and idioms not only from the Hebrew and Greek, but also from your own tongue, and remember that this is the Word of God in which error is inadmissible and ,might be fatal; knowing that the eyes of scores of missionaries and the hundreds of native scholars in the future, as well as, servants in philology and linguistic science in Europe and America will scan and criticize your work, and you might well exclaim, "Who is sufficient for these things?" The true translator "nascitur, non fit." It is born in him, and without this native genius and preparation he cannot succeed.

Translators of the Scriptures are "called of God, as was Aaron".   Missionary boards send out young men to foreign lands, not knowing to what special work God may call them. It may be exploring, as Livingston; or healing, as Dr. Parker," who opened China to the Gospel at the point of the lancet", or teaching as Duff, Hamlin and Calhoun; or preaching as Titus Coan of Hilo, Sandwich Isaldn; or it may be translating, as Morrison, Hepburn, Riggs, Goodell, Eli Smith and Van Dyck.

In 1847, a committee of which Dr. Eli Smith was chairman, and Drs. Thomson and Van Dyck were members, sent to the United States an appeal in behalf of a new translation of the Bible into the Arabic language, in which, after speaking of the comparatively evanescent character of translations of the Bible into the languages of tribes evidently hastening to extinction, the appeal rises to high and almost prophetic eloquence in speaking of the future of the Arabic Bible." The Arab translator is interpreting the lively oracles for the forty millions of an undying race whose successive and ever augmenting generations shall fail only with the final termination of all early things. Can we exaggerate on such a them? Is it easy to overestimate the importance of that mighty power that shall send the healing leaves of salvation down the Tigris, the Euphrates, the Nile, and the Niger; that shall open living fountains in the plains of Syria, the deserts of Arabia and the sands of Africa; that shall gild with the light of life the craggy summits of goodly Lebanon and sacred Sinai and giant Atlas?" We think not. These and kindred thoughts are not the thoughtless and fitful scintillation's of imagination, the baseless dreams of a wild enthusiasm. To give the Word of God to forty millions of perishing sinners, to write their commentaries, their concordances, there theology, their sermons, their tracts, their school-books and their religious journals; in short, to give them a Christian literature, or that germinating commencement of one, which can perpetuate its life and expand into full grown maturity, are great gigantic verities taking fast hold on the salvation of myriad's which no man can number, of the present and all future generations"

On the 21st of February 1885, Rev. James S. Dennis, D.D., then a member and librarian of the Syria Mission in Beirut, wrote to Dr. Van Dyck requesting him to prepare a careful sketch of the history of the translation of the Bible into the Arabic language. The following account to p. 76 summarizes the facts given in Dr. Van Dyck's reply:

"An account of the Arabic Version of the Scriptures made under the auspices of the Syria Mission and the American Bible Society".

At the general meeting of the mission held in Beirut, February, 1848, under the date of February 11th, we find the following vote:

"Resolved that at the end of the present term of the seminary (Abeih) Butrus el Bistany be transferred to the Beirut station with a view to his being employed in the translation of the Scriptures, under the direction of Dr. Eli Smith." (Mr. Bistany had been associated with Dr. Van Dyck in the Boys' Seminary of Abeih, from the time of its opening)".  

Under same date, February 11, 1848, we have the following resolution:

"Resolved, that Dr. Smith be authorized to correspond with the secretaries of the American Bible Society in relation to the contemplated new translations of the Scriptures into Arabic".

Under the date of April 4, 1849, we find the following:

"Dr. Smith reported progress in the work of translating the Scriptures, and laid before the mission the first ten chapters of Genesis for examination, and Messrs, Whiting, Thomson, Van Dyck, Hurter, DeForest and Ford were appointed a committee to examine what had been done and report to this meeting. This committee reported April 7th, stating that they find the new translation, faithful to the original, and a decided improvement upon the version we now circulate, and recommend that the work be prosecuted to its completion upon the same general principles which appear to have guided the translator hitherto. They also commended the translator and those associated with him to the fervent prayers of all the members of the mission, that they may be guided by divine wisdom in the prosecution of this all important work."

It is plain from the above that Dr. Smith began to work on the translation in 1848, assisted by Sheikh Nasif el Yazigy, and Mr. Butrus el Bistany. First, Mr. Bistany made a translation into Arabic from the Hebrew or Greek with the aid of the Syrian. Then Sheikyh Nasif, who knew no language but Arabic, rewrote what had been translated, carefully sifting out all foreign idioms. Then Dr. Smith revised Sheikh Nasif's manuscript by himself, and made his own corrections and emendations.  Then he and Sheikh Nasif went over the work in company, and Dr. Smith was careful not to let the meaning be sacrificed for a question of Arabic grammar or rhetoric.

Under date of April 9th, the mission records state that "Dr. Smith submitted a copy of the new translation of the Book of Genesis, with some remarks and explanations, and it was voted that 100 copies of the new translation of Genesis be printed at the expense of the mission."

As each form was struck off, a copy was sent to each member of the mission, and the Arabic scholars outside the mission, especially to the missionaries of other societies, and by special vote in March 29, 1851, all the members of the mission were urged to give special attention to the new translation and to render Dr. Smith all the assistance in their power to carry it forward to its completion.

In 1852, during the visit of Dr. Edward Robinson, of Union Seminary, Dr. Smith laid on the table the translation of the Pentateuch up to the fifth chapter of Deuteronomy, and a committee, consisting of Messrs, Thomson, Whiting, Robinson, Calhoun, Marsh of Mosuland Ford, examined the translation and approved it, whereupon the translator was directed to finish the Pentateuch and then take up the New Testament. March 23, 1853, Dr. Smith laid upon the table the remainder of Deuteronomy, Matthew, Mark, and to the twelfth chapter of Luke.

PROGRESS OF THE WORK

March 3, 1854, Dr. Smith had completed during the year from the twelfth chapter of Luke to 1 Corinthians.

April 3, 1855, Dr. Smith reported that the New Testament had been completed, and also Jonah, Joel, and Amos, and the printing of the Pentateuch had reached the sixth chapter of Exodus.

April 1, 1856, Dr. Smith made his last report, that in the Old Testament, after finishing Nahum he had taken up Isaiah, and had reached the fifty-third chapter, and that in printing, the Pentateuch had advanced to the end of Exodus, and the New Testament to the sixteenth chapter of Matthew.

At the time of his death he had devoted nine years to this work, or rather eight years of actual labor. A day or two before his death Rev. D. M. Wilson asked him if he had anything to day about the translation.  He replied, "I will be responsible only for what has been printed. If
the work should be carried on, I hope that what I have done will be found of some value."

Before narrating the work of Dr. Van Dyck in completing the translation, let us see what "helps" these learned scholars had at hand is a "translation apparatus." connected with the Old Testament. This list will deeply interest those who regard missionaries as unscholarly and
behind the times.

1. Of Hebrew Grammars, they had Gesenius' Lehrgebaude (1817), has smaller grammar edited by Rodiger (1851), a gift from the editor; Ewald's Lehrbuch (1844) and Nordheimer's Grammar.

2. Of Lexicons; Gesenius' Hebrew Thesaurus, now completed by Rodiger (who kindly sent Dr. Smith the last part as soon as it left the press); and also Robinson's Gesenius, a gift from the translator. He had also Furst's Concordance and his School Dictionary, also Nuldin's Concordance or the Hebrew particles.

3. Of Commentaries: Rosenmuller on the Pentateuch, and Tuch and Delitzch and Knobel on Genesis. Also the Glossa Ordinaria, a voluminous digest from the Fathers, and Pools, Synopsis, with other more common commentaries in English.

4. Of non-Arabic versions of critical value; the London Polyglot (a gift of Mrs. Fisher Howe, of Brooklyn, New York), with Buxtorf's Chaldee, and Castel's Syriac Lexicon, and Schleusner's Greek Lexicon of the Septuagint, besides the lexicons which compose the seventh volume of the Polyglot. Also Tischendorf's Septuagint, containing the readings of four ancient manuscripts; and for a general Greek lexicon, Liddeli and Scott.  Among modern versions Dr. Smith made constant reference to that of De Wett's.

5. Of Arabic versions: Dr. Smith had besides that of Saadias Gaon in the Polyglot, the Ebreo-Mauritanian version, edited by Erpenius, and three copies faith the version of Abu Sa'd, the Samaritan; two of these copies he had made from manuscripts some five hundred years old, and the other edited by Kuenen, with the readings and notes of three manuscripts; also a distinct version in manuscript apparently made from the Peshito written nearly five hundred years ago. The above are ancient. Of more modern versions, I have the Romish edition reprinted by the British and Foreign Bible Society, which we now circulate and which is conformed to the Vulgate with frequent accommodations to the Peshito. Also the lessons read in the Green and Greek Catholic Churches printed at Shuwair and translated from the Septuagint but following after other readings than those of the Polyglot; and the Karshuay lessons read in the Maronite Churches, printed at Koshalya and translated from the Peshito. This version of the Maronites, if reference be had both to conformity with the Hebrew and acceptableness of style to modern readers, is the best of all, but it contains, as well as the lessons of the Greeks, only a small portion of the Old Testament.

6. Of other helps, Dr. Smith had Winer's Realworterbulch (last edition), DeWette's introduction to the Old Testament and Havernicks' Introduction to the Pentateuch; also Sherif-ed-Din-et-Tifasy on previous stones, and the Arabic Materia Medica called Ma-la-yisa: both useful in explaining terms connected with natural history and kindred subjects. The Hebrew text used was that of Michaelis, whose notes and especial references are often valuable; and also Dr. Rossi's various readings, and Bahrdt's remains of the Hexapla of Origen.

7. This catalogue would not be complete without mentioning the more important helps to a full understanding and proper use of the Arabic language. Grammars: The Commentary of Ashmuny, on the Alefiyeh of Ibn Malik; the Commentary of Dermanuy on the Teshil of the same author, and Millu Jamy of Ibn el Hajeb, also Mughny el Labib of Ibn Hashim, invaluable for its definitions of the particles. Of rhetoric, the Mukhtasr and Muttowwal of Teftazany. Of dictionaries, I have two copies of Feiruzabady, and one of Jauhari, as well as the dictionary Felyumy, and the Constantinople edition of Feiruzabady with definitions in Turkish. Of European works: the dictionary of Freytag and the Arabic-Turco-Persian dictionary of Meninski. Also the Tarifat of Jorjamy and the Kulliyat of Abuel Buka, which latter when furnished with a proper index will help to many definitions of great value.

After the death of Dr. Eli Smith many thought that the work of translation must   cease. Dr. Smith was so learned, so accurate and conscientious, and so singularly prepared for this great work, that it seemed as though no one could fill his place. But though the worker fails the work goes on. The mantle of Eli fell on Cornelius. God had been preparing for seventeen years the man who was to complete the great work of giving the Bible to forty millions of men. Cornelius Van Alan Van Dyck, M.D., came to Syria, April 2, 1840, aged twenty-one years and four months, the youngest American ever sent to Syria. He came as a medical missionary, had never studied theology, but in seventeen years in Syria he had mastered the Arabic language, the Syrian, Hebrew, Greek, French, Italian and German.  He was of Hollandic origin, born at Kinderhook in 1818. He had a genius for languages a phenomenal memory, a clear intellect, and excelled in medicine, astronomy, the higher mathematics and linguistic science. His knowledge of Arabic, both classical and vulgar, was a wonder to both
natives and foreigners, as will be seen in the chapter on his life and work. He had been ordained January 14, 1846, and afterwards received the degrees of D.D. and LL.D., and later that of L.H.D. from Edinburgh.

At the next annual meeting of the mission after Dr. Smith's death (April 3, 1857), a committee was appointed to examine and report on the state of the translation of the Scriptures as left by Dr. Smith. This committee consisted of Messrs, Calhoun, Van Dyck, Ford, Eddy and Wilson, and reported that Genesis and Exodus had been printed with the exception of the last of Exodus which was in type but not edited. That the books of the Bible yet untouched are Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastics, Song of Solomon, Ezekiel, Daniel, Habakkuk, Zechariah, Zephaniah, Haggai and Malachi. The Historical Books from Joshua to Esther inclusive, and the books of Jeremiah and Lamentations, had been put into Arabic by Mr. Bistany, the assistant translator, but not revised by Dr. Smith.

It was found that in the translation of the New Testament, the Greek text followed had been that of Hahn, but in the first thirteen chapters of Matthew there are some variations from that text according to the text of Tregelles and others.

The committee were unanimously of opinion that the translation of the New Testament had been made with great care and fidelity, and that it could, with comparatively little labor, be prepared for the press, and they accordingly recommended to the mission to prosecute and complete its publication as soon as possible.

The mission then appointed Dr. Van Dyck too the work. He was then living in Sidon, and removed to Beirut in November, 1857, and went on with the work as directed. As the American Bible Society required a strict adherence to the Textus Receptus of Hahn's Greek Testament, Dr. Van Dyck revised every verse in the New Testament taking up the work as if new. The basis left by Dr. Smith was found invaluable, and but for it the work would have been protected very much beyond what is really was.  The form adopted was the second font Reference New Testament. Thirty proofs were struck from each form as soon as set up in type and these proofs were distributed to all missionaries in the Arabic-speaking field, and to native scholars, and to Arabic scholars in Germany, viz:  Professor Fleischer of Leipsic, Professor Rodiger of Halle, afterwards of Berline, Professor Flugel of Dresden and Dr. Behrnauer, librarian of the Imperial Library, Vienena. Some letters and proofs from some of these gentlemen and others have survived, and have been placed in the standard copy of the Old Testament, deposited in the library of the mission. The proofs distributed were returned to the translator with the criticisms of those to whom they had been sent, all of which were carefully examined and decided upon.

ITS SIMPLICITY OF STYLE

In 1862, Dr. Van Dyck wrote to the American Bible Society with regard to the labor involved in the translation of the Old Testament : "In the first place, it must be carefully made from the Hebrew, then compared with the Syrian version of the Maronites, and the Septuagint of the Greeks; the various readings given, and in difficult places the Chaldee Targums must be consulted, and hosts of German commentators, so that the eye is constantly glancing from one set of characters to another: then after the sheet is in type, thirty copies are struck off and sent to scholars in Syria, Egypt and even Germany. These all come back with notes and suggestions, every one of which must be well weighed. Thus a critic, by one dash of his pen, may cause me a day's labor, and not till all is set right, can the sheet be printed."

In regard to the style of Arabic adopted, it was the same as had been adopted by Dr. Smith after long and frequent consultations with the mission and wi6th native scholars. Some would have preferred the style "Koranic," i.e. Islamic, adopting idioms and expressions peculiar to Mohammedans. All native Christian scholars decidedly objected to this.  It was agreed to adopt a simple but pure Arabic, free from foreign idioms, but never to sacrifice the sense to a grammatical quick or a rhetorical quibble, or a fanciful tinkling of words. As a matter of face, it will be seen that in the historical and didactic parts, the style is pure and simple, but in the poetical parts the style necessarily takes on the higher standard of the original e.g. Job, Psalms and parts of the prophets. The work of the translation of the New Testament was finished March 9, 1860, and a complete copy was laid upon the table at the annual meeting. March 28th, and that same copy is now preserved in the mission library.

Dr. Van Dyck was assisted by a Mohammedan scholar of high repute, Sheikh Yusef el Asir, a graduate of the Azhar University of Cairo, whose purely Arabic tastes and training fitted him to pronounce on all questions of grammar, rhetoric and vowelling, subject to the revision and final judgement of Dr. Van Dyck.

In April, 1860, the mission directed Dr. Van Dyck to carry on the translation of the Old Testament commencing with Leviticus. The last chapter of Exodus was edited by Dr. Van Dyck immediately after Dr. Smith's death, and printed, so that the whole of Genesis and Exodus might be before the mission.

In 1864, an edition of the vowelled Psalms in parallelisms was issued 16mo, and on August 22, 1864, Dr. Van Dyck reported the completion of the translation of the Old Testament. Friday, March 10, 1865, a celebration took place at the American Press, in honor of the printed of the Old Testament thus completing the new Arabic translation of the Bible.

In the upper room, where Dr. Smith had labored on the translation eight years, and Dr. Van Dyck eight years more, the assembled missionaries gave thanks to God for the completion of this arduous work.  Just then, the sound of many voices arose from below, and on throwing open the door, we hears a large company of native young men, labors at the press and members of the Protestant community, singing to the tune of Hebron a new song". Even praise to our God ", composed for the occasion by Mr. Ibrahim Sarkis, chief compositor, in the Arabic language. Surely not for centuries have the angels in heaven heard a sweeter sound arising from Syria that the voices of this band of pious young men, singing a hymn composed by one of themselves, ascribing glory and praise to God that now for the first time, the Word of God is given to their nation in its purity.

I translated this hymn into English, and on Sunday evening, March 12th, a public meeting was held in the old church in commemoration of this great event, and addresses were made by Rev. James Robertson, Scotch Chaplain, Mr. Butrus Bistany and Rev. D. Stuart Dodge. The hymn was sung in Arabic and English. The English is as follows:

Hail day, thrice blessed of our God.
Rejoice, let all men bear a part.
Complete at length Thy printed word;
Lord, print its truths on every heart.

To Him who gave His gracious word,
Arise, and with glad praised sing,
Exalt and magnify our Lord
Our Maker and our glorious King.

Lord, spare Thy servant through whose toil,
Thou gav'st us this of books the best,
Bless all who shared the arduous task
From Eastern land or distant West.

Amen! Amen! lift up the voice,
Praised God whose mercy's e'er the same,
His goodness all our song employs,
Thanksgiving then to His Great Name.

June 3, 1865, Dr. Van Dyck proceeded to New York, in accordance with arrangements made with the American Bible Society, and superintended the making of a set of electrotype plates of the entire Arabic Bible in large type 8 volumes, and of the vowelled New Testament. Two years later he returned to Beirut with Mr. Samuel Hallock, an electrotyper, and superintended
electrotyping the vowelled Old Testament 8vo, and editions of the entire Bible and of the New Testament. The American Bible Society furnished the British and Foreign Bible Society with a duplicate set of plates of the Bible and New Testament made in New York and also of the vowelled Old Testament made in Beirut.

Thus was the Arabic Bible completed. In a short time ten editions, containing forty thousand copies, had been printed. The accuracy of its renderings, the idiomatic excellence of the style, and even the beauty of the type, which Dr. Smith had prepared especially for it, and which surpassed all that had gone before as much as the translation excelled all previous effort, made it popular among all classes, so that even the Moslem was forced to commend the Bible of the Christian. No literary work of the century exceeds it in importance and it is acknowledged to be one of the best translations of the b ever made.

Since that day, not less than thirty-two editions of the Arabic Bible and parts of the same have been printed, comprising about nine hundred thousand copies, and on the title page of every copy is the imperial permit and sanction of the government of the Turkish Sultan. These books have been sent, and are still being sent, by tens of thousands of copies, to the whole Arabic reading Mohammedan world, from Mogador and Sierra Leone on the Atlantic to Peking on the East; to Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, Egypt, Sudan, Arabic, Zanzibar, Aden, Muscat, Bussorah, Bagdad, India the East Indies, Northern China, Persia, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Palestine, Syria and to the new colonies of Syrian emigrants in the United States, Brazil and Australia.

The best selling book in Syria and Egypt today is the Arabic Bible. It is the loving gift of the one hundred and forty millions of Protestant Christians to the two hundred millions of Mohammedans of whom sixty millions speak the Arabic language, while the rest use the Arabic Koran as their sacred book, and are scattered all the way from the Canary Islands through North Africa and Southern Asia to Peking in China.

As Mr. Calhoun has beautifully said in one of his letters, "Just as Syria, once lighted up with the oil made from her own olives, is now illuminated by oil transported from America, so the light of revelation that once burned brightly there, lighting up the whole earth with its radiance long suffered to go out in darkness, has been rekindled by missionaries from America, in the translation of her own Scriptures into the spoken language of her present inhabitants." Priest Ghubreen Jebara, a learned Greek ecclesiastic in Beirut, said in a public address, in 1865, "But for the American missionaries, the Word of God had well-nigh perished out of the language; but now, through the labors of Dr. Eli Smith and Dr. Van Dyck, they have given us a translation so pure, so exact, so clear, and so classical, as to be acceptable to all classes and all sects."

Fifty Three Years in Syria - by Henry Jessup
First Volume, Chapter 4, Pp. 66-78
New York: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1910

Posted in Articles

The Treasures of St. Catherine's Monastery

May 05, 2023
By Shirley W. Madany

At the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, in the wilderness that separates Egypt from Israel, there is an ancient monastery, St. Catherine's.  Its library contains thousands of precious manuscripts, all waiting to be explored.  These manuscripts have been microfilmed by a team of experts and are easily available from the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

When Dr. Harvey Staal, Reformed Church missionary to the Middle East, was taking advanced Arabic at the University of Michigan in order to get his Master's degree in Middle East Studies, one of his professors was Dr. Aziz Suriyal Atiya.  Prof. Atiya was closely associated with the microfilming of the manuscripts, which was completed in the 1950s.

Sensing that he had a potential scholar on his hands, Prof. Atiya encouraged Harvey Staal to obtain one of these important manuscripts and to translate a portion of it.  He recommended Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151 because it was dated (A.D. 867), had the name of the translator (Bishr Ibn Al Sirri), and gave as his location Damascus.  Dr. Staal began with the book of Philippians at that time.

Thus began a lifetime project which culminated in the publication in 1985 of the manuscript in a two-volume work (English and Arabic).  Printed in Louvain, Belgium, the new volumes are part of a renowned series of Christian Oriental texts.  This impressive and masterly work covered 1,800 pages of typed manuscript, and the final proof reading was done in war-torn Beirut.  But that is getting ahead of our story.

The Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151 was indeed a most exciting discovery.  It appears to be the oldest Arabic translation of the Bible in existence.  Certainly it is the oldest Arabic translation with commentary supplied by the translator. The original manuscript was completed in Damascus, Syria; 1,000 years before the famous Smith/Van Dyck Arabic Bible appeared in Beirut.  It consists of all the Pauline Epistles, plus the book of Acts and the General Epistles.  The Gospels evidently were done also but in a separate book.  This manuscript volume is missing and may be lost forever.

Who was this Bishr Ibn Al Sirri?  He was a Nestorian Christian living in Damascus whose work was done about 200 years after the Arab conquest of the Middle East.  It is fascinating, therefore, to notice the vocabulary chosen at that period of time by this Christian Arab.

Al Sirri chose to start translating with the epistle to the Romans (the starting point in missions to Muslims, as far as Rev. Bassam Madany is concerned).  He also used language which would be easily understood by the Muslim, both then and now.  This meant that the Christian Arab community had not yet become ghettoized.  With the polarization of Christians and Muslims ever since the Crusades, 1095-1291, Christian Arabs have developed many terms and expressions which are purely Christian.  This shows up all too often in Christian preaching and literature in the Arabic language.

In his introduction to the English text of Al Sirri's translation, Dr. Staal makes the following observation:

This has been a most interesting, inspiring, and profitable study, especially from two aspects—word study and interpretation.  There are a number of translations of individual words that add additional insight to our understanding of some of our basic Christian concepts.  It is also most interesting to read the comments made by Middle Eastern Christians of a thousand years ago, reflecting the theology of people from a cultural background very similar to that of our Lord.  We trust that some of this will carry over to you in the English translation.

There is something mysterious and exciting about the desert monastery of St. Catherine.  When Dr. Staal visited there, he discovered that Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151 was a fascinating bound book of a large size, with a remarkable cover of wood and leather.  You could imagine, looking at it, that it was certainly one of a kind (perhaps the only Bible in Damascus in A.D. 867).

Perhaps in a time of grave danger, some monk hid the manuscript volume under his cloak and walked the long rugged miles to this place of safety, where it has reposed ever since.  St. Catherine's has had a reputation of safety for centuries.  One look at the map and you will see why.

Those indeed were troubled times.  This manuscript probably was deposited for safekeeping in the 1200s.  As far as we know, it remained untouched until the microfilming in the 1950s.

Dr. Staal did not have to walk to St. Catherine's monastery.  He flew to a small airstrip nearby.  He was able to spend five memorable days there after completing his work on microfilm copies of the manuscript.  What a thrill to see and touch and photograph the manuscript itself!

In 1966, Harvey Staal decided to pursue his doctorate, again under Dr. Atiya, who had moved to the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.  Harvey and Hilda speak of their two years in Utah in glowing terms.  They enjoyed those years in America.  Their children were able to attend school, and they experienced happy fellowship with the Christian Reformed people of Salt Lake City.  His doctorate achieved, Dr. Staal continued his project in his spare time until he had completed the entire manuscript.

Dr. Staal recalls that he needed two hours to decipher just two lines when he first started on Philippians.  It was like working with code.  The dots, which ordinarily distinguish various letters of the Arabic alphabet, were omitted.  Evidently they were not considered necessary for people educated enough to read the Bible!

For an example of the difficulty which this presented, consider that one particular mark ("stroke" in Arabic) like the bottom half of a circle could be taken for the letter "n", "b", "t", "th", or "y" according to where the dots were placed.  The translation work became easier only after Harvey became completely familiar with Al Sirri's script.  He spoke with great appreciation of the invaluable help of Dr. Jibrail S. Jabbur, of the American University of Beirut, who joined him in the labor of proofreading every word.  Dr. Jabbur was able to help him greatly with some almost undecipherable words.

For personal Bible study, Dr. Staal's English volumes of this ancient manuscript would provide many new insights.  It simply is a literal translation of the Arabic text.  Here you have an interpretation of various passages of Scripture by a Christian of the 9th century A.D.  The translation into Arabic was made from the Aramaic, a language in common use in the Middle East for over 1,000 years—including the time that Jesus was on earth.

Dr. Staal is hopeful that more Arab scholars will avail themselves of Mt. Sinai's hidden treasures.  As he nears retirement, he is working on a very early translation of the Gospels from an Egyptian manuscript dating around the 13th century.  This time he has the help of an English/Arabic computer.

Considering the seriousness of the situation in the Middle East, the Al Sirri manuscript from A.D. 867 takes on great importance.  It helps everyone to understand the tremendous roots of Middle Eastern Christianity.  It should be a boost to the self-image of Eastern Christians as they face eviction from such lands as Lebanon.

Note.
The Treasures of St. Catherine's Monastery – Written by Shirley W.  Madany for the August/September issue of Missionary Monthly in 1986

The late Dr. Harvey Staal, veteran scholar and missionary to the Middle East, successfully worked on an ancient Arabic manuscript of the New Testament, containing the Epistles and the Book of Acts. It was preserved at St. Catherine's Monastery in the Sinai Peninsula.  It was discovered in the early fifties, and after years of hard work, Dr. Staal published it in 1985 under the auspices of the United Bible Societies in Beirut, Lebanon.  It is known as Mt. Sinai Codex 151.  Increased interest in this important translation makes this article relevant reading.

Posted in Articles

The Translation of the Bible Into Arabic

May 05, 2023
By Rev. Bassam Michael Madany

Introduction
Throughout my ministerial career that began in Syria in 1953, and that is still continuing by the grace of God to the early years of the New Century, I have dealt with several translations of the Scriptures. My mother tongue is Arabic, my father, Michael Nicholas Madany, was a convert from the Orthodox Church, and served as pastor of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in Seleucia, and Alexandretta, Syria. I have been reading the Bible in Arabic since my early days. Due to the fact that Syria was under French control during my formative years, I learned French quite early, and this language (with Arabic) became my first language. English became a second language, and Turkish, a third one.

My call to the ministry brought me to the USA. I spent three academic years at the Reformed Presbyterian Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I learned both Greek and Hebrew, and became quite at home in reading the NT in the original Greek.

By 1958, and after one more year of theological studies at Calvin Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I embarked on my life work. It was the preparation and recording of messages on the Word of God in Arabic. They were broadcast over several international radio stations in the direction of North Africa and the Middle East. Due to several factors, I continued to reside in the US, but kept my knowledge of Arabic up-to-date through listening to short-wave stations, reading daily and weekly papers from the Middle East, and frequent visits to North Africa and the Middle East. During such visits, I purchased Arabic books that gave me the latest information about the evolving Arab culture, and the growing Arabic vocabulary.

The radio and literature ministry became a two-way traffic: the broadcasts brought responses (both from Eastern Christians and Muslims), and I in turn, responded via air mail letters and follow-up materials.

The broadcast ministry dealt with the Bible. My weekly sermons were expository, and dealt with OT and NT passages. Five days a week were devoted to a systematic Bible Study of the NT. It took over 600 15-minute program to cover this aspect of the ministry.

Once a week, I had special programs that dealt with doctrinal and historical themes.

All these activities required a careful preparation and writing of the broadcast materials. I read the Bible from the SVDB translation as it was the only version available to me in 1958. (Naturally, I was aware of the Jesuit translation of1870, but did not make use of it.) The preparation of messages was done with the audience in mind. Then expounding of the Word of God was done with full awareness of the prejudices and misunderstandings of the Bible that have become part and parcel of the Islamic tradition. I was not polemical, and never referred to the Qur’an, or the Hadith, or Muhammad.

My life experiences prepared me for my life work. Besides my education in the Middle East, I also taught (in Arabic) in Roman Catholic and Protestant mission schools for a total of six years. During those years, I did a good deal of lecturing which enabled me to be quite at home in the use of Standard (Classical Arabic), both in writing and delivery of the broadcasts.

Furthermore, I managed to study (on the side) books by well-known missionaries such as Samuel Zwemer and J. W. Sweetman. I read the quarterly Muslim World, and the Bulletin of the Henry Martyn Institute of Islamic Studies. On account of my theological training at two Reformed seminaries as well as my commitment to ecclesiastical rather than independent missions, I developed a missiology (before the term became popular) of missions to Muslims that was Bible-based, Christ-centered, and Church-oriented.

The Bible in Missions to Muslims
When proclaiming the Biblical Gospel or teaching the contents of the Word of God to Muslims, one cannot ignore the baggage that Muslims bring to their hearing of the Bible in Arabic, or in any other Islamic language. Needless to mention that Muslims believe in the Qur’an as the final revelation of God to man, that it abrogates previous revelations, and that the Scriptures of the OT & NT have been corrupted prior to the rise of Islam.
The Christian messenger must do his utmost not to add any more difficulties, in his endeavor to bring the saving Word of God to Muslims. This is why, as a matter of principle, I do not favor having many translations of the Bible into Arabic, or any other Islamic language.

Let me be specific. Arabic is a living and changing language. I have personally compiled a list of the new Arabic vocabulary that I had not known or heard prior to 1950. Every time I look at Al-Sharq al-Awsat or Al-Safir Newspapers, or the digital contents of BBC Arabic, I discover (now in 2005) new Arabic words. But, this does not mean that the language is of such a nature that ‘older’ Arabic cannot be deciphered by contemporary Arabs. Why? Because Arabic is based on the Qur’an. This document plays a very significant role in the life of all-Arabic speaking people, regardless of their religious affiliation. Arabic is tied to the Qur’an much more than English is related to the AV or to Shakespeare. Thus, the necessity for revision is much less needed than in Western languages.

One must always remember that any revision of an existing Arabic Bible is very confusing to Arabic-speaking Muslims. They cannot help but ask: why do you keep revising the Bible? We can and do read and understand the great books that were produced during the revival of Classical Arabic and Arab culture in the 19th Century; so why should the 1865 version of the Arabic Bible need revision?

But a more serious reason for my refusing to believe in the need for new and newer versions of the Bible in Arabic is theological. I may be here stepping on dangerous grounds. The pioneers who worked on the translation of the Bible in the 19th Century were churchmen, and operated within confessional contexts. They adhered to the early Ecumenical Creeds and to the Reformed Catechisms and Confessions of Faith. They believed that that Reformation was a reforming movement within the Church, and that reformation can be achieved by turning to the Word of God. They had not rejected the Apostolic Tradition. They were not innovators, but reformers.

Part of being confessionally Protestant (whether Lutheran or Reformed) is to believe that the primary means of grace is the preaching of the Word of God. See Romans 10 and I Corinthians 1 & 2. While emphasizing the importance of the written text of the Bible, the Reformers, and the denominational missionaries after them, believed that missions needed much more than a Bible translation. A.A. Hodge’s book on Systematic Theology was translated, and a great project of OT & NT commentaries was initiated. The Psalter was translated and we sang it in a beautiful Arabic poetic style.

In my experience as a broadcaster, I read the Word, the Text of the day, and then began to expound it, or on the Lord’s Day, to preach a sermon based on the text. What I mean is that we do not and must not divorce the Bible from the ministry of the Church that brings the Bible to the field. The Word is to be proclaimed, and the converts need to read the Word, not as mere individuals, but as members of the Body of Christ. When a person comes to the Lord, he is grafted into a communion of believers whose faith is anchored in a long tradition that stretches back to the OT and NT times. Twenty-first century Christians do not and cannot approach the Bible de nuovo, they read it in the light of a living and believing heritage that goes back to the Apostolic Age.

I find the concern for avoiding “Christian” Arabic very strange. Now Muslims, who are not committed to translating their authoritative texts, expect their converts to learn Arabic, and say their liturgical prayers in Arabic. Even in non-Arabic-speaking areas of the Muslim world, the Qur’an is read in Arabic on Fridays. The “khutbas” in the mosques are then proclaimed in a local language, but never without the use of many Arabic terms!

When we read the NT epistles, we should notice how Paul, having organized converts into Christian churches, expected all new believers (whether Jewish or Gentile) to appropriate the Redemptive History of the OT, in order to fully understand their new status as NT believers.

The First Letter to the Corinthians is a good example. In Chapters I & II, Paul dealt with both the Jewish and Gentile objections to the Cross, and he did that in the same breath!

Then, in Chapter 10:1, he included all members of the church (both Jews and Gentiles) in the statement: “Fa’inni lastu uridu ayyuha’l ikhwa an tajhalu anna ‘aba-ana jami’uhom kano tahta as-sahaba, etc.” (Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; etc.”

Paul did not hesitate to tell those non-Jewish background-believers that the Israelites of the Old Testament, who went through the Red Sea, were their fathers. Of course, he did not mean physically, but spiritually. When non-Jewish people joined the Church, an important part of the heritage they appropriated was the OT. That included learning the language and phraseology of the Septuagint.

Michael Green in his book, Evangelism in the Early Church, made the statement that ran like this: “Paul’s work of missions would have been impossible without the dispersion of the Jews and the translation of the OT into Greek.” Sometimes Paul did his own direct translation from the Hebrew text, but most of the time, he used the LXX, regardless of the audience. He preached the Christ of the OT who, in the fullness of time, had come, and fulfilled the promises of God. See Romans 10 for an example of Paul’s missionary use of the Old Testament.

I wonder how many of the modern exponents of new Bible translations are church-committed and church-related! Even the Bible Societies have become detached from the Church, and quite often act as free-enterprise organizations. Other groups that have sponsored translations seem to have little connection with a confessional Church. While relying for the finances of their organizations on the various churches, the same organizations act independently from the long-standing heritage of the church. As absolutely necessary as the Bible is for missions, no Bible translation by itself can and will accomplish the missionary task of the Church. The Bible we love and cherish must be proclaimed.

As Paul put it in I Corinthians 1:21, “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching (kerugmatos) to save them that believe.” And let’s never forget the fundamental role of proclamation that Paul ascribed to the hearing of the Gospel. “So then, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (ara e pistis ex akoes, e de akoe dia ‘rematos Xristou.” (Romans 10:17) Let’s never divorce the written Word of God from the Church of the living God, “the pillar and ground of the truth.” (I Timothy 3:15b)

Finally, I would like to share these few words from F. F. Bruce’s book, Tradition, Old & New, Published in 1970 by the Paternoster Press, 3 Mount Radford Crescent,

Exeter, Devon EX2 4JW, England.

“Hold fast to the traditions,’ wrote Paul to the Christians in Corinth. Yet one would regard freedom from any kind of tradition as the sign of spiritual maturity and emancipation. That is because of the mistaken idea that tradition is always bad, and this book is a valuable corrective of that idea. In it Prof. Bruce examines the part that tradition has played in Biblical interpretation, in theology, in creeds, in Christian education and particularly in church life and organization.” A quote from the inside jacket of the book.

“Yet the living tradition, the community of Christian life, is indispensable. Without it, Scripture would have had no context. If we would suppose that the church had been wiped out in the Diocletianic persecution and the church’s scripture lost, to be rediscovered in our own day like the Dead Sea Scrolls, would the rediscovered scriptures once more have the effect which we know them to have in experience, or would they, like the Scrolls, be an archeological curiosity and a subject of historical debate?”

“On the other hand, the living tradition without the constant corrective of Scripture, (or, in more modern language, without the possibility of ‘reformation according to the Word of God’), might have developed out of all recognition if it had not indeed slowly faded and died.” Page 128

“And for the Christian, history is the arena of the witness of the Spirit, by whose vital presence the once-for-all act of God which launched the Christian era and is documented in the New Testament retains its dynamism from generation to generation and is effective in human life today.

“The history of Christian beginnings inevitably takes on fresh significance as it is reapplied and reinterpreted in the experience of successive generations that receive it as their heritage. Thus it remains potent and relevant. But it is necessary that the history as received should be checked from time to time against the history ‘as it actually occurred’, lest the two should part company irretrievably.” Pages 172,173

Posted in Articles

The West Needs Clarity, not Confusion About Islam

May 04, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

The West Needs Clarity, not Confusion About Islam

Bassam Michael Madany

Hardly a day goes by without the news media reporting about the unrest and civil wars going on in parts of the Muslim world. For example, recently headlines in Western newspapers reported about Iran’s “Second Front Along Israel’s Borders.” Another headline referred to “Iraq Struggles to Contain Protests Against the Government;” and a third one referred to “U.S. Officials Are Worried About Turkey’s Forays into Syria.” Throughout September 2019, Algerians kept up their weekly demonstrations against the military regime.

As a considerable number of Muslims now live in Western Europe, the Americas, and Australia, one can hardly need to emphasize the necessity of having a clear and accurate understanding of Islam. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the case. In the September 25, 2019 issue of Crisis Magazine William Kilpatrick posted an article entitled “Pope Francis Doesn’t Understand Islam”.

Following are excerpts from the article which explain the misunderstandings.

“What apparently rankles [Pope Francis] most are Catholic claims to exclusivity. For example, the belief that all men are saved through Christ can be looked upon as an impediment to interreligious harmony. Francis believes that all religions have “shared beliefs.” A good example is the Abu Dhabi Declaration on “Human Fraternity” signed by Pope Francis and Amhad Al-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, in February 2019. “Of particular concern is the statement that “the pluralism and the diversity of religions… are willed by God.” That’s quite a concession for Francis to make, as it contradicts Christ’s claim that “I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but by me.” (Jn. 14:6).

“Contrary to the evidence, the Declaration assumes that the one common religion already exists in nascent form, and that the teachings and values of all religions are essentially the same. Thus, “the values of tolerance and fraternity… are promoted and encouraged by religions.” And, therefore: “These tragic realities [hate, extremism, and violence] are the consequence of a deviation from religious teachings.” Terrorism for example, “is not due to religion… it is due rather to an accumulation of incorrect interpretations of religious texts.

“Pope Francis and other Catholic apologists for Islam claim that terrorist leaders simply misunderstand Islam. If that’s the case, then the very first person to misunderstand Islam was Muhammad himself, who commanded that the hand of a thief be cut off. The Life of Muhammad—which, after the Koran and the Hadith, is considered the most important source of Islamic truths—is essentially a record of Muhammad’s jihadist exploits. Approximately two-thirds of its 800 pages detail Muhammad’s jihad raids, his beheading of captured prisoners, his slave trading, his endorsement of rape and sex slavery, and his use of torture.

“Al-Tayeb doesn’t misunderstand Islam, though Francis appears to. He must be acquainted with the darker aspects of Islam, and yet he seems sure that they have nothing to do with “true” Islam. Catholics are already badly misinformed about Islam. The Abu Dhabi statement, once it is widely disseminated, will only serve to reinforce their naïveté. That, in turn, will leave them unprepared for the next step in what has become a predictable progression.

“The next step is Islamization. That’s not a word one hears very often, especially in polite Catholic circles. But some Catholics can’t afford to be polite. Fr. Valentine Obinna told Crux that, in Nigeria, Fulani Muslims killed almost 9,000 Christians and other non-Muslims in a recent three-year period, as part of a program for the “Islamization of Nigeria.” President Buhari and those in power turn a blind eye to the activities of the Fulani and Boko Haram, he said, because they “want to make sure the whole country becomes a Muslim country.”

Professor Kilpatrick’s article reveals the unfortunate fact that Pope Francis did not exhibit an accurate knowledge of Islam by issuing that joint statement with The Grand Imam of Al Azhar in February 2019. Neither did he follow Catholic teaching regarding the exclusivity of salvation by Christ alone. It is a theological compromise of the first order.

Here is some of the language of the statement:

”This Declaration may constitute an invitation to reconciliation and fraternity among all believers, indeed among believers and non-believers, and among all people of good will; This Declaration may be an appeal to every upright conscience that rejects deplorable violence and blind extremism; an appeal to those who cherish the values of tolerance and fraternity that are promoted and encouraged by religions; This Declaration may be a witness to the greatness of faith in God that unites divided hearts and elevates the human soul;

“This Declaration may be a sign of the closeness between East and West, between North and South, and between all who believe that God has created us to understand one another, cooperate with one another and live as brothers and sisters who love one another. This is what we hope and seek to achieve with the aim of finding a universal peace that all can enjoy in this life.”

The rest of the statement has an appealing, positive, tolerant ring to it. However, the statement neglected to bring up any negative ideas that might have put a damper on the feelings of good will between the Pontiff and the Imam. The Pontiff conveniently chose not to bring up the evil treatment of Jews and Christians by Muslims in the lands they conquered and then imposed Islam on its inhabitants. Neither did the Pontiff bring into the discussion the sufferings of Nigerian Christians in recent years. or the plight of Iraqi Christians in the backyard of the UAE, who had lived for two millennia in Iraq, and have now been forced to leave their homeland. Their number has dwindled from 2 million prior to 2003, to around 200,000!

At this point, it’s important to add that previous statements and documents of the Catholic Church revealed serious misunderstanding of Islam. The pronouncements of the Second Vatican Council 1962 – 1965, as well as the The Catechism of the Catholic Church, promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 make it clear. “. . . the plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place among whom are the Muslims: these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.” So, the concept of there being “Three Abrahamic Religions.” was accepted. The conclusion was that the three theistic faiths, have one spiritual ancestor; and, notwithstanding some differences in details, Jews, Christians, and Muslims, worship the same God.

It is important to realize that the term, “The Three Abrahamic Religions” is of recent origin and is used mostly among English-speaking people. Before it became popular, the exact designation was the “Three Theistic Religions;” which set Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, apart from the Asiatic faiths, which are, either polytheistic, or pantheistic. Nowadays, thanks to the momentous changes that have taken place in communications, brought about by the Internet, it is possible to consult some Arab scholars about their views regarding the “Three Abrahamic Religions.”

According to the works of Hamed Abdel-Samadi , a political scientist, and his colleague, Professor Muhammad al-Musayehii , a Moroccan expert on Islamic History, and the manuscripts of the Qur’an, there is no mention of the existence of Mecca, prior to the Third Century A.D!

The Mecca that existed in Muhammad’s days, was not there in Abraham’s time.iiiBoth Hamed Abdel-Samad and Muhammad al Musayeh, have discussed this subject at length. Their opinion is that the Prophet Muhammad invented the account that Abraham, accompanied by Hagar and Ishmael, came to Mecca, and built the Kaaba.

Even if Mecca had existed 1800 years B. C., Abraham, a very old person, couldn’t have made the arduous journey of 1200 kilometers, from Hebron to Mecca, with Hagar and her young son. The Genesis narrative makes sense, since a move of 150 km., from Hebron to Paran, where Hagar and Ishmael settled, was both possible and practical.

When Christians accept the thesis of the ‘Three Abrahamic Faiths,’ they give credence to an unsubstantiated myth, namely that Abraham was the father of the Arabs, as well as the spiritual ancestor of Muslims. The scholars above have debunked this theory as well as the one that Abraham went to Mecca with Ishmael and Hagar and built the Kaaba.

The Biblical account relates the facts of history, and its teachings are normative for Christians. It leaves no grounds for the claims of the Roman Catholic Church regarding similarities between the major teachings of Christianity and Islam. It is enough to compare Surah 112 in the Qur’an with the basic teachings of the historic Christian faith, to realize how utterly different they are!

“Say: He is Allah, the One and Only; Allah, the Eternal, the Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; And there is none like unto Him.” Translation of Yusuf Ali.


Christians approach God with this Invocation: “In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God, Amen.


[Among Eastern Christians, the words ‘One God’ are added to emphasize that Christians worship One God, in Three Persons.]

_______________________________

iHamed Abdel-Samad is a German-Egyptian political scientist and author. He was born as the third of five children, the son of a Muslim Sunni Imam. He came to Germany in 1995 at the age of 23. Abdel-Samad studied Japanese, English and French in Cairo as well as political science in Augsburg. He worked as a scholar in Erfurt and Braunschweig. He taught and conducted research until the end of 2009, at the Institute for Jewish History and Culture at the University of Munich; his dissertation topic was: “Bild der Juden in ägyptischen Schulbüchern.” “Image of Jews in Egyptian textbooks.” Subsequently he decided to become a full-time professional writer. His works have been printed in German, Arabic, English, and in French. His lectures are archived on YouTube.


iiProfessor Muhammad al-Musayeh, is a Moroccan scholar, specialized in the Qur’anic manuscripts; he worked with the German expert on the Qur’an, Christof Luxemburg; In this dialogue with Abdel-Samad, we learn about the various manuscripts of the Qur’an. http://ar.le360.ma/culture/103741


iiiHamed Abdel Samad & Professor Muhammad al-Musayeh on the History of Mecca, Sunduq al-Islam #101

https://binged.it/2q7ei9m


The Catechism of the Catholic Church (Latin: Catechismus Catholicae Ecclesiae; commonly called the Catechism or the CCC) is a catechism promulgated for the Catholic Church by Pope John Paul II in 1992


http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/ecumenical-and-interreligious/interreligious/islam/vatican-council-and-papal-statements-on-islam.cfm

Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium 16, November 21, 1964“But the plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place among whom are the Muslims: these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.”

Note: For a commentary on Pope Francis and his visit to the Arabian Gulf states, please read: Graeme Wood’s article of 6 February 2019 on, The Vatican and the Gulf Have a Common Enemy.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/why-pope-francis-visiting-united-arab-emirates/582088/

Posted in Articles

Karl Barth Interpreted by Pierre Courthial

May 04, 2023
By Karl Barth Interpreted by Pierre Courthial.  Introduction by Bassam Michael Madany     

Karl Barth Interpreted by Pierre Courthial

                                          Introduction by Bassam Michael Madany                   

My formal theological education took place at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1950-1953) and at Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan (1957-1958)

In the Providence of God, I was mentored by Dr. Pierre Ch. MARCEL, a minister of the Reformed Churches of France. Dr. MARCEL edited the Quarterly La Revue Reformée, that published articles by French scholars of the Reformed tradition. Dr. Marcel sent me several of his works, Le Baptême: Sacrement de l’Alliance de Grace; L’Actualité de la Prédication; A L’Ecole du Dieu; as well as some of his private papers.

Dr. Pierre COURTHIAL, a colleague of Dr. MARCEL, was a frequent contributor to La Revue Reformée. He devoted a series of articles on “Karl Barth and the Reformed Confessions of Faith.”

The following is a summary of the series, I have translated from the French text.

What is the theological importance of Karl Barth?

I think that Karl Barth did have a considerable theological importance, especially during the 1930’s. However, for many this temporary importance was a fad that rested on a misunderstanding that Barth had actually led a powerful revival of the Reformed Faith.

Nowadays it has become clear, as some Reformed theologians had quickly discerned (Such as Berkouwer and Schilder, in the Netherlands; Van Til in the United States), that Barth’s theology, far from being Reformed, was an obstacle to it. In France, and in the French-speaking parts of Switzerland, many who had rediscovered the Reformed Faith, (due to the teaching and the radiant personality of August LECERF), were led astray by Barth’s theology, during their quest for the renewal of the authentic Reformed Faith. Alas!                                              

                                                                                    

How should we compare Barth with the old liberalism and with recent theologies?

During the 1930s, Barth was considered as the matador who would yield the deathblow to the old liberalism. What an illusion!  Barth’s thought manifested a type of a new liberalism.    

What are the differences between Calvin and Barth?

I would rather deal with the differences between the Reformers (and the Confessions of Faith of the Reformation) and Karl Barth. The differences are considerable with respect to most of the fundamental theological points: Creation and Providence; Christology; Sin, Grace, Election; the Place and Importance of the Law of God, etc.

Does Barth’s theology represent the Reformed heritage?                                                                           

Definitely not. After a quarter of a century during which Barth, while not yet Reformed, seemed to be getting closer to the Reformed Faith (as it appeared in the February 1935 Preface to a new edition of Heinrich Heppe’s “Reformierte Dogmatik,”) he began to depart further from the Reformed Faith, with the approach of the Second World War.

Was that due to the different epistemologies?

Here I must take some time to develop my response. According to our Confessions of Faith which follow the Holy Scriptures, God makes Himself known to us in two ways: first by His works of Creation and in the Government of all things, and in us as bearers of His image; secondly in Jesus of Nazareth, the Incarnate Word of God, and in the Bible, the written Word of God. None of these diverse forms of revelation “function” without the other ones. The Revelation of God is unique and trinitarian, therefore in itself, one and multiple.

From the standpoint of God, the Holy Scriptures, as one of these forms of Revelation, hold a preeminent and specific role for us. First, they enable us to know the One Who saves us, and how He saves us. He controls all the aspects of our existence, both personal and social. In them, we find not only the Gospel of Grace, but the Law, to guide us and grant the capacity to receive the Good News. It is the Holy Spirit who works with and through the Scriptures, enabling us to live the New Life. The Holy Scriptures have a divine authority, over the Holy Church and over all men (in the diverse aspects of their personal, conjugal, family, civic, scientific, philosophical, artistic, and cultural lives.)

According to the normative teaching of the Bible, of the Reformers, and the Confessions of Faith of the 16th and 17th centuries, the Holy Scriptures are the written Word of God. On the other hand, according to Karl Barth, there is no such thing as a direct Word of God, and since the Holy Scriptures are also human, they remain “vulnerable,” and contain “contradictions,” even in their religious and theological affirmations. For Barth, the Bible is not the Word of God until it becomes such in an existential encounter. It is at this point that we find the “activism” or the “actualism” of Barth. He opposed any idea of a direct revelation of God in history, in the name of God’s liberty. For Barth, God cannot be known except by God Himself; and God does not have the liberty to be known directly by faith, in the Christ of Scriptures.

The Reformers (and the Confessions of Faith of the Reformation) are in complete agreement with the Fathers of the Christian Church (and the Ecumenical Creeds) on this point, namely in establishing the true Faith on the objective historical Revelation (as centered in the Virgin birth, life, death on the cross, the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ) as based on the interpretation of this history by Christ, speaking by His Spirit, in the Holy Scriptures. It is only by the recognition of the supreme and final authority of the written Word of God, that we can establish a solid epistemology, considering the Biblical motif of Creation-Fall-Redemption.

What do you think of Karl Barth’s “Christo-centrism” that has been considered as his point of departure?

Now, had Barth only developed a Biblical “Christo-centrism,” we would have nothing to object about. The universe is Christocentric, the Bible is Christocentric, in fact Christ is the center of all things. However, Barth has developed what has been justly called a type of Christomonism. According to him, God’s revelation is found uniquely in the person and work of Jesus Christ, during the first thirty years of the First Century. Barth posits a distinction between the term “history” (as Historie in German) and “History” (as Geschichte in German.)

It is precisely Barth’s Christomonism that leads him to reject God’s general revelation in His works, and in the persons that God has created and sovereignly governs, and the revelation of the Holy Scriptures. According to Barth, the Bible is a witness, but a fallible witness, to the revelation. 

Since Christ is the only Savior (and according to Barth, the Savior of all men, just as they are all rejected in Adam, and equally all are saved in Jesus Christ, whether they are believers or non-believers,) Barth wants also Christ to be the only and exclusive Revelation of God.

In your opinion, does Barth replace the objective Biblical Revelation, with a subjective faith?

It is rather curious and symptomatic that Barth published the German edition of his Dogmatics as Kirchliche Dogmatik (Church Dogmatics) as if by this audacious title, he would forestall the accusation of subjectivism. In fact, if Barth’s Dogmatics expose a brilliant thought (as Origen’s thought was in the third century), it carries an undeniable speculative character. The old Liberalism opposed the Spirit against the text of Scripture. The new Liberalism opposes “the movement or march of Scripture” to the text of Scripture. We face this question: once the Scripture is detached from its text, from which “spirit” are we to receive this movement?  

Starting with Barth’s open breach with the historic doctrine of Scripture, several non-Reformed theologies would ensue. Already during his lifetime there were as many diverse theologies as there were Barthians; with Barth himself being the least “non-Reformed” of them all!

Despite its systematic character, did Barth’s theology lead to the development of Pluralism?

For me, it is undeniable, and it is exactly what I have been saying. Up to the rise of Liberalism, both “old” and “new,” the Holy Scripture had been received by the Churches as the very Word of God.  Its authority was unquestioned and sovereign. But as soon as the Bible was regarded merely as a human and fallible “testimony,” the Bible was no longer the Word of God. There would be no escape from the pluralism of canons within the canon, and diverse types of hierarchizations in the Biblical message. There can no longer be a common Confession of Faith, but pluralist declarations of faith, where any person would have the choice to adhere to this or that declaration, if one does not adhere to the letter of its formulations!

The Ecumenical Councils of the early Church and the synods of the churches of the Reformation were able to formulate confessions of faith, because they were willing to submit to the clear and precise authority of the Scripture as the word of God.

Karl Barth and the New Liberalism join Schleiermacher and the Old Liberalism. The doctrine of Pluralism requires the rejection of all Church doctrines, and of every real Church Confession of Faith.

There remains an urgent need for the proclamation of the Christian (and Biblical) faith by the confessing Reformed Churches of the future, in harmony with the confessions of the Early Church, and of the Churches of the Reformation.

[1] La Revue réformée, 147 (1986 : 4), 134-138.

[2] Cf. le témoignage d’Albert-Marie Schmidt in Etudes sur Calvin et le calvinisme (Paris : Fischbacher, 1935), 210.

[3] In La théologie protestante au dix-neuvième siècle (Genève : Labor, 1969), 234.

https://larevuereformee.net/articlerr/n253/entretien-sur-karl-barth-1886-1968-1986

Posted on 10 May 2019

Posted in Articles

Review of the Arabic Text of MT. SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151

May 04, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Review of the Arabic Text of MT. SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151

Bassam Michael Madany

INTRODUCTION

At the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, in the wilderness that separates Egypt from Israel, there is an ancient monastery, St. Catherine's.  Its library contains thousands of precious manuscripts, all waiting to be explored.  One important manuscript is MT SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151. It has been microfilmed by a team of experts and is available at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

When Dr. Harvey Staal, a Reformed Church missionary in the Middle East, was taking advanced Arabic at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, one of his professors was Dr. Aziz Suriyal Atiya. Prof. Atiya was closely associated with the microfilming of the manuscripts, which was completed in the 1950s. Sensing that he had a potential scholar on his hands, Prof. Atiya encouraged Harvey Staal to work on the Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151.

Thus, began a lifetime project which culminated in the publication in 1985 of the manuscript in a two-volume work (English and Arabic).  Printed in Louvain, Belgium, the new volumes are part of a renowned series of Christian Oriental texts. This impressive and masterly work covered 1,800 pages of typed manuscript, and the final proof reading was done in Beirut, during the Civil War.

The Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151 was indeed a most exciting discovery.  It appears to be the oldest Arabic translation of the New Testament in existence.  The original manuscript was completed in Damascus, Syria, around 1000 years before the Smith/Van Dyck translation of the Bible appeared in Beirut in 1865.  Codex 151 consists of the Book of Acts, the Pauline and the General Epistles.

The translator was Bishr Ibn Al Sirri, an Eastern Christian living in Damascus, whose work was done about 200 years after the Arab conquest of the Middle East. Al Sirri chose to start the translation with Romans. 

In his introduction to the English translation of Codex 151, Dr. Staal makes the following observation:

“This has been a most interesting, inspiring, and profitable study, especially from two aspects—word study and interpretation.  There are several translations of individual words that add additional insight to our understanding of some of our basic Christian concepts.  It is also most interesting to read the comments made by Middle Eastern Christians of a thousand years ago, reflecting the theology of people from a cultural background very similar to that of our Lord.  We trust that some of this will carry over to you in the English translation.”
There is something mysterious and exciting about the desert monastery of St. Catherine.  When Dr. Staal visited there, he discovered that Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151 was a fascinating bound book of a large size, with a remarkable cover of wood and leather.  You could imagine, looking at it, that it was certainly one of a kind (perhaps the only Bible in Damascus in A.D. 867).

Those indeed were troubled times in the Middle East. The Mongolians who captured Baghdad in 1258, continued their march westward, causing great alarm in Syria.This manuscript probably was taken and deposited for safekeeping at the Monastery. As far as we know, it remained untouched until the microfilming in the 1950s.

Dr. Staal did not have to walk to St. Catherine's monastery. He flew to a small airstrip nearby.  He was able to spend five memorable days there after completing his work on microfilming copies of the manuscript.  What a thrill to see and touch and photograph the manuscript itself!

Dr. Staal recalls that he needed two hours to decipher just two lines when he first started on Philippians.  It was like working with a code. The dots, which ordinarily distinguish various letters of the Arabic alphabet, were omitted.  Evidently, they were not considered necessary for people educated enough to read the Bible!

For an example, consider that one particular mark ("stroke" in Arabic) like the bottom half of a circle could be taken for the letter "n", "b", "t", "th", or "y" according to where the dots were placed.  The translation work became easier only after Harvey became completely familiar with Al Sirri's script.  He spoke with great appreciation of the invaluable help of Dr. Jibrail S. Jabbur, of the American University of Beirut, who joined him in the labor of proofreading every word.  Dr. Jabbur was able to help him greatly with some almost undecipherable words.

For personal Bible study, Dr. Staal's English translation of this ancient manuscript would provide many new insights.  It simply is a literal translation of the Arabic text.  Here you have an interpretation of various passages of Scripture by a Christian of the 9th century A.D.  The translation into Arabic was made from the Aramaic (Syriac,) a language in common use in the Middle East for over 1000 years.

Al Sirri manuscript from A.D. 867 takes on immense importance.  It helps everyone to understand the tremendous roots of Middle Eastern Christianity. Thoughts of Eastern Christians living under Islamic rule can be gleaned from the comments on the NT passages in the footnotes It should be a boost to the self-image of Eastern Christians as they face tremendous problems, especially in Syria, where the Civil War has been going on unabated, since March 2011! 

I would like to pay special tributes to both the late Dr. Aziz Suriyal Atiya, and to my late colleague, Dr. Harvey Staal, whose contributions to the field of Biblical Studies are invaluable. 

For those of us, Arabic-speaking Eastern Christians, we are grateful to the Lord God who called these men to labor in their specialized fields of research and crowned their efforts with the discovery of Codex 151. Our ancestors Arabized but did not Islamize. They remained faithful to their Christian faith. As Dhimmis, they endured persecution and marginalization; but in due time, they played a major role in the Arab Renaissance of the 19th century. For the sake of brevity, we refer to the Arabic translation of the Bible as the “Smith-Van Dyck” translation; we should add the names of their Lebanese colleagues, Bustani and Yazigi!

During the spring of 1986, my wife Shirley and I were in Cyprus. Harvey and Hilda Staal had moved there from Beirut, where the Civil War was raging. One evening, while visiting the Staal’s, I received with joy the Arabic version and its English translation of MT. SINAI ARABIC CODEX 151. 

In this review, I propose to deal with the following subjects:   
                                        
The Arabic language in the 9th century, in comparison with contemporaneous Arabic, similarities and differences. 

The theology of Eastern Christianity, as revealed in Codex 151

The Value of the Syriac text of Codex 151, used by Al Sirri

The Arabic language in the 9th century, in comparison with today’s Arabic, similarities and differences. 

Unlike English and French, the two European languages I’m conversant with, the written Arabic language (known as Classical Arabic) retains a quality that “immunizes” it against obsolescence. 

For example, as I began reading Romans 1 in Codex 151, I did not encounter an archaic Arabic text, even though it differed from the Smith-Van Dyck translation that I have known since my earliest days. This may be explained by the fact that Classical Arabic is anchored to the language of the Qur’an, the first Arabic book in history. This is not to imply that the Arabic language hasn’t changed over the years. The style has changed greatly in comparison with that of the 19th century. Arabic has acquired a tremendous amount of new vocabulary throughout the 20th and early 21st  centuries. Still, it retains the quality of absorbing new terms, without making earlier words obsolete.

Thus, Arabic differs from the English language where the works of Chaucer are not readily understood and require “interpretation” by experts like the late C.S. Lewis. Another example would be The Song of Roland, that was written in Anglo-Norman, about Charlemagne’s nephew Roland, who was killed at Roncevaux; after returning from a battle against the Saracens in Spain. When I was studying French literature in the 1940s, the text of the epic required a translation into French, so that we could understand it.

An equally important fact revealed by the language of Codex 151, is the approximate date for the Arabicization of the Christians in Syria and Mesopotamia. Within 200 years after the Arab-Islamic Futuhat (Conquests), Christians began to use Arabic as their daily language, giving the impetus for translating the Scriptures into Arabic.

As Sidney H. Griffith put it in his book, “The Bible in Arabic: The Scriptures of the 'People of the Book' in the Language of Islami.

“By the ninth century in the Melkite community, it would seem that Arabic had already effectively replaced Greek for a century and more as the preferred ecclesiastical language from Alexandria in Egypt, to Jerusalem in Palestine, and even reaching to Antioch in Syria. Indeed, Jerusalem became the effective ecclesiastical center for the Arabic-speaking, Melkite church throughout the Oriental churches” ii

“It is notable that a Christian copyist working in Damascus in the middle of the ninth Christian century is already dating his text, a text obviously intended for Christian readers, according to the Islamic calendar, with no corresponding Christian dating. This usage bespeaks an already high degree of enculturation into the prevailing, public conventions of the World of Islam on the part of Arabic-speaking Christians in this milieu.”  iii
 

The theology of Eastern Christianity, as revealed in Codex 151; and Comparisons of Codex 151 with the Smith-Van Dyck translation. 

By reading the comments on the Biblical texts, we learn about the Evangelical beliefs of the Christians in Syria. 

Beginning with the Letter to the Romans, the translator underlined the man’s inability to please God by his own efforts. He comments, “It is necessary for every person to believe in Christ in order to be saved from that punishment.” Romans 2

Commenting on Romans 3:19, “Since we have demonstrated from the Torah itself that is not possible for man to justify himself by works, therefore he is forced to the righteousness which is from faith.”

Therefore, the greatness of the benefit of the righteousness of faith has been demonstrated and Christ was the reason for that. Then let us remain in nearness and fellowship to God; and his sure word indicated this. Romans 5:1

Romans 5:8 is translated, “Christ died in our place (or as our substitute)” is better than “on our behalf.” of the SVD (Smith/Van Dyck) translation.

Another example of the translator’s theological position, is his comment on Romans 7:12 “The Law then is pure, and the commandment is pure, just, righteous.”

He desires to show the weakness of the Torah in order that the power of the Gospel may be known. That is, it has made me see good from evil, but it did not make me free, but I am like a slave to sin. It did not make me free from sin, as Christ will make me in the hereafter.

Having mentioned Al-Sirri’s Evangelical belief, his comment on Romans 8:1, manifests a serious flaw in the Anthropology of the Eastern Churches, namely the dichotomy between “soul” and “body”, implying that while the body was impacted by the Fall, the soul remained untouched and can obey the Law. 

There is therefore no condemnation to those who do not walk in the body, in Jesus Christ.” 8:1

He says, then if it is demonstrated that the soul chooses to follow the law of God, and the body is prevented from that through sin, then by necessity there is a need for the coming of Christ who saves us from all of that by our faith in him.

The comments on Romans 9 -11, clearly indicate that the Eastern Churches differed from the Augustinian heritage, by positing that Election was based on God’s foreknowledge, and of those deemed worthy of this favor.

This is not all, but regarding Rebecca also, after intercourse with our father Isaac, before she gave birth to her two sons, and before the two of them did either good or bad, the choice of God was known beforehand in order to establish that it is not by works but by the One who appointed, because it was said that the older would be a slave to the younger, just as it is written, ‘Verily I love Jacob and I Hated Esau.’” 9:10-13
 
Comment:
It demonstrated that in order to teach you that God does not follow the arrangement of the essence [the order of nature], but he chooses for his character him who is worthy of his choice in accordance with what he knows about him beforehand.
 
Then what shall we say now? Perhaps there is injustice with God? Far be it from that! Behold he also said to Moses, ‘I will mercy on whom I have mercy, upon whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion upon whom I have compassion.’ Nor is the matter  therefore in the two hands of him who wishes, nor in the two hands of him who strives, but in the two hands of the merciful God, because in the book he said to Pharaoh, ‘Verily I have raised you up for this, in order to show my power to you and in order that my name may be proclaimed in all of the earth.’ Then he therefore has mercy upon whom he wills and makes it difficult for whom he wills.” 9:14-18
 
Comment:
He says, Verily I said this to demonstrate that God does not follow the arrangement of nature, but by his grace he chooses those who are worthy. No one thinking [reasonable person] can say regarding me that I say the choice of God is foolish, or that is tyrannical. 

Let every soul be subject to the higher authorities, because there is no authority that is not from God.” Romans.” 13:1

Comment:
Many who became Christians and renounced the world, were thinking that it was not necessary to honor leaders, but it was necessary to hate them just as it was necessary to hate evil ones. The blessed Paul wanted to turn them aside, back from this idea, and teach them the place of authority in the world.

Codex 151 is more precise in its translation of certain Arabic words, such as in I Corinthians 2:16, “However, we verily have the mind of Christ.” 

The term ’Aql, (Mind) in this translation, is more accurate than فِكْر, Fikr (Thought) used in SVD.
  
Codex 151 translates I Cor. 6:12. “Verily, everything is permissible for me, but not everything benefits me,” is clearer and better than “agreeable to me” in SVD.
                            
It’s noteworthy that In the comments of Codex 151, the formulation of the doctrines of the Holy Trinity and of the Person of Jesus Christ, are in conformity with the Nicene Creed as interpreted at the Chalcedonian Council. While there is no direct reference to the Ecumenical Creeds, Arianism is mentioned as a heresy.

Still for us God the Father is one, from whom is everything. We are in him. The Lord Jesus Christ is one, by whose hand are all things. We also are by his hand.” I Cor 8:6

Comment: 
That is that divinity, creation, lordship, and control are common to the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, to show the unity of God, because whoever is truly a lord is truly a god. And whoever is truly a god is truly a lord. In the name “Jesus Christ” there is an indication of the divinity and the humanity, because it indicates the person whom he took, and the Spirit who anointed him, and the Eternal Son who dwelt in him and was united with him, who is the Son of the Father.

Look at Israel which is according to the body.” I Cor 10:18

Comment: 
That is the physical Israel, that is the Jews, because the Israel of God is spiritual, that is, the Christians.

I have received from our Lord the thing I have instructed you.” I Cor 11:23

Comment:
That is in the four sections of the Gospel.

Note
The reference to the four-fold Gospel indicates that the translation of the NT books had been accomplished, even though Codex 151 includes only the Acts and the Epistles.

However, my brethren, regarding the spiritual things,” I Cor 12:1

Comment:
In the beginning of the matter of Chrsitianity, many of the believers were given spiritual gifts. Some of them prophesied concerning the matters that were coming. Some of them spoke in languages which they did not know previously. Some of them were given other gifts.

May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen” II Cor 13:14

Comment:
This petition is according to the custom at the end of his letters. He did not want to make a distinction in separating these terms, but he meant, may there be to you the grace, love, and fellowship in Christ the Son, God the Father, and the Holy Spirit. That is a definite reply to the followers of Arius, who argue that the Father is the Creator, and the Son is created, because the Father precedes in the arrangement. Behold, Paul has arranged the name of the Son before the name of the Father, to indicate that the essence of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is one. Putting the name first or last does not indicate a difference in the essence. Then Paul says, “Since you have been made worthy of the grace of God, you have been given Paradise in love, and you have received acceptance and fellowship with him.”

Galatians

In the Introduction to the Epistle to the Galatians, we notice the use of the Arabic term nazala i.e. descended, indicating that this Islamic concept of revelation was current among the Eastern Christians in Syria. Nowadays, Arabic-speaking Christians use the term wahi (inspired) as in II Timothy 3:16 كُلُّ الْكِتَابِ هُوَ مُوحًى بِهِ مِنَ اللهِ
 
Or, as in II Peter 21: 16b, the term is masuqeen (moved) بَلْ تَكَلَّمَ أُنَاسُ اللهِ الْقِدِّيسُونَ مَسُوقِينَ مِنَ الرُّوحِ الْقُدُسِ.

In the translation of Gal. 3:24 regarding the role of the Law, “Therefore, the Torah was for us a guide to Christ, in order that we may be made righteous from faith,” the term ‘daleel ‘(guide) is clearer than ‘muaddeb’ (pedagogue) used in SVD translation.

Philippians

Think this concerning yourselves, that which Jesus also thought, that one who, although he was in the likeness of God, did not count it stealing that he was equal with God; but he made himself destitute, took the likeness (form) of the servant, became in the likeness of mankind, and in form he was found as a man. He humbled himself and obeyed until death; however, the death was that of the cross. For this reason, God also exalted his standing, and gave him a name superior to every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven, in earth, and under the earth; and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, in praise God his Father.” 2:5-11 

Comment:
Christ did not consider himself great because he was God, the Creator of everything, and he was not proud of his majesty, but accepted base matters below his greatness for the benefit of others. Because he was equal to God, he would have been able to use force against death and Satan to save his creation from the opponent; but since he wanted to pay the debt of Adam who desired to become a god, he became a submissive dying slave. Since he was a god by nature and did not take that by stealth or snatching from someone else, for that reason he made himself destitute of glory, because he knew he made himself destitute, no one could steal his greatness from him, because was essential, original, not brought in, borrowed; because submission by will does no harm to natural honor.

Colossians

Codex 151 begins with this brief Introduction explaining that the Judaizers had confused the new believers by teaching that keeping the Law was still a requirement. So, Paul wrote the Letter to remind them to remain faithful to the message of the Gospel that was delivered to them by Epaphras, the trusted emissary.

“[I thank] God the Father who made us worthy to share in the in the inheritance of the saints in light and saved us from the power of darkness. And he brought us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, through whom we have salvation and forgiveness of sins; that one who is the likeness of the unseen God, and the firstborn of all of the creation; by whom everything in heaven and in earth was created, all that is seen and all that is not seen, …everything was created by his hand and in him exists; and he is the head of the body of the congregation (church).” 1:12-18

Comment:
Some of Paul’s words point to the humanity of Christ which is united in the sonship, and some of it points to his divinity. Then his saying, ‘the beloved’ as the Greek text witnesses, points to the fact that we become partners in the humanity of Christ in ruling, as ruling is ours by nature.

First Thessalonians
Our evangelizing with you was not only in words, but also with our hands, and with the Holy Spirit, and with true conviction.” 1:5a

Comment:
In evangelizing you, we did not limit ourselves to speaking alone, but we joined signs and wonders with our words.

I would like you to know, oh my brothers, that concerning those who sleep, do not be mourning like the rest of the people who have no hope; because we who believe that Jesus has died and has been raised, then likewise also God will bring those who are asleep in Jesus with him.” 4:13,14


Comment:
He mentions now the hereafter and the good of the resurrection, and that for this reason excessive mourning was not befitting them. He says, ‘If we truly believe in the resurrection of Christ, then we must believe also that we shall also rise, just as he arose, that we may be with him in his reign.

Second Thessalonians
Then we are requesting of you, oh my brothers, either upon the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, or about being gathered to him, that you do not become quickly disturbed in your thoughts and do not be bewildered neither from a word, nor from a spirit, nor from a letter as if it were from us, alleging that behold the day of our Lord has arrived. Perhaps a person will deceive you with one of these things, because if the rebellion does not come first, and the person of sin appear, the son of destruction, that one who is the stubborn one; and the one who displays an arrogant behavior over everyone who is called a god, and a place of sacrifice, so that he even sits in the temple   God as a god, and thinks of himself as if he is God.” 2:1-4

Comment:
He came now to address them in the matter of the end of the world. He says, “However, do not accept a saying regarding that from one who wishes to deceive you and delude you that the time had come extremely near. Do not accept it from one who alleges that that was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit.

First Timothy

Introduction

The Apostle Paul had left Timothy behind in the city of Ephesus, to tour in all the country of Asia and administer the churches that are in it. Then he wrote him this letter soon after he had left him, to warn the believers lest they be led to those calling for the keeping of the laws of Judaism in Christianity. And after that he counselled him regarding what it was necessary for him to do when he was the director (administrator) of the churches (congregations), and for that reason he added his words regarding all levels [of the congregation] and showed how everyone who considered himself a believer should be. He added what was necessary for the ministers (priests), and what was necessary for the deacons, and for the widows, and for the rest of the people. During that he made mention of faith, because it was appropriate to his teaching, and he did not fail to mention anything in this letter which was for the good of all the public.

And we know that the Torah is good, if the person conducts himself according to the Torah; since we know that the Law was not given for the righteous, but for the wicked.” 1:8, 9a

Comment:
He says ‘I said this saying not because I blame or reject the Torah, but to attach the blame to those who do not use it correctly.

The word is true, that if one desires being a bishop, then he desires a good work, except that it is necessary he be a bishop in whom there is no fault, and was the husband of one wife, whose mind is alert, and he is a chaste, serious, a lover of strangers, a scholar.” 3:1,2

Comment:
“He called being a bishop, a work and not an authority, to reprove the one who uses leadership like the authority of the people of the world. That is, he should not join together two wives or concubines with his wife, like the Jews, nor he should be like the pagans. However, if he married one wife and she died, in the presence of this, he has become in purity, so that the arrangement of the priest shall be higher than the general arrangement.”

Note
The Arabic text and its translation are not clear. Most likely it meant that a bishop (priest) may not remarry after the passing of his wife. It is a tradition that has been followed in the Eastern Churches, both Orthodox and non-Chalcedonian.

“Then, if I am delayed, then you will know how to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the congregation (church) of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth.”   I Timothy 3:15

Comment:
He means by the congregation (church) which is the pillar and foundation of the truth, the group of the believers, because when we are firm in the faith, then the truth is with us, but if we turn into infidelity, then the truth turns away from us, because the knowledge of truth in the world is seen through the believers.

And truly the mystery of this righteous (just) one is great, because he appeared in the body, and was justified in the Spirit, and showed himself to the angels, and was proclaimed among the peoples, and was believed on in the world, and ascended in glory.” I Timothy 3:16

Comment:
He says, “The mystery of our faith is great, that God the Word who is invisible in his essence, dwelt in one of us, and appeared in him to people in order to make all of them alive.”

II Timothy
I am indeed longing for the sight of you. Verily I indeed remember your tears, in order that I may be filled with happiness in the memory I have for your true faith, which dwelt first in Lois, your grandmother, and in your mother Eunice, and I know that is in you also. For this reason, I remind you to wake up the gift of God that is in you by the laying on of my hand, because God did not give us the spirit of fear, but the spirit of power of love and exhortation.” II Timothy 1:4-7

Comment:
That is, it is not necessary for us to be dismayed by what is sent down on us of hardships, because in the grace of the Holy Spirit we have enough to strengthen us and make us firm in the love of God.

Titus
Then when the goodness and mercy of God, who makes us live, appeared, not by works of righteousness  which we did, but by his special mercy, he made us alive by the washing of the birth which was from before, and by the renewal of the Holy Spirit, that which he poured out upon us richly in Jesus Christ, the one who makes us live, that we may be made righteous by his grace Then we are heirs in the hope of eternal life.” 3:4-7

Comment:
That is that we may become righteous by our faith that he pours out upon us of his grace, and we inherit the eternal well-being of the hereafter.

Hebrews
A lengthy introduction explaining the reason for Paul’s omission of his usual salutations

“It was the intention of the Apostle Paul to answer these arguments with abundant wisdom; and he began the opening statement of his letter in answer to the opponents, and showed that Jesus, and not he alone, resembles the prophets, but the honor of his divinity is higher and more honorable without ending though that he was in his humanity while he had fellowship with them in nature. And he began to talk about the two natures as speaking in one aspect. And for that reason, words are found in it which refer to his divinity sometimes, and words in which he refers to his humanity sometimes. And he shows that he is greater than he prophets, and greater than the angels.”

In all sections and in all likenesses, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets previously, and in these last days he spoke to us in his Son whom he made an heir to everything, and in him he created the worlds.” 1:1,2

Comment:
However, with the first people, while the revelation of God was by means of those sections and likenesses, however, in these last times then he has spoken to us in his Son when he became incarnate.

And he made the cleansing of our sins and sat down at the right of Majesty in the heights. And all this is greater than the angels, just as the name of the one who inherits is greater than their name.” 1: 3b,4

Comment:
When he had shown the majesty of his divinity, he went on to mention his humanity, that is the person taken. He says that Christ, after he had suffered, purified our sins.

For this reason, it is necessary for us that we should be increasingly keeping (protecting) that thing which we heard so that we will not fall.” 2:1

Comment:
It is necessary to be on our guard, because if the Torah, which was sent down upon the hands of angels, had reached the place in its power where the one who disobeyed it was not saved from punishment because the punishment was attached to every law in it, if it were not kept; then verily how shall we be able to be saved from punishment, if we approach the matters of Christ with slackness?

Then let us be afraid therefore, lest while the promise to enter into his rest remains firm, there be found one of you who stays away from entering. Because we also have had the gospel preached to us just as those also had it preached to them, but the word which they heard was of no interest to them, because it was not mixed with faith to those who heard it.” 4: 1,2

Comment:
Then if we have heard this saying which David said by the revelation of the Spirit, and have seen what there was of the matter of the first ones and what happened to them, then it is necessary for us to fear lest we, while we were promised entrance into the rest, are lax in our striving; and in the wickedness of our consciences and our lives, we waver between ourselves and entering [i.e. the Rest].

And these, all of them, gave witness by their faith, while the promise was not fulfilled to them; because God had previously looked into our benefit so that they would not be made perfect without us.” 11:39,40

Comment:
He indicated by this saying that the time in which those righteous will be rewarded is one, and that they did all of these matters in faith, and they are still looking forward to the fulfillment of which they were promised, since they are not murmuring about receiving the reward with us, who have come after them by ages. And that, all of it, is an indication of their patience, and calls us to patience, and to imitating them in their striving, in order that we may share with them in paradise.

Colophon

“These letters which are fourteen, have been translated from Syriac into Arabic, and the weak, poor sinner Bishr ibn al-Sirri, has explained their comments as was possible for him, briefly, for his spiritual brother Solomon. And he completed that in the month of Ramadan, of the year two hundred and fifty-three, in the city of Damascus. And praise to God the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever, Amen.”

“May God have mercy upon the one who prays for the translator, the author, and the owner, with mercy and forgiveness.

“Oh Lord, forgive the one who made this book. Amen.”

 

The Book of the Abraksis, the Acts of the Apostles

[There is no Introduction to Acts. Comments begin in Chapter 5]


Then when they brought them, they made all of them stand before the group. Then the high priest began to say to them, ‘did we not strictly command you that you should not teach anyone in this name? Then you, however, then have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you wish to bring upon us the blood of this men. Simon answered with the apostles and said to them, ‘God has priority to be obeyed before people.” 5:27-29

Oh, stubborn (heard-shouldered) ones, and uncircumcised of your hearts and of your ears, you are at all times opposing the Holy Spirit like your fathers, even you also. Then verily which one of the prophets did not your fathers persecute and kill? They killed those who previously prophesied of the coming of the Righteous One, who you surrendered and killed, while you received the law by commandment of the angels and did not keep it. Then when they heard this they were filled with fury in their souls and began to gnash their teeth against him. And he, since he was filled with faith and he Holy Spirit, looked straight into heaven. Then he saw the glory of God and Jesus standing on the right of God.” 7:51-55

Comment:
After that St Stephen made clear that the people have remained rebellious from the time of Moses, and then after Moses they had left the worship of God and worshipped idols, and that it is not a wonder that they now had opposed Christ and crucified him. How beautiful that he now turns his words to reprove them. He says. ‘You at all times are rebels, not wishing to remove the rebellion from your hearts and your hearings. By the Righteous One he means Christ, because he is truly the Righteous One, who makes righteous by faith in him, whoever believes in him.

And then the angel of the Lord spoke to Philip and said to him, ‘Arise and go down to the south in the wilderness road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ Then he arose and went down. Then one eunuch met him who had come from Ethiopia, the agent of Candace, the Queen of Ethiopia, and he was responsible for all her treasury. Then it happened that he had come to pray in Jerusalem. Then, when he was returning on his way back, he was sitting on his chariot and he was reading Isaiah the prophet. Then, the Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go forward and accompany the chariot. Then, when he went forward, he heard him reading Isaiah the prophet. Then he asked him, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’  However, then he said, ‘How am I able to understand if no person makes me understand?’ Then he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. Then, however, the section of the book in which he was reading was this: Like the sheep for slaughter he was led, and like the ewe before the shearers he was silent. And thus, he did not open his mouth. In his humility, from prison and from quarreling he was led, and who will tell of his generation? His life was cut off from the earth.’ Then the eunuch said to Philip, ‘’\I ask you, whom did the prophet mean by this, himself, or another person?

“Then Philip opened his mouth and began from this very book to proclaim to him the matter of our Lord Christ. Then, while the two of them were going on the road, they reached one placed in which there was water. Then the eunuch said, ‘’Behold here is water. Then what hindrance is there for my being baptized?’  Then, he commanded that the chariot be stopped. Then both of them went down to the water and Philip baptized the eunuch. Then, when he went up from the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched up Philip so that the eunuch did not see him again, but he was continuing happily on his way” 8:26-39

 “Then, however Saul still then was filled with menacing and the fury of killing against the disciples of our Lord. And he asked for himself letters from the high priest In order that he might give then to the synagogues in Damascus so that if he found men or women living this way, he might make them prisoners, and take them to Jerusalem.” 9:1,2

Comment:
From here he begins to inform us of the news of Saul. And he describes first his opposition. Then, he follows that with his obedience. And verily he mentioned his opposition to the congregation (church) and his harming it. Then he followed that with his call from heaven, to indicate what the grace of the Spirit did in the administration of salvation to the nations (Gentiles). And that was because while the [Spirit] was able to choose one of those who believe for his work, but because they were still holding fast to the traditions and customs and were setting themselves apart from the nations (Gentiles) [the Spirit] was compelled to choose Saul.

And there were in the congregation (church) of Antioch, prophets and teachers. Barnabas, and Simon who was called Niger, and Lucius who was from the city of Cyrene, and Manean the son of the nursery of Herod the chief of the Quarter, (the tetrarch) and Saul. Then, when they were fasting and making intercession to God, the Holy Spirit said to them, ‘Set apart for me Saul and Barnabas for the work to which I have called them.’ And after they had fasted and prayed, they laid hands upon them and sent the two of them out.” 13: 1-3

Comment: 
From here he informs us about the experience of Saul and Barnabas for the making of the message to the nations (Gentiles) by the revelation of the Holy Spirit. He means by the work that the two of them would be servants entrusted with the proclaiming of the gospel to the nations (Gentiles) for their salivation. 

Then when Paul stood in the Areopagus he said, ‘Oh men Athenians, verily I see you are striving for excellence in your worship of demons in all conditions. And while I was walking around and seeing the houses of your ceremonies, I found one altar upon which was written, To the concealed god. Then that one whom you fear, while not knowing him, this is the one I am preaching to you, because God who created the world and all that is in it, since he is the Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples, the work of hands, and the hands of mankind do not serve him. And he is not in need of a thing, because verily he is the one who gives every person life and soul. And from one blood he create4d all the world of people so that they may be dwelling on the face of all the earth.  …And In this time, he commands all people to repent every person in every place, since he has raised up today the one by whom he is planning to judge all of the earth with justice, at the hand of the man whom he set apart, and to return every person to his faith by raising him from the dead. Then when they heard of the resurrection from the dead, some of them were ridiculing, while some of them were saying, verily we will listen to you about this another time.’ And thus, Paul went out from among them. And people of them joined him and believed. And one of them was Dionysius of the judges of Areopagus and a woman whose name was Damaris, and others with them.” 17:22-26 & 30-34   

Comment: 
St. Ephraim said that it is said severe drought and earthquakes happened in the city of Athens continuously. Then its people agreed to pray every day and offer sacrifices to all their gods. Then when they had completed the sacrificing to all of their gods, upon all of their altars, and did not see a benefit, they tore them down and threw them away, Then they gathered together and pondered and said, may there not be another god than these? Then who is this one that does not stop from agitating us?’ Then they erected an altar and said, This is for the god we do not know.’ And they wrote upon it, ‘To the concealed god.’ That is, to the veiled one. Then the mercy of God was demonstrated to them, and he had mercy on the narrowness of their minds and freed them from their difficulties.

“And from Miletus itself, he [Paul} sent and brought the ministers (priest) of the congregation (church) of Ephesus. Then, when they came to him, he said to them, ‘You know that verily, I from the first day I entered Asia, how I was with you all of the time, while I was worshipping God in great humility and with tears and tr4ials which were stirred up against me by the plots of the Jews. And for what reasons am I rebuked? It was the most fitting thing for your souls that I should proclaim to you while I was teachings it the streets and, in the homes, while I was urging Jews and pagans to repent to God, and faith our Lord Jesus Christ.

“And I am now a captive of the Spirit and am going to Jerusalem while I do not know what thing will come suddenly upon me there, but the Holy Spirit in every city is warning me and saying that bonds and hardships are awaiting me, but my soul is not counted as anything with me in the completion of my striving and the service which I received from the Lord Jesus, in order that I may witness to the Gospel of the grace of God. And I now know that verily you also will never see my face, oh all those for whom I travelled and preached to you the Kingdom. And for this reason, I warn you on the day of this people That verily I am pure from the blood of all of you and because I did not seek exemption from te4acdhing you all of the pleasure of God. Then guard yourselves and all of the flock over which the Holy Spirit has raised you up as bishops, that you may guard the congregation (church) of Christ which he purchased with his blood, because verily I know that after I leave, the fierce wolves will ente4r with you without co9mpassi0on for the flock. And from you also will arise men who will speak crooked things, to turn back the disciples so that that they will follow them. For this reason, be awake, remembering that I, for three years, did not stop by day or by night, while with tears I was preaching to each person of you. And I now commend you to God and to the world of his grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all of the saints. Silver or gold or clothes, I did not desire. And you know that for my needs and for those who were with me, these two hands served. And I have showed you everything, and thus it is necessary to work and to care for those who aree3 sick, and that they remember the words of our Lord, because that he said, ‘Blessing to the one who gives, more than the one who receives.’ Then when he said these sayings, he knelt down on his two knees and prayed, and all of the people with him.’’  And they embraced him and began kissing him, while they were especially in agony over these words which he said, that they would not see his face again. And they escorted him to the boat.” 20: 17-38

Then when the seventh day arrived, the Jews who were from Asia saw him in the temple. Then they aroused all of the people, and threw hands upon him while reviling and saying, ‘Oh men Children of Israel, help. This man who teaches in every place contrary to our people and contrary to the Torah and contrary to this country, has also brought in Gentiles into the temple and defiled the pure place. And that was because they had previously seen Trophimus, the Ephesian with him in the city, so were thinking that he entered the temple with Paul” 21:27-29

Comment:
This Trophimus was a believer from the nations (Gentiles), and Paul forbade him from entering with him into the temple, so that the Jews would not find a way for arguing. Then, however, the Asians then claimed about him that he had brought him into the temple.

And when Paul knew that some of the people were of the party of the Sadducees and some of them were of the part of the Pharisees he shouted in the assembly, ‘Oh men my brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of two Pharisees, and I am being judged on the hope of the resurrection of the dead’. Then when he said this, the Pharisees and the Sadducees fell upon one another, and the people were divided. And that was because the Sadducees maintain that there is no resurrection nor angles nor spirit. Then, however, then affirm all of them.” 23:6-8

Note
In the Arabic text of this passage, rather than simply transliterating Sadducees and Pharisees, as the Greek terms σαδδουκαιων and φαρισαιων are used, Bishr ibn al-Sirri, borrowed two Arabic terms from the broader Islamic culture. For Sadducees, he used Zanadiqa (plural of Zindiq, i.e. Unbelievers;) and for Pharisees, he chose Mu’tazila. While etymologically, Mu’tazila is equivalent to Pharisees, both signifying people who set themselves apart, the Separated; historically, Mu’tazila referred to the Islamic schools in Basrah and Baghdad; that advocated the use of reason, in the interpretation of the Qur’an. During the middle of the 9th century, they acquired the support of the Caliph al-Ma’moon in Baghdad. He sided with them in advocating the createdness of the Qur’an. However, Imam Hanbal, a founder of one of the four schools for the interpretation of Shariah, taught that the Qur’an was eternal!

“Then they appointed for him a day. Then many were assembled together and came to him where he was staying. Then he made clear to them the matter of the Kingdom of God, while he was encouraging them and convincing them about Jesus from the law of Moses and from the prophets, from morning until evening. Then, some people of them were persuaded by his speaking, while others were not persuaded. Then they left him, while they were not agreeing with one another. Then Paul said to them these words, ‘How beautiful what the Holy Spirit spoke by the mouth of Isaiah the prophet has become heavy, and their eyes have become regarding our fathers, when he says, ‘Go out to this people and say to them that you are hearing me a hearing but not understanding. And you are seeing but not distinguishing clearly, because the heart of this people has become thick, and their hearing has become heavy, and their eyes have become lusterless, so that they do not see withy their eyes, and do not hear with their ears, and do not understand with their hearts, and do not repent to me so that I will forgive them.’ Then know this therefore, that I will send this salvation of God to the nations (Gentiles), because they will obey it.” Then Paul rented for himself from his money, a house and remained in it for two years. And he was entertaining there all who were coming to him, while he was proclaiming the matter of the Kingdom of God and was teaching openly the matter of our Lord Jesus Christ without hindrance.”   28:23-31

Comment:
Because the essence of the divinity was one, it was possible to attribute the saying of the Father to the Son, and to the saying of the Son and the Father to the Spirit. And that is that Isaiah said this as if it is concerning the Father, and John said that Isaiah said this when he saw his glory and spoke about it. And Paul said here that the Holy Spirit spoke that. And This is an indication that the essence is one.
[In reference to verse 25, where Paul referred to the Holy Spirit speaking by the mouth of Isaiah]

At this limit Luke ended his stories, and that was because he was absent from him. And you will find in the beginning of the commentary of the letters of Paul, which I composed, an explanation of the condition of Paul, and that he came before Nero at this first time. Then he gained the victory and was released, and he remained after that for a period of two years and left. Then he returned and converted Nero’s relatives, and then was martyred at his two hands [i.e. during the reign of Nero] by the sword, patiently.”

Note
The above information regarding the conclusion of the Book of Acts, must have been part of an Eastern Christian tradition.

The Letters of John

“We proclaim to you that one who was found from the beginning, that one we heard and whom we saw with our eyes. We saw, and we touched with our hands, the one who is the Word of Life. And the life appeared, and we have seen, and we witness, and we proclaim to you the life of eternity, that which was found with the Father and which was revealed to us. And the things which we saw, and we heard, we are also informing you about it, so that you may have a part with us. Then, however, our partnership then is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we write t you this letter that our joy in you may be complete. And this gospel which we heard from him, and which we preach to you, is that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. Then if we say that we have fellowship with him while we are striving ion the darkness, then we are lying, and we are not walking in the truth. But if we ae walking in the light, just as he is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Christ his Son cleanses us from all of our sins. And if we say that we do not have sin, then verily we deceive ourselves and there is no truth in us. But if we confessed our sins, then he is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins for us and to purify us from all of our iniquities. And if we say we do not sin, then verily we make him a liar and his word is not with us.”  I John 1

Comment:
“That is, we proclaim to you the only Son who continues to remain forever with his Father, without separation.

“He says, ‘We proclaim to you the one while he was born with an eternal birth for which there was no beginning, he continues to be from before all beings, the living among  them and the dead, and he is the Fountain of Life, because he is the Creator, the Maker, not only for the essences (natures) which do not speak only, but the Creator of living, speaking  ones also. And he has appeared in this time for the salvation of his creation and its renewal. And he named him “Word”, according to his naming in the Gospel, to indicate that we has born from the Father without separation, and without being behind him (less than him)” And we have explained the meaning in the commentary on the Gospel of John.

"We proclaim to you that one who became flesh. That is, he took a person for his revealing himself. And he made that one flesh, that is the person according to his own self, for the sake of the union which is inseparable. And from him we heard this teaching which we proclaim to all of the people.”

"Whoever believes that Jesus is the Messiah, then he is born of God. And whoever loves the Father loves also the one is born of him. And in this we know that we are loving the sons of God, if we love God and do his commandments, because this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, because everyone who is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the overcoming that overcomes the world, our faith. Because who is the one who overcomes the world except that one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, this one who came by the mediation of the water and the blood, Jesus Christ? It is not by the water alone, but by the water and the blood, while the Spirit witnesses. And the Spirit is the truth. And they are three witnesses, the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the three of them are in one. If we accept the witness of people, then how much more the witness of God which is the greatest? And this is the witness of God which he witnessed concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God then he has this witness in himself. And whoever does not believe God, Then he has made him a liar, because he did not believe the witness which God witnessed concerning his Son. And this is the witness, that God granted us the life of eternity, and the life is in his Son. Everyone who holds on to the Son then, he holds on to the life also. And whoever is not clinging to the Son of God, then there is no life for him.”  I John 5:1-12

“And we know that whoever is born of God will never sin, because that one who is born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not come near him. We know that verily we are from God, and the world, all of it, is placed in the wicked one. And we know that the Son of God came and gave us a mind that we may know the truth, while we are in the truth in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and the life of eternity. Oh, my sons, keep yourselves from the worship of idols.” I John 5:18-21

The Syriac text of Codex 151 used by Al Sirri

The Peshitta is the standard version of the Bible for churches in the Syriac tradition. The consensus within biblical scholarship, though not universal, is that the Old Testament of the Peshitta was translated into Syriac from Hebrew, probably in the 2nd century AD, and that the New Testament of the Peshitta was translated from the Greek. 

The Peshitta NT, published by the British & Foreign Bible Society, includes Acts 8:37.

Then Philip said, ‘if you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ However, verse 37 does not appear in the text of Codex 151, indicating the existence of a different Syriac manuscript of the NT, that was used by the translator.

The Vulgate includes verse 37

« Dixit autem Philippus : Si credis ex-toto corde, licet. Et respondens ait : Credo Filium Dei esse Jesum Christum. »

Verse 37 is not in the1881 Greek NT of Westcott-Hort.

The SVD translation includes verse 37

  37فَقَالَ فِيلُبُّسُ:«إِنْ كُنْتَ تُؤْمِنُ مِنْ كُلِّ قَلْبِكَ يَجُوزُ». فَأَجَابَ وَقَالَ:«أَنَا أُومِنُ أَنَّ يَسُوعَ الْمَسِيحَ هُوَ ابْنُ اللهِ».

The Jesuit translation of the NT into Arabic includes the above text, as well as all later Arabic versions.

Codex 151 must have possessed a Syriac text that did not include Acts 8:37

The same fact is observed in the First Letter of John regarding the “Three Witnesses.”

“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Messiah, then he is born of God. And whoever loves the Father loves also the one is born of him. And in this we know that we are loving the sons of God, if we love God and do his commandments, because this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, because everyone who is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the overcoming that overcomes the world, our faith. Because who is the one who overcomes the world except that one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, this one who came by the mediation of the water and the blood, Jesus Christ? It is not by the water alone, but by the water and the blood, while the Spirit witnesses. And the Spirit is the truth. And they are three witnesses, the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the three of them are in one. If we accept the witness of people, then how much more the witness of God which is the greatest? And this is the witness of God which he witnessed concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God then he has this witness in himself. And whoever does not believe God, Then he has made him a liar, because he did not believe the witness which God witnessed concerning his Son. And this is the witness, that God granted us the life of eternity, and the life is in his Son.” John 5:1-11

In First John 5, Codex 151 reference to the “Three Witnesses” does not include 5: 7 “For there are three that testify in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one.”

However, it does appear in the Vulgate.   « Quoniam tres sunt, qui testimonium dant in cælo : Pater, Verbum, et Spiritus Sanctus: et hi tres unum sunt. Et tres sunt, qui testimonium dant in terra : spiritus, et aqua, et sanguis : et hi tres unum sunt. »

1881 Westcott-Hort Greek New Testament, does not include v. 7

6 ως δε επορευοντο κατα την οδον ηλθον επι τι υδωρ και φησιν ο ευνουχος ιδου υδωρ τι κωλυει με βαπτισθηναι 37  38 και εκελευσεν στηναι το αρμα και κατεβησαν αμφοτεροι εις το υδωρ ο τε φιλιππος και ο ευνουχος και εβαπτισεν αυτον 7 οτι τρεις εισιν οι μαρτυρουντες 8 το πνευμα και το υδωρ και το αιμα και οι τρεις εις το εν εισιν

The SVD, the Jesuit and all other Arabic translations, include verse 7

6هذَا هُوَ الَّذِي أَتَى بِمَاءٍ وَدَمٍ، يَسُوعُ الْمَسِيحُ. لاَ بِالْمَاءِ فَقَطْ، بَلْ بِالْمَاءِ وَالدَّمِ. وَالرُّوحُ هُوَ الَّذِي يَشْهَدُ، لأَنَّ الرُّوحَ هُوَ الْحَقُّ. 7فَإِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَشْهَدُونَ فِي السَّمَاءِ هُمْ ثَلاَثَةٌ: الآبُ، وَالْكَلِمَةُ، وَالرُّوحُ الْقُدُسُ. وَهؤُلاَءِ الثَّلاَثَةُ هُمْ وَاحِدٌ. 8وَالَّذِينَ يَشْهَدُونَ فِي الأَرْضِ هُمْ ثَلاَثَةٌ: الرُّوحُ، وَالْمَاءُ، وَالدَّمُ. وَالثَّلاَثَةُ هُمْ فِي الْوَاحِدِ.

The French original of the Jerusalem Bible conforms to the Greek text of the NT. “La Bible De Jérusalem, Les Editions du Cerf, Paris 1970. Le Nouveau Testament, Les Actes de Apôtres 8 :36

36 Chemin faisant, ils arrivèrent à un point d’eau, et l’eunuque dit : « voici de l’eau. Qu’est-ce qui empêche que je sois baptisé ? » 38 Et il fit arrêter le char. Ils descendirent tous deux dans l’eau, Philippe avec l’eunuque, et il le baptisa.

Le verset 37 est une glose tres anciennes provenant de la liturgie baptismale : « Philippe dit, Si tu crois de tout ton cœur, c’est permis. Celui-ci répondit : Je crois que Jésus-Christ est le Fils de Dieu. »

[Verse 37 is a very ancient gloss proceeding from a baptismal liturgy “Phillip said, if you believe with all your heart, it is permitted. He responded, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”]

Première Epitre de saint Jean 5 [I John 5]

« 7 Il y en a ainsi trois à témoigner : 8 l’Esprit, l’eau, le sang, et ces trois tendent au même but. »

Des mss de la Vulgate ajoute la phrase suivante : « le Père, le Verbe, and l’Esprit-Saint, et ces trois sont un. » [Manuscripts of the Vulgate add the following sentence: “The Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit.

Both Acts 8 and I John 5, prove the existence of a Syriac text of the NT that was used in Codex 151, and which agrees with Codex Sinaiticus, which dates to the mid-fourth century AD, that was discovered in 1844, by Constantin von Tischendorf

Prior to the discovery of Codex Sinaiticus, the translations of the Bible relied on the Textus Receptus, its first printed version was done by Erasmus in the 16th century. It was the text used in Luther’s German Bible, the Tyndale and the King James English versions, as well as in other translations. After the discovery of Codex Sinaiticus, all subsequent translations used it, such as in the Revised Version of 1881, its US version of 1901 (Known as the ASV), the RSV, the NIV and ESV.

Hopefully one day, a researcher at St. Catherine’s Monastery would discover the NT Syriac text that was used in the translation of Codex 151. It would be a very important event in the history of the Arabic-speaking Christians of the Middle East and North Africa.

 

_______________________________
 

i“The Bible in Arabic: The Scriptures of the 'People of the Book' in the Language of Islam” Copyright © 2013 by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540. Quotations from this work, are taken from the Kindle edition.

iiWhen in the second half of the eighth century CE, as we shall see, Arabic began to take its place among the languages of the Church of Jerusalem, it gradually grew in importance to the point that its use in theological discourse became one of the distinguishing features of a distinct Christian confessional community that emerged in the territories of the Caliphate, the Melkites. By the ninth century in the Melkite community, it would seem that Arabic had already effectively replaced Greek for a century and more as the preferred ecclesiastical language from Alexandria in Egypt, to Jerusalem in Palestine, and even reaching to Antioch in Syria. 48 Indeed, Jerusalem became the effective ecclesiastical center for the Arabic-speaking, Melkite church throughout the Oriental in any detail, however, we must first consider the general state of the manuscript evidence.

iii“It is notable that a Christian copyist working in Damascus in the middle of the ninth Christian century is already dating his text, a text obviously intended for Christian readers, according to the Islamic calendar, with no corresponding Christian dating. This usage bespeaks an already high degree of enculturation into the prevailing, public conventions of the World of Islam on the part of Arabic-speaking Christians in this milieu. Secondly, the translation was made from Syriac, indicating that the Melkite translator and scribe, Bishr ibn as-Sirri, was himself a Syriac-speaker, who belonged to an ecclesial community with an originally Syriac patristic and liturgical heritage, albeit that he was a congregant in an Arabic-speaking church, which professed the orthodoxy of the Greek-speaking Byzantine church of the Roman Empire.”

ivWhile a student at the University of Leipzig, Tischendorf began his work on the recensions of the New Testament text, a task that he was to pursue for the rest of his life. In 1844 he went to the Middle East. While working in the library of the Monastery of St. Catherine in the Sinai Peninsula, he discovered, among some old parchments, leaves of what he was certain were among the oldest biblical manuscripts that he had ever seen. He was permitted to take 43 of these leaves back with him to Leipzig, and in 1846 he published a facsimile edition, taking care to keep secret the place where he had obtained them. In 1853 he made a second journey to Sinai with the hope of recovering the other leaves he had seen on his first trip, but he found no trace of them. He made still a third trip, with the support of the Russian government, in 1859. Just as he was about to give up all hope of finding the manuscripts, the steward of the monastery showed Tischendorf the manuscripts that he was looking for and others besides. After intricate negotiations, and for a sum that has been estimated at about $7,000, Tischendorf procured for the tsar Alexander II what is now known as the Codex Sinaiticus. In 1933 the codex was purchased from the Soviet government by the British Museum for £100,000 (about $500,000). These manuscripts date probably from the latter half of the 4th century, were probably written in Egypt, and include most of the Old Testament and the entire New Testament

Posted in Articles

Biblical Reflections on Christian Missions

May 04, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Biblical Reflections on Christian Missions

Bassam Michael Madany

Introduction

There is a pressing need nowadays to remind the Church about the true nature of “Christian Missions,” as taught in the New Testament. In his Gospel, John tells us of God’s love for the world, manifested in sending His Only-begotten Son to save whoever would believe in Him. When Christ had accomplished His redemptive work, He gave the disciples “The Great Commission.” As one missions expert put it, while it was given in the “imperative;” in the early church, it functioned in the “indicative.” In other words, Christians spontaneously shared the Good News with their neighbours. This explains how the number of Christians climbed from 3,000 on Pentecost, to 6 million by 300 AD, and to 30 million by 350 AD.*

The Third Millennium has ushered in the Age of Globalization. Millions of people from Asia and Africa have settled in the West, the majority from non-Christian background. The “Mission Field” is now next door. Christians have unprecedented opportunities to spread their faith, by word and deed, through personal contact, and the Internet.

It is my hope and prayer, that these reflections will re-acquaint us with Biblical principles of missions; immunizing us against certain questionable approaches that promise numerical success, at the expense of sound doctrine. The goal of Christian missions should be the organization of churches that confess Jesus Christ, as Lord and Savior.

*Stark, Rodney. The Triumph of Christianity: How the Jesus Movement Became the World's Largest Religion. (HarperCollins Publishers Inc. 10 East 53rd Street New York, NY 10022


THE GREAT COMMISSION


Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28: 19 (ESV)

The Lord Jesus Christ prefaced the Great Commission with these words: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”  These words assure the Church that, notwithstanding the obstacles that would arise in the way of the Gospel, Christ’s omnipotence guarantees the success of the missionary enterprise. The goal is to “make disciples of all nations;” which implies instructing converts with the basics of the Christian faith.


During the First Century, the Apostles and their assistants, expounded the Messianic passages of the Old Testament that were fulfilled in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. This tradition is of great importance today; since not all Christian missionary work reflects a faithful adherence to the Great Commission.  Some teach that baptism, followed by membership in the church, are not necessary. Others add a political dimension to the Gospel, such as the realization of “Social Justice” in the here-and-now. However, a careful reading of the Book of Acts reveals that the Gospel proclaimed, “repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 20:21b) The Greek word for repentance is “metanoia,” i.e. a change of mind, resulting in total submission to the authority of the Bible.


The Internet has become a wonderful tool to spread the Gospel worldwide. This is especially important for Muslims who live in lands that prohibit missionaries. We praise the Lord for this new avenue of service.                                                                                                                                             


THE PROMISE OF THE SPIRIT


But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.  Acts 1:8 (ESV)

Following our Lord’s resurrection, he appeared to his disciples to teach them the proper way of interpreting the Old Testament. “Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.’” Luke 24:45–47. (ESV) However, they were not to begin their mission, until they were endowed with power from the Holy Spirit. This was to instruct the Church that missionary endeavor depends on the blessing of the Holy Spirit.  This teaching is explained in the Heidelberg Catechism, a confessional standard dating from the Protestant Reformation.

“What do you believe concerning ‘the holy catholic church’”?  I believe that the Son of God through his Spirit and Word, out of the entire human race, from the beginning of the world to its end, gathers, protects, and preserves for himself a community chosen for eternal life and united in true faith. And of this community I am and always will be a living member.’” Q & A 54, of the Heidelberg Catechism.


The Belgic Confession, another confessional standard, emphasizes the universality of the Church in Article 27: “This holy Church is not confined, bound, or limited to a certain place or to certain persons, but is spread and dispersed over the whole world; and yet is joined and united with heart and will, by the power of faith, in one and the same spirit.”


REPENT AND BE BAPTIZED


For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself. Acts 2:39 (ESV)

Peter’s sermon quoted Old Testament prophecies that were fulfilled in Jesus Christ and culminated with the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, to inaugurate the New Testament Age. The hearers “were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’  And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” Christian missions include the command to “repent,” a basic condition for entry into the Church. Since those who heard Peter’s message were adults, their baptism followed their confession.  But Peter didn’t stop, he declared that the “Promise” (the Gospel) was for them, their children, and for all people who were included in God’s eternal plan of salvation.


This fact encourages and sustains missionaries in their work, realizing that their labors will not be in vain! Reading Acts and the Epistles, we discover the way God works in missions. One missionary plants the seed of the Word, and another one builds upon it. Finally, God gives the increase as he sovereignly determines. The phenomenal growth of the New Testament Church is the witness to His mighty acts at the very beginning of the church’s life.

Early in the fourth century, the number of Christians in the Roman Empire had become substantial. Paganism was declining, while the followers of Jesus Christ showed by word and deed, the renewing power of the faith.


ANANIAS AND THE PERSECUTER


And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized. Acts 9:18 (ESV)

The conversion of Saul of Tarsus is one of the most dramatic stories of the New Testament. This zealous young man couldn’t tolerate followers of the Messiah. He consented to the murder of Stephen. When he met the glorified Messiah on the Damascus Road, he is ordered to go to a Christian disciple in Damascus, the very one he had planned to harm! Luke has supplied us with vivid details of the encounter.

I would like to draw attention to a phenomenon that played a major role in the rapid growth of the Christian Church: the existence of Christian communities with no information in Acts, about how the Gospel had reached them.

Damascus was one example. Paul went to Ananias home, his sight was restored, and he was baptized. This implies the prior existence of the Church. Some of the 3000 who were converted in Jerusalem on Pentecost, belonged to the Jewish community in Damascus. Their conversion experience enabled them to go back home and tell the marvelous account of the fulfillment of OT prophecies in the life and person of Jesus Christ.  Their testimony was spontaneous and joyful; it led to the conversion of Ananias and several others.

In our reflections on similar accounts in Acts, the existence of Christian communities like the one in Damascus, will be noted. We must consider two major facts that facilitated the spread of the Christian faith: the Jewish Dispersion and the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek.


WORLD MISSIONS


The Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. (Acts 13:2b,3)

On Pentecost, the converts to Christianity were mostly Jews from the Dispersion. They returned home and announced the Good News among their communities. In Antioch, a major cosmopolitan center for more than 300 years, it was natural for Christians to share the Gospel with their Gentile neighbors.  Both Barnabas and Saul, were familiar with Greek and Hebrew, and the Old Testament Scriptures.  The Holy Spirit instructed the Church to commission them “for the work to which He had called them.”


The call comes from God; the Church confirmed the call by ordaining and sending Paul and Barnabas out as missionaries. Leaders at the church in Antioch, after fasting and praying, “laid their hands on them and sent them off.” That marked the beginning of the First Missionary Journey, recorded in Chapters 13 and 14 of Acts. Saul and Barnabas labored first on the island of Cyprus, and continued their mission in the mainland of Asia Minor. “From Attalia, they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. Acts 14:26,27 (ESV)


In Paul’s days, the mission field was mostly situated within the Roman Empire; Roman roads, and Roman Peace, facilitated travel. Nowadays, the entire world has become our mission field! Where freedom is curtailed, we transcend the obstacle, using the Internet.


THE MACEDONIAN CALL


And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us. Acts 16:9 (ESV)

Paul and Barnabas had reported how God had opened “a door of faith to the Gentiles.” Now it became necessary for the Church to decide whether Gentile converts must observe the Mosaic Law. The matter was settled at the Council of Jerusalem. The following letter was sent to the Church in Antioch: “For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements:  that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.” (Acts: 15:28,29) (ESV)


Now Paul was ready to begin his Second Missionary Journey. For a time, Paul and his companions worked in Western Asia; but the Holy Spirit led them to Troas, where Paul had the vision of a Macedonian appealing for help. “And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.” Acts 16:10 (ESV)


Paul, Silas, and Timothy, crossed over to Macedonia, stopping at Philippi. The missionary team met with a group of women gathered for worship on the Sabbath. Paul presented the message, resulting in the conversion of Lydia, a merchant from Thyatira. She prevailed on Paul and his friends to stay at her home. Both she and her household were baptized, thus becoming the nucleus of the Christian Church in Philippi!


HE WAS BAPTISED AND HIS FAMILY


Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household. Acts16:31(ESV)

Most Reformed Christians confess the Biblical doctrine of the Covenant, which includes parents and their children. Reformed Baptists and other Evangelicals have different views of the covenant, claiming that only adults who confess their faith in Jesus Christ, may be baptized. The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles witness to the fact that when adults confessed their faith, they were baptized, as well as members of their household.

In I Corinthians 1: 14-17, Paul wrote: “I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name.  (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” (ESV)

The phrase, ‘Household of Stephanas’ meant, and still means in the Middle East, ‘the Family of Stephanas.’ Baptism of the children of converts took place in Philipp.

We read in Acts 16: 29-33: “ And the jailer[e] called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas.  Then he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’  And they said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’  And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.  And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family.” (ESV)

 

TIMES OF IGNORANCE


The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.  Acts 17: 30 (ESV)

Paul arrived at Athens, the Capital of the intellectuals that had produced famous philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. And yet, Athens was filled with idols, one erected “To the unknown god.” Paul proclaimed the Gospel to the cultural elite by stressing the fact that the Creator was the author of life.


Paul explained that in the past God had allowed Greeks and other nations to live in “the times of ignorance,” since He had not given them His special revelation that was given to the Jewish people. But in this New Testament Age, Paul added, [God] “commands all people everywhere to repent because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:30,31 (ESV)

The audience was shocked upon hearing of the resurrection of the dead. That contradicted their philosophy; immortality of the soul was acceptable; but not the resurrection of the body! Paul left the assembly, “some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.” Acts 17:34 (ESV)


MANY ARE MY PEOPLE


For I have many in this city who are my people. Acts 18: 10b (ESV)

Leaving Athens, Paul came to the port city of Corinth where he met Aquila and Priscilla, and joined them in the business of tent-making.  He first went to the synagogue of the Jews and proclaimed the Gospel. The majority did not welcome his message; but the ruler of the synagogue believed, and his entire household. Many of the Gentile population believed and were baptized. The Lord encouraged Paul in a vision, telling him, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” Acts 18:9,10 (ESV)

The Lord’s comforting words remind us of the doctrine of election which is taught by the Lord Jesus Christ in John 6, and by Paul, in the first fourteen verses of Ephesians 1. The doctrine is summarized in Q & A 54, of the Heidelberg Catechism:

“What do you believe concerning ‘the holy catholic church?’ I believe that the Son of God through his Spirit and Word, out of the entire human race, from the beginning of the world to its end, gathers, protects, and preserves for himself a community chosen for eternal life and united in true faith. And of this community I am and always will be a living member.”

My belief in election, enabled me to persevere during thirty-six years of broadcasting the Gospel to the Arabic-speaking world.  Most of the audience were Muslims, “immunized” by their sacred texts, against the reception of the Christian message. Some believed, as they had been among the elect, known to God from eternity!


THE GOSPEL OF GOD


Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God.  Romans 1: 1 (ESV)

We began our reflections on Christian Missions with texts from the Gospel according to Matthew and the Book of Acts. Now, we turn to Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Hel addressed this Letter to a church he had yet to visit. Most likely, it was organized by people who had visited Jerusalem and witnessed the events on Pentecost. Upon returning home, they shared with their respective communities, their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, having been baptized in Jerusalem, as members of His Church.

Unlike his other letters which addressed certain doctrinal and ethical problems, this Letter can best be described as “The Catechism of the Christian Church.” It sets forth in a systematic way, an exposition of the Gospel. This was Paul’s theme throughout the Letter, as we notice from his salutation: “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 1:1-4 (ESV)

Romans has played a special role in the life of the Church. Augustine, a North African Church Father, was converted by reading this Letter. It functions as a key to the understanding of the Bible. The rediscovery of its teachings contributed to the revival of the Christian faith. It was through his study of Romans, that Martin Luther found peace with God, and launched the Reformation, five hundred years ago!


UNASHAMED OF THE GOSPEL


For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also the Greek. Romans 1:16 (ESV)

When Paul was in Athens, he presented the Gospel of the crucified and risen Lord to everyone he encountered. Some, who were followers of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers, looked down on him, claiming he was uttering nonsense!

As he began expounding the Gospel to the Church in Rome, he was fully aware of the negative attitude of many Jewish and Gentile people in the city. So, he set forth in the clearest manner, his absolute confidence in the message entrusted to him by God.


Unlike the vain speculations of Athens’s philosophers, Paul pointed to the fact that the Gospel he proclaimed, served as a means for the salvation of everyone who believed, both Jews and Greeks. This was manifested in a changed life that centered on the love of God and of fellow-human beings.  Even though the Jews had received the Promise of the coming Messiah, and could read about it in their Scriptures, yet, they were disappointed in Him, because He didn’t liberate them from Rome. As to the Gentiles, often called Greeks, since the educated ones knew Greek; they considered the Gospel message as “foolishness,” as it contradicted their views of man’s basic needs.

The Gospel provides the diagnosis, and the cure for mankind’s sinfulness. It explains how to obtain a right relationship with God. As Paul put it, “For in it [the Gospel],] a righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” Romans 1:17 (ESV)


THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD


But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. Romans 3: 21, 22a (ESV)

Unlike the rest of world religions, Christianity is a redemptive faith. This means that in Adam’s Fall, all of humanity became incapable of rescuing itself from the bondage of sin.


It’s important to remember that the Judaism of Paul’s days did not reflect the faith of the Old Testament Prophets. During the 400 years between Malachi and John the Baptist, a legalistic form of Judaism developed. A person could be put right with God, by doing the demands of the Law. Over against this “Rabbinical Judaism,” Paul explained, “but now, the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law … the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. … For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God…. And are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:21-24 (ESV)


The legalism of Judaism is like the belief of Muslims. Having confessed their faith in Allah, and in Muhammad as his prophet, Muslims must accomplish various duties to gain a place in Paradise. They cannot be certain about their standing with the Creator. Fear encompasses their life journey!

Now that Muslims have moved in great numbers to the West, Christians have a responsibility to share the Biblical Gospel with their Muslim neighbors. While Islamic doctrine rejects the basic teachings of Scriptures, yet, the Gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes; this includes Muslims and Jews as well!


THE CHRISTIAN HOPE


For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Romans 8:24,25 (ESV)

Recently, I translated the story of a young Egyptian Muslim who was converted to the Christian faith, through the testimony of a Christian girlfriend at school. She found peace with God, that she could not possess in the Allah of Islam. As soon as her parents discovered her conversion, her ordeal began. She was dragged to the police authorities where she was interrogated and beaten. As she refused to return to Islam, she was thrown out of her home! Eventually, she managed to leave Egypt, and lead a new life in the West.


Her experience has been duplicated throughout history. It illustrates what Paul teaches, as he reached the end of his exposition of the Gospel. He referred to the sufferings of this age, balancing them with the glories that will be revealed at the return of Jesus Christ. It is in this sense that we understand “For in this hope we were saved.” The full benefits of our salvation will be realized in the future; in the meantime, we must wait patiently for that Day. Any attempt to deny that the fullness of the Kingdom of God awaits the Second Advent, leads to the secularization of the Gospel.


During the 20th century, several Protestant denominations succumbed to this temptation by adopting the “Social Gospel.” It caused divisions among these churches as well as disastrous results in the mission fields, as I experienced in Syria. Some mission schools promoted a secularized “gospel” which led to the weakening of the young Protestant Churches in the Middle East!


PAUL’S GREAT ANGUISH


Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. Romans 10: 9,10 (ESV)

In Chapter One, Paul wrote “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also the Greek.” In his missionary journeys, Paul first went to the synagogues, to proclaim the Good News of the coming of the Messiah.  Some Jews welcomed the message, but many opposed it vehemently.


Having finished the exposition of the Gospel in Chapter 8, Paul devoted Chapters 9 to 11, to a discussion of the failure of Israel, and their ultimate salvation. First, he expressed his anguish over their hardheartedness. In Chapter ten, he explained the reason for their negative attitude. “For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness.”  10: 2,3. Thus, anyone attempting to win God’s favor, by his own efforts, is rejecting the Gospel of grace.


Quoting Deuteronomy 30:12-24, where Moses had emphasized that God had not kept His plan of salvation hidden, Paul applied those verses to the situation at hand, by stating: “Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10: 9 functions as a concise Confession of Faith. It implies a public profession of faith, coupled with a hearty belief in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.


FAITH COMES FROM HEARING


For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. Romans 10: 16b, 17 (ESV)

Confessing Jesus as Lord, and believing in His resurrection, are both necessary for salvation. But how does one obtain the faith that leads to this confession? The Holy Spirit is the Author of faith; and He uses the preaching of the Word of Christ, to create that faith.


During the early years of the Church, the believers possessed the Hebrew text of the Old Testament, and its Greek translation, the Septuagint. By the middle of the second century, the Canon (official list) of the New Testament was fixed. Now the books of the OT and the NT formed the Bible. For centuries, it was in manuscript form. Thanks to Gutenberg’s invention of moveable type, and the Reformation’s emphasis on the translation of the Bible, the laity could now read Scripture in their native languages.


A great gift of the Modern Missionary Enterprise to the peoples of Asia and Africa, has been the translation of the Bible into their local languages. In some instances, missionaries first had to provide an alphabet for many nations, before they could engage in their translation work.


Having the printed copy of the Word of God, does not dispense with the preaching of the Gospel.  The greatest periods in Church history, were marked by powerful Biblical preaching. For example, the Patriarch of Constantinople (349 – 407), John Chrysostom, was known as the Golden-mouth, for his eloquent and bold preaching. Among noteworthy preachers of the 18th Century, George Whitefield (1714 - 1770) greatly influenced the Church in both Britain and America.


THE FUTURE SALVATION OF ISRAEL


I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way all Israel will be saved. Romans 11:  25b – 26a (ESV)

During the last 2000 years, there have been few Jewish conversions to the Gospel. The 19th century had two noteworthy exceptions; Alfred Edersheim, the author of “The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah,” and the family of Felix Mendelssohn who has enriched us with his Oratorios “Elijah,” “St. Paul,” and the “Reformation Symphony.”

I should add the names of two German Lutheran theologians, Franz Delitzsch and Carl Friedrich Keil, who together wrote a commentary on the Hebrew text of the Old Testament. Delitzsch translated the New Testament into Hebrew as well.            

Paul warned us not to forecast the future of Israel, by simply focusing on the past. “I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way all Israel will be saved.”

Some Bible commentators interpret “all Israel will be saved” as referring to the “elect” in general. But we should not forget that Paul was dealing at this point, with the Fall and Ultimate Salvation of the Jews. His teaching about of election is found in Romans 8, and in Ephesians 1. Would the Apostle have burst into this doxology, if he were not thinking about Israel’s conversion?

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?’ ‘Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?’  For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” 11: 33–36 (ESV)


A LIVING SACRIFICE


I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Romans 12: 1 (ESV)

Paul followed this pattern in his Letters to the Churches. After expounding the Gospel, he turned to its application in the life of the believers. While justification by faith in Jesus Christ is a once-for-all event, sanctification, that is the practice of the faith and the working out of a God-centered living, is a life-long process.

Paul followed the order of the Great Commission, as given by the risen Christ prior to His Ascension: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Mattdhew 28:19, 20 (ESV)

It wasn’t only Paul that mentioned the importance of the Christian’s walk during his earthly pilgrimage. The same emphasis exists in the New Testament Letters of Hebrews, James, I and II Peter, I, II and III John, and Jude.

Followers of world religions have objections to Christian beliefs; but are impressed by the Christian life. Having grown-up in the Middle East where Muslims regarded Christians as unbelievers, still they admired the life of their Christian neighbours. One of their sayings was, “a Christian doesn’t lie.” My father shared this anecdote about Muslims who planned to travel, used to “deposit” their gold and silver for safe-keeping, at the home of missionaries, whose conduct in life, exemplified genuine honesty and integrity!


THE WORD OF THE CROSS


For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  I Corinthians 1:18 (ESV)

The 19th century is known as the Great Century of Missions. My family was impacted by the Presbyterian missionaries from Britain and the USA, when they began their work around Antioch, Syria. My father was the grandson of the local Orthodox priest in Seleucia. Thanks to the presence and teaching of the missionaries, he converted to Protestantism. After serving in the Ottoman Army during WWI, he was tutored by the missionaries, and served as pastor in two cities of the area.

Growing up in a Protestant home, I became aware of the ways the early missionaries accomplished their work. My father’s library was lined with Bible Commentaries, books on Systematic Theology, and Church History. All had been translated into Arabic by the pioneer missionaries whose greatest accomplishment and gift to us, was the translation of the Bible into Arabic. To this day, this translation is known as the “Smith-Van Dyck” version of 1860!

National pastors were equipped to proclaim the “Word of the Cross.” Notwithstanding the obstacles they encountered in their work, their message brought men and women, to a saving faith in the Lord; as it was accompanied by the power of the Holy Spirit. The phrase, “the word of the Cross” summarized the essence of Christianity, as a faith based on the redemption accomplished by Jesus Christ, in His death on the Cross, His victory over death, His Resurrection and Ascension into glory. Seated at the right hand of God, Christ makes intercession for His people. They look forward to His return and the beginning of the Eternal Kingdom of God.


THE WISDOM OF GOD


For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach, to save those who believe.   1 Corinthians 1: 21 (ESV)

Paul spent eighteen months in Corinth preaching the Gospel and organizing the Church. He wrote his First Letter to deal with several problems that had been disturbing the health and unity of the congregation.

The Corinthians were not as sophisticated as the Athenians; still they were attracted by “form” rather than “substance.” They had not grown spiritually, since they levelled several criticisms at Paul and his preaching. Paul had to remind them that God, in His sovereignty, had ordained the preaching of the Gospel as the means of salvation. The phrase “what we preach” is a translation of the Greek, “Kerugmatos,” a specific word that refers to the content of Paul’s preaching. In other words, every message proclaimed from a pulpit, must conform to the Biblical Gospel.

Paul took notice of the Greek’s love of wisdom. But Greek wisdom was the very antithesis of God’s wisdom; Greeks regarded the message of a crucified and risen savior, as utter foolishness. But Paul did not accommodate his message to make it acceptable to his audience. Throughout his missionary career, Paul was convinced that the Gospel of Christ, “is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” (NKJ)

The Church hasn’t always proclaimed and defended this Biblical faith. In our days, several denominations have surrendered to the “wisdom” of man. We need another Reformation that would reassert the Supreme and Final authority of the Word of God, and the Uniqueness and Superiority of the Lord Jesus Christ.


THE MESSAGE, NOT THE METHOD


For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 1 Corinthians 2: 2

The Corinthian Church needed to learn this fundamental truth: the integrity of the message is extremely important. Some members of the church wanted the message to be constructed in accordance with the standards of Greek culture. Paul, however, reminded them that the Gospel should be proclaimed without embellishment or alteration. “When I came to you, brothers, I did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1-5 (ESV)

Paul’s emphasis on the message, “Jesus Christ and him crucified” is crucial today. Believing in the death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, as an atonement for our sins, reveals the power and wisdom of God, in planning our redemption, and by enabling us to believe the Good News.

This Biblical truth must be maintained at all costs, as we are surrounded by theories which are radically opposed to the authority of the Word of God, and to sound doctrine as summarized in the Nicene Creed. To succumb to such views, would nullify the power and effectiveness of Christian missions. This happens often when men teach unbiblical theories in missions.


HOLDING FAST TO THE WORD


Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 1 Corinthians 15: 1, 2 (ESV)

Near the end of Paul’s speech in Athens, he referred to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. They were shocked upon hearing of the resurrection of the dead. That contradicted their philosophy; immortality of the soul was acceptable; but not the resurrection of the body!

There were members of the Corinthian Church who entertained doubts about this Christian belief. So, Paul had to remind them of the basic tenets of the Christian faith that he had proclaimed upon his arrival at their city, and of the necessity of holding fast to these truths.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. 1 Corinthians 15: 3,4

As a theologian once put it, “The Gospel is not simply that Christ died, but that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” He meant to emphasize that the historical fact about the death of Christ, as interpreted by God, formed the very essence of the Christian message.

It’s necessary to hold fast to this truth, since the uniqueness of the Christian faith is questioned by some Western theologians, who propagate the notion of the equal validity of all religious faiths. They deny the need for the redemptive work of Christ, as expounded in the Bible.


REMOVING THE VEIL


Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.  2 Corinthians 3: 15, 16 (ESV)

The Bible has played an important role in the mission of the Church. When Paul began his missionary work, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, known as the Septuagint, had been in existence for at least two hundred years. It was used in the synagogues of the Jews, in the Dispersion. In Palestine, the Hebrew text was employed; while the preaching was done in Aramaic, the language of the Jews, after their return from the Babylonian Captivity.

Paul’s preached to the Jews that the promises of God in the Old Testament, about the Messiah, had been fulfilled in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Some believed Paul’s preaching, and became the nucleus of the Church in the Mediterranean world. Others refused to receive the Good News, and became persecutors of Christians.

In Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthian Church, he wrote about the veil that lay over the hearts of the Jews who had refused the offer of salvation. He mentioned this principle, “When one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.” God in His mercy ordained the exposition of the Gospel, as a means for lifting that veil. Even though Jews looked at the cross as a stumbling block, and the Gentiles as nonsense, yet, as Paul wrote in his First Letter, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach, to save those who believe.” (ESV)


NO OTHER GOSPEL

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. Galatians 1: 8 (ESV)

Paul had gone to the region of Galatia, located now in northwestern Turkey, to preach the Gospel. The Lord blessed his ministry, and a Church was born, based on the proclamation of salvation by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ.

After Paul’s departure, false teachers came to the Galatian churches claiming that Paul’s work was unfinished, and that church members still needed to observe the requirements of the Mosaic Law. When the news of these “Judaizers” reached Paul, he was greatly displeased, since the very heart of the Gospel, was denied. This led him to write a very strong condemnation of the heretical teachers. There is only one Gospel, and it cannot be amended or revised, not even by an angel from heaven! The teachings of the Old Testament and of the Lord Jesus Christ, clearly testified that the justification of the sinner was a gift of God; it cannot be earned, or merited by man’s so-called “good works.”

Unfortunately, throughout the history of the Church, the pure Gospel of Christ was distorted. God raised Reformers like Savonarola, John Huss, and Wycliff, who called the Church, to reaffirm the Biblical Gospel.

October 31, 2017, marked the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation that was launched by Martin Luther. As we contemplate the state of the Church, we see the need for another Reformation that would reaffirm the supreme and final authority of the Bible, and God’s sovereign grace in the salvation of sinful men and women.

 

CHOSEN BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD

 

In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will. Ephesians 1: 4b, 5 (ESV)

Luke informs us in Acts 19: 10, that Paul came to Ephesus and spent two years preaching the Gospel, “so that all the residents of Asia heard the world of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.” “Asia,” in this text, referred to Asia Minor where Ephesus was situated near the Mediterranean Sea. The city was a large commercial and political center; the Temple of the goddess Artemis, attracted many people from the area to her worship.

Paul sent this letter to Ephesus, and to the churches around it. We learn about them in chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation. This letter has important lessons for the church, especially in areas of the world where believers suffer persecution.

The opening words are a doxology praising God the Father for choosing believers before the foundation of the world. It’s a very powerful teaching that assures Christians that they were the objects of God’s electing love, before their birth! What a comforting thought! Christians are adopted through Jesus Christ who redeemed them by shedding His blood for the forgiveness of their sins.

To become aware of God’s plan and receive this unbelievable gift, requires the preaching of the Gospel. “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory. “1: 13, 14

 

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM

 

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him. Ephesians 1: 17 (ESV)

Paul assured the believers in Ephesus that they had been chosen in Christ before the creation of the world. He prayed that God would give them the Spirit of wisdom. The Christian life is not one of passive existence, but of an active exercising of God’s gifts, becoming aware of Christ’s Lordship of history, and His headship of the Church.

The Ephesian Christians lived under difficult conditions. Their witness against the idolatry and immorality of the worship of Artemis, was not appreciated. They faced the Roman authorities’ hostility to the Gospel. They needed wisdom in the conduct of their life. In face of opposition, they had to hold fast to their faith, and not lose heart, keeping in mind that Jesus Christ was seated at the right hand of the Father, in firm control of history’s march, and the welfare of the Church.

Christ rules His Church, “which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” In chapter 4, Paul listed various gifts that Christ apportions to church members. He delegates specific roles to different members of the Church. Unfortunately, the growth of hierarchy in the Church, became a hindrance to its life and mission. While the Reformation restored the Biblical teaching about the Church, the battle against hierarchical structures must continue!

 

THE WORD OF GOD IS NOT BOUND

 

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! 2 Timothy 2: 8, 9 (ESV)

Second Timothy is Paul’s last Letter. He was in prison awaiting his execution. These words are his “Will and Testament” sent to his spiritual son Timothy, pastor of the Church in Ephesus.

He reminded him of the essence of the Gospel message; and exhorted him to train men who will hand down the faith, to the following generations. To be a servant of Jesus Christ, required readiness to suffer, and perhaps to die as a martyr, the Greek term for witness.

While the Lord’s servants have often been chained throughout history, the Word of God has not, and cannot be chained. No power on earth can thwart God’s eternal purposes. This is the verdict of the history of missions.

A colleague who had once served as a missionary in China, told me that his work came to an end with the victory of the Communists in 1949. At that time, it was estimated that the number of Christians in China, was around one million. During the Cultural Revolution (1960 – 1970,) thousands of Christians were imprisoned, and many were martyred.

Regardless of the severity of persecution, Christianity was not wiped out. Lately, the situation has changed drastically. House churches had sprung up in many parts of the country, theological schools have opened, the number of believers is estimated to be in the millions. What a testimony to Paul’s words: But the word of God is not bound! Western Christians are providing the Chinese Church with theological instruction, to help believers grow in faith.

 

FOR THE SAKE OF THE ELECT

 

Therefore, I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. 2 Timothy 2:10 (ESV)

Having assured Timothy that the proclamation of the Word of God could not be stopped, Paul mentioned his readiness to endure every hardship, so that the elect would become partakers of the salvation accomplished by Christ.

Here is an important lesson in mission work. The elect will be saved, but they will be saved by faith in Jesus Christ. In our reflection on First Corinthians, we learned that God ordained that people are saved, through the preaching of the Gospel.  Paul’s Letter to the Romans Chapter 10:17, states “So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Preaching the Good News plays a vital role in reaching the elect.  It enabled me to embark on a radio, and literature ministry, to the Arab world for 36 years. Most Arabic-speaking people are Muslims. Their sacred texts, the Qur’an, Hadith, and Life of Muhammad, deny every fundamental truth of the Bible. Belief in the Holy Trinity is considered as idolatry; the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, His resurrection and ascension, are denied. Sinfulness of man is regarded as a mere ignorance, that can be overcome, by obedience to the commands of Allah.

It would have been impossible for me to persist in this work, had I not believed in the doctrine of election. At the same time, I was convinced of the necessity of proclaiming the Word of God, in order to bring in the elect, from every part of the vast Arab world.

 

MAKING PURIFICATION FOR SINS

 

After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high Hebrews 1: 3b (ESV)

The author of Hebrews first stated a doctrinal truth; then followed by the term “Therefore,” in order to apply that truth in the life of the Church.  In Chapter 1, he taught that Old Testament revelation was partial and preparatory, and accomplished through the prophets; God’s final revelation was complete and accomplished by His Son.  

The focus of the Introduction is on Redemption, stated in these significant words: “After making purification for sins.”  The Prophets handed down the messages delivered by God’s Spirit; the core of their message was God’s promise in Genesis 3: 15, when He said to the Serpent: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” (ESV)

 Man’s sinfulness could be overcome by a redemptive act of God. The Old Testament sacrificial system portrayed that redemption, but could not accomplish it. Only the Incarnate Son of God did that, by His vicarious death on the cross.

During Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry, He revealed God in His preaching and in His actions. Israel’s leaders rather than welcoming the Messiah, rejected the only One who was to make “purifications for sins.”  As John put it in his Gospel, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” John 1: 29b (ESV)

 

PAY MUCH CLOSER ATTENTION

 

Therefore, we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.  Hebrews 2: 1 (ESV)

There are ten “Therefores” in Hebrews, the first one is in Chapter Two. It warns against “drifting” from the Gospel.

We should remember that the recipients of this Letter, possessed only the Old Testament, as the New Testament was still in the process of formation. For about a century, the Gospel message was transmitted orally by men like Paul, Peter, John, and their assistants; as well as by the testimony of converts. During His earthly ministry, Christ had begun the proclamation of His “great salvation.”

Nowadays, we have the Bible available in print, on the Internet, and on our smart phones; for English-speaking people, they can read it in several versions. We possess the heritage of the Church, as summarized in Creeds, Confessions of Faith, and in Catechisms.  It’s beautifully expressed in hymns, oratorios, and cantatas.  There is no excuse for drifting away from the faith.

Why is this strong warning about apostasy in this Letter? Doesn’t the Bible teach the “Perseverance of the Saints?” Yes, but these warnings are the means the Lord uses, to enable us to persevere in the faith! Neglecting the “means of grace” is to court spiritual disaster.

One of my saddest recollections is the story of a young man I once knew, who was preparing for the ministry. After ordination, he became a foreign missionary, and first did very well.  Years later, I learned that he had fallen into grievous sins, wrecked his family life, and was drifting aimlessly!  Scriptural warnings are very necessary to keep us from drifting and falling!

 

THE WORD OF LIFE

 

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life. 1 John 1: 1 (ESV)

During Paul’s missionary work, he warned the churches of the danger from legalism. Having preached that salvation is by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ; he discovered some converts had reverted to legalism, due to the influence of false teachers who proclaimed another “gospel.”

John was the only living apostle, after the martyrdom of Peter and Paul. He had settled in Ephesus during the last thirty years of the first century. He was not spared persecution, since part of those years, he lived as an exile, on the Isle of Patmos. He authored the Gospel known by his name, three Letters, and the Book of Revelation.

The Church was now threatened by a heresy, known as Gnosticism. The basic teaching of this cult was that evil resided in the material world, and that freedom came through a special gnosis, a Greek word for a specific knowledge or enlightenment. In response to the threat of Gnosticism, John emphasized the reality of the Incarnation of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Savior possessed a real human body; He could be seen, heard, and touched.

Christ’s mission was redemptive; it was to be accomplished by His vicarious sufferings and death on the Cross, as an expiation for the sins of the world. That was necessary, since there was no other way to deal with man’s sinfulness.  

Nowadays, Christians encounter various heresies; it’s extremely necessary for the Church to proclaim the clear and unchanging message taught by the Apostle John.

 

CONTENDING FOR THE FAITH

 

I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. Jude 3b (ESV)

As mentioned before, 2017 was the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. It wasn’t easy for Martin Luther to make his stand for the doctrine of Justification by faith, as taught in Holy Scripture. In fact, he had to hide for his life, since both Church and State, had sought his death. He was aware that before him, others had sought to reform the Church, and were martyred in “contending for the faith.” One was Savonarola, a Dominican monk in Florence; the other John Huss, a Czech reformer, who had been greatly influenced by Wycliffe. Both were burned at the stake!

The basic reforms were about the doctrines of Salvation, and Church offices. The basis for the reformers’ stand, was the Supreme and Final Authority of the Bible.

The task we face today is more daunting, as every article of the Christian faith, is under attack.  Biblical authority, the Uniqueness and Supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ, are being contested by doctrinal pluralism that advocates the equal validity of all religions; universalism that preaches all people will be saved, regardless of their beliefs; and strong attacks on Christian ethical standards, that seek to overthrow the Biblical view of marriage.

Luther responded to the opposition of Church and State, by the spiritual arms of the Bible, and his publications, made possible through the invention of the printing press. We possess the press and the Internet, for the defense of the Faith, and its spread in many languages, all over the world!

Soli Deo Gloria; to God alone be the Glory. Amen!

Posted in Articles

On Defining the "Other"

May 04, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Bassam Michael Madany

19 September 2018

 

Saudi Arabia is undergoing momentous changes under the leadership of Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman. Twelve years ago, I wrote on article about the possibility of reforms in the Saudi society especially in the way “Others” are regarded. I’m publishing it now as an important historical document.

 

In September 2005, I came across an article in the daily online Al-Sharq-al-Awsat with this headline: “On Defining ‘the Other’: A Discussion between Two Generations at a Preparatory Session of the National Dialogue Initiative.”  

 

The preparatory meeting took place in Saudi Arabia, where the participants discussed the subject of the Other. The new Arabic term chosen to designate the non-Muslim was Al-Akhar. First, I would like to quote from the report, and then add my comments.

 

“On Tuesday, 20 September 2005, the preparatory meetings of the National Dialogue Initiative that took place at the Meridian Hotel in Jeddah, ended. A large generational gap surfaced at the close of the discussions. It became clear, during the meetings which had lasted for three days that the sixty-three adult participants were looking for an exact and proper definition of “Al-Akhar.” At the same time, seventeen young men and women who participated in a training program, in conjunction with this meeting at Jeddah, had already completed their deliberations, having concluded that their relations with the “Akhar” must have one purpose only, that of calling him or her, to convert to Islam.  

 

“The specific goal that had been set for these young men and women was to teach them the art of dialogue, and the proper means of communications. They were expected to learn the relation between dialogue and convincing the ‘Other’ of one’s point of view, without alienating him. However, as far as these young people were concerned, only the non-Muslim should be classified as “Al-Akhar,” regardless of where he or she had come from.”  

 

What a revelation! I have no idea when or why “The National Dialogue Initiative” began in Saudi Arabia. But that several preparatory meetings under its umbrella had already taken place is something to ponder and reflect on. First, it is necessary that these discussions be placed within a historical framework that, for more than a millennium, had defined the relations between Muslims and all types of non-Muslims.

 

          Soon after the migration of Muhammad to Medina in 622 A.D., a new Islamic vocabulary came into existence. The Meccan believers who migrated to Medina were called, Muhajiroun.  As for those from Medina itself who joined them and acknowledged the mission of the Prophet, they were designated as the Ansar, i.e. the Partisans. At first, the residents of Arabia, who were of the Jewish or Christian faith, remained in their religion, but their status as Dhimmis required that they pay the Jizya tax to enjoy the “protection” of the Islamic Umma. However, before too long, all Christians and Jews were expelled from Arabia; but a Jewish minority continued to live in Yemen until recent times.  

 

As the Islamic conquests gathered steam soon after the death of Muhammad in 632, all the conquered peoples of the Middle East, North Africa, and Andalusia (Spain) were treated according to the terms of the emerging Islamic Shari’ah. A Dhimmi had to pay the Jizya, as well as to submit to all the stringent requirements of Dhimmitude. This meant that his status was lower than that of Muslims.

 

Another classification was made that proved to be detrimental to the unity of the growing empire. Non-Arab Muslims were called, Mawalis. Theoretically, they were considered on par with Arab Muslims, but not in practice. That created a tremendous resentment among them and was a major factor in the violent downfall of the Umayyad Caliphate in 750.  

 

Eventually, Muslim jurists divided the world into two segments: Daru’l-Islam, (the Household of Islam,) and Daru’l-Harb, (the Household of War.) The latter category included all the areas of the world that had not yet been conquered by Islam. It was legal to conquer such lands, and the means was war.

 

Up till about 1950, Muslims lived almost exclusively within their realms. So, there was no question about what to do with the Other.  Should they happen to be members of the People of the Book, i.e. Jews or Christians, they had the choice of embracing Islam or live under the regime of Dhimmitude. But if they were followers of a pagan religion, there was not much choice, they had to convert or else face persecution, and quite likely death. This happened in India over an extended period.  

 

The fact that Saudis are now discussing a new modus vivendi with the Other, indicates that a totally new situation in the history of Islam has surfaced. First, it was precipitated by the discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia. This brought thousands of Others from Europe, America, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, to work on Saudi soil. Their presence is essential for the wellbeing of the Kingdom. Add to that, millions of Muslims from North Africa, the Middle East, and the Indian Subcontinent rushed to work in Western Europe soon after the end of WWII. Such a totally new phenomenon for Islam has initiated some serious discussions among Saudi intellectuals, as they began to realize the full implications of the emerging globalized and inter-dependent world.  

 

Thus far, I have sketched out the classical Islamic view of non-Muslims. I now return to quote from the article of 24 September 2005:  

 

“The differences between the two groups did not consist only in their ages, or in the degree of their education. Their real differences consisted in their definitions of the identity of the ‘Other.’ Here it must be mentioned that the theme of dialogue initiative was ‘We and the ‘Other’: Toward a National Vision for Dealing with Western Cultures.’  

 

“The average age of the academicians, intellectuals, and businessmen and businesswomen who met at the main hall of the Meridian, ranged between the mid-thirties to the mid-forties. As far as they were concerned, the ‘Other’ may belong to various categories; he may be a Bedouin or a city dweller; a Sunni, or a Shi’ite, or a Kafir; a man or a woman; a tradionalist or a secularist. In other words, in their view, the term ‘Other’ should be understood etymologically. In that sense, it should not carry any baggage other than its literal meaning.

 

“In contrast, the ages of the students who participated in the learning sessions and who had come from Saudi secondary schools, ranged between sixteen and eighteen. They defined the Other as a Kafir or Infidel. For them, the term was not understood etymologically, but culturally and religiously. So, as far as they were concerned, the goal for learning the art of dialogue was restricted to da’wa (calling) i.e. inviting the ‘Other” to embrace Islam, the true Pathway of Allah.

 

The reporter for Al-Sharq al-Awsat emphasized the generational gap that separated the adult participants from the young people who felt no need for a nuanced definition of the Other.

 

“The young adults arrived at this consensus: there was no reason at all to depart from the age-long outlook that had defined all non-Muslims, as Others. In other words, they saw life in terms of black and white. For example, an eighteen-year-old student from a school in Mecca who participated in the training sessions said: ‘the Other is anyone who differs from us in religion; so the purpose of our dialogue must simply be to ask him to embrace Islam. We should accomplish that through kind words coupled with an exposition of the principles of the Islamic Shari’ah.’”  

 

The author of the report went on to explain:

 

“The third preparatory meeting in Jeddah was related to the coming Fifth National Dialogue Initiative which was scheduled to take place at Abha, in the Province of ‘Asir. As mentioned above, the students did not have the same outlook as the adults who participated in the discussions. Their differences may be the result of two contrasting milieus that surrounded their upbringings: the older generation having grown up within a conservative community. Now, some of them who may have studied or lived overseas would prefer to liberate themselves from the grip of the traditional restrictions that had governed relations with the Other. At the same time, the young generation who grew up in the space-age, and as a reaction to the allurements of modernity believe that the proper way to deal with the subject at hand is to return to the traditions of the past. It is this conviction which leads them to regard all Others as objects of Da’wa, i.e., the duty to invite them to embrace Islam. Unlike the adult intellectuals and business people who must rub shoulders with many Others, both at home and abroad, these young adults are not the least interested in being accepted by those classified in the Shari’a as Kafirs or Infidels.

 

The reporter ended his article by asking some crucial questions:  

 

“Is the next generation in Saudia to entertain the same thought pattern that surfaced among the young adults, namely that dialogue with the Other should take place only within the restrictions of the Shari’ah? In other words, dialogue for the young students always meant Da’wa. Is there any hope for the thoughts and deliberations of the adult conferees to be taken seriously in the future? For example, is there any room for a new classification of people that would place the Akhar in a neutral category, thus eliminating the stigma of Kafir? In other words, may we expect some changes in the status quo?”  

 

Thus far, I have allowed the reporter to share with us his musings. It is quite evident that two divergent points of view appeared in this report. One view is rather encouraging; as it indicates that some intellectuals and business people in Saudi Arabia are attempting to re-open the door of Ijtihad. They are suggesting the need for a new hermeneutic in the interpretation of the Qur’an, Hadith, and the Shari’ah.  However, this door has been closed for around 500 years, and every attempt to re-open it since then, has eventually failed.  

 

With respect to the projected meeting at Abha, in Saudi Arabia, for the discussion of the Other, may we now entertain the hope for the resumption of Ijtihad in a milieu that has been dominated for decades by the radical Wahhabi school of interpreting the sacred texts? If we take seriously the conclusions of the young adults who participated in their own sessions, the outlook for any basic change vis-à-vis the “Other,” remains dim. I am afraid they represent a major section of Saudi public opinion. I may be wrong in this conclusion, but my study of past attempts at reforming Islam has convinced me that any real change is not on the horizon

 

Posted in Articles

Are Christians Persecuted in Morocco?

May 04, 2023
By Bassam M. Madany

Translated from Arabic
By Bassam Michael Madany
22 August 2018

It’s always encouraging to read of Christian leaders in Muslim-majority countries who speak openly and boldly about their faith. I find this report worthwhile, to share with my fellow-missionaries to Islam.

Recently, the German-Egyptian writer and human rights activist, Hamed Abdel-Samad visited Morocco and spoke on current issues regarding religious freedom and the plight of minorities.

During July 2018, Abdel-Samad interviewed a prominent Christian Moroccan human rights activist, Muhammad Sa’eed. The interview was archived on Box of Islam No 146.

The following are excerpts from the interview, translated from the Arabic text.

Q (Hamed Abdel-Samad)

How do you explain the fact that the Arab conquest of Iraq, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, did not result in the disappearance of the Christian Churches of the area, while Christianity disappeared in North Africa?

A (Muhammad Sa’eed)

Christianity does exist in Morocco. After all, I am a Moroccan Christian as many of my people are Christians.

Q

Are there any statistics of Moroccan Christians?

A

While there are no official statistics for the number of Moroccan Christians, yet according to the Pew Foundation their number is around 6000; while Human Rights Watch places that number at 25000. A Moroccan official estimated that the number of Moroccans who regularly visit Christian websites, was 150000 in 2012. We may conclude that there are thousands of Moroccan Christians.

By the way, I don’t like the term of “minorities” when referring to Christians or any other religious groups not belonging to the majority Sunni population of Morocco.  We are all Moroccan citizens. 

Q

How would you describe the history of Christianity in North Africa?

A

Christianity’s history in North Africa belongs to two distinct periods: the early centuries and that of the 19th century.

The Early Centuries

During the early centuries of the Christian era, some famous Christians leaders and theologians were North African natives, such as St. Augustine, St. Tertullian, and Saint Cyprian. They all had a tremendous impact on Christian and Western thought.

Q

Going back to my earlier questions, why did the Arab conquest of Iraq, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, did not result in the disappearance of the Christian Churches of the area, while Christianity disappeared in North Africa?

A

I must add that Christianity didn’t disappear from Morocco soon after the Islamic conquest. The suppression of Christianity began in the 13th century during the Almohad Caliphate and continued until the 16th century. The Almohads did their utmost to obliterate the Christian presence in Morocco.

The Nineteenth Century

A

In the Treaty of 1854 between the Moroccan Sultan Al-Hasan and the British Government, Christian missionaries could work among the Jewish population. Some Jewish converts began to witness among Moroccan Muslims which resulted in their conversion.

The Roman Catholic Church converted some Moroccans, among them was Mohamed Ben Abdeljlil who studied the Koran at the University of al-Karaouine. In 1922, he entered at Gouraud High School run by Franciscan fathers in Rabat, and converted to Catholicism and was baptized on April 7, 1928 in the chapel of Franciscan college of Fontenay-sous-bois, taking the Christian name Jean, with sponsor of French orientalist Louis Massignon. 

Q

How do those Moroccans who have crossed over to Christianity get acquainted and communicate with one another?

A

Christians meet in house churches. We are all believers by conviction. We have real churches, even though we don’t meet in church buildings. We are churches in the New Testament definition of the church. We are families of men, women, and children who meet regularly for worship. We are organized churches with bishops (ministers), elders, and deacons.

All we ask for is to meet openly in peace. We are not officially persecuted by the authorities. I have been a Christian for the last 18 years, and I’m open about it. It used to be different during the 1970s and the 1980s, but things have changed. No convert is now being arrested since the promulgation of the 2011 Constitution.

Q

Does the media refer to you as a defender of minorities?

A

Yes, I’m known as a defender of all groups, Bahais, Ahmadis, Shiites, as well as of Mulhideens (Unbelievers) 

Q

How do you explain the rise of Sunni extremism?

A

Thanks to Petro-dollars, Saudi Wahhabism has impacted Moroccan Muslims. We have been inundated by Salafist books and recordings.  This represents a counter-attack on Modernization. Moderate Islam is not the solution; we need ‘Ilmaniyya (laicism) i.e. where the State remains neutral vis-à-vis religious affiliation.

Hamed.TV Published on Jul 9, 2018
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlCOwdNS9Mw                                        
Note: As of 19 July 2018, this archived interview on YouTube, had 26,857 views.
 

Posted in Articles

Common Features in the Pilgrimage of Muslims From Islam to Christianity

May 04, 2023
By Rev. Bassam M. Madany

Common Features in the Pilgrimage of Muslims From Islam to Christianity

By Bassam Michael Madany
2 August 2018

Introduction

The discipline of theology does not play an important role in Islam. For example, the Islamic doctrine of God consists in the simple creed La Ilah illa Allah, (there is no God, but Allah.) This may seem wise in its simplicity but is actually problematic for any inquiring mind. It proclaims the existence of one God but reveals very little about him.  Allah is described negatively. He is “Bila Shabah,” i.e. he cannot be likened to anyone, or anything. Should a Muslim persist in his or her quest to know Allah, he is faced with a second negative, “Bila Kayf,” i.e. don’t ask why! 

In Islam what constitutes the being of God, apart from the two negatives of their basic belief system, is either remote or unknowable. In the Christian faith, God is known and loved for his attributes. No creature can know God exhaustively, but He has made himself known in both nature and in his Word, the Bible. Certain attributes of God are incommunicable, such as His omnipotence, omniscience, ubiquity, and aseity (self-existence;) other attributes are communicable, such as mercy, love, goodness, justice, righteousness, and wisdom. 

There is nothing in the Islamic doctrine of man that approximates the Biblical teaching about Adam being created in the image and after the likeness of God. [i]

Throughout Islamic cultural history, it wasn’t Kalam (theology) that flourished but Jurisprudence, known as Fiqh. It assumed a primary role due to Islam’s ethical system. This system centered around what is Halal (permitted) and what is Haram (not permitted.) By the ninth century, Sunni Islam had developed its system to encompass Four Schools for the Interpretation of the Shariah that guided the Mufti (Jurist) in the promulgation of a Fatwa. [ii]

Three major theological subjects were debated by Arab-Muslim intellectuals, known as the Mu’tazilites. They lived in Baghdad and Basra, during the 8th – 10th centuries AD. They were preoccupied with the nature of the Qur’an, Predestination & Free will, and Allah’s Promises & Threats. 

According to Encyclopedia Britannica:

“First, the Mu’tazilites stressed the absolute unity or oneness (tawhid) of God. From this it was logically concluded that the Qur’an could not be technically considered the word of God (the orthodox view), as God has no separable parts, and so (the Qur’an) had to be created, and was not coeternal with God. Under the Abbasid caliph al-Ma’moon, this doctrine of the created Qurʾān was proclaimed (827) as the state dogma This position was abandoned in 849. 

“The Mu’tazilites stressed the justice ‘Adl of God as their second principle. While the orthodox were concerned with the awful will of God to which everyone must submit himself without question, the Mu’tazilites posited that God desires only the best for man, but through free will, man chooses between good and evil, and thus becomes ultimately responsible for his actions. So, in the third doctrine, the threat and the promise (al-waʿd wa al-waʿīd), or Paradise and Hell, God’s justice becomes a matter of logical necessity: God must reward the good (as promised) and must punish the evil (as threatened).”
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mutazilah

The Common Features in the Pilgrimage of Muslims to the Christian Faith

With this short summary of the background of a Muslim’s belief system and cultural identity in mind, we turn to the common features that have characterized the pilgrimage of Muslims who have crossed over to the Christian faith. While Islam does not possess a Biblical doctrine of man, it does not follow that a Muslim lacks ontologically, the image of God imprinted on his psyche, even though it has been marred by sin. This explains why no Muslim can be satisfied for long, with the Via Negativa, the negative descriptions of God. [iii] This fact represents an important point of contact with those Muslims who become disillusioned with their religious heritage. It is corroborated by the testimonies of Muslim men and women, whose quest for truth, peace, and forgiveness, led them to faith in Jesus Christ. 

The following are some samples of testimonies heard on Brother Rachid’s weekly televised programs, which are archived on YouTube.
http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/

Muhammad’s Journey

“Muhammad, a Lebanese Sunni Muslim, began watching several of Brother Rachid’s shows, that eventually led him to the Christian Faith. He discovered that Christianity didn’t proclaim a hidden deity, highly exalted above mankind, as Islam did. The God revealed in the Holy Bible, was both transcendent and immanent. The Trinity wasn’t ‘Tri-theism,’ as Muslims claimed, but affirmed both the Oneness of God in Three Persons. 

“What finally convinced him to adopt the Christian faith was his reading of the First Chapter of the Gospel according to John. Wow! The Logos who had existed from all eternity, who was with God, and through Him all things were created; the Eternal Word became flesh, assuming our human nature. He did that, to atone for our sins! The young Lebanese found the Truth; for the first time in his life; and experienced peace. It was the tenth of March 2016. He began attending church services in Beirut, took instructions in the Christian faith, and was baptized on June 2016. He was no longer to be called Muhammad; he chose Mark, the name of the second Evangelist.”
http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/VideoPlayer/VideoId/1319/531

Sister Naomi’s Journey

“I grew up in Iraq, in a Muslim family of nine children; five sons, and four daughters. From my earliest days, I developed an inquisitive mind. Mother used to read for us from the Qur’an. She liked to tell us about the events of ‘Ashura when Imam Hussein and his company were massacred at Karbala, Iraq, (680 AD). The accounts of the conflicts of the early years of Islam about the Caliphate bothered me very much! As you know, three of the first four Caliphs were assassinated! As a girl, I faced more problems in our society. Reading the Qur’an increased my questions.

“Why should a man be allowed to marry four wives? And why can he so easily divorce his wife, or even beat her? Whenever I sought for answers, I got no convincing responses.  When I would ask Sheikhs to explain a difficult question, the answer was always the same, “Allah A’lam,” Allah knows best!  

“In matters of worship, I reasoned, if Allah was everywhere, why should I have to face Mecca in my five daily prayers? My older brother had converted to Christianity; he wanted to help but I resisted, I clung to my Islamic faith.

“After moving to Europe, I couldn’t deny the difference between European and Islamic societies. In the West, people helped one another. It isn’t so in our Muslim societies. All that perplexed me! I noticed genuine love between Christians; they spoke the truth; without exaggeration! And yet, I regarded Christians as Kuffar (Infidels,) so when I put some questions to them, my purpose was to fight them, since they believed Allah was three beings. But throughout all that time, there was an awful emptiness in my soul.

“I’ve often cried out to Allah, please help me find the Truth. When I would ask Christians about the subject, they referred to Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Another of his saying was, you shall know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free. I fretted about the status of Muslim women; their lot was worse off than women in the rest of the world. There was nothing fair in polygamy; no man can equally treat his wives; he’ll always have his favorite! Divorce has always been a threat and a nightmare for a Muslim wife. Add to add, the Qur’an allows a husband to beat his wife if she disobeys his whims.”
http://v1.brotherrachid.com/en-us/

Going from the Middle East to North Africa we learn about the New Christians, the term used for those who convert from Islam. The online Moroccan daily Hespress, described how Moroccan Christians “Celebrated Christmas in a Cautious Manner,” on the 26th of December 2016.
www.hespress.com

“In Casablanca, tens of Moroccan who have embraced the Christian faith, were meeting secretly at a house church to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, according to the Christian religion. It was four in the afternoon, when celebrants began arriving, from Rabat, Casablanca, Agadir, and Marrakech. Worshippers sat at tables that were decked with flowers and candles. Copies of the Bible and Christmas hymns were available. The meeting was officially begun with a season of prayers by ‘believers’ who praised the Lord for his many blessings; followed with supplications for the spread of peace throughout the world. Another person offered a prayer for forgiveness, and for the safety of the country. 

“With the prayers over, a tall young man stood up, he had a rather dark skin; his accent revealed that he was an Amazigh, (a descendent of the original inhabitants of North Africa.) He held a copy of the Bible in his hand, and began extolling the virtues of Jesus Christ, and the wonderful things He had brought to mankind. He ended by exhorting the worshippers to spread love and compassion among mankind.

“Three young men stood up accompanied by a young lady to lead the congregation in the singing of Gospel hymns. This gave impetus to some members to offer supplications in colloquial Arabic: ‘O precious Jesus, hasten the day when our land would praise thy name! O Most High God bless Morocco, thy church implores Thee to have mercy on our country, and keep evil from it, and shower thy blessings on its people.’   

“The experiences of converts are varied; their persistence in their faith is anchored in the belief that “God Is Love.’ This is based on the Gospel’s teaching about God’s love for mankind. 

“As R. put it: ‘I was converted 12 years ago; I grew up in a practicing Muslim family, but there were certain things didn’t sit well with me, such as discrimination between rich and poor. For some time, I led a life of uncertainty. A critical point was reached with the rise of Irhab (Terrorism.) How could God command the killing of people!? That led me to the study of religions; finally, I chose Christianity whose God is Love. 

“The story of forty-eight-year old H. F.  is quite different. At present, he sells fruits in an area of Casablanca. Back in 1994, he was an active member of an Islamist organization in Morocco. At one point, he was contemplating going to Afghanistan for Jihad against the Russian invaders. ‘I changed my mind about that plan; but continued to perform my duties by doing the Five Daily Prayers until 2004. By chance, I met some converts to Christianity; I put some questions to them about their faith. Months later, I met other Christians who were meeting at a café. I put further questions to them. Their responses brought me to faith in this heavenly religion. In August 2008, I was baptized, received forgiveness of sins, and began a new life.’”

Summarizing the Common factors that played a role in the conversion of Muslims

The first is the belief in the existence of objective Truth. Islam claims that God’s previous Revelations to the Jews and the Christians, had been corrupted. God chose Muhammad as the recipient of the final authentic revelation, which is accessed through the reading of the Arabic text of the Qur’an. When Muslims become disillusioned in Islam, and search for the truth elsewhere, many find it in Christianity.   

A second feature of Islam is the belief in the incomprehensibility of the Divine. Allah is “bila shabah.”  It means, “Allah cannot be likened to anyone.” Allah is the wholly Other; or supremely transcendent; His attributes are incommunicable. In Islam, there is no reference to a personal God. A Muslim cannot know God, he can only know the will or the Shariah of Allah. As Muslims long for an intimate fellowship with his Creator, several come to know the God who can be addressed as Abana (Our Father.) 

Another feature of Islam, as in all legalistic religions, is that human beings cannot be sure of their eternal status. To enter Paradise, a Muslim’s “Good Works” must outweigh his “Bad Works,” but the result must await the Judgment Day. Assurance of salvation belongs only to those who are martyred “In the Pathway of Allah.”  Only those who have taken part in Jihad, can be sure of possessing the joys of the Islamic Paradise.

When a Muslim discovers that the Jihadist Utopia had been a mirage, he turns away from his dreams, and becomes either a Mulhid (atheist), or a covert to Jesus Christ, as Brother Rachid did, and many others who are now at peace with God and assured of their eternal security.

However, the factors illustrated in the above examples of Muslims who converted to Christianity do not tell the whole story. Ultimately, salvation is a gift of God freely bestowed on those who believe in Jesus Christ. It is beautifully stated by Saint Paul in his Letter to the Church in Ephesus. 

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins  in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—  among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.  But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—  and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. 2: 1 – 10 (ESV)

God accomplishes His saving purposes through the preaching of the Gospel.

For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.  For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. First Corinthians 1:21-25 (ESV)   

It is my hope that by reflecting on our subject, we become encouraged in our endeavor to bring the saving message of the Gospel to the followers of Islam. As I listen every Thursday evening to Brother Rachid’s programs, and hear the testimony of the converts, I praise our Loving Heavenly Father for the growing numbers of Arabic-speaking Muslims who tell the story of their pilgrimage, and the factors that brought them into the Kingdom of God. 

Furthermore, my joy is strengthened by the vision of the future given by the ascended Lord Jesus Christ to the Apostle John, at the end of the First Century AD.

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”  Revelation 19: 6 – 9 (ESV)

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!  The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. Revelation 22: 20, 21 (ESV)


[i] Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”  So, God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1: 26, 27 (ESV)

Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image. Genesis 9: 6 (ESV)

[ii] The Hanafi School founded by Abu Hanifah (699-767)

The Maliki School rose in the Hejaz, the Western coastal province of Saudi Arabia.

The Shafi’i School was founded by Abas ibn Uthman ibn Shafi’i.  He was born in Gaza, Palestine in 767 AD and died in Egypt in 820 AD. 

The Hanbali School was founded by Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Hanbal was born in Baghdad in 780 AD and died in the same city in 855. He was involved in the controversy regarding the Qur’an during the Caliphate of Al-Ma’moon. His denial of the “createdness” of the Qur’an, resulted in his imprisonment. This matter is known in Islamic history as Mihnat al-Qur’an (the Ordeal of the Qur’an) His school is mirrored in the work of ibn Taymiyyah (d.1327). Imam Hanbal’s views impacted the career of Muhammad Ibn Abdel-Wahhab (d.1792), the father of Wahhabism in Saudi Arabia.

[iii] A philosophical approach to theology which asserts that no finite concepts or attributes can be adequately used of God, but only negative terms.
https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/via_negativa

Posted in Articles

Studies in Contemporary Islam Based on Original Sources by Jacob Thomas

May 04, 2023
By

Studies in Contemporary Islam Based on Original Sources by Jacob Thomas

 

 

 

 

Book Review: Will Islamic Infiltration of Europe Succeed in transforming it into the House of Islam?27 Apr 2010

 

A Bloody Greeting for Coptic Christians21 Jan 2010

 

The Incompatibility of Islam with Western Civilization05 Jan 2010

 

“JOURNEYS INTO THE HEART AND THE HEARTLAND OF ISLAM: Victims Speak Out16 Dec 2009

 

The Consequences of America’s Failure to Understand Islam13 Nov 2009

 

Islam & the Decline of the West21 Oct 2009

 

The Absence of Freedom in the Lands Governed by Sharia29 Sep 2009

 

“Anyone Who Claims that Jihad Does Not Originate from Religion (Islam) Is Lying!”21 Aug 2009

 

Non Muslims in Algeria30 Jul 2009

 

“So That Islam Might Not Die” – “Hatta la Yamutu’l Islam”, 11 Jul 2009

 

The Intolerable Life of Dhimmis in 19th Century Damascus18 Jun 2009

 

Islam’s Law of Apostasy in Our Globalized World06 Jun 2009

 

The Resumption of the Islamic Futuhat (Conquests), 22 May 2009

 

Reflections on the Flawed Historiography of President Barack Obama17 Apr 2009

 

“Sixty Years of Lost Opportunities” A Critique of the Arabs’ Refusal to Normalize Relations with Israel 

 

 

Posted in Articles

A Middle East Reader

May 04, 2023
By Jacob Thomas

Analysis & Commentary on Articles Published in Reformist Arabic-Language Websites 
By 
Jacob Thomas, a writer on Contemporary Islam

 

2005

Political Islam and Its Justification of Terrorism (September 2005) 
My Son’s Teacher was an Irhabi (Terrorist) (October 2005) 
No Light on the Subject. A Most Troubling Experience (October 2005) 
On the Eve of the Iraqi Referendum. Two Contrasting Views (October 2005) 
How to Deal with the 'Other' (October 2005) 
Western Intellectuals Need to Study Islam before Making Comments on the Subject (November 2005) 
Where Arab Irrationalism Leads (November 2005)

2006

A Sad Day in the History of the PCUSA (January 2006) 
What’s Wrong with Moderate Muslims (January 2006) 
An Advocate for Muslim Rights in Europe Cries Foul (February 2006) 
Western Columnists Please do your Homework when Writing on Islam (March 2006) 
Denial A Characteristic of the Islamic Mind (March 2006) 
Human Rights Violations in Arab Prisons (March 2006) 
Turkey A Case Study in Failure to Secularize (April 2006
Moderate Muslims Muddy the Waters (April 2006) 
The Constants and Conditions of Gulf Islam (May 2006) 
Muslims Questioning Islam (May 2006) 
Is Islam a Tolerant Religion (June 2006) 
Reformation in Islam (June 2006) 
Western Dhimmitude (June 2006) 
Is Islam a Tolerant Religion Part II (July 2006) 
Israel Facing the Islamist Declaration of War (July 2006) 
Israel Facing the Islamist Declaration of War Part II (July 2006) 
Israel Facing the Islamist Declaration of War Part III (July 2006) 
Islam Confronting the World (August 2006) 
Is Islam a Tolerant Religion Part III (August 2006) 
Islam and the Sword (September 2006) 
Islamic Imperialism (September 2006) 
The Depreciation of Life in Islam (September 2006) 
They are all Fascists and Nazis (September 2006) 
Dialogue of Civilizations or Clash of Cultures (October 2006) 
Moderate Muslim Lectures the West (October 2006) 
The Armenian Genocide. Eighty Years Later (October 2006) 
Karen Armstrong’s Campaign of Disinformation (November 2006) 
The Legacy of Edward Said (November 2006) 
Defining Turkey Today (December 2006) 
You Call It Evangelism. Then what a Beautiful Evangelism it is (December 2006)

 

2007

The Bloody History of Iraq (January 2007)
The Mini Dictator (February 2007)
A Thousand and One Fatwas (March 2007)
The Blind Spots of Bernard Lewis (March 2007)
The Shamelessness of Islamic Extremism (April 2007)
A Tale of Two States India and Pakistan (April 2007)
Leaving the Muslim Brotherhood (April 2007)
A New Minority in North Africa (May 2007)
Why Do the Copts of Egypt Fear Fridays (June 2007)
Yes the Suicide Bombers Are Muslims (July 2007)
The Myth of Islamophobia (August 2007)
Twenty First Century Dhimmitude (August 2007)
Does Blaming the Other Fix our Problems (September 2007)
Clarity versus Confusion (September 2007)
Clarity versus Confusion II (October 2007)
Why Dont Christians Learn from the Jewish Experience (November 2007)
Islam - The Root Cause of the Palestinian Problem (November 2007)
A Shocking Proposal for Arab Christians (November 2007)
Western Dhimmitude (December 2007)

2008

A Confused and Misleading Forecaster (January 2008)
Seasons Greetings or Islamic Propaganda (January 2008)
Exploiting Western Dhimmitude (February 2008)
A Western Dhimmi (February 2008)
A Western Dhimmi part 2 (March 2008)
Empire of Faith or Islamic Imperialism (March 2008)
Losing the War against Jihadism (May 2008)
Bernard Lewis Strikes Back (May 2008)
Remembering the Assassination of Farag Foda (June 2008)
Are the Minnesota School Authorities that Ignorant (June 2008)
Our Men and Their Men (July 2008)
Is Fundamentalism the Highest Stage of Islam (July 2008)
Why Do our Young Adults Become Apostates (July 2008)
The Reasons for the Backwardness of Muslims (October 2008)
Violence against women in the Quran (October 2008)
Why Do our Young Adults Become Apostates Part 2 (October 2008)
Western Christian Dhimmitude Versus Islamic Intransigence (November 2008)
Apostasy or the Pilgrimage of Hajj Magdi from the Mosque to the Church (November 2008)
Does the Christian West Owe Anything to the Islamic East (November 2008)
Revisiting Islamic Imperialism (December 2008)
An Increase in the Islamic Terrorist Danger Facing Europe and America (December 2008)

2009


The Onerous Rules and Regulations (January 2009)
Concerning a New Definition of Non Muslims (January 2009)
Algerians Turning Away from Islam (February 2009)
Reflections on the Flawed Historiography Of President Barack Obama (April 2009)
Sixty Years of Lost Opportunities (April 2009)
New Light on Slavery in the Islamic World (May 2009)
The Resumption of the Islamic Futuhat (May 2009)
Why the Multiplicity of Mosques (May 2009)
Islam's Law of Apostasy in Our Globalized World (June 2009)
The Intolerable Life of Dhimmis In 19th Century Damascus (June 2009)
Non Muslims in Algeria (July 2009)
So That Islam Might Not Die (July 2009)
The Absence of Freedom in The Lands Governed by Sharia (September 2009)
Anyone Who Claims that Jihad Does Not Originate from Religion (August 2009)
Islam and the Decline of the West (October 2009)

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