Defining terms are those which say, with no uncertainty a thing is exactly what it is. In other words, when we call a car a car, it is a car, that is a defining term. If it is said that Babe Ruth hit 714 home runs, he hit 714 home runs, a defining term for an accomplishment if there ever was one.
Islam is a religion, but is that a defining term for it? If we take that as the only criteria, we lose the true context, the defining term of Islam. Yes it is a spiritual belief system, one handed down 1400 years ago by an illiterate sheepherder who heard the Angel Gabriel speak to him. It is also so much more, so much the perfect religion, the perfect society, the perfect behavioral model for all mankind.
In the Feb 19 issue of the HeraldSun.com.au in an article by Michael Harvey and Steve Lewis, we have a story of another politician who decided that defining terms regarding Islam and Muslim immigration needed a breath of fresh air.
Senator Cory Bernardi said "Islam itself is the problem - it's not Muslims," during an interview on Radio MTR in Australia. He also called Islam a "..."totalitarian, political and religious ideology". As the death threats came in he stood his ground, trying to make the listener understand that it is not Muslims per se that create the problem, but the ideology, doctrine, texts and tenets of Islam that are the driving force behind some Muslims behavior.
As much as the left and their Islamic apologists wish it not to be so, and continuously tell us that indeed, it is not so, Islam is, and always will be the perfect system of governance of the human species. It is no secret among Islamic scholars, clerics and others of the Ulema that as a Muslim, following the true path of Islam means following the behavior of Muhammad, the "al-insan al-kamil" or perfect man, which includes murder, rape, enslavement and subjugation of non-believers.
Just as any other belief system has it's members in name only, so too Islam has many who believe not just in Muhammad and Allah, but also in Western concepts of human rights, justice and freedom. Sen. Bernardi, in his interview explains "Muslims are individuals that practise their faith in their own way..." and he is right. Yet, those same Muslims, when their co-religionists behave badly try to explain away the actions as being done by someone who is an "extremist" or a "radical" or even worse, a "misunderstander" of Islam. This is misleading for those who do not understand the intricacies of islamic doctrine.
Islamic leaders from all walks and disciplines uphold the drfinition of Islam as a complete and total way of life, rather than just a theological belief system. Sharia law lays out very clearly the rules for Muslims in everything they do: business, marriage, prayer, eating, dressing and all other aspects of living as a devotee to Allah. The Qur'an speaks many times of how to interact with non-Muslims and disbelievers of Muhammad, leaving little room for compromise.
When anyone in the West tries to talk about Islam, in any way, shape or form they are immediately castigated as a bigot, racist, hatemonger or worse, Islamophobe. When Sen. Bernardi called Islam a total way of life, he is called a bigot by Ikebal Patel, president of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils. Mr. Patel says the good Senator has crossed the line by speaking about Islam in such insulting terms. The senator spoke in defining terms, but Mr. Patel will have none of it. As much the truth was spoken, Islam demands the silence of the infidel.
When people like Senator Cory Bernardi speak up and repeat what Islamic scholars say, they are deemed a hater of Muslims, and someone who cannot be trusted. When Islamic scholars uphold the teachings of the Qur'an and hadiths as the defining term in what it means to be a Muslim, there is nary a peep. This is how Islam and Muslims stifle speech calling to question Islamic doctrine and what is done in the name of "defining terms."
This is Islam.
Islam is a religion, but is that a defining term for it? If we take that as the only criteria, we lose the true context, the defining term of Islam. Yes it is a spiritual belief system, one handed down 1400 years ago by an illiterate sheepherder who heard the Angel Gabriel speak to him. It is also so much more, so much the perfect religion, the perfect society, the perfect behavioral model for all mankind.
In the Feb 19 issue of the HeraldSun.com.au in an article by Michael Harvey and Steve Lewis, we have a story of another politician who decided that defining terms regarding Islam and Muslim immigration needed a breath of fresh air.
Senator Cory Bernardi said "Islam itself is the problem - it's not Muslims," during an interview on Radio MTR in Australia. He also called Islam a "..."totalitarian, political and religious ideology". As the death threats came in he stood his ground, trying to make the listener understand that it is not Muslims per se that create the problem, but the ideology, doctrine, texts and tenets of Islam that are the driving force behind some Muslims behavior.
As much as the left and their Islamic apologists wish it not to be so, and continuously tell us that indeed, it is not so, Islam is, and always will be the perfect system of governance of the human species. It is no secret among Islamic scholars, clerics and others of the Ulema that as a Muslim, following the true path of Islam means following the behavior of Muhammad, the "al-insan al-kamil" or perfect man, which includes murder, rape, enslavement and subjugation of non-believers.
Just as any other belief system has it's members in name only, so too Islam has many who believe not just in Muhammad and Allah, but also in Western concepts of human rights, justice and freedom. Sen. Bernardi, in his interview explains "Muslims are individuals that practise their faith in their own way..." and he is right. Yet, those same Muslims, when their co-religionists behave badly try to explain away the actions as being done by someone who is an "extremist" or a "radical" or even worse, a "misunderstander" of Islam. This is misleading for those who do not understand the intricacies of islamic doctrine.
Islamic leaders from all walks and disciplines uphold the drfinition of Islam as a complete and total way of life, rather than just a theological belief system. Sharia law lays out very clearly the rules for Muslims in everything they do: business, marriage, prayer, eating, dressing and all other aspects of living as a devotee to Allah. The Qur'an speaks many times of how to interact with non-Muslims and disbelievers of Muhammad, leaving little room for compromise.
When anyone in the West tries to talk about Islam, in any way, shape or form they are immediately castigated as a bigot, racist, hatemonger or worse, Islamophobe. When Sen. Bernardi called Islam a total way of life, he is called a bigot by Ikebal Patel, president of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils. Mr. Patel says the good Senator has crossed the line by speaking about Islam in such insulting terms. The senator spoke in defining terms, but Mr. Patel will have none of it. As much the truth was spoken, Islam demands the silence of the infidel.
When people like Senator Cory Bernardi speak up and repeat what Islamic scholars say, they are deemed a hater of Muslims, and someone who cannot be trusted. When Islamic scholars uphold the teachings of the Qur'an and hadiths as the defining term in what it means to be a Muslim, there is nary a peep. This is how Islam and Muslims stifle speech calling to question Islamic doctrine and what is done in the name of "defining terms."
This is Islam.
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