Islam promotes peace??

I am fully aware such a post may offend some Muslims.. When researching I came across this site, just wanted to obtain such feedback from others? In my eyes this religion of peace and love does actually seem to be quite aggressive to non believers?

Does the Bible hold any similar quotes?

Click here- Please Read

[ Note to Mods: I do not want to aggrevate any tensions.. I feel it is a relevant point I am making. If you do wish to remove this article as being offensive or unruly then please remove it]

[edit on 7-4-2006 by Knights]

At that time in our evolution I believe barbarism was the norm. Feeding Christians to the Lions, The Inquistion, The Crusades, The Childrens crusades, and other such horrific and violent events. Islamic people were the minority at the time and I'm sure were challenged by the Christians in that time period as being heretics and blasphemers. More then likely those verses were placed to make their followers stand up to the majority. That site is taking things out of context.
Have you never seen wild verses in the Christian Bible? In the Old testament? More reason not to go by any of them. Stories from the past. People will see what they wish to see in any religious texts.

I, too, am curious of our Muslim friend's explanation of the verses quoted on that website. I know that I've run into people who quote the Bible out of context and use that to say that Christians are bigots or will kill people who don't follow Christianity, including some Christians who use the Bible as justification for being bigots or murderers.

As a result, I'm taking those quotes with a grain of salt until we can have a faithful Muslim (we have several on this website) interpret the scriptures and explain them for us. As I said, there are things in the Bible that, if taken out of context, could be as violent-sounding as these verses. I’m curious as to the context of these verses.

[edit on 4/7/06/07 by junglejake]

Ask, and you shall recieve:
As has been well spotted, those are quoted out of context, with some VERY weird explainations inbetween.

[8:12]- This is God sending the angels to aid the Muslims in some battle (I think it was Badr). They were instructed to "give firmness to the Believers" and (to paraphrase) slaughter their enemies.

[2:216]- This is telling muslims that they must not shy away from fighting. Unlike Christianity, Muslims are allowed to fight back when attacked, as opposed to "Turning the other cheek".

[69:30-37]- These verses seem to have been mentioned twice, both times with a conflicting translation. A quick look would verify that the 2nd translation is (somewhat) correct, and that it is talking about the punishment waiting for those in hell, and not something "instructing Muslims on how to torture and murder unbelievers". Same goes with [22:19-22] and [76:4].

[5:33-34]- States the punishment for terrorists in Muhammad's time: They would either be executed, or crucified, or hands cut, or they be exiled, depending on the seriousness of the crime.

Most of the stuff mentioned can clearly be understood by looking up the relevant verses. As mentioned, Islam allows fighting when it is required (the criteria clearly outlined in the Quran). I guess a more explaining name would be "Religion of Balance" (The Quran calls it the "Straight path" or the "Middle Path"). By Religion of Peace, it generally means the peace found when one is with God. It definitely doesn't allow (or accept) forced conversions.

The rest of it (the explaination inbetween) is ridiculous in it's inaccuracy (and I mean this in all seriousness, not just as an expression).

Thanks for the explanation, babloyi. I have a few requests. The first would be for an English translation of the Qu'ran that you believe is true to the book, and also if you would be able to use the Qu'ran to support your interpretations (i.e. quote the verses around it in an English translation that is accurate, and/or commentaries supporting your viewpoint).

The other is for more information on what is required to fight, and if you believe that the situation the world is in today could possibly meet that criteria.

Thanks!

I'm sure you've heard this often enough, but I'm gonna say it again: There is no "true" translation of the Quran. Once it's not in arabic, it ceases to be the Quran.
There are all types of translations, ranging from Pikthal's "direct" word-by-word translation of the arabic (as far as can be done using english grammar) to completely explainatory translations that don't really follow the rhythm of the Arabic, but are easier for understanding (I have one by a translator I don't think is available online- Dr. Zidan). I usually use the arabic, but if there is something I don't understand I refer to one of those.

On the internet there is this website that has 3 different translations that would usually enable you to glean the meaning off the verses. You could check it out to verify the verses from the original article.

As for your second question, fighting is allowed when the people are under oppresion- they have been prevented from worshipping, been kicked out of their homes; or when you have been attacked. It is not allowed for material gain, or for the sake of aggression, or during the holy month (unless started by the other party). I hope you'll excuse me if I can't find the actual verses right now, my net connection is acting up. It is available at the link I provided, however. It has an index and search function.

Right now I suppose this might be applicable in Palestine/Israel. However, they've undermined their position by attacking non-combattants, which is absolutely not allowed.