Obama Attended Madrassa, Says Hillary, page 4

Originally posted by jsobecky
His father and grandfather were muslims. And the son of a muslim is automatically a muslim, I believe.

As far as I can tell, yes, Muslims are encouraged to raise their children as Muslims (as are just about every other religious follower). I found this page that seems to have some insight on the subject (a very interesting piece - I suggest reading the whole thing):

Islam Online - Family

Apparently, Allah at least allows children to question their faith.

"My son has decided Islam is not for him, that he has discovered too many flaws in the faith.”
...
Both parents and children are learning that in the West, the freedom to choose one’s faith is somewhat of a cultural assumption: an assumption that people—all people—are free to choose their religious path.
...
Perhaps this is Allah’s reason for allowing children to question their faith to begin with—to force their parents to question themselves and ultimately acquire a deeper level of knowledge and greater certainty of Islam.
...
One of the challenges of growing up in a particular religious tradition is to be able to come to the light of faith on one’s own. Belief cannot be handed down; it must take root and reside in the heart of each individual.

As to a previous question of yours, Jsobecky, many people leave Islam and survive. They have a big presence on the web.

Apostates of Islam

Some people interpret certain verses of the Quran and believe Islam teaches that apostates of Islam should be killed. Interestingly, there are equally horrid verses in the bible about Apostacy in Christianity.

A question I have is, do you need to be a muslim to attend a madrassa?

No. The word Madrassa means school, whether it's a religious or secular school.

If not, then the questions arises, why would he attend a madrassa?

His mother put him there. At 6, he did what his mother told him to. The one he attended was predominantly Muslim, but taught moderate doctrine, not Wahabbi.

Truthfully, if you would read some of the links I've provided you'd find the answers to your questions.

According to Snopes, Obama's campaign is working on a response to this "Wahibbi Madrassa" claim that may answer even more questions.

If you read the Snopes report, remember that the words in italics are the allegations, most of which are proven false.

[edit on 21-1-2007 by Benevolent Heretic]