So I don’t know how many of you have been hearing about this radical group of Christian extremists called the Hutari, but they’ve been all over the news this past week for allegedly planning and masterminding a plan to “wage war” on the police and our local and federal governments.
They go around misquoting scripture and stretching out verse after verse to justify the radical and violent behavior they are trying to spew all in the name of Jesus.
Meanwhile, all of us who fall into the margins of a faith continually misrepresented in the media sit by helpless screaming to a brick wall “Wait!! We’re a people of love! We’re a people trying to stop violence and bring hope to the world. Jesus is a lover, not a fighter!” But nevertheless, the media pays attention to the extremists, and the extremists yet again have added more skepticism to the Christian faith.
In the midst of all this news coverage I’ve seen and the frustrations I’ve felt for the misrepresentation of Christianity, I stopped mid-whine and realized- This must be how the Muslims feel!
American media has done such a stellar job of stirring up feelings of animosity and fear towards the Islamic faith that we see them all as extremists who hide behind a religion of hate-mongering and mindless violence. But just like we Christians fear stereotypes, these accusations are farfetched and brainless.
I was reading a news article recently (which I kept in a drawer and now can’t find) that I wanted to share with you all (maybe another time). But, I did find a website of unknown facts about Islam that may surprise a lot of you. These are just a few that we taken from http://www.43things.com/ :
- The Islamic concept of God is that He is loving, merciful, and compassionate. But Islam also teaches that He is just and swift in punishment, much like a father is to his child. Nevertheless, Allah once said to Muhammad “My Mercy prevails over my wrath.” (Hadith Qudsi)
- Muslims do not believe in the concept of “vicarious atonement” but rather believe in the law of personal responsibility. Islam teaches that each person is responsible for his or her own actions. On the Day of Judgment Muslims believe that every person will have to answer to God for their every word, thought, and deed. Consequently, a practicing Muslim is always striving to be righteous.
- Terrorism, unjustified violence, and killing innocent people are not allowed in Islam. Islam is a religion of peace. The extreme actions of those who claim to be Muslim may be a result of their ignorance or uncontrolled anger.
- “Islam” literally means “peace through the submission to God”.
- “Allah” is an Arabic word that literally means “God”. Muslims also believe that “Allah” is the personal name of God.
- There are six articles of faith in Islam. These are the basic beliefs that one must have in order to be considered a true Muslim. They are belief in: A) the One and only God B) all the prophets of God C) the original books revealed to Moses, David, Jesus, and Muhammad D) the angels E) the Day of Judgment and the Hereafter F) pre-ordainment.
There are so many respectable and peaceful things about Islam that nobody ever hears about, talks about, or refers to in discussions of religion, and it’s a shame. Our Muslim brothers and sisters have so much amazing insight into Who God is, and the dialogue we could have with them as Christians could be ground-breaking, maybe even world changing.
So for those people out there who see Christians and Muslims as radical polarizing crazies, dig deeper. For every Muslim out there who has ever been judged wrongfully by a Christian, I now understand just a little of your daily battle. And to every Christian out there frustrated by the extremists who hinder our cause, welcome to the struggle.
