Islam for Women

Obama reaches out to Muslim world       

Pres. Obama gave in Turkey a remarkable speech .   

What can I say, there is still hope that things will turn better in the future!  Please watch the video  which is behind that  link.

Quote:    Barack Obama has declared that the US “is not at war with Islam”, in a major speech during his first visit as president to a mainly Muslim country.

Addressing the Turkish parliament, Mr Obama called for a greater partnership with the Muslim world and said the US would soon launch outreach programmes.

“America’s relationship with the Muslim world cannot and will not be based on opposition to al-Qaeda,” he said…

“Let me say this as clearly as I can: the United States is not and will never be at war with Islam,” he stated.  ”In fact, our partnership with the Muslim world is critical in rolling back a fringe ideology that people of all faiths reject.”

He said: “The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans. Many other Americans have Muslims in their family, or have lived in a Muslim-majority country - I know, because I am one of them.”

“And when people look back on this time, let it be said of America that we extended the hand of friendship,” he said.

“There is an old Turkish proverb: ‘You cannot put out fire with flames.’” …

It was about time. The longer the so called war on terrorism continues the way it was done till today the more terrorist will be created.  In countries like Afghanistan or Iraq they fighting invading foreign forces on their own soil and that kind of war cannot be won militarily (it’s common sense!). It was lost in Vietnam and it will be lost in Iraq as it is seen as a Crusade.  Pres. George W. Bush said so himself. Until yesterday I thought the word “Crusade” was a propaganda invention until I was told to search for a  quote.  

 “This crusade, this war on terrorism is going to take a while.”    – George W Bush, using a loaded term which recalls the Christians’ Medieval wars against Muslims in the so-called Holy Land, after stepping off the presidential helicopter on Sunday, September 16, 2001, quoted from Jonathan Lyons, “Bush enters Mideast’s rhetorical minefield ” (Reuters: September 21, 2001). Bush later apologized for this remark. 

“God told me to strike at al Qaida and I struck them, and then he instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did, and now I am determined to solve the problem in the Middle East. If you help me I will act, and if not, the elections will come and I will have to focus on them.”       — George W Bush, according to Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, from minutes acquired by Haaretz from cease-fire negotiations between Abbas and faction leaders from the Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular and Democratic Fronts (circa, June, 2003), quoted from Arnon Regular, “‘Road map is a life saver for us,’ PM Abbas tells Hamas” (Haaretz.com: June 27, 2003), quoted from EvilOz (The Iterative Record)

Pres. Barack Obama is a new kind of US leader and I wish him success, I know I’m not alone!

Salaam, Mona

Ad for Islam on Broward bus may lead to a ban

Here we go again. An ad by CAIR (Cauncil on American-Islamic Realions) advocating tolerance with the aim of starting a dialogue and thinking process  is turned into an offense towards other religions: 

  Joe Kaufman, who organized protests against the ads for Americans Against Hate, said: “We were not concerned about whether Muslims or Jews or Christians put religious messages in advertising. We were concerned that the ad was offensive and demeaning to other religions.

One of the county’s 290-bus fleet is seen here in the downtown area near the main bus terminal. The ad says: “ISLAM: The Way of Life of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad.” (Sun Sentinel/Lou Toman / January 14, 2009)  

Quote:    In the wake of controversial bus ads saying Jesus followed the principles of Islam, Broward County Click here for restaurant inspection reports commissioners are considering a ban on advertising religious messages on public transportation and all other government property.

The new policy would still permit churches and other religious organizations to place general ads promoting activities such as services or fairs. An ad saying “Jesus Saves” would be prohibited, but one publicizing the annual festival at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Fort Lauderdale  Is your Fort Lauderdale restaurant clean? - Click Here. would be allowed.

Broward has had no advertising standards that apply across the board at the port, airport, parks, libraries, government buildings and mass transit. County commissioners will consider the proposal Tuesday, but both sides in the January dispute believe it goes too far.

“This is a knee-jerk reaction from our elected officials to small voices of extremism,” said Altaf Ali of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which bought the ads.

Joe Kaufman, who organized protests against the ads for Americans Against Hate, said: “We were not concerned about whether Muslims or Jews or Christians put religious messages in advertising. We were concerned that the ad was offensive and demeaning to other religions.”

The target of the protest was a $60,000 ad that ran from November to January on 50 buses. It proclaimed, “ISLAM: The Way of Life of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad.” …

There is no way denying that Islam is following the same principles of humanity like all the Prophets of Christianity and Judaism (of course)  including Jesus, who is a Prophet to Muslims. One cannot be a Muslim without believing in all of them!  The birth of Jesus was miraculous one as we can read in the Quran with a minor difference to the story in the Bible:  in the Quran Jesus is told to be born under a palm tree. 

Why should I  struggle convincing my readers with my limited English,  when we can read it ourselves in the Quran  (topic no. 7 on the right panel) and I quote, sorry for the length of it, but it is necessary to prove my point:

About Jesus:
“Say: ‘We believe in God, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Ismael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) prophets from their Lord; We make no difference between one and another of them, And we submit to God.” (Qur’an 2:136)
Muslims believe that Jesus (p.b.u.h.) was a messenger of God whose birth to his mother Mary was miraculous and that he was able to do miraculous deeds, very much in accordance with the Bible.

“When the angels said: ‘God gives you good tidings of a Word from Him whose name is Messiah Jesus, son of Mary; high honoured shall he be in this world and the next. Near stationed to God. He shall speak to the men in the cradle, and of old age, and righteous he shall be.’ ‘Lord’, said Mary, ‘how shall I have a son seeing no mortal has touched me?’ ‘Even so’ he said, ‘God creates what He will.’ When He decrees a thing He does but say to it, ‘Be’, and it is.”
(Quran 3:45-7 and also Q.3:37, Q.19:22-23, Q.19:34-5, Q.3:59, Q.4:171-3, Q.5;116-19, Q.3:45-51, Q. 61:6)

“And God sets forth, As an example to those who believe, the wife of Pharaoh: Behold she said: ‘O my lord build for me, in nearness to you, a mansion in the Gardens, and save me from Pharaoh and his doings and save me from those who do wrong.’ And Mary the daughter of Imran who guarded her chastity and We breathed into her body Our spirit; and she testified to the truth of the words of her lord and of His revelations and was one of the devout” (Qur’an 66:11-13)

“The Christians say, ‘The Messiah is the Son of God’ ..God assail them ! How they are perverted !.. They were commanded to serve but One God; there is no God but He.” (Q.9:30-31)

“And for their unbelief, and their uttering against Mary a mighty calumny, and for their saying, ‘We slew the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of God’, yet they did not slay him, neither crucified him, only a likeness of that was shown to them. Those who are at variance concerning him surely are in doubt regarding him, they have no knowledge of him, except the following of surmise; and they did not slay him of certainty, no indeed; God raised him up to him; God is Almighty, All-wise. There is not one of the people of the Book but will assuredly believe in him before his death, and on the Resurrection Day he will be a witness against them.” (Qur’an 4:156-9)

This teaching can also be found in the Christian-Gnostic Tradition, f.e. Johns Records 97, 99 , 101, 102; Basilides Simon of Kyrene was crucified in the place of Jesus. According to the Qur’an Jesus (p.b.u.h.) did not die on a cross.

Qur’an 22:40 “Those who have been expelled from their homes without a just cause except that they say: Our Lord is GOD. And had there not been God’s repelling some people by others, certainly there would have been pulled down cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques in which God’s name is much remembered; and surely God will help him who helps His cause; most surely God is Strong, Mighty.”

Christianity, Judaism:
“There is no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clearly from falsehood; whoever rejects evil and believes in God has grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold that never breaks and God is All-Hearing and All-Knowing.” (Qur’an 2:256)…

“God forbids you not, with regards to those who fight you not for (your) faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them; for God loves those who are just.” (Qur’an 60.8) … “Truth comes from your Lord. Let anyone who will, believe, and let anyone who wishes, disbelieve.” (Qur’an 18.29).

“And certainly We gave the Book and the wisdom and the prophecy to the children of Israel, and We gave them of the goodly things, and We made them excel the nations. And We gave them clear arguments in the affair, but they did not differ until after knowledge had come to them out of envy among themselves; surely your Lord will judge between them on the day of resurrection concerning that wherein they differed.” (Q.45:16-17)

“And most certainly We gave Musa (Moses) the Book and We sent apostles after him one after another; and We gave Issa (Jesus), the son of Mariam (Mary), clear arguments and strengthened him with the holy spirit, What! whenever then an apostle came to you with that which your souls did not desire, you were insolent so you called some liars and some you slew. And they say: Our hearts are covered. Nay, God has cursed them on account of their unbelief; so little it is that they believe.” (Q.2:87-88)

“O children of Israel! call to mind My favor which I bestowed on you and that I made you excel the nations. And be on your guard against a day when one soul shall not avail another in the least, neither shall intercession on its behalf be accepted, nor shall any compensation be taken from it, nor shall they be helped.” (Q.2:47-8)

“And they say: None shall enter the garden (or paradise) except he who is a Jew or a Christian. These are their vain desires. Say: Bring your proof if you are truthful. Yes! whoever submits himself entirely to God and he is the doer of good (to others) he has his reward from his Lord, and there is no fear for him nor shall he grieve. And the Jews say: The Christians do not follow anything (good) and the Christians say: The Jews do not follow anything (good) while they recite the (same) Book. Even thus say those who have no knowledge, like to what they say; so God shall judge between them on the day of resurrection in what they differ.” (Q.2:111-113)

“And they say: Be Jews or Christians, you will be on the right course. Say: Nay! (we follow) the religion of Ibrahim (Abraham), the Hanif (”true in faith”), and he was not one of the polytheists. Say: We believe in God and (in) that which had been revealed to us, and (in) that which was revealed to Ibrahim (Abraham) and Ismail and Ishaq and Yaqoub and the tribes, and (in) that which was given to Musa (Moses) and Issa (Jesus), and (in) that which was given to the prophets from their Lord, we do not make any distinction between any of them, and to Him do we submit. If then they believe as you believe in Him, they are indeed on the right course, and if they turn back, then they are only in great opposition, so God will suffice you against them, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing. (Receive) the baptism of God, and who is better than God in baptizing? and Him do we serve. Say: Do you dispute with us about God, and He is our Lord and your Lord, and we shall have our deeds and you shall have your deeds, and we are sincere to Him. Nay! do you say that Ibrahim and Ismail and Yaqoub and the tribes were Jews or Christians? Say: Are you better knowing or God? And who is more unjust than he who conceals a testimony that he has from God? And God is not at all heedless of what you do.” (Q.2:135-140)

“And thereafter We said to the Children of Israel: ‘Dwell securely in the Promised Land. And when the last warning will come to pass, we will gather you together in a mingled crowd,’” (Qur’an 17:104)

“And thus have We sent it down an Arabic Quran, and have distinctly set forth therein of threats that they may guard (against evil) or that it may produce a reminder for them. Supremely exalted is therefore God, the King, the Truth, and do not make haste with the Quran before its revelation is made complete to you and say: O my Lord ! increase me in knowledge. And certainly We gave a commandment to Adam before, but he forgot; and We did not find in him any determination. And when We said to the angels: Make obeisance to Adam, they made obeisance, but Iblis (did it not); he refused. So We said: O Adam! This is an enemy to you and to your wife; therefore let him not drive you both forth from the garden so that you should be unhappy; Surely it is (ordained) for you that you shall not be hungry therein nor bare of clothing; And that you shall not be thirsty therein nor shall you feel the heat of the sun. But the Shaitan (Devil) made an evil suggestion to him; he said: O Adam! Shall I guide you to the tree of immortality and a kingdom which decays not? Then they both ate of it, so their evil inclinations became manifest to them, and they both began to cover themselves with leaves of the garden, and Adam disobeyed his Lord, so his life became evil (to him). Then his Lord chose him, so He turned to him and guided (him). He said: Get forth you two therefrom, all (of you), one of you (is) enemy to another. So there will surely come to you guidance from Me, then whoever follows My guidance, he shall not go astray nor be unhappy; And whoever turns away from My reminder, his shall be a straitened life, and We will raise him on the day of resurrection, blind.” (Q.20:113-124)

“Ibrahim (Abraham) was not a Jew or a Christian; but he was true in faith, and bowed his will to God’s (= was a Muslim) and he joined not gods with God. Without doubt, among people, the nearest of kin to Abraham are those who follow him, as are also this apostle (Mohammad) and those who believe. And God is the protector of those who have faith.” (Qur’an 3:67-68)

“And who is your Lord, O Musa (Moses)? He said: Our Lord is He Who gave to everything its creation, then guided it (to its goal).” (Q.20:52)

“And certainly We sent Nuh (Noah) to his people: Surely I am a plain Warner for you: That you shall not serve any but God, surely I fear for you the punishment of a painful day. But the chiefs of those who disbelieved from among his people said: We do not consider you but a mortal like ourselves, and we do not see any have followed you but those who are the meanest of us at first thought and we do not see in you any excellence over us; nay, we deem you liars. He said: O my people! tell me if I have with me clear proof from my Lord, and He has granted me mercy from Himself and it has been made obscure to you; shall we constrain you to (accept) it while you are averse from it?” (Q.11:25-28)

“Say, we believe in God and that which has been revealed to us, and that which was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes and that which was given to Moses and Jesus and to other prophets, from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and to Him we submit.” (Q.3:83)

“When Allah will say: O Issa (Jesus) son of Mariam (Mary)! Remember My favor on you and on your mother, when I strengthened you I with the holy Spirit, you spoke to the people in the cradle and I when of old age, and when I taught you the Book and the wisdom and the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Bible); and when you determined out of clay a thing like the form of a bird by My permission, then you breathed into it and it became a bird by My permission, and you healed the blind and the leprous by My permission; and when you brought forth the dead by My permission; and when I withheld the children of Israel from you when you came to them with clear arguments, but those who disbelieved among them said: This is nothing but clear enchantment.” (Q.5:110)

“People of the Book (= Jews and Christians), go not beyond the bounds in your religion, and say not as to God but the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only the Messenger of God, and His Word that He committed to Mary, and a Spirit from Him. So believe in God and His Messengers, and say not ‘Three’. Refrain; better is it for you. God is only one God. Glory be to Him - that He should have a son.” (Q.4:171)

“And before it the Book of Moses (Musa) was a guide and a mercy: and this is a Book verifying (it) in the Arabic language that it may warn those who are unjust and as good news for the doers of good. Surely those who say, Our Lord is Allah, then they continue on the right way, they shall have no fear nor shall they grieve. These are the dwellers of the garden, abiding therein: a reward for what they did.” (Q.46:12-14)

“Surely those who believe, and those who are Jews, and the Christians, and the Sabians, whoever believes in God and the Last day and does good, they shall have their reward from their Lord, and there is no fear for them, nor shall they grieve.” (Qur’an 2:62)

“Certainly you will find the most violent of people in enmity for those who believe (to be) the Jews and those who are polytheists, and you will certainly find the nearest in friendship to those who believe (to be) those who say: We are Christians; this is because there are priests and monks among them and because they do not behave proudly. And when they hear what has been revealed to the apostle you will see their eyes overflowing with tears on account of the truth that they recognize; they say: Our Lord! we believe, so write us down with the witnesses (of truth).”(Q.5:82-83)

“And if your Lord had pleased, surely all those who are in the earth would have believed, all of them; will you then force men till they become believers? And it is not for a soul to believe except by God’s permission; and He casts uncleanness on those who will not understand.” (Qur’an 10:99-100)

Let us open our minds at least a little bit, there is no other way than sharing this planet in Peace!

Mona

While reading latest comments to the Queen Rania’s award winning Youtube Video one of them  made me think, is he/she right or wrong?

“zeppelinsteen In Malaysia where I come from, there is approx. 60% Muslims. We have a lot of Christians as well. But the Muslims here are totally different from the Middle East. For example we don’t have any problem with women rights or whatsoever. Yet, other religions are going well with Islam. I think it’s not about challenging stereotypes, it is changing attitudes of the ARABS! “

Yes, he or she is right: the Problem is not Islam.

The problem is,  that some Muslims do not realize that what they believe to be Islamic teaching is in fact tradition. The Hadith’s  (traditions) sometimes clearly contradict the Holy Quran. The best example is the stoning of adulterous women as it still happens in some areas  in the Middle East. It was common practice before Christianity, which Jesus abolished (pls. read the article below “Stoning of a child” ).   

In the Quran there is NO mentioning of it but a sura, that cannot be misinterpreted:  

“And as for those who are guilty of an indecency from among your women, call to witnesses against them four (witnesses) from among you; then if they bear witness confine them to the houses until death comes close to them or God opens some way for them.” (Quran 4:15) 

They somehow manage to distort the Original Message of  Righteousness, Tolerance and Humanity.  It was Islam,  that introduced 1400 years ago all these virtues to then pagan Bedouins, who were warring each other in bloody tribal conflicts.  And it is not solely the problem of the Arabs, who count only around 15 % of  the Muslims worldwide.

The reason  is that many preachers still prefer the Hadith’s,  even if there are clear instructions of tolerance, forgiveness, human rights, even animal rights and  “do not kill” in the Quran. 

Please read the passages of the Quran on the right panel, No. 7  “What the Quran has to say..”

Traditions change last, unfortunately.

Stoning a gang rape victim, Amnesty International Report

Amnesty: Rape girl, 13, killed for adultery

November 1, 2008  -  MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) – A 13-year-old girl who said she had been raped was stoned to death in Somalia after being accused of adultery by Islamic militants, a human rights group said.Dozens of men stoned Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow to death Oct. 27 in a stadium packed with 1,000 spectators in the southern port city of Kismayo, Amnesty International and Somali media reported, citing witnesses. The Islamic militia in charge of Kismayo had accused her of adultery after she reported that three men had raped her, the rights group said.Initial local media reports said Duhulow was 23, but her father told Amnesty International she was 13. Some of the Somali journalists who first reported the killing later told Amnesty International that they had reported she was 23 based upon her physical appearance.

It hard to come to senses after news like this knowing that it was Islam that introduced righteousness to a then pagan community. For thousands of years stoning to death and nailing on a cross (in Palestine)  were the most common ways of death penalty,  I suppose since Stone Age.

Jesus, who is also a Prophet for Muslims like all the other Prophets of Christianity said:  “If any of you have not committed a sin you can throw the first stone at her.” (Bible,  John 8:1-3)  

Painting: Jesus and the Woman Taken in Adultery, by Vasiliy Polenov   

  The Story in the Bible- The Adulterous Woman. (John 8:1-3)It was about a woman who had been caught committing adultery, and had to stand in front of the teachers of the law and Pharisees and also Jesus, and they said that “In our law Moses commanded that such a woman must be stoned to death,” and then they put all the pressure on Jesus by saying what do you think, and then said to Jesus, so that they could accuse him, but they didn’t trap Jesus.   Jesus then said “If  any of you have not committed a sin you can throw the first stone at  her.” The older people left first and eventually everybody had gone,  and there was just Jesus and the woman left. Jesus said to her “Where  are they all, there is no one left to condemn you,” and then said ” I  don’t condemn you either, go, but do not sin again.”  

As true Muslims believe in ALL the Prophets before Phophet Mohammed in my opinion this is a significant statement from Jesus.  And most importantly it  does not contradict the Quran.

In the Quran the stoning of an adulterous woman is not advised.    “And as for those who are guilty of an indecency from among your women, call to witnesses against them four (witnesses) from among you; then if they bear witness confine them to the houses until death comes close to them or God opens some way for them.” (Quran 4:15)

Some extreme branches of Islam still practice the stoning to death. In their understanding  its justification must be based on Hadiths, because in the Quran there is no mentioning of it. 

“Surely those who accuse chaste believing women, unaware (of the evil), are cursed in this world and hereafter, and they shall have a grievous chastisement.” (Qur’an 24:23)

“And those who speak evil things of the believing men and the believing women without their having earned (it), they are guilty indeed of a false accusation and a manifest sin.” (Q. 33:58)

I pray to God, the Allmighty, that all Muslims would finally start realizing the real Teaching of Islam, righteousness and human rights.

Salaam, Mona

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Edit: The complete story on BBC News from Somalia. Her 62-year-old aunt told the BBC that the teenager had in fact been raped by three armed men - and she took Asha to the police station to report it.

“I don’t know what crime she committed other than being raped - and I was not even allowed to see her body.”   - Asha Ibrahim Dhuhulow’s aunt

“They are wrong if they committed a kidnap. They will have to be punished under Sharia law.”- Hiiran’s al-Shabab Chairman Sheikh Ali Dheere

A Joke
(everybody gets those, a.k.a. spam): A little girl asked her mother: “How did the human race appear?” The mother answered: “God made Adam and Eve and they had children and so was all mankind made.”Two days later she asks her father the same question. The father answered: “Many years ago there were monkeys from which the human race was developed.“The confused girl returns to her mother and says: “Mom, how is it possible that you told me that the human race was created by God and Papa says they were developed from monkeys.” The mother answers: “Well dear, it is very simple. I told you about the origin of my side. ”

“Garden Eden” by Jacob Savery, 1601, on Copper panel

A peaceful paradise as we love to imagine it. According to Judaism and Christianity after creation God drove Adam and Eve out of Garden Eden for disobedience. Islam, although it has common ground with them, does not mention this incident. Muslims believe in all prophets of the Bible and in Jesus, who was to them a teacher and a prophet and accuse early Christians of making him the Son of God. Jews and Christians are mentioned in the Quran several times and referred to as “The People of Book” (meaning believers in the same God/Allah). Allah is the name of God in Arabic and in Aramaic and Jesus called God (=English word!) Allah, after all Aramaic was his mother tongue.

The origins of humankind has always been surrounded by mystery, faith and superstition and since Charles Darwin by controversy.

In my opinion there is no contradiction between the story of creation in the Bible or the Quran and the modern science. The origins of the faith were in Palestine and the race and language of the people were Semitic. First parts of the Old Testament were written down between the 12^th and 9^th century BC and in course of time then translated several times.

Please read also the topics No. 3 Short History and No. 5 Jesus, Christianity on the right panel.

From about 3^rd century BC Jews in Palestine came to use Aramaic in both speech and secular writings. Aramaic is a Semitic language and was also the mother tongue of Jesus as Arabic is a Semitic language, in which the Quran was revealed.

The creation of the universe is told to have happened in seven days. In Arabic (a Semitic language) the word day can also mean a long period of time. Thus we could say that the creation of the Universe took place in seven very long periods of time.

Lets imagine the superstitious people of Palestine 10000 years ago. The existence of One almighty God had to be told them in a language they could understand and thus events in the Bible are told like stories. And generations after generations told them their offspring until in the 9^th century BC first scriptures were written, known as the Pentateuch.

So, there ins no problem with the stories of Creation.

The Darwinist theory of creation ist still not complete when it comes to humans. You may have heard the term Missing Link, a link that would connect today’s man Homo Sapiens with its primate relatives, the apes. There is a real possibility that this missing link will be discovered, but wouldn’t it be one more prove of the power of God Almighty, who “created Man from a single cell” (Quran) ??

I quote myself from the Topic No. 7 on the right panel “What the Quran has to say about Creation”

“O mankind! We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly, the most honored of you in God’s sight is the greatest of you in piety. God is All-Knowing, All-Aware.” (Quran 49:13)

“Do nit the unbelievers see, that the heavens and the earth were joined together, then we clove them asunder and, We got every living thing out of water. Will they not then believe?” In another translation of the same verse: “Are then, they who are bent on denying the truth not aware that the heavens and the earth were (once) one single entity, which We then parted asunder?” (Quran 21:30)

“Moreover (God) turned to the heaven, when it was smoke and said to it and to the earth…. ” (Quran 41:11)

“And it is We who have built the universe with power, and verily, it is We who are expanding it.” (Quran 51:47) (The Theory of the expansion of the universe was developed by Albert Einstein in his Theory of Relativity and is widely accepted today.)

“And God has created from water every living creature: so of them is that which walks upon its belly, and of them is that which walks upon two feet, and of them is that which walks upon four; God creates what He pleases; surely God has power over all things.” (Guran 24:45)

Charles Darwin’s theory is strongly backed by these verses:

at the beginning there was smoke, Big Bang, out of which God created earth and heaven and that every living thing came out of water!

Another woman among the 100 most powerful women in the world is

HM Queen Rania of Jordan   (Number 80 on Forbes 100 Most powerful women of the world list and maybe not so significant but worth of mentioning - the third most beautiful woman in the world in the 2005 top 100 of Harpers & Queen magazine).

She is an outspoken advocate of women rights and well loved and respected in her home country. She is a new idol of an Arab woman, wise, family oriented and sympathetic.

And as so many of us she is frustrated over the ongoing misinformation and stereotyping of Muslims and especially Arabs and Arab women. She is introducing herself now on Youtube, where the youth of the world is communicating and is reaching out for dialog.

YOUTUBE EXCLUSIVE:  Send me your stereotypes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFf897bUW2Y&eurl=http://www.play.jo/home.php

And as I was reading what kind of response she is getting (some of it is not worth discussing) I watched one remarkable video, that I want to share with you, too :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOeDIj40WxM&feature=related

There is no other way!

Queen Rania at the 2008 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland

What a strange header for an article by the well known Canadian writer Naomi Klein!

The Nation: Obama, Being Called a Muslim Is Not a Smear, by Naomi Klein

Hillary Clinton denied leaking the photo of Barack Obama wearing a turban, but her campaign manager says that even if she had, it would be no big deal. “Hillary Clinton has worn the traditional clothing of countries she has visited and had those photos published widely.”

Sure she did. And George W. Bush put on a fetching Chamato poncho in Santiago, while Paul Wolfowitz burned up YouTube with his antimalarial African dance routines when he was World Bank prez. The obvious difference is this: when white politicians go ethnic, they just look funny. When a black presidential contender does it, he looks foreign. ..

So far, Obama’s campaign has responded with aggressive corrections that tout his Christian faith, attack the attackers and channel a cooperative witness before the House Un-American Activities Committee. “Barack has never been a Muslim or practiced any other faith besides Christianity,” states one fact sheet. “I’m not and never have been of the Muslim faith,” Obama told a Christian News reporter.

Of course Obama must correct the record, but he doesn’t have to stop there. What is disturbing about the campaign’s response is that it leaves unchallenged the disgraceful and racist premise behind the entire “Muslim smear”: that being Muslim is de facto a source of shame. Obama’s supporters often say they are being “Swiftboated,” casually accepting the idea that being accused of Muslimhood is tantamount to being accused of treason…

How bad things can get?

The second largest religion in the world with 1,2 billion believers worldwide is being brandmarked as a terrorist religion in a campaign where the other party is black. Political correctness does not allow attacking him on grounds of his skin color or other minority related matters like his Kenyan grandmother.

What is more convenient than look for something what is politically correct? Smearing Islam and Muslims is very popular lately. Unfortunately Muslims are unable to defend themselves partly because they are not familiar with western thinking and politics, and partly because they do not care. What some extremist Muslims do must not necessarily be Islamic.

Terror has always been a way to reach goals all over the world. Besides the Islamic terror we have f.e. in Spain the Eta terror and Northern Ireland ethnic terror etc. After decades of  colonialism in the Middle East and Cold War when the Islamic world got divided between superpowers they were mere chess figures in their political game. Today we are reaping the fruits of it.

But slowly they are emerging from the dark and there are signs that moderate progressive forces within the Islamic world are finding their voice. Thank God.

No, it is not a smear being called a Muslim!

“There is no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clearly from falsehood; whoever rejects evil and believes in God has grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold that never breaks and God is All-Hearing and All-Knowing.” (Qur’an 2:256)

Finally good news after years of mistrust, misinformation and controversy:

Catholic-Muslim Forum is to meet in November

Rome — While many Muslims remain hurt by Pope Benedict XVI’s 2006 remarks in Regensburg on Islam, the decision announced Wednesday to create a joint Catholic-Muslim Forum is a “welcome sign of hope,” Muslim delegates said after two days of high-level talks with Vatican officials.

“We all make mistakes and those of big stature make big mistakes,” one of the five Muslim representatives at the talks, Aref Ali Nayed, Director of the Amman, Jordan-based Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre, said.

Nayed, who spoke at a Rome news conference, was referring to the September 2006 speech in Regensburg, Germany, when the pontiff appeared to associate Islam with violence.

“For some Muslims the wounds (of Regensburg) have not healed and some important Muslims are still boycotting the Vatican“, said Nayed, but added that the results of the discussion between his delegation and top Roman Catholic officials was “a sign of great hope.”

The Catholic-Muslim Forum is scheduled to hold its first seminar in Rome from Nov. 4 -6, the Vatican said earlier.

The Vatican also said Benedict would receive participants — 24 religious leaders and scholars from each of the Catholic and Muslim sides — attending the three-day long seminar.

But besides the symbolic importance of the Rome meeting, the Forum - which is destined to meet once every two years in different locations, including majority Muslim nations - would form a “permanent” structure to address inter-religious issues including “crises and misunderstandings” he said.

“We may only meet every two years but we will be communicate every week,” Nayed said. ….

These and other initiatives — some involving Orthodox Christians, Nayed said — all stem from an open letter released in October 2007 by 138 Muslim high-profile leaders in which they called for greater co- operation with Christians on achieving peace. ..

Historical dialog from 1085

http://www.aalalbayt.org/en/conferencesandsymposiadialogue-c.html

“The idea of Muslim - Christian Dialogue is exemplified in the importance of exchanging ideas and conceptions on the Arab, local and global levels, in its strong impact in building bridges of confidence among the people of the dialogue, and in strengthening understanding, particularly in this age where no society or country can afford to live isolated from the regional and international currents by virtue of the new technologies of mass communication. Thus, the dialogue is one of these tools which is used to communicate with these cultural and intellectual currents and to keep abreast of them.

Ptolemy, The Almagest, trans. from the Greek by Ishâq ibn Hunayn and corrected by Thâbit ibn Qurra” (copied in the year 478/1085)

The Western media is portraying women in Islam as the symbol of subordination of women ‘par excellence’. This picture is so complete that even an attempt to scratch it is in vain. Unfortunately, many journalists choose to rely on wellknown stereotypes. Muslims count over 1 billion in the world alltogether and naturally many sects, small and large, have split from the moderate mainstream Islam, which constitutes ca. 90 % (called the “Sunni”-Muslims). In most Muslim countries today women are advancing and exercising their rights by participating in politics, education, working as judges, professors, doctors etc.

I warmly recommend the following web page to all my readers … since you came to my page you should not miss that one. There you will find proof that it was the Judeo-Christian Tradition that truly oppressed women and it is the Islamic teaching where you find equality and companionship between a man and a woman… And the Veil is not an Islamic invention!

“Women in Islam versus Women in the Judaeo-Christian Tradition” by Prof. Sherif Abdel Azim, Queens University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada

Another enlightening text can be found on www.religioustolerance.org, “Is the Bible infallible, inerrant, free of error?”

Contrary to the common assumptions, the early Muslim Umma (the Muslim community) practiced tolerance towards other faiths.
A Christian or Jewish woman was not forced to change her faith in case of a marriage to a Muslim man. In the Holy Qur’an Jews and Christians are called “People of the Book”. But a marriage to a pagan woman was not valid if she did not convert to Islam.

The Prophet emphasized in many letters to his emissaries that religious institutions should not be harmed. Here in a letter addressed to his emissary to the religious leaders of Saint Catherine in Mount Sinai who has sought the protection of the Muslims:

“This is a message from Muhammad ibn Abdullah, as a covenant to those who adopt Christianity, near and far, we are with them. Verily I, the servants, the helpers, and my followers defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by God! I hold out against anything that displeases them. No compulsion is to be on them. Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries. No one is to destroy a house of their religion, to damage it, or to carry anything from it to the Muslims’ houses. Should anyone take any of these, he would spoil God’s covenant and disobey His Prophet. Verily, they are my allies and have my secure charter against all that they hate. No one is to force them to travel or to oblige them to fight. The Muslims are to fight for them. If a female Christian is married to a Muslim, it is not to take place without her approval. She is not to be prevented from visiting her church to pray. Their churches are declared to be protected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants. No one of the nation (Muslims) is to disobey the covenant till the Last Day (end of the world).”

“…There is no compulsion in religion…” (Quran 2:256)

“…If they do come to you, either judge between them or decline to interfere…” (Quran 5:42)

“Whoever kills a person who has a truce with the Muslims will never smell the fragrance of Paradise.” (Hadith by Saheeh Muslim)

“Beware! Whoever is cruel and hard on a non-Muslim minority, or curtails their rights, or burdens them with more than they can bear, or takes anything from them against their free will; I (Prophet Muhammad) will complain against the person on the Day of Judgment.” (Hadith by Abu Dawud)