Dr. Gustav LeBon in his book "Civilisation of the Arabs" says, "The reader will find in my treatment of the Arabs' conquests and the reason of their victories, that force was never a factor in the spread of the Koranic teachings, and that the Arabs left those they had subdued free to exercise their religious beliefs. If it happened that some Christian peoples embraced Islam and adopted Arabic as their language, it was mainly due to the various kinds of justice on the part of the Arab victors, with the like of which the non-Moslems were not acquainted. It was also due to the tolerance and leniency of Islam, which was unknown to the other religions."
Islam, besides calling for jihad, reveals tolerance toward the followers of other religions. It released the patriarchs, priests and their servants from the obligations of taxes. It prohibited, in special, the killing of priests for their performance of worship, and Omar ibn Al-Khattab did not inflict harm on the Christians when he entered Jerusalem as a conqueror. The Crusaders, however, did slay Moslems and burn the Jews when they entered the City."
(Michael Michaud in his book "History of the Crusades")
Dr. Joseph Adam Pearson rightly says, "People who worry that nuclear weaponry will one day fall in the hands of the Arabs, fail to realize that the Islamic bomb has been dropped already. It fell the day MUHAMMAD (pbuh) was born."
(20 Most common Questions about Islam - Dr Zakir Abdul Karim Naik)
A Great American and a great Muslim, El-Haj Malik Shabaz @ Malcolm X wrote in his letter "America needs to understand Islam, because this is the one religion that erases from its society the race problem. Throughout my travels in the Muslim world, I have met, talked to and even eaten with people who in America would have been considered white - but the white atitude was removed from their minds by the religion of Islam. I have never before seen sincere and true brotherhood practiced by all colors together, irrespective of their color"...
"If there is much misunderstanding in the West about the nature of Islam, there is also much ignorance about the debt our own culture and civilisation owe to the Islamic world. It is a failure, which stems, I think, from the straight-jacket of history, which we have inherited. The medieval Islamic-world, from central Asia to the shores of the Atlantic, was a word where scholars and men of learning flourished. But because we have tended to see Islam as the enemy of the West, as an alien culture, society, and system of belief, we have tended to ignore or erase its great relevance to our own history."
- Prince Charles - a lecture at Oxford University.
- Prince Charles - a lecture at Oxford University.
Islam is not addicted to war, and jihad is not one of its "pillars" or essential practices. The primary meaning of the jihad is not "holy war" but "Struggle". It refers to the difficult effort that is needed to put God's will into practice at every level -- personal and social as well as political.
(Karen Armstrong - The True, Peaceful Face of Islam)
It has been about five months since I recited the Shahadah. Islam has made me a better person. I am stronger now and understand things more. My life has changed significantly. I now have purpose. My purpose is to prove myself worthy of eternal life in Jennah. I have my long sought after faith. Religion is a part of me all the time. I am striving everyday to become the best Muslim I can be.
People are often amazed at how a fifteen year old can make such an important decision in life. I am grateful that Allah blessed me with my state of mind that I was able to find it so young.
(Natassia M. Kelly - 15 Year Old, Good-Christian Girl - Becomes 15 Year Old, Good-Muslim Girl)
"Communism has its attraction, so have secular, democracy and Nazism. But none has got a complete code of a noble life. Only ISLAM has it, and that is why good men embrace it.
Islam is not theoretical; it is a practical. ISLAM is not departmental affair, it means complete submission to the will of God. "
- From "ISLAM, Our Choice" - taken from the booklet entitled 'Priests Embracing ISLAM
I came to Islam after 9-11. As an American I wanted to know my "enemy" and once I came to understand Islam I knew it was what I always believed anyway and I shortly thereafter took shahadah.
(Deborah Frazier)
(Deborah Frazier)
“I am very much impressed by finding true astronomical facts in [the] Quran, and for us the modern astronomers have been studying very small pieces of the universe. We’ve concentrated our efforts for understanding of [a] very small part. Because by using telescopes, we can see only very few parts [of] the sky without thinking [about the] whole universe. So, by reading [the] Quran and by answering to the questions, I think I can find my future way for investigation of the universe.”
Dr. Yoshihide Kozai is Professor Emeritus at Tokyo University, Hongo, Tokyo, Japan
“Never have I witnessed such sincere hospitality and the overwhelming spirit of true brotherhood as is practiced by people of all colors and races here in this Ancient Holy Land, the home of Abraham, Muhammad, and all the other prophets of the Holy Scriptures. For the past week, I have been utterly speechless and spellbound by the graciousness I see displayed all around me by people of all colors … There were tens of thousands of pilgrims, from all over the world. They were of all colors, from blue-eyed blonds to black-skinned Africans. But we were all participating in the same ritual, displaying a spirit of unity and brotherhood that my experiences in America had led me to believe never could exist between the white and the non-white.”
- The Autobiography of Malcolm X
“Muslims have much in common with Christians and Jews.
Muslims, like Christians and Jews, worship the One God, Creator of the Universe. Allah is the Arabic word for God.
Muslims, like Christians and Jews, consider themselves spiritual descendants of Abraham.
Muslims, like Christians and Jews, pledge themselves to prayer, peace with justice, harmony, cooperation, compassion, charity, family responsibility, tolerance toward people of other faith traditions, and respect for the environment.
All three faiths have spread worldwide. Because of geographic dispersal, within each faith exist several sects with slightly different interpretations of politics, family, dress, and social life.
Paul Findley - Former US Congressman
"Islam still has so much to offer today's women: dignity, respect, and protection in all aspects and all stages of her life from birth until her death in addition to the recognition, the balance, and means for the fulfillment of all her spiritual, intellectual, physical, and emotional needs. No wonder most of those who choose to become Muslims in a country like Britain are women. In the U.S. women converts to Islam outnumber male converts 4 to 1."
- Dr. Sherif Abdel Azeem
“In an age of secularism and cynicism it seems to me essential that all men of faith - those who acknowledge the existence of a higher dimension beyond the narrow, destructive confines of the egocentric world view - should come together in recognition of a common understanding of what is sacred and enduring in the human experience.
"As it says in the Koran, 'whoever believeth in God and the Last Day and doeth right - surely their reward is with their Lord, and there shall no fear come upon them, neither shall they grieve' ".
Prince Charles, A Tribute by the Prince of Wales
King Hussein's Memorial Serivce
St. Paul's Cathedral, London, July 5, 1999
"In the last three years, I became interested in the Qur'an... From my studies and what I have learned throughout this conference, I believe that everything that has been recorded in the Qur'an fourteen hundred years ago must be the truth, that can be proved by the scientific means.
Since the Prophet Muhammad could neither read nor write, Muhammad must be a messenger who relayed this truth which was revealed to him as an enlightenment by the one who is eligible creator. This creator must be God, or Allah.
I think this is the time to say La ilaha illa Allah, there is no god to worship except Allah (God), Muhammad rasoolu Allah, Muhammad is Messenger of Allah...
The most precious thing I have gained from coming to this conference is La ilaha illa Allah, and to have become Muslim."
Tejatat Tejasen - Faculty of Medicine, University of Chiang Mai, Thailand.
"Thinking where Muhammad came from... I think it is almost impossible that he could have known about things like the common origin of the universe, because scientists have only found out within the last few years with very complicated and advanced technological methods that this is the case."
"Somebody who did not know something about nuclear physics 1400 years ago could not, I think, be in a position to find out from his own mind for instance that the earth and the heavens had the same origin, or many others of the questions that we have discussed here...
If you combine all these and you combine all these statements that are being made in the Qur'an in terms that relate to the earth and the formation of the earth and science in general, you can basically say that statements made there in many ways are true, they can now be confirmed by scientific methods, and in a way, you can say that the Qur'an is a simple science text book for the simple man. And that many of the statements made in there at that time could not be proven, but that modern scientific methods are now in a position to prove what Muhammad said 1400 years ago."
Alfred Kroner - Department of Geoscience, University of Mainz, Germany
"For the past three years, I have worked with the Embryology Committee of King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, helping them to interpret the many statements in the Qur'an and Sunnah referring to human reproduction and prenatal development. At first I was astonished by the accuracy of the statements that were recorded in the 7th century AD, before the science of embryology was established. Although I was aware of the glorious history of Muslim scientists in the 10th century AD, and some of their contributions to Medicine, I knew nothing about the religious facts and beliefs contained in the Qur'an and Sunnah."
"It has been a great pleasure for me to help clarify statements in the Qur'an about human development. It is clear to me that these statements must have come to Muhammad from God, or Allah, because most of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries later. This proves to me that Muhammad must have been a messenger of God, or Allah."
Prof. Keith L.Moore – Professor Emeritus, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Toronto.
"I have to say I did not really have any choice in the matter. Allah subhanau wata'ala had His eyes on me, and that was it from that moment on … He led me down a path from where there was no turning back from, because the more I got to know about Islam, about Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, [the more] it became obvious to me that this is where I wanted to belong and it is what I wanted to be."
(Marilyn Mornington is a District Judge in England, an international lecturer, and writer on family law including domestic violence.
“Islam is the only religion in the world that follows a book directly from God.”
“The Holy Quran is still in the same format and style as it was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) from Almighty Allah.”
“I was well-known in India for my atheist theology and later I came to realize that religion is the only way out for human beings both in the world as well as in the hereafter.”
(Dr. Periyadarshan – well known Indian Psychotherapist and former Atheist. Embraced Islam in 2010.)
“Our world today is an era of science and technology. Islam is not only compatible with science, it is much more advanced than modern science. Many verses in the Quran concerning science can only be understood by scientists today. More than that, in Islam science is not the end but a means of understanding God’s greatness for the well-being of all mankind. “
(Dr. Danial Zainal Abidin – Islam the Misunderstood Religion)
"I often think that woman is more free in Islam than in Christianity. Woman is more protected by Islam than by the faith which preaches monogamy. In the Quran, the law about woman is more just and liberal. It is only in the last twenty years that Christian England has recognised the right the right of woman to property, while Islam has allowed this right from all times. It is a slander to say that Islam preaches that women have no soul."
Annie Besant - The life and Teachings of Muhammad
The efforts of Muslim scholars and intellectuals during the Golden Ages contributed significantly to the Renaissance, which helped Europe overcome its Dark Ages. Islam has never taught a conflict between religion and science, since true religion and true science are always in agreements.
During the Golden Ages, Muslims became the world’s leading thinkers. They built the world’s first universities – Al-Zaytunah in Tunisia and Al-Azhar in Cairo, both of which are over 1,000 years old.
Muslim astronomers devised precise calendars, built astronomical tables, compiled almanacs and built the world’s first observatories. Muslims built the world’s first public hospital in Baghdad in 706CE. Texts on medicine produced by the Islamic world were studied in Europe for centuries.
(Reference: What you didn’ know about Islam – Sister Khadijah Watson)
“As a Christian, we never knew that the Muslims believed in the virgin birth of Jesus. We didn’t even think that they believed in Jesus at all. But if a Muslim does not believe in the virgin birth of Jesus, he/she is not a Muslim. I was also surprised to know that Muslims believe that Jesus was taken into heaven, and will come again!
Mary, the mother of Jesus, has a whole chapter in the Holy Quran named after her, yet the Muslims don’t worship her or pray to her as the Catholics do ! The Catholics, and Protestant Bibles have only a small paragraph devoted to her. Surah Maryam is the name of the chapter (in the Quran) called after her, the mother of Jesus (peace be upon him). “
[Khadija Watson (formerly Mary Sue Malvat) – “The Shocking Truth”]
Muslim love Jesus and believe in his miracles comes as a surprise to many people, especially Christians. Islam teaches that Jesus is one of the greatest prophets of Allah, like Moses before him, and Muhammad after him. The story of Jesus and his blessed mother Mary feature prominently in the Quran. Jesus is mentioned more times than Muhammad in the Quran, the 19th Chapter of the Quran is titled “Maryam”, which is Arabic for “Mary”.
(Sister Khadijah Watson)
In 1099, the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem and massacred its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants indiscriminately, in the name of the gentle Jesus. At that time, 400 years into the occupation of Palestine by the Muslims, Christians were still the majority in the country. Throughout this long period, no effort was made to impose Islam on them. Only after the expulsion of the Crusaders from the country, did the majority of the inhabitants start to adopt the Arabic language and the Muslim faith - and they were the forefathers of most of today's Palestinians.
(Uri Avnery - Israeli journalist)
THERE IS no evidence whatsoever of any attempt to impose Islam on the Jews. As is well known, under Muslim rule the Jews of Spain enjoyed a bloom the like of which the Jews did not enjoy anywhere else until almost our time. Poets like Yehuda Halevy wrote in Arabic, as did the great Maimonides. In Muslim Spain, Jews were ministers, poets, scientists. In Muslim Toledo, Christian, Jewish and Muslim scholars worked together and translated the ancient Greek philosophical and scientific texts. That was, indeed, the Golden Age. How would this have been possible, had the Prophet decreed the "spreading of the faith by the sword"?
(Uri Avnery - Israeli journalist)
(Uri Avnery - Israeli journalist)
“Islam has never known classes, and class warfare within its society, but the whole of European history since the time of Greece, and Rome is full of class struggle, and social hatred. Islam is indeed much more than a system of theology, it is a complete civilization.”
[H.A.R. Gibb in his book “Whither Islam]
“Moslem Spain wrote one of the brightest chapters in the intellectual history of medieval Europe. Between the middle of the 8th and the beginning of the 13th centuries, as we have noted before, the Arab speaking peoples were the main bearers of the torch and civilisation throughout the world. “
[Philip K. Hitti in his book “History of the Arabs”]
“The first thing that one should know and clearly understand about Islam is what the word “Islam” itself means. The religion of Islam is not named after a person as in the case of Christianity which was named after Jesus Christ, Buddhism after Gautama Buddha, Confucianism after Confucius and Marxism after Karl Marx. Nor was it named after a tribe like Judaism after the tribe of Judah and Hinduism after the Hindus. Islam is the true religion of “Allah” and as such, its name represents the central principle of Allah’s “God’s” religions, the total submission to the will of Allah “God”. The Arabic word of “Islam” means the submission or surrender of one’s will to the only true god worthy of worship “Allah” and anyone who does so is termed a “Muslim”.
(Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips)
“It has been a pleasure for me to help clarify in the Quran about Human Development. It is clear to me that these statements must have came to Muhammad (pbuh) from God or Allah because almost all of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries later.”
(Prof. Keith L. Moore – embryologist)
"I do not think I need say much about the Universal Brotherhood of man in Islam. It is a recognized fact. Lord and vassal, rich and poor, are all like. I have always found that my brother Muslims have been the soul of honour and that I could believe their word. They have always treated me justly, as a man and a brother, and have extended to me the greatest hospitality, and I have always felt at home with them."
(Sir Abdullah Archibald Hamilton Bart)
2/2/2019: 11.40 pm
[H.A.R. Gibb in his book “Whither Islam]
“Moslem Spain wrote one of the brightest chapters in the intellectual history of medieval Europe. Between the middle of the 8th and the beginning of the 13th centuries, as we have noted before, the Arab speaking peoples were the main bearers of the torch and civilisation throughout the world. “
[Philip K. Hitti in his book “History of the Arabs”]
“The first thing that one should know and clearly understand about Islam is what the word “Islam” itself means. The religion of Islam is not named after a person as in the case of Christianity which was named after Jesus Christ, Buddhism after Gautama Buddha, Confucianism after Confucius and Marxism after Karl Marx. Nor was it named after a tribe like Judaism after the tribe of Judah and Hinduism after the Hindus. Islam is the true religion of “Allah” and as such, its name represents the central principle of Allah’s “God’s” religions, the total submission to the will of Allah “God”. The Arabic word of “Islam” means the submission or surrender of one’s will to the only true god worthy of worship “Allah” and anyone who does so is termed a “Muslim”.
(Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips)
“It has been a pleasure for me to help clarify in the Quran about Human Development. It is clear to me that these statements must have came to Muhammad (pbuh) from God or Allah because almost all of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries later.”
(Prof. Keith L. Moore – embryologist)
"I do not think I need say much about the Universal Brotherhood of man in Islam. It is a recognized fact. Lord and vassal, rich and poor, are all like. I have always found that my brother Muslims have been the soul of honour and that I could believe their word. They have always treated me justly, as a man and a brother, and have extended to me the greatest hospitality, and I have always felt at home with them."
(Sir Abdullah Archibald Hamilton Bart)
2/2/2019: 11.40 pm
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