Hundreds of thousands of Muslim refugees from the Middle East are pouring into western countries. Foolish western politicians are welcoming them with open arms, assuring us that Islam means peace. They have no inkling about the cultural compatibility of those they accept. President Barack Obama (whom I shall refer to as oBUMa from now on) even compared them to the Pilgrims on the Mayflower.
That is the most stupid thing oBUMa has said and he has said a lot of stupid things in his career. The Pilgrims brought Judeo Christian ethics which built America. These Muslims are bringing a set of ethics and cultural norms that are the causes of the social dysfunction in the Middle East today. They are totally incompatible with western values.
Democrats also have a hard time using the term ‘radical Islam’ to describe recent mass killings in San Bernadino and Paris. Some people like Ali Sina or Geert Wilders do not hesitate to blame Islam itself. So the term ‘radical Islam’ is already a softer term for it implies that the normal form of Islam is peaceful.
I think it is time to examine Islamic texts to see what role it plays in inspiring radical Islamists and the culture of Muslims. This is to see if it is a good idea to allow thousands of Muslim refugees into the country as what oBUMa wants.
Many of the refugees that oBUMa wants to accept are radical Islamists. While most of these radicals may not be violent, their beliefs make them incompatible as citizens of the west. .
What is radical Islam? My definition of radical Islam is the interpretation of Islamic scripture that engenders the following:
1) Hostility towards non-Muslims
2) Inequality between men and women
3) The killing of those Muslims who convert to other faiths
4) Slavery of non-Muslims captured in jihad
5) Waging jihad, or holy war, to spread Islam throughout the world.
6) Sex with young girls – as young as 9.
All these things have to change before the Muslim refugees can be accepted in large numbers. This would require Islam to be reformed. The problem is that all of the above are halal (permitted) in the Koran or hadiths. For those who do not know, the hadith refers to the words and deeds of the Holy Prophet Mohammad.
They were compiled by various scholars, the most important of whom were Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. While the hadiths were written by men, Muslims believe that the Koran came from God himself and revealed to the Prophet. (In Christian terms, the Koran is equivalent to the Book of Revelations, while the hadiths are equivalent to the rest of the Bible. )
I will give you the references to verses in the Koran and Hadiths related to the above 6 points. This is to help you understand that Muslims who are steeped in their faith are incompatible with western values.
1) Hostility towards non-Muslims
This comes from verses such as this one:
“O ye who believe! Take not for friends (awliyaa) unbelievers rather than believers: Do ye wish to offer God an open proof against yourselves?”
According to Dr Tawfik Hamid, a Muslim reformer, many mosques in the Middle East would curse non-Muslims in the Friday prayers.
“O ye who believe! Take not into your intimacy those outside your ranks: They will not fail to corrupt you. They only desire your ruin: Rank hatred has already appeared from their mouths: What their hearts conceal is far worse. We have made plain to you the Signs, if ye have wisdom. “
You can see from this verse in the Koran that unbelievers are described as people trying to corrupt Muslims and plotting their ruin. It surely will engender hatred in the hearts of Muslims towards unbelievers. No wonder, they curse unbelievers in their prayers, whom they believe are out to ruin them.
2) Inequality of the sexes which allows polygamy and wife-beating
In the west, men and women are considered equal. Wife beating is criminal in most western jurisdictions. But in Muslim cultures, women are usually considered inferior to men and polygamy is allowed. Wife beating is often tolerated.
Koran 4:3 allows a man to have up to four wives:
“And if you fear that you will not deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry those that please you of [other] women, two or three or four. But if you fear that you will not be just, then [marry only] one or those your right hand possesses. That is more suitable that you may not incline [to injustice].”
“Right hand possesses” refers to slave girls.
There is also a hadith where the Prophet Mohammed preached that women are inferior to men, in intelligence and in religion. He said that the majority of people in hell are women! Here is the hadith:
Sahih Bukhari Vol 1, Book 6 Number 301
Once Allah’s Apostle went out to the Musalla (to offer the prayer) o ‘Id-al-Adha or Al-Fitr prayer. Then he passed by the women and said, “O women! Give alms, as I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of hellfire where you (women).” They asked, “Why is it so, O Allah’s Apostle?” He replied, “You curse frequently and are ungrateful to your husbands. I have not seen anyone more deficient in intelligence and religion than you. A cautious sensible man could be led astray by some of you.” The women asked, “O Allah’s Apostle! What is deficient in our intelligence and religion?” He said, “Is not the evidence of two women equal to the witness of one man?” They replied in the affirmative. He said, “This is the deficiency in her intelligence. Isn’t it true that a woman can neither pray nor fast during her menses?” The women replied in the affirmative. He said, “This is the deficiency in her religion.”
Note that Mohammed thought women were deficient in religion because of her monthly periods! Since women are inferior, it follows that bad wives can be beaten. Here is the verse in the Koran that allows wife beating.
Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allah has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth. So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the husband’s] absence what Allah would have them guard. But those [wives] from whom you fear, arrogance – [first] advise them; [then if they persist], forsake them in bed; and [finally], strike them. But if they obey you [once more], seek no means against them. Indeed, Allah is ever Exalted and Grand.
This is still taken seriously though many imams, even in the west. An Imam in Spain, Mohammed Kamal Mustafa was jailed for 15 months for instructing his flock on how to beat their wives. This is definitely not compatible with western values.
3) The killing of those Muslims who convert to other faiths
Here is one of the hadiths on the death penalty for apostasy ie leaving Islam for another religion:
Sahih Bukhari Volume 9, Book 84, Number 57:
Some Zanadiqa (atheists) were brought to ‘Ali and he burnt them. The news of this event, reached Ibn ‘Abbas, who said, “If I had been in his place, I would not have burnt them, as Allah’s Apostle forbade it, saying, ‘Do not punish anybody with Allah’s punishment (fire).’ I would have killed them according to the statement of Allah’s Apostle, ‘Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him.'”
One clever moderate Muslim theologian argued that the sentence can be carried out when the apostate is on his deathbed (when he is sick and old). This is to circumvent the law, but it does not repeal it. He dared not call for its repeal for that would mean he has overridden the Prophet.
4) Slavery of non-Muslims captured in jihad
There are many verses in the Koran, which refers to “right hand possesses” which means slaves. But here is a revealing hadith:
Sahih Muslim Book 008, Hadith Number 3371
“We went out with Allah’s Messenger (May peace be upon him) on the expedition to the Bi’l-Mustaliq and took captive some excellent Arab women; and we desired them, for we were suffering from the absence of our wives, (but at the same time) we also desired ransom for them. So we decided to have sexual intercourse with them but by observing ‘azl (Withdrawing the male sexual organ before emission of semen to avoid conception). But we said: We are doing an act whereas Allah’s Messenger is amongst us; why not ask him? So we asked Allah’s Messenger (May peace be upon him), and he said: It does not matter if you do not do it, for every soul that is to be born up to the Day of Resurrection will be born.”
The men were afraid of impregnating the captured girls for that would depreciate their prices in the slave market. So they asked the Prophet whether withdrawal of the penis before ejaculation was allowed. This showed the Prophet allowed sex slaves.
See also Koran 4:24
“And all married women (are forbidden unto you) save those (captives) whom your right hands possess. “
The idea that Muslims are allowed to capture non-Muslim women in a jihad for use as sex slaves is not uncommon in the Middle East though it is a minority view. That is why ISIS is doing it and so is Boko Haram. They feel it is justified by Prophet Mohammed’s (PBUH) own example. Here is a link to a Muslim web site where the imam said that sex slavery is allowed:
Even relatively modern Kuwait has its supporters of sex slavery. The following is a link about a Kuwaiti female politician calling or the legalization of sex slavery in Kuwait. To the credit of Kuwaitis, she did not win the elections.
5) Waging jihad, or holy war, to spread Islam and payment of the jizya for conquering non-Muslims
This idea comes from ayahs like this one:
“I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieved, so strike [them] upon the necks and strike from them every fingertip.”
That is what ISIS is doing – chopping people’s heads off and spreading terror. They got their ideas from the Koran.
“Fight those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day and who do not consider unlawful what Allah and His Messenger have made unlawful and who do not adopt the religion of truth from those who were given the Scripture – [fight] until they give the jizyah willingly while they are humbled.”
That is what ISIS is doing. Fighting the unbelievers till they accept Islam or pay the jizyah (protection money). Radical Muslims believe it is their duty to fight unbelievers till Islam dominates the world. For these radicals, Islam is not complete till the state practice sharia, a medieval law code that is based on the teachings and example of their Prophet.
6) Marriage and hence sex with young girls – as young as 9
Some Muslims believe that they can marry a girl and have sex with a girl as young as 9 That’s because their holy Prophet had sex with his favorite wife Aisha when she was 9. See Sahih Bukhari Volume 7, Book 62, Number 65. Scroll down to number 65 quoted below:
“Narrated ‘Aisha:
That the Prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old. ”
I know that in primitive societies, people marry early – sometimes soon after puberty is reached. But early marriage is not a good idea in modern societies because you need at least 12 years of schooling. If Muslim girls get married too early, they won’t be properly educated and they will have lots of children. This leads to poverty.
But this explains why the earliest age allowed for marriage in Iran and Saudi Arabia is 9 and 10 respectively according to the Independent. These two countries follow Sharia law which is based on the words and deeds of Prophet Mohammed. Their Prophet is the perfect role model for Muslims according to the Koran 33:21 which states:
“There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern for anyone whose hope is in Allah and the Last Day and [who] remembers Allah often.”
It should be pointed out that most Muslims do not follow everything thing the Koran and hadiths teaches. Just as there are ‘cafeteria Christians’, there are also ‘cafeteria Muslims’, who pick and choose what teachings to practice. These are the moderates. Most Muslims you meet will never kill unbelievers or beat their wives or take a sex slave. Many are even nice people. But they won’t be able to refute the radicals because what the radicals are preaching and doing are so strongly grounded in the Koran and Hadiths.
As a result, they will be paralyzed to speak out against the radicals in their midst. It should be noted that not all radicals are violent. But they believe in the goals of ISIS and will try to further its goals in a non-violent way. A common tactic is to blame the actions of ISIS on America or Israel. They are saying, “If you guys do the right thing (ie what we want), the violence will stop.” But what ISIS wants is to conquer the world for Islam where a Caliph (successor to the Prophet Mohammed) rules all.
That is why you find few Muslims condemning what ISIS and Al Qaeda are doing as un-Islamic, even the moderates who do not agree with the goals of ISIS. The moderates cannot find the scriptural text to explain why world conquest by the Caliphate to spread Islam is a bad idea, when during his lifetime, Prophet Mohammed conquered the Arabian peninsula for Islam. In fact, he was preparing to conquer the Byzantine empire just before he died, after having sent a letter to Emperor Heraclius demanding his submission.
While the moderates can’t help you, the non-violent radicals will try to mislead you to help ISIS. Of course, the violent radicals will simply kill you. The fact that the most prestigious Al Azhar university has refused to call ISIS supporters apostates speaks volumes of the current state of Islam.
Yet Al Azhar did not hesitate to condemn moderate Muslims like Faraq Foda. Foda was murdered after being declared an apostate by Al Azhar. Faraq Foda’s sin was to call for separation of religion and politics, a basic principle we take for granted. A courageous Muslim cleric, Muhammad Nasr, blamed Al Azhar for giving ISIS its ideas. He said:
“The Islamic State is a byproduct of Al Azhar’s programs. So can Al Azhar denounce itself as un-Islamic? Al Azhar says there must be a caliphate and that it is an obligation for the Muslim world [to establish it]. Al Azhar teaches the law of apostasy and killing the apostate. Al Azhar is hostile towards religious minorities, and teaches things like not building churches, etc. Al Azhar upholds the institution of jizya [extracting tribute from religious minorities]. Al Azhar teaches stoning people. So can Al Azhar denounce itself as un-Islamic?”
So western leaders rushing out to say ‘This is not Islam” whenever there is a terrorist attack are being presumptuous. They are not Muslim scholars and have no qualification to judge what is or is not Islam. If Osama bin Laden’s and Abu Bakr Bhaghdadi’s behavior do not represent Islam, let the Muslim clerics declare them apostates.
Given the current state of Islam, it would be unwise to accept Muslim immigrants till their religion is reformed. But it is a daunting task and only Muslims can do it.
A successful businessman and author, Robert H. Lee has spent years extensively researching the history of nations for his book Saving Democracy from Suicide. (LINK: www.savingdemocracyfromsuicide.com) A self-professed Americaphile, Lee resides in Singapore with his family, but he previous lived in the United States where he went to the University of Michigan for his MBA.