By: John Millam1
Contents:
- Are Muslims All Terrorists and Violent?
- Is Islam a Religion of Peace?
- Did Islam Spread by the Sword?
- Who Are Muslims?
- Where do Muslims live?
- Is Islam Inherently Backward?
- Are Muslims Reachable?
Are Muslims All Terrorists and Violent?
Absolutely not! Most people in the Western world have had little exposure to Islam, except what they read in the newspapers. As a result, many hold Islam in an entirely negative light. This is particularly true in very recent history, with the Iranian hostage situation, violence in the Middle East, the Persian Gulf War, state-sponsored terrorism from Libya and Iraq, the rise of terrorist networks, and the events of Sept. 11, 2001. While these events cannot be denied, they do not represent the thoughts or actions of a majority of Muslims. Certainly, the hate speech and occasional violence against Muslims who are living in the United States is unjustifiable and must be strongly condemned by Christians. In fact, most Muslims here in America are peaceful and pro-American. In general, Muslims are very moral people. This is a sharp contrast to the trend toward immorality, licentiousness, and greed that plagues much of America and Europe. As Christians, we must not be biased or hostile toward our Muslim neighbors but recognize that they need to hear the gospel as much as anyone else.
Is Islam a Religion of Peace?
To counterbalance the negative way that Islam is presented in the media, many have swung to the opposite extreme and have proclaimed Islam as being purely peaceful and tolerant. Also, American culture is becoming alarmingly Politically Correct and Multicultural, which forbids any criticism of other religious groups. Painting Islam in such a pure light is no truer than opinions that Islam is totally bad. While there is much that is worthy of praise in Islam, we must look at the whole picture and need to approach this issue in a fair and unbiased manner.
Did Islam Spread by the Sword?
If by “spread by the sword” one means forced conversion by threat of violence or force, we can clearly answer “no.” That’s not to say that forced conversion never happened – we do find isolated examples of this happening in the past and present (e.g., Sudan today). However, such examples should not be taken as normative, and we should bear in mind that Christians have also been guilty of this at times. With all this said, we should not conclude that Islam spread purely by evangelism and their message. During the time of Muhammad, Muslims used force to gain political and military control of all of Arabia. Over the next 100 years, Muslim armies spread out from Arabia and gained control over a vast empire stretching from Morocco in Northern Africa to India. While captured countries had to accept the Islamic political system, many people were allowed to keep their religion, including Jews and Christians. However, those who did so were really second-class citizens, were prohibited from serving in the military, prohibited from proselytizing, and had to pay an extra tax. Under such pressure, many turned to Islam to avoid taxes and gain cultural and political benefits.
Who Are Muslims?
Most people picture Islam as being the religion of Arab peoples. While Islam had its origins among Arabs, it has spread far beyond its birthplace and today claims as many as one billion adherents. It would probably surprise most people that Arabs actually only make up about 10-20% of Muslims worldwide. Another large segment of Muslims are black Muslims living in Northern Africa, as well as many living here in America. Islam is also very prevalent throughout the Eastern world. Indonesia, not the Middle East, represents the largest concentration of Muslims in the world. Large parts of China and the former Soviet Union also contain large Muslim populations. Even more important to realize is that Islam is spreading
rapidly in both Europe and America. Islam is said to be the fastest-growing religion in the world.
Where Do Muslims Live?
Again, most associate Islam with the Middle East. Actually, Islam extends throughout the 10/40 window (between 10° and 40° latitude) from across all of North and Central Africa, the Middle East, and through Asia out to Indonesia and the Philippines. The 10/40 window countries represent some of the poorest but also the most unreached countries in the world. More importantly, Islam is no longer a religion “over there somewhere” but is gaining a strong foothold both here in America and in Europe. Mosques are springing up everywhere, and Dearborn, MI (just south of Detroit) is a Mecca for Muslim and Arabic
immigrants. Currently, there are more than 7 million Muslims in the US, and in the Kansas City
area, there are approximately 10,000 Muslims at 5 local mosques.
Is Islam Inherently Backward?
Today, most Muslim countries struggle with poverty, lack of religious freedom, and an absence of many Western advances. This picture that we see today, should not be construed as representing all of Islam. During the heights of Islamic rule around 1000 AD, many Islamic countries were culturally very sophisticated and brought about a number of scientific advances. (See Accomplishments of Islam) We must be careful to guard against Western biases or judging historical Islam with current circumstances
Are Muslims Reachable?
“Many people think the Muslim world is impossibly difficult to reach, and for this reason, mission efforts to this people have been minimal. Most Muslims, however, have not rejected the gospel; they have never even heard it. There is an unprecedented receptivity to the Gospel amongst Islamic people. There is consensus that the stage is set, and the time is ripe for a concerted and sustained advance in the Church’s mission to Islam… In the 23 countries which are over 90% Muslim, only 1,293 missionaries and Christian workers are reported active, and 1,130 of these are in only three countries: Pakistan, Senegal, and Jordan.
This leaves a total of 163 in all the other 20 countries… In the 38 countries of the world, which
are over 40% Muslim, of the 4,644 reported missionaries and workers, there are only 928
working directly in Muslim church planting.” (Islam Fact Sheet, March 1990.)
No other time in history has the need to evangelize among the Muslims been more important. More Muslims have come to Christ in the last century than in all the preceding centuries. In addition, God is using dreams and miracles to reach Muslims in places where missionaries have not reached. Christian shortwave radio and television in local native languages is a very powerful and effective tool for reaching out to Muslims.
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