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Misconception: Muslims Hate Jesus

Many non-Muslims are surprised to find out that according to Muslim belief, Jesus, the son of Mary, is one of the greatest messengers of God. Muslims are taught to love Jesus, and a person cannot be a Muslim without believing in the virgin birth and miracles of Jesus Christ, peace be upon him. Muslims believe these things about Jesus not because of the Bible or any other religion, but simply because the Holy Qur’an says these things about him. However, Muslims always emphasize that the miracles of Jesus, and all other prophets, were by “God’s permission”. This having been said, many Christians feel to not believe that Jesus is the “Son of God”, “God Incarnate” or the “Second Person” of the Trinity. This is because the Qur’an clearly says that Almighty God does not have a “Son” — neither allegorically, physically, metaphorically, or metaphysically.

The Pure Monotheism of Islam rejects the notion of “defining” God (which is basically what the “Doctrine of the Trinity” does), saying that someone is “like” God or equal to him, or praying to someone else besides God. Also, Islam teaches that titles such as “Lord” and “Savior” are due to God alone. In order to avoid misunderstanding, it should be clarified that when Muslims criticize the Bible or the teachings of Christianity, they are not attacking “God’s Word” or Jesus Christ, peace be upon him. From the Muslim point of view, they are defending Jesus and God’s Word — which they have in the form of the Qur’an. Muslim criticism is targeted at writings that some people claim are God’s word, but Muslims simply don’t accept their claim that they are really God’s word in toto. Additionally, Christian doctrines such as the Trinity and the Atonement are criticized by Muslims precisely because they did not originate from Jesus, peace be upon him. In this way, Muslims are the true followers of Jesus, peace be upon him because they defend him from the exaggerations of the Christians and teach the Pure Monotheism that Jesus himself followed.

Misconception: Islam Was Spread By The Sword

Many non-Muslims, when they think about Islam, picture religious fanatics on camels with a sword in one hand and a Qur’an in the other. This myth, which was made popular in Europe during the Crusades, is totally baseless. First of all, the Holy Qur’an clearly says “Let there be no compulsion in religion”. In addition to this, Islam teaches that a person’s faith must be pure and sincere, so it is certainly not something that can be forced on someone.

In debunking the myth that Islam was “spread by the sword”, the (non-Muslim) historian De Lacy O’ Leary wrote: “History makes it clear, however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myths that historians have ever accepted.” (Islam at the Crossroads, London, 1923, p. 8.). It should also be known that Muslims ruled Spain for roughly 800 years. During this time, and up to when they were finally forced out, the non-Muslims there were alive and flourishing.

Additionally, Christian and Jewish minorities have survived in the Muslim lands of the Middle East for centuries. Countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan all have Christian and/or Jewish populations. If Islam taught that all people are supposed to be killed or forced to become Muslims, how did all of these non-Muslims survive for so long in the middle of the Islamic Empire? Additionally, if one considers the small number of Muslims who initially spread Islam from Spain and Morocco in the West to India and China in the East, one would realize that they were far too few to force people to be members of a religion against their will.

Additionally, the great empire and civilization established by the Muslims had great staying power — its citizens were proud to be part of it. The spread of Islam stands in contrast to the actions of the followers of Christianity, who since the time of Emperor Constantine have made liberal use of the sword – often basing their conduct on Biblical verses. This was especially true of the colonization of South America and Africa, where native peoples were systematically wiped out or forced to convert. It is also interesting to note that when the Mongols invaded and conquered large portions of the Islamic Empire, instead of destroying the religion, they adopted it. This is a unique occurrence in history – the conquerors adopting the religion of the conquered! Since they were the victors, they certainly could not have been forced to become Muslims! Ask any of the over one billion Muslims alive in the world today whether they were forced! The largest Muslim country in the world today is Indonesia — and there were never any battles fought there! So where was the sword? How could someone be forced to adhere to a spiritually rewarding and demanding religion like Islam?

Misconception: Muhammad (PBUH) Wrote The Quran

In addressing this misconception, it is interesting to note that no other religious scripture claims the direct word of Almighty in toto as clearly and as often as the Holy Qur’an. As the Qur’an clearly says: “If had been written by man, you would have found many discrepancies therein”. At the time the Qur’an was revealed, the Arabs recognized that the language of the Qur’an was unique and that it was distinctly different from the language normally used by the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. The Arabs of that time, by the way, were known for their beautiful poetry and Muhammad was known to be an illiterate man! The Qur’an clearly says that Muhammad was unable to read and write, so if this wasn’t true, certainly his contemporaries would have protested and rejected him. However, there are no reports of this. Certainly, there were people who rejected Muhammad’s message, just like other prophets were rejected, but none for this reason. On the contrary, Muhammad, peace be upon him, had thousands of loyal followers and the results of their efforts spread Islam from Spain to China in just over a century! It is also interesting to note that even though the Qur’an is not poetry, the Arabs more or less gave up writing poetry after it was revealed. It could be said that the Qur’an is the piece of Arabic literature par excellence – and Muhammad’s contemporaries realized that they couldn’t outdo it. Additionally, it is easy to prove that Muhammad did not possess a great deal of the knowledge that is expounded in the Qur’an: such as knowledge of historical events, previous prophets, and natural phenomena. The Qur’an says in several places that Muhammad and his people did not know these things – so, again, if this wasn’t true, certainly his contemporaries would have rejected his claims. Suffice it to say that not only is the Qur’an the most memorized and well-preserved scripture on earth, but it is also unequaled in eloquence, spiritual impact, clarity of message, and the purity of its truth.

Misconception: Islam Degrades Women

Even though many aspects of Islam are misunderstood by non-Muslims, the ignorance, misinformation, and incorrect assumptions that are made in regard to Islam’s treatment of women are probably the most severe. Numerous verses of the Qur’an make it clear that men and women are equal in the sight of God. According to the teachings of Islam, the only thing that distinguishes people in the site of God is their level of God-consciousness. Due to this, many people are surprised to find out that Islamic Law guaranteed rights to women over 1400 years ago which women in Europe and America only obtained recently. For example, Islam clearly teaches that a woman is a full-person under the law, and is the spiritual equal of a male. Also, according to Islamic Law, women have the right to own property, operate a business, and receive equal pay for equal work. Women are allowed total control of their wealth, they cannot be married against their will and they are allowed to keep their own name when married.

Additionally, they have the right to inherit property and to have their marriage dissolved in the case of neglect or mistreatment. Also, Islam does not consider women an “evil temptress”, and thus does not blame women for the “original sin”. Women in Islam participate in all forms of worship that men participate in. Actually, the rights that Islam gave to women over 1400 years ago were almost unheard of in the West until the 1900s. Less than fifty years ago in England and America, a woman could not buy a house or car without the co-signature of her father or husband!

Additionally, Islam gives great respect to women and their role in society — it gives them the right to own property, marry who they want, and many other rights. Also, it should be mentioned that the Prophet Muhammad’s mission stopped many of the horrible practices in regard to women that were present in the society of his time. For example, the Qur’an put an end to the pagan Arab practice of killing their baby daughters when they were born.

Additionally, Islam put restrictions on the unrestricted polygamy of the Arabs of the time and put many laws in place to protect the well-being of women. Today, most of the so-called reforms in the status of women came about after the West abandoned religion for secularism. Even those in the West who claim to follow the so-called “Judeo-Christian tradition” really follow the values of Western liberalism — but just to a lesser degree than their more liberal countrymen. The Myth and The Reality. If women in the Muslim World today don’t have their rights, it is not because Islam did not give them to them. The problem is that in many places alien traditions have come to overshadow the teachings of Islam, either through ignorance or the impact of Colonialization.

Misconception: Islam Is A Religion Only For Arabs

The fastest way to prove that this is entirely false is to state the fact that only about 15% to 20% of the Muslims in the world are Arabs. There are more Indian Muslims than Arab Muslims and more Indonesian Muslims than Indian Muslims! Believing that Islam is only a religion for Arabs is a myth that was spread by the enemies of Islam early in its history. This mistaken assumption is possibly based on the fact that most of the first generation of Muslims were Arabs, the Qur’an is in Arabic and the Prophet Muhammad was an Arab. However, both the teachings of Islam and the history of its spread show that the early Muslims made every effort to spread their message of Truth to all nations, races, and peoples. Furthermore, it should be clarified that not all Arabs are Muslims, and not all Muslims are Arabs. An Arab can be a Muslim, Christian, Jew, atheist – or of any other religion or ideology. Also, many countries that some people consider to be “Arab” are not “Arab” at all — such as Turkey and Iran (Persia). The people who live in these countries speak languages other than Arabic as their native tongue and are of a different ethnic heritage than the Arabs. It is important to realize that from the very beginning of the mission of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, his followers came from a wide spectrum of individuals — there was Bilal, the African slave; Suhaib, the Byzantine Roman; Ibn Salam, the Jewish Rabbi; and Salman, the Persian. Since religious truth is eternal and unchanging, and mankind is one universal brotherhood, Islam teaches that Almighty God’s revelations to mankind have always been consistent, clear, and universal. The Truth of Islam is meant for all people regardless of race, nationality, or linguistic background. Taking a look at the Muslim World, from Nigeria to Bosnia and from Malaysia to Afghanistan is enough to prove that Islam is a Universal message for all of mankind — not to mention the fact that significant numbers of Europeans and Americans of all races and ethnic backgrounds are coming into Islam.