Radical Islam isn't the peaceful Islam
It must be made clear that Islam and Islamist extremism are not one and the same. Islamist extremism, or ''militant Islam,'' is a term the media often employ in relation to those Muslims who acquire power in order to subjugate others. It is also used for rulers and others who manipulate the religion as they see fit and impose these views on the people oppressively.
Islam, on the other hand is a monotheistic religion that stands for and means ''peace.'' In the religion of Islam, there is no such category as ''extremism.'' Therefore, for John F. Brinson to state in July 12 op-ed that Prophet Muhammad spread his religion by force is far from the truth. History itself proves that when the city of Mecca was conquered by the Prophet and his followers, he gave the Quraysh (the ruling tribe at the time) freedom of choice. He did not force anybody to adopt Islam. He wanted them to become Muslims as a result of their understanding of Islam and their own free will, not by force. He even ordered the Muslims not to kill anybody in Mecca.
When non-Muslims asked the Prophet for refuge, he would give them refuge and the opportunity to study Islam and then to submit freely. For instance, a man by the name of Safwan ibn Umayyah fled to Jeddah when Mecca was conquered by the Muslims. When some people asked the Prophet for refuge on his behalf, he sent his turban to him as a sign of refuge to give him immunity upon returning to Mecca. Safwan returned from Jeddah and asked the Prophet to give him a respite of two months. He agreed to his request and gave him a respite of four months. Then Safwan accompanied the Prophet to the cities of Hunayn and Ta'if. Thereafter, he submitted to Islam out of his own free will. If others spread Islam after the death of the Prophet by force, it was in no way in accordance with the teachings of Prophet Muhammad.
To further clarify, Muslims ruled Spain for about 800 years. The Muslims in Spain never used the sword to force the people to convert. Later, the Christian Crusaders came to Spain and wiped out the Muslims. There was not a single Muslim in Spain who could openly give the adhan (the call for prayers).
In Arabia, both the British and the French ruled for a few years, on the other hand, the Muslims ruled for 1,400 years. Yet, today, there are 14 million Arabs who have been Coptic Christians for generations. If the Muslims had used the sword then, there would not have been a single Christian Arab. Countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan all have Christian or Jewish populations.
Furthermore, if one ponders over 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 in number to force people to be Muslims against their will. In addition, no Muslim army ever reached Indonesia, which has the most Muslims in the world today.
As far as freedom is concerned, the United States has allowed people the freedom to worship. If, at present, there are Muslim countries that deny freedom to their people, it is because the precepts of Islam are not being adhered to. Muslim people live in these nations, not true Islam. This is the explanation for corruption and injustice flourishing in many Muslim regions.
This definitely is not what the Prophet wanted for the world. Radical Islam is not Islam. ''Love your neighbour,'' the lesson preached by every major faith, is very consistent with the teachings of Islam.
Knowing the truth and understanding people are ways to start bridging the gaps that cause disagreements and abhorrence. Certainly, it is up to us to do our best in our own ways to create peace, which we yearn to see for ourselves and coming generations.
''The Muslims in Spain never used the sword to force the people to convert.''
iftkhar
classicalislam.com
