Discuss and Debate: "Islam is a Religion of Peace"

Do you want people to "sign up" and have it in even teams or as a one v one v one?

Hmmm interesting debate topic. I would say that if no other religion existed in the world, then yes it would be a religion of peace. However since this is not the reality of things, I think that there is enough proof showing that it is not.

I think the debate will be SS vs me lol. I'm preparing some stuff right now. I'll post it in a few.

Pretend this post is a mentally challeged female in a "ninja suit" and I just used an old GSM phone to remotely detonate a SVEST that this post is wearing.

Islam cannot ethically be used in the same sentence as civility or be associated with a resonable person. Case in point: attempt to have this exact same discussion in (insert Islamic country of your choice). Please prove me wrong.

Delete away if you must but the memory of those lost in this fight against Islam are forever remembered in Northern Virginia.



Edited to add caveat: I lived in a Muslim country for 3 years and have worked in several Muslim countries exclusive of the OEF and OIF theater.

I have learned over the last 40 years that if someone states a "fact" about themselves, that "fact" is usually contradictory. If the believers feel it necessary to say that Islam is a religion of peace, it is most likely not. How many countries openly accepted Islam and were not forced to convert or be sanctioned (death, taxes, lower social status, etc)?

Alrighty. Class got out early, so I get to partake earlier than planned. I'll preface this saying my mind is not definitively made up one way or the other. I understand this is a touchy subject, & I sympathize with those whom have lost friends in the current conflict (I have lost many as well).Nevertheless, I will argue for Islam being a religion of peace (in theory) for 2 reasons:
1). Mainly, because it seems to be the minority opinion on SS
2). The books I've read & courses I have taken advocate said view- to a certain extent.

Also, it may take me awhile to respond, but I will eventually. I have a crotch load of writing & reading to do in college. Also, my notes from Islamic Civ are in disarray, so I'm currently trying to organize them.
Again, thanks to Marauder & everyone contributing for the opportunity to engage you all & learn. Semper Fi.

I guess we can just dive into one of the bigger ones- Islam & tolerance. I figure we should start first with the Quran itself & what it teaches.

I'll start with one verse as an example. QC's tagline has Surah 3:28 on it:

Let not the Believers take the Unbelievers as friends - rather than the Believers. And whoever does that, then there is nothing from Allâh in any matter; unless that you only protect yourselves from them a protection. Thus Allâh cautions you of Himself; for towards Allâh is the eventual coming.

Understandably this seems intolerant, but this surah was "revealed" at a time when Islam was currently battling unbelievers (post- battle of Badr & Uhud), so this surah was essentially an was to keep OPSEC.

It is also important to note that the above is simply one translation. My copy of the Quran says: "Let believers not make friends with infidels IN PREFERENCE to the faithful." If this is the case, this correlates with what Paul admonishes in 2 Cor. 6:14 (NASB):

Do not be bound together with unbelievers, for what partnership can righteousness have with lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?

What intolerance do you all find in the Quran, whether it be towards unbelievers, women, etc.?

Scholarly debate complete with APA format? Let me get my popcorn

More when I have time.

Kudos on having the intellectual courage to examine and argue the unpopular opinion.

thanks, but I think it's more curiosity than courage.

I have not been everywhere nor have I done everything BUT, other than a few Serbs, I have enabled the k/c of only Muslims. I completely agree that we cannot fight a religion however I firmly believe that Islam is fighting us. Just look at the numbers. How many non-Muslims have been killed by allied forces in the last 10 years of the GWOT? How many non-Muslims have killed allied forces since GWOT? Go back to the 80's when the war really started and it is very clear.

Why do Islamists tell all Muslims it their religious duty to wage jihad against infidels? My Baptist preacher never declared a crusade against drugs, alcohol, strip clubs, music, kite flying, females driving cars or voting, etc.

Most countries of the world allow freedom of religion with the overwhelming exception of predominately Muslim countries. I can say that in my travels when we crossed from a country where the majority were Muslims to a "Christian country" there was a NOTICEBLE difference. There was an disctint feeling of acceptance and tolerance. So much so, that my children even sensed it.

The holy Qur'an can say whatever: it's believers show me otherwise with their actions. Please identify one Christian group that has a history of beheading it's enemies.

Malestrom, I challenge you to take your English Qur'an to Saudi Arabia and take it to a mosque. You will quickly be identified a takfir, regardless of your citizenship. Schoolin' is great but life experiences will ultimately cause one to question academics.

I am just a guy trained to sift through large amounts of data to find patterns that identify characteristics and predictable behavior in order to exploit them. <-- I totally just made that shi'ite up.

Most know my opinions on Islam (that it is not a religion of peace) and I really don’t see the need to support my view/opinion. However, taking a snap shot of the last 50 years of history and how Islamic nations/groups have interacted with the world as a whole should be evidence enough to support the theory that they are not a religion of peace. Other source material would be, the Koran (there guide in the Islamic religion), also we bring into play the many political and or religious teachings that have called for Muslims to rise up and attack the enemy (i.e. the non-believer).

I think that the argument could be made that Islam is a religion of peace for those who are Muslim, as they supposedly only believe in killing the non-believer is part of their religious duty. However, I would argue that even within Islam the religion is not peaceful, as they continue to have an internal civil war between the two primary formats of the religion, the Sunni and the Shia.

Then of course there is the argument that there are extremist Muslims and non-extremist Muslims, but yet we find that most of the Islamic organizations give financial support to the “extremist” throughout the world. I would say that there are a few Muslims who are not “true practitioners” (I.e. people who are not as deeply involved in the religion) who are peaceful. However, most true Muslims would consider those non-practitioners to be going against Islam. So based on the Islamic religion as a whole, I would consider the non-practitioners to not be a good representation of the Islamic religion.

As for links and supporting documentation, I am not going to spend the next hour supporting my opinions. If you disagree with my opinions, you might want to do some research on the subject and the historical events throughout Islam. Further more if you research Muhammad the profit of Islam and the individual responsible for the creating Islam, you will find that he was more or less a bandit who used war and conquer and destroy methods to spread the religion of Islam. Thus further supporting my theory that Islam has never been religion of peace and never will be.