Islam Hasn’t Changed, We Have

By Rachel Molschky

When the most violent religion on earth is called the religion of peace, it may be time to consider the fact that something is seriously wrong with our society. In the past, Westerners and other non-Muslims had no trouble speaking their mind on a religion which has been all about the sword from the get-go. There are various compilations of quotes from an array of statesmen, philosophers, historians, and theologians throughout the ages on the brainwashing, the savagery and the lies which are all intrinsic to a religion which not only conquers with the sword but also maintains itself with the sword. In other words, convert or die (or live as a dhimmi, a second-class citizen), and if you leave and become an apostate, you die as well.

Yusuf Al Qaradawi, a leading Islamic scholar, explained this himself: “If they had gotten rid of the apostasy punishment Islam wouldn’t exist today.”

Qaradawi might know a thing or two about Islam. He is described by Pam Geller as “a preeminent Egyptian scholar. Articulate and widely read, he is one of the most commented on scholars of Islam. Al Qaradawi is a founder of the website IslamOnline.net, one of the intellectual leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood movement, and the most influential leader associated with the movement.” Why would a highly respected Muslim scholar say such a thing if it weren’t true, if Islam really was a “religion of peace”?

The fact is that Islam has not changed. The apostasy punishment is as valid today as it ever was. What has changed, however, is society and our reaction to Islam and Muslims in general.

The Haran Gawaitha is a Mandaean text written during the 7th to 9th century. It refers to Muhammad as “the Son-of-Slaughter, the Arab,” “a false prophet,” and explains that he “converted people to himself by the sword.” As a point of reference, Muhammad lived from 570-632 CE. His battles occurred in the 7th century, and therefore this work was partially written in the same timeframe or close to it.

Hundreds of years went by, yet nothing changed. Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274), a famous theologian, minced no words when he wrote of Muhammad: “He seduced the people by promises of carnal pleasure to which the concupiscence of the flesh goads us. His teaching also contained precepts that were in conformity with his promises, and he gave free rein to carnal pleasure. In all this, as is not unexpected, he was obeyed by carnal men… no wise men, men trained in things divine and human, believed in him from the beginning, Those who believed in him were brutal men and desert wanderers, utterly ignorant of all divine teaching, through whose numbers Muhammad forced others to become his followers by the violence of his arms…”

These violent murders continued throughout history, totaling over 200 million. Just since the 9/11 attacks in 2001, there have been over 21,000 deadly attacks around the world, and the body count from those attacks is unfathomable. The Islamic conquests of Muhammad continue, though now in a more deceptive manner, spreading to the West, conquering and reconquering parts of Europe and working their way to countries like the US and Australia, mainly through liberal immigration laws. But once in, homegrown terror acts and money laundering to fund terror are a piece of cake. And the Muslim expansion naturally occurs while families settle, have children and build mosques where “death to the infidels” is preached. Then second generation Muslim immigrants are able to run for public office or get appointed to key government positions, and the face of the nation is changed.

Yet Islam itself has not changed, nor have its believers. What has changed is us. Compare how we felt about Islam in the past to our current “open-minded” politically correct mentality:

Then:

“Qur’an… an accursed book… So long as there is this book there will be no peace in the world.” -William Gladstone, British Prime Minister four times in the 1800s

Now (2002):

“America treasures the relationship we have with our many Muslim friends, and we respect the vibrant faith of Islam which inspires countless individuals to lead lives of honesty, integrity, and morality.” -US President George W. Bush

Then:

“…Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science, the science against which it had vainly struggled, the civilisation of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilisation of ancient Rome.” -Sir Winston Churchill, British Prime Minister during WWII and in the early 1950s

Now (2011):

“Islam is a religion, observed peacefully and devoutly by over a billion people. Islamist extremism is a political ideology, supported by a minority… Someone can be a devout Muslim and not be an extremist. We need to be clear: Islamist extremism and Islam are not the same thing.” -British Prime Minister David Cameron

Then:

“It was written in their Koran, that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every mussulman who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise. He said, also, that the man who was the first to board a vessel had one slave over and above his share, and that when they sprang to the deck of an enemy’s ship, every sailor held a dagger in each hand and a third in his mouth; which usually struck such terror into the foe that they cried out for quarter at once.” -US Minister to France and later 3rd President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, on Tripoli’s Ambassador response as to what right they had to start a war upon nations that had done them no harm (in the context of the First Barbary War)

Now (2002):

“Islam brings hope and comfort to millions of people in my country, and to more than a billion people worldwide. Ramadan is also an occasion to remember that Islam gave birth to a rich civilization of learning that has benefited mankind.” –US President George W. Bush

“Islam, as practiced by the vast majority of people, is a peaceful religion, a religion that respects others. Ours is a country based upon tolerance and we welcome people of all faiths in America.” -US President George W. Bush

Then:

“He (Muhammad) poisoned the sources of human felicity at the fountain, by degrading the condition of the female sex, and the allowance of polygamy; and he declared undistinguishing and exterminating war, as a part of his religion, against all the rest of mankind. The essence of his doctrine was violence and lust: to exalt the brutal over the spiritual part of human nature..” -6th President of the United States John Quincy Adams

Now (2013):

“Throughout our history, Islam has contributed to the character of our country, and Muslim Americans, and their good works, have helped to build our nation — and we’ve seen the results. We’ve seen those results in generations of Muslim immigrants — farmers and factory workers, helping to lay the railroads and build our cities. Muslim innovators who helped build some of our highest skyscrapers and who helped to unlock the secrets of our universe.

“Every day, Muslim Americans are helping to shape the way that we think and the way that we work and the way that we do business. And that’s the spirit that we celebrate tonight…” -President Barack Hussein Obama at the annual White House Iftar dinner for Ramadan

Then:

“Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.” – Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaeologus (1350 – 1425)

Now (2013):

“…Neither Islam nor UK foreign policy to blame for Woolwich attack.” –London Mayor Boris Johnson’s response to Lee Rigby’s murder

Then:

“I studied the Quran a great deal. I came away from that study with the conviction that by and large there have been few religions in the world as deadly to men as that of Muhammad…” – French political thinker and historian Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville (1805 – 1859)

Now (2007):

“It is mainstream Britain which needs to integrate more with the Muslim way of life, not the other way around.” British Prime Minister David Cameron

Then:

“The sword of Mahomet, and the Coran, are the most fatal enemies of Civilization, Liberty, and Truth, which the world has yet known.” –Sir William Muir, KCSI (1819-1905), Scottish historian and writer specializing in the history of the time of Muhammad and the early caliphate

Now (2013):

“This was not just an attack on Britain and on the British way of life, it was also a betrayal of Islam and of the Muslim communities who give so much to our country. There is nothing in Islam that justifies this truly dreadful act.” -British Prime Minister David Cameron after the brutal Islamic slaying of soldier Lee Rigby

Then:

“[Islam] is essentially an obstructive, intolerant system, supplying just sufficient good to stand in the way of greater good. It has consecrated despotism; it has consecrated polygamy; it has consecrated slavery. It has declared war against every other creed; it has claimed to be at least dominant in every land… When it ceases to have an enemy to contend against, it sinks into sluggish stupidity… It must have an enemy; if cut off, like Persia, from conflict with the infidel, it finds its substitute in sectarian hatred of brother Moslems… By [only] slightly reforming, it has perpetuated and sanctified all the evils of the eastern world. It has, by its aggressive tenets, brought them into more direct antagonism with the creed and civilization of the west.” –Edward Augustus Freeman (1823-1892), English historian and politician

Now (2008):

“Muslims make a huge contribution to Britain’s success – to our prosperity, our society and our culture. And of course, Ramadan is an opportune time to consider the contribution of Islam not just to Britain, but to the world: Islamic art, science, and philosophy haveenriched our lives over many centuries.” -British Prime Minister Gordon Brown

Then:

“To me it seems certain that the fatalistic teachings of Muhammad and the utterdegradation of women is the outstanding cause for the arrested development of the Arab.He is exactly as he was around the year 700, while we have kept on developing.” –General George S. Patton, US Army general known for various commands throughout his career, especially during WWII

Now (2009):

“The United States is not, and will never be, at war with Islam… In fact, our partnership with the Muslim world is critical not just in rolling back the violent ideologies that people of all faiths reject, but also to strengthen opportunity for all its people…. We will convey our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith, which has done so much over the centuries to shape the world — including in my own country. The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans… Our focus will be on what we can do, in partnership with people across the Muslim world, to advance our common hopes and our common dreams…” -President Barack Hussein Obama II to the Turkish Parliament

Now, a reality check. What has really changed in all these years? Over 200 million people have died and continue to die in the name of this “religion.” The influx of Muslim immigration in recent years has brought unimaginable horrors to the West: honor killings, rapes and massive sex grooming cases, an increase in crime as Muslims in prison account for a far higher percentage than their share of the population, violent protests, hate preachers, an increase in domestic violence, female genital mutilation, financial drain on social benefits programs due to welfare abuse, polygamy (another component of welfare abuse), absurd demands, “Muslim charities” which are often fronts for fundraising schemes for terrorist groups, homegrown terrorism and more. These are the wonderful contributions Muslims have made to mankind and to our society in particular? This is the “rich civilization,” the “religion that respects others?” These things are “enriching our society?”

Nothing has changed throughout the course of history in terms of Islam, and these quotes from the past still ring true today. Sure, there have been periods of calm here and there, but the violence reignites. And it is not only in one country or another. It is worldwide. Syria, Afghanistan, Egypt, Nigeria… these are perhaps expected. But the US, the UK, Sweden, France…? Churchill, Jefferson, Adams, Gladstone- these leaders understood Islam and never would have allowed this attack on our civilization to occur without fighting back. Open border immigration policies and over-the-top political correctness are nothing short of negligence. We need leaders with the courage and boldness of our past. The fear of stepping on someone’s toes is not exactly leadership. And if something doesn’t give, this pendulum which is currently too far to the left will suddenly go too far to the right because when things get out of hand, the typical human reaction is to overcompensate. Many of these issues can be resolved by changing policies and laws. It’s a start, at least, if our leaders are courageous enough to go against “today’s” grain and follow in the footsteps of our great leaders of yesteryear.

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