By Abdullah Al Araby
www.IslamReview.com

The Facade

The "Islam" that Muslim activists introduce to the West these days is completely different from the Islam we knew and experienced in the Middle East. This is a new edition - revised, modified, expanded and abridged - of the real Islam. A major facelift operation has been taking place here.

To their credit, I must acknowledge that the international Islamization movement, in recent years, has grown much in both intelligence and sophistication. They lacked power, so they decided to be smart. Since they could no longer use the sword to conquer the world, as they once did, they decided to use more cunning methods, taking advantage of democracy in the West.

The following are some of the methods Muslim activists are now adopting:

1. Change of Identity

   Muslim activists in the West avoid referring to teachings that may offend the Western citizen, such as the Islamic code of punishment.

   They stress that they believe in Moses and Jesus. They refrain from calling Jews and Christians "infidels", nor would they call them "Zionists" or "Crusaders".

   The last thing they want to do is to shock people. They once had a Muslim host on their TV. program with a Christian name, "Paul"; names like Mohammed, Mustafa and Omar were too strong to swallow they thought. They use the term "Sunday School" in place of "Friday Class", and they end their speeches with the Christian expression "may God bless you".

   They boast about being Americans, and have the American flag cover the background of their program set. This is the same flag Muslims burn in their daily rituals in Islamic countries, calling America "The great Satan".
    

2. Change of Vocabulary

   Instead of living in isolation from society, they are using now a completely new terminology. Words like love, grace… are now part of their vocabulary. Theological Christian terms such as : Salvation, Justification and Sanctification are now part of their teachings.

   They change Quranic translations to hide some of Islam's harsh teachings.

   An example is the new French translation of the Quran which has caused tremendous furor among Muslim fundamentalists. The translation attempted to please Jews by modifying some verses of the Quran that condemned Jews. An example is a verse that used to read "The people of Israel, after sowing corruption twice on earth for the purpose of dominating other people, will push themselves up into a position of extreme power before being punished by God."

   The new translation reads just the opposite: "The people of Israel will be twice destroyed as an innocent victim, and God will reward them by elevating them to great heights."

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Posted by Walt as Islam at 6:05 AM EDT

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An eye-opening testimony of an American woman raised a Catholic, married a Muslim, and eventually freed herself from her Islamic bonds and became a Christian.

I was raised a Catholic of a not very religious family in the USA. I grew up in the 70's and felt that there was something very wrong with the spirituality of the West. Even though the times were relatively prosperous, following current events one felt that the value system of the West has failed. Many families were broken, the institution of marriage was being questioned, and other philosophies and religions of the world were welcomed.

Finishing High School and starting college, I found that I was searching for something that gave meaning to my life and felt closeness to God. I searched around and found Islam. During the same time I met my Muslim husband through a secretary at work. Many people assume that my husband converted me, but that was not the case. When I met him I was ready to dedicate my life to the idea of Islam as presented to me by Maudidi, in Islam in Focus. I was 22, with one semester of college, when I married him. He knew almost no English, but he gave me many books, especially on How to Raise Islamic Kids in North America. I was overjoyed and sure that I found the solution to all the worlds problems. No one told me to cover completely, including my hands and my neck all the way up to my face. In this time my husband was very modern and found me a little fanatical. But he never told me to uncover because he was pleased at my total conversion to Islam. I did it because I wanted to please God more than anything else/I said that Allah has rescued me from sure damnation. Everyday I read more and more and by 1 year I could recite the small surahs in Arabic. I use to go around and talk to the girlfriends of my husband's friends to see if they would convert.

At that time, I was very happy with my spouse. We had four kids, one after another. I was in College and worked, so I thought those bothersome things that I read about women in Islam did not apply to pure, unadulterated Islam, because my spouse was very liberal. But the word liberal meant that he let me study and work. Personally, he did not associate or talk to any American. He felt intimidated by the culture of our state and always chose friends from his own Mideast country. He would not let me talk to any American, except limited conversation about Islam…promote the complete separation of the sexes so as to keep society pure. I thought that lack of trust as a small flaw in which I could overlook.

Years passed and I graduated from college. But instead of helping my needy family (my husband was so good that he let me study instead of helping out by a much needed second income). When the Twin Towers episode occurred and other Middle-Eastern situations developed, I noticed that my husband grew a beard and started acting very seriously.

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Posted by Walt as Islam, Witnessing at 11:41 PM EDT

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Is gay marriage really polically correct in our permissive society?

Thomas Sowell's recent article, Gay 'marriage', illustrates the absurdity that same-sex proponents will go to legalize an 'action' when trying to redefine marriage. For centuries marriage has been defined as a union between one man and one woman.

The "equal protection of the laws" provided by the Constitution of the United States applies to people, not actions. Laws exist precisely in order to discriminate between different kinds of actions.

When the law permits automobiles to drive on highways but forbids bicycles from doing the same, that is not discrimination against people. A cyclist who gets off his bicycle and gets into a car can drive on the highway just like anyone else.

In a free society, vast numbers of things are neither forbidden nor facilitated. They are considered to be none of the law's business. (TownHall.com)

Mr Sowell continues with the point why same-sex unions is becoming unfavorable in many states, such as Massachusetts, the first state to legalize same-sex marriages. That law will de addressed in Novembers election as the majority of voters in Massachusetts want the law repealed.

Homosexuals were on their strongest ground when they said that the law had no business interfering with relations between consenting adults. Now they want the law to put a seal of approval on their behavior. But no one is entitled to anyone else's approval. . .

. . . In other words, marriage imposes legal restrictions, taking away rights that individuals might otherwise have. Yet "gay marriage" advocates depict marriage as an expansion of rights to which they are entitled.

They argue against a "ban on gay marriage" but marriage has for centuries meant a union of a man and a woman. There is no gay marriage to ban. (TownHall.com)

Read the rest of the article, and see the self-evident truth that argues against same-sex unions. It is no wonder why many sates are reversing their stance on same-sex unions or establishing laws defining marriage as a union between one man and one women only, with no exceptions.

Posted by Walt as Constitutional Issues, Social Issues at 6:00 AM EDT

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Aug. 21 /Christian Newswire/ — Author and Christian broadcaster Dr. D. James Kennedy connects the dots between Charles Darwin and Adolf Hitler in Darwin’s Deadly Legacy, a groundbreaking inquiry into Darwin’s chilling social impact. The new television documentary airs nationwide on August 26 and 27 on The Coral Ridge Hour. For station listings, go to http://www.coralridge.org/darwin/.

What: New TV documentary, Darwin’s Deadly Legacy

When: August 26, 27, 2006

Where: Nationwide; details at http://www.coralridge.org/darwin/

The program features 14 scholars, scientists, and authors who outline the grim consequences of Darwin’s theory of evolution and show how his theory fueled Hitler’s ovens.

“To put it simply, no Darwin, no Hitler,” said Dr. Kennedy, the host of Darwin’s Deadly Legacy. “Hitler tried to speed up evolution, to help it along, and millions suffered and died in unspeakable ways because of it.”

The one-hour program features Ann Coulter, author of Godless; Richard Weikart, author of From Darwin to Hitler; Lee Strobel, author of The Case for a Creator; Jonathan Wells, author of Icons of Evolution; Phillip Johnson, author of Darwin on Trial; Michael Behe, author of Darwin’s Black Box; Ian Taylor, author of In the Minds of Men, and Francis Collins, Director of the Human Genome Project.

“Among German historians, there’s really not much debate about whether or not Hitler was a social Darwinist. He clearly was drawing on Darwinian ideas,” said Weikart, a professor of modern European history at California State University, Stanislaus.

Ann Coulter, a bestselling author and popular conservative columnist, said Hitler “was applying Darwinism. He thought the Aryans were the fittest and he was just hurrying natural selection along.”

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Posted by Walt as Creation, History at 8:24 PM EDT

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Representatives Ron Paul (R.-Texas), Scott Garrett (R.-N.J.), and Roscoe Bartlett (R.-Md.) have introduced H.R. 776, the “Sanctity of Life Act of 2005,” “to provide that human life shall be deemed to exist from conception.” H.R. 776 would have Congress declare: “(1) (A) human life shall be deemed to exist from conception, without regard to race, sex, age, health, defect, or condition of dependency; and (B) the term ‘person’ shall include all human life as defined in subparagraph (A); and (2) the Congress recognizes that each State has the authority to protect lives of unborn children residing in the jurisdiction of that State.” The bill has only five cosponsors, so much work is needed to advance it.

Contact you Representative and voice your stance.

Posted by Walt as Family Values, Social Issues at 10:25 AM EDT

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by Mike Wendland 

We're told by Jesus to go out into the whole world and tell others about the Good News?
But just how can we do that?

Here's my top ten suggestions on how to share Christ with a nonbeliever.

1. Look for common interests. With most people, it does little good to hit people over the head with a Bible. Instead, talk about common interests, problems, experiences. In other words, build a relationship.

2. Listen more than you talk for the first few minutes. Ask questions. How did that make you feel? What did you think about then? Then what? Open -ended questions are always the best.

3. Empathize. Sympathize. Let your eyes and body language convey to the person that you are listening and understand. Don't pass judgment. Don't ever say "I know just how you feel." you don't.

4. Ask questions that let you go for Biblical direction. "Have you read what the Bible says about this?" Or "Can we see what the Bible says about this?" Always present the Bible as an authoritative resource. Try some humor.You know the acronym for BIBLE:

Basic…Instructions…Before…Leaving…Earth.

5. Share your story. Tell about your life BC - Before Christ. And your life AC - After Christ. Learn to be able to give your personal testimony in three minutes or left.

6. Don't be afraid to say you don;t know the answer to a particular question or problem. Offer to check it out and promise to get back with an answer or scriptural reference. And do so.

7. Remember your witness. Often, before a friend or coworker seeks spiritual counsel, they've been watching you for weeks. If you stress out or lose your temper, apologize. No one expects you to be perfect. It's how you handle difficulties that often open the door for a conversation.

8. Seek out open doors for a continuing dialogue. Don't try to deal with every issue in one meeting.Take time to discuss one or two in depth. Try to arrange follow up discussion times.

9. Invite them to church. There they can find true spiritual community. Offer to pick them up and drive them and treat them to lunch afterwords.

10. Practice lifestyle evangelism. Have a Bible always handy. Wear Christian T-shirts or jewelry where appropriate. Many a spiritual conversation has started because of a T-shirt.

About the Author:

Mike Wendland - Online Christian Shopper http://www.onlinechristianshopper.com/ Mike is a pastor from a large Bible-believing church in the Midwest who founded the Online Christian Shopper Web site to make it easy for Christians to practice lifestyle evangelism. His Web site sells quality Christian T-shirts and jewelry.

Article Source: www.iSnare.com

Posted by Walt as Witnessing at 4:39 AM EDT

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Exposing the Truth

By Sharon Hughes

I received an email in response to Part I of Fashionable Burkas? telling me that I would do better if I loved the terrorists:

“Your jab at Muslim terrorist women for saying:

American soldiers ("filth of the earth"), the Jews ("crush them!" & "make their wives widows and children orphans")

 I feel these angry words are similar to how you feel about terrorists. I would respect you if you checked your anger with humility about your own lack of love for your enemies. I feel your influence in media would do a great deal for the kingdom of Christ if you loved your enemies instead.”

While I respect this person’s right to their view, the bottom line of my answer was this:

“What is it but love to expose the lies and darkness that oppresses, enslaves or endangers …those Jesus loves and laid down his life for?”

It’s like this: Terrorists kidnap 3 Israeli soldiers, or as in the 80’s, American hostages. The Israeli and American governments do everything they can for the release of their captive countrymen. New York Police and Firemen rush into the Twin Towers to rescue the victims of 9/11. A good neighbor runs into the house on fire next door to rescue those trapped in the flames.

Love does all it can to rescue victims. Moses did in natural terms. Jesus did in spiritual terms. Love acts, and sometimes simply by telling the truth. Passivity does nothing.

The truth is… it makes me sad and angry when terrorists kill innocent people, such as on 9/11; who raise their children to hate the Jews and brainwash them into becoming suicide bombers; who lie and don’t keep their word despite countless negotiations and efforts at 'peace'; who cry for more and more land, and when Israel gives it up, they continue to attack them because their goal is to ‘wipe Israel off the map.’

Love is strong, and tough, like Dr. James Dobson writes about, and like what we use to talk about in college counseling courses. You know, the elephant in the living room that no one wants to acknowledge because of ‘family dynamics,’ ie co-dependence, fear. But tough love acknowledges the realities, confronts when needed, even when others don’t or won’t. Love does not live in denial or passivity.

The truth is…not all Muslim women suffer abuses such as these slides of “Looking Beyond the Veil” demonstrate. To lump all Muslim women in with the likes of the ‘wives of terrorists’ referred to in  Part I would be very wrong. But it would also be wrong to ignore the ‘elephant’ of abuse that does exist.

Telling the truth has the power to set victims free…and yes, even the victimizers, such as our friend, Walid Shoebat. who is trying to get the truth out every chance he can on Fox News, CNN, et al, about the nature and intent of radical Islam.

"Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone
who does what is evil has not seen God." (3 John 1:11b)

by James Robison
http://www.lifetoday.org

There is much in our world that doesn't make sense. This week, we discovered another plot to commit mass murder. Next week, someone will try to justify it. Just when the Holy Spirit tells you that something is right or wrong, a whole hoard of voices tries to convince you differently.

Hezbollah shattered the fragile peace between Lebanon and Israel by crossing an internationally-recognized border to kill and capture Israelis, then began a rocket attack that has surpassed 3,000 launches, yet the United Nations condemns Israel for a “disproportionate response.” Islamo-fascists have routinely rioted, bombed and terrorized Europe, yet many Europeans view America as the greatest threat to world peace.

Domestically, millions of living human beings have been killed while still in the womb, yet those opposing abortion are labeled as oppressors of liberty. Homosexual activists continue to impose their ungodly views upon a nation that prefers monogamous, heterosexual families, while blasting defenders of marriage as “radicals” and “hatemongers.”

When President Bush vetoed a bill to fund embryonic stem cell experiments on moral grounds (instead favoring more advanced, alternate stem cell research), Iowa Senator Tom Harkin viciously attacked him for standing up for his convictions.

"He is vetoing it because he says he believes it is immoral," Harkin said. "Mr. President, you are not our moral Ayatollah — maybe the president, nothing more."

Apparently, possessing any sense of right and wrong makes you the most radical of extremists. If that’s the case, then count me in. I do believe in right and wrong, good and evil.

Everyone wants to claim the moral high ground, but who determines which way is up? What is right and what is wrong?

As Christians, we know that righteousness comes from God. We need to know how to communicate Biblical principles to a confused world. So to help discern between right and wrong, we need to start with some absolutes: what is evil and what is good.

Here are a few thoughts and examples. There are many more.

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Posted by Walt as News Events, Social Issues, The Bible at 8:07 PM EDT

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Twenty facts that are the most overlooked when talking today about the Middle East and the ongoing crisis that Israel is not the cause of the turmoil in the Middle East.

1. Israel became a nation in 1312 B.C.E., two thousand years before the rise of Islam.
2. Arab refugees began identifying themselves as part of a Palestinian people in 1967, two decades after the establishment of the modern State of Israel.
3. Since the Jewish conquest in 1272 B.C.E, the Jews have had dominion over the land for one thousand years with a continuous presence in the land for the past 3,300 years.
4. The only Arab domination since the conquest in 635 C.E. lasted no more than 22 years.
5. For over 3,300 years, Jerusalem has been the Jewish capital. Jerusalem has never been the capital of any Arab or Muslim entity. Even when the Jordanians occupied Jerusalem, they never sought to make it the capital, and Arab leaders did not come to visit.
6. Jerusalem is mentioned over 700 hundred times in Bible. Jerusalem is not mentioned once in the Koran.
7. King David founded the city of Jerusalem. Mohammed never came to Jerusalem.
8. Jews pray facing Jerusalem. Muslims pray with their backs toward Jerusalem.
9. Arab and Jewish refugees in 1948, the Arab refugees were encouraged to leave Israel by Arab leaders, promising to purge the land of Jews. Sixty-eight percent left without ever seeing an Israeli soldier.
10. The Jewish refugees were forced to flee from Arab lands due to Arab brutality, persecution and pogroms.
11. The number of Arab refugees who left Israel in 1948 is estimate to be around 630,000. The number of Jewish refugees from Arab countries is estimated to be the same.
12. Arab refugees were INTENTIONALLY not absorbed or integrated into the Arab lands to which they fled, despite the vast Arab territory. Out of the 100,000,000 refugees since World War II, theirs is the only refugee group in the world that has never been absorbed or integrated into their own peoples' lands. Jewish refugees were completely absorbed into Israel, a country no larger than the state of New Jersey.
13. The Arabs are represented by eight separate nations, not including the Palestinians. There is only one Jewish nation. The Arab nations initiated all five wars and lost. Israel defended itself each time and won.
14. The P.L.O.'s Charter still calls for the destruction of the state of Israel. Israel has given the Palestinians most of the West Bank and autonomy under the Palestinian Authority, and has supplied them with weapons.
15. Under Jordanian rule, Jewish holy sites were desecrated and the Jews were denied access to places of worship. Under Israeli rule, all Muslim and Christian sites have been preserved and made accessible to people of all faiths.
16. The U.N. record on Israel and the Arabs of the 175 Security Council resolutions passed before 1990, 97 were directed against Israel.
17. Of the 690 General Assembly resolutions voted on before 1990, 429 were directed against Israel.
18. The U.N. was silent while 58 Jerusalem Synagogues were destroyed by the Jordanians between 1948 and 1967.
19. The U.N. was silent while the Jordanians systematically desecrated the ancient Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives between 1948 and 1967.
20. The U.N. was silent while the Jordanians enforced an apartheid-like policy of preventing Jews from visiting the Temple Mount and the Western Wall between 1948 and 1967.

Reprinted from the web site of PRIMER (Promoting Responsibility in Middle East Reporting) http://www.tampabayprimer.org/

Posted by Walt as History, News Events at 11:55 AM EDT

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A cry for help for the monsoon's victims. 

Dear Walter,

India's annual monsoon floods have struck again–but this year they are of a magnitude never seen before.

In some ways this tragedy is like the tsunami, with large blocs of the country devastated. More than 1,000 people have died in just the first week. Millions of India's poorest people are homeless and have lost what few possession they had. Worst of all, many have lost all hope for their lives.

I ask you to please read the story of this tragedy–and GFA's response at http://www.gfa.org/flood. And please pray with me about how God can use us to bring relief to the victims.

It encourages me to let you know that our GFA Compassion Services workers are already on the scene, bringing hope in the name of Jesus in the midst of this tragedy.

We do not yet know the extent of damage to our churches, but in Gujurat state alone, more than 400 people have died and hundreds of villages have been cut off by the rushing flood waters.

As you read this story at http://www.gfa.org/flood, please pray for those who are suffering, and pray for our missionaries and volunteers who are ministering to them. Remember also that our missionaries and church members are among the victims of this disaster.

Thank you for standing with us in this difficult time.

Yours for the lost of Asia,

K.P. Yohannan
Founder & President

Gospel for Asia
1800 Golden Trail Ct.
Carrollton TX 75010
800-WIN-ASIA

P.S. Any gift you can make to help us minister to these suffering men, women and children will be greatly appreciated.

Posted by Walt as News Events at 4:30 PM EDT

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