True Jihad

All the teachings of Islam are based on the principle of peace.... It is no exaggeration to say that Islam and violence are contradictory to each other. The concept of Islamic violence is so obviously unfounded that prima facie it stands rejected. The fact that violence is not sustainable in the present world is sufficient indication that violence as a principle is quite alien to the scheme of things in Islam. Islam claims to be an eternal religion and, as such, could never afford to uphold any principle which could not stand up to the test of time. Any attempt to bracket violence with Islam amounts therefore, to casting doubt upon the very eternity of the Islamic religion. Islamic terrorism is a contradiction in terms, much like pacifist terrorism. And the truth of the matter is that, all the teachings of Islam are based directly or indirectly on the principle of peace.

For some, the word "Islam" evokes thoughts of violence, strange clothing, and even stranger rituals. But what is Islam? In True Jihad, take a journey through history and encounter nomadic tribes, caravans, superstitions, and a prophet determined to drag his people out of the fog of antiquity and into the mainstream of Abrahamic faith. An expert in Islamic Studies and Middle Eastern culture, author Mark S. Pfeiffer offers a thorough, concise history of an ancient religion that continues to flourish around the world, including in North America. In addition, he stresses the importance of loving Muslims and sharing the gospel with them despite our differences. Pfeiffer discusses Muslim belief and practice, and addresses some of the questions most commonly on the minds of non-Muslims. He provides a simple, step-by-step guide to befriending Muslims, developing relationships with them, understanding their worldview and theology, and effectively sharing the gospel with them. Timely and honest, True Jihad offers you everything you need to know about Islam and ministry to Muslims. Take a journey that will not only change your view of Muslims, but might change your view of ministry altogether.

After the rise of the Islamic State of Syria and Levant (ISIL), the world has been debating over an old issue, characterised by some as the clash of civilisations. Jihad, the Arabic term for struggle, was the target and Islamic terrorism and Islamic fascism became the popularised terms of the post-9/11 era. The following discourse has formed two theories attempting to define Islam and the role of Jihad in Islam. The first is that of the apologists that define Jihad as an internal struggle; the second sponsors the concept of offensive Jihad. In this book, existing theories are deconstructed to establish that there is no such thing as offensive Jihad or internal Jihad. Debunking both branches of political thought was possible using a cognition tool derived from the education system instituted by the Prophet Muhammad, the central figure of this controversy. The deconstruction is then followed up with an examination of an actual historical case, vis. the wars for Islam at the time of The Prophet as well as during the four rightly guided Caliphs. By doing so, this book systematically eliminates all confusion regarding Jihad. By addressing the fundamental premises involved in both sides of this controversy, the book develops an analytical tool that is free from dogmatic assertions and ensuing contradictions, eventually defining the significance of this analysis for a properly balanced understanding of Islamic foreign policy and Shariah law. A clear directive is produced in order to analyse any violence that takes place today and determine if the justification provided is Islamic or not.

If you truly love Allah, you will die for him. Your death will mean much reward for you and your family in heaven. Only death will prove your love. It was the final test. A chance to win not only the love of Allah, but the love of her father—something she had never been able to earn. Esther took a deep breath and raised her hand in the air. At the age of eighteen, she had just volunteered to become a suicide bomber. Defying Jihad is the true story of a girl growing up under radical Islamic rule, trained to believe her ultimate purpose was to serve Allah by dying as a jihadist. But two nights before she was to leave forever, she had a dream . . . one that would change the course of her destiny. Against all odds, Esther became a follower of Jesus—even though leaving Islam meant her death sentence. But rather than kill her immediately, Esther’s furious father challenged her to a series of public debates with Muslim scholars: the Bible versus the Quran. If Esther won, she might yet survive. But if the Muslim clerics won, Esther must renounce her Christian faith. For an entire month—if she lived that long—Esther would be brought before the mob daily to defend her newfound faith. Would God give her the words to argue against Muslim leaders, former friends, and even her own family? Defying Jihad is an amazing story of a woman prepared to surrender all for Jesus—and whose life transformed from terror to overwhelming love.

Of the intellectual underpinnings of the more radical elements of contemporary Islam.

The true story of an American Mujahid's amazing experiences in the world of Jihad, Osama Bin Laden's camps, and the Central Intelligence Agency is now available in paperback. This is also Collins's personal story about the biggest threat to world peace and stability in this century.

In general, Muhammad's use of warfare was neither alien to Arab customs nor to that of the Hebrew prophets. Both believed that God had sanctioned battles with the enemies of the Lord. Biblical stories about the exploits of kings and prophets, such as Moses, Joshua, Elijah, Samuel, Jehu, Saul, and David recount the struggle of a community called by God and the permissibility, indeed a requirement, to take up arms when necessary against those considered enemies of God. There is, however, two major differences between the Biblical and Quranic concept of war. Biblical accounts of war clearly support the massacre of enemy noncombatants, including children, women, and even animals; in contrast, the Quran explicitly prohibits such crimes against humanity. Also, war, when under Quranic rules, is defensive in nature, without exception.Jesus first abrogated the law of genocide when he said: "love your enemies." The Quran, being a continuation of divine revelation, reiterated the message of Jesus and forbade the killing of innocents during the war. According to Islamic doctrine, the use of force is only allowed in self-defense, and the killing of noncombatants is strictly forbidden. The problem of violence lies with the Muslims and not the book itself. All the battles Muhammad fought resulted in the loss of less than a few thousand combatants on both sides. Women, children, and noncombatants were rarely harmed, and prisoners of war were protected. Arabia was chronically a violent society, and the Muslims had to fight its way to peace. Major social change of the type that Muhammad was attempting in the peninsula is rarely achieved without the use of some force. When Muhammad died in 632, almost all the tribes of Arabia had joined the ummah as either Confederates or converted Muslims. Since members of the Ummah could not attack one another, the ghastly cycle of tribal warfare, and of vendetta and counter-vendetta, had ended. Single-handedly, Muhammad had brought peace to war-torn Arabia with the use of a minimum force. Islam Religion of Peace with One ExceptionThe Quran does not counsel turning the other cheek but teaches forgiveness and the return of good for evil when the circumstances warrant, but these are very different from not resisting evil. Far from requiring the Muslim to turn himself into a doormat for the ruthless, the Quran allows punishment of wanton wrongdoers to the full extent of the injury they do. In the refusal to permit such punishments, morality evaporates into impractical idealism or sheer sentimentality. Islam is a religion of peace, with a notable exception: when aggression is committed against its adherents, it becomes mandatory for Muslims to fight in self-defense and that is the true meaning of jihad in the context of armed struggle. Any war of aggression is a mortal sin in Islam. All the campaigns of the Prophet were defensive, and so too were the wars undertaken by the Companions in the earliest period of Islam. Cure for TerrorismTo Quote from John Renard's book, 101 questions, and Answers on Islam, "Islamic criteria governing the call for jihad against an outward enemy are as stringent as Christianity's terms for waging a "just war." According to Muslim tradition, for example, no action can be justified as authentic jihad if any of the following actions occur: killing noncombatants, prisoners of war, or diplomatic personnel; use of poisonous weapons, or inhumane means to kill; atrocities in conquered lands, mutilation of persons and animals, and wanton despoliation of natural resources, and the sexual abuse of captive women. All of that, however, has not prevented horrors from being perpetrated in the very name of Islam, to the great sorrow of many millions of Muslims. Nothing can excuse those who engage in such atrocities, whatever their expressed motivation or avowed religious affiliation." The cure for terrorism is not less but more religion.

Part 4 of a Review of The Pakistani Government’s ‘White Paper’: Qadiyaniyyat – A grave threat to Islam In 1984 the Islamic government of Pakistan set aside all Islamic injuctions and took upon itself the burden of depriving the Ahmadi Muslims of many basic human rights including religious social freedoms. In an attempt to justify this action, the government of Pakistan published a so-called White Paper under the title ‘Qadiyaniyyat – Islam kay liya Sangin Khatrah’ (Qadiyaniyyat – A Grave Threat to Islam). Although there was nothing new in this so-called White Paper and the Jama’at literature already included detailed answers to all the issues which were raised, nevertheless Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad, Khalifatul-Masih IV, the then Imam of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at, answered these allegations in a series of Friday sermons. These sermons (in Urdu) were published by the London Mosque in 1985 and the English translation is now being published. Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad, Khalifatul-Masih IV(rta) delivered this sermon on February 15, 1985 at the Fazl Mosque London and answered the allegations dealing with the true Islamic concept of Jihad by quoting the Holy Qur’an, the history of early Muslims, the writings of the Promised Messiah(as) and other historical references.