Concepts of "G*d" monotheism ( one G*d) shared by Muslims, Christians, and Jews ?

Funny how mo's contemporaries saw through the bullshi'ite...

those closest to him were the indigenous Jews and Pagan of the Arabian peninsula . They knew their own faith, and had the best complaints.

They were utterly destroyed.

http://www.islamawakened.com/Quran/5/82/default.htm

Strongest among men in enmity to the believers wilt thou find the Jews and Pagans; and nearest among them in love to the believers wilt thou find those who say, "We are Christians": because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant.

they may indeed, not been arrogant, but they were, far away, at that time,and in no way capable of questioning Mohammad the way Jews and pagans were.

I wish I had found this article before,it would have come in handy

by Hassan Malik

Allah’s swearing even violates his own instructions as given in the Quran and through Muhammad!

Moreover, swearing by these created things implies that they are just as great, if not greater than God . This means that Allah has basically committed the sin of association through his swearing by the very things that he himself supposedly created.

By doing this, Allah has basically provided justification for the unbelievers taking these created things as objects worthy of their worship. After all, if even Allah swears by the heavenly host then why not the people? And if these objects are so important that Allah swears by them then why shouldn’t the pagans worship them? Doesn’t this smack of outright paganism?

It shouldn’t surprise us that such traces of paganism can still be found in the Quran since, as was already noted earlier, many of the Islamic rites are nothing more than rehashed paganism. In fact, Muhammad himself had no problem attending the Kaba and performing the same rites as the pagans at a time when it still housed the 360 idols!

And when the apostle of God had finished his period of seclusion and returned (to Mecca), in the first place he performed the circumambulation of the Ka’ba, as was his wont. While he was doing it, Waraqa met him and said, ‘O son of my brother, tell me what thou hast seen and heard.’ (The Life of Muhammad, A Translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, with introduction and notes by Alfred Guillaume [Karachi Oxford University Press, Karachi, Tenth Impression 1995), p. 107; bold emphasis ours)

Yusuf Ali noted regarding Q. 2:196 that:

When this was revealed, the city of Mecca was in the hands of the enemies of Islam, and the regulations about the fighting and the pilgrimage came together and were interconnected… (Ali, p. 78, fn. 214; bold and italic emphasis ours)

As if this wasn’t bad enough, at this time the pagans would perform the rites of the pilgrimage in the nude!

Narrated Abu Huraira:
On the Day of Nahr (10th of Dhul-Hijja, in the year prior to the last Hajj of the Prophet when Abu Bakr was the leader of the pilgrims in that Hajj) Abu Bakr sent me along with other announcers to Mina to make a public announcement: "No pagan is allowed to perform Hajj after this year and no naked person is allowed to perform the Tawaf around the Ka'ba." Then Allah's Apostle sent 'Ali to read out the Surat Bara'a (At-Tauba) to the people; so he made the announcement along with us on the day of Nahr in Mina: "No pagan is allowed to perform Hajj after this year and no naked person is allowed to perform the Tawaf around the Ka'ba." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 8, Number 365)

Narrated Abu Huraira:
In the year prior to the last Hajj of the Prophet when Allahs Apostle made Abu Bakr the leader of the pilgrims, the latter (Abu Bakr) sent me in the company of a group of people to make a public announcement: "No pagan is allowed to perform Hajj after this year, and no naked person is allowed to perform Tawaf of the Kaba." (See Hadith No. 365 Vol. 1) (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 26, Number 689)

What this means is that people were running naked at the Kaba right until the time of Muhammad’s last pilgrimage!

Now contrast this with the attitude of the Jews as reported in the Sira literature:

… They [the rabbis] told that the sole object of the tribe was to destroy him and his army. ‘We know of no other temple in the land which God has chosen for Himself, said they, and if you do what they suggest you and all your men will perish.’ The king asked them what he should do when he got there, and they told him to do what the people of Mecca did: circumambulate the temple, to venerate and honour it, to shave his head, and to behave with all humility until he had left its precincts. The king asked why they too should not do likewise. They replied that it was indeed the temple of their father Abraham, but the idols which the inhabitants had set up round it, and the blood which they shed there, presented an insuperable obstacle. They are unclean polytheists, said they – or words to that effect. (Guillaume, The Life of Muhammad, pp. 8-9; bold and italic emphasis ours)

Despite the Jews allegedly claiming that Abraham had built the Kaba they still refused to make a pilgrimage there due to all the idols contained therein which defiled it. And yet Muhammad, who is supposed to be God’s final prophet, had no hesitation running around a structure littered with abominable objects detested by the true God during a time when people were running around naked!

In fact, the Jews weren’t the only ones who refused to venerate this pagan shrine:

One day when the Quraysh had assembled on a feast day to venerate and circumambulate the idol which they offered sacrifices, this being the feast which they held annually, four men drew apart secretly and agreed to keep their counsel in the bonds of friendship. They were (i) Waraqa b. Naufal b. Asad b. ‘Abdu’l-‘Uzza b. Qusayy b. Kilab b. Murra b. Ka‘b b. Lu’ayy; (ii) ‘Ubaydullah b. Jash b. Ri’ab b. Ya‘mar b. Sabra b. Murra b. Kabir b. Ghanm b. Dudan b. Asad b. Khuzayma, whose mother was Umayma d. ‘Abdu’l-Mutalib; (iii) ‘Uthman b. al-Huwayrith b. Asad b. ‘Abdu’l-‘Uzza b. Qusayy; and (iv) Zayd b. ‘Amr b. Nufayl b. ‘Abdu’l-‘Uzza b. Abdallah b. Qurt b. Riyah b. Razah b. Adiyy b. Ka‘b b. Lu’ayy. They were of the opinion that their people had corrupted the religion of their father Abraham, and that the stone they went round was of no account; it could neither hear, nor see, nor hurt, nor help. ‘Find for yourselves a religion,’ they said, ‘for by God you have none.’ So they went their several ways, seeking Hanafiya, the religion of Abraham. (Guillaume, The Life of Muhammad, pp. 98-99; bold and underline emphasis ours)

These comments are eerily similar to what Umar, Muhammad’s second companion and second caliph, said about kissing the black stone:

Narrated ‘Abis bin Rabia:
‘Umar came near the Black Stone and kissed it and said “No doubt, I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit anyone nor harm anyone. Had I not seen Allah’s Apostle kissing you I would not have kissed you.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 26, Number 667)

Now let us assume for argument’s sake that Abraham did built the Kaba, shouldn’t Muhammad have followed the example of the Jews and these four men and refrained himself from getting near it until it had been cleared of its idols and detestable practices?

Yet instead of ridding himself of all of these pagan practices Muhammad contented himself with adopting most of them. After all, Muhammad fasted when the pagans fasted:

Narrated ‘Aisha:
‘Ashura’ (i.e. the tenth of Muharram) was a day on which the tribe of Quraish used to fast in the pre-lslamic period of ignorance. The Prophet also used to fast on this day. So when he migrated to Medina, he fasted on it and ordered (the Muslims) to fast on it. When the fasting of Ramadan was enjoined, it became optional for the people to fast or not to fast on the day of Ashura. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 5, Book 58, Number 172)

And performed the same procedures that the pagans did for their gods:

Narrated ‘Urwa:

I asked ‘Aisha: “How do you interpret the statement of Allah, ‘Verily! (the mountains) As-Safa and Al-Marwa are among the symbols of Allah, and whoever performs the Hajj to the Ka’ba or performs ‘Umra, it is not harmful for him to perform Tawaf between them (Safa and Marwa.)’ (2.158). By Allah! (It is evident from this revelation) there is no harm if one does not perform Tawaf between Safa and Marwa.” ‘Aisha said, “O, my nephew! Your interpretation is not true. Had this interpretation of yours been correct, the statement of Allah should have been, ‘It is not harmful for him if he does not perform Tawaf between them.’ But in fact, this divine inspiration was revealed concerning the Ansar who used to assume lhram for worshipping an idol called “Manat” which they used to worship at a place called Al-Mushallal before they embraced Islam, and whoever assumed Ihram (for the idol), would consider it not right to perform Tawaf between Safa and Marwa.

When they embraced Islam, they asked Allah’s Apostle (p.b.u.h) regarding it, saying, “O Allah’s Apostle! We used to refrain from Tawaf between Safa and Marwa.” So Allah revealed: ‘Verily; (the mountains) As-Safa and Al-Marwa are among the symbols of Allah.’” Aisha added, “Surely, Allah’s Apostle set the tradition of Tawaf between Safa and Marwa, so nobody is allowed to omit the Tawaf between them.” Later on I (‘Urwa) told Abu Bakr bin ‘Abdur-Rahman (of ‘Aisha’s narration) and he said, “I have not heard of such information, but I heard learned men saying that all the people, except those whom ‘Aisha mentioned and who used to assume lhram for the sake of Manat, used to perform Tawaf between Safa and Marwa…” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 26, Number 706)

Narrated ‘Asim:

I asked Anas bin Malik: “Did you use to dislike to perform Tawaf between Safa and Marwa?” He said, “YES, as it was of the ceremonies of the days of the Pre-lslamic period of ignorance, till Allah revealed: ‘Verily! (The two mountains) As-Safa and Al-Marwa are among the symbols of Allah. It is therefore no sin for him who performs the pilgrimage to the Ka’ba, or performs ‘Umra, to perform Tawaf between them.’” (2.158) (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 26, Number 710)

Basically, Muhammad did nothing more than to take the pagan practises of his ancestors, minus the idols and running in the nude, and repackaged them as sacred rites instituted by the true God of Abraham. Yusuf Ali implicitly admits as much when he says:

After the Pilgrimage in Pagan times, the pilgrims used to gather in assemblies in which the praises of ancestors were sung. As the whole of the pilgrimage rites were spiritualised in Islam, so this aftermath of the Pilgrimage was also spiritualised. It was recommended for the pilgrims to stay on two or three days after the pilgrimage, but they must use them in prayer and praise to God. See ii. 203. (Ali, fn.223, p. 80; bold and italic emphasis ours)

Author Benjamin Walker is rather blunt about Islam’s pagan rites:

Most of the pre-Islamic Arab tribes followed a lunar calendar, which Muhammad retained and which Muslims still use. Friday, a day dedicated to the moon in many pagan communities, was the day appointed for public assembly (juma) among the ancient Arabs, and was subsequently adopted as the ‘sabbath’ of the Muslims. The first day of the Muslim era was a Friday… Basically, the religion of Abraham as preached by Muhammad signified the worship of one God, and Muhammad did not interfere with any of the time-honoured elements of native paganism where these did not entail polytheism or idolatry [sic]. He was careful not to undermine the foundations of the original Arab faith, and made substantial concessions to his pagan contemporaries. Where change was needless he made none.

He altered nothing in the pre-Islamic calendar system or in the sacred months of the pagan Arabs, and they still remain (9:5). Mecca, the sacred city of pagan worship, continued to be the ‘mother of the city’ (42:5) and the spiritual focus of the new faith, and remains central in prayer and pilgrimage of all Muslims.

The deity proclaimed by Muhammad was given a local name, ‘Allah’ – the name of the supreme deity of the Arabs, pagan and non-pagan, before Islam. The deity was also given a local habitation in the Kaaba. The Koran urges Muslims to ‘worship the Lord of this House’ (106:3) – the ‘House’ meaning the Kaaba – and at no time did Muhammad make any attempt to alter the status of the pagan fane.

He also retained, almost intact, all the old pagan ceremonies, and to this day the rites of the Kaab hang like an incongruous shroud around Islam. And then the great iconoclast, who sought to banish idolatry root and branch, made the near veneration of the Kaaba fetish – a black stone worshiped by the ancient Arabs – the central rite of the Muslim pilgrimage… The historian Abul Fida (d. 1331) writes: ‘The Arabs of the time of ignorance [before Islam] used to do things which the religion of Islam has adopted.’… (Walker, Foundations of Islam, pp. 48, 51-52, 54; underline emphasis ours)

Thus, if Muhammad could adopt pagan practices and worship with the pagans around the Kaba while it still housed 360 idols, it shouldn’t surprise us that his god would swear by objects which the unbelievers worshiped and venerated as deities besides Allah.

When all is said and done this much remains abundantly clear: much to the dismay of Muslims, Islam is nothing more than rehashed paganism masquerading itself as Abrahamic monotheism. The evidence provided by the Quran and the Islamic source material makes it rather hard for Muslims to escape the fact that Arab paganism has left an indelible mark on the religion of Islam.

http://irrationalislam.wordpress.com/

direct from Saudi Arabia

When we do the tawaf around the Kaaba, during the pilgrimage or the Umrah, or even as a sunnah, we always start and finish at the eastern corner of the Kaaba where the Black Stone is placed. It is recommended to kiss the Black Stone or touch it at the beginning and as we start every round, but if the place is too crowded, it is enough to just signal with one's hand, observing what is recommended to do and say during tawaf. It is important, therefore, to know what significance, if any, the Black Stone has.

Umar ibn Al-Khattab, the second closest to the Prophet (peace be upon him) of all his companions, once stood at the Black Stone and kissed it as he was about to do his tawaf. He then addressed it saying: "I know that you are merely a stone that can cause neither harm nor benefit. Had it not been for the fact that I saw the Prophet kissing you, I would not have kissed you." (Related by Al-Bukhari).

Thus Umar put the whole issue of the Black Stone and its significance in the right perspective. It is a mere stone that causes neither benefit nor harm to anyone. As a stone, it is not different from any other stone.

I doubt any other simple "stone" would be a suitable replacement after all it's the stone Mohammad worshiped, and called "allah", long before Mohammad became a prophet.

from the photo's caption at the top of the article.

A 1315 illustration from the Jami al-Tawarikh, inspired by the Sirah Rasul Allah story of Muhammad and the Meccan clan elders lifting the Black Stone into place

years before the first "revelation"

http://arabnews.com/lifestyle/islam/article517605.ece

an interesting hadith I was looking for when I wrote the article,but did not find till after,is here.

It has been narrated by Ibn Abdullah who said: The Holy Prophet (may peace be upon him) entered Mecca. There were three hundred and sixty idols around the Ka'ba.

one was a black stone called allah,and it has two daughters (the satanic verses)

He began to thrust them with the stick that was in his hand saying:" Truth has come and falsehood has vanished. Lo! falsehood was destined to vanish" (xvii. 8). Truth has arrived, and falsehood can neither create anything from the beginning nor can It restore to life

http://www.quranexplorer.com/Hadith/English/Hadith/muslim/019.4397.html

would you mind if I linked one of your article here ?

thank you both.

who said that Islam spread because a 'leader' in Turkey heard of this new religion

I did an article about how modern Turkey came in to being.Before the Modern Ottoman empire conquered it, it was first part of Greece, and later Incorporated in to the Roman empire.

Mohammad ordered the Muslims to fight the Turks.Central Asia was the origin of the ethnic "Turkic" people.

Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Apostle said, "The Hour will not be established until you fight with the Turks; people with small eyes, red faces, and flat noses. Their faces will look like shields coated with leather. The Hour will not be established till you fight with people whose shoes are made of hair."

I don't know the dates on any of this or if in the same time frame, but in trying to conquer Egypt, the Copts decided to help the Islamic hoard in the back door to get rid of the pharonic herd 'regime' in Egypt who were oppressing them.

This site is accurate http://www.historyofjihad.org/egypt.html

The persecuted Copts were the original inhabitants. Egypt, before the Islamic invasion was not an Arab country. Many of us are under a mistaken impression that Egyptians are Arabs. Mohammed Atta, the ringleader of the 9/11 attacks who led a group of Arabs was an Egyptian. So also was the Cairo born Yasser Arafat, who deceived the world by posing as a Palestinian. Both these scoundrels certainly considered themselves to be Arabs, as do the millions of Egyptians today. But little do they realize that apart from the few Arab invaders who traumatized Byzantine ruled Egypt in the 7th century, none of them are descendants of Bedouin Arabs. They descend from the Pharaohs (Firaun) who built the classic Egyptian civilization along the Nile valley in beautiful cities like Luxor, Memphis, Karnak and Thebes.

Back then the Copts may have felt muslims in charge the lesser of the 2 evils.

history of the Egyptian Copts, by the Copts

The word Copt is derived from the Greek word Aigyptos, which was, in turn, derived from "Hikaptah", one of the names for Memphis, the first capital of Ancient Egypt. The modern use of the term "Coptic" describes Egyptian Christians, as well as the last stage of the ancient Egyptian language script. Also, it describes the distinctive art and architecture that developed as an early expression of the new faith.

The Coptic Church is based on the teachings of Saint Mark who brought Christianity to Egypt during the reign of the Roman emperor Nero in the first century, a dozen of years after the Lord's ascension. He was one of the four evangelists and the one who wrote the oldest canonical gospel. Christianity spread throughout Egypt within half a century of Saint Mark's arrival in Alexandria as is clear from the New Testament writings found in Bahnasa, in Middle Egypt, which date around the year 200 A.D., and a fragment of the Gospel of Saint John, written using the Coptic language, which was found in Upper Egypt and can be dated to the first half of the second century. The Coptic Church, which is now more than nineteen centuries old, was the subject of many prophecies in the Old Testament. Isaiah the prophet, in Chapter 19, Verse 19 says "In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD at its border."

Although fully integrated into the body of the modern Egyptian nation, the Copts have survived as a strong religious entity who pride themselves on their contribution to the Christian world. The Coptic church regards itself as a strong defendant of Christian faith. The Nicene Creed, which is recited in all churches throughout the world, has been authored by one of its favorite sons, Saint Athanasius, the Pope of Alexandria for 46 years, from 327 A.D. to 373 A.D. This status is well deserved, after all, Egypt was the refuge that the Holy Family sought in its flight from Judea: "When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son" [Mathew 2:12-23].

The contributions of the Coptic Church to Christendom are many. From the beginning, it played a central role in Christian theology---and especially to protect it from the Gnostics heresies. The Coptic Church produced thousands of texts, biblical and theological studies which are important resources for archeology. The Holy Bible was translated to the Coptic language in the second century. Hundreds of scribes used to write copies of the Bible and other liturgical and theological books. Now libraries, museums and universities throughout the world possess hundreds and thousands of Coptic manuscripts.

The Catechetical School of Alexandria is the oldest Catechetical School in the world. Soon after its inception around 190 A.D. by the Christian scholar Pantanaeus, the school of Alexandria became the most important institution of religious learning in Christendom. Many prominent bishops from many areas of the world were instructed in that school under scholars such as Athenagoras, Clement, Didymus, and the great Origen, who was considered the father of theology and who was also active in the field of commentary and comparative Biblical studies. Origen wrote over 6,000 commentaries of the Bible in addition to his famous Hexapla. Many scholars such as Saint Jerome visited the school of Alexandria to exchange ideas and to communicate directly with its scholars. The scope of the school of Alexandria was not limited to theological subjects, because science, mathematics and the humanities were also taught there: The question and answer method of commentary began there, and 15 centuries before Braille, wood-carving techniques were in use there by blind scholars to read and write. The Theological college of the Catechetical School of Alexandria was re-established in 1893. Today, it has campuses in Alexandria, Cairo, New Jersey, and Los Angeles, where priests-to-be and other qualified men and women are taught among other subjects Christian theology, history, Coptic language and art---including chanting, music, iconography, tapestry etc.

Monasticism was born in Egypt and was instrumental in the formation of the Coptic Church's character of submission and humbleness, thanks to the teachings and writings of the Great Fathers of Egypt's Deserts. Monasticism started in the last years of the third century and flourished in the fourth century. Saint Anthony, the world's first Christian monk was a Copt from Upper Egypt. Saint Pachom, who established the rules of monasticism, was a Copt. And, Saint Paul, the world's first anchorite is also a Copt. Other famous Coptic desert fathers include Saint Makarios, Saint Moses the Black, and Saint Mina the wondrous. The more contemporary desert fathers include the late Pope Cyril VI and his disciple Bishop Mina Abba Mina. By the end of the fourth century, there were hundreds of monasteries, and thousands of cells and caves scattered throughout the Egyptian hills. Many of these monasteries are still flourishing and have new vocations till this day. All Christian monasticism stems, either directly or indirectly, from the Egyptian example: Saint Basil, organiser of the monastic movement in Asia minor visited Egypt around 357 A.D. and his rule is followed by the eastern Churches; Saint Jerome, who translated the Bible into Latin, came to Egypt around 400 A.D. and left details of his experiences in his letters; Saint Benedict founded monasteries in the sixth century on the model of Saint Pachom, but in a stricter form. And countless pilgrims visited the "Desert Fathers" and emulated their spiritual, disciplined lives. There is even evidence that Copts had missionaries to Nothern Europe. One example is Saint Moritz of the Theban Legion who was drafted from Egypt to serve under the Roman flag and ended up teaching Christianity to inhabitants of the Swiss Alps, where a small town and a Monastery that contains his relics as well as some of his books and belongings are named after him. Another saint from the Theban Legion is Saint Victor, known among Copts as "Boktor".

Under the authority of the Eastern Roman Empire of Constantinople (as opposed to the western empire of Rome), the Patriarchs and Popes of Alexandria played leading roles in Christian theology. They were invited everywhere to speak about the Christian faith. Saint Cyril, Pope of Alexandria, was the head of the Ecumenical Council which was held in Ephesus in the year 430 A.D. It was said that the bishops of the Church of Alexandria did nothing but spend all their time in meetings. This leading role, however, did not fare well when politics started to intermingle with Church affairs. It all started when the Emperor Marcianus interfered with matters of faith in the Church. The response of Saint Dioscorus, the Pope of Alexandria who was later exiled, to this interference was clear: "You have nothing to do with the Church." These political motives became even more apparent in Chalcedon in 451, when the Coptic Church was unfairly accused of following the teachings of Eutyches, who believed in monophysitism. This doctrine maintains that the Lord Jesus Christ has only one nature, the divine, not two natures, the human as well as the divine.

http://coptic.net/EncyclopediaCoptica/

I will be looking for that article

newsvine must be acting up, I linked it in my first comment, but now it does not work

A post modern look at legitimacy or illegitimacy: Regarding a nation state, Turkey "Question" and answer ?