
Much has been written about whether or not Islam is an aggressive religion that imposes itself by force rather than preaching. The answer is not simple.
There were two quite distinctive periods in Muhammad’s life. The first one was when he still lived in his hometown, Mecca (Meccan Period). This period lasted until 622 when he fled to Yathrib, which was quickly renamed Medina (the city). Thus began the Medinan Period, which lasted until his death in 632.
While in Mecca, Muhammad was careful not to clash with the prevailing polytheist culture since his followers were still only a handful. Mecca was a place of pilgrimage for desert tribes, each having its own “god” or idol. Today, we might call it a “multicultural” setting. Muhammad took an ecumenical and sensible approach to avoid challenging the prevailing culture.
His utterings in this period, later transformed into Suras, that is, chapters of the Koran, have a mild, even poetic tone. Many simply repeated passages of the Holy Scriptures with added details of his own making. He emphasized the “common descendence” of the Jews, Christians and Muslims found in Abraham, whom he called “the people of the Book,” or brothers.
Everything changed when he moved to Medina. Under the pretext of calming down a conflict between two clans, he assumed absolute political, religious, military, cultural and even financial power over the city.
This event marks the real beginning of Islam. He started by forcing the conversion of all the clans in Media (whether Jewish or Arabic). When the Banu Qurayza clan refused to convert, he exterminated it to the last man. Then, he preached expansion through war, leading to the Battle of Badr (March 624), in which Muhammad defeated the Meccans, thus conquering the city. This victory is considered the first great affirmation of the new religion (“The Day of the Criterion”). Muhammad’s utterings in this period were harsh, aggressive, intolerant and war-prone.
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During this period, the concept of jihad was developed. It held that Islam must be imposed by every means possible, including war. The world was divided into two parts: dar al-islam (the house of Islam), and dar al-harb (the house of war). War became not just a concrete action but a permanent condition of every Muslim. To designate this condition, the Koran speaks of al-jihad (effort), al-harb (war) and al-quital (annihilation).
Muhammad spoke a lot. Every word from his mouth was considered “revelation” and recorded by makeshift means. It befell the third Caliph, Uthman ibn Affan, to compile these texts. Some were considered suras and incorporated into the Quran. Others were relegated to the category of hadiths (sayings) and collected in the Suna (a book of tradition). Up to now, no one knows how many hadiths there are.
Lacking a better criterion for ordering the suras, Uthman bin Affan put them in order according to their length, the first being the longest. He thus irremediably mixed up the Meccan suras with the Medinan ones, making it impossible to distinguish which ones should prevail.
Thus, we may find everything and its contrary in the Koran, which is considered to have the same divine authority of being “Allah’s word.” Even the flagrant contradictions within the Koran can be assumed as “revelation” through the use of the principle of al-nasikh wa ‘l-mansukh, literally “abrogation of the abrogated.”
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For example, while sura 109 preaches tolerance towards other religions: “You have your religion and I have mine,” sura 2 commands: “Kill the infidels wherever you encounter them.” The problem is: which sura is considered the abrogative, and which one is abrogated? Lacking a central religious authority that can teach the truth infallibly, the Koran is always up for interpretation.
Without denying that there may be more moderate currents within Islam, we must note that, historically, jihadist currents have predominated. Italian expert Prof. Giorgio Vercellin explains: “[It is undeniable that] since its origins, Islam has also spread through armed conflicts. A tendency destined to increase in the first century of its existence.”1
Muhammad himself gave the example. He personally fought in 26 battles and fomented many other minor conflicts. Commenting on the Banu Qurayza massacre, renowned Italian Arabist Francesco Gabrieli writes: “This useless bloodbath remains as the most disturbing stain in the religious career of the Prophet. (…) From that episode, it follows that those who, then and later, shed human blood for the cause of Islam did not act at all against the spirit of Mohammed.”2
Since its birth, Islam has expanded almost exclusively through war. The last order of Muhammad on his deathbed was to invade the Byzantine Empire. In 638, Caliph Omar conquered Jerusalem, which had been Christian for three centuries. In less than a century, Muslims took over Palestine, Syria, Mesopotamia, Egypt and North Africa. In 711, they invaded Spain, eliminating the Christian kingdom of the Visigoths. Crossing the Pyrenees in 719, they conquered Narbonne. The following year, they besieged Toulouse and would have occupied all of Western Europe up to the Rhine if Charles Martel had not stopped them at Poitiers in 733. They conquered Persia, Afghanistan and part of India in the eighth and ninth centuries. They occupied half of Italy.
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In 846, they attacked Naples and Salerno. The same year, they destroyed Ostia and reached Rome, sacking St. Peter’s Basilica and St. Paul Outside the Walls. In 847, they assembled an immense fleet in Sardinia with the intention of invading the heart of Christianity. Pope Leo IV, who had fortified Rome in the meantime, called on Consul Cesario to assist him. The Christian fleet annihilated the Muslim fleet in the battle of Ostia, thus saving Christianity.
In 1453, they conquered Constantinople, thus ending the Roman Empire. In 1663, they invaded Hungary and advanced towards the heart of Europe. Had it not been for the Battle of Vienna (1683), Europe would have become part of the Ottoman Empire.
By the end of the nineteenth century, the expansionist drive of Islam was exhausted. Except for Turkey, all Muslim countries were under European protectorate. This situation changed drastically in the twentieth century. Islam began to undergo a religious revival that, due to the natural connection between religion and society, resulted in a political revival.
Little by little, leaders like Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, Hasan al-Banna, Sayyid Qutb and, later, Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini restored Islam’s fighting spirit. This revival happened when the oil industry began to put gigantic economic resources in Muslim hands and, thus, increased its strategic leverage. Islam once again began to advance to the detriment of the West.
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Long underestimated, the threat posed by bellicose Islam became dramatically evident with the attack on the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. Many people woke up to the terrible reality: the West was again at war. This war has continued both in the large world scenario (more recently with the fall of the Syrian regime) and through the long series of terrorist attacks in Europe, as lately seen in the massacre at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany.
Are all Muslims involved in this war against the West or, more specifically, against Christianity? Evidently not. Jihadist Islam represents a strain within the Muslim world. However, this strain is gradually taking the upper hand. All analyses point to a growing radicalization, especially among the younger people, both in the Muslim world and in the West. Let us remember that most of the terrorists that have perpetrated attacks in Europe were born and raised there. Experts calculate the percentage of radical Muslims at around 10% of their total population of one billion. This means there are 100 million soldiers of Allah. It’s not very tranquilizing…
On the other hand, we must bear in mind that jihad means effort, and it comprises any action towards the expansion of Islam. For example, while not directly involved in terrorism, Saudi Arabia is a major financier of mosques in Europe. Also, many Muslims prefer a peaceful conquest that gradually subdues Europe rather than the use of violence that risks provoking reactions. One way, for example, is through the increase of the Muslim population. For a devout Muslim woman, having many children is an act of jihad. We must also not forget the uncontrolled immigration from Northern Africa, which is predominantly Muslim.
How can Europe react? Just as this renewed Muslim offensive was brought about by a religious revival, only the restoration of our Catholic Faith and, thus, a renewed spirit of Christendom will afford us the necessary spiritual weapons to resist and react. Is this possible? Yes. History shows that when God decides to intervene, nothing can resist Him if men open their souls to His grace.
Taken from the site, Nasz Dziennik.
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