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The Bible's Teaching Against Abortion
Category: Religion and Philosophy

The Bible's Teaching Against Abortion

By: Fr. Frank A. Pavone

Click here for additional Scriptural summaries

Answering the Theological Case for Abortion Rights from the Bible

Why Scripture Says NO to Abortion [RealAudio] or [MP3 Format part 1 and part 2]

Retreat on Scriptural Perspectives on the Pro-life Movement

The Bible clearly teaches that abortion is wrong. This teaching comes across in many ways and for many reasons. Some people point out that the word "abortion" is not in the Bible, and that is true. Nevertheless, the teaching about abortion is there. This is the case with many teachings. The word "Trinity" is not in the Bible, but the teaching about the Trinity is there. In any case, a person who wants to deny the teaching about abortion would deny it even if the word were there.

Let's look at some of the Biblical reasons why abortion, the deliberate destruction of a child in the womb, is very wrong.

1. The Bible teaches that human life is different from other types of life, because human beings are made in the very image of God.

The accounts of the creation of man and woman in Genesis (Genesis 1:26-31; 2:4-25) tell us this: "God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them" (Genesis 1:27).

The word "create" is used three times here, emphasizing a special crowning moment in the whole process of God's making the world and everything in it. The man and woman are given "dominion" over everything else in the visible world.

Not even the original sin takes away the image of God in human beings. St. James refers to this image and says that because of it we should not even speak ill of one another. "With [the tongue] we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the image of God . . . This ought not be so, brothers" (James 3:9-10).

The image of God! This is what it means to be human! We are not just a bunch of cells randomly thrown together by some impersonal forces. Rather, we really reflect an eternal God who knew us from before we were made, and purposely called us into being.

At the heart of the abortion tragedy is the question raised in the Psalms: "Lord, what is man that you care for him, mortal man that you keep him in mind? . . . With glory and honor you crowned him, giving him power over the works of your hands" (Psalm 8:5-7).

There is the key. Not only did God make us, but He values us. The Bible tells us of a God who is madly in love with us, so much so that He became one of us and even died for us while we were still offending Him (see Romans 5:6-8). In the face of all this, can we say that human beings are disposable, like a car that becomes more trouble than it is worth? "God doesn't make junk." If you believe the Bible, you have to believe that human life is sacred, more sacred than we have ever imagined!

2. The Bible teaches that children are a blessing.

God commanded our first parents to "Be fertile and multiply" (Genesis 1:28). Why? God Himself is fertile. Love always overflows into life. When the first mother brought forth the first child, she exclaimed, "I have brought forth a man with the help of the Lord" (Genesis 4:1). The help of the Lord is essential, for He has dominion over human life and is its origin. Parents cooperate with God in bringing forth life. Because this whole process is under God's dominion, it is sinful to interrupt it. The prophet Amos condemns the Ammonites "because they ripped open expectant mothers in Gilead" (Amos 1:13).

"Truly children are a gift from the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward" (Psalm 127:3).

3. The Bible teaches that the child in the womb is truly a human child, who even has a relationship with the Lord.

The phrase "conceived and bore" is used repeatedly (see Genesis 4:1,17) and the individual has the same identity before as after birth. "In sin my mother conceived me," the repentant psalmist says in Psalm 51:7. The same word is used for the child before and after birth (Brephos, that is, "infant," is used in Luke 1:41 and Luke 18:15.)

God knows the preborn child. "You knit me in my mother's womb . . . nor was my frame unknown to you when I was made in secret" (Psalm 139:13,15). God also helps and calls the preborn child. "You have been my guide since I was first formed . . . from my mother's womb you are my God" (Psalm 22:10-11). "God… from my mother's womb had set me apart and called me through his grace" (St. Paul to the Galatians 1:15).

4. Scripture repeatedly condemns the killing of the innocent.

This flows from everything that has been seen so far. God's own finger writes in stone the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" (Exodus 20:13, Deuteronomy 5:17) and Christ reaffirms it (Matthew 19:18 - notice that He mentions this commandment first). The Book of Revelation affirms that (unrepentant) murderers cannot enter the kingdom of heaven (Revelation 22:15).

The killing of children is especially condemned by God through the prophets. In the land God gave his people to occupy, foreign nations had the custom of sacrificing some of their children in fire. God told His people that they were not to share in this sin. They did, however, as Psalm 106 relates: "They mingled with the nations and learned their works…They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons, and they shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, desecrating the land with bloodshed" (Psalm 106:35, 37-38).

This sin of child-sacrifice, in fact, is mentioned as one of the major reasons that the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrians and the people taken into exile. "They mutilated their sons and daughters by fire…till the Lord, in his great anger against Israel, put them away out of his sight" (2 Kings 17:17-18).

Notice that this practice was a religious ritual. Not even for "religious freedom" can the killing of children be tolerated.

5. The Bible teaches that God is a God of justice.

An act of justice is an act of intervention for the helpless, an act of defense for those who are too weak to defend themselves. In foretelling the Messiah, Psalm 72 says, "Justice shall flower in his days…for he shall rescue the poor man when he cries out and the afflicted when he has no one to help him" (Psalms 72:7,12). Jesus Christ is our justice (1 Corinthians 1:30) because He rescued us from sin and death when we had none to help us (see Romans 5:6, Ephesians 2:4-5).

If God does justice for His people, He expects His people to do justice for one another. "Be merciful as your heavenly Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). "Go and do likewise" (Luke 10:37). "Do unto others as you would have them do to you" (Matthew 7:12). "Love one another" (John 15:17).

Abortion is the opposite of these teachings. It is a reversal of justice. It is a destruction of the helpless rather than a rescue of them. If God's people do not intervene to save those whose lives are attacked, then the people are not pleasing or worshiping Him.

God says through Isaiah, "Trample my courts no more! Bring no more worthless offerings…Your festivals I detest…When you spread out your hands, I close my eyes to you; though you pray the more, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood! Wash yourselves clean…learn to do good. Make justice your .. redress the wronged, hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow" (Isaiah 1:13-17).

Indeed, those who worship God but support abortion are falling into the same contradiction as God's people of old, and need to hear the same message.

6. Jesus Christ paid special attention to the poor, the despised, and those whom the rest of society considered insignificant.

He broke down the false barriers that people set up among themselves, and instead acknowledged the equal human dignity of every individual, despite what common opinion might say. Hence we see Him reach out to children despite the efforts of the apostles to keep them away (Matthew 19:13-15); to tax collectors and sinners despite the objections of the Scribes (Mark 2:16); to the blind despite the warnings of the crowd (Matthew 20:29-34); to a foreign woman despite the utter surprise of the disciples and of the woman herself (John 4:9, 27); to Gentiles despite the anger of the Jews (Matthew 21:41-46); and to the lepers, despite their isolation from the rest of society (Luke 17:11-19).

When it comes to human dignity, Christ erases distinctions. St. Paul declares, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave or free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28).

We can likewise say, "There is neither born nor unborn." Using this distinction as a basis for the value of life or the protection one deserves is meaningless and offensive to all that Scripture teaches. The unborn are the segment of our society which is most neglected and discriminated against. Christ Himself surely has a special love for them.

7. Scripture teaches us to love.

St. John says, "This is the message you have heard from the beginning: we should love one another, unlike Cain who belonged to the evil one and slaughtered his brother" (1 John 3:11-12). Love is directly contrasted with slaughter. To take the life of another is to break the command of love. To fail to help those in need and danger is also to fail to love.

Christ teaches this clearly in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), in the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), and in many other places.

No group of people is in more serious danger than the boys and girls in the womb. "If someone…sees a brother in need and refuses him compassion, how can the love of God remain in Him?" (1 John 3:17).

8. Life is victorious over death.

This is one of Scripture's most basic themes. The victory of life is foretold in the promise that the head of the serpent, through whom death entered the world, would be crushed (see Genesis 3:15).

Isaiah promised, "He will destroy death forever" (Isaiah 25:8). At the scene of the first murder, the soil "opened its mouth" to swallow Abel's blood. At the scene of the final victory of life, it is death itself that "will be swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?…Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:54-57).

Abortion is death. Christ came to conquer death, and therefore abortion. "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10).

The final outcome of the battle for life has already been decided by the Resurrection of Christ. We are not just working for victory; we are working from victory. We joyfully take a victory that has already been won, and proclaim, celebrate, and serve it until He comes again to bring it to its fullness. "There shall be no more death" (Revelation 21:4). "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20).

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Survivors of Abortion
Category: Religion and Philosophy

Gianna Jessen

Testimony of abortion survivor Gianna Jessen before the Constitution Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee on April 22, 1996.

My name is Gianna Jessen. I am 19 years of age. I am originally from California, but now reside in Franklin, Tennessee. I am adopted. I have cerebral palsy. My biological mother was 17 years old and seven and one-half months pregnant when she made the decision to have a saline abortion. I am the person she aborted. I lived instead of died.

Fortunately for me the abortionist was not in the clinic when I arrived alive, instead of dead, at 6:00 a.m. on the morning of April 6, 1977. I was early, my death was not expected to be seen until about 9 a.m., when he would probably be arriving for his office hours. I am sure I would not be here today if the abortionist would have been in the clinic as his job is to take life, not sustain it. Some have said I am a "botched abortion", a result of a job not well done.

There were many witnesses to my entry into this world. My biological mother and other young girls in the clinic, who also awaited the death of their babies, were the first to greet me. I am told this was a hysterical moment. Next was a staff nurse who apparently called emergency medical services and had me transferred to a hospital.

I remained in the hospital for almost three months. There was not much hope for me in the beginning. I weighed only two pounds. Today, babies smaller than I was have survived.

A doctor once said I had a great will to live and that I fought for my life. I eventually was able to leave the hospital and be placed in foster care. I was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a result of the abortion.

My foster mother was told that it was doubtful that I would ever crawl or walk. I could not sit up independently. Through the prayers and dedication of my foster mother, and later many other people, I eventually learned to sit up, crawl, then stand. I walked with leg braces and a walker shortly before I turned age four. I was legally adopted by my foster mother's daughter, Diana De Paul, a few months after I began to walk. The Department of Social Services would not release me any earlier for adoption.

I have continued in physical therapy for my disability, and after a total of four surgeries, I can now walk without assistance. It is not always easy. Sometimes I fall, but I have learned how to fall gracefully after falling 19 years.

I am happy to be alive. I almost died. Every day I thank God for life. I do not consider myself a by-product of conception, a clump of tissue, or any other of the titles given to a child in the womb. I do not consider any person conceived to be any of those things.

I have met other survivors of abortion. They are all thankful for life. Only a few months ago I met another saline abortion survivor. Her name is Sarah. She is two years old. Sarah also has cerebral palsy, but her diagnosis is not good. She is blind and has severe seizures. The abortionist, besides injecting the mother with saline, also injects the baby victims. Sarah was injected in the head. I saw the place on her head where this was done. When I speak, I speak not only for myself, but for the other survivors, like Sarah, and also for those who cannot yet speak ...

Today, a baby is a baby when convenient. It is tissue or otherwise when the time is not right. A baby is a baby when miscarriage takes place at two, three, four months. A baby is called a tissue or clumps of cells when an abortion takes place at two, three, four months. Why is that? I see no difference. What are you seeing? Many close there eyes...

The best thing I can show you to defend life is my life. It has been a great gift. Killing is not the answer to any question or situation. Show me how it is the answer.

There is a quote which is etched into the high ceilings of one of our state's capitol buildings. The quote says, "Whatever is morally wrong, is not politically correct." Abortion is morally wrong. Our country is shedding the blood of the innocent. America is killing its future.

All life is valuable. All life is a gift from our Creator. We must receive and cherish the gifts we are given. We must honor the right to life.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

An Abortion Survivor's Story

In September of 1975, a woman discovered that she was pregnant. Things were very difficult for her, as she was raising two sons, six and 15 years old. Their father had walked out on them and refused to help care for the boys financially, or in any other way. The only alternative for this woman, it seemed, was to abort this unexpected baby. After all, she could barely afford to feed the children she already had.

Between the months of September 1975 and January 1976, this woman had three therapeutic abortions in an attempt to rid herself of the unborn baby. These abortions, also known as a "salting out procedure" are performed by injecting a very large syringe into the woman's abdomen, removing a certain amount of amniotic fluid out of the womb, and then injecting three times the amount of saline back in, thus "burning" the baby out. For reasons only God knows, these abortions did not take and on April 21, 1976, two months premature, her baby was born. The child was perfect and healthy, weighing four pounds, five ounces.

Unfortunately on March 16, 1977, the mother passed away, less than a year after her baby girl was born. After the woman's death, the infant's father and paternal grandmother took custody of the baby and her two brothers. As this baby girl grew up, her father told her about the three abortions she had undergone in her mother's womb but this little girl never believed him, as she assumed that if a baby is aborted, he or she could not possibly survive.

The truth only came to this girl when she was eighteen years old, married, and approximately five months pregnant with her first child. This girl needed and soon obtained her mother's medical records from the hospital that had treated her. Imagine her utter shock as she read about how her mother tried to terminate her unborn child three times. As the young girl read the medical documents, the new life inside of her was stirring and kicking as if to say "Mommy please don't get any ideas."

Today this young woman is 25 years old and is raising a family of her own. She is healthy and normal in every way, with no physical deformities of any kind.

I am the child that I have been writing about. My mother had no right to try and abort me, no matter what the circumstances were, no matter how inconvenient her pregnancy was. And if she was here with us today, I'm sure she would agree. Life is too precious to simply throw away. Now I can speak out against abortion from the baby's perspective. Any baby would choose life.

Amy

_______________________________________________________________

Sarah Smith: Abortion Survivor

My mother's choice was my death sentence. My mother Betty had an abortion in November 1970. A few weeks after that, she was sitting at home reading when the book on her stomach began to bounce up and down. That's when she knew she was still pregnant ..with ME!

"I'm so sorry, Betty," the doctor told her when she went back to him. "you were carrying twins!"

Although a second abortion was suggested, my mother refused and instead brought me to term. I was born with bilateral congenital dislocated hips, a condition for which I've had dozens of operations. It hasn't stopped me from pursuing my medical studies, though, or from speaking out wherever I can for the right to life.

My mother Betty and I speak publicly throughout the country and throughout the world. Most recently, we spoke in Rome and met Pope John Paul II.

I have forgiven my parents for trying to abort me, and I forgive the abortionist who killed my twin brother and who almost killed me. I often think of my brother, Andrew James, whom nobody can replace.

I believe that the way of truth, love, and God's grace is the only way to deal with the abortion tragedy. I would like to call all people to stand with me to defend the right to life of all persons. There are many alternatives to abortion. Nobody needs to sacrifice her child, no matter what anyone says.

Though I'm not a Catholic, I have worked closely with Priests for Life and have had speaking engagements and TV appearances with Fr. Frank Pavone. My mother and I and a former abortion provider Joy Davis recently met together in the same room for a TV interview as part of Fr. Pavone's TV series, "Defending Life"

______________________________________________________________

Heidi Huffman: Abortion Survivor

Left: Tina Huffman Torry, mother of Heidi.

Note: Heidi is married to Steven Smith. As of the Spring of 2002, she has 2 children and is 24 years old. She's doing what she loves -- Having children and raising them. Tina's book about this marvelous story is called "Short of a Miracle." For information, visit www.ambassadorarabians.com  You may also contact Tina directly by writing her at PO Box 1343, Easley, SC, 29641.

______________________________________________________

"I was a survivor of abortion. I can remain silent no more."

_______________________________________________________-

Can a Nonperson Be a Victim?

Occasional

by Nat Hentoff
The Washington Post, March 27, 1993

Ana Rosa Rodriguez was born in 1991 without a right arm. Actually, she was not supposed to have been born. Her mother, 19-year-old Rosa Rodriguez, a Dominican immigrant, 7 1/2 months pregnant, had gone to Dr. Abu Hayat on New York's Lower East Side for an abortion. It was botched; Ana Rosa was born the day after. But in the course of the doctor's attempts to dismember her the day before, Ana Rosa's right arm had been torn off.

In February of this year, a jury in New York State Supreme Court convicted Dr. Hayat on a number of counts. One was performing an illegal abortion in the third trimester of pregnancy. While 11 states permit abortions during the final three months, New York prohibits it after 24 weeks.

(If the Freedom of Choice Act passes Congress and is signed by the president, this kind of state restriction will probably no longer be allowed anywhere. The bill leaves the definition of viability -- when the fetus can survive outside the uterus -- to the physician performing the abortion, not to the individual states.)

Dr. Hayat was also convicted of assault on Ana Rosa because of the arm that had been severed at the shoulder. The convictions are being appealed by the doctor's lawyer, Ronald J. Veneziano. There would appear to be no basis for appeal on the charge of an illegal abortion after 24 weeks. But Dr. Hayat may well get the assault charge overturned.

His attorney's argument is that, according to Roe v. Wade, a fetus is not a person. And under New York state criminal law, unless a person is assaulted, no crime has been committed. Justice Harry Blackmun, in writing the majority decision in Roe v. Wade, could not have been more clear:

" ... the word, 'person,' as used in the 14th Amendment, does not include the unborn."

If, says attorney Veneziano, the majority of the court had held instead that "the fetus was a person, they would have found themselves in the position of sanctioning murder. They can't have it both ways."

The New York state appellate courts will almost certainly agree. And should New York appeal to the United States Supreme Court, I doubt that it would agree to review the case, since there is not a majority to declare that fetuses are persons.

Yet, a sonogram of the 7 1/2-month-old fetus on the day of the mishandled abortion would clearly show a viable, developing human being, who -- just a day later -- did indeed become an actual person under the Constitution. Of course, she had been a member of our species for quite awhile.

If the assault charges are not dismissed, pro-choice organizations might find it somewhat uncomfortable, though necessary, to submit a Supreme Court brief on behalf of Dr. Hayat's innocence, under Roe v. Wade, of those assault charges. After Dr. Hayat's arrest, as Richard Perez-Pena reported in the New York Times, "more than 30 women came forward to say he had botched their abortions, often with serious consequences to their health." And two other assault counts on which the doctor was convicted concerned an incomplete abortion on Marie Moise, a Haitian immigrant. Reported the New York Times: "Mrs. Moise's husband, David, testified during the trial that the doctor, who had said the price would be $ 300, stopped midway through the procedure and demanded an additional $ 500." When Mr. Moise said he didn't have the additional money, "the doctor forced him to leave the office with his bleeding, semiconscious wife."

I have gone through criminal complaints against many physicians performing abortions, and abortion clinics, in a number of states. Some are harrowing. Abortion -rights groups might spend more resources on pushing for stricter regulations where those are needed and on monitoring clinics and physicians.

As for the doctor, the attention he has received is due in part -- as Scott McConnell, who is pro-choice, has noted in the New York Post -- to his having pushed "the reality of abortion in front of our eyes ... the fact that every fetus is a potential child is one we'd prefer to hide from ourselves."

A recent medical textbook, "The Unborn Patient: Pre-Natal Diagnosis and Treatment" (W.B. Saunders Co.) begins: "Only now are we beginning to consider ... the concept that the fetus is a patient, an individual."

If the operation had been successful, there would never have been an individual, Ana Rosa Rodriguez, who has learned to pull herself up and drink from a bottle with her remaining hand.

Copyright 1993 The Washington Post

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Amazing Facts About Israel
Category: Religion and Philosophy

• Israel, the 100th smallest country, with less than 1/1000th of the world's population, can lay claim to the following:

• The cell phone was developed in Israel by Israelis working in the Israeli branch of Motorola, which has its largest development centre in Israel.

• Most of the Windows NT and XP operating systems were developed by Microsoft-Israel.

• The Pentium MMX Chip technology was designed in Israel at Intel.

• Both the Pentium-4 microprocessor and the Centrino processor were entirely designed, developed and produced in Israel. The Pentium microprocessor in your computer was most likely made in Israel.

• Voice mail technology was developed in Israel. Both Microsoft and Cisco built their only R&D facilities outside the US in Israel.

• The technology for the AOL Instant Messenger and ICQ was developed in 1996! by four young Israelis.

• Israel has the fourth largest air force in the world (after the U.S., Russia and China). In addition to a large variety of other aircraft, Israel's air force has an aerial arsenal of over 250 F-16's. This is the largest fleet of F-16 aircraft outside of the US.

• According to industry officials, Israel designed the airline industry's most impenetrable flight security. U. S. officials now look to Israel for advice on how to handle airborne security threats.

• Israel's $100 billion economy is larger than all of its immediate neighbours combined.

• Israel has the highest percentage in the world of home computers per capita.

• Israel has the highest ratio of university degrees to the population in the world.

• Twenty-four per cent of Israel's workforce holds university degrees -- ranking third in the industrialized world, after the United States and Holland - and 12 per cent hold advanced degrees.

• Israel produces more scientific papers per capita than any other nation by a large margin - 109 per 10,000 people -- as well as one of the highest per capita rates of patents filed.

• In proportion to its population, Israel has the largest number of start-up companies in the world. In absolute terms, Israel has the largest number of start-up companies than any other country in the world, except the US (3,500 companies mostly in hi-tech).

• With more than 3,000 high-tech companies and start-ups, Israel has the highest concentration of hi- tech companies in the world -- apart from the Silicon Valley, US. Israel is ranked #2 in the world for venture capital funds right behind the US.

• On a per capita basis, Israel has the largest number of biotech start-ups.

• Israel has the third highest rate of entrepreneurship -- and the highest rate among women and among people over 55 - in the world.

• Outside the United States and Canada, Israel has the largest number of NASDAQ listed companies.

• Israel has the highest average living standards in the Middle East. The per capita income in 2000 was over $17,500, exceeding that of the UK.

• Israel is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East.

• In 1984 and 1991, Israel airlifted a total of 22,000 Ethiopian Jews at risk in Ethiopia, to safety in Israel.

• When Golda Meir was elected Prime Minister of Israel in 1969, she became the world's second elected female leader in modern times.

• When the U. S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya was bombed in 1998, Israeli rescue teams were on the scene within a day -- and saved three victims from the rubble.

• Relative to its population, Israel is the largest immigrant-absorbing nation on earth. Immigrants come in search of democracy, religious freedom, and economic opportunity.

• Israel was the first nation in the world to adopt the Kimberly process, an international standard that certifies diamonds as "conflict free."

• Israel has the world's second highest per capita of new books.

• Israel is the only country in the world that entered the 21st century with a net gain in its number of trees, made more remarkable because this was achieved in an area considered mainly desert.

• Israel has more museums per capita than any other country.

• Medicine... Israeli scientists developed the first fully computerized, no-radiation, diagnostic instrumentation for breast cancer.

• An Israeli company developed a computerized system for ensuring proper administration of medications, thus removing human error from medical treatment. Every year in U. S. hospitals 7,000 patients die from treatment mistakes.

• Israel's Givun imaging developed the first ingestible video camera, so small it fits inside a pill. Used to view the small intestine from the inside, the camera helps doctors diagnose cancer and digestive disorders.

• Researchers in Israel developed a new device that directly helps the heart pump blood, an innovation with the potential to save lives among those with heart failure. The new device is synchronized with the heart's mechanical operations through a sophisticated system of sensors.

• Israel leads the world in the number of scientists and technicians in the workforce, with 145 per 10,000, as opposed to 85 in the U.S., over 70 in Japan, and less than 60 in Germany.

• With over 25% of its work force employed in technical professions. Israel places first in this category as well.

• A new acne treatment developed in Israel, the ClearLight device, produces a high-intensity, ultraviolet- light-free, narrow-band blue light that causes acne bacteria to self-destruct -- all without damaging surroundings skin or tissue.

• An Israeli company was the first to develop and install a large-scale solar-powered and fully functional electricity generating plant, in southern California's Mojave desert.

• All the above while engaged in regular wars with an implacable enemy that seeks its destruction, and an economy continuously under strain by having to spend more per capita on its own protection than any other country on earth.

Christian Friends of Israel community

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The 12 Days of Christmas
Category: Religion and Philosophy

Catholics in England during the period 1558 to 1829 were prohibited by law to practice their faith either in public or private. It was illegal to be Catholic until Parliament finally emancipated Catholics in England in 1829.

"The Twelve Days of Christmas" was written in England as one of the "catechism songs" to help young Catholics learn the basics of their faith. In short, it was a coded-message, a memory aid. Since the song sounded like rhyming nonsense, young Catholics could sing the song without fear of imprisonment. The authorities would not know that it was a religious song.

"The 12 Days of Christmas" is in a sense an allegory. Each of the items in the song represents something significant to the teachings of the Catholic faith. The hidden meaning of each gift was designed to help Catholic children learn their faith. The better acquainted one is with the Bible, the more these interpretations have significance.

The song goes, "On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me…"

The "true love" mentioned in the song doesn't refer to an earthly suitor, but it refers to God Himself. The "me" who receives the presents refers to every baptized person. i.e. the Church.

So the next time you hear "the Twelve Days of Christmas" consider how this otherwise non-religious sounding song had its origins in keeping alive the teaching of the Catholic faith. 

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Twas the First Night of Christmas
Category: Religion and Philosophy

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ARE YOU IN THE RIGHT CHURCH?
Category: Religion and Philosophy

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Islam's Mohammed: The False Prophet that Deceived the World
Category: Religion and Philosophy

Islam's Mohammed: The False Prophet that Deceived the World Doug Grauman July 2004 Immediately following the 1983 bombing of the U.S Marine barracks in Lebanon, which killed 241 US Marines, President Ronald Regan ordered the withdrawal of all US forces from the area. In reflecting back on his decision to do so, that decision would become one of the worst foreign policy errors in US history simply on the basis that it rewarded a victory to Islamic militants for their murderous, inhumane act and since that day, the world has witnessed a steady rise in terror by these militants.1 Their targets are often broad in scope, and although collateral damage frequently kills their own, the focus of their attacks are consistently on non-Islamic peoples - 'infidels,' as defined by the Qur'an. To better understand the hate fueling modern day Islamicism,2 one must first look back to its roots. From Ishmael, whose birthright was denied, to Esau and Jacob - rivaling twins, the seed of hate was sewn. What evolved thereafter was a bitter, jealousy that has been passed down to every Arab generation since. By the 7th century, this ancient hatred made its way into the heart and mind of a common-criminal named Mohammed - an Arab and descendant of Ishmael, who founded a religion and used it to justify his countless, criminal acts of rape and murder. Both the western media and the Arab press routinely offer biased, politicized answers to what they believe drives this Islamic hatred for the west. From 'US support for Israel' to 'US secularism,' we've heard them all, and despite attempts to justify their inhumane acts, the truth is, Muslims have been committing terrorist acts for some 1,300 years - long before 'western culturalism' or 'US support for Israel' ever existed. And despite such history, we continue to ignorantly look elsewhere for the reasons. From the early days of Islam to today's globally televised beheadings, Muslims are simply acting-out what Mohammed believed, and what the Qur'an teaches. And when Qur'anic Law was given the opportunity to govern, its violent, 7th century intolerance was seen through the eyes of Afghanistan's Taliban - a view of converting and uniting the Arab world under Islamic Law by sword first, and everyone else second. What truly is at the heart of the Islamists hatred today is no different than that which fueled Mohammed's hatred as he wrote the Qur'an. It is the belief and goal of a one-world, global Islamic empire run by Qur'anic Law whereby everyone must, in the end, convert to their fundamentalist ideology or face beheading. The hatred that fuels this theocracy dates back to Ishmael and his son-in-law Esau, and from there, compounded to form the foundations of Islamicism which is the reason why most of the world conflicts today involve Muslims. The Origins of Hatred Ishmael and Isaac In 1910 bc, Abraham's wife, Sarah, frustrated with her inability to have a child and impatient with God's timing, asked Abraham to give her a child through their Egyptian maidservant 'Hagar'. "Now Sarai, Abrams wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar so she said to Abram, "The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleepwith my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her." (Genesis 16:1-2) Hagar, servant that she was, submitted to being used this way. But her pregnancy gave birth to strong feelings of superiority toward Sarah. During Hagar's pregnancy, friction began to develop between Sarah and Hagar and when Hagar could no longer endure it, she fled into the desert. There God instructed her to return to Sarah, promising, "I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude" (Genesis 16:10). Into this tense, atmosphere Ishmael was born and for 13 years Abraham thought Ishmael's birth had fulfilled God's promise (Ishmael would become the progenitor of today's Arab world - the Arabs are an Ishmaelite3 race). When Abraham reached 99 years of age, God appeared to him and announced that his wife Sarah would bear him a son and that they would call him Isaac. And it would be through Isaac that God would establish His covenant (Isaac became the father of the Israelites). Abraham struggled with this because he loved Ishmael dearly and desired that he be his heir and receive the birthright blessings. "O that Ishmael might live before thee!.." (Gen 17:18) But the birthright was denied to Ishmael. "And I will bless her, and indeed I will give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her." Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, "Will a child be born to a man 100 years old? And will Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child?" And Abraham said to God, Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee (meaning he was first born)! But God said, "No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him." (Genesis 17:16-19) After the birth of Isaac, Hagar and Ishmael were sent away at Sarah's insistence, "Cast out this bondwoman and her son," Sarah demanded. (Gen 21:10) Sarah was adamant that Ishmael should not inherit along with Isaac. God instructed Abraham to do as Sarah desired, but he reassured Abraham that, "...also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed." (Gen 21:13) But God also knew what kind of people Ishmael's descendants would be when He spoke prophetically to Hagar saying, And he will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren [literally, "he shall defy all his kinsmen"]." (Genesis 16:12) "His descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the border of Egypt, as you go toward Asshur. And they lived in hostility toward all their brothers." (Genesis 25:18) And to this day Arab hands have been "...against every man and every man's against..." theirs and "..they lived in hostility toward all their brothers.." Ishmael was not a spirit of implacable hatred and murder against Isaac, but rather one of envy and rivalry. Ishmael's position in the family had been radically altered by Isaac's birth. This had wounded his proud spirit, and provoked him into a jealousy. And time has not softened this spirit of envy either. Attitudes and historical perspectives are often transmitted from father to son and from generation to generation. The effects of the domestic rivalry in the household of Abraham are still being felt to this day in the on-going Arab-Israeli conflict. In time, Ishmael became the father of 12 sons (his descendants are called Ishmaelites) whose names are recorded in Genesis 25:13-16. Ishmael also had a daughter named Mahalath (Bashemath), who would later marry his half-brother Isaac's eldest son, Esau4 (Esau's descendants were known as Edomites). Ishmalites were marauding nomads who traded with Egypt (Jacob's son Joseph would later be sold by his brothers to a passing band of Ishmaelites - Genesis 37:25-28). They led an untamed existence in the deserts south and east of Canaan and were known for their wandering, lawlessness, and freebooting lifestyle. Ishmael died at the age of 137 (Genesis 25:17) and just as God had promised, his 12 sons grew into "a great nation" with he as clearly the preeminent forefather of the Arab world (The Arab peoples today number over 140 million and are destined to play a significant role in the development of future prophetic events). The relationship between the Ishmaelite Arabs and the Biblical Israelites is thus clear: Ishmael was the elder half-brother of Isaac, son of Abraham, by way of Hagar, who settled in central and northern Arabia. Isaac in turn, had twin sons, Esau and Jacob. From Jacob - later renamed Israel - descended the Jews and the other tribes of Israel. The Israelis and the Arabs are cousins! Esau and Jacob Ishmael's younger brother Isaac, whom he lost the birthright to, had twin sons, Esau and Jacob. And while Esau and Jacob were yet in their mother's womb, "the children struggled together within her" (Genesis 25:22) God explained that, "...two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder [Esau] shall serve the younger [Jacob]. (Genesis 25:23) Esau's name would later be changed to Edom, and Jacob's would be changed to Israel (his descendants, by way of Isaac, would be Israelites). Both brothers were destined to father a great nation. As firstborn, Esau was the legal inheritor of the birthright, which fell to the eldest son in each generation. But Esau undervalued it and sold it to Jacob for a bowl of red lentil soup (Genesis 25:28-34). Later, Jacob - disguising himself as Esau - tricked his father Isaac (Abraham's son whom God had confirmed His covenant with) into bestowing upon him the blessing confirming the birthright (Genesis 27). By this piece of deception, Jacob earned Esau's implacable anger. Bitterness and vengeance filled Esau's heart. "And Esau hated Jacob . . ." (Genesis 27:41) Forty centuries have not sufficed to wipe out the effects of this deep-seated enmity between Esau and Jacob! The two peoples have continued in their antagonism up to this present day! Historically, the Edomites - especially the Amalekites, the chief tribe of the Edomites - have been bitter foes of Israel. Significantly, descendants of Esau mingled and intermarried with Ishmaelites and their neighbors. As kinsmen, a close affinity existed between them (In Psalm 83, the descendants of Esau and those of Ishmael are found in alliance against End-Time Israel). Some rabbinical schools in Israel today teach that the Palestinian Arabs - the most ardent adversaries of the Israeli state - are Amalek. There may indeed be some validity to this notion, in view of the prophecy of conflict between Amalek and Israel from generation to generation (Exodus 17:16). Geopoliticians continually misdiagnose Arab hatred towards Israel and her supporters because they fail to recognize its antiqutal roots. For 16 centuries this bitter hatred was perfected and passed down from Arab generation to Arab generation and by the time of the 7th century, one particular Arab criminal - Mohammed, a self-proclaimed prophet - arrived on the scene fully equipped with a self-defined religion that permitted he and his Arab brothers to commit violent acts of murder and rape in the name of a god.The Foundations of Islamicism Mohammed's rise to prophethood Mohammad Ibn Abdallah was born in the year 570 AD to the Quraysh Tribe in the city of Mecca. His father died before he was born and his mother Amina died when he was 6 years old (Mohammed claimed descent from Ishmael's son Kedar). At the age of 25, Mohammed married a 40 year-old wealthy, widow named Khadijah who owned trading caravans. Traveling as a representative of Khadija's various business interests, Mohammed was exposed to many Jews and Christians and became enthralled by their theology, particularly their concept of a single deity. It was at this time he began to envision a single, united Arab state under a single 'god.' Secular history records that in 610, by which time Mohammed had become the leader of his tribe, he was in a cave meditating and seeking to discover which of the jinni was indeed most powerful and worthy to become the tribal jinni of his family. Mohammed claimed that one of the jinni appeared to him and identified himself as the Angel Gabriel5 and appointed him as 'prophet.' Mohammed immediately began to promote himself as a prophet of god and aggressively began recruiting in and around Mecca while challenging the idol worship of pagan Arab's.6 Jihad As new Islamic recruits began arriving in Mecca, they were without money and resources and realizing this, Mohammed and his recruits began raiding neighboring tribal settlements and passing caravans using the booty to fund his vision of a united, Islamist empire. Caravan raiding was a practice widely practiced by Arab tribes and was used as a means to maintain a balance in power. This is where the Muslim doctrine of 'Jihad' was first instituted. The Hijra As animosity began to build in Mecca against Mohammed and his teachings, fearing for his life, he and his band of followers fled north to what is today known as Medina. This journey became an annual, religious pilgrimage made by Muslims and is today called the 'hijra.' In Medina many warring Arab tribes submitted to Mohammed's leadership and self-professed, prophet-hood. Hoping to garner Jewish tribal support for his military campaigns, Mohammed conveniently had yet another vision that his allah7 wanted Muslims to do their praying facing the then Christian city of Jerusalem. But because the Jewish tribes rejected his prophet hood, ridiculed his revelations, and refused to join Islam, Mohammed stopped this practice and reverted back to praying while facing in the direction of Mecca. In 626 a.d., Mecca amassed 3000 solders to confront 1000 Muslims at the battle of Uhud. The Muslims were defeated by the army from Mecca and retreated to Medina. In 627 a.d., the Meccans, in the hope of ending the caravan raids by the Muslims, assembled 10,000 solders to attack the Muslims in the city of Medina. After a two week siege in the hot sun they were unable to penetrate the fortress like city and returned to Mecca. The Muslims next began to consolidate their power with the surrounding Arab tribes and begin the slaughter of the non-conformists. One such Medina group that remained was the Jewish tribe - Banu Qurayza. According to Mohammad's sacralized biography by Muhammad Ibn Ishaq,8 Mohammad himself sanctioned the massacre of the Qurayza,9 - this last thorn in his flesh. Sewing the Roots of Terror Banu Qurayza The Banu Qurayza had been reluctant in helping Mohammed against the Quraysh (Keep in mind that the Quraysh tribe were Mohammed's own people). Conveniently once again, Mohammed claimed that he had divine knowledge about a conspiracy by the Banu-Qurayza to kill him. This became his justification to starve the tribe into surrender by besieging their fortress for twenty-five days. He then sentenced every male member of the tribe to death, enslaved all the women and children, and plundered all of their property. The prophet had an immense trench dug around the main market of Medina10 and then the men of the Banu Qurayza were rounded up one by one and forced to the edge of the trench on their knees. They were offered a last chance to convert to Islam and if they refused, their heads were cut off.11 As soon as one head would roll off, the corpse would be kicked into the ditch, and so it went. By daybreak hundreds of corpses had been piled up in a heap, tangled cesspool of blood, hair, and shreds of flesh. Despite the horrific end in front of their eyes, none of the Jews chose to convert to Islam and faced death valiantly. The blood of nearly 900 innocent Jews stained Mohammed's hands on that black day.12 Their only crime was that they chose to retain their fundamental human right, of choosing their own God and the religion of their ancestors. Hysterical women and children screamed as they watched their fathers, husbands and sons brutally murdered. The majority of them were savagely raped and then bundled off to be sold as 'used goods.' The prophet had the husband of the Jewess Raihana Bint Amr hacked to pieces before her very eyes hours after he had murdered her father.13 After these atrocities he raped the mortified girl and tried to force her to convert to Islam. Many Muslim revisionist-historians promote the idea that Raihana Bint Amr willingly submitted to Mohammed. According to this logic, it is very natural to imagine that a woman who has just seen her husband, father, brothers, and tribe slaughtered violently before her very eyes, would choose to convert to the religion of the murderer and marry him! Ultimately she refused to convert to Islam as well as marry him so he retained her as a lowly concubine for the rest of his life.14 So much for the 'Apostle of Peace' and his unbounded respect for women. Mohammed was nothing but a serial rapist, who acquired his victims by killing their families first. Islam's allah has provided yet another timeless Divine revelation which gives his prophet the right to rape and torture women of other religions. Surat 4:24 "And all married women are forbidden unto you EXCEPT those captives whom your right hand possesses. It is a decree of Allah for you. Lawful unto you are all beyond those mentioned, so that you seek them with your wealth in honest wedlock, not debauchery..." In short, allah the all merciful is affirming that any non-Muslim woman is fair game to rape provided she is "captured" first - "..lawful unto you are all beyond those mentioned..." - how divine! Khaybar A group of Muslims from the Khazraj tribe decided to prove their loyalty to their prophet by killing off a respectable member of the Jewish community. Abu Rafi was an elderly man who had never done anything against Mohammed or the Muslims. He just happened to be the unfortunate target of Mohammed's plot to terrorize the Jews.15 The Prophet wanted to send out a message to the Jews, which spelt out clearly that Mohammed was in control of their lives. The 'expedition' to kill the poor old helpless man had the specific blessings of the 'merciful' prophet. Several Islamists broke into the old man's house in the middle of the night and slashed him to ribbons as he slept. The cowardly Muslims always assassinated people in this way, while the victim slept, obviously because they had neither the courage nor the strength to fight even a solitary, aged Jewish man while he was awake. After their crime, the Muslims fled back home into the welcoming arms of their expectant prophet. Banu-L-Mustaliq Mohammed attacked the Banu-L-Mustaliq tribe slaughtering many of its members in a surprise raid, and driving the rest into the sea. They looted away a booty of 2000 camels, 5000 sheep and 500 women! The 500 women were captured screaming and crying while they watched their husbands and sons being slaughtered. The most beautiful captive was Juwayriyya, daughter of the chief of the Banu-L-Mustaliq. Mohammed snatched her to satisfy his own lusts.16 The captured women were supposed to be returned by the Muslims upon payment of a ransom, but the night after the battle itself, Mohammed and his army raped each and every one of them.17 Any human being with the slightest shred of morality has to be nauseated by this man and the religion he preached. Mohammed, the supreme religious figurehead of Islam, sanctioned rape, pure and simple. Not only did the Muslims commit this horrifying crime, they deceived the tribesmen into paying ransom for their womenfolk, who only paid the money in a desperate attempt to save their women's honor. As Mecca began to feel the economic impact of its trading losses from continued Islamists attacks, Mohammed's power and influence continued to grow in the north. In 628 a.d. the Meccans signed a 10 year peace agreement named, 'The al-Hudaybiyah,' with Mohammed and his Muslim followers. This treaty allowed Muslims to return to Mecca and worship at the Kaba once a year. Out of fear, the people of Mecca would leave their city when the Muslims would come to worship. Two years later, in January 630 a.d., Mohammed nullifies the treaty of al-Hudaybiyah and invades Mecca with an army of 10,000 terrorists, conquering it.18 He options the citizenry to convert to Islam or be killed by sword (beheading). From Mecca, the 'Muslims' wage Jihad on the surrounding cities forcing them to accept Islam as their religion and Mohammed as their prophet. Through their policy of 'conversion by the sword' Islam had spread as far as Spain, India, and most of North Africa by 637. Mohammed made his final Hijra in 632 and died unexpectedly 3 months later in June. His friend and father in law Abu Bakr (Father of Aisha) succeeded him as leader of the Muslims.19 The centuries that followed, from the Iberian Peninsula to the Indian subcontinent, jihad campaigns waged by Muslim armies against infidel Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians, Buddhists and Hindus, were punctuated by massacres, including mass throat slittings and beheadings. During the period of 'enlightened' Muslim rule, the Christians of Iberian Toledo, who had first submitted to their Arab Muslim invaders in 711, revolted in 713. In the harsh Muslim reprisal that ensued, Toledo was pillaged, and all the Christian notables had their throats cut. Mohammed was in fact a terrorist, criminal, and murderer whose entire life and teachings were based on victimizing innocents and indulging in mindless violence and massacre. He was a man who destroyed peace wherever he went, and in its place brought terror, carnage, and death. So how can it be a mystery to anyone that his teachings - the Qur'an - would reap a harvest any different than what the world is experiencing today? Qur'anic Law Much contradictory information has been circulated over the media regarding what the Qur'an does or doesn't say. And the spin justifying or defending it has been as confusing and contradictory as the book itself. So, to be objective and factual, let's let the Muslim holy book speak for itself: The Prophet Mohammed urges Muslims to fight in the cause of allah: "Verily, Allah loves those who fight in His Cause in rows as if they were solid Structures." (Surat As-Saff 61:4) "O prophet Mohammed urge the believers (Muslims) to fight. If there be of you 20 steadfast, they will overcome 200 and if there be of you a 100, they shall overcome a 1000, because the disbelievers are a folk without intelligence." (Surat Al-Anfal 8:65) This Surat clearly exposes Islam to be a religion that not only encourages violence but actually makes it a sacred duty for Muslims to kill anyone who does not believe in Islam. Not only is the all forgiving allah exhorting his followers to kill anyone who is not Muslim, but he is also saying that all non-Muslims are so stupid that they will be unable to defend themselves and therefore deserve death! The Qur'an commands Muslims not to befriend Jews or Christians: "O ye who believe (Muslims) take not the Jews or the Christians for your friends and protectors. They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he among you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them." (Surat Al-Maidah 5:51) <DIV align=left> It commands Muslims to fight Jews and Christians: "Fight against those who believe not in Allah, nor in the Last Day, nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger (Mohammed) and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth (Islam) among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." (Surah At-Taubah 9:29) Jizyah is a special high tax to be paid only by Jews or Christians who do not want to renounce their religion and convert to Islam (this Qur'anic Law is still practiced today in much of the Muslim world). "Jihad (holy fighting in allah's cause) is ordained for you, though it is hateful unto you; but it may happen that you hate a thing which is good for you and it may happen that you love a thing which is bad for you. Allah knoweth, you knew not." (Surat Al-Baqarah 2:216) Here Mohammed is completely removing all blame from himself for having started the fighting. The most insidious and devilish implication of this verse is that allah is completely justifying Mohammed's murder of the innocent Meccans. Over and above this Mohammed is implying that warfare is hateful to him, but he participated in it because it was ordained by allah! "Lo, the worst of beasts in Allah's sight are the ungrateful who will not believe... Those of them with whom you made a treaty and then at every opportunity they break their treaty and they keep not duty to Allah, If you come on them in the war, deal with them so as to strike fear in those who are behind them, so that they may remember." (Surat Al-Anfal 8:55-57) Mohammed is saying that acts of planned terrorism against Jewish tribes are justified by allah, because according to the merciful allah, non-Muslims are the worst of beasts! So, in the world called Islam, it is all right to murder, rape, torture and pillage the non-believers! Not only that but allah is advising Mohammed and the Muslims that when anyone protests against their injustices, they should retaliate against the protestors with such violence that it will strike fear among anyone who may think of supporting dissent (exactly the reason that motivates them to behead an innocent man on global television). This demonstrates that the Qur'an is nothing but a political manual for controlling people with terror and the enforcers of this Islamic-ideology are immuned from accountability by Qur'anic law and can therefore carry-out judgment to any non-believer using any method of their choice with a Qur'anic preference of beheading. "It is not for any Prophet to have captives until he hath made slaughter in the land. You desire the lure of this world and Allah desires for you the hereafter and Allah is Mighty, Wise. Now enjoy what you have won as lawful and good and keep your duty to Allah. Lo! Allah is forgiving, merciful." (Surat Al-Anfal 8:67-68) These two Surahs are in reference to the prisoners that Mohammed held for ransom after the battle of banu-l-Mustaliq. Allah the merciful is saying that they should all have been killed! In addition, allah is conveniently commenting that whatever loot Mohammed has plundered is lawful and good because it was done in service to allah. So murder, rape, plunder, and destruction are all perfectly fine with allah as long as they are done in the name of Islam! Mohammed is also insidiously making himself seem very kind for having spared the lives of the prisoners, when in fact he only let them live so he could get more money from the Ransom for them. In today's world this is called 'terrorism.' "They question you (O Mohammed) with regard to warfare in the sacred month. Say: Warfare therein is a great transgression but to turn men from the way of Allah and to disbelieve in Him and the inviolable place of worship and to expel its people thence is a greater transgression, for persecution is worse than killing." (Surat Al-Baqarah 2:217) Allah is clearly saying that to kill or create warfare in the sacred month of Rejeb is a very grave offence, but to justify his own violation of allah's rules, Mohammed comes up with the idea that since the people killed were unbelievers, it was perfectly okay! The reason given for the horrific murder of the innocent Meccans is the fact that they did not believe in Islam's god. The Qur'an commands Muslims to fight non-Muslims until they exterminate all other religions and Islam would be the only religion in the world - the ultimate goal of Islamicism. "And fight them until there is no more Fitnah (disbelief and worshipping of others along with allah) and (all and every kind of) worship is for Allah (alone). But if they cease, let there be no transgression except against As-Zatimun (the polytheists and wrong doers)." (Surat Al-Baqarah 2:193) This verse is mentioned also in Surat Al-Anfal 8:39. Because of the misunderstanding and ignorance of Christianity, Muslims believe that Christians are polytheists, because they believe in a Triune God. Fundamentalists look at Jews and Christians and all non-Muslims as infidels who must be killed because they have no value as human beings and must be exterminated from the face of the earth. Fundamentalists divide the world into two camps, Dar Al-Harb (Camp of war) where Jews and Christians exist, and Dar Al-Sallam (Camp of peace) where Muslims live. They believe that Holy war against those who live in the camp of war should continue until they are exterminated. The Qur'an commands Muslims to terrorize and torture and kill anyone who disobeys allah and the prophet Mohammed: "(Remember) when your Lord revealed to the angels, "Verily I am with you, so keep firm those who have believed. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who have disbelieved, so strike them over the necks and smite over all their fingers and toes. This is because they defied and disobeyed Allah and His Messenger (Mohammed). And whoever defies and disobeys Allah and His Messenger, them verily, Allah is Severe in punishment. This is (the torment), so taste it; and surely, for the disbelievers is the torment of the Fire." (Surat Al-Anfal 8:12-14) "The recompense of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger (Mohammed) and do mischief in the land is only that they shall be killed or crucified or their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides, or be exiled from the land. That is their disgrace in this world, and a great torment is theirs in the Hereafter." (Surat Al-Maidah 5:33) The Qur'an commands Muslims to convert non-Muslims to Islam by force. "Kill the Mushrikun (polytheists, Christians and non-Muslims), wherever you find them, and capture them and besiege them, and lie in wait for them in each and every ambush. But, if they repent and perform As-salat (public prayer with Muslims) and give Zakat (Islamic alms), then leave their way free. Allah is oft-forgiving, most merciful." (Surat At-Taubah 9:5) It is hate-filled words such as these that teach Islamists to go kill innocent, non-combatants because they are non-Muslim and won't convert.20 Furthermore, it is worth noting here that the words 'fight' and 'kill' appear more frequently in the Qur'an than the word 'pray.' Islam is a prison with no way out. Once a person enters that prison, he cannot leave it alive. "Then what is the matter with you that you are divided into two parties about the apostates? Allah has cast them back (to disbelief) because of what they have earned. Do you want to guide him whom Allah has made to go astray? And he whom Allah has made to go astray, you will never find for him any way (of guidance). They wish that you reject Faith, as they have rejected (Faith), and thus that you all become equal (like one another). So take not Aouliya (protectors or friends) from them, till they emigrate in the Way of Allah (to Mohammed). But if they turn back (from Islam), take (hold of) them and kill them wherever you find them, and take neither Aouliya (protectors or friends) nor helpers from them." (Surat An-Nisa 4:88,89) This verse means that if a person says the Islamic Shahada (creed): "I testify that there is no God but Allah, I testify that Mohammed is the Messenger of Allah," he cannot change his mind. If he does change his mind, he will be executed or beheaded as has happened many times in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and other Islamic countries. Although Islamists target non-Muslims for death, collateral damage from their murderous acts often kills fellow Muslims of which they make no apology for. In fact, it is Muslims that terrorists are killing in the largest numbers by far, and it is Muslims whose governments and societies the Islamists want to takeover initially, then from there, launch their aggression in an all-out assault to obtain the final prize of a global, Islamic kingdom governed by Qur'anic law. As our focus now sharpens, we begin to see the real reasons they hate; an ancient jealousy sewn and passed down over the centuries to a criminal son who was willing to act upon this hatred and write about it claiming it was words given to him by God. The Real Reason they Hate: We have all heard the plethora of lies spewing from the mouths of Islamic propagandists who are attempting to justify their murderous acts; 'American support for Israel,' 'We hate America and her love of pornography, alcohol, and secularism,' 'Israeli occupation (which ranks atop the biggest lies ever told - see Signs, Signs, Everywhere are Signs and The Arab Jewish Conflict),' 'We will continue our attacks until western foreign policy towards the Middle East is changed.' We routinely hear the western liberal