True Islam Calls for Love - Two Events in May with Guest Presenters from Turkey:

During the first week of May we hosted two guests from the Islamic organization Science Research Foundation from Turkey. They presented a fundamental Islamic view that calls for brotherly relation between Muslims, Jews and Christians. They spoke in the framework of IEA's students' groups in Tel Aviv University and the Hebrew University.

Dr. Oktar Babuna titled his presentation "Unity of the Abrahamic Religions" with the famous quote from the Koran "there is no compulsion in religion" which teaches that not only physical violence is forbidden but verbal violence as well.

In Sura 29 verse 46 the Koran says that Jews believe in the same way as Muslims: in God, the prophets etc. Verse 5 in Sura 5 says that it is allowed for Muslims to eat the food of Jews, marry their daughters and socialize with them. The Koran brings many examples of joint values for Muslims and Jews: belief in the same God (29,46), respect all prophets (2, 285), prayer (2,186 – parallel to Psalms 145,18-20), the concept of justice (4,135 – parallel to Isaiah 56,1) etc.

Islam also supports religious Zionism. Its objection to the atheist Zionism is part of its general rejection of Atheism. But it should be noted that the rejection is only of the atheist philosophies but the atheist people – who should be respected. They are created by God like anybody else.

Jews, Muslims and Christians should uni8te against radicalism that leads to violence. The Koranic ethics negates extremism. Extremism is a result of materialism that derives from Darwinism, which is there to support Atheism. Darwinism understand nature as universal struggle for survival and the survival of the fittest. The translation of this understanding to the social sphere brought phenomena such as Nazism, Marxism, Racism etc. Herbert Spencer, the father of Social Darwinism, wrote explicitly that the weak should die. Similarly: Mao referred to opponents of the revolution as unsuccessful human versions that should extinct.

Only unity of the Abrahamic religions can defeat these approached, through the presentation of an ethical alternative from a Devine source. Once this ethics prevails – all conflicts will be gone and we will have a world of peace.

Dr. Cihat Gundogdu's presentation was titled "Islam denounces terrorism". He started by stating that there could not be such thing as "Islamic Terrorism" as Islam totally rejects any type of terrorism.

Killing of innocent people is a huge sin that leads to torment in Hell – this is the principle in any Devine religion and this is the principle in Islam. Even if a terrorist comes from a background of a religious community – by definition he is an infidel and his deeds can not be associated with his community.

One of the principal roles of Muslims is bringing peace to the world. Islam calls for justice and lack of hatred.

The concept of Jihad has nothing to do with killing innocent people and is not even mainly war but struggle to promote justice, a struggle that have to be done through intellectual means only. The biggest struggle is that of a person with his own desires.

Islam permits to kill only in self-defense or as revenge of the relatives to kill the murderer. Even then – forgiving is preferred.

Even in times when war is inevitable, the Koran stresses the duty to defend citizens – women, children, elderly as well as trees and houses.

Of course suicide is totally forbidden (Koran 4,29).

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