Issue 55
Issue 55 [@1:00:54]: Abdullah Al-Araby – Director, The Pen vs. The Sword Publications – “Lying, generally speaking is not allowed in Islam. But, unlike other religions, there are certain situations where a Muslim can lie and that would be acceptable, even encouraged. This concept is called Al-Taqiyya. Al-Taqiyya means prevention. So a Muslim is allowed to prevent harm that may come to him or Islam.”
Rebuttal 55: Lying is NOT allowed in Islam. Period! (see Issue 53, and Issue 54). This is not a mere tall claim of Islam nor an empty homily of a Muslim. This claim emanates from the fundamentals of Islam that comes to light in the following quotations:
30:138. (We take) Allah’s colour, and who is better than Allah at colouring, and we are His worshippers.
One of the Allah’s colour in Islam that one has to adopt is the Truth:
22:6. …Allah, He is the Truth…
Not only that He is the Truth, He is also its Author, Granter, King (Sovereign) and Guardian as well:
59:23. He is Allah, besides Whom there is no God: the King, the Holy, the Author of Peace, the Granter of Security, Guardian over all, the Mighty, the Supreme, the Possessor of greatness. Glory be to Allah from what they set up as partners (with Him)!
Thus, when one bows to Allah, one fearlessly bows to Truth in Islam, not to falsehood as alleged by Al-Araby. A Muslim is no more than an instrument to preserve Islam for himself. The ultimate preserver of Islam for the body of humanity is none but Allah who has the track record of sending preservers of Truth, besides others Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Buddha, Rama, Krishna, Zoroaster, Confucius and finally Muhammad to preserve none but Islam.
There is a fundamental error in Al-Araby’s view about Islam. He believes that one can lie to prevent harm to Islam. What he does not know is that both the core and peripherals of Islam are based upon Truth in all its forms, shades and implications and Truth is part and parcel of beliefs, meanings, thoughts, intentions, speech, policies and implementations in Islam. It would be totally absurd to save “Truth” with a “Lie” just as one cannot preserve ice by exposing it to heat, the diametrically opposites. A lie only damages Islam as it had damaged the Islam of Moses and Jesus before (see Issue 50).
Unlike Bible, there is no room in Quran for lying or Al-Taqiyya, because lying is intricately associated with deception to hide some weakness of the liar. That weakness we find in the message of Bible and Christianity where Paul does not consider it a sin to lie in matters of faith, the hallmark of a man made religion. For example Romans 3 (New International Version) :
3 What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness?
4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”
5 But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.)
6 Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world?
7 Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?”
8 Why not say—as some slanderously claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is just!
Contrary to Bible, Quran expounds moral laws under its core strength of Truth.
61:2. O you who believe, why do you say things which you do not do?
61:3.It is most hateful in the sight of Allah that you say things which you do not do.
[Footnote] It is an exhortation to those who professed belief in the Truth to make their actions correspond with their assertions. The triumph of Truth, which is so definitely foretold in this chapter, could not be brought about by boastful talk but by great deeds of sacrifice, and hence this prelude. Mere words, if not carried into action, are hateful to God. It is deeds that open the way to success.
In the moral the laws of Quran, falsehood in any shape or form is an evil, truthfulness is found in good and one is exhorted to do good while shunning evil:
41:33. And who is better in speech than one who calls to Allah and does good, and says: I am surely one of those who submit?
41:34. And not alike are the good and the evil. Repel (evil) with what is best, when lo! he between whom and you is enmity would be as if he were a warm friend.
[Footnote] Editor’s Note: Verses 33–35 show that Muslims should preach Islam by means of speech and not force, by setting an example themselves of doing good deeds, and by responding to evil with good. This approach requires patience and is a great good fortune (v. 35). Thus do you win over your enemy.
41:35. And none is granted it but those who are patient, and none is granted it but the owner of a mighty good fortune.
41:36. And if a false imputation from the devil afflict you, seek refuge in Allah.
[Footnote] The previous verses teach the repelling of evil with good. This verse suggests another remedy for evil. The Prophet is here told that, if his work is interfered with by evildoers or if false imputations are made against him, he should seek refuge in Allah, and Divine help, which always comes to the righteous, will make truth triumphant.
Surely He is the Hearing, the Knowing.
If anyone, and a Muslim in particular lies, then did it ever occur to Al-Araby that to whom is that person is lying to? According to Islam, such a person is lying only to himself:
4:19-20. He [-Allah] knows the dishonesty of eyes and what the hearts conceal. And Allah judges with truth. And those whom they call upon besides Him judge not at all! Surely Allah is the Hearing, the Seeing.
6:24. See how they lie against their own souls, and what they forged shall fail them!
How innocent, rather ignorant and malicious of Al-Araby when he states – “But, unlike other religions, there are certain situations where a Muslim can lie and that would be acceptable, even encouraged.”
We challenge Al-Araby to quote us a single verse in Quran where it sanctions lying or deceit. But he should not be too surprised that it is almost an article of faith to cheat, deceive and lie as outlined in Old and New Testaments when proselytizing, gaining wealth and/or power. Below is only a sampler:
– The holiest of the holy in the the Bible lied:
1 Samuel 27 (New International Version):
8 Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites and the Amalekites. (From ancient times these peoples had lived in the land extending to Shur and Egypt.) 9 Whenever David attacked an area, he did not leave a man or woman alive, but took sheep and cattle, donkeys and camels, and clothes. Then he returned to Achish.
10 When Achish asked, “Where did you go raiding today?” David would say, “Against the Negev of Judah” or “Against the Negev of Jerahmeel ” or “Against the Negev of the Kenites. ” 11 He did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he thought, “They might inform on us and say, ‘This is what David did.’” And such was his practice as long as he lived in Philistine territory.
2 Kings 8 (New International Version):
7 Elisha went to Damascus, and Ben-Hadad king of Aram was ill. When the king was told, “The man of God has come all the way up here,” 8 he said to Hazael, “Take a gift with you and go to meet the man of God. Consult the Lord through him; ask him, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’”
9 Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him as a gift forty camel-loads of all the finest wares of Damascus. He went in and stood before him, and said, “Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’”
10 Elisha answered, “Go and say to him, ‘You will certainly recover.’ Nevertheless, the Lord has revealed to me that he will in fact die.” 11 He stared at him with a fixed gaze until Hazael was embarrassed. Then the man of God began to weep.
12 “Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the harm you will do to the Israelites,” he answered. “You will set fire to their fortified places, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little children to the ground, and rip open their pregnant women.”
13 Hazael said, “How could your servant, a mere dog, accomplish such a feat?” “The Lord has shown me that you will become king of Aram,” answered Elisha.
14 Then Hazael left Elisha and returned to his master. When Ben-Hadad asked, “What did Elisha say to you?” Hazael replied, “He told me that you would certainly recover.” 15 But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it over the king’s face, so that he died. Then Hazael succeeded him as king.
Jeremiah 38 (New International Version)
24 Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Do not let anyone know about this conversation, or you may die. 25 If the officials hear that I talked with you, and they come to you and say, ‘Tell us what you said to the king and what the king said to you; do not hide it from us or we will kill you,’ 26 then tell them, ‘I was pleading with the king not to send me back to Jonathan’s house to die there.’”
27 All the officials did come to Jeremiah and question him, and he told them everything the king had ordered him to say. So they said no more to him, for no one had heard his conversation with the king.
– Double Standards for personal gains:
Deuteronomy 14:21 Do not eat anything you find already dead. You may give it to the foreigner residing in any of your towns, and they may eat it, or you may sell it to any other foreigner. But you are a people holy to the Lord your God.
Deuteronomy 23:19 Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest. 20 You may charge a foreigner interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.
Whereas, Quran shuns double standards:
83:1. Woe to the cheaters,
[Footnote] The cheaters are not only those who cheat others by giving them less than what is their due, but also those who make a default in any of their duties. The taking of the measure and the measuring out, in the next two verses, must also be read in a general sense.
83:2. who, when they take the measure (of their dues) from people, take it fully,
83:3. but when they measure out to others or weigh out for them, they give less than is due!
83:4. Do they not think that they will be raised again,
83:5. to a mighty day? —
83:6. the day when mankind will stand before the Lord of the worlds.
The holiest of the holy in Bible lied, practiced double standards and that too under Divine guidance, only to push their agenda, no matter how selfish. Then, it is no wonder that the producers and experts of this movie only followed the footsteps of their Divinely guided when they unflinchingly and dutifully lied through out the documentary, you Mr. Al-Araby included.
References:
Bible – New International Version – BibleGateway.com
Holy Quran – Muhammad Ali, edited by Zahid Aziz
From Zahid Aziz:
In March 2011 I posted an item in this blog entitled: The Concept of truth in the Quran.
In it I gave the link to a pdf file of a khutba on this topic that I delivered in May 2009. Here is that link.
From Zahid Aziz:
1. According to the Bible, when Abraham was commanded by God to sacrifice his son (according to the Bible it was Isaac), and he was taking his son to the place of sacrifice, he not only kept his son ignorant of the fact that he was going to sacrifice him but he actually deceived him by telling him that God would provide a lamb for the sacrifice. It is stated in Genesis, ch. 22, verses 6 to 8:
As quite opposed to this, the Quran says that upon receiving the Divine command Abraham consulted his son and asked for his opinion about the command, and the son agreed to the sacrifice (37:102).
2. Again, according to the same book of the Bible, Jacob (later given the name Israel) deceived his dying, blind father Isaac, in order to receive Divine blessings from him and become his spiritual successor. Isaac had asked Esau, Jacob’s older twin brother, to bring him hunted meat and then receive blessings from him. But the mother, overhearing this, instigated Jacob to pretend to be Esau before the blind father and thereby steal the blessings meant for Esau. He put on Esau’s clothes, and put on goat’s skin on his hands to make them feel rough like Esau’s hands. To quote:
When Esau later came to his father and the deception was realised, Isaac said to him:
“Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.” (27:35).
Just count the number of falsehoods allegedly told by Jacob, and the “identity theft” carried out, to gain blessings which are granted by God!
It is interesting to note that while Jacob was given the name “Israel” (mentioned in both the Bible and the Quran), Esau married Ismail’s daughter, i.e. the deceitful usurper of the Bible is called Israel and the cheated one is married into the family of the ancestor of the Arabs! Prophetic of present history perhaps?
From Rashid:
Waterboarding as commanded by Bible
Waterboarding by USA intelligence agency CIA is considered such a despicable that in January 2009 President Obama banned its practice.
Wikipedia entry explains Waterboarding: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterboarding
I wonder if Abullah Al-Araby had told documentary viewers that CIA learned Waterboarding techniques from Christians Holy Bible:
15 But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it over the king’s face, so that he died.
2 Kings 8:7-15 (New International Version)
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%208:7-15&version=NIV
From Zahid Aziz:
Leading British atheist, Richard Dawkins, supports the plan to put a Bible in every English school. He says:
“It is not a moral book and young people need to learn that important fact because they are very frequently told the opposite”.
“People who do not know the Bible well have been gulled into thinking it is a good guide to morality.”
See this link of the BBC news website.