Jihad, the so called Holy War, is waged to spread the Islamic Religion


The use of the word Jihad in reference to a holy war is an entirely incorrect usage. Since the aggression of earlier Christians in the 11th century the term Holy War has been used in the Christian sense. A Holy War is waged without rational justification but by the warped vision of a religious leader to conquer the Promised Land (i.e. in the Crusader's mind it was Palestine which was promised to the descendants of Prophet Abraham (a.s.)) and spread their religion. In the 4th century the standards for such wars was set by the Papacy (i.e. the Pope). The first criteria for a holy war was that it was to be violent. Killing was not seen as evil and was to be done deliberately or not. The second criteria for a holy war was the establishment of the Christian Republic. Christ was seen as a political figure who had political ambitions set for his people, i.e. the Christians. The Christian Republic was to be ruled by Christ whose representatives on earth were the Pope, bishops, emperors and kings. The Muslims in Palestine were seen as tyrants who occupied Christian territory which was sanctified by the presence of Christ. Pagans in the Balkans were seen as a threat to Christendom, as well as, Muslims in Spain. The Jews were viewed as a people rejected by God for murdering their Messiah.

Prior to the first millennia, the predominant thought in the Church was that Jesus (a.s.) second coming would come, along with the end of the world, which would occur at the turn of the first millennia. The calendar years were calculated according to the Roman calendar. One Christian writer wrote, "On new year's eve, 1000, a crowd gathered at Rome, awaiting the end of the world. Midnight came, nothing happened and the pope, Sylvester II, blessed the crowd and sent them home."¹ Not long afterwards came the crusaders.

At the request of various popes, beginning with Pope Urban II, between 1095-1270 A.D., military expeditions against the Pagans, Jews and Muslims were carried out from Europe. Christ was seen to have authorized the Crusades himself and the Pope, who exorcised his authority, was his representative on earth. Many Christians in Palestine, and elsewhere refused to join in on the wars even though the Crusades were seen as an international event. The crusaders believed that if they began to conquer Palestine then Jesus (a.s.) would return, fulfill the promises of the Bible and finish establishing the Kingdom of God on earth. This meant that they must launch a Crusade to liberate Palestine from Muslim rule and rid the land of the Jews who, in their opinion murdered Jesus (a.s.) and forfeited their right to God's promises. The European Christians united under the belief that the conquest of Palestine would usher in the second coming of Jesus (a.s.), and the kingdom of God on earth (i.e. the Christian Republic), swept in massive force across Europe and Asia murdering and burning Jews in their synagogues and attacking Muslim and Pagan settlements. Those Jews who did not die and were found out were forced by the sword to abandon Judaism and confess Christianity. Those who did not were murdered on site! Those Jews who did were sometimes exiled but most were murdered by the sword anyhow. Many Jews did confess but in secret reneged on it and sought forgiveness from God or even committed suicide out of the guilt of not forgoing the persecution. A popular remembrance of these events among Jewish circles is the playing of the Kol Nidre (pronounced kole nidray), a song created and played Jews to plead God's forgiveness and renounce the forced Christian vows. The Crusades were the Holy Wars! A holy war waged by religious zealots with a false man inspired vision base on a man made Bible. A Holy War is aggressive, irrational and waged against a people without cause. There is no doubt that this is the reason why the United States adopted the concept of the separation of Church and State. Islam does not condone, nor recognize forced conversions. According to what God revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.), "If somebody does not accept Islam truly but does so by compulsion or fear of being killed, then that man is not a believer." (Bukhari)²

The word Jihad literally means, to struggle against. Jihad does not initiate aggression, nor does Jihad have to be used in cases of war. There are three ways in which Jihad can be described. First, Jihad is the literal struggle (non-violent) against the sinful temptations of the heart. One can Jihad against him or herself. If one is tempted to steal and takes the appropriate measures to insure that the thought is stricken from his or her mind, through prayer or whatever it takes, then he or she has waged Jihad against his or her heart. Jihad is a character building mechanism and is the constant struggle against sin in our hearts. Second, Jihad is a struggle (non-violent) against the philosophies of society at large, such as atheism or humanism. Jihad of this type is through discourse. Muslims will engage in debates about facts and opinions to insure that people do not abandon the belief that God exists, is active in our lives, relevant in our society and must be worshipped. This type of Jihad spreads our religion, is non-violent and non-aggressive discourse. The third type of Jihad is what the Christian and christianized west attempts confused with their own transgressions and wrongfully propagates spreading falsehood. Jihad is, also, the defense of our families from invading armies and tyrants! As seen in many parts of the world, every side has an aggressor and a defender. Jihad (violent defensive struggle) is a defensive action and not aggressive! It is a nation defending itself from an aggressor. It is the right of every person on earth, Muslim and not, to defend their family from impending destruction and aggression. Qur'an 2:190-193 sets the terms about Jihad of this type:

Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress limits; for Allah loveth not transgressors. And slay them wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for persecution is worse than slaughter; but fight them not at the Sacred Mosque, unless they (first) fight you there; But if they fight you, slay them. Such is the reward of those who reject faith. But if they cease, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. And fight them on until there is no more persecution and the religion becomes Allah's. But if they cease, let there be no hostility except to those who practice oppression.

This type of Jihad (defensive) is not a holy war, which is aggressive in nature. If violence is perpetrated against the Islamic community then God has authorized the means by which they can defend themselves and their families. God has set the guidelines and limits by which such a defensive action may take place. There is no support in the Qur'an or Sunnah for Jihad to be used in any other manner than defense. Islam condemns non-provoked attacks and anyone who claims to be Muslim who does such a thing is not following Islam! During the Crusades Christians waged a Holy War against the Jews and Muslims. Muslims went to Jihad against them to defend their way of life!

Exerpt from Western Misconceptions: The Facts About Islam by BrJimC 2000

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