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<div class="moz-text-html" lang="x-western"> <b>Muhammad's Sword<br>
<br>
</b>Uri Avnery <br>
23.9.06<br>
<<a href="http://zope.gush-shalom.org/home/en" eudora="autourl">http://zope.gush-shalom.org/home/en</a>><br>
<br>
Since the days when Roman Emperors threw Christians to<br>
the lions, the relations between the emperors and the<br>
heads of the church have undergone many changes.<br>
<br>
Constantine the Great, who became Emperor in the year<br>
306 - exactly 1700 years ago - encouraged the practice<br>
of Christianity in the empire, which included<br>
Palestine. Centuries later, the church split into an<br>
Eastern (Orthodox) and a Western (Catholic) part. In<br>
the West, the Bishop of Rome, who acquired the title of<br>
Pope, demanded that the Emperor accept his superiority.<br>
<br>
The struggle between the Emperors and the Popes played<br>
a central role in European history and divided the<br>
peoples. It knew ups and downs. Some Emperors dismissed<br>
or expelled a Pope, some Popes dismissed or<br>
excommunicated an Emperor. One of the Emperors, Henry<br>
IV, "walked to Canossa", standing for three days<br>
barefoot in the snow in front of the Pope's castle,<br>
until the Pope deigned to annul his excommunication.<br>
<br>
But there were times when Emperors and Popes lived in<br>
peace with each other. We are witnessing such a period<br>
today. Between the present Pope, Benedict XVI, and the<br>
present Emperor, George Bush II, there exists a<br>
wonderful harmony. Last week's speech by the Pope,<br>
which aroused a world-wide storm, went well with Bush's<br>
crusade against "Islamofascism", in the context of the<br>
"Clash of Civilizations".<br>
<br>
IN HIS lecture at a German university, the 265th Pope<br>
described what he sees as a huge difference between<br>
Christianity and Islam: while Christianity is based on<br>
reason, Islam denies it. While Christians see the logic<br>
of God's actions, Muslims deny that there is any such<br>
logic in the actions of Allah.<br>
<br>
As a Jewish atheist, I do not intend to enter the fray<br>
of this debate. It is much beyond my humble abilities<br>
to understand the logic of the Pope. But I cannot<br>
overlook one passage, which concerns me too, as an<br>
Israeli living near the fault-line of this "war of<br>
civilizations".<br>
<br>
In order to prove the lack of reason in Islam, the Pope<br>
asserts that the prophet Muhammad ordered his followers<br>
to spread their religion by the sword. According to the<br>
Pope, that is unreasonable, because faith is born of<br>
the soul, not of the body. How can the sword influence<br>
the soul?<br>
<br>
To support his case, the Pope quoted - of all people -<br>
a Byzantine Emperor, who belonged, of course, to the<br>
competing Eastern Church. At the end of the 14th<br>
century, the Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus told of a<br>
debate he had - or so he said (its occurrence is in<br>
doubt) - with an unnamed Persian Muslim scholar. In the<br>
heat of the argument, the Emperor (according to<br>
himself) flung the following words at his adversary:<br>
<br>
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and<br>
there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such<br>
as his command to spread by the sword the faith he<br>
preached".<br>
<br>
These words give rise to three questions: (a) Why did<br>
the Emperor say them? (b) Are they true? (c) Why did<br>
the present Pope quote them?<br>
<br>
WHEN MANUEL II wrote his treatise, he was the head of a<br>
dying empire. He assumed power in 1391, when only a few<br>
provinces of the once illustrious empire remained.<br>
These, too, were already under Turkish threat.<br>
<br>
At that point in time, the Ottoman Turks had reached<br>
the banks of the Danube. They had conquered Bulgaria<br>
and the north of Greece, and had twice defeated<br>
relieving armies sent by Europe to save the Eastern<br>
Empire. On May 29, 1453, only a few years after<br>
Manuel's death, his capital, Constantinople (the<br>
present Istanbul) fell to the Turks, putting an end to<br>
the Empire that had lasted for more than a thousand<br>
years.<br>
<br>
During his reign, Manuel made the rounds of the<br>
capitals of Europe in an attempt to drum up support. He<br>
promised to reunite the church. There is no doubt that<br>
he wrote his religious treatise in order to incite the<br>
Christian countries against the Turks and convince them<br>
to start a new crusade. The aim was practical, theology<br>
was serving politics.<br>
<br>
In this sense, the quote serves exactly the<br>
requirements of the present Emperor, George Bush II.<br>
He, too, wants to unite the Christian world against the<br>
mainly Muslim "Axis of Evil". Moreover, the Turks are<br>
again knocking on the doors of Europe, this time<br>
peacefully. It is well known that the Pope supports the<br>
forces that object to the entry of Turkey into the<br>
European Union.<br>
<br>
IS THERE any truth in Manuel's argument?<br>
<br>
The pope himself threw in a word of caution. As a<br>
serious and renowned theologian, he could not afford to<br>
falsify written texts. Therefore, he admitted that the<br>
Qur'an specifically forbade the spreading of the faith<br>
by force. He quoted the second Sura, verse 256<br>
(strangely fallible, for a pope, he meant verse 257)<br>
which says: "There must be no coercion in matters of<br>
faith".<br>
<br>
How can one ignore such an unequivocal statement? The<br>
Pope simply argues that this commandment was laid down<br>
by the prophet when he was at the beginning of his<br>
career, still weak and powerless, but that later on he<br>
ordered the use of the sword in the service of the<br>
faith. Such an order does not exist in the Qur'an.<br>
True, Muhammad called for the use of the sword in his<br>
war against opposing tribes - Christian, Jewish and<br>
others - in Arabia, when he was building his state. But<br>
that was a political act, not a religious one;<br>
basically a fight for territory, not for the spreading<br>
of the faith.<br>
<br>
Jesus said: "You will recognize them by their fruits."<br>
The treatment of other religions by Islam must be<br>
judged by a simple test: How did the Muslim rulers<br>
behave for more than a thousand years, when they had<br>
the power to "spread the faith by the sword"?<br>
<br>
Well, they just did not.<br>
<br>
For many centuries, the Muslims ruled Greece. Did the<br>
Greeks become Muslims? Did anyone even try to Islamize<br>
them? On the contrary, Christian Greeks held the<br>
highest positions in the Ottoman administration. The<br>
Bulgarians, Serbs, Romanians, Hungarians and other<br>
European nations lived at one time or another under<br>
Ottoman rule and clung to their Christian faith. Nobody<br>
compelled them to become Muslims and all of them<br>
remained devoutly Christian.<br>
<br>
True, the Albanians did convert to Islam, and so did<br>
the Bosniaks. But nobody argues that they did this<br>
under duress. They adopted Islam in order to become<br>
favorites of the government and enjoy the fruits.<br>
<br>
In 1099, the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem and<br>
massacred its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants<br>
indiscriminately, in the name of the gentle Jesus. At<br>
that time, 400 years into the occupation of Palestine<br>
by the Muslims, Christians were still the majority in<br>
the country. Throughout this long period, no effort was<br>
made to impose Islam on them. Only after the expulsion<br>
of the Crusaders from the country, did the majority of<br>
the inhabitants start to adopt the Arabic language and<br>
the Muslim faith - and they were the forefathers of<br>
most of today's Palestinians.<br>
<br>
THERE IS no evidence whatsoever of any attempt to<br>
impose Islam on the Jews. As is well known, under<br>
Muslim rule the Jews of Spain enjoyed a bloom the like<br>
of which the Jews did not enjoy anywhere else until<br>
almost our time. Poets like Yehuda Halevy wrote in<br>
Arabic, as did the great Maimonides. In Muslim Spain,<br>
Jews were ministers, poets, scientists. In Muslim<br>
Toledo, Christian, Jewish and Muslim scholars worked<br>
together and translated the ancient Greek philosophical<br>
and scientific texts. That was, indeed, the Golden Age.<br>
How would this have been possible, had the Prophet<br>
decreed the "spreading of the faith by the sword"?<br>
<br>
What happened afterwards is even more telling. When the<br>
Catholics re-conquered Spain from the Muslims, they<br>
instituted a reign of religious terror. The Jews and<br>
the Muslims were presented with a cruel choice: to<br>
become Christians, to be massacred or to leave. And<br>
where did the hundreds of thousand of Jews, who refused<br>
to abandon their faith, escape? Almost all of them were<br>
received with open arms in the Muslim countries. The<br>
Sephardi ("Spanish") Jews settled all over the Muslim<br>
world, from Morocco in the west to Iraq in the east,<br>
from Bulgaria (then part of the Ottoman Empire) in the<br>
north to Sudan in the south. Nowhere were they<br>
persecuted. They knew nothing like the tortures of the<br>
Inquisition, the flames of the auto-da-fe, the pogroms,<br>
the terrible mass- expulsions that took place in almost<br>
all Christian countries, up to the Holocaust.<br>
<br>
WHY? Because Islam expressly prohibited any persecution<br>
of the "peoples of the book". In Islamic society, a<br>
special place was reserved for Jews and Christians.<br>
They did not enjoy completely equal rights, but almost.<br>
They had to pay a special poll-tax, but were exempted<br>
from military service - a trade-off that was quite<br>
welcome to many Jews. It has been said that Muslim<br>
rulers frowned upon any attempt to convert Jews to<br>
Islam even by gentle persuasion - because it entailed<br>
the loss of taxes.<br>
<br>
Every honest Jew who knows the history of his people<br>
cannot but feel a deep sense of gratitude to Islam,<br>
which has protected the Jews for fifty generations,<br>
while the Christian world persecuted the Jews and tried<br>
many times "by the sword" to get them to abandon their<br>
faith.<br>
<br>
THE STORY about "spreading the faith by the sword" is<br>
an evil legend, one of the myths that grew up in Europe<br>
during the great wars against the Muslims - the<br>
reconquista of Spain by the Christians, the Crusades<br>
and the repulsion of the Turks, who almost conquered<br>
Vienna. I suspect that the German Pope, too, honestly<br>
believes in these fables. That means that the leader of<br>
the Catholic world, who is a Christian theologian in<br>
his own right, did not make the effort to study the<br>
history of other religions.<br>
<br>
Why did he utter these words in public? And why now?<br>
<br>
There is no escape from viewing them against the<br>
background of the new Crusade of Bush and his<br>
evangelist supporters, with his slogans of<br>
"Islamofascism" and the "Global War on Terrorism" -<br>
when "terrorism" has become a synonym for Muslims. For<br>
Bush's handlers, this is a cynical attempt to justify<br>
the domination of the world's oil resources. Not for<br>
the first time in history, a religious robe is spread<br>
to cover the nakedness of economic interests; not for<br>
the first time, a robbers' expedition becomes a<br>
Crusade.<br>
<br>
The speech of the Pope blends into this effort. Who can<br>
foretell the dire consequences?<br>
<br>
<br>
GUSH SHALOM p.o.b. 3322 Tel Aviv 61033</div>
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