Photo Credit: Stand Up and Lead

I meant to publish this 5 years ago, but it is still timely today. On 9 Dec 2009, blogger S. R. Piccoli in his blog Wind Rose Hotel linked to an article of mine (1) in which I offered a handy guide of excuses for American Muslims to use to deflect the charges leveled against their religion and thus help convince stupid American idiots, primarily Liberals, that Islam is a beautiful, peace-loving, kind and gentle religion rather than what it truly is: barbaric, savage, intolerant, bigoted, racist, violent, misogynistic, and primitive.

What followed in the comment section of the Wind Rose Hotel blog was a conversation between me and a Muslim who ironically used the very same excuses as I outlined in my guide. My responses are in bold.

Balqis 6:00 AM, December 20, 2009

It's not a matter of finding excuses, but our religion must be judged according to its own parameters, same as others.
The Quran must be read both in context and with its general meaning otherwise the message will lose its universality

The verses about kaafirs [a word which doesn't have a proper translation in English like many other Arabic ones, since kaffara means to hide the truth so a kaafir is someone who doesn't believe in the truth, the religion of the one god] were revealed in specific times, when there was a war between the Islamic state and a politheist one, and always after an aggression or after knowing one was being prepared

Hence it gives the rules of engagement, provided there is a war between two states, one of them being Muslim

The word friend used in the quoted verses of Surah at Tawba is awliya which has a different meaning in Arabic, more like partnership, alliance, a strong bond

And in fact those verses were revealed when after the migration in Madinah, the Prophet made pacts of non aggression with jewsh and politheists living there, but some of them were in touch with the Quraish in Makkah who were plotting against the Muslims and trying to recruit them to attack the Muslim Madinese community just established

The relations between Muslims and non Muslims is regulated by other verses :

God forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your) Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for God loveth those who are just.
God only forbids you, with regard to those who fight you for (your) Faith, and drive you out of your homes, and support (others) in driving you out, from turning to them (for friendship and protection). It is such as turn to them (in these circumstances), that do wrong.
Surah al Mumtahanah verses 8-9

...

Of course all of these can be misinterpreted according to one personal needs and this is what happens today in places where culture prevails

If saying how things really are defined in our religion, is being apologetic and gives to the enemies of Islam the right to attack our religion, then let it be
We'll keep on telling the truth because this is our duty

I responded: (4:50 AM, December 24, 2009)

Yes, Balqis is right, in one sense, Kafir means a person who covers the truth. What he doesn't say is that the word 'kafir' to the Muslim ear is like 'nigger' to a white supremacist's ear. It's not a nice word.

It does no good to excuse the use of the n-word by pointing out that it is merely an innocent variant of the Spanish word for black: Negro. What matters is how it is used.

If a Muslim calls me a kafir, he is not thinking of me as a friend who he merely disagrees with on a religious point, no, when a Muslim says kafir, he conjures up an ungrateful, destructive, corrupting unbeliever worthy of conversion, subjugation, or death.

Balqis only proves my point. Muslims believe vile, nasty things, but when explaining these vile notions to infidels, to kafirs, they make it seem innocuous, even innocent.

How nice.

Balqis10:59 AM, December 24, 2009

No no my dear
I didn't put it nicely
Not believing in one God is something of extreme gravity, let's be clear
Saying that God has a son or needs to turn himself into a man to save people He defines His children, is a blasphemy
Not obeying to God's laws but to man made laws opens the doors to hell
What I said is that unless there's a war between an Islamic state and another, then there's no reason to hate or to kill a non Muslim
Islam is not only a religion but a deen, a way of life and a set of rules applied to an entire society
In Islam we're forbidden from telling lies or twisting words and mocking at people, regardless of religion
I see it's not the same for you
How can I befriend such a person who clearly has no moral and code of conduct in life ?

I responded: (4:14 PM, February 06, 2010)

My dear, sweet Balqis: in my article I suggested to Muslims that if anyone criticizes passages from the Quran then simply "insist that the translation is distorted or misrepresented or out of context."

You started your first comment here by writing: "The Quran must be read both in context and with its general meaning."

You have proven the very point of my article by following my advice for obfuscating the truth about the Quran. Did you not notice?

(4:18 PM, February 06, 2010)

One more point, dear Balqis: you wrote: "Saying that God has a son or needs to turn himself into a man to save people He defines His children, is a blasphemy."

So when a Christian accepts Jesus as the Son of God, that is a blasphemy, no?

And what, I pray you, is the punishment for blasphemy these days in Islam? Don't be afraid to say it: Death.

Am I wrong?

Read the unedited conversation here.