Fighting Terrorism
Today we wake up and some of us remember what happened in 2001, some were very young, but in some way, the events that occurred touched every life in America. We will never forget, but we do have the ability to try and bridge the gap and stomp out radical terrorism. Not long ago I finished a class in terrorism and I had the privilege to write a paper on the subject. It is my hope that you will find this paper educational, and maybe even inspirational. Let us be proactive, rather than reactive.
The Christian Fight Against Radical Islam:
How Apologetics Will Win The War
Jacob Keiffer
GOVT 480-D03 : Terrorism
Aug 5, 2018
Thesis Statement
The war on terror has been ongoing for over ten years. In that time the fight against radical Islam still wages on with only marginal impact of improvement. In order to truly make a difference in the fight against the radical sects of Islam, the more liberal leaning liberals, which makes up the majority needs to stand up to and police their own back yards. In order to do this and encourage the radical idea, Christians must turn to apologetics and repair almost two thousand years worth of hostility. Throughout the New Testament of the Christian Holy Bible lessons are taught how to love one another, and how to love and treat your enemies. These lessons along with a strong understanding of apologetics can be used to win the hearts and minds, instead of dropping bombs and waging war.
Introduction
Islam is a common word heard across the world today. “As of 2010, there were an estimated 1.6 billion Muslims around the world, making Islam the world’s second-largest religious tradition after Christianity.”[1] The religion of Islam dates back to around 653AD, however to truly understand the religion, one must understand its origins.[2] Some might say the West is at war with Islam, and while perhaps that is the larger picture, the fight is against radical Islam and the terrorist organizations that have called for the annihilation of all non-Muslims, and liberal Muslims who do not conform to the ideology of Wahhabi Islam. To fight this war on terror the West must understand the drive and mindset of those who follow this particular brand of Islam. A long-term plan to win what is essentially a family civil war must start and end with apologetics. Bombs will not win this war, or the number of battles won; instead it will be won by changing the hearts and minds of those who will listen. Christians will never win the war against radical Islam alone, they will need to support of liberal Muslims willing to stand and say ‘no more’ and join forces side by side with Christians, bridging the gap of a blood feud going all the way back to Abraham’s first born, Ishmael. Liberal Muslims must stand against the radicals together with the west to destroy the Wahhabi movement.
The Birth of Islam
Abraham was a prominent figure in the Christian Bible. God loved him, and he was promised children, but when that promise didn’t come on his timetable Abraham took matters into his own hands and bore a son with his handmaiden. This son was named Ishmael, and he would start the long blood line that would one day lead to a man now known to be the father of Islam, Muhammad.[3] Muhammad would create the religion of Islam by writing the Qur’an and this faith would spread throughout the world, but not as a unified religion. After the death of Muhammad the religion fractured and dissention rose quickly. While fighting between the different sects was violent at times, a common enemy was still growing across the world, and that enemy was Christians. Christians stole the birthright promised by God, and as Christians and Muslims are half siblings, one can understand how the hatred began.
Radical Islam Emerges
Over time a different way of thinking came about within the Nation of Islam. The Wahhabi Islam“This religious context provides the framework for justifying violence. Jihadists quote from Islamic scripture, prophetic traditions, and legal opinions to support their claims and activities. Jihad against non-Muslims and the ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay a special tax, or be killed are in fact based on Islamic law.”[4]Azumuah would go on to say in his paper, “Another key feature of the jihadists’ ideology is their rejection of and often rebellion against established governments of Islamic countries. Al-Qaeda, IS, and Boko Haram have declared Muslim governments around the world un-Islamic and illegitimate, vowing to replace them with an Islamic caliphate. To achieve their aim, the groups target and kill Muslim opponents, justifying their actions by invoking takfir, a doctrine, dating back to the seventh century, that specifies conditions under which fellow Muslims can be declared unbelievers who can be killed.”2 Since the dawn of Radical Islam countless lives have been taken in the name of Allah. The answer to combating this kind of hatred is simple, it’s found in the teaching of Jesus Christ, and the answer is love. “For those who eventually accepted the ideology as “true Islam” (and this was heavily influenced by perceptions about the credibility of the movement leader as an interpreter of Islam rather than the superiority of al Muhajiroun’s spiritual incentives relative to other groups),”[5]Muslims who follow this radical ideology also believe that members of their own faith, who are not conservative enough are also a threat, and can either conform, or die. This creates a religious civil war and creates an opportunity for Christians to come to the aid of the oppressed.
Apologetics: The Fight Against Hatred
Apologetics is simply put, the defense of what someone believes to be true. For Christians this is perhaps one of the most important aspects of faith. In order to truly evangelize to non-believers of Jesus Christ, understanding different worldviews is important. One would not use the same apologetic argument towards Muslims as you would an Atheist. Muslims and Christians share a common lineage and therefore our Holy Books have some similarities. In order for the west to fight Radical Islam, Christians must understand that particular worldview and then with the teaching of Jesus Christ, an apologetic argument can then be made. Showing love for your enemy is the only true way to change hearts. There are a few interesting points about Islam compared to Christianity. One major point was the idea of grace. “Because Muslims do not understand the concept of grace (undeserved forgiveness through the blood of Christ), tangential arguments do not reach the core of the Problem.”[6] Since Muslims don’t have a true understanding of grace, Christians showing love, and compassion, the nature of Jesus Christ will go a long way in proving Christians aren’t hostile and evil, as the leaders of radical Islam leads many to believe. In the wake of 9/11 Christians have grown to treat Muslims like outsiders, as a threatening intruder in a home, that must be dealt with. Understanding that not all Muslims condone terroristic actions is perhaps one of the first ways Christians can help mend the growing gap between two cultures. What Christians fail to understand, and it is important to realize that Christians who do not study God’s word, and truly dives into the teachings of Jesus Christ are partially responsible for the growing stigma and subsequent hatred of Muslims in the United States.
When a Christian talks to a Muslim the only true thing that matters is Christ. As fate would have it, God loves the little details, “The Qur’an presents Jesus as a miracle worker (2:49; 5:110) who brings signs (2:87, 253; possibly 5:75; 43:63; 61:6) and even speaks as an infant to establish himself as a prophet sent from God (19:29, 30)”[7] The separation comes where Muslims do not believe Christ was God and rejects the resurrection, and the trinity. However when you consider the timing of the Qur’an being written AD 653, although it does agree with the life of Jesus Christ, it denies the crucifixion of Christ, which shows the book is fallible. There are non-Biblical accounts of the Nazarene’s death.[8] There are four major points to consider when discussing Jesus to any Muslim. Before those four points it needs to be understood that Muslims who truly understands the Qur’an knows that Jesus is held in highest regard in their faith. Because of that, it is not necessary to try and prove his existence. What’s needed is to show his resurrection and divinity. This can be done if it is universally believed he was truly raised from the dead after three days in fulfillment of the scripture. The four points are, Jews, Christians, and Romans all knew where Jesus would be buried because of the man who buried him, Joseph of Arimathea, in a tomb just outside the city. Second, all major parties all agreed the tomb was in fact empty to include the Romans in which guards were placed to protect the tomb. These guards would have been Roman guards, and they all knew failure meant certain death.[9] Everyone knew the stone placed in front of the tomb would have weighed around 450 pounds, and would not have been easily moved. This makes the theory that Jesus’ body was stolen to be highly unlikely. Another point to this second idea was at the time of the crucifixion most of Jesus’ followers fled and went into hiding, so they were not organized until later. Third, according to Lee Strobel “on multiple occasions in under various circumstances, different individuals and groups experienced appearances of Jesus alive from the dead.”[10] The Roman Empire and the Sanhedrin would have been able to eliminate a few frightened followers, but instead, the sheer number of witnesses to the divine resurrection, there was no possible way either group, Jew or Roman would be able to stop the fire that was lit. Jesus Christ showed the world he was the Son of God, and the most powerful empire in the world would never be able to stomp out the truth. Fourth, before the accounts of the risen Christ, the disciples were afraid to be seen in public because they did not want to die for something they themselves doubted. Many were not sure Christ would actually rise and because of that, after the resurrection and walking with the risen Jesus Christ for forty days, they became bold, and no longer hid in the shadows. Even knowing they would be persecuted for preaching and teaching the word of Jesus Christ, they refused to yield. Knowing the penalty of blasphemy would be torture and maybe even to be crucified. Not one Apostle recanted their story about Christ. Each one that was murdered and martyred remained faithful and truthful about what they personally experienced.
There are many, who have attacked the Christian faith over the years, but recently there are two that stand out because when they did they were deemed experts in their fields, and both started as devout atheists. Lee Strobel who was a journalist started investigating Christianity and despite his best efforts, he was unable to prove the hoax, and eventually converted to Christianity after following the evidence he uncovered. Second is a man by the name of J. Warner Wallace, a Los Angeles cold case detective, and also a devout atheist set off on a mission once and for all to debunk the lie that was the Bible. Wallace believed he could use his experiences as a cold case detective to attack the Bible much like a cold case, and prove discrepancies within the testimony of the four eyewitness accounts. Despite his best efforts, and his desire to prove atheism was the way, he began to understand that the truth didn’t match his desired outcome. He realized how difficult it would be to keep a dozen people engaged in a conspiracy in the overwhelming pressure from the Romans and Jews.[11] Also, one of the biggest pieces of evidence is that so early on, every single Apostle was willing to go to their death, and no one goes to their death for something they ‘know’ to be a lie. Because of these pieces of evidence, it allows Christians to have an open discussion with Muslims and with a common background it can lead into a conversation. Knowing that the Muslim faith stemmed from Abraham’s disobedience and the baby that came of it, it is easy to understand that a long line of hatred towards Jews would be in place. The half brother was cast out and exiled away from home. It is easy to imagine how upsetting that could be. Christians are fighting a blood feud with their stepsiblings, and the teaching of love by Jesus Christ is the only way to extend an olive branch of peace.
Terrorism Strikes The United States
Prior to September 11th2001, terrorism largely seemed to be a problem that government faced overseas, not in the pride lands of the United States. The heart of New York City was struck a major blow as two planes crashed into the world trade center, one plane crashed into the pentagon, and another crashed in the fields of Pennsylvania. The fight against radical Islam came to the front door uninvited. Much like Pearl Harbor, the United States was not looking for a war, but when the time came, it truly was inevitable. As combat missions started in Iraq, and Afghanistan a military strategy was established and executed, but sadly no endgame was clearly drawn. The reason there was no exit strategy is because fighting an Idea is not as simple as fighting an organized military. Guerrilla warfare, secret meetings, and blending in with the population are all challenges faced in fighting organized terror. The long-term effect after Iraq was evident with the birth of ISIS and as they begun retaking cities one after another. The prize city of Ar-Ramadi fell to the hands of ISIS showing the vain efforts of nearly ten years of war in Iraq. The question of what was accomplished was answered, and it was very little. A country like the United States is well versed in military strategy, and very good at fighting a traditional military. The problem with terrorism is it isn’t traditional, and the Untied States has not put enough effort in learning about its enemy to truly mount a sustainable offense, or defense. After 9/11 a commission was filed to improve homeland security. This commission would end up leading to what became knows as the Patriot Act. “The principal focus of the patriot act is to provide law forcement agencies with the proper legal authority to support their efforts to collect information on the suspected terrorists, to detain people suspected of being or aiding terrorists and terrorist organizations, to deter terrorists from entering and operating within the borders of United States, and to further limit the ability of terrorists to engage in money-laundering activities that support terrorist actions.”[12] While it’s important to seek out those who want to do harm to this country, it is important to note that at the same time, it is also important to do humanitarian missions, and to build outreach so that hate, does not continue to breed hate. With only 30% of Muslims that feel that violent actions are ever necessary, that leaves 70% willing to have a conversation about the violence.[13]
Conclusion
Jesus spoke of loving your enemy and forgiving sins. The book of Corinthians, Paul explains what love is. Christians must understand the reasoning behind such terroristic acts and a decision must be made how to extend an olive branch of peace to more liberal leaning Muslims. Radical Islam does not actually have overwhelming support like much of the U.S. thinks it does. Christians must approach radical Islam with love and understanding. Christians must appeal to the hearts and minds of Muslims who do not condone the actions of those terrorist organizations, and in time, it must be liberal Muslims who deal the crippling blow to the ideology that has caused nearly the number of deaths as genocide. Together Christians and Muslims as now distant cousins can join force to defeat a common enemy. The common thread is Jesus Christ, and through the love of Christ we can work together. Jesus Christ is noted in the Qu’ran enough to make him influential, and with a little apologetic push, a common bond can be made. The radical Islamic fight is an internal struggle between warring sects of the same faith, and therefore an Islamic focused problem. With the old saying ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’ Christians and Muslims can put their differences aside and focus on a mutual threat. As ISIS and other terrorist organizations such as Al Qaeda continually threaten the lives and safety of innocent Muslims around the world, it is clear that it is imperative the two faiths come together and put nearly two thousand years of animosity aside.
Bibliography
Azumah, John A. “Challenging Radical Islam.” First Things, no. 249 (01, 2015): 33-7, http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/1645114378?accountid=12085.
Bullock, Jane A., George D. Haddow, and Damon P. Coppola. Introduction to Homeland Security: Principles of All-hazards Response. Fourth ed. Waltham, MA: Butterworth Heinemann, 2013.
Hindson, Edward E., and Ergun Mehmet. Caner. The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics. Eugene, Or.: Harvest House Publishers, 2008.
Lipka, Michael. “Muslims and Islam: Key Findings in the U.S. and around the World.” Pew Research Center. August 09, 2017. Accessed August 04, 2018. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/08/09/muslims-and-islam-key-findings-in-the-u-s-and-around-the-world/.
Lipka, Michael. “Muslims and Islam: Key Findings in the U.S. and around the World.” Pew Research Center. August 09, 2017. Accessed August 15, 2018. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/08/09/muslims-and-islam-key-findings-in-the-u-s-and-around-the-world/.
MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible. LA Habra, CA: Thomas Nelson, 2006.
McDowell, Josh, and Sean McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict: Life-changing Truth for a Skeptical World. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2017.
Strobel, Lee, and Jane Vogel. The Case for Christ: A Journalists Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2017.
Strobel, Lee. The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.com, 2000.
Wallace, J. Warner. Cold-case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels. Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2013.
Wiktorowicz, Quintan, and Karl Kaltenthaler. “The rationality of radical Islam.” Political Science Quarterly 131, no. 2 (2016): 421+. General OneFile (accessed July 22, 2018). http://link.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/apps/doc/A458267314/ITOF?u=vic_liberty&sid=ITOF&xid=2130f7b2.
[1]David Masci, “World’s Muslim Population More Widespread than You Might Think,” Pew Research Center, January 31, 2017, , accessed August 04, 2018, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/01/31/worlds-muslim-population-more-widespread-than-you-might-think/.
[2]Hindson, Edward E., and Ergun Mehmet. Caner. The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics. Eugene, Or.: Harvest House Publishers, 2008.
[3]MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible. LA Habra, CA: Thomas Nelson, 2006.
[4]Azumah, John A. “CHALLENGING RADICAL ISLAM.” First Things, no. 249 (01, 2015): 33-7, http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/1645114378?accountid=12085.
2Azumah, John A. “CHALLENGING RADICAL ISLAM.” First Things, no. 249 (01, 2015): 33-7, http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/1645114378?accountid=12085.
[5]Wiktorowicz, Quintan, and Karl Kaltenthaler. “The rationality of radical Islam.” Political Science Quarterly 131, no. 2 (2016): 421+. General OneFile (accessed July 22, 2018). http://link.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/apps/doc/A458267314/ITOF?u=vic_liberty&sid=ITOF&xid=2130f7b
[6]Hindson, Edward E., and Ergun Mehmet. Caner. The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics. Eugene, Or.: Harvest House Publishers, 2008.
[7]McDowell, Josh, and Sean McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict: Life-changing Truth for a Skeptical World. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2017.
[8]Strobel, Lee, and Jane Vogel. The Case for Christ: A Journalists Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2017.
[9]Mcdowell, Josh, and Sean McDowell
[10]Strobel, Lee. The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.com, 2000.
[11]Wallace, J. Warner. Cold-case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels. Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2013.
[12]Bullock, Jane A., George D. Haddow, and Damon P. Coppola. Introduction to Homeland Security: Principles of All-hazards Response. Fourth ed. Waltham, MA: Butterworth Heinemann, 2013.
[13]Michael Lipka, “Muslims and Islam: Key Findings in the U.S. and around the World,” Pew Research Center, August 09, 2017, , accessed August 15, 2018, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/08/09/muslims-and-islam-key-findings-in-the-u-s-and-around-the-world/.
The Arrow Preacher 