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Gary Patton

"Islam, How it works" - 0 views

  • It is a comprehensive system regulating all areas of life. There is no separation between religion here, politics there, law there — therefore none between Islam and Islamism, either. Islamism is not an abuse of Islam, because Islam is different from our worldview.
    • Gary Patton
       
      Many Muslims don't like the terms 'Islamism' and 'Islamist'. They say the former confuses a political ideology with a religion and, the latter confuses a moderate Muslim with a violent Jihadist. This expert argues there is NO need to make a distinction because there is none needed because they all mean the same the same! Oh my! Are Westerners being 'conned' by liberal, politically-correct media terminology when they use Islam/Islamism distinction? Is it really Muslim taqiyya (dissimulation)? gfp (2011-10-27)
  • the Islamic norms and values system regulates the living together in Muslim societies far beyond the religious realm in the narrow sense of the word: without Islam they could not work at all.
  • you needn’t be an Islamic scientist to analyze the sociology of Islam.
    • Gary Patton
       
      One may not need to be an Islamic scientist. But, given the danger of western cultural biases that the author mentions below (highligted in red), westerners may NOT understand Islam and the Islamic mind. A further danger is that violent Jihadists use taqiyya (dissimulation) to launch and perpetuate proganda lies. gfp (2011-10-27)
  • ...22 more annotations...
  • the role of religion in the social fabric of Islamic societies is quite different from that of Christianity in ours. Islam does not only relate humans to the hereafter, like all religions do, and determine what is good and evil, but it also defines what is legal or illegal in a juridical sense, legitimate and illegitimate in a political sense, true and untrue in an empirical sense. Islam is, so to speak, the DNA of its societies: not only a religion but a social system.
  • Religions shapes the system of culturally valid and (by socialization) internalized pre-assumptions about issues such as truth, justice, morality, ethics, society, or violence; i.e. all the assumptions that precede actual political thinking.
    • Gary Patton
       
      This a dangerous key to Westerners' failure to understand Islam & what we, not Muslims, have labeled Islamism. Islamism is distinguished in the West from Islam as a political ideology. Islam, itself, is a political ideology. gfp (2011-10-27)
  • these assumptions are not just shared in Islam
  • We use a certain terminology fit for describing our own culture, but not fit for that of Islam.
    • Gary Patton
       
      This is very wise observation. Given this crucial point, the imporatnt question that arises is how do non-Muslims guard against the trap of cultural misalignment mistakes. I believe only Jesus Followers are eqipped to do this consistently and well because the power of Holy Spirit is available to us when we choose to walk in it and Him! (Galatians 5:16 &25) gfp
  • the widespread assumption in this country under which we perceive Islam — that all religions are equal or “want the same thing” — is misleading.
  • Islam does not generally outlaw violence, not even in a strictly moral sense.
    • Gary Patton
       
      This is a demonic opposite of Jesus' commands to His Followers to be non-violent and wage peace ...not war. e.g. Matthew 5:38-45 However, when dealing with criminality, violent Muslim jihadism or other activities by which people can be harmed, Jesus did not tell us to hold our peace and be passive D.O.O.R.M.A.T.S. (Dependent Order Of Really Miserable And Timid Souls). e.g. Matthew 23:23-33
  • Blaise Pascal once said. “Jesus let himself be killed, Muhammad himself killed”.
    • Gary Patton
       
      With even more contarst, I'd suggest: "Jesus teaches His Followers to wage peace and allowed Himself to be murdered; Muhammad teaches his followers to wage war and himself murdered others!" ~ gfp '42™
  • Violence in Islam has a structuring function: it makes a difference between above and below, i.e. master and slave, men and women, believers and unbelievers. Islam doesn’t define peace as a universal principle.
  • The Islamic concept of society is based on the division of humanity into “believers” and “infidels” — and Islam leaves no doubt that the “infidels” sooner or later have to disappear in history. “Good” in the ethical sense, is what is good for the spread of Islam; “evil” is any opposition to it
  • No, “Islam” means, in friendly translation, “devotion” and less friendly, “submission”. The word is derived from the same word-root as “Salam” (peace), but it is not a synonym.
  • it creates a tacit social acceptance of violence, provided it is directed against the “infidels”, even among those Muslims who are not individually violent.
  • Jihad is not just war. It includes anything Muslims do to bring the world under the law of Allah.
  • Therefore, I conceive Islam as a Jihad System.
  • the Koran refers in the latest, the Medinan suras — which are in any doubt, the decisive — relatively little to the “greater” jihad, the struggle for one’s own faith, compared with the struggle against the “infidels”, the so-called “lesser” jihad which is crucial in these suras.
  • Islam rejects the notion of a universal ethics by which all people have equal rights, no matter what religion they belong to, or peace as a matter of principle. Such views contradict not only the teachings of Islam, but its basic structure.
  • Islamism is only the political side of Islam, that is, in fact, no degeneration, but a part of this religion. The Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan has said quite rightly that there is no radical and no moderate Islam, but only Islam.
    • Gary Patton
       
      Succintly put!
  • The idea of an Islam without Sharia law is absurd, that would be — not like soup without salt, but like soup without water. Therefore, Islamists are quite correct when claiming to be in harmony with the Prophet and the Koran. And consequently these Islamists are not socially isolated, but very respected for their strong faith and respected members of the Islamic community.
  • Couldn’t there be an Islamic Enlightenment
    • Gary Patton
       
      Dr. Tawfik Hamid, among others including some Islamic scholars, would agree this is possible and fight at risk to their lives for its arrival. Tawfik argues that there is a big difference between fundamentalist, Qur'anic Islam, correctly interpreted, and what is promoted by all Islamic judicial jurisdictions. So Muslims who feel like Dr. Hamid are very much alone among the approximately 3.5 billion Muslims world-wide. His Website is www.tawfikhamid.com where he operates as a Muslim "voice calling in the wilderness".
  • Firstly, I repeat: That would undermine the basis of Islamic societies. Therefore, there is enormous social pressure which prevents this. Secondly, Islam itself is already in some ways a kind of “enlightenment” as Islam has questioned anything in Christianity that is paradoxical and dialectical, sometimes incomprehensible, and to bring it to a simple formula:
  • was our Reformation something moderate?
    • Gary Patton
       
      Some prominet & well-known Christian writers argue that the Christian "Reformation" actually reformed very little of what was and still is variants of what is really paganism. They document from a variety of historical sources, including the Christian Bible, that pagan practises are what are practised on Sunday morning by most traditional Protestant denominations in addition to both the Roman & Orthodox Catholic Churches. Pastor Frank Viola's book, where you can learn more about this thesis, is called "Pagan Christianity". Reverend Viola argues that Christians are NOT pagans, but their traditional Western churches and church practises are. gfp (2011-10-27)
  • in Islam, as a “back to the roots”, means just the opposite, emphasizing the validity of the political model of the original community of the Prophet, whose political profile I’ve already described.
  • there are already first indications of an Islamist turn of these revolutions,
    • Gary Patton
       
      Some of my Muslim Friends who live in Canada make an even scarier case than this author. My Friends are well-tuned to accurate sources of Muslim and other information other than the politically-correct and often-leftist, western media. These Friends argue that all the current talk about Arab Spring democracy rising from the ashes of Afghanistan, Egypt, Tunisia, and as I write, Libya is absolute and utter nonsense. One well-informed Friend says that the prior leader of Al-Qaeda in Libya has returned to the devastated country and is firmly in control of most anti-Qaddafi forces. Al-Qaeda people will win any election held in Libya in the coming months, according to him. No commentator or group that I've heard or read at this writing, including the internationally-respected and knowledgeable Stratfor, the geo-politcal analyst group, has yet to even hint at this reality. That the terrorist Muslim Brotherhood will engineer the same coup in Egypt is being suggested in some quarters, already. I sense the same radical Jihadish coup will take place in Arab countries, possibly even Saudi Arabia, all across the Middle East and North Africa. And I bet it will be accomplished under the noses of Western political leaders who will pay for and host the forthcoming elections at great expense to western taxpayers to extend democracy. Duh! I also sense a modern Muslim Caliphate is in the birth canal of the 21st century with Satan as both the father and mid-wife. I'm awaiting with interest to see what the living God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will allow and whom will be the wet-nurse, anti-Christ whom emerges to lead it. (Turkey's Ardogan is already in the running according to some experts.) gfp (2011-10-27)
Gary Patton

The Cloak of Antichrist in Bible Prophecy - 0 views

    • Gary Patton
       
      Don't miss the outline and my annotations below because this book argues that Satan's favourite disguise when appearing to human beings is in the form of 'religion'. If this be Biblically true, as the author attempts to prove, then organized religion in all it forms, not just Islam, is the REAL enemy that Ephesians 6:12 says every Jesus Follower fights against as his/her most dangerous foe, not people, at http://diigo.com/0jl35">http://diigo.com/0jl35" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://diigo.com/0jl35. (I'd argue if the author is correct, that Islam is our greatest physical adversary but traditional, organized religion of every stripe, including Christian denominations, is our potential, greatest spiritual enemy in the last days i.e., read the Book of Jude. gfp (2012-01-15)
  • He really doesn't carry a pitch fork and have a long red tail and two horns.  Yet, he is a master at disguise.  Got any ideas of his favorite?  Masquerade, that is?  
  • satan is in disguise -- even in the Garden of Eden.  The reason?  Because that is how he appears before humanity.  
  • ...27 more annotations...
  • His best disguise?  Religion.
  • the "bomb throwers" of Islam are not the aberration of true Islam; but rather, they are the actual root.
  • The Bible gives us "identifiers" to be able to locate him.  They are called "antichrist." 
  • Whenever the antichrist identifiers are present, satan is present. 
    • Gary Patton
       
      The author means Satan's influence is present in the form of his diabolical power exercised by his troops, demons. Only Almighty God is everywhere-present, all-powerful and all-knowing according to the Bible.
  • When antichrist is present, satan has left his "fingerprints" behind. 
  • Since its inception in the 7th century AD, Islam has waged holy war, jihad, against anyone who stood in its way. 
    • Gary Patton
       
      Jihad is an Arabic word that describes the peaceful or violent expansion of Islam as "the only way" as stated in the Constitution of the Muslim Brotherhood. This monstrous and multiple-tentacled organization was founded and is headquartered in Egypt. It operates stealth-jihad organizations funded by Saudi Arabian, Wahhabi-sect money in every non-Muslim democracy and other country in the world according to experts in Islamic terrorism like Raymond Ibrahim and Tawfik Hamid. However, most Westerners fear AlQaeda the most. In the statements of all violent Jihadists and their groups directed at European or American audiences, they maintain that the terrorism they inflict on the West is merely reciprocal treatment for decades of Western and Israeli oppression. (The common term used by many American politicians for this is "blowback".) Yet in writings directed to their fellow Muslims, their hatred is presented, not as a reaction to military or political provocation, but as a product of religious obligation. For instance, when addressing Western audiences, Osama bin Laden used to list any number of grievances as motivating his war on the West. These included, among others, from the oppression of the Palestinians to the Western exploitation of women, and even U.S. failure to sign the environmental Kyoto protocol. All these were designed to be intelligible from a Western perspective and mask their real intent using taqiyya, Qur'anic approved "liefare". However never once, according to Raymond Ibrahim, did bin Laden justify Al-Qaeda's attacks on Western targets simply because non-Muslim countries are infidel entities that must be subjugated ...as violent Jihadists read the Qur'an. Indeed, he often initiates his messages to the West by saying, "Reciprocal treatment is part of justice" or "Peace to whoever follows guidance". Regrettably, he means something entirely different from what his Western listeners understand by words such as "peace," "justice," or "guidance." Wes
  • All of these wars are spiritual in nature-- not political.  Islam is one of two world empires that has waged holy war against Jews and Christians. 
  • The Bible calls him, Abaddon, the Hebrew name for "destroyer."  Islam calls him, al-Mahdi, "master of the sword," and the "long awaited one."
    • Gary Patton
       
      al-Mahadi or "Twelfth Imam" In Shi'a Islam, al-Mahdi will come at the end of days to bring the world to Islam for Allah. he will arrive in the midst of man-created world chaos or cause it after his arrival. His followers are called "Twelvers". The top government leaders of Iran and the real leaders, the "Mullahs" are Twelvers and based on a secret, recent video they released to their military and others, they believe only chaos will bring him back to earth. Joel Rosenberg, author of "The Twelfth Imam", and others argue they wish to expedite the Madhi's return by raining nuclear chaos on the Middle East i.e., on Israel, thereby creating the necessary ingerdients for his return. Sunni Muslim theology also includes a belief in, plus an eschatological* expectation of, the "Twelfth Imam" or the Mahdi, according to Mr. Rosenberg. * es·cha·tol·o·gy (sk-tl-j) n. 1. The branch of theology that is concerned with the end of the world or of humankind. 2. A belief or a doctrine concerning the ultimate or final things, such as death, the destiny of humanity, the Second Coming, or the Last Judgement.
  • To Christians, he is the last "false prophet, i.e., the Antichrist.  To Shia Islam, he is al-Mahdi. 
    • Gary Patton
       
      Sunni Muslim theology also includes a belief in, plus an eschatological* expectation of, the "Twelfth Imam" or the Mahdi, according to Mr. Rosenberg.
  • The chapters below are not final, but drafts that eventually made their way to final form in the recently published book.
  • Islam, as a religion, somehow survived the death of the one so crucial to its existence.  Against all odds, Islam grew to be a voracious kingdom in an unbelievably short period of time.
  • seven separate periods in Islamic history begin.
  • Think about it.  Ten horns, seven heads, and ten diadems; and, Islam fufills both counts.
  • In the Last Days, Islam's Last Caliphate will arise.  Led by Muhammad al-Mahdi, an Alliance of ten muslim nations or groups will unite. 
  • all Islam will unite under Muhammad al-Mahdi.
  • the "revived Caliphate," will usher in the Last Days.
  • This chapter will reveal another detail of Revelation 17's scarlet beast.  The beast is al-Mahdi; the empire is the Revived (and last) Islamic Caliphate. 
  • Don't think for a moment that "Babylon" identifies this harlot as modern Iraq, and the ancient city of Babylon
  • The harlot is wealthy, and she has made the merchants of the world rich and great from her "wine."
  • What is the one substance that the entire world cannot do without?  The woman?  Find the highest "towers" in the land of Islam and you will find the harlot who has built them. 
    • Gary Patton
       
      The author is VERY knowldgeable about the Christian Bible, Islam and history. His analysis is VERY well developed and suggests "wine" is oil and "the woman" is Saudi Arabia and her predecessors.
  • Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam.  The owner of the world's largest proven oil and gas reserves. 
  • We move to the final stages of the Last Days as an Alliance of nations is prophesied to attack Israel.  The leader of the attack is named in prophetic scripture: "Gog."  He is "prince" of the "land of Magog," and the leader of three "nations" from the land of Magog, "Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal." 
  • nations of the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, including Iran, Turkey, Ethiopia, Armenia, and Libya. 
  • This chapter will interpret Russia to be the key nation in this Alliance against Israel, along with Iran as the lead nation from the Middle East.
  • A most important element of this victory is not that the Muslim nations of the world are defeated, but that the Spirit of God is "poured out upon Israel," an event that can only be fulfilled with the return of Jesus Christ, and Israel's acknowledgment of Jesus as Messiah. 
  • The time of tribulation has arrived, a seven year period the Bible describes as a "time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time" (Daniel 12:1). 
  • Satan and his agents will have their way until God extends His sickle and pours out His wrath upon the "sons of disobedience." 
    • Gary Patton
       
      In his book, "The Pre-Wrath Rapture of the Church", Marvin Rosenthal, outlines a powerful, Biblical analysis of the Old and New Covenants regarding when the so-called "Rapture" of Jesus Followers takes place. Mr. Rosenthal concludes from his well-documented, clear, easy-to-understand and graphics-supported analysis that the commonly-believed "Pre-Tribulation Rapture" theological position of most North American Bible teachers is inaccurate and not supported by a careful Biblical analysis. You can read a short, well-done summary of Mr. Rosenthal's thesis by another Bible teacher at http://diigo.com/0mhvg.
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    This book argues that Stan's favourite disguise when appearing to human beings is in the form of 'religion'. If this be Biblically true, as the author attempts to prove, then religion is against what Ephesians 6:12 says every Jesus Follower fights against as his/her most dangerous enemy. gfp (2012-01-15)
Gary Patton

"Freedom From Rituals, Rites and Rules of Religion plus Human Regulations" - Bible Gateway - 0 views

  • Colossians 2:6-20
  •  
    "Freedom From Rituals, Rites and Rules of Religion plus Human Regulations" In Colossians 2:6-20. The Apostle (Sent-Out-One) Paul clearly explains why the above is true and why Jesus condemned the "traditions of the Elders in Matthew ?.
Gary Patton

» Did Paul Found a New Religion Called "Christianity?" TaborBlog - 1 views

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    This article, I sense, is probably written by a Non-Follower of Jesus. He is a prominent archeologist. GFP. (2013-01-09)
Gary Patton

Islamic violence, Great thinkers of the world and their warnings about - 0 views

  • Great thinkers of the world and their warnings about Islamic violence
  • This is the Communities at WashingtonTimes.com.
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    Here's what wise men of the past have thought about Muhammad and the religion which he spawned onto the world that has resulted in untold deaths that probably exceed those on any other dictator in all of history including Hitler and Stalin. GaryFPatton (gfp '42™ 2012-10-?)
Gary Patton

Andrew Sullivan: Christianity in Crisis - The Daily Beast - 0 views

  • Not the supernatural claims that, fused with politics and power, gave successive generations wars, inquisitions, pogroms, reformations, and counterreformations
    • Gary Patton
       
      I'm not so sure the Bible documantation of Jesus' miracles are responsible for the horrors Mr. Sullivan seems to attribute to them.
  • What does it matter how strictly you proclaim your belief in various doctrines if you do not live as these doctrines demand?
  • And more intensely relevant to our times. Jefferson’s vision of a simpler, purer, apolitical Christianity couldn’t be further from the 21st-century American reality.
    • Gary Patton
       
      Is using Matthew 5:13-16 to justify spending one's time in so-called "social action" really Biblical? Are we wise attempting to get worldly people to obey what they cannot and do what only Jesus Followers are commanded? Does it not seem a waste of time and energy better spent "making disciples" (Matthew 28:18-20) ...one on one (2 Timothy 2:1-2)... God's clearly commanded plan?
  • ...14 more annotations...
  • evangelical Protestants who believe that religion must consume and influence every aspect of public life
    • Gary Patton
       
      Please note my questions in the e-Sticky Note above in this paragraph.
  • The crisis of Christianity is perhaps best captured in the new meaning of the word “secular.” It once meant belief in separating the spheres of faith and politics; it now means, for many, simply atheism.
  • you’ll find a small room containing an 18th-century Bible whose pages are full of holes. They are carefully razor-cut empty spaces, so this was not an act of vandalism. It was, rather, a project begun by Thomas Jefferson when he was 77 years old.
    • Gary Patton
       
      Some would argue that President Jefferson was the R-E-A-L founder of the current "Jesus Movement" of Bible reductionists. Or a kndred spirit of the "Red Letter Christians".
  • Christianity has been destroyed by politics, priests, and get-rich evangelists. Ignore them, writes Andrew Sullivan, and embrace Him. 
  • Christianity in Crisis
    • Gary Patton
       
      "What does it matter how strictly you proclaim your belief in various doctrines if you do not live as these doctrines demand? ", the writer asks. That's about as difficult a question as one can ask a so-called Christian. gfp (2012-04-11)
  • the unilateral prohibition of the pill
    • Gary Patton
       
      Given the Catholic "Doctrine of Infalibility", "unilateral" is the right word and one all Catholics are expected to obey.
  • The hierarchy was exposed as enabling, and then covering up, an international conspiracy to abuse and rape countless youths and children.
  • Inequality, poverty, even the torture institutionalized by the government after 9/11: these issues attract far less of their public attention.
  • the mainline Protestant churches, which long promoted religious moderation, have rapidly declined in the past 50 years. Evangelical Protestantism has stepped into the vacuum, but it has serious defects of its own.
  • many suburban evangelicals embrace a gospel of prosperity
  • Others defend a rigid biblical literalism
    • Gary Patton
       
      If an omnipotent, supernatural God cannot keep His own words to humankind accurate over time, is He really a God that should be worshipped by Mr. Sullivan? There is a great deal of documented proof for the accuracy of the Bible with Scripture documents available from a time when the eye witnesses to what Jesus said and did were alive and active. Does Mr. Sullivan really believe that the first Apostles and early Christians agreed to be tortured and killed, horribly, for lies in forged documents as they were for most of the 270 years after Jesus died? And if you feel the documents were forged after the eye witnesses died, please reflect on my opening question.
  • Still others insist that the earth is merely 6,000 years old—something we now know by the light of reason and science is simply untrue.
    • Gary Patton
       
      Is Mr. Sullivan really calling as witnesses the same science and it's so-called experts at proving their theories by replicating them that hasn't been able to produce one single shred of evidence for its sacrosanct "Theory of Evolution". Is he really criticizing estimates of the earth's age on the basis of Biblical dating by calling geologists as testamentarians who use the dating of fossils by archeologists to date their rocks when those same archeologists often date their fossils from the rock layers in which they are found. Some science that, eh?
  • Evangelical Christians
    • Gary Patton
       
      I agree that torture is unBiblical and something a Jesus Follower should NEVER condone to be used under any circumstances ...never mind the proven fact that it is a totsaally unreliable way to get accurate information. However, Jesus isn't yet finished conforming me to His character as well as His likeness any more than He is the people who support this barbarism. But, I have the promise of the loving, living God that He is doing so in His way and His timing documented in Romans 8:28-39! Any so-called Christian who's not seeing him/herself becoming more like Jesus "as time goes by" is probably not one!
  • Jesus never spoke of homosexuality or abortion, and his only remarks on marriage were a condemnation of divorce (now commonplace among American Christians) and forgiveness for adultery.
    • Gary Patton
       
      Jesus doesn't have to speak on every moral issue condemned in the Old Covenant and He did say He had come to fullfill it! Does Mr. Sullivan really see Jesus condoning the homosexual behaviour that is rampant now on TV while He still loves and died for the sin nature and sins of it's practitioners? How can Mr. Sullivan suggest the antiviolent God-man who deplores murder is not appalled by abortion ...let alone the malevolency of "Partial Birth Abortion" that is practised by so-called healers all over Canada and in many U.S. States.
Gary Patton

Persecution : Voice of the Martyrs - 0 views

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    The behaviour of Street Muslims in Muslim-dominated Pakistan puts to a lie that country's alleged freedom of religion and the peaceableness of Islam. gfp (2012-02-16)
Gary Patton

How Islamic Can Christianity Be? - The Gospel Coalition Blog - 0 views

  • My wife and I had been working with Muslims for years and were aware of this training, commonly referred to as the Insider Movement.
  • when I first read about Insider Movements, I had the same reaction she did. I was hopeful and excited.
  • Could this be the tool that causes a spiritual awakening in the Muslim world? Over time, as we continued our ministry to Muslims in the Middle East, I realized the answer to my question was "No, it will not."
  • ...28 more annotations...
  • The Insider Movement (IM) remains a hot topic in missions circles.
  • This issue is extremely complicated and extremely important, making it difficult to write about.
  • Rebecca Lewis, a proponent, defines the IM as follows: Insider movements can be defined as movements to obedient faith in Christ that remain integrated with or inside their natural community. In any insider movement there are two distinct elements:
  • This definition is broad and can be interpreted many different ways---which is one of the difficulties in pinpointing the teachings of the movement.
  • those opposed to IM seem to assume that proponents are syncretistic heretics.
  • The IM advocates I've met are wonderful people.
  • They are winsome, intelligent people who love the Lord and want to see Muslims saved.
  • we need to address the dangerous practices within the movement, which varies to some degree from person to person and country to country. Therefore, my critique may not apply to all IMs. Nevertheless, the following key issues need to be addressed.
  • many other IM advocates believe the gospel can be found within the Qur'an, if you correctly interpret the text. But the gospel cannot be found in the Qur'an, because the Qur'an did not come to us through the inspiration of God as found in the Bible.
  • There is also an arrogant attitude---almost imperialistic---involved in this assertion.
  • IM practitioners seek to keep new followers of Jesus within their socio-religious networks. For support their cite various texts in the Bible (1 Corinthians 7:17-24, 9:19-23; 2 Kings 5:15-19). Therefore, a Muslim who follows Jesus remains a Muslim.
  • I agree that Muslims who follow Christ shouldn't be required to take on the name "Christian."
  • We find among many IM advocates a belief that Islam can be redeemed---we should not abandon the religion but rather change it from within and welcome it into orthodoxy.
  • How Islamic can Christianity be? Can a Muslim who now follows Jesus fast during Ramadan? Can a Muslim who follows Jesus use the Islamic prayer stances? Where do we draw the line? These are tough questions.
  • While the word Christian can have a very negative connotation among Muslims, encouraging MBBs to retain the title "Muslim" can be confusing at best and deceptive at worst. Advocates for using the title "Muslim" argue that it literally means "one who submits to God." This is semantically true. However, the word connotes much more---namely, one who follows the religion of Islam by confessing, "There is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet."
  • Some argue that God used Muhammad to bring monotheism to the Arabs---a kind of John the Baptist for the Arabs. This is a dangerous concession.
  • Rejecting Muhammad as a prophet does not require denigrating him before Muslims; it means we should not say more than necessary.
  • We can be respectful and identify the positive contributions he made to society without agreeing that he is a prophet.
  • How Islamic Can Christianity Be?
  • I never encourage MBBs to retain the title Muslim. Nor do I encourage them to take the title Christian.
  • Recent Bible translations for Muslims have created a frenzy by moving "Father" and "Son" language about the Trinity from the text to the footnotes.
  • What if the only understood meaning is physical and sexual? How do we translate without losing or grossly misrepresenting the biblical meaning?
  • the decisions about how to make the Bible comprehensible in other cultures are not easy or made lightly.
  • Some in the IM prefer to talk about Muslims "entering the kingdom of God" as opposed to "joining" Christianity.
  • We should view as suspect any form of church planting that does not seek to connect believers with the universal body of Christ and promote unity.
  • emphasis on the kingdom of God can downplay the importance of the church.
  • Missionaries and academics have wondered aloud whether the problem extends beyond Western politics, military intervention, and spiritual bondage to the very way we present the gospel. Could our methods be to blame? Could more sophisticated contextualization unlock many more hearts for Christ?
  • we can introduce Muslims to Jesus through the Qur'an
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    This article explains the dangers of what's called the "Insider Movement" i.e. evangelizing Jesus Followers using the Qur'an and telling Muslims they can follow Jesus while remaining part of Islam. The article is written by a couple who have shared Jesus', not Isa's, love wit Muslims for many years in the Middle East. gfp (2012-05-21)
Gary Patton

Prime Minister of Canada Eid Greetings - 0 views

  • the following remarks
  • the moderate, benevolent, true face of Islam
    • Gary Patton
       
      Mr. Harper mis-speakes when he says this. This is simply not true about the R-E-A-L Islam (Real-Enervating-Abysmal-Loathsome). "There are moderate Muslims but no such thing as moderate Islam!" ~ Ibn Warraq, Pakistani author ("Why I Am Not a Muslim (1995)) The "true face of Islam", as one who was raised as and lives with Muslims says above, is not "moderate" (nor can be as you'll understand better reading on). It is definitely not "benevolent" or "just" or peaceful, as some try to argue. The "true face of Islam" is anyone can discern quickly by skimming through an English version of the Arabic Qu'ran. The face portrayed of Islam in the a-Hadith is even more brutal. Islam's true face is the way women and religious minorities are being treated in countries around the world where Shari'ah Law i.e., Islamic law is brutally enforced ...often by Religious Police, as In Saudi Arabia or the military in countries like Egypt or Pakistan. Which Muslim-dominated country in the world believes in and protects the equality of women? The equality, tolerance of, and state protection from wholesale murder for members of non-Muslim religions? The freedom to change or leave one's religion without being stoned or otherwise murdered for apostasy? Where a homosexual or even an effeminate man will feel safe? Or an evangelist for any other faith except Islam? Not one of them. Islam and its Shariah Law is incompatible with traditional, moral Western values of democracy, diversity, freedom and tolerance. gfp (2011-11-24)
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    This statement reads to me like an apology to Muslim Canadians after the Prime Minster received considerable "blowback" for earlier, public remarks that he made about Islam. The earlier uproar came after his speaking truth on 2011-09-07 in an interview with the CBC for the 10th Anniversary of 9/11. (See a video of his talk with Peter Mansbridge, OC (1948- ) Canadian broadcaster & CBC news anchor at http://diigo.com/0koug.) During that interview when asked about the biggest threat to Canada's national security, Mr. Harper responded it was "Islamism" (He inadvertently mispronounced it "Islamicism" a non-word). That blowback came from leftist academics, liberals, and supporters of violent jihad, disguised as Islamic clerics, scholars and jurisprudents both from within and outside Canada. Therefore, he adopted a politically-correct stance in his "Greetings" to the assembled Muslim and other dignitaries at "Eid on the Hill" in Ottawa on 2011-11-23 . But he goes to far in his pandering and spoke untruth as I note in my e-Stick Notes attached to the Press Release attached. gfp (2011-11-24)
Gary Patton

Muslim Persecution of Christians January, 2012 : Stonegate Institute - 0 views

  • Muslim Persecution of Christians: January, 2012
  • General Abuse, Debasement, and Suppression of non-Muslims as "Second-Class Citizens
  •  
    Here's only some of the bloodbath documentation of world-wide murder of those of other religions or none by both Islamists and so-called moderate Street Muslims. gfp (2012-02-09)
Gary Patton

Luther's 95 Theses - 0 views

  • Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences
  • Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences
  •  
    Here's what Master Luther nailed up on the Church door at which prompted a splintering of the Roman Catholic Church and the birth of Protestantism during what became known as "The Reformation:.
Gary Patton

"What The Body of Christ Looks Like" - Bible Gateway - 0 views

  • All of you who were baptised “into” Christ have put on the family likeness of Christ.
  • Galatians 3:26-29
  • Gone is the distinction between Jew and Greek, slave and free man, male and female—you are all one in Christ Jesus.
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • you are true descendants of Abraham, you are true heirs of his promise.
  •  
    "What The Body of Christ Looks Like" Galatians 3:26-29 spells out clearly what "the Body of Christ" looks like. GaryFPatton (gfp '42™ 2012-10-15)
Gary Patton

NASB - For I delivered to you as of first - Bible Gateway - 0 views

  • For (A)I delivered to you [a]as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died (B)for our sins (C)according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was (D)raised on the third day (E)according to the Scriptures, 5 and that (F)He appeared to (G)Cephas, then (H)to the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some (I)have fallen asleep; 7 then He appeared to [b](J)James, then to (K)all the apostles;
  • ---Amuzgo de Guerrero (AMU)--- Amuzgo de Guerrero   ---العربية (AR)--- Arabic Bible: Easy-to-Read Version Arabic Life Application Bible   ---Awadhi (AWA)--- Awadhi Bible: Easy-to-Read Version   ---Български (BG)--- 1940 Bulgarian Bible Bulgarian Bible Bulgarian New Testament: Easy-to-Read Version Bulgarian Protestant Bible   ---Chinanteco de Comaltepec (CCO)--- Chinanteco de Comaltepec   ---ᏣᎳᎩ ᎦᏬᏂᎯᏍ (CHR)--- Cherokee New Testament   ---Cakchiquel Occidental (CKW)--- Cakchiquel Occidental   ---Čeština (CS)--- Bible 21 Slovo na cestu   ---Dansk (DA)--- Bibelen på hverdagsdansk Dette er Biblen på dansk   ---Deutsch (DE)--- Hoffnung für Alle Luther Bibel 1545 Neue Genfer Übersetzung Schlachter 1951 Schlachter 2000   ---English (EN)--- 21st Century King James Version American Standard Version Amplified Bible Common English Bible Complete Jewish Bible Contemporary English Version Darby Translation Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition Easy-to-Read Version English Standard Version English Standard Version Anglicised GOD’S WORD Translation Good News Translation Holman Christian Standard Bible J.B. Phillips New Testament King James Version Knox Bible Lexham English Bible The Message Mounce Reverse-Interlinear New Testament New American Standard Bible New Century Version New International Reader's Version New International Version New International Version 1984 New International Version - UK New King James Version New Life Version New Living Translation Orthodox Jewish Bible Today's New International Version Worldwide English (New Testament) Wycliffe Bible Young's Literal Translation   ---Español (ES)--- La Biblia de las Américas Dios Habla Hoy Nueva Biblia Latinoamericana de Hoy Nueva Traducción Viviente Nueva Versión Internacional Nueva Versión Internacional (Castilian) Palabra de Dios para Todos La Palabra (España) La Palabra (Hispanoamérica) Reina Valera Contemporánea Reina-Valera 1960 Reina-Valera 1995 Reina-Valera Antigua Traducción en lenguaje actual   ---Français (FR)--- La Bible du Semeur Louis Segond Nouvelle Edition de Genève – NEG1979 Segond 21   ---Κοινη (GRC)--- 1550 Stephanus New Testament 1881 Westcott-Hort New Testament 1894 Scrivener New Testament SBL Greek New Testament   ---עיברית (HE)--- Habrit Hakhadasha/Haderekh The Westminster Leningrad Codex   ---हिन्दी (HI)--- Hindi Bible: Easy-to-Read Version   ---Hrvatski (HR)--- Croatian Bible   ---Kreyòl ayisyen (HT)--- Haitian Creole Version   ---Magyar (HU)--- Hungarian Károli Hungarian Bible: Easy-to-Read Version Hungarian New Translation   ---Hawai‘i Pidgin (HWC)--- Hawai‘i Pidgin   ---Íslenska (IS)--- Icelandic Bible   ---Italiano (IT)--- Conferenza Episcopale Italiana La Nuova Diodati La Parola è Vita Nuova Riveduta 1994 Nuova Riveduta 2006   ---Jacalteco, Oriental (JAC)--- Jacalteco, Oriental   ---Kekchi (KEK)--- Kekchi   ---Latina (LA)--- Biblia Sacra Vulgata   ---Māori (MI)--- Maori Bible   ---Македонски (MK)--- Macedonian New Testament   ---मराठी (MR)--- Marathi Bible: Easy-to-Read Version   ---Mam, Central (MVC)--- Mam, Central   ---Mam, Todos Santos (MVJ)--- Mam de Todos Santos Chuchumatán   ---Plautdietsch (NDS)--- Reimer 2001   ---नेपाली (NE)--- Nepali Bible: Easy-to-Read Version   ---Náhuatl de Guerrero (NGU)--- Náhuatl de Guerrero   ---Nederlands (NL)--- Het Boek   ---Norsk (NO)--- Det Norsk Bibelselska
  • 1 Corinthians 15:3-7
Gary Patton

ISLAM World Fastest Growing Religion, PART-3 - YouTube - 1 views

  •  
    A video featuring on the recent growth of Islam especially among young women with an average age of 27. GaryFPatton (gfp '42™ 2012-12-04) Satan obviously has implemented a major new push given the "spiritual" revival that Holy Spirit has inspired among GenY.
Gary Patton

"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" | Jeremy Myers - 1 views

  •  
    "Jonathan Edwards is widely considered to be America's greatest theologian, which I find terribly disturbing. Who could heap such praise him upon for ideas such as this? (See what Edwards thought about children.) It seems from such statements that Edwards knew not God, nor Jesus Christ who has revealed the Father to us (John 14:9; Col 1:15)."
Gary Patton

The Barna Group - Are Christians More Like Jesus or More Like the Pharisees? - 1 views

  • 20 statements
  • used to examine Christ-likeness
  • I listen to others to learn their story before telling them about my faith. In recent years, I have influenced multiple people to consider following Christ. I regularly choose to have meals with people with very different faith or morals from me. I try to discover the needs of non-Christians rather than waiting for them to come to me. I am personally spending time with non-believers to help them follow Jesus.
  • ...13 more annotations...
  • I see God-given value in every person, regardless of their past or present condition. I believe God is for everyone. I see God working in people’s lives, even when they are not following him. It is more important to help people know God is for them than to make sure they know they are sinners. I feel compassion for people who are not following God and doing immoral things.
  • 10 statements used to assess self-righteousness (like the Pharisees)
  • I tell others the most important thing in my life is following God’s rules. I don’t talk about my sins or struggles. That’s between me and God. I try to avoid spending time with people who are openly gay or lesbian. I like to point out those who do not have the right theology or doctrine. I prefer to serve people who attend my church rather than those outside the church.
  • I find it hard to be friends with people who seem to constantly do the wrong things. It’s not my responsibility to help people who won’t help themselves. I feel grateful to be a Christian when I see other people’s failures and flaws. I believe we should stand against those who are opposed to Christian values. People who follow God’s rules are better than those who do not.
  • Christ-like in action and attitude
  • Christ-like in action, but not in attitude • Christ-like in attitude, but not action • Christ-like in neither
  • The findings reveal that most self-identified Christians in the U.S. are characterized by having the attitudes and actions researchers identified as Pharisaical. Just over half of the nation’s Christians—using the broadest definition of those who call themselves Christians—qualify for this category (51%). They tend to have attitudes and actions that are characterized by self-righteousness.
  • On the other end of the spectrum, 14% of today’s self-identified Christians—just one out of every seven Christians—seem to represent the actions and attitudes Barna researchers found to be consistent with those of Jesus.
  • About one-quarter (23%) of evangelicals are characterized by having Jesus-like actions and attitudes, which was higher than the norm
  • Looking at America’s evangelical community—a group defined by Barna Group based on its theological beliefs and commitments, not self-identification with the terms “evangelical”—38% qualify as neither Christ-like in action nor attitude
  • Evangelicals are notably distinct from the norms in two ways: first, they were slightly more likely than other Christians to be Christ-like in action and attitude.
  • in the “middle ground,” with so-called jumbled actions and attitudes, evangelicals are the only faith group more likely to be Pharisaical in attitude but Christ-like in action.
  • The research shows that non-evangelical born again Christians and notional Christians were not much different from one another and not too distinct from national norms among all Christians.
Gary Patton

The Western Wall Excavations, Jerusalem - Google Maps - 0 views

  •  
    WOW! The new Street View treatment of Jerusalem by Google Maps is incredible. At these links, one can spend hours "walking around" in the Old City and among its excavations. gfp (2012-04-23)
Gary Patton

NASB - Woe to those who call evil good, and - Bible Gateway - 0 views

  • Woe to those who
    • Gary Patton
       
      A Jesus Follower's escape from God's wrath and death is because we are "in Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:17-21) when we enter the next life plus, being also in Christ in this one, we confess our sin moment-to-moment (1 John 1:9).
  • Isaiah 5:20-21
    • Gary Patton
       
      Isaiah 5:20-21 outlines the behaviour of those in what the Bible calls "the world", i.e., every human being (Romans 3:23-26 & 6:23). The Bible makes clear this group includes even Followers of Jesus because sometimes we live out of our flesh by not "walking in the spirit". (Galatians 5:16-19 & 25) God punishes all who disobey His laws because His character of "justice" demands consequences be extracted ...even given His character of grace. Jesus Followers, who truly "fear God" (Proverbs 1:7 & 2:1-7) have an escape from the clear wrath of God and eternal separation from His presence. The guaranteed wrath of God is indicated by His use of the strong Hebrew word translated as "woe". gfp (20120-4-19)
  • And clever in their own sight
    • Gary Patton
       
      But those in the world have exactly what He charges we must not do withot consequences. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We also have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbour's possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honoured values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. (Note 1) And Isaiah 5:20-21 makes clear at that the above is the behaviour of those in what the Bible calls "the world", i.e., every human being (Romans 3:23-26 & 6:23). The Bible makes clear this group includes even Followers of Jesus because sometimes we live out of our flesh by not "walking in the spirit". (Galatians 5:16-19 & 25) God punishes all who disobey His laws because His character of "justice" demands consequences be extracted ...even given His character of grace. Jesus Followers, who truly "fear God" (Proverbs 1:7 & 2:1-7) have an escape from the clear wrath of God and eternal separation from His presence. The guaranteed wrath of God is indicated by His use of the strong Hebrew word translated as "woe". A Jesus Follower's escape from God's wrath and death is because we are "in Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:17-21) when we enter the next life plus, being also in Christ in this one, we confess our sin moment-to-moment (1 John 1:9). If you are not in a close, personal relationship with Yeshua (Jesus), I beg you for your eternity's sake plus to ensure your ability to live an abundant life now, to ask Jesus to save you. Call out to the Son of God from your heart of hearts, acknowledge that is truly Who He is and ask him to forgive all your
  •  
    Isaiah 5:20-21 outlines the behaviour of those in what the Bible calls "the world", i.e., every human being (Romans 3:23-26 & 6:23). The Bible makes clear this group includes even Followers of Jesus because sometimes we live out of our flesh by not "walking in the spirit". (Galatians 5:16-19 & 25) God punishes all who disobey His laws because His character of "justice" demands consequences be extracted ...even given His character of grace. Jesus Followers, who truly "fear God" (Proverbs 1:7 & 2:1-7) have an escape from the clear wrath of God and eternal separation from His presence. The guaranteed wrath of God is indicated by His use of the strong Hebrew word translated as "woe". gfp (20120-4-19)
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