Intro to Religion

Only 40 percent of Americans can name more than four of the Ten Commandments, and a scant half can cite any of the four authors of the Gospels. Twelve percent believe Joan of Arc was Noah's wife. This failure to recall the specifics of our Christian heritage may be further evidence of our nation's educational decline, but it probably doesn't matter all that much in spiritual or political terms. Here is a statistic that does matter: Three quarters of Americans believe the Bible teaches that “God helps those who help themselves.” That is, three out of four Americans believe that this uber-American idea, a notion at the core of our current individualist politics and culture, which was in fact uttered by Ben Franklin, actually appears in Holy Scripture. The thing is, not only is Franklin's wisdom not biblical; it's counter-biblical. Few ideas could be further from the gospel message, with its radical summons to love of neighbor. On this essential matter, most Americans—most American Christians—are simply wrong, as if 75 percent of American scientists believed that Newton proved gravity causes apples to fly up.

When Adam and Eve were "born", the Djinn refused to worship Man. The ethereal beings were considered perverse and vicious, and wouldn't conform to worshipping Man, even though prophets were sent out to save them. Therefore, they were banished from the Earth and sent to live in islands far across the sea. According to the Qur'an, the Islamic Holy Book, Iblis was one of the more important Djinn. When God (Allah) ordered him to bow before Adam and prostrate himself, Iblis refused, seeing Adam as inferior to him as he was made of clay. God then cast him out of heaven until the Day of Judgement came upon the Earth. It is We Who created you and gave you shape; then We bade the angels prostrate to Adam, and they prostrate; not so Iblis; He refused to be of those who prostrate. (Allah) said: "What prevented thee from prostrating when I commanded thee?" He said: "I am better than he: Thou didst create me from fire, and him from clay." Qur'an 7:11-12 Iblis was cast out of heaven and given the title of "Shaitan", roughly translated as "evil" or "devil". He defiantly claims that if the punishment for his act will be witheld until the Day of Judgement,

he will try and stray as many of Adam's descendants off the path to their deity during his period of respite. God accepts this as Iblis says, and lets him and his children roam the earth to test the wills of Adam's children. The rest of that story says he was sent to earth with Adam and Eve after he was able to lure them into eating the apple. On the Day of Judgement, it is assumed that Iblis will be sent to Jannaham, the Islamic form of Hell.

King Suleiman

To support its erring doctrines, the Watchtower organization (which is the author and teacher of all official Jehovah's Witness theology), has even altered the Bible to make it agree with its changing and non-Christian teachings.

They are strongly encouraged to have friends and acquaintances that are only JW's, thereby keeping outside examination to a minimum

. They are told to shun those who leave their group

Service in the armed forces or any form of allegiance to government is prohibited

Blood transfusions, along with ingesting blood, are considered wrong, as God said the soul is in the blood. Bone marrow transplants are left to the individual conscience