I often wonder how many are really followers, and how many are only doing it because their government makes them, or they are bullied into attending, I would be willing to bet a good number would leave the faith if they were freely able to do so without consequences. DD
Even if you say 100 million people. That still leaves over a Billion Muslims, with over 12 Million converting to Islam per year. Must be a real scary number for you and ATW.
I don't think any leaders are forcing people to go to mosques if thats what you mean. I bet there are plenty of people who are Muslim just in name (myself included) all over the world, including the Middle East.
It is not scary, I mean lots of clubs have come and gone in popularity over the years, I am sure all those people worshiping the Egyptian God Ra had lots of new members too. Islam will die out, so will Christianity, just like Summarians, Babylonians, Greek, Romans, every previous religion.....they will all go the way of the dodo ...and the sooner the better. What would be interesting is to see the education level of each religion - lots of poor and uneducated people in the Middle East call themselves Muslim, because they sort of have to... DD
That is not what I am talking about, I am saying there is pressure to go - because it is expected - so I contend a lot of folks around going to just get along with their neighbors or goverment rather than have a fervent belief. DD
I have been to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, and India. I can safely say that the phenomenon you are talking about is non existent. No one goes to the Mosque because they are afraid of what would happen if they don't. In fact from what I have heard about some countries such as Egypt, Turkey etc, is the fear of being labeled as an extremist if they DO go to the mosque (or keep a beard, etc)
Apostasy in this case would be someone who claims to be Muslim but then later converts to another religion and denounces Islam. It could also describe someone who reject parts of the Quran and alters the religion in a way that it fitting for himself. For an issue that supposedly prescribes death to apostates, surely it would be outlined in the Quran right? The Quran outlines the basics and fundamental principles and for something punishable by death should be mentioned in Quran, but it isn't. I personally know an apostate and he is a friend of mine, I have no animosity towards him. It wouldn't make sense for a crime punishable by death to be open to interpretation.
http://hypnosis.home.netcom.com/iq_vs_religiosity.htm A good link showing the correlation between IQ and religious belief. And Brown - many Islamic scholars disagree with your viewpoint about Apostasy. Either way, it is an individual choice that people make. I certainly do not have to agree with it - I can respect the man without respecting their choice. DD
Good graph showing the IQ levels of folks who think religion is important versus those who do not. It is not a coincidence that the people who value religion the least are significantly more intelligent. DD
I totally agree with that. The graph represented average IQ though, but I think you are absolutely right in that it represents a lack of education moreso than intellect. DD
This right here proves to me that you know nothing about Mosques, Islam, or the life of most Muslims.
lol...i dont know if you are just saying these things to piss off adeelsiddiqui, but i really hope you don't believe that people are forced to attend mosques in iran.
